(3) Dripfield - 02/14/2025 vs. (4) Dustin Hoffman - 05/28/2025

For the record, we have banned accounts in the past but never to the extent that we had to today. It took hours of our time. Please knock it off. And to the people who are saying “but you never did this before so people should be allowed to cheat now” I say, lol.

From Ryan Storm: “Folks! A lot of shenanigans in the Drip vs.
Dustin matchup today. We spent the last hour of the poll deleting accounts being made from the same handful of IP
addresses.
Even then it was hard to keep up with all the fake accounts being created, so we had to spend time after the poll closed banning more accounts made from the same IP and browser. A number of votes were deleted for both Drip and Dustin. The end result is a tie, which goes to the higher seed based on precedent set last year. 2/14 Dripfield will advance to the Final Four.
We only have a few days left, so let's end this year's amazing bracket on a high note!“

Wow! What happens in a tie?

Subtle, very subtle, I'm laughing out loud here... Maybe another point of feedback for Neal for future versions, additional reaction options... Mine right now --> 😂

There have been many close matchups, was this IP address check done for other matchups or randomly done for this one? And a tie goes to the better seed is a very unfortunate way to end this dusty. Idk about this one…. I think we should do another day of voting

Looks like my finances vote got scrubbed. No fraud over here intended. My finance is a huge Goose fan, but hadn’t voted up until this morning. I was so close in my decision, that she and I watched both jams. While it was still close for me, her response was “Dustin Hoffman is the better jam and it’s not even close”. So I told her she should vote then! Not a scam account, but two accounts that obviously have the same IP address.

Fire up the ol’ podcast machine and tell the people what is happening with this one! Recount? Hanging chads? Rigged votes?

if youre not holding your vote until the very end youre doing this wrong apparently

LOVE IT

How does it go from 413 votes down to 400?!?!

Were there some scam votes?

Woah, DH pulled it of!!

I woke up and DH was up by one point. Then there was a mad rush to vote for Drip. But then another EQUAL push by DH to retake the lead!

BING BONG MOVIN ON!

Good for the Dusty to win here, but snagging a ~90% vote pull on ~12 votes in the final 5 minutes for a ~50/50 full distribution vote outcome seems a little bit more going on than a statistical anomaly haha

Drip by one vote again 👀???

Originally was going with Drip, then changed to DH. Voted 5 minutes before deadline, didn't realize it was this close! Can't go wrong here.

Tomfoolery afoot....

Randomly watching this live and 4 votes all for Dusty at the same time….smells a little fishy haha

What happens in a tie?

Oh the suspense!

Dustin pleeeeeeeaseeeeeeee……….

Dusty is what I call a cross-country jam. It's good, but grindy. Never takes off. Grooves. A long taxiway. Great for running.

But Loose Goose is my favorite, and the end of this Drip is incomparable.

it's rigged for Ryan's pleasure

Went back and forth and back and forth…. Dustin Hoffman rose above!! It’s the more fluid jam, from start to finish. It just flows.

Looking back, these are the only two jams that I had voted for every round so far. There can be only one! 5/28 Hoff it is!

Literally like watching a basketball game with these lead changes

The Lazy region is like the parents' unplanned 4th child that turns out to be everyone's unpredictable, entertaining, rebellious, favorite one.

Wow???

West coast Goose can DREAM??

wow. hoff gonna pull this out????

the drip is good but the winter run of 2025 was such a different band. the hoff it is!

Easy pick for Drip here. This Hoff is nice, but is nowhere near a Final Four jam. It’s got a really well executed peak to it but other than that, it feels pretty straight straightforward and doesn’t hook me like this Drip does.

While staying very structured, this Drip is a masterclass at cohesive collaboration. Every member is moving in lockstep as this jam flourishes. Peters psychedelic and sonic guitar is what makes the first half of this jam so compelling and enjoyable. Every member continues to play great in this second jam, and Cotter does an impeccable job at driving the ship. The jam finishes with the 3rd part that I’ve dubbed “Valentines Jam,” an elegant and thoughtful segueway jam into This Old Sea. This Drip does a lot more than this Hoffman and the band is playing much more together and tight, which is why it’s an easy pick for it to move on.

Wow, three vote difference after my vote for Dripfield just now! I really love listening to both of these. This Drip was my #4 overall and I remain committed to it after relistening again to both of these.

Very difficult choice, either one is a worthy Final Four. However this Drip hits just a little harder

9 vote difference at 307. Lots of California ballots coming in late tonight. We might wake up with DH in the lead

At 300 votes there's only a 12 vote difference. Both so good!

