Widespread Panic invades Orono center> Houser’s jamming competes with songs’ lyrics

The musical offspring of the Allman Brothers and the Grateful Dead kept Hutchins Concert Hall dancing Thursday night.

Widespread Panic performed a combination of muscular Southern rock and free-flowing jamming for a small but appreciative audience of 550 at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono.

The sextet from Athens, Ga., proved to be accomplished musicians, and showcased their skills for more than two hours for the largely college-age crowd. In response, about a quarter of the audience was up and dancing throughout the evening.

The Capricorn recording artists performed a cross-section of songs from their six albums during their lengthy set, but surprisingly omitted probably their biggest radio hit, “Can’t Get High.”

Vocalist and rhythm guitarist John Bell was an interesting frontman, blending Neil Young-like vocals with the spastic movements of Joe Cocker. Unfortunately, his vocals frequently disappeared into the cranked-up instrumentation in the sound mix.

The heart of the band was talented lead guitarist Mike Houser. On every song, Houser, who also offered occasional vocals, would take off on an improvisational solo, to the delight of the audience.

But the set’s strength was also a drawback. A pattern quickly formed: a verse or two of each song, followed by anywhere from three to 10 minutes of jamming, largely focused on Houser.

It was often too much of a good thing, and deteriorated into a monotonous sameness. Often 12 songs of five minutes each is a better way to fill an hour of concert than five songs of 12 minutes apiece. It would have been nice to hear more from keyboardist Jo Jo Herman and percussionist Sunny Ortiz, who were featured in somewhat limited roles.

Still the good outweighed the bad, and Widespread Panic turned out a memorable performance for many in the audience.

Opening the evening was From Good Homes, an eclectic band based in Sparta, N.J. The group played a fairly tight half-hour set with six songs from their RCA debut, “Open Up the Skies.”

The band didn’t have much room to operate, as Widespread Panic’s equipment occupied the back two-thirds of the stage. Exuberant bassist Brady Rymer and lead guitarist and vocalist Todd Sheaffer played off each other well, often duplicating the same dance step while playing. Dan Myers was often the featured soloist, playing hot licks on baritone, tenor and soprano sax and melodica.