SHINE (Pre-SPIRIT CARAVAN) - May 18, 1998

Shine – May 18, 1998

Lawrence, Kansas, The Bottleneck

Obsessed By Doom

It’s been a while since I’ve posted any live shows, so here’s a true gem—a full performance of Shine, the band formed by doom guitar legend Scott “Wino” Weinrich (of St. Vitus fame) after the demise of The Obsessed. After only one release in 1997, the Lost Sun Dance (b/w “Courage”) 7” single, trademark issues forced Shine to change their name to Spirit Caravan. Spirit Caravan went on to issue two albums before calling it a day in 2002.

This show was at the end of a short run of dates opening for Clutch. I got to The Bottleneck early to sit down for an interview with Wino, who was extremely gracious and in great spirits. When Shine hit the stage, I was the only person in front of the stage to soak in the power of Wino. How strange was this? Here was Wino performing to a Clutch crowd that was later filled to capacity, and not one person apparently knew that one of the godfathers of doom and stoner metal was in their midst!

During their 47 minutes, Shine proceeded to level The Bottleneck with an 11-song set that featured “Courage” alongside four other songs (“Healing Tongue”, “Cosmic Artifact”, “Melancholy Grey”, and “Powertime”) that later appeared on Spirit Caravan’s 1999 debut album Jug Fulla Sun. A healthy dose of songs from The Obsessed’s last album in 1994, The Church Within, were crushing: “Streetside”, “To Protect And To Serve”, “Streamlined”, and “Skybone”. To close the show, a crushing version of “The Way She Fly” from The Obsessed’s self-titled 1990 debut album was followed by a spirited rendition of The Animals’ classic from 1966, “Inside Looking Out”.

You have here this rare, complete set from Shine. This recording has remained uncirculated until now, and there is only one other complete live recording of Shine that I know to exist. Transferred directly from the original master VHS-C tape, the sound quality is excellent despite some tape hiss. There’s a rip in the audio and change in sound quality near the end of “Streetside”, likely due to a change in the tape speed while recording. The start of “Courage” also has a sonic glitch where a few seconds are sped up, probably an artifact from the digital transfer. These are just minor flaws, and any fan of doom and stoner metal should consider this download mandatory. Yes, I have the video of this performance, but, alas, this will have to wait due to the continued suspension of my YouTube account. The artwork was created using these screenshots from the video. I do have some pictures from the show but have been unable to locate them at this time.

The set list details are below the download link here. Again, please do me a favor and share the link to this post rather than just the download link.

Shine – Obsessed By Doom

May 18, 1998

Lawrence, KS, The Bottleneck

mp3@192 kbps, 65.4 MB, zip file includes artwork

1. Streetside – 3:16

2. Healing Tongue – 2:50

3. To Protect And To Serve – 3:06

4. Streamlined – 2:18

5. Courage – 4:00

6. Cosmic Artifact – 6:27

7. Melancholy Grey – 6:09

8. Powertime – 3:35

9. Skybone – 4:35

10. The Way She Fly – 2:33

11. Inside Looking Out – 8:24

Total time – 47:13

Bonus “Vault” content: A friend was visiting the Washington, DC area in the summer of 1987 and brought back for me this flyer from the infamous Mentors/St. Vitus tour. Adding to the coolness is the Destruction show that would have been on the tour to support Eternal Devastation and the Mad Butcher EP!!

Wino will perform with Conny Ochs tonight, Thursday, August 16 at the Turf Club in St. Paul. Wino then returns with St. Vitus to Minneapolis on Monday, October 1 at the Triple Rock Social Club with support from Weedeater and Sourvein.