Brent's Recs, Vol. 5: Marathon Edition

Recommending the very best live King Gizzard audience recordings.

Thank You, Tapers!

As creator of the King Gizzard Live Spreadsheet and KGLW.net collaborator, Brent (@Gizzhenge here, /u/(yebrent) on Reddit) has a valid claim to having listened to the most live King Gizzard of anyone (outside of the band themselves and their touring crew). These recommendations are the best combination of complete recordings, in high quality, of the band in their top form.

King Gizz has performed eight marathon shows since 2020 with a ninth, and 1st European Marathon, coming up in Hamburg, Germany. The three 2022 Red Rocks marathon shows are well known as the recordings were released as part of the official bootlegger program. This month’s edition of Brent’s Recs is a mini-guide to the other five lesser listened to marathon shows, none of which have soundboard recordings available. All five shows do have complete audience recordings, some better quality than others. It's 15 hours of music, so prepare yourself accordingly.

February 21, 2020 - "Bush Fire Benefit Marathon," Croxton Park Hotel, Naarm (Melbourne), VIC, Australia

This is a great recording from Christopher Jacques (3000 Tapes). The Archive.org version was uploaded by Jim Sullivan, likely after some audio engineering as it sounds a bit better than the version on YouTube. This was the first-ever King Gizz marathon show and was a fundraiser for a local wildfire disaster recovery. Unbeknownst at the time, this was Eric’s final show and the final show before the pandemic lockdowns of 2020. The big first set highlight has to be the 12+ minute Her and I (Slow Jam 2), with a must-hear little jam that kicks off around the 6:50 mark. I also really love The Great Chain of Being, People Vultures, and Muddy Water in set 1. Second set only gets better with rarities, bustouts and jams throughout. Willoughby’s Beach and Sea of Trees reportedly hadn’t been played since 2015 and 2017, and the jams/solo in Sense and Work This Time stand out as fantastic versions. Near the end of the marathon, Superbug is dedicated to the Coronavirus and is fortuitously followed by Hell.

March 5, 2022 - "Return of the Curse of Timeland," Burnley's Reunion Park, Naarm (Melbourne), VIC, Australia

This is a decent recording, especially considering it was made on a MiniDisc by Tim before being enhanced a bit by Sammy B. Willickers’s YouTube channel. This is probably the roughest recording of any of the marathon shows, but still worth a listen for diehard live Gizz junkie weirdos like me. Hopefully a high-quality recording will surface one day. Magenta Mountain, Garden Goblin, The Dripping Tap and Soy-Protein Munt Machine are live debuts, and the band released a pro-shot version of the Magenta Mountain. Muddy Water w/ sax jam and Sea Trees -> Trapdoor w/ flute jams are 1st set standouts. Trapdoor hadn't been played since 2016. The 2nd set has a pair of wild drum solos, including one in the closing Rattlesnake as the rest of the band destroys the Big Ben clock decorating the stage.

May 6, 2022 - Frontón México, Mexico City, Mexico

These are outstanding recordings from Mystery Jack. There are also high-quality video recordings from Jorge Gradillo: Set One, Set Two. This feels like an underrated show with one of the liveliest Gizz crowds captured on audio and video. The show has so many highlights, but the 1st set Mr. Beat -> Persistence and 2nd set River are what I come back to most. I could gush about so many more highlights, like some of the better Magenta Mountain, Work This Time and Dripping Taps ever played, but I'll let you comment on why these versions deserve more attention.

October 2, 2022 - William Randolph Hearst Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA, USA

This is a high-quality recording from Zachariah Boes. There is also an outstanding recording from Mystery Jack and great video from Must Have Media. This show is probably the best sounding recording of any of the marathon shows not at Red Rocks. The biggest highlights might be the opener and closer, The Dripping Tap and Am I in Heaven?. The first set Blacktooth and Ice V debut were big treats as was the jammy 2nd set Presumptuous, Sleepwalker and Iron Lung. Other highlights include Leah Senior narration on the increasingly rare Lord of Lightning and The Fourth Colour bustout, having not been played since 2019.

June 21, 2023 - Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, CA, USA

There are a bunch of fan videos of the Hollywood Bowl marathon show, but if you want the best audio, this is is an outstanding recording from Captainentropy. It opens with the lovely tribute to Broderick Smith and a suite of ultra rare Eyes Like The Sky songs, along with Broderick’s recorded narration. This show is also remembered for its bombastic closing set of jammy songs with Iron Lung -> Hypertension, Magma and The Dripping Tap making up the last 50+ minutes of the show. The synth heavy songs like The Grim Reaper, Magenta Mountain and Shanghai are also high points in a show full of high points.

Links to these and future Brent's Recs, highlighting the very best King Gizz audience recordings will be at King Gizz Live Spreadsheet. Make a recommendation for the next edition in the comments.

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