Getting harder and harder to make a choice, with every round and every relisten, hearing something else here and there to fall in love with.

Friends, we are blessed.... 🙌🙌🙌

Thanks for the shout out Mugs! Good to know I'm not crazy, or if I am, I'm certainly not alone. Cheers!

I think I like the way Dustin sticks the landing a bit better, but quite literally every other aspect of the dripfield is better. It wasn't initially one of my favorites in the tournament, but after repeated listens I love it. Peter's guitar chops are GROSSLY undervalued, and he is ripping this jam a new one in the first half. Sheesh

Love that this is close but this is what two upsets bring. Drip was always a smidge higher so I’m going that way

5/30 Thatch was best in Lazy. But since we are here... this is the last chance for GR while Milwaukee has two in the final four... can we just accept that the FIRST run of the year was the BEST run of the year? Vote this DUSTY and put GR v Milwaukee to bed! Since the first run of the year is obviously the best run of the year (look at El Goose ratings if you doubt me) what does that say about the future? I am a devotee of 2024 and the first run of 2025 being the best just reinforces that notion... and Sometimes a Great Notion. I'm not a huge Jeff fan but 2024 was an upward trajectory while 2025 peaked in the first run. Do it, vote Dusty.

After several listens over the past couple days…. I’m still undecided!!

I think I might have to break my rule & have Goedde determine the tiebreaker.

Let’s make this DH happen, tis very nice.

Why my man drivin' sideways bruh?

This voting is a travesty.

It's REALLY close. Kudos to the seeding committee. Listened to the Dustin 3 times this week just to make sure I didn't miss anything. Then I (re)listened to the Drip ONCE. I really wanted to vote for the Dusty, but in the end I just couldn't. This massive multi-faceted Drip, combined with the tearing up of the setlist and where it fell, is freaking epic. Strange mixed feelings because I thought the NH Fish in the Sea probably should have beat this Dripfield. I love this band!

DH has the style and energy I hope will eliminate this bias in the competition on this dripfield and move on. Vote for Dusty!

masonic Dustin Hoffman gonna win. watch.

This Hoffman is my JOTY and should win easily against this drippy that should have lost last round. Hoffman is just a perfectly paced jam with a perfect build to a perfect peak / ending involving mission ballroom Arcadia / Philly tumble level guitar playing from Rick. As stated in an earlier round, they keep a nice slow tempo the entire jam which really allows them to add so much. Let’s get this right folks!

The outtro jam on this Dripfield is Arise

I love the DH groovy chill jam above all other jams this year. So Hoff for me.

These jams have been flip-flopping each other in my top 10 all year. I had this matchup in my bracket and picked Drip to move on.

I love this DH. Incredible funk jam and a lovely peak. But after re-listen of both, I’m still going with Drip.

Man, hard to vote against a slick Hoffman that includes a mid-jam Bing Bong, but I did. This Drip is superior and deserves to move on and carry the G.R. torch from that whale of a Madhuvan.

Tough match up for me. Trevor’s role in this DHoff is right in my sweet spot of a groove, but there’s no denying the heft of this Drip

I went with drip but will be relistening to this dusty jam again and again

hoffMAN is joty. deal with it

Bing Bong

Milwaukee EMG beating Grand Rapids Madhuvan for a spot in the Final Four… not what I wanted to see, but I get it.

Milwaukee Madhuvan beating Columbus Wysteria for a spot in the Final Four… not what I wanted to see, but I get it.

This Dustin Hoffman or this Dripfield advancing to the Final Four… I don't get it.

I really like them both (Dripfield was my #9 pick, Hoffman #17), but I can honestly think of at least three other jams from the Lazy Region alone that I would pick to go to the Final Four over this Drip or this Hoff. 🤦

As Ted said to Bill… “Strange things are afoot at the Circle K”.

There is just no way I can vote against a perfectly placed *bing bong*

Both of these jams flew under the radar for me, so this is the whole point of JOTY- hear some other candidates that weren't you favorites to begin with. These are both really great. Love the groove in Dusty, love the adventure in Drip. I'm voting Drip.

"This💧jam is the essence of water carving rock, slow, erosive, ebb and flow, but consitant and steady, growing and shaping its surroundings. Headphones on, eyes closed, head nodding with the groove, culminating into a sense of weightlessness. Not waiting for anything, just an enjoyable ride if you can be present and immerse for 26 minutes." Thoughtful Sunday Stew, 4 days ago

Dripfield all day here. Not a slight against an awesome Dusty, but this is the GOAT Drip that I've come across unless someone has one(s) better that I would love to give a spin this weekend!

