The Verdict:
The band's first Wrigley Field show falls into the old 3.0 pattern of giving us three quarters of standard-runs with one (third) quarter of improv. In this case, though, it's alright with me because that third quarter is pure magic.
The first set is absolutely straightforward stadium rock. Trey digs in in particular on "Chalkdust," "Blaze On," and "Sand," but that's about it. "Miss You" debuts, which is neat.
The back half of the second set, from "Twenty Years" on, covers the same territory. But wow, the "Disease" > "Fuego" > "Twist" portion is just fantastic. "Disease" features a lot of 2.0-sounding jamming. Despite the darkness, this jam is fantastically kinetic, and eventually ramps up to a "The Dogs"-like section before fuzzing out and seguing into "Fuego." It doesn't go deep, but the outro solo from Trey goes outside its usual box and is melodically gorgeous, bridging the monster "Disease" and "Twist" jams perfectly. "Twist" starts off really mellow, as recent versions do, before ramping up and moving on to an extended jam on what sounds suspiciously like the opening chords to "Ghost." From this jam, there's a flawless move into one of the more engaging bliss jams the guys have put together, and...it's just awesome. Sure, the rest of the show (minus the "Space Oddity" encore debut) is pretty standard, but give me two hours of rote Phish if this is what the other forty minutes is like.
Just watch the whole sequence, starting at 1:47:00 here:
The Live Review:
6/24/16: Sample opener. Seems appropriate in a giant stadium.
6/24/16: Fish wearing the Bernie dress.
6/24/16: Extra-spicy Chalkdust in the two-slot.
6/24/16: Martian Monster!
6/24/16: Doing a good job of stringing together a stadium-appropriate first set so far.
6/24/16: Rift, Yarmouth.
6/24/16: Way more fun to watch the webcast in second monitor than to just listen to the audio. Makes me miss tour, though.
6/24/16: Sand! I love deep-jam Sands, but this is one of those songs that can be just as good in a solid 10-minute Type I incarnation.
6/24/16: You know, like this version.
6/24/16: Miss You is a nice cooldown after that huge Sand.
6/24/16: Miss You might not be the best live concert tune, but it's a beautiful song.
6/24/16: If you hate how 'sappy' it is, you're obviously lucky enough to have not had a lot of people you know die, or you have no heart.
6/24/16: If it's the first one, good for you! Keep being lucky. If it's the second one, good luck in your future career as a supervillain.
6/24/16: The Wedge.
6/24/16: Rocking The Wedge > Free.
6/24/16: Nice echoplex chording over the Mike bass breakdown in Free.
6/24/16: Blaze On. Solid festival-style S1 here, but I can't say I'm disappointed b/c I didn't really expect anything else.
6/24/16: They're playing really well. Bodes well for the second set.
6/24/16: Trey laying down another extra-spicy Type I solo on this Blaze On.
6/24/16: Oh. Weird. That was the set.
6/24/16: Donuts on the LED screens to start the second set.
6/24/16: Opens with brief noise jamming -> DWD.
6/24/16: First few minutes is a pretty jaunty little rock jam.
6/24/16: Fading out now. Page on electric piano. Fuzzy chords from Trey.
6/24/16: Weird bass and keyboard lines forming under Fish and Trey space-rock. Building now.
6/24/16: This is sounding very 2003-2004 to me.
6/24/16: In other words: fuck yes.
6/24/16: Trey's lead out of the dark jam space was fantastic. He's dropping back again now, though.
6/24/16: Almost sounds like a spaced-out The Dogs, now.
6/24/16: Winding down now. Trey to pitch shifter.
6/24/16: That was a great Disease jam that wound up into Fuego.
6/24/16: Great Fuego outro solo from Trey. Weird almost-jam after that turns into Twist instead.
6/24/16: I swear Trey has just barely stopped himself from > Number Lining us at the end of each of the last two songs. IT'S COMING
6/24/16: This Twist starts off with a soft intro before the lyrics.
6/24/16: Mellow jam throughout Twist. Had a moment there when Trey's chording sounded like the Ghost intro.
6/24/16: Really broken down now. Ominous tone from Trey. Still sounds like Ghost.
6/24/16: Bassline stays in place, but Trey starts up another Twist-style solo. Liking where this is going.
6/24/16: Still flirting with Ghost.
6/24/16: Building up now. Two great jams so far this set, with a strong Fuego in-between.
6/24/16: Great build that DOESN'T go into bliss-jam mode...err...wait...at least it doesn't right away. Now it does.
6/24/16: Welp, this is definitely worth passing on the cool segue into Ghost for.
6/24/16: Guys, this is super good. What's the problem with 2016 #phish again?
6/24/16: I love my 7/24/15 Twist, but this one's making me jealous.
6/24/16: Neat, if awkward wind-down into Twenty Years Later.
6/24/16: Straightforward Twenty Years > Waste.
6/24/16: 2001!
6/24/16: Echoplex funk.
6/24/16: Fish doing some interesting things with the beat now. Really liking this version.
6/24/16: Might have been some vocals there from Trey.
6/24/16: Of the 'AAAAAAAAHHHHHH' variety.
6/24/16: There's that looming Number Line.
6/24/16: Loving Cup next after a pretty standard Number Line.
6/24/16: End set.
6/24/16: Trey done shredded that Loving Cup.
6/24/16: The Enigma That Is Jon Fishman Basks In The Delight Of An Appreciative Crowd One Last Time
6/24/16: I'm calling a Centerfield encore.
6/24/16: Space Oddity! Loved this in SF.
6/24/16: Crowd LOSING it when they realize what song it is.
6/24/16: Crowd cracking up at Trey's 'guitar solo.'
6/24/16: Antelope is the second part of the encore.
6/24/16: Lots of echoplex chording from Trey late in Antelope.
6/24/16: Well, that was one of those shows that are 75% 'average-good,' but with a stronger 3rd quarter.
6/24/16: But oh, what a third quarter it was! Two shows in to tour, and I'm pretty impressed so far.
Oct 20, 2016
2016-06-22 St. Paul
The Verdict:
The first show of 2016 tour proper is the band easing into things, but still providing enough interesting moments that the show is satisfying.
The song choices in the first set are excellent, and there are some surprises: huge ones like "Daniel Saw the Stone" and "Dear Prudence," as well as smaller ones like "Round Room" and "Uncle Pen." All of the rare songs are performed beautifully, and in-between there are strong takes on some more typical first-set songs. "Wolfman's" is a highlight in particular: it has a middle section that seems like it almost blasts off, but doesn't in the end. This is about as good as a first set gets without a legit jam thrown in there for good measure.
I wish I could say things opened up in the second set, but they really don't. They stay really good, though. The "Mike's Groove" sequence has that something that, although it stays Type I throughout, makes it a standout version. "Ghost" doesn't leave the box, but has some fun inside of it. It's nice to hear "Billy Breathes." The "Gin" that closes the second set is a fantastic bit of straightforward rock and roll.
The highlight of the show, though, is definitely the "Simple" -> "I Found a Reason." Not only is "I Found a Reason" a huge bustout and delivered with gorgeous delicacy, it fades is perfectly from a spacey-though-short "Simple" jam. If you're looking for serious jamming in this show, you're not going to find it, but at least give this pair a listen. They just work together well.
The Live Review:
6/22/16: Pigtail opener. Interesting choice to start the tour, it not being a 'real' #phish song and all.
6/22/16: Liking the #phish guys' harmonies on the chorus, though.
6/22/16: Standard run-through, but a nice vocals-only breakdown at the end. Wolfman's is next.
6/22/16: Chunky funk-rock section taking off around 4:30.
6/22/16: Big peak coming now. Trey bending a lot to add some tension.
6/22/16: After Wolfman's, Trey reprises the famous SuperBall 'Welcome!'
6/22/16: Pigtail, Wolfman's > SuperBall Welcome Reprise, Daniel Saw The Stone
6/22/16: Pitch-perfect Daniel > The Dogs. Weird combo, but it works.
6/22/16: Undermind is next. Loving the song choices so far.
6/22/16: Pretty standard Undermind, but followed by the gigantic Dear Prudence bust-out.
6/22/16: Great cover of a great song.
6/22/16: After an extended but pretty standard Stash, Round Room!
6/22/16: I love this song so much.
6/22/16: If #phish decided to play an album front-to-back as a set, I'm pretty sure Round Room would be my #1 pick.
6/22/16: SoaG would likely be a close second.
6/22/16: Horn and then a second dose of bluegrass with Uncle Pen!
6/22/16: No big highlights in this set, but a great set of song choices and nonstop energy. Bustouts with no major flubbing.
6/22/16: Uncle Pen is also a top-tier #phish song (cover) for me. Always fun to hear.
6/22/16: Trey totally nailed the fiddle (guitar) part. Makes my day.
6/22/16: Halfway next, then Walls to close the first set. I assume.
6/22/16: Trey biffs the transition into the Halfway verse, then Page forgets most of the words to the first verse.
6/22/16: AND AFTER ALL THOSE NICE TWEETS I JUST MADE GUYS THANKS A LOT
6/22/16: Duluth reference gets a roar from the crowd. Page forgets the following line.
6/22/16: Kicking ass on that piano tho
6/22/16: Neat little jam at the beginning of the second set. Lasted maybe a minute. Moody and ambient. Then explodes into Mike's.
6/22/16: Solid move into funk-rock jamming in Mike's. Not just the typical soloing from Trey.
6/22/16: Okay, that ended up mostly being Trey just soloing after all, but I liked where it was going for a minute.
6/22/16: > Hydrogen > Groove. Liking the Groove quite a bit. Fish laying back and Trey putting down a nice melodic solo.
6/22/16: More patient in building up to the frenetic rock jam we're used to hearing than they usually are these days.
6/22/16: This ain't going to be on anyone's jam chart, but I'm really liking this Mike's Groove sequence.
6/22/16: Bouncin' is sort of a weird choice here. We didn't really need a breather song after the relatively mellow Groove. Oh well.
6/22/16: Ghost!
6/22/16: Neat Little Drummer Boy tease *during* the drop in Ghost before the guys set off on a fuzzy rock and roll jam.
6/22/16: Fuzz-rock jam winds up after a few minutes. Grungy fade-out now. Fish laying down a great beat.
6/22/16: Trey returns to the outro riff. End Ghost.
6/22/16: The Line'd.
6/22/16: Simple follows the The Line. Weird second set, especially when following such a flowy first set.
