2012-07-04 Jones Beach II

The Verdict:
The fourth of July show feels like a slight step backward after the previous two shows. There's a little bit of (really interesting) third quarter improv, but the absolute weight of all of the rest of the songs in this marathon show sort of bury it. This is another great example of 2012 Phish doing a good job of capturing that summer-lawn vibe, but holding on to it for about thirty minutes too long. I never thought I'd be complaining about getting too much Phish in one show, but there it is.

Anyway, the first set is another tour de force of non-jammed songs arranged in a surprisingly consistently please fashion. I liked this one less than the previous few opening frames, but if you're a huge fan of "Alumni" > "Jimmy Page" > "Alumni" and/or "TMWSIY" > "Avenu Malkenu" > "TMWSIY," you'll be happy here. "Head Held High" is a surprise bustout, as well.

Most of the rest of the set is pretty straightforward. The "Bowie" doesn't do anything unexpected, but it's serviceable version. The highlight of the set is probably "Suskind Hotel," for its brief but nimble jam. Check it out.

Like 7/3, the second set kicks off with a standard take on a tune. In this case, it's "Boogie On." After that, though, things kick into gear with "Tweezer," which leads into a bassy, spacey jam for a few minutes before segueing into "Twist." "Twist" gets weird right away, with the band as a whole deconstructing the song's typical Type I outro jam in what is the definite highlight of the show.

From there, the rest of the show plays it pretty close to the vest. That said, the band rips into these jamless tunes with gusto, and there could be worse songs here than "Rock and Roll," "Hood," and "Slave."

Here's the whole second set so you can check out that "Tweezer" > "Twist" combo:

The Live Review:
7/4/12: Fourth of July show opens with Alumni Blues.  
7/4/12: There was a really brief Silent In The Morning-type jam before Alumni started.  
7/4/12: I think it might have just been Trey trying to remember how Alumni went.  
7/4/12: 'I got a degree...from Goddard College.'  
7/4/12: > Jimmy Page
7/4/12: Alumni continues with a Type I jam after the lyrics.  
7/4/12: Head Held High. 356 show bustout.  
7/4/12: TMWSIY!  
7/4/12: > Avenu Malkenu
7/4/12: > TMWSIY
7/4/12: Hey @phish, in case you're looking for setlist ideas for the summer, a sunset TMWSIY at the Gorge would be pretty nice.  
7/4/12: Transition to KDF is a little jarring, tone-wise.  
7/4/12: Quick take on Bittersweet Motel, then Moma Dance.  
7/4/12: Gumbo, Bowie.  
7/4/12: Pretty straightforward but really propulsive Bowie jam.  
7/4/12: Alaska  
7/4/12: Ripping version of Alaska (take that as you will). > Susskind Hotel.
7/4/12: Quick drop into a Type II jam in Suskind Hotel.  
7/4/12: Very short but fun little jam. HYHU coming up next.  
7/4/12: Fish dedicating this take on Purple Rain to 'tucking.'  
7/2/14: A very tuck-filled Purple Rain, performed by 'Friar Tuck.' Then, back into HYHU, and now the Star-Spangled… https://t.co/0EfpM5D8SK  
7/2/14: After a few days of shows that felt like they had a really special energy, I'm not feeling it so far from this one.  
7/2/14: YMMV, especially if you're a huge Phish-oldies fan, because this first set is a very old school set for the most part.  
7/2/14: That said, I really liked the mini-jam in Suskind.  
7/2/14: Boogie On starts the second set, strangely enough.  
7/2/14: > Tweezer
7/2/14: Big ol' Type I solo here from Trey.  
7/2/14: Spacey, bass-led jam happening now.  
7/2/14: Page taking over with the electric piano.  
7/2/14: This is really great.  
7/2/14: Jam sort of peters out. Trey leads the band into Twist.  
7/2/14: Twist gets deconstructed REALLY quickly.  
7/2/14: Really interesting, ephemeral kind of jam going on here. Fades out just as suddenly as the Tweezer jam, though.  
7/2/14: Fade out. Fade back in to Taste.  
7/4/12: Hot take on Taste. Quinn the Eskimo is next.  
7/4/12: > Julius
7/4/12: Is there a Phish song that signals that the jammy part of the show is over more decisively than Julius?  
7/4/12: Trey got warmed up during Julius and is now shredding a Type I  Rock and Roll jam.  
7/4/12: Jam now going in a direction similar to the Tweezer from earlier in the set.  
7/4/12: Very short exploration interrupted by The Horse.  
7/4/12: > Silent
7/4/12: Hood!  
7/4/12: A compact but pretty gorgeous take on Hood here.  
7/4/12: Piano-only outro to Hood leads into Shine a Light.  
7/4/12: Oh good. Show of Life.  
7/4/12: Just a note: this show has KDF, Alaska, *and* Show of Life. All it's missing is an Ocelot encore.  
7/4/12: > a fast-paced Slave
7/4/12: A little rough getting into the jam, but some great full band interplay once they get there.  
7/4/12: Big crescendo to end the second set.  
7/4/12: Monkey for the encore. I'm assuming it'll be followed by Tweeprise from that Tweezer that happened like 47 songs ago.  
7/4/12: Like the Suskind Hotel mini-jam in the first set, I really enjoyed the little bits of exploration in Tweezer and Twist.  
7/4/12: Like a lot of the best shows during this leg, they seem focused on quality rather than quantity when it comes to improvisation.  
7/4/12: That said, this felt a little bit more like a jukebox mix of tunes and a little less like an interesting Ph… https://t.co/abllg96EUA    

