[Timothy Towns]

I attended both performances here in Boulder over the weekend.

The 5 May (Saturday) show was the Kinetics outdoor event with 30,000 in
attendance and Dishwalla opening.  This was the 23rd year for Kinetics
which is a really crazy race of multi-human powered vehicles.  I had never
witnessed Kinetics before so I really did not know what to expect.
Basically, these vehicles have to traverse a five mile course over water,
primarily, and land.  The designers generally dress up these vehicles in
all sorts of unusual ways.  This year there were a praying mantis, a dog, a
toilet bowl, and the NYC skyline among others.  Of course, of the 30 or so
entries in the race, about a third sink or breakdown within the first few
hundred feet.  :-)

I do not have a set list for this show primarily due to having to manage
kids and a camera.  Here is what I recall them playing in approximate
order:

Redneck Wonderland
Too Much Sunshine
Under The Overpass
Dreamworld
Capricornia
Truganni
Golden Age

<acoustic>
Lurjita Way
Warakurna
Blue Sky Mine
Now or Never

RiverRuns
Tone Poem
Dead Heart
Say Your Prayers
Forgotten Years
King Of The Mt.

Beds <encore>

Maybe someone will post a more exact and complete list later but since no
one had posted anything yet, I thought I would at least try.

One highlight of the show was just after the acoustic set, COPIRG (Colorado
Public Interest Research Group; one of the state PIRGs) ran a huge sign
across the stage that denounced the shipping of radio active material to
Yucca Mountain in Nevada.  Peter stood in front of the sign and went off
about how "this dangerous stuff" was going to be shipped down I-70 through
Denver on it's way to Nevada.  He ranted for a few minutes about it
encouraging folks to come up after the show to sign post cards addressed to
Colorado's senators in Washington.  One humorous item here was that Pete
got Ben Nighthorse Campbell's name wrong repeatedly.  He kept calling him
Ben Nightingale.  :-)  Whatever.  Some of the crowd got a big laugh since
Mr. Campbell is one of the biggest do-nothings in Washington.  He is an
American Indian which does a lot to keep him elected but seems to does
nothing for his political views.

I went up after the show and asked the COPIRG folks how they got MO to do
the Yucca Mt. bit and they said it was MO's idea.  Furthermore, they said
the sign belonged to MO.  They were smiling a lot as I conversed with them.

The show really rocked and there was good fan support.  Pete climbed up on
top of a speaker bank during his Blue Sky harmonica bit which caused the
fans to go wild but also generated some smiles from the band members.  :-)

The e-town show (etown.org) on Sunday was a completely different
experience.  The radio show taping requires a semi-controlled audience and
all sorts of folks wander around on stage during the taping but not during
the performances or interviews.  The Boulder Theater was completely packed,
it holds a few hundred, I would guess.  Great Big Sea from Newfoundland was
first up.  They were very upbeat, enjoyable, and showed a great deal of
talent.  I plan on picking up their latest cd, "Sea Of No Cares".

The Oils were the headliners, of course.  They came out and played the
following with an interview with Peter in the middle.  Note that all songs
were performed acoustically.

Lujirita Way
Short Memory
Golden Age
<interview>
Tin Legs And Tin Mines
Blue Sky
Now Or Never
Beds

I really enjoyed this short set.  It was such an intimate setting with the
crowd really focused on the band.  Of course, folks were focused on
Saturday as well but there were plenty of distractions like helicopters
flying over, skimpy bikinis bouncing by, and drunks fighting to deal with.

The interview with Peter covered a lot of the usual topics like Pete
running for Australian Senate but I thought it reasonably well done when I
contrast it with some of the American reviews and articles that have been
posted on this list.  Instead, of me regurgitating this interview, I
recommend that you check etown.org and find a radio station in your area
that will be carrying the show.  The e-town folks indicated that it would
be broadcast in the next four weeks or so.

It was fabulous to see the boys perform two days consecutively.  My family
was very supportive of my indulgence and for this I am indeed thankful.
Now I have a wife, 9 year old, and 14 month old who are now solid Oils
fans!  Go Oils!

Tim Towns
towns@us.ibm.com