6/22/16: Btw, Simple is currently spiraling into awesomeness on the back of a great Trey/Page linkup.
6/22/16: Interlocking guitar/piano arpeggios getting quieter now.
6/22/16: Almost like a Coil outro jam instead of Simple.
6/22/16: Great, delicate little jam here. Aaaaand a perfect segue into I Found a Reason. baubiopfugaoi;jgad
6/22/16: Well, that was just awesome.
6/22/16: No Men is next. Weird change of pace there.
6/22/16: Harmonies: F, Trey solo: B+
6/22/16: Short but intense rock jam (no funk) in No Men. That was fun.
6/22/16: Billy Breathes!!!!
6/22/16: Definitely a little rougher than the last time it was played, but loving hearing it nonetheless.
6/22/16: And so far, Trey is nailing that beautiful, beautiful solo, and that's all that really matters.
6/22/16: Bathtub Gin, most likely to close set two.
6/22/16: Page leading the charge in this Gin jam. Trey hanging back oddly.
6/22/16: Momentum picking up now. Mega-peak.
6/22/16: Trey talking about the 1996 Languedoc after Gin.
6/22/16: Either this set is tracked wrong or they're ending the second set with a slow Water in the Sky.
6/22/16: Okay, encore was Water in the Sky, Zero. Break after Gin isn't really on the recording.
6/22/16: Great setlist during the first set. Weird setlist during an uneven second set, but strong Type I Mike's Groove and Gin.
6/22/16: Simple -> I Found a Reason was beautiful and probably the highlight, but I'd hesitate to call it 'jamming.'
6/22/16: In all, #phish played a show that was great at everything but jamming. Take that as you will.
The first show of 2016 tour proper is the band easing into things, but still providing enough interesting moments that the show is satisfying.
The song choices in the first set are excellent, and there are some surprises: huge ones like "Daniel Saw the Stone" and "Dear Prudence," as well as smaller ones like "Round Room" and "Uncle Pen." All of the rare songs are performed beautifully, and in-between there are strong takes on some more typical first-set songs. "Wolfman's" is a highlight in particular: it has a middle section that seems like it almost blasts off, but doesn't in the end. This is about as good as a first set gets without a legit jam thrown in there for good measure.
I wish I could say things opened up in the second set, but they really don't. They stay really good, though. The "Mike's Groove" sequence has that something that, although it stays Type I throughout, makes it a standout version. "Ghost" doesn't leave the box, but has some fun inside of it. It's nice to hear "Billy Breathes." The "Gin" that closes the second set is a fantastic bit of straightforward rock and roll.
The highlight of the show, though, is definitely the "Simple" -> "I Found a Reason." Not only is "I Found a Reason" a huge bustout and delivered with gorgeous delicacy, it fades is perfectly from a spacey-though-short "Simple" jam. If you're looking for serious jamming in this show, you're not going to find it, but at least give this pair a listen. They just work together well.
The Live Review:
6/22/16: Pigtail opener. Interesting choice to start the tour, it not being a 'real' #phish song and all.
6/22/16: Liking the #phish guys' harmonies on the chorus, though.
6/22/16: Standard run-through, but a nice vocals-only breakdown at the end. Wolfman's is next.
6/22/16: Chunky funk-rock section taking off around 4:30.
6/22/16: Big peak coming now. Trey bending a lot to add some tension.
6/22/16: After Wolfman's, Trey reprises the famous SuperBall 'Welcome!'
6/22/16: Pigtail, Wolfman's > SuperBall Welcome Reprise, Daniel Saw The Stone
6/22/16: Pitch-perfect Daniel > The Dogs. Weird combo, but it works.
6/22/16: Undermind is next. Loving the song choices so far.
6/22/16: Pretty standard Undermind, but followed by the gigantic Dear Prudence bust-out.
6/22/16: Great cover of a great song.
6/22/16: After an extended but pretty standard Stash, Round Room!
6/22/16: I love this song so much.
6/22/16: If #phish decided to play an album front-to-back as a set, I'm pretty sure Round Room would be my #1 pick.
6/22/16: SoaG would likely be a close second.
6/22/16: Horn and then a second dose of bluegrass with Uncle Pen!
6/22/16: No big highlights in this set, but a great set of song choices and nonstop energy. Bustouts with no major flubbing.
6/22/16: Uncle Pen is also a top-tier #phish song (cover) for me. Always fun to hear.
6/22/16: Trey totally nailed the fiddle (guitar) part. Makes my day.
6/22/16: Halfway next, then Walls to close the first set. I assume.
6/22/16: Trey biffs the transition into the Halfway verse, then Page forgets most of the words to the first verse.
6/22/16: AND AFTER ALL THOSE NICE TWEETS I JUST MADE GUYS THANKS A LOT
6/22/16: Duluth reference gets a roar from the crowd. Page forgets the following line.
6/22/16: Kicking ass on that piano tho
6/22/16: Neat little jam at the beginning of the second set. Lasted maybe a minute. Moody and ambient. Then explodes into Mike's.
6/22/16: Solid move into funk-rock jamming in Mike's. Not just the typical soloing from Trey.
6/22/16: Okay, that ended up mostly being Trey just soloing after all, but I liked where it was going for a minute.
6/22/16: > Hydrogen > Groove. Liking the Groove quite a bit. Fish laying back and Trey putting down a nice melodic solo.
6/22/16: More patient in building up to the frenetic rock jam we're used to hearing than they usually are these days.
6/22/16: This ain't going to be on anyone's jam chart, but I'm really liking this Mike's Groove sequence.
6/22/16: Bouncin' is sort of a weird choice here. We didn't really need a breather song after the relatively mellow Groove. Oh well.
6/22/16: Ghost!
6/22/16: Neat Little Drummer Boy tease *during* the drop in Ghost before the guys set off on a fuzzy rock and roll jam.
6/22/16: Fuzz-rock jam winds up after a few minutes. Grungy fade-out now. Fish laying down a great beat.
6/22/16: Trey returns to the outro riff. End Ghost.
6/22/16: The Line'd.
6/22/16: Simple follows the The Line. Weird second set, especially when following such a flowy first set.
6/22/16: Btw, Simple is currently spiraling into awesomeness on the back of a great Trey/Page linkup.
6/22/16: Interlocking guitar/piano arpeggios getting quieter now.
6/22/16: Almost like a Coil outro jam instead of Simple.
6/22/16: Great, delicate little jam here. Aaaaand a perfect segue into I Found a Reason. baubiopfugaoi;jgad
6/22/16: Well, that was just awesome.
6/22/16: No Men is next. Weird change of pace there.
6/22/16: Harmonies: F, Trey solo: B+
6/22/16: Short but intense rock jam (no funk) in No Men. That was fun.
6/22/16: Billy Breathes!!!!
6/22/16: Definitely a little rougher than the last time it was played, but loving hearing it nonetheless.
6/22/16: And so far, Trey is nailing that beautiful, beautiful solo, and that's all that really matters.
6/22/16: Bathtub Gin, most likely to close set two.
6/22/16: Page leading the charge in this Gin jam. Trey hanging back oddly.
6/22/16: Momentum picking up now. Mega-peak.
6/22/16: Trey talking about the 1996 Languedoc after Gin.
6/22/16: Either this set is tracked wrong or they're ending the second set with a slow Water in the Sky.
6/22/16: Okay, encore was Water in the Sky, Zero. Break after Gin isn't really on the recording.
6/22/16: Great setlist during the first set. Weird setlist during an uneven second set, but strong Type I Mike's Groove and Gin.
6/22/16: Simple -> I Found a Reason was beautiful and probably the highlight, but I'd hesitate to call it 'jamming.'
6/22/16: In all, #phish played a show that was great at everything but jamming. Take that as you will.
Oct 17, 2016
Summer and NYE '11 Wrap-Up
I've put down my thoughts of 2011 in a number of individual reviews lately, and I won't repeat myself too much here other than to say that it's really been a tale of two tours...they've just been broken up oddly.
The beginning of the summer started with the brilliant Bethel "Waves," and the momentum from that incredible jam seemed to carry the band for a few excellent shows. Then it was back to the precision-over-improv approach that was old and tired halfway through 2010 until the tour's second leg. Things picked up dramatically at the beginning of this leg and continued to improve until the incredible 1-2 punch of UIC and Dick's, six shows that are an easy collective highpoint of Phish from Hampton '09 until now. As a matter of fact, the west coast shows and these two runs are really where the band we've known and loved consistently from '13 on starts to appear, and it's been fun to see that transition finally happening. I also don't know '12 very well (the only year during 3.0 that I didn't see any shows), so I'm excited to eventually trace this journey further, even if NYE '11 ended up being severely underwhelming, closing the year out with a whimper.
For now, it's on to '16, a divisive year that I'm hoping to find more to like in than most.
5/26: Just the Bethel "Waves" soundcheck jam. "Just." An amazing jam. After the first week of 2011 tour, you'll find yourself wondering if it ever actually happened, or if you just dreamed it.
5/27: If there's one thing that's pretty consistently good in 2011, it's first sets. 5/27 features a great "Wolfman's" -> "Walk Away" combo and a strong "Stash." The second set features a fantastic "Boogie On" > "Waves" combo and a really heavy "Crosseyed." Great show.
5/28: Another great opening set, with extended "Cities" and "Halley's," and a "Gin" -> "Manteca" -> "Gin" sandwich. "Disease" revisits 5/27 "Waves" territory in satisfying fashion in the second set, and "Number Line" is a standout version. Second set is less comprehensive than 5/27, but still a great show.
5/29: The first of many two-first-sets shows in 2011. "46 Days" > "Twenty Years" is a good combo in the first set, though, and "Simple" recalls some of the beautiful melodic jamming of the first two Bethel shows.
5/31: Similar to 5/29. Good "Sand" in the first set. Briefly interesting "Drowned" in the second set. And that's about it.
6/1: Really not much here. "No Quarter" debut out of a Type I "Tweezer" jam. There's a few minutes of plinko jamming in "Twist."
6/3: Return to the quality of the first two Bethel shows. Standard set one, though, minus the first of many "Type 1.5" "Chalkdust Torture"s of the year. The second set features the Clarkston "Disease," easily the biggest and best jam of the year so far unless you count the Bethel soundcheck. The six-song second set also features a great take on "Bowie."
