(4) Dustin Hoffman - 05/28/2025 vs. (5) Madhuvan - 12/12/2025

Love this Madhuvan but this Dustin ruuuuuules. So patient and effortless. Funky and blissy. Peter crushes with the atmospheric sounds leading up to the final jam. Super cohesive.

Did anyone catch the Lorde/Royals tease from Rick from 19:50-20:10 in Dustin? He runs through the lick twice and then the proceeding jam kinda sorta keeps the theme. Really fun stuff.

Love both of these. I listen to this DH a lot. But I think that this Madhuvan is underrated, it's my #3 Madhuvan of the year after the two big dogs. I think it's excellent.

Glad that attendance bias isn’t winning out here. Dustin and Torero are going to be good jam vehicles. Glad to see it moving on

This was a really close matchup for me. I give the edge to this Hoffman though. It has a more natural and satisfying flow than this Madhuvan. I feel the whole band is more cohesive in Hoffman, while Madhuvan feels like The Rick Show at moments. Still not crazy about this Hoffman though.

WHAT IS THIS THAT STANDS BEEEEFORE ME?? Black Sabbath Madhuvan all the way RIP Ozzy

Not to kink shame, but some of your freaks are absolutely wild supporting this Hoff over this Madh.

Monster bliss Madh in the top 2 Gmas25 performances vs. the year’s second-best Hoff.

I dig where this Hoff goes, and I’ve listened to it a ton this year. But this Madh has eveything I want in a jam, and is why the 🫠 emoji exists.

Can’t tell which is actual or forced bliss my friend. I think both are pretty weak selections here. DH for me mostly cuz I don’t see a thing I like about Madhuvan. DH by default.

Actual bliss vs forced bliss, who will you choose?

This Dustin clears by a longshot. Madhuvan is nice tho, no disrespect. Just can't hold a candle to this Dustin which is top notch bliss

Echoing @jlf92857 this Mad is #2 for me after GR, even though I originally rated it higher. Goosemas was just so incredible and Mad was at the center of the theme. But I voted for Dustin

Dustin here for sure, but blissful (in general) - especially when it comes to Madhuvan don’t compute in this house.

Dustin MSG was the best of 2025

Hoffman all the way. This Madhuvan is certainly beautiful and skillfully executed. But, first, I think the back half of this Hoffman is more beautiful and more skillfully executed. And second, as I've said elsewhere, this Madhuvan just wasn't as exciting to me because it sounded so similar to previous jams--e.g., the third jam in Toronto Pancakes. (Side note: How the heck is this Madhuvan ranked as high as that Pancakes? The Pancakes does this Madhuvan as its third act after two super-creative jazz segments.)

This Hoffman gets better every time I listen to it. The first jam is stone-cold cow funk, which I enjoyed because Goose rarely goes there these days. And the second jam is a perfectly emotive bliss piece. One of my favorite aspects of the second jam is how slow and deliberate Rick's playing is until the final push. It reminded me a bit of the Oakland Elizabeth 9/26/23 in that way. Each note is purposeful and perfectly placed. Again: Early summer 2025 showcased some of the band's most patient and deliberate playing from the entire year. The Boise Rosewood is the crown jewel IMHO, but there are so many good examples (Bend Thatch, SF Big Modern, Vegas Hoffman, etc.).

This Hoffman rules so hard.

Seems we've finally reached the point of *anti* Madhuvan bias because there are just so many in the bracket ... I'm not upset about this Hoff likely winning, but don't forget how gorgeous this Mad is. Easily my Goosemas highlight. Maybe a hot take but if a jam similar to this one came out of a different song I think it's seeded higher and maybe advancing.

But the GOAT Hoffman thus far deserves a spot in the sweet 16.

This is my second favorite Madhuvan after GR. Like the DH a lot but think this Mad is under appreciated. Multi segmented and to my ears creative throughout

Dustin wins here and it should not be close. Goosemas madhuvan is great stuff and was very enjoyable, and I hate to make this type of comment but at this point there are many bliss jams with this type of rick tone in them and out of all of them, I think this is one of the least special, and not a jam I find myself wanting to relisten to. Also, brief shrek theme at 16:10 mark.

This Dustin is my JOTY and deserves an easy W. The beginning and middle sections are extremely enjoyable and engaging, and they slowly, perfectly progress into my favorite bliss jam of the year. While we have heard this “emotive” type of playing from Rick many times (mission ballroom Arcadia, Philly tumble are two immediate examples) I think that every single time he gets into one of these emotional segments, he delivers in a new, exciting way. So many people this year acting like the new cool thing to say is that jams that are not enjoyable to the ear and make us feel anxious or just bad in general are the best jams and everyone who likes bliss jams has no idea what they’re talking about. For some of us, moments in jam music that make us feel the way this Dustin jam does is what keeps us coming back, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Some people like when music makes them feel happy??

The SF Hoff just barely missed my top 64 and the Goosemas Mad ended up at #44. Maybe it was attendance bias but I prefer the blissy Madhuvan.
Rick’s tone on this Madhuvan is spectacular. I’m so happy that sharp 2023 Rick tone is long gone.

I went Hoff but either of these is a great pick.

I didn't have either of these ranked anywhere nearly as high as the were seeded.

I see these jams on roughly equal footing. Whichever you pick, you're not wrong.

After a careful side-by-side, maybe just due to the mood I'm in, I give the slight edge to SF Hoff. That Summer '98 cow funk-adjacent first half and the stunning Dragonfly second half combine to make for a package I find holistically pleasing (one of my most enjoyed and most listened to jams of the year) even if not breaking any new ground

In The Year of Madh this one kind of gets buried even though incredible. Shout-out Rick taking full advantage of Bogie being off the stage for a few minutes. Bro crushed this one.

Every time I listen to this Hoff, its stock goes up a few points. I do like this Madhuvan... but I also like the one from Atlanta, and the one from Cleveland, and the one from Milwaukee, and the one from Grand Rapids. While I have the one from Michigan in the finals and winning it all... I'm all for mixing it up a little in the last few rounds.

Dustin for the win

Voting mads in the year of mads

Love the Madhuvan, and like it more than the Milwaukee Mad that fetched a #1 seed... def attendance bias and it was super meaningful but this Dustin deserves to go through.

Big blissful dusty hoff all the way. Way too much attendance bias love from people on this Mad

GDI I'm gonna have to make a gametime decision here