Inspired by that '3 gigs you wish you'd been at', what eras of a bands cycle are you most glad to have caught?

I have loads:

The National @ ULU, touring Alligator: wrote about this in that thread but it really felt like 'a moment'. Fans were immense, the band seemed genuinely moved by how much love they got and the set was essentially the whole of Alligator, Cherry Tree EP and the best ones off Sad songs...

KaitO @ Southend Royal Hotel: They never played a gig after this to my knowledge but that night, to about 15 people, they played a greatest hits set and most of what would have been an utterly amazing 3rd album. Still hold out hopes that one day I'll get to hear it.

Idlewild, Faithless & Underworld @ Glastonbury 1998: The former were gathering momentum in the NME but their van got stuck in the mud. It was looking like they'd missed their slot as theaudience were starting to set up when they all marched on carrying speaker on their back, plugged in their kit and just went fucking nuts for about 12 minutes. Played the whole Captain EP in that time and some of Hope is important. Tent went mental.

The latter two had just gotten famous on the back of their summer smashes and whilst only Underworld are the only one of those two bands I still listen to now, both sets were absolutely electric. By this point the site was half empty due to flooding, sewage spills and torrential rain but I danced to both sets for 2 hours and rate them as some of the best I've ever seen.

Future of the left @ Luminaire: Right in the sweet spot where the first album material was going down brilliant with fans, the band had got the dynamic just right and the second album material was taking shape. Falco played a keyboard too. I preferred latter sets they've played musically, but that was the point that I remember most fondly.

Primal Scream @ Norwich UEA: Touring XTRMNTR. Great show. And lets face it, pretty much every other record they've done has been pretty whack.