6/4: Another great show (and really the last one until August). Strong song choices in the first set to mix things up a bit. The second set has "Steam"'s debut, a "Piper" > "Lizards" combo, a plinko-jammed "Sally," and a "Hood" -> "Have Mercy" -> "Hood" sandwich. There's a lot to like here.
6/5: We're back in 2010 territory here. "Reba" is interesting in the first set, and there are brief moments of improvisational goodness in "Tweezer" and "Light," but mostly this show falls flat.
6/7: Strong first set, but underwhelming second set. Another extended "Cities" and fun covers of "Instant Karma!" and "Rhymes" are worth a listen. The solo highlight of the second set is a long-and-sometimes-great "Rock and Roll" that segues into "The Mango Song" at its end.
6/8: The best kind of show the band can play without actually jamming. There's some pitch-shifting magic for a few minutes on "Undermind." The second set has some highlights in "Mike's" > "FEFY" > "Groove," "WTU?" and "2001."
6/10: Like 6/8, it's a fun show, but there's not much else going for it. If you're looking for highlights, I can recommend the second set's "Disease" and a loop-heavy "Possum."
6/11: Band continues to perfect the art of the fun-but-boring show. "Roses" and "Reba" are the highlights of the first set. There's not a lot going on in the second set, but the "RnR" > "Albuquerque" > "Piper" > "Wading" sequence goes down easy.
6/12: Band accidentally jams in the first set here, then forgets to follow up in the second. Check out the "Wolfman's" -> "Boogie On." Maybe listen to the "Hood" > "Number Line" pair, too, if you're feeling generous.
6/14: Perhaps the most rote show so far. Single highlight is the "Light Up Or Leave Me Alone" cover.
6/15: Slight improvement over the previous night's effort. That said, perhaps the best part of the show is when they have to quit in the middle of "Mound" because of rain, and then pick back up midjam after setbreak. Maybe try the "Hood"?
6/17: Decent show that doesn't really live up to the hype. Standard-for-2011 first set. The second set hinges on a "Rock and Roll" > "Ghost" jam-pair that honestly aren't super-notable, but in the context of the last ten or so shows seem totally fantastic.
6/18: The first set gets off to a good start with an extended "Halley's"...that Trey kills for "46 Days." Fortunately, there are some interesting bits in the second set, including "Twist," "Caspian" -> "Esther" (!), "Piper," and "Split."
6/19: A "Thunder Road" cover early on is the highlight of the first frame. And, just in time for Super Ball IX, they sneak a legit "Sand" jam in near the end of the show. And that's about it.
7/1: The opening set of Super Ball IX is all guitar, all the time. If you're into that sort of thing, you'll love the TreyFire that's unleashed here. The problem is, that's pretty much all the second set is, too. S2 starts with a formless jam, which is really cool, and this jamming style carries over a bit later into the "Simple." But everything else is, for lack of a better way to put it, first-setty.
7/2: This is a weird, weird day of Phish. The first three sets are like a paean to the boring, boilerplate Phish of 2010-2011. Then comes the Storage Jam, and a new band seems to emerge for the rest of the year(s) onward. It's like they're burning jukebox Phish in effigy over three sets. That said, the "Monkey Man" cover is great. The beginning of the third set features a "Golden Age" > "Caspian" > "Piper" > "Tweezer" sequence that sounds like some real Phish. But that's about it. Until, of course, the Storage Jam blows everything away.
7/3: The third Super Ball IX show is the most cohesive. If you like crazy narrations, check out the "Forbin's" > "Mockingbird." It's wild. Oh, and "Mound" gets jammed out a little. But just when you're starting to wonder if the Storage Jam really happened, the band takes "ASIHTOS" deep in the first set. There's no huge jam in the second set, but "Disease" -> "No Quarter" and "Waves" -> "WTU?" are both fun sequences.
8/5: Ah, leg two. The band attacks immediately, sounding strikingly different than they did for the first leg of shows this year, though it's hard not to hear the Storage Jam influence during this show's masterful "Rock and Roll" -> "Meatstick" -> "Boogie On" sequence. There are a few bits of Phish music that stack up to this piece later on in the summer, but they are very few. If you want more, the first set offers up solid takes on "Gin" and "Taste," and "Roggae" gets spacey in the best way.
8/6: The renaissance continues with this show, though it's definitely a step back from 8/5. The first set is notable only for its momentum. That momentum carries over into S2, and though we never really get much notable improv, having "Sand" segue back into "Tweezer" is a blast.
8/8: The first set is straightforward in that great-for-2011 way. The only bit of note comes in "Split," which digress back into the Storage Unit for a few minutes. The second set is more fun than its gets credit for, with a solid "Crosseyed," an interesting "Twist" and "Piper," a "Mike's Song" that gets absolutely shredded, and a plinko'd "Groove."
8/9: The first set mixes up some interesting songs to great effect. "Bowie" is a keeper. The second set is all about the "Light" jam, which again goes back to the Storage Unit and is awesome for it. The "Walls" closer is probably worth a listen if you're into show-closing guitar pyrotechnics.
8/10: The first set jumps around a lot, and fails to have any sort of consistent energy. The second set is a take-it-or-leave-it affair. I hear "Disease" through "Sally" all touching on the Storage Jam sound and making up a cohesive sequence. You might just hear a lot of promising jams getting ripcorded.
8/12: Sort of what you might expect for a festival show, but this one rewards a little digging. The first set would make a great introduction to Phish for people who had never heard them before. There's a solid "Tweezer" that's likely worth your time, though. "Rock and Roll" -> "Steam" is a nice segue, and "Piper" and "Number Line" are both interesting enough for a replay.
8/15: Holy crap, this show. Easily the best of the year for me. First off, the UIC run sets a new high bar for great first sets, not just providing fun Type I playing throughout, but mixing up the setlists in a way that really makes listening engaging. "Guelah," "Wolfman's," and "Babylon Baby" are the highlights. The second set is absolutely jaw-dropping up through "Undermind," which is probably my favorite jam of the year, and then the encore is basically a third set, featuring among other things a fantastic closing "Hood."
8/16: Another great first set. "Let It Loose" and "CDT" are highlights, along with plinko-infused takes on "Limb" and "Jim." The jamming on night two is more concentrated, but just as worthy as 8/15's: listen to this "Disease." It's so good.
8/17: Night three falls a bit short of the first two nights at UIC. That said, the first sets continue to be varied, and great. The second set is likely a love-it-or-hate-it thing, and I hate it. Just too many ripcords of promising jams on a weekend where every jam seems to be hitting on all cylinders. "Crosseyed," "Tweezer," "Piper," and "Ghost" all get chopped up just as they're developing into interesting jams. That said, you can probably get some mileage out of "Piper" anyway before it gets cut for that three-minute "Ghost."
9/2: It's arguable that this Dick's run tops even the UIC run for awesomeness. It may not reach the same heights, but there aren't any clunker shows like 8/17. The first night is the "S" show, and despite the gimmick, it's a strong show. As you'd expect, there are a lot of bustouts and rarities ("Sparks," anyone?). "Susskind Hotel" is great to hear, and "Sally" goes deep for a first set version. "Split" closes the set with more abstract jamming than usual. The gimmick hurts the second set a bit more, restraining any real jamming, but you should hear the "Simple" and the "Seven Below," which touches on some Storage Jam action.
9/3: Offers up the first by-the-book first set in awhile. Fortunately, the set ends with a fun "Llama" > "FEFY" combo and a totally weird "Wolfman's" jam. "Disease" opens the second set and doesn't get far before a ripcord kills it...but that ripcord starts up the best "Tweezer" I've heard in a very long time. Probably the jam of the weekend. Give it a listen. Or three. Rather than resting on their laurels, either, the band continues an excellent second set with a jazzy "Golden Age," a loop-filled "Limb," a "KDF" with a second jam, a solid "2001," and a driving "Light" that wraps up with a "Disease" reprise! One of the best sets of the year, for sure.
9/4: We're back to weird-good opening sets here. Yet another "1.5"-style "Gin" and the Phish debut of "The Way It Goes" are the highlights. Again, the second set is just nuts. "Rock and Roll" -> "Come Together" -> "Twist" -> "Low Rider Jam" -> "Twist" -> "Piper" is just as good as it sounds, especially when "Piper" features overlapping plinko and theremin jams. Lest you think that we're done, though, there's an excellent "Hood" > "Roggae" combo and then "Ghost" -> "Guy Forget" -> "Ghost." 9/4 S2 for President.
9/14: After the heights of the last two three-day runs, it's probably inevitable that a one-off show ten days later would disappoint. This one isn't as bad as they say, but still a bit of a letdown. The first set has solid "1.5" takes on "Gin" and "Wolfman's," and you could do worse than the second set's "Carini" > "Disease" -> "Slave." The "Carini" is especially worth a listen.
12/28: The best of the four MSG shows, and a great show that stands with many of the stronger late-2011 shows, though not with the best. A plinko "Cities" and an insane "Gin" are the highlights of the first set, and the "Carini" -> "Tweezer" sequence in S2 is top-notch. The segue between "Rock and Roll" and "NICU" is interested, and the "Hood" is an absolute, straightforward killer.
12/29: This one doesn't have much meat on its bones. A strong "YEM" in the two-slot is a nice surprise, but that's about it for the first set. A too-short "Simple" is neatly deconstructed, setting up a great segue into "Lifeboy" in the second set. Listen to the "Chalkdust"-inspired "Hydrogen," too.
12/30: "Caspian" and "Sand" are solid first-set highlights. Otherwise, the show is about as 2010 as you can get except for the S2 "Piper," which turns out to be the single big jam of the run. Luckily, it's pretty classic. Check it out.
12/31: A surprisingly, almost shockingly flat show. The first set starts with some serious verve, but then there are two more first sets (mostly) and the verve slowly disintegrates over the course of the night. Interesting-but-too-brief "Light" that segues nicely into a too-short-but-funky "Golden Age" to start of the second set...and that's probably the highlight of the night. There's some guitar fire that's usually not there in "Steam" (w/ dancers) and an obligatory-feeling mini-jam tacked onto "Disease"...and that's it. Happy New Year.
