After navigating an unusually crowded Colfax on Tuesday, I was able to make my way into a packed to hear play two raucous, heavy rock sets.
Indeed, the volume coming from Warren Haynes’ multiple guitar amps and bassist Jorgen Carlsson’s double stack seemed to shake the entire theater. Mule is a four piece, also featuring keyboardist Danny Louis and drummer Matt Abts, but at its heart, the band is all about the classic rock power trio.
Yet despite the fiery distorted guitar and bass tones, much of the first set had a relaxed feel. After the one-two punch of “Mr. Man” and “Mr. High and Mighty,” Warren relaxed into the bluesy vibe of “Endless Parade,” following with his reggae take on the Al Green song “I’m a Ram.”
Late in the first set, Mule tipped a double nod to the Grateful Dead, first with Haynes’ tribute to Jerry Garcia, the soulful “Patchwork Quilt,” on which Haynes employed a slide and delicate fingerpicking on his Gibson Les Paul, and then a long jam on “Forsaken Savior” that had Haynes and his cohorts teasing the Dead classic “St. Stephen.”
After a short break, Mule returned for a stylistic journey that moved from the reggae-ish groove of “Scared to Live” through the fiery classic rock take on the traditional Celtic folk song “Railroad Boy,” (a song that was popularized by Joan Baez), and into the slow blues of “Wine and Blood.”
Haynes seemed to be in a feel-good mode all night. During “Sco-Mule,” he started to boogie on stage over Abts’ pounding rhythms and Carlsson’s deep bass lines before picking up the funky melody line that comprises the song.
On the encore, Hayne delivered a double classic cover, first with the Faces’ “Stay with Me,” in which he did an admirable job of approximating Rod Stewart’s husky voice while staying in a lower register, and then on “Take Me to the River,” wherein he ripped into fiery guitar solos in between each verse. It was classic Haynes, and the audience ate it up.
SETLIST
Set 1
Mr. Man, Mr. High and Mighty, Endless Parade, I’m a Ram, Game Face, Patchwork Quilt, Forsaken Savior, No Reward
Set 2
Scared to Live, Railroad Boy, Wine and Blood, Sco-Mule ->Drums-> Child of the Earth, Thorazine Shuffle ->Funny Little Tragedy-> Thorazine Shuffle, E: Stay with Me, Take Me to the River
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is a Denver freelance writer/photographer and regular contributor to Reverb. When not writing and shooting, she plays guitar and violin in Denver band .
