King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard @ The Eastern

Atlanta greeted King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard (KGATLW) with a sold-out audience at The Eastern. KGATLZ is the reigning psychedelic rock jam band, or, at least the that genre band that might drop virtually any other style of music on their records or in concert. Prog? Jazz? Death metal? Surf? Garage rock? Rock rock?

And so it goes with their concerts, where they may draw upon any of their 23 studio albums (three just this month) and an ever changing set-list. It’s the kind of creativity and availability that spawns, dare I say it, a Grateful Dead type following. Just ask the guy against the rail from New Jersey, Atlanta’s show being his 17th of the year with a goal of another 13.

Their fans arrived early, in a long serpentine line that wrapped from the grounds to the sidewalk along Memorial Drive. Were they in a hurry to get to general admission area in front of the stage? No! It’s the souvenirs. The band sells a limited number of concert-specific posters at each stop which are a must-have, and savvy fans to bring their own hard shell tubes to avoid wrinkles. And after that, among the 10 or so various T-shirt sizes available, Large and XL just get gone.

The evening included 18 songs with a strong 2 hour 15min plus-set that allowed ample variety but featuring a couple of fan-favorite albums. The band played “Inner Cell,” “Loyalty,” and “Horology” from Polygondwanaland, an album they released for free access in 2017. These proggish songs are known by fans as the “Inner Cell Suite” or the “Horology trilogy” or “the best three song sequence” on any of their albums. And the band laid them down in extended version that was certain not to change anyone’s mind.

The second lingering included five songs making up the third chapter from their sci-fi apocalypse concept album, Murder of the Universe, including recorded spoken word elements. The theme about a cyborg who longs to vomit and die doesn’t necessarily translate to the live experience, but for KGATLW, it sounds great. And, they’re a great band to watch.

Across the back of the stage, drummer Michael Cavanagh and bassist Lucas Harwood are the engine room, not seeking attention but getting it anyway. Across the front of the stage, Ambrose Kenny-Smith is left, playing keyboards and saxophone. At the right is Cook Craig, playing guitar and keyboards. Both have their moments, Kenny-Smith’s oddly including frequent sax work played to the back of the stage or under his keyboard, but it’s obvious he feels what he’s playing.

That leaves Joey Walker (keyboards, rhythm and lead guitar, vocals) and Stu Mackensize (rhythm and lead guitar, vocals) at center stage. Okay, they’re not Hall and Oates, but Walker has the ‘stache and the chic-casual clothes and has a reserved stage presence, while Mackensie has the hair, flamboyance and rock star poses. So it is kind of, well, Oates and Hall. And Mackensie delivers on being the center of attention in spades.

Stu appeared to have a lot of fun. Arriving on the stage with faux fro, mustache, sideburns, and chest hair, he would gradually toss these into the crowd as the evening progressed.

A really nice fan made cloak was tossed to the stage, which he readily wore. And, there were a couple of T-shirts thrown his way, resulting him quickly tossing his gold lamé (?) top into the crowd for a bare-chested wardrobe change. Twice. It doesn’t seem like this type of crowd relationship is unique to Atlanta.

However, it was also his birthday. He was presented with a chocolate cake with an alien ornament, and in gratitude he hopped into the pit and shared the cake with his fans. Then there was a birthday card signed by 20 or so fans, and finally, and, finally, the band and assistants swarmed the stage covering him with silly string.

As hard as this band works in the studio and on the road, it’s great to see them having fun!

And the band played on, closing with two songs from their almost old album released two weeks prior. Overall, this was a great, great show, from song selection to execution. It simply blew away their hour at Shaky Knees earlier in the year, and the setlist is probably one of their strongest for favorites and general accessibility for their many fans.

And… gotta say. Bands that build a rapport with their audience gather affection, and GZATLW does that in spades.