(6) Factory Fiction - 06/06/2025 vs. (11) Red Bird - 06/28/2025

I went with FF, it's just a more satisfying jam to me. Doesn't bother me that it's "disembodied" ha.

Both of these jams are really cool. Hard choice here but went with Red Bird, love the theme of the jam and the little dark weird space at the end. Solid groove throughout.

I'm with Cpt_Inc on this one. I fully expected this to be a relatively easy FF choice, but I liked the Bird more than I remembered (also guilty of being a Red Bird guy) even though it could have used another 5-10 mins of exploration. I also found that the FF didn't work nearly as well as it did a) live, and b) outside of the context of the set. I would absolutely vote for the RR n1 S2 as one of my favorite sets of the year, but not this portion of FF on its own - not a proper JotY. I love both jams, but going with the bird here.

Does do Fiddlers FF a disservice to pluck it out of a special integrated second set which was one of the greatest second sets all year. This second half of FF does not hold up well alone thus I’m voting for this very cohesive great sounding Bird

The whole back end 2nd set of Fiddlers is nut. Finishes the sandwich for FF and Echo of a Rose. Will be voting for both for sure.

Beginning of this factory fiction jam sounds like they are constantly about to go into a slowed down welcome to the jungle

I like this Bird more than most and this FF less than most. Would put them at a similar footing (they were both 7-seeds in my rankings).

Being the Red Bird guy that I am, and knowing it is going to get utterly creamed in this round, I'm tossing out a supporting vote for this wondrously weird and transcendent Bird that could have truly soared if Goose had leaned in for just a few more minutes.

The last few minutes of this bird are incredible, also like the funk leading into it. This FF though is an absolute MONSTER, even if you don’t include the first part of it to me it’s a top 5 jam from this year. By far the best jam of the summer.

Pretty indifferent on this one - two great yet different jams!

I actually really enjoyed the MSG Redbird. I wish it was longer. The evil marimba thing was super cool.
This Factory however blew my socks off live and continues to amaze me upon my easily 30+ relistens This thing is a monster and way under seeded. Others have brought it up but it’s worth repeating. This FF is like a more chaotic GR Madhuvan, similar evil goose formula but a bit more disjointed. Great jam and an easy vote.

Fiddlers night 1 set two was the best set of the summer.

Which factory Fiction is in the running, the first (13 min) or the one at the end of the set (17 min)?

FF easily. Most interesting set of the year IMO.

I picked a MSG over a Fiddler's yesterday, today that is not the case. Attendance bias admitted for Fiddlers, but this FF sandwich was part of what I believe is a top 5 set for Goose in 2025. From the low rider teases in the first portion to the dark and demented second half - it rocks. Red Bird is nice too, very good bass work all over it. But this FF is getting my vote all the way

It was purely a factory psycho killer of a rose fiction.. that entire 2nd set is JOTY territory including AEIOU. Interesting for sure. It’s all good. Not sure what else to say here, but it is for sure a jam. Gets my vote at least, but this one is a thinker for sure. It was insane in person and holds up via audio, but regardless my vote goes to FF. Great Birdy though

The last 5 ish minutes of this Red Bird is some of my favorite jamming last year. I love how they utilize the marimba to make this sick percussive dark and gloomy exploration. My biggest hope for next year is that they will take this idea and add on to it making it a more a complete jam, if they do deliver, I believe it could be something really special. Despite all my love for this section, it is a little too skimpy to take down this FF.

This FF jam is a direct descendent of GR Madhuvan. It radiates evil and chaos whilst delivering it with a way of clarity and control that hasn’t been seen since February.

As I much as I love this Red Bird, it feels more like a sample of innovative jamming that will hopefully be built into a full meal in the future.

I'm kinda confused as to exactly what part of Factory Fiction made the cut. The back end is what's linked on the playlist, but just the tail end jam doesn't make sense to me. Paired with the front half from earlier in the set… absolutely. As a stand-alone jam with little-to-no context… sorry, not working for me. It's a great jam, and a phenomenal way to close out that huge Set Two from Colorado (that also included that bracket-worthy and super-funky Tumble, an AEIOU, that awesome Echo>Psycho Killer>Echo sammich, etc…), but without the front end and the rest of the set to support it… it's kinda spinning its wheels. Easy decision to move this Red Bird from MSG on. While I don't feel it's quite as good as the 2/7 Red Bird (and probably on par with the “boat horn” Cleveland Reb Bird from 6/20), it can move on to fight EMG in the next round.

The factory fiction is awesome and this 2nd set of Fiddlers N1 is my favorite of the year but the FF is part of the set. Standing alone it is solid but not top tier.

The red bird is the highlight JAM from MSG. And much more interesting throughout.

Only shows I was at this year were Fiddlers, so in voting for the upset here, I believe I am being more than fair

Going FF here and it wasn't very close for me, mainly because this Red Bird is pretty pedestrian for a JOTY bracket. I think I had it ranked at no. 109. There is a moment when the jam got dark and I was like "oh hell yes dark bird time." But then it kinda fizzled. It's okay. Goose has set the bar pretty high. But it's a shame that this jam took up space in the bracket over some WAY better dark jams like the Burlington Rockdale, MKE Empress, and Louisville EMG.

While I tend to rank the '94-Phish/chaos jams lower than others on this forum, this FF is still super badass and shows the band's willingness to push boundaries, even at big shows.

I'm guessing the people who like to make up false "MSG attendance bias" narratives (such as just yesterday for Thatch) are a little quieter about that today?

Love both of these. Red Bird might low key be my MSG highlight. But this FF was special and the highlight of one of the best sets of the year.

This FF intro is 🔥💃🔥

Red Bird from MSG was maybe the improv highlight of the night, but this chaotic Factory to end a super psychedelic set at Fiddlers N1 deserves to go through.