2012-07-03 Jones Beach I

The Verdict:
I feel like I've said this about nearly every first set this tour so far, but this one's a well-constructed scorcher. From the "Skin It Back" mega-bustout opener (played flawlessly and jammed-out, by the way) to "Happiness Is a Warm Gun" through a nuclear "Mike's Groove" and a surprise "JJLC," there is almost no letup here.

The second set starts with a pretty standard take on "Chalkdust," but the "Sand" that follows starts opening things up a bit. Things get more jazzy than funky, and a plinko-style jam leads nicely into "Golden Age." The "Golden Age" jam is one of more complex, consistently interesting things I've heard from the band thus far this tour, and it could have easily segued into "No Quarter" at the end if that hadn't just happened during the previous show.

For a brief moment, it seems like the following "Wolfman's" is going to follow in "Golden Age"'s dark-jammy footsteps, but it gets ripcorded (albeit smoothly) into "Walk Away," and from there we're into a more standard, non-improv set again.

Admittedly, you might want to hear the "Antelope" that closes the set, as it departs briefly from the usual template with an interesting bridge section.

All in all, it's not quite up there with 7/1, but 7/3 is another good omen for the rest of the summer.

The Live Review:
7/03/12: Skin It Back opener.      
7/03/12: As per @phishnet it's a 1,417 show bustout.      
7/03/12: And of course people in the crowd are cheering for it because Phish fans are insane and brilliant.      
7/03/12: How can you tell that it's almost summer break? I'm grading in my office in flip flops and a @phish hoodie… https://t.co/T3N07ZJEED      
7/03/12: Trey and Mike are killing the outro jam here.      
7/03/12: > Possum  
7/03/12: Skin It Back teasing at the beginning of Possum.      
7/03/12: Huge energy so far. Tube next.      
7/03/12: Happiness Is a Warm Gun      
7/03/12: Mike's Song      
7/03/12: Nice, slowly-building Mike's. > Hydrogen      
7/03/12: > Groove  
7/03/12: Trey just shredded Groove.            
7/03/12: Halley's Comet. Whatever first-set-setlist alchemy these guys were channeling in 2012, I hope they rediscover it in 2018.      
7/03/12: Funky ending to Tube. > Axila I. I think they were trying to segue it properly and just messed up the timing.  
7/03/12: Ya Mar!      
7/03/12: Page ripping up his organ solo. In case I haven't already mentioned this, the band is ON FIRE in this set.      
7/03/12: Joy.      
7/03/12: They literally just played this a set ago.      
7/03/12: On the upside, this is the first real slowdown in this set, eleven songs in.      
7/03/12: Jesus Just Left Chicago!      
7/03/12: How were people freaking out for Skin It Back, but not for this?!      
7/03/12: Lengthy first set keeps going with Number Line.      
7/03/12: Trey has been on fire for this whole set, and Number Line is no exception.      
7/03/12: Golgi, presumably to close the set.      
7/03/12: End ginormous set (14 songs, 84 minutes).      
7/03/12: Second set starts off with Chalkdust.      
7/03/12: Skin It Back tease in Chalkdust.      
7/03/12: More prolonged Skin It Back teasing at the beginning of the jam.      
7/03/12: Solid Type I Chalkdust. Sand next.      
7/03/12: After a fiery solo from Trey, Page is over to the electric piano and things are taking on a mellower tone.      