The beginning of the summer started with the brilliant Bethel "Waves," and the momentum from that incredible jam seemed to carry the band for a few excellent shows. Then it was back to the precision-over-improv approach that was old and tired halfway through 2010 until the tour's second leg. Things picked up dramatically at the beginning of this leg and continued to improve until the incredible 1-2 punch of UIC and Dick's, six shows that are an easy collective highpoint of Phish from Hampton '09 until now. As a matter of fact, the west coast shows and these two runs are really where the band we've known and loved consistently from '13 on starts to appear, and it's been fun to see that transition finally happening. I also don't know '12 very well (the only year during 3.0 that I didn't see any shows), so I'm excited to eventually trace this journey further, even if NYE '11 ended up being severely underwhelming, closing the year out with a whimper.
For now, it's on to '16, a divisive year that I'm hoping to find more to like in than most.
5/26: Just the Bethel "Waves" soundcheck jam. "Just." An amazing jam. After the first week of 2011 tour, you'll find yourself wondering if it ever actually happened, or if you just dreamed it.
5/27: If there's one thing that's pretty consistently good in 2011, it's first sets. 5/27 features a great "Wolfman's" -> "Walk Away" combo and a strong "Stash." The second set features a fantastic "Boogie On" > "Waves" combo and a really heavy "Crosseyed." Great show.
5/28: Another great opening set, with extended "Cities" and "Halley's," and a "Gin" -> "Manteca" -> "Gin" sandwich. "Disease" revisits 5/27 "Waves" territory in satisfying fashion in the second set, and "Number Line" is a standout version. Second set is less comprehensive than 5/27, but still a great show.
5/29: The first of many two-first-sets shows in 2011. "46 Days" > "Twenty Years" is a good combo in the first set, though, and "Simple" recalls some of the beautiful melodic jamming of the first two Bethel shows.
5/31: Similar to 5/29. Good "Sand" in the first set. Briefly interesting "Drowned" in the second set. And that's about it.
6/1: Really not much here. "No Quarter" debut out of a Type I "Tweezer" jam. There's a few minutes of plinko jamming in "Twist."
6/3: Return to the quality of the first two Bethel shows. Standard set one, though, minus the first of many "Type 1.5" "Chalkdust Torture"s of the year. The second set features the Clarkston "Disease," easily the biggest and best jam of the year so far unless you count the Bethel soundcheck. The six-song second set also features a great take on "Bowie."
6/4: Another great show (and really the last one until August). Strong song choices in the first set to mix things up a bit. The second set has "Steam"'s debut, a "Piper" > "Lizards" combo, a plinko-jammed "Sally," and a "Hood" -> "Have Mercy" -> "Hood" sandwich. There's a lot to like here.
6/5: We're back in 2010 territory here. "Reba" is interesting in the first set, and there are brief moments of improvisational goodness in "Tweezer" and "Light," but mostly this show falls flat.
6/7: Strong first set, but underwhelming second set. Another extended "Cities" and fun covers of "Instant Karma!" and "Rhymes" are worth a listen. The solo highlight of the second set is a long-and-sometimes-great "Rock and Roll" that segues into "The Mango Song" at its end.
6/8: The best kind of show the band can play without actually jamming. There's some pitch-shifting magic for a few minutes on "Undermind." The second set has some highlights in "Mike's" > "FEFY" > "Groove," "WTU?" and "2001."
6/10: Like 6/8, it's a fun show, but there's not much else going for it. If you're looking for highlights, I can recommend the second set's "Disease" and a loop-heavy "Possum."
6/11: Band continues to perfect the art of the fun-but-boring show. "Roses" and "Reba" are the highlights of the first set. There's not a lot going on in the second set, but the "RnR" > "Albuquerque" > "Piper" > "Wading" sequence goes down easy.
6/12: Band accidentally jams in the first set here, then forgets to follow up in the second. Check out the "Wolfman's" -> "Boogie On." Maybe listen to the "Hood" > "Number Line" pair, too, if you're feeling generous.
6/14: Perhaps the most rote show so far. Single highlight is the "Light Up Or Leave Me Alone" cover.
6/15: Slight improvement over the previous night's effort. That said, perhaps the best part of the show is when they have to quit in the middle of "Mound" because of rain, and then pick back up midjam after setbreak. Maybe try the "Hood"?
6/17: Decent show that doesn't really live up to the hype. Standard-for-2011 first set. The second set hinges on a "Rock and Roll" > "Ghost" jam-pair that honestly aren't super-notable, but in the context of the last ten or so shows seem totally fantastic.
6/18: The first set gets off to a good start with an extended "Halley's"...that Trey kills for "46 Days." Fortunately, there are some interesting bits in the second set, including "Twist," "Caspian" -> "Esther" (!), "Piper," and "Split."
6/19: A "Thunder Road" cover early on is the highlight of the first frame. And, just in time for Super Ball IX, they sneak a legit "Sand" jam in near the end of the show. And that's about it.
7/1: The opening set of Super Ball IX is all guitar, all the time. If you're into that sort of thing, you'll love the TreyFire that's unleashed here. The problem is, that's pretty much all the second set is, too. S2 starts with a formless jam, which is really cool, and this jamming style carries over a bit later into the "Simple." But everything else is, for lack of a better way to put it, first-setty.
7/2: This is a weird, weird day of Phish. The first three sets are like a paean to the boring, boilerplate Phish of 2010-2011. Then comes the Storage Jam, and a new band seems to emerge for the rest of the year(s) onward. It's like they're burning jukebox Phish in effigy over three sets. That said, the "Monkey Man" cover is great. The beginning of the third set features a "Golden Age" > "Caspian" > "Piper" > "Tweezer" sequence that sounds like some real Phish. But that's about it. Until, of course, the Storage Jam blows everything away.
7/3: The third Super Ball IX show is the most cohesive. If you like crazy narrations, check out the "Forbin's" > "Mockingbird." It's wild. Oh, and "Mound" gets jammed out a little. But just when you're starting to wonder if the Storage Jam really happened, the band takes "ASIHTOS" deep in the first set. There's no huge jam in the second set, but "Disease" -> "No Quarter" and "Waves" -> "WTU?" are both fun sequences.
8/5: Ah, leg two. The band attacks immediately, sounding strikingly different than they did for the first leg of shows this year, though it's hard not to hear the Storage Jam influence during this show's masterful "Rock and Roll" -> "Meatstick" -> "Boogie On" sequence. There are a few bits of Phish music that stack up to this piece later on in the summer, but they are very few. If you want more, the first set offers up solid takes on "Gin" and "Taste," and "Roggae" gets spacey in the best way.
8/6: The renaissance continues with this show, though it's definitely a step back from 8/5. The first set is notable only for its momentum. That momentum carries over into S2, and though we never really get much notable improv, having "Sand" segue back into "Tweezer" is a blast.
8/8: The first set is straightforward in that great-for-2011 way. The only bit of note comes in "Split," which digress back into the Storage Unit for a few minutes. The second set is more fun than its gets credit for, with a solid "Crosseyed," an interesting "Twist" and "Piper," a "Mike's Song" that gets absolutely shredded, and a plinko'd "Groove."
8/9: The first set mixes up some interesting songs to great effect. "Bowie" is a keeper. The second set is all about the "Light" jam, which again goes back to the Storage Unit and is awesome for it. The "Walls" closer is probably worth a listen if you're into show-closing guitar pyrotechnics.
8/10: The first set jumps around a lot, and fails to have any sort of consistent energy. The second set is a take-it-or-leave-it affair. I hear "Disease" through "Sally" all touching on the Storage Jam sound and making up a cohesive sequence. You might just hear a lot of promising jams getting ripcorded.
8/12: Sort of what you might expect for a festival show, but this one rewards a little digging. The first set would make a great introduction to Phish for people who had never heard them before. There's a solid "Tweezer" that's likely worth your time, though. "Rock and Roll" -> "Steam" is a nice segue, and "Piper" and "Number Line" are both interesting enough for a replay.
8/15: Holy crap, this show. Easily the best of the year for me. First off, the UIC run sets a new high bar for great first sets, not just providing fun Type I playing throughout, but mixing up the setlists in a way that really makes listening engaging. "Guelah," "Wolfman's," and "Babylon Baby" are the highlights. The second set is absolutely jaw-dropping up through "Undermind," which is probably my favorite jam of the year, and then the encore is basically a third set, featuring among other things a fantastic closing "Hood."
8/16: Another great first set. "Let It Loose" and "CDT" are highlights, along with plinko-infused takes on "Limb" and "Jim." The jamming on night two is more concentrated, but just as worthy as 8/15's: listen to this "Disease." It's so good.
8/17: Night three falls a bit short of the first two nights at UIC. That said, the first sets continue to be varied, and great. The second set is likely a love-it-or-hate-it thing, and I hate it. Just too many ripcords of promising jams on a weekend where every jam seems to be hitting on all cylinders. "Crosseyed," "Tweezer," "Piper," and "Ghost" all get chopped up just as they're developing into interesting jams. That said, you can probably get some mileage out of "Piper" anyway before it gets cut for that three-minute "Ghost."
9/2: It's arguable that this Dick's run tops even the UIC run for awesomeness. It may not reach the same heights, but there aren't any clunker shows like 8/17. The first night is the "S" show, and despite the gimmick, it's a strong show. As you'd expect, there are a lot of bustouts and rarities ("Sparks," anyone?). "Susskind Hotel" is great to hear, and "Sally" goes deep for a first set version. "Split" closes the set with more abstract jamming than usual. The gimmick hurts the second set a bit more, restraining any real jamming, but you should hear the "Simple" and the "Seven Below," which touches on some Storage Jam action.
9/3: Offers up the first by-the-book first set in awhile. Fortunately, the set ends with a fun "Llama" > "FEFY" combo and a totally weird "Wolfman's" jam. "Disease" opens the second set and doesn't get far before a ripcord kills it...but that ripcord starts up the best "Tweezer" I've heard in a very long time. Probably the jam of the weekend. Give it a listen. Or three. Rather than resting on their laurels, either, the band continues an excellent second set with a jazzy "Golden Age," a loop-filled "Limb," a "KDF" with a second jam, a solid "2001," and a driving "Light" that wraps up with a "Disease" reprise! One of the best sets of the year, for sure.
9/4: We're back to weird-good opening sets here. Yet another "1.5"-style "Gin" and the Phish debut of "The Way It Goes" are the highlights. Again, the second set is just nuts. "Rock and Roll" -> "Come Together" -> "Twist" -> "Low Rider Jam" -> "Twist" -> "Piper" is just as good as it sounds, especially when "Piper" features overlapping plinko and theremin jams. Lest you think that we're done, though, there's an excellent "Hood" > "Roggae" combo and then "Ghost" -> "Guy Forget" -> "Ghost." 9/4 S2 for President.
