Widespread Panic @ Radio City Music Hall, July 23

Widespread Panic met a bit of a harsh reality in performing at the storied Radio City Music Hall for the first time since July 21, 2007. In stark contrast to their last visit - which was packed with excited folks bouncing off the rafters - the band played to spotty attendance and a largely unenthusiastic crowd. Probably a third of the first mezzanine contained vacant seats and it just got progressively worse as you went up from there. As a result, the energy of the performance ebbed and flowed.

[All photos by Adam Kaufman]

The band played tight throughout the night, but with three new songs that the crowd met with stillness and curiosity as opposed to open arms, the excitement lacked significantly at times. The first set opened with a Heroes > Pleas > Imitation Leather Shoes segment that allowed the band to find both their chops and the lay of the land, but it really wasn't until the John Bell-led Airplane - a bittersweet crowd-pleaser, as it's a quintessential song of the late Michael Houser - that the crowd warmed, particularly for the funky JoJo Hermann-led clavinet section.

Beyond Airplane, the band kept it textbook for the remainder of the first set, but the Protein Drink/Sewing Machine closer finished the stanza on a high note. Sewing Machine also got the JoJo treatment, providing a theme for the evening, anytime JoJo's sound got out front in the mix, the band shined. Otherwise, they felt a bit uninspired, which you can't fault them for, as the NYC crowd brought their "B" game on this night.

READ ON for more of Ryan's thoughts on last night's show…

Of the new material, Saint Ex and True to My Nature blurred into the setlist in relative obscurity, but the apropos Jaded Tourist - a new song that I thought for sure would open the show given its easy relevance to New York City - stood out as a second set highlight with its festive dixieland feel. I think this the best track on Dirty Side Down.

To say Panic came out with guns blazing to open the second set would be false, but perhaps with pistols loaded. A familiar Diner got finally got the crowd a primed before the show's ultimate highlight.

As the band wound down Impossible, a stage hand wheeled out an upright case adorned with a skull and crossbones, which meant one thing: DJ Logic. As Sunny Ortiz and Todd Nance built their percussive improvisation to booty shaking heights, Logic injected the crowd with a much needed sugar buzz and ultimately turned the place electric. Staying on for Love Tractor, Bust It Big, and Arleen, Logic didn't exactly steal the show, but for all intents and purposes, he saved it.

From Drums on, they felt more inspired and the crowd reciprocated, wrapping the second set on a strong note with I'm Not Alone and Solid Rock, before returning for a quickie encore of Henry Parsons Died, presumably due to the fact that it was about five minutes to midnight.

The show ended with a catharsis stemming from the feeling that they pulled it together and salvaged a decent show. Something just felt off early on - with the poor attendance and lack of excitement in the seats - but all-in, Widespread Panic put it together for a nice second set. It's no secret that the northeast is not the best place to see Widespread Panic, but there's no shortage of true fans around and they've played some great shows in NYC over the years.

Frankly, Radio City probably wasn't the right venue for them this time through, especially in the summer. With so many free and outdoor options to see great music in NYC, spending sixty dollars to go to Radio City seemed a little foolish, which was probably the root of the issue. Nevertheless, this show had its moments. This performance won't live on forever as anyone's all-time favorite, but with a knockout sit-in from DJ Logic and a top-notch Airplane, Widespread Panic turned out a good time, as they always do.

Set 1: Heroes > Pleas > Imitation Leather Shoes, True To My Nature, Angels On High, Airplane > Pilgrims, St Ex, Protein Drink > Sewing Machine

Set 2: Flicker > Diner > Stop Breaking Down Blues, Jaded Tourist > Impossible > Drums* > Love Tractor* > Bust It Big* > Arleen* > I'm Not Alone, Solid Rock

Encore: Henry Parsons Died