7/03/12: Almost a jazzy feel to this Sand jam. Liking it a lot.      
7/03/12: High-energy take on the plinko style here.      
7/03/12: Excellent -> Golden Age.  
7/03/12: That was real smooth. The Platonic Segue Of Dreams.      
7/03/12: Or just of, like, 1995.      
7/03/12: After a quick outro jam, things go Type II in a hurry. Funk time.      
7/03/12: Things turning really minimalist and introspective.      
7/03/12: Loving where this is going as a counterpoint to the first set's joyous rock sensibility.      
7/03/12: Great interplay across the board here.      
7/03/12: Hoping I get to hear this develop live and in person is why I keep buying tickets for Phish shows.      
7/03/12: If they hadn't literally just done it, this would be a great opportunity for a -> No Quarter.      
7/03/12: Jam fades, ends instead.      
7/03/12: Wolfman's next.      
7/03/12: Dark wave of sound coming out of this Wolfman's jam. Interesting.      
7/03/12: Really interesting jam with a sudden (but smooth) segue into Walk Away.      
7/03/12: Would have liked to hear more of that, but nice segue anyway.      
7/03/12: Bug is a nice choice for a cool-down song here.      
7/03/12: Nice late-set Fluffhead.      
7/03/12: Great take on Fluffhead. The Wedge is next.            
7/03/12: Neat Wedge > Antelope pairing.  
7/03/12: Some extended bridge jamming in Antelope. Atypical version.      
7/03/12: Trey taking the chance to engage the crowd in another game of Marco Polo.      
7/03/12: Now he's yelling 'Mike-o' and I'm pretty sure that the crowd, without prompting, is responding 'Gordo,' wh… https://t.co/fcxZQkdB1g      
7/03/12: End second set.      
7/03/12: ZERO encore.      
7/03/12: But do I mean 'There is zero encore' or do I mean 'Zero is the encore'? Well, isn't really the same either… https://t.co/Y6aoCKFxaz      
7/03/12: Apology gif. #zenhair https://t.co/okJ8n7gOKT      
7/03/12: That was a great show all around. Really enjoyed it. Excellent, summer-y first set and some serious (thoug… https://t.co/5I9HlExLMg        

2012-07-01 Alpine Valley II

The Verdict:
Well, on the second night of the Alpine Valley run, my wish for a more improv-laden show is granted. Barely.

The first set is another almost unbelievably well-constructed affair, bouncing from rarity to staple to ballad without missing a beat or sacrificing flow. Nearly every song is a surprise, but nearly every song works, so it's great. Of particular note is the jam in "Fee," which isn't just a novelty, but is a few minutes' worth of fantastic, full-band jamming. It's followed by a powerful "Maze"/"Coil" combo to close out the set.

The second set is interesting, at least by early 2012's standards. "Crosseyed" starts out with a pretty straightforward Type I jam, but segues nicely into a more abstract, almost-ambient space. That that space is quickly taken over by "No Quarter" is not something I'm going to complain about, because I love me some "No Quarter."

"Light" is a jam monster (if again only by early 2012 standards). It moves really quickly away from the usual arpeggiated Type I jam and into a mellower space that slowly modulates its groove until suddenly...holy shit, it's "Frankie Says"! It's not the full song, but a really thorough jam on the song's chords before the band returns to "Light" to finish it out with a wind-down into "Ghost."