9/14: After the heights of the last two three-day runs, it's probably inevitable that a one-off show ten days later would disappoint. This one isn't as bad as they say, but still a bit of a letdown. The first set has solid "1.5" takes on "Gin" and "Wolfman's," and you could do worse than the second set's "Carini" > "Disease" -> "Slave." The "Carini" is especially worth a listen.
12/28: The best of the four MSG shows, and a great show that stands with many of the stronger late-2011 shows, though not with the best. A plinko "Cities" and an insane "Gin" are the highlights of the first set, and the "Carini" -> "Tweezer" sequence in S2 is top-notch. The segue between "Rock and Roll" and "NICU" is interested, and the "Hood" is an absolute, straightforward killer.
12/29: This one doesn't have much meat on its bones. A strong "YEM" in the two-slot is a nice surprise, but that's about it for the first set. A too-short "Simple" is neatly deconstructed, setting up a great segue into "Lifeboy" in the second set. Listen to the "Chalkdust"-inspired "Hydrogen," too.
12/30: "Caspian" and "Sand" are solid first-set highlights. Otherwise, the show is about as 2010 as you can get except for the S2 "Piper," which turns out to be the single big jam of the run. Luckily, it's pretty classic. Check it out.
12/31: A surprisingly, almost shockingly flat show. The first set starts with some serious verve, but then there are two more first sets (mostly) and the verve slowly disintegrates over the course of the night. Interesting-but-too-brief "Light" that segues nicely into a too-short-but-funky "Golden Age" to start of the second set...and that's probably the highlight of the night. There's some guitar fire that's usually not there in "Steam" (w/ dancers) and an obligatory-feeling mini-jam tacked onto "Disease"...and that's it. Happy New Year.
2011-12-31 MSG IV
The Verdict:
Well, this show is decisively uninteresting. And, on a New Year's Eve, no less. You almost have to do that on purpose. 2011 has been a year where Phish can surprise you by dropping the best show in at least a decade during a nondescript, run-opening show in Chicago. But it's also been a year where they can totally not surprise you by dropping three sets of almost entirely uninspiring fare on what's meant to be the biggest night of the year, every year.
That second bit is a little unfair. I guess. The New Year's Eve show gets off to a hot start, actually. Pretty much everything in this set is fire, including the "Farmhouse" solo (Believe it!) and a "Pebbles and Marbles" played at mega-tempo with some interesting Fish beats thrown in throughout. The "Ocelot" > "Fluffhead" pair even got a grin from me.
The second set also gets off to a typically-strong second set start, with a "Light" -> "Golden Age" pair that includes a theremin jam and a straight-up '97 funk jam. Both are a bit too short, but that turns out to be quibbling in context since this is the only jam of the night. It's worth a watch, though, for sure (at 1:39:00):
The rest of the second set is a perfectly okay first set, and while the "Steam"-based gag is pretty visually awesome to start set three, and leads Trey to shred "Steam" more than he typically does, all we get after is an obligatory mini-jam tacked onto the end of "Disease" and then a run of jukebox songs until the "Wading," "First Tube," "Slave" closing sequence, throughout which Trey's guitar sounds so out of tune with the rest of the band I legitimately wonder if he was having tech problems.
Yay New Year's?
The Live Review:
12/31/11: AC/DC Bag opener.
12/31/11: So far, MSG run can't decide if it's stuck in the pre-Leg Two 2011-era or the post-Leg Two 2011-era.
12/31/11: Hoping for a Modern Phish show here instead of a Rebuilding Phish show.
12/31/11: You know I love some '09 and '10, but something happened in the middle of 2011 that makes everything b4 seem...not...as...good.
12/31/11: Well, 'everything b4' in 3.0.
12/31/11: Loose Bag jam unfolding here. Band sounds dialed in.
12/31/11: Solid opener > Wolfman's
12/31/11: This is way friskier than a two-slot Wolfman's has any business being.
12/31/11: SMELL MY MULE
12/31/11: Great solo from Page to start the duel section. Trey struggling a bit after, though they *are* at MEGA-TEMPO compared to usual.
12/31/11: Stealing Time is next.
12/31/11: Loose but high-energy affair so far.
12/31/11: By 'loose' I mean 'If you have a finely-honed flub radar, you've already shot yourself.'
12/31/11: If you just like Phish, though, it's pretty fun.
12/31/11: Obligatory MSG Lawn Boy.
12/31/11: Jibboo!
12/31/11: Farmhouse is maybe not the best follow-up to Jibboo. Lots of machine-gunning from Trey in Jibboo, though.
12/31/11: Nice Farmhouse solo from Trey!
12/31/11: if he laid down a Farmhouse solo like that more often, there would be anguished wails coming from the venue urinals.
12/31/11: Which is always what you want to hear at a concert.
12/31/11: Pebbles and Marbles. These days, always either a welcome bustout or a tremendous mistake.
12/31/11: WHICH WILL IT BE
12/31/11: I swear to god that Fish is playing a bluegrass beat right now.
12/31/11: Definitely playing a different beat than on the album.
12/31/11: Not super-different, but definitely more shuffle than jazz.
12/31/11: Considering the speed they just played that at, it was surprisingly tight.
12/31/11: Ocelot next.
12/31/11: Trey and Mike just whipped that Ocelot into submission. Nice.
12/31/11: This is another one of those instances where I will gladly put aside my typical Ocelot-inspired eye rolls and enjoy the jam.
12/31/11: > Fluffhead
12/31/11: I suspect that this is going to end the first set.
12/31/11: FLUFFHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAD
12/31/11: That was a satisfying 10,000th tweet.
12/31/11: Auld Lang Syne tease during Fluff outro.
12/31/11: End set.
12/31/11: S2 starts with Party Time.
12/31/11: Never liked the song much, honestly, but it's still fun when they open a set with it. Sort of like a declaration.
12/31/11: Party Time a little more fleshed out than usual. > Light.
12/31/11: Arpeggio jam suddenly drops out. Band comes back in w/ Trey on pitch shifter.
12/31/11: Loops and space now.
12/31/11: I think Page may have just busted out the theremin.
12/31/11: Sounds like 8/5/11 in here!
12/31/11: Loops, theremin, and a crazy beat from Fish.
12/31/11: Spontaneous confab outside my office with coworkers complaining to each other about expensive things being expensive.
12/31/11: Sort of ruining the mood.
12/31/11: Great, slow -> Golden Age after a short theremin jam, though.
12/31/11: Band struggles a bit with Golden Age proper, but then immediately drops into a '97-style deep funk groove.
12/31/11: Groove winds up really quickly on a Page piano outro. Huh.
12/31/11: Long pause, then Theme.
12/31/11: THINGS ARE FALLING DOWN ON ME
12/31/11: Pretty sure Heavy Things is never going to make a set, but that was a hot version.
12/31/11: Ghost! Slow tempo Ghost!
12/31/11: A bit of satisfying noodling into some power chording. Liking this Ghost so far.
12/31/11: Brief little Ghost excursion winds back to the outro. Sally next.
12/31/11: Vocal breakdown.
12/31/11: Out of the vocal jam, there's a quick guitar drone, and then > 46 Days.
12/31/11: For most of this set (minus the Light), it's felt like a show with a rushed fourth quarter.
12/31/11: But we're in the first half of the second of three sets. What gives?
12/31/11: This is not my beautiful Phish!
12/31/11: That Light, though, brief as it was, was like a follow-up to 12/30's Piper jam.
12/31/11: Alright, it deserves mention that this 46 Days is about as good a Type I rock-out as you're gonna get from this song.
12/31/11: Suzy, Cavern. #hitparade
12/31/11: Sorry, that was Suzy to end S2 and Cavern to start S3.
12/31/11: NYE 'gag' based around Steam.
12/31/11: https://t.co/yPo1ulN6iP
12/31/11: Trey totally shredding Steam in a way he doesn't typically.
12/31/11: Brief noise-rock section now.
12/31/11: Steam > Auld Lang Syne > DWD. Disease is punctuated by the sound of hundreds of balloons popping.
12/31/11: Unexpected, neat little jam getting built on the end of this Disease.
12/31/11: But that's about it in the improv category. The Wedge, Alaska, Wading.
12/31/11: The most interesting part of this Wading is the balloons audibly popping in the background.
12/31/11: Fist Tube
12/31/11: FIST TUBE GONNA GET YOU
12/31/11: Major flub currently happening between Trey and Page.
12/31/11: Sounds like Trey was half a step down or something for a whole section.
12/31/11: For a moment there, it sounded like they were concluding the run with Show of Life.
12/31/11: When I regained consciousness from my rage-induced mini-stroke, I realized it was just a flubby beginning to Slave.
12/31/11: Whew!
12/31/11: It's sounded like Trey's guitar is falling apart for like 30 straight minutes now. What the serious fuck.
12/31/11: That's cool, though, just let Mike drive this jam.
12/31/11: He's doing a great job so far.
12/31/11: And that's NYE 2011. Welp.
Well, this show is decisively uninteresting. And, on a New Year's Eve, no less. You almost have to do that on purpose. 2011 has been a year where Phish can surprise you by dropping the best show in at least a decade during a nondescript, run-opening show in Chicago. But it's also been a year where they can totally not surprise you by dropping three sets of almost entirely uninspiring fare on what's meant to be the biggest night of the year, every year.
That second bit is a little unfair. I guess. The New Year's Eve show gets off to a hot start, actually. Pretty much everything in this set is fire, including the "Farmhouse" solo (Believe it!) and a "Pebbles and Marbles" played at mega-tempo with some interesting Fish beats thrown in throughout. The "Ocelot" > "Fluffhead" pair even got a grin from me.
The second set also gets off to a typically-strong second set start, with a "Light" -> "Golden Age" pair that includes a theremin jam and a straight-up '97 funk jam. Both are a bit too short, but that turns out to be quibbling in context since this is the only jam of the night. It's worth a watch, though, for sure (at 1:39:00):
The rest of the second set is a perfectly okay first set, and while the "Steam"-based gag is pretty visually awesome to start set three, and leads Trey to shred "Steam" more than he typically does, all we get after is an obligatory mini-jam tacked onto the end of "Disease" and then a run of jukebox songs until the "Wading," "First Tube," "Slave" closing sequence, throughout which Trey's guitar sounds so out of tune with the rest of the band I legitimately wonder if he was having tech problems.