Vastly different songs that will appeal to folks differently. The Drip is great, but similar to MKE Mad yesterday I feel like it doesnt offer as much variety, exploration and interplay as the Dustin. Bend Thatch was more on the same vein of Dripfield but imo better in most ways, but wasnt great enough to take out the SF Dustin... so why would Drip? My cynical side creeps in thinking some voters just cant get past their adoration of shows played over a year ago and want 3 of the 4 in Final to come from Winter tour to prove some kind of point. I dunno, that feels awfully cynical and Im trying really hard to stay positive in my comments and not throw anyone under the bus for having different tastes, but I havent been shocked by many of the "upsets" until Gilfish went down to Drip.

Dripfield is a high floor low ceiling song/jam for me. Same vibe (key of D) the whole time usually - hard to stand out from each other. Fun when youre there but dont hold up. This one is a little different bc its a strong type I jam. It gets pretty but thats bc its transitioning to this old sea. Drip is riding on hype more than anything to me.

Dustin really gets to a beautiful and memorable earworm place (i can hear that riff in my head now while listening to the drip) and thats plenty good enough for me here. Reminds me of those old Earthling jams but - yknow, more interesting. I learned to listen to what peter is doing when rick is just playing rhythm and that pays off here. not usually one for the 12 difffernt keyboard sounds and god forbid the drum machine but he hits a perfect undercurrent here. then the countrified bliss at the end is so pretty.

Voting Dripfield. I had both of these in my top 10 but am surprised they made it this far. Love the DH bliss jam but the 2 guitar jam in this Drip is relentless and puts it over the top. Not to mention the beautiful last few minutes that flow into This Old Sea.

Mini golfing with the fam right now no time to say much other than that it has been amazing to watch this Cinderella story of a Dustin Hoffman advance so far in this tourney

Alas it is time for this to be her swan song. The mighty 🐐 GR Drip shall reign supreme today and there is no shame in that for anyone

Respect for the Wapner ✌️

The match up we all deserved was FITS vs Bend Thatch. In light of recent voting though we have a DH that’s good but was unranked in my bracket (I still like the fiddlers one more) vs the GOAT Drip. Drip gets to advance where I expect it has a tough time against the MKE Madhuvan.

Not sure which way I’m going to vote yet. As far as this Dripfield goes it’s the performance where I thought Cotter really started owning the song . His September 2024 performance at the Greek was great as well but they still had the auxiliary percussion at that time.

Need to give the Hoffman another listen.

All in all I think the final 4 will end up being a good representation of different jamming styles and tastes across the spectrum

Voted contrarian.

In a battle of my #24 (Drip) vs. my #32 (Hoff), Drip gets the vote. I can't lie, I'm still butthurt over not having the Gilford FITS to vote for here. I respect both of these jams, but not as Final Four worthy entries. Drip gets the vote on the strength of its most special section, which is basically minute 16 forward.

The winner here is going to get demolished by the MW Madhuvan in the semis.

Still upset about Bend thatch, and this drip was my #7 overall, the Hoff I had much further down and it is now time for it to exit

Dustin Hoffman: An excellent actor and an even better jam!

Voting Drip here but I don't think either of these are F4 level jams

pour one out for Bend Thatch and Gilford FITS

It's been fun watching this vibey feel-good Hoff overperform is stature. It's an enjoyable jam that I had confessedly underrated, and it's great to get this sort of contribution from a rookie season. But it's time to bing-bong it off the island. This Drip — almost certainly the 🐐 — delivers all the JOTY trappings:* smooth transitions between multi-sectional themes, sonic breadth, and emotional energy.

I know we all have different criteria for what makes a great jam. For me, there's a huge difference between an enjoyable vibe-fest (play it at the cook-out!) and an improvisational adventure (advance it through the tourney!).

* That's not to say that I think it's the JOTY. I do not. The JOTY will come from the west, and my instinct is the northwest.

This Drip has put up impressive vote totals all tournament and is a sleeper to make it to the ship, and deservedly so.

To me it's easily the GOAT Dripfield with not much of a close 2nd. And some would say Dripfield is objectively the band's best song. Makes ya think.

This song/jam was audible'd into at set break on 2/14 because the band was feeling it. As Storm wrote in his show review the next morning, "something was in the air" on this night at GLC Live. This jam is a multi-section behemoth that kicked off one of the best sets the band's ever played. It's better and more powerful with each listen.

Admirable run from the upstart SF Hoffmann but its time should be up.

My feelings are still hurt that the Bend Thatch lost. Dripfield all the way.

im still so shocked that bend Thatch lost lmao

I voted against Bend Thatch which I had in my bracket final last round, so you better believe I’m Team Dustin all the way to the final!