Yay New Year's?
The Live Review:
12/31/11: AC/DC Bag opener.
12/31/11: So far, MSG run can't decide if it's stuck in the pre-Leg Two 2011-era or the post-Leg Two 2011-era.
12/31/11: Hoping for a Modern Phish show here instead of a Rebuilding Phish show.
12/31/11: You know I love some '09 and '10, but something happened in the middle of 2011 that makes everything b4 seem...not...as...good.
12/31/11: Well, 'everything b4' in 3.0.
12/31/11: Loose Bag jam unfolding here. Band sounds dialed in.
12/31/11: Solid opener > Wolfman's
12/31/11: This is way friskier than a two-slot Wolfman's has any business being.
12/31/11: SMELL MY MULE
12/31/11: Great solo from Page to start the duel section. Trey struggling a bit after, though they *are* at MEGA-TEMPO compared to usual.
12/31/11: Stealing Time is next.
12/31/11: Loose but high-energy affair so far.
12/31/11: By 'loose' I mean 'If you have a finely-honed flub radar, you've already shot yourself.'
12/31/11: If you just like Phish, though, it's pretty fun.
12/31/11: Obligatory MSG Lawn Boy.
12/31/11: Jibboo!
12/31/11: Farmhouse is maybe not the best follow-up to Jibboo. Lots of machine-gunning from Trey in Jibboo, though.
12/31/11: Nice Farmhouse solo from Trey!
12/31/11: if he laid down a Farmhouse solo like that more often, there would be anguished wails coming from the venue urinals.
12/31/11: Which is always what you want to hear at a concert.
12/31/11: Pebbles and Marbles. These days, always either a welcome bustout or a tremendous mistake.
12/31/11: WHICH WILL IT BE
12/31/11: I swear to god that Fish is playing a bluegrass beat right now.
12/31/11: Definitely playing a different beat than on the album.
12/31/11: Not super-different, but definitely more shuffle than jazz.
12/31/11: Considering the speed they just played that at, it was surprisingly tight.
12/31/11: Ocelot next.
12/31/11: Trey and Mike just whipped that Ocelot into submission. Nice.
12/31/11: This is another one of those instances where I will gladly put aside my typical Ocelot-inspired eye rolls and enjoy the jam.
12/31/11: > Fluffhead
12/31/11: I suspect that this is going to end the first set.
12/31/11: FLUFFHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAD
12/31/11: That was a satisfying 10,000th tweet.
12/31/11: Auld Lang Syne tease during Fluff outro.
12/31/11: End set.
12/31/11: S2 starts with Party Time.
12/31/11: Never liked the song much, honestly, but it's still fun when they open a set with it. Sort of like a declaration.
12/31/11: Party Time a little more fleshed out than usual. > Light.
12/31/11: Arpeggio jam suddenly drops out. Band comes back in w/ Trey on pitch shifter.
12/31/11: Loops and space now.
12/31/11: I think Page may have just busted out the theremin.
12/31/11: Sounds like 8/5/11 in here!
12/31/11: Loops, theremin, and a crazy beat from Fish.
12/31/11: Spontaneous confab outside my office with coworkers complaining to each other about expensive things being expensive.
12/31/11: Sort of ruining the mood.
12/31/11: Great, slow -> Golden Age after a short theremin jam, though.
12/31/11: Band struggles a bit with Golden Age proper, but then immediately drops into a '97-style deep funk groove.
12/31/11: Groove winds up really quickly on a Page piano outro. Huh.
12/31/11: Long pause, then Theme.
12/31/11: THINGS ARE FALLING DOWN ON ME
12/31/11: Pretty sure Heavy Things is never going to make a set, but that was a hot version.
12/31/11: Ghost! Slow tempo Ghost!
12/31/11: A bit of satisfying noodling into some power chording. Liking this Ghost so far.
12/31/11: Brief little Ghost excursion winds back to the outro. Sally next.
12/31/11: Vocal breakdown.
12/31/11: Out of the vocal jam, there's a quick guitar drone, and then > 46 Days.
12/31/11: For most of this set (minus the Light), it's felt like a show with a rushed fourth quarter.
12/31/11: But we're in the first half of the second of three sets. What gives?
12/31/11: This is not my beautiful Phish!
12/31/11: That Light, though, brief as it was, was like a follow-up to 12/30's Piper jam.
12/31/11: Alright, it deserves mention that this 46 Days is about as good a Type I rock-out as you're gonna get from this song.
12/31/11: Suzy, Cavern. #hitparade
12/31/11: Sorry, that was Suzy to end S2 and Cavern to start S3.
12/31/11: NYE 'gag' based around Steam.
12/31/11: https://t.co/yPo1ulN6iP
12/31/11: Trey totally shredding Steam in a way he doesn't typically.
12/31/11: Brief noise-rock section now.
12/31/11: Steam > Auld Lang Syne > DWD. Disease is punctuated by the sound of hundreds of balloons popping.
12/31/11: Unexpected, neat little jam getting built on the end of this Disease.
12/31/11: But that's about it in the improv category. The Wedge, Alaska, Wading.
12/31/11: The most interesting part of this Wading is the balloons audibly popping in the background.
12/31/11: Fist Tube
12/31/11: FIST TUBE GONNA GET YOU
12/31/11: Major flub currently happening between Trey and Page.
12/31/11: Sounds like Trey was half a step down or something for a whole section.
12/31/11: For a moment there, it sounded like they were concluding the run with Show of Life.
12/31/11: When I regained consciousness from my rage-induced mini-stroke, I realized it was just a flubby beginning to Slave.
12/31/11: Whew!
12/31/11: It's sounded like Trey's guitar is falling apart for like 30 straight minutes now. What the serious fuck.
12/31/11: That's cool, though, just let Mike drive this jam.
12/31/11: He's doing a great job so far.
12/31/11: And that's NYE 2011. Welp.
Oct 13, 2016
2011-12-30 MSG III
The Verdict:
UPDATE: Okay, I watched the linked video again and that jam is clearly awesome. Not sure what was going on in my brain the first time I reviewed it. Better now.
The penultimate night of 2011's NYE stand sees the band continuing more in the vein of N2 than N1. It's a well-built set, but nothing particularly interesting happens. I enjoyed the "Caspian" more than I typically do Type I versions of that song, and there's a Composition Break for "Divided Sky" that echoes the previous night's "YEM." "Sand" is about what you'd expect, but is the "improvisational" highlight of the set.
As long as you can imagine a 3.0-strong "Bowie" closing a first set, this second set is about as first-setty as you can get...except for the twenty-two minute "Piper" > "Twist" segment sitting in the middle. "Piper" is the first real big jam of the run, and it's followed by a clever-but-short "Twist" that, combined, make for a great departure from all the 2010-ness in this run.
Now, I don't want to sound even grumpier after all of my complaining about the lack of jams and improv in this run, but, frankly, there are much better jams from this year or 2010 or 2009 than this "Piper." I love me some "Piper" jams, and so I tried to be open-minded with this one, but the guys just never sound like they're connecting in that way despite the fifteen minute runtime. Mostly the problem is in the back half of the jam, where the boys go ambient, but are maybe a bit too formless. I don't know; it's nice to hear them stretch out for the first time, really, since Dick's, but I had a really hard time keeping my attention on this jam, and that's not typically a problem (obviously).
Ultimately, your mileage will vary here, dependent largely on whether or not you see the "Piper" jam as a notable version. Check it out official-style here and decide for yourself:
The Live Review:
12/30/11: There is no better show opener than PYITE for #phish. I'm happy to cut anyone who disagrees with me.
12/30/11: I think I'm biased from listening to 12/31/95 so many times in my early fandom days, tho.
12/30/11: Never gotten it as an opener at a show, though.
12/30/11: Solid, uptempo PYITE to start, > Caspian.
12/30/11: Surprisingly engaging Caspian with a fadeout and clever -> Number Line. First set off to a strong start.
12/30/11: Okay, I sort of lied. 8/2/13 had a S2 PYITE opener. Sort of counts.
12/30/11: Nice little break for Nellie Kane, and now a purty Divided Sky.
12/30/11: After DSky, the band oozes slowly into Sand.
12/30/11: Some great Trey/Page interplay here as Trey builds things to a peak.
12/30/11: Strong Type I version of Sand. Nice surprise in Vultures next.
12/30/11: Vultures is one of my favorite #phish songs.
12/30/11: Set ends with a Rift, Joy, Quinn run that felt a bit disconnected. Nothing earth-shattering and very similar to N2S1.
12/30/11: Might want to check out that Sand, though.
12/30/11: S2 opens with Wilson.
12/30/11: Wilson crashes into a high speed Axila I, which just went off the rails in a sort of hilarious fashion.
12/30/11: Axila I eventually rights itself and then > Piper.
12/30/11: Uptempo space-funk taking over in Piper.
12/30/11: Pitch shifter coming out.
12/30/11: Going ambient now, but Fish keeping the beat up.
12/30/11: Neat ambient-ish jam that never really falls into the 'unfocused morass of noise' category. I dig it.
12/30/11: Slow wind-down now, > Twist.
12/30/11: Twist was short and of the muddy-blues variety.
12/30/11: Post-Piper, it looks like we're headed to jukebox mode. Twist, Julius, Golgi, 2001, The Horse > Silent.
12/30/11: To be fair, there's some pretty badass pitch-shifted soloing from Trey in the 2001.
12/30/11: Bowie! Did not see that coming so late in the set.
12/30/11: Bowie intro with what I think are meant to be heavily distorted, eerie Silent teases.
12/30/11: Heavy Silent teases now.
12/30/11: Great, dense version of Bowie there. Coil next. Nice choice to end S2...I assume.
12/30/11: Coil outro is gorgeous, as usual. Encore starts with Boogie On. Trey calls out 'Cactus,' and Mike rips into a solo for a bit.
12/30/11: GTBT to close!
12/30/11: Decent but not particularly notable show overall. Similar to 12/29, actually, in structure but added a fifteen minute Piper.
12/30/11: The Piper wandered a bit in the back half of the jam, but still the most interesting bit of this run so far, methinks.
UPDATE: Okay, I watched the linked video again and that jam is clearly awesome. Not sure what was going on in my brain the first time I reviewed it. Better now.
The penultimate night of 2011's NYE stand sees the band continuing more in the vein of N2 than N1. It's a well-built set, but nothing particularly interesting happens. I enjoyed the "Caspian" more than I typically do Type I versions of that song, and there's a Composition Break for "Divided Sky" that echoes the previous night's "YEM." "Sand" is about what you'd expect, but is the "improvisational" highlight of the set.
As long as you can imagine a 3.0-strong "Bowie" closing a first set, this second set is about as first-setty as you can get...except for the twenty-two minute "Piper" > "Twist" segment sitting in the middle. "Piper" is the first real big jam of the run, and it's followed by a clever-but-short "Twist" that, combined, make for a great departure from all the 2010-ness in this run.
Now, I don't want to sound even grumpier after all of my complaining about the lack of jams and improv in this run, but, frankly, there are much better jams from this year or 2010 or 2009 than this "Piper." I love me some "Piper" jams, and so I tried to be open-minded with this one, but the guys just never sound like they're connecting in that way despite the fifteen minute runtime. Mostly the problem is in the back half of the jam, where the boys go ambient, but are maybe a bit too formless. I don't know; it's nice to hear them stretch out for the first time, really, since Dick's, but I had a really hard time keeping my attention on this jam, and that's not typically a problem (obviously).
Ultimately, your mileage will vary here, dependent largely on whether or not you see the "Piper" jam as a notable version. Check it out official-style here and decide for yourself:
The Live Review:
12/30/11: There is no better show opener than PYITE for #phish. I'm happy to cut anyone who disagrees with me.
12/30/11: I think I'm biased from listening to 12/31/95 so many times in my early fandom days, tho.
12/30/11: Never gotten it as an opener at a show, though.
12/30/11: Solid, uptempo PYITE to start, > Caspian.
12/30/11: Surprisingly engaging Caspian with a fadeout and clever -> Number Line. First set off to a strong start.
12/30/11: Okay, I sort of lied. 8/2/13 had a S2 PYITE opener. Sort of counts.
12/30/11: Nice little break for Nellie Kane, and now a purty Divided Sky.
12/30/11: After DSky, the band oozes slowly into Sand.
12/30/11: Some great Trey/Page interplay here as Trey builds things to a peak.
12/30/11: Strong Type I version of Sand. Nice surprise in Vultures next.
12/30/11: Vultures is one of my favorite #phish songs.
12/30/11: Set ends with a Rift, Joy, Quinn run that felt a bit disconnected. Nothing earth-shattering and very similar to N2S1.
12/30/11: Might want to check out that Sand, though.
12/30/11: S2 opens with Wilson.
12/30/11: Wilson crashes into a high speed Axila I, which just went off the rails in a sort of hilarious fashion.
12/30/11: Axila I eventually rights itself and then > Piper.
12/30/11: Uptempo space-funk taking over in Piper.
12/30/11: Pitch shifter coming out.
12/30/11: Going ambient now, but Fish keeping the beat up.
12/30/11: Neat ambient-ish jam that never really falls into the 'unfocused morass of noise' category. I dig it.
12/30/11: Slow wind-down now, > Twist.
12/30/11: Twist was short and of the muddy-blues variety.
12/30/11: Post-Piper, it looks like we're headed to jukebox mode. Twist, Julius, Golgi, 2001, The Horse > Silent.
12/30/11: To be fair, there's some pretty badass pitch-shifted soloing from Trey in the 2001.
12/30/11: Bowie! Did not see that coming so late in the set.
12/30/11: Bowie intro with what I think are meant to be heavily distorted, eerie Silent teases.
12/30/11: Heavy Silent teases now.
12/30/11: Great, dense version of Bowie there. Coil next. Nice choice to end S2...I assume.
12/30/11: Coil outro is gorgeous, as usual. Encore starts with Boogie On. Trey calls out 'Cactus,' and Mike rips into a solo for a bit.
12/30/11: GTBT to close!
12/30/11: Decent but not particularly notable show overall. Similar to 12/29, actually, in structure but added a fifteen minute Piper.
12/30/11: The Piper wandered a bit in the back half of the jam, but still the most interesting bit of this run so far, methinks.
2011-12-29 MSG II
The Verdict:
The second show of the MSG run is a bit more by-the-book than the first night.
The first set is another string of great song choices, but in general the band doesn't rise above the material the way they did on the previous night. The one exception here is the "YEM" that comes as the second song of the night. It's an excellent version, not just because of its placement but because of a strong all-band performance.
The second set also brings a great set of songs, but, for the most part, doesn't do much with that setlist. "Crosseyed" opens the set and opts for a standard Type I > fadeout, '09 style. The "Simple" is short, but is perhaps the most interesting bit of the show as the band deconstructs the typical melodic jam before making a fantastic segue into "Lifeboy."
Unless you're crazy for "Guyute," the only real other moment of note in this set comes at the end of a standard-rock "Chalkdust," when Trey moves into "Hydrogen" before ending the song, resulting in a very uptempo, rocking "Hydrogen" (or at least the first half of it). This is a bit messy (it sounds like the rest of the band can't quite get on board before it's abandoned), but it's still a really neat moment and worth a listen.
The Live Review:
12/29/11: The Sloth opener. Excited to see what they're going to pull out tonight after a solid 12/28 show.
12/29/11: YEM in the two slot. Crowd going nuts. Love it.
12/29/11: We're seven minutes into YEM and the crowd is still losing its goddamn mind. Go MSG!
12/29/11: Great rock peak before the Mike solo part. Maybe some pitch-shifter in there?
12/29/11: Better than YEM has any right to be as the second song of the night.
12/29/11: Seems weird after that that there's so much show left. BOTT.
12/29/11: YEM was a one-off surprise in this set. BOTT, Moma, Funky Bitch, Maze follow. All strong versions, though.
12/29/11: Trey on fire during Bitch.
12/29/11: Halley's crashed right into Antelope.
12/29/11: Pretty straightforward opening set, aside from the YEM. That said, YEM a bona fide show highlight, and not just b/c of placement.
12/29/11: C+P opening second set.
12/29/11: Don't know if it's the mix or the headphones or what, but Mike is killing it during this show.
12/29/11: Crosseyed goes the '09 fadeout route. > Simple.
12/29/11: Short Simple, but a really spacey, erratic breakdown near the end. Loops from Trey, Mike and Fish creating some great tension.
12/29/11: Awesome -> Lifeboy!
12/29/11: Guyute!
12/29/11: Guyute is followed by a pretty standard Mike's. Chalkdust next.
12/29/11: If this was 2014 on, I'd have hope of a deep jam here, but more than likely we're just getting some rawk.
12/29/11: Trey starts full-on Hydrogen in the middle of the CTD outro. Still playing it at fast tempo, rock-style.
12/29/11: Fish makes a nice transition into the traditional Hydrogen beat and we're off. That was cool.
12/29/11: Trey struggling a bit more than usual with Hydrogen, but that intro was worth it.
12/29/11: Brief plinko section in Groove. Now a standard rock outro.
12/29/11: They're going to wrap up the show with Show of Life, Zero, and Loving Cup. What the hell will they encore with on 12/30 and 12/31?
12/29/11: That was a very 2010 show. Hot playing all the way around, but pretty much no surprises save for an early YEM.
12/29/11: Enjoyed the Simple -> Lifeboy sequence, though. And CDT -> Hydrogen was cool, if not executed very well.
The second show of the MSG run is a bit more by-the-book than the first night.
The first set is another string of great song choices, but in general the band doesn't rise above the material the way they did on the previous night. The one exception here is the "YEM" that comes as the second song of the night. It's an excellent version, not just because of its placement but because of a strong all-band performance.
The second set also brings a great set of songs, but, for the most part, doesn't do much with that setlist. "Crosseyed" opens the set and opts for a standard Type I > fadeout, '09 style. The "Simple" is short, but is perhaps the most interesting bit of the show as the band deconstructs the typical melodic jam before making a fantastic segue into "Lifeboy."
Unless you're crazy for "Guyute," the only real other moment of note in this set comes at the end of a standard-rock "Chalkdust," when Trey moves into "Hydrogen" before ending the song, resulting in a very uptempo, rocking "Hydrogen" (or at least the first half of it). This is a bit messy (it sounds like the rest of the band can't quite get on board before it's abandoned), but it's still a really neat moment and worth a listen.
The Live Review:
12/29/11: The Sloth opener. Excited to see what they're going to pull out tonight after a solid 12/28 show.
12/29/11: YEM in the two slot. Crowd going nuts. Love it.
12/29/11: We're seven minutes into YEM and the crowd is still losing its goddamn mind. Go MSG!
12/29/11: Great rock peak before the Mike solo part. Maybe some pitch-shifter in there?
12/29/11: Better than YEM has any right to be as the second song of the night.
12/29/11: Seems weird after that that there's so much show left. BOTT.
12/29/11: YEM was a one-off surprise in this set. BOTT, Moma, Funky Bitch, Maze follow. All strong versions, though.
12/29/11: Trey on fire during Bitch.
12/29/11: Halley's crashed right into Antelope.
12/29/11: Pretty straightforward opening set, aside from the YEM. That said, YEM a bona fide show highlight, and not just b/c of placement.
12/29/11: C+P opening second set.
12/29/11: Don't know if it's the mix or the headphones or what, but Mike is killing it during this show.
12/29/11: Crosseyed goes the '09 fadeout route. > Simple.
12/29/11: Short Simple, but a really spacey, erratic breakdown near the end. Loops from Trey, Mike and Fish creating some great tension.
12/29/11: Awesome -> Lifeboy!
12/29/11: Guyute!
12/29/11: Guyute is followed by a pretty standard Mike's. Chalkdust next.
12/29/11: If this was 2014 on, I'd have hope of a deep jam here, but more than likely we're just getting some rawk.
12/29/11: Trey starts full-on Hydrogen in the middle of the CTD outro. Still playing it at fast tempo, rock-style.
12/29/11: Fish makes a nice transition into the traditional Hydrogen beat and we're off. That was cool.
12/29/11: Trey struggling a bit more than usual with Hydrogen, but that intro was worth it.
12/29/11: Brief plinko section in Groove. Now a standard rock outro.
12/29/11: They're going to wrap up the show with Show of Life, Zero, and Loving Cup. What the hell will they encore with on 12/30 and 12/31?
12/29/11: That was a very 2010 show. Hot playing all the way around, but pretty much no surprises save for an early YEM.
12/29/11: Enjoyed the Simple -> Lifeboy sequence, though. And CDT -> Hydrogen was cool, if not executed very well.
2011-12-28 MSG I
The Verdict:
There's a sort of circularity to Phish 2011. It began with the Bethel soundcheck jam and a few great shows that featured jamming that went above and beyond just about everything from '09 and '10. Then, we spent most of the heart of the summer revisiting the doldrums of the least interesting portions of those two years. Once the band headed west, they seemed to start to evolve again, an evolution that culminated in fantastic runs at UIC Pavilion and Dick's. Now, rounding out the year at MSG, they've laid down a run that recalls the less inspiring parts of 2011 instead of building on momentum from late summer.
That said, I'm only partway through 12/31 right now, but at this point, 12/28 is the best of the bunch. The opening set is a typically well-built 2011 S1, and on top of just its sheer momentum and flow it features strong takes on "Possum," "Cities" (w/ plinko jam) and "KDF," as well as a barn-burner of a "Gin" closer.
Opening the second set with "Birds" is usually a head-scratcher, but here Trey and Co. bring the heat, revving things up for a great "Carini" -> "Tweezer" pair. The "Carini" goes against type, hitting on a jam space that's best describes as "bouncy" or "lilting," while "Tweezer" splits its time between plinko jamming and funk jamming...at the same time.
For sheer jamming value, this sequence is definitely the highlight of set. That said, "Rock and Roll" moves nicely from standard Trey Rock to a blues section that sets up a precise start-and-stop transition -> "NICU." The segue is worth a listen, at least. And, as a "Hood" aficionado, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that this "Hood" is pretty special it doesn't deviate much from the blueprint, but it has both melodic beauty and a huge rock peak to a degree that most typical versions could only wish for.
In all, this isn't a UIC or Dick's show by any means, but it's a strong showing when put in the company of late-summer 2011. I wish I could say the same of the rest of the run.
The Live Review:
12/28/11: Free opener.
12/28/11: Trey with some extra whammy between lyrics.
12/28/11: Glide!
12/28/11: High-tempo, too.
12/28/11: Hot version of Possum. Cities now.
12/28/11: Slow tempo, languidly funky.
12/28/11: Huzzah! Page to clav.
12/28/11: Really neat, bass-y plinko space now.
12/28/11: Fading to an angry drone now.
12/28/11: > Curtis Loew.
12/28/11: Standard-but-energetic take on Stash.
12/28/11: Contact. Loving the setlist so far.
12/28/11: Sample, compact-but-rocking KDF.
12/28/11: Looks like the set will end with Gin.
12/28/11: Nice slow-building rock jam/peak to this Gin. Trey going nuts at the 9 minute mark.
12/28/11: Now that's how you end a first set with Bathtub Gin.
12/28/11: Here you go: https://t.co/rPd5CLhpZ9
12/28/11: S2 starts with the almost-always disappointing opener Birds of a Feather.
12/28/11: Good thing I said 'almost-always,' because that version was HOT.
12/28/11: Carini seems like a logical follow-up.
12/28/11: Layered 'lumpy head' lyrics coming out of the song proper.
12/28/11: Move into a surprisingly calm space, led by Page's organ.
12/28/11: Awesome, bouncy little jam here in Carini. Quite a surprise.
12/28/11: Excellent -> Tweezer.
12/28/11: Cooking up some plinko-funk stew early in Tweezer, here.
12/28/11: Really cool plinko and funk synthesis continuing here.
12/28/11: Now busting out into a Trey-rock direction.
12/28/11: Neat fadeout at the end of the Tweezer jam > MFMF > RnR.
12/28/11: JENNY SAID WHEN SHE WAS JUST FIVE YEARS OLD THERE'S NOTHING HAPPENING AT ALL
12/28/11: Straight-ahead rock mania in this RnR.
12/28/11: Once again, Page on organ drives the jam in a different direction. Slowing down a bit now.
12/28/11: Nice little two-chord, almost-blues breakdown now.
12/28/11: Whoa! Stop-start jam makes a -> NICU. Very cool.
12/28/11: Oddly placed Bouncin', but Hood has us back on track now.
12/28/11: Will there ever be a point in my life where Harry Hood isn't my favorite song? I hope not.
12/28/11: Gorge and Chula Vista Hoods were thirty or so of the best moments of this year for me.
12/28/11: There's pretty much nothing in the world like a Gorge Hood, except maybe a Gorge Tweeprise.
12/28/11: Some fantastic percussion from Fish on this version. Making the usual opening to the jam more dynamic.
12/28/11: Fantastic build!
12/28/11: The string of notes Trey is putting together right now is absolutely gorgeous.
12/28/11: HOLY HELL, I did not expect to find such a good Hood just lurking around during a show like this.
12/28/11: If they nail the transition into the outro I'm going to flip out.
12/28/11: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
12/28/11: Hood: https://t.co/wMl7SwWjik
12/28/11: Could have ended there, but continues into Bug. Which means Trey must be happy.
12/28/11: Call me crazy, but I actually really like Bug as a S2 ender in the right circumstances.
12/28/11: End set.
12/28/11: Tube encore. That's interesting.
12/28/11: Rocky Top!
12/28/11: > Tweeprise
12/28/11: Possum, Cities, Stash, Sample, Gin, Carini, Tweezer, RnR, Hood, Tweeprise...they do realize there are three shows left, right?!
There's a sort of circularity to Phish 2011. It began with the Bethel soundcheck jam and a few great shows that featured jamming that went above and beyond just about everything from '09 and '10. Then, we spent most of the heart of the summer revisiting the doldrums of the least interesting portions of those two years. Once the band headed west, they seemed to start to evolve again, an evolution that culminated in fantastic runs at UIC Pavilion and Dick's. Now, rounding out the year at MSG, they've laid down a run that recalls the less inspiring parts of 2011 instead of building on momentum from late summer.
That said, I'm only partway through 12/31 right now, but at this point, 12/28 is the best of the bunch. The opening set is a typically well-built 2011 S1, and on top of just its sheer momentum and flow it features strong takes on "Possum," "Cities" (w/ plinko jam) and "KDF," as well as a barn-burner of a "Gin" closer.
Opening the second set with "Birds" is usually a head-scratcher, but here Trey and Co. bring the heat, revving things up for a great "Carini" -> "Tweezer" pair. The "Carini" goes against type, hitting on a jam space that's best describes as "bouncy" or "lilting," while "Tweezer" splits its time between plinko jamming and funk jamming...at the same time.
For sheer jamming value, this sequence is definitely the highlight of set. That said, "Rock and Roll" moves nicely from standard Trey Rock to a blues section that sets up a precise start-and-stop transition -> "NICU." The segue is worth a listen, at least. And, as a "Hood" aficionado, I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that this "Hood" is pretty special it doesn't deviate much from the blueprint, but it has both melodic beauty and a huge rock peak to a degree that most typical versions could only wish for.
In all, this isn't a UIC or Dick's show by any means, but it's a strong showing when put in the company of late-summer 2011. I wish I could say the same of the rest of the run.
The Live Review:
12/28/11: Free opener.
12/28/11: Trey with some extra whammy between lyrics.
12/28/11: Glide!
12/28/11: High-tempo, too.
12/28/11: Hot version of Possum. Cities now.
12/28/11: Slow tempo, languidly funky.
12/28/11: Huzzah! Page to clav.
12/28/11: Really neat, bass-y plinko space now.
12/28/11: Fading to an angry drone now.
12/28/11: > Curtis Loew.
12/28/11: Standard-but-energetic take on Stash.
12/28/11: Contact. Loving the setlist so far.
12/28/11: Sample, compact-but-rocking KDF.
12/28/11: Looks like the set will end with Gin.
12/28/11: Nice slow-building rock jam/peak to this Gin. Trey going nuts at the 9 minute mark.
12/28/11: Now that's how you end a first set with Bathtub Gin.
12/28/11: Here you go: https://t.co/rPd5CLhpZ9
12/28/11: S2 starts with the almost-always disappointing opener Birds of a Feather.
12/28/11: Good thing I said 'almost-always,' because that version was HOT.
12/28/11: Carini seems like a logical follow-up.
12/28/11: Layered 'lumpy head' lyrics coming out of the song proper.
12/28/11: Move into a surprisingly calm space, led by Page's organ.
12/28/11: Awesome, bouncy little jam here in Carini. Quite a surprise.
12/28/11: Excellent -> Tweezer.
12/28/11: Cooking up some plinko-funk stew early in Tweezer, here.
12/28/11: Really cool plinko and funk synthesis continuing here.
12/28/11: Now busting out into a Trey-rock direction.
12/28/11: Neat fadeout at the end of the Tweezer jam > MFMF > RnR.
12/28/11: JENNY SAID WHEN SHE WAS JUST FIVE YEARS OLD THERE'S NOTHING HAPPENING AT ALL
12/28/11: Straight-ahead rock mania in this RnR.
12/28/11: Once again, Page on organ drives the jam in a different direction. Slowing down a bit now.
12/28/11: Nice little two-chord, almost-blues breakdown now.
12/28/11: Whoa! Stop-start jam makes a -> NICU. Very cool.
12/28/11: Oddly placed Bouncin', but Hood has us back on track now.
12/28/11: Will there ever be a point in my life where Harry Hood isn't my favorite song? I hope not.
12/28/11: Gorge and Chula Vista Hoods were thirty or so of the best moments of this year for me.
12/28/11: There's pretty much nothing in the world like a Gorge Hood, except maybe a Gorge Tweeprise.
12/28/11: Some fantastic percussion from Fish on this version. Making the usual opening to the jam more dynamic.
12/28/11: Fantastic build!
12/28/11: The string of notes Trey is putting together right now is absolutely gorgeous.
12/28/11: HOLY HELL, I did not expect to find such a good Hood just lurking around during a show like this.
12/28/11: If they nail the transition into the outro I'm going to flip out.
12/28/11: YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES
12/28/11: Hood: https://t.co/wMl7SwWjik
12/28/11: Could have ended there, but continues into Bug. Which means Trey must be happy.
12/28/11: Call me crazy, but I actually really like Bug as a S2 ender in the right circumstances.
12/28/11: End set.
12/28/11: Tube encore. That's interesting.
12/28/11: Rocky Top!
12/28/11: > Tweeprise
12/28/11: Possum, Cities, Stash, Sample, Gin, Carini, Tweezer, RnR, Hood, Tweeprise...they do realize there are three shows left, right?!
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