"Ghost" proper is short, but sweet. It's a driving, dark, bluesy jam that prompts some "Still waiting" vocal quotes and is definitely worth a listen.

It's starting to feel like a legit Phish show in here suddenly, but alas there's some jukebox-y action coming during the fourth quarter of the show, with "BOTT," "Farmhouse," "Heavy Things," "Joy," and "Julius" all making an appearance. That said, these songs are definitely played with more verve than normal, and it's hard to fault a performance of even these songs when it sounds earnest instead of phoned-in.

So, I'm happy to call this show one of my favorites so far in this early leg of tour.

The Live Review:
7/01/12: Soul Shakedown Party opener.      
7/01/12: Looks like we're in for another rarities-laden opening set. Lonesome Cowboy Bill next.      
7/01/12: Surprisingly energetic solo from Trey here. Band yelling and hooting.    
7/01/12: And, as usual, by 'band' I mean 'Fish.'      
7/01/12: Vultures!      
7/01/12: SANS POTATO      
7/01/12: > Jibboo.  
7/01/12: Nice, jazzy little jam happening here.      
7/01/12: Nice, energetic jam in Jibboo. Dirt next.      
7/01/12: Liking the jazzy turn this set has taken.      
7/01/12: ASIHTOS breaks up the jazzy interlude.      
7/01/12: Access Me?!      
7/01/12: Well, that's fun.      
7/01/12: Meat! I love this tune.      
7/01/12: If these guys could combine a 2011/2012 first set with a 2015-2017 second set, they'd have the perfect 3.0 show.      
7/01/12: Well, that's not true. The perfect 3.0 show would just be two 2017 second sets.      
7/01/12: But the other would be a close second.      
7/01/12: Anyway, MEAT      
7/01/12: Some fun guitar from Trey during the breakdown. Crowd erupts at Mike taking the lead on bass for a moment.      
7/01/12: Frankenstein!      
7/01/12: Band a little rough here, but fun to hear it nonetheless.      
7/01/12: Fee! Loving this setlist.      
7/01/12: Neat arcade-machine-sounding jam coming out of Fee.      
7/01/12: Jam turning a bit somber now.      
7/01/12: Really cool Fee jam fades into Maze.      
7/01/12: Really high-energy take on Maze here. Wow.      
7/01/12: Looks like Coil will wrap up a great first set.      
7/01/12: Nice Trey/Page duel during the outro jam.      
7/01/12: Great first set! A nice mix of songs, very unpredictable but still cohesive. The awesome jam in Fee and th… https://t.co/D0mmn2KdrQ      
7/01/12: Crosseyed opener for set two.      
7/01/12: Some serious Type I jamming happening here.      
7/01/12: Mellower Type I jam with creepy 'Still waiting' lyrics.      
7/01/12: Brief moment of uplifting ambient sound before -> No Quarter.  
7/01/12: A somewhat out-of-the-box No Quarter solo from Trey there.      
7/01/12: Light next.      
7/01/12: Band doesn't spend a lot of time in the usual space, moves quickly to something more mellow and bouncier.      
7/01/12: Jam almost reminiscent of Coil outro.      
7/01/12: -> Frankie Says  
7/01/12: Building a bit of melody in now.      
7/01/12: Oh, for clarification, that was a sustained Frankie Says jam, but no lyrics. Not the full song.      
7/01/12: Synth-y tone from Page and Trey now.      
7/01/12: Neat wind-down > Ghost.   
7/01/12: Really interesting driving, tense jam forming in Ghost.      
7/01/12: This is great.      
7/01/12: Smooth move into a bluesy space. 'Still waiting' lyric quotes.      
7/01/12: -> BOTT  
7/01/12: Extra-short BOTT leads into Farmhouse.      
7/01/12: Nice, deliberate solo from Trey in Farmhouse.      
7/01/12: Late-set 46 Days is next.      
7/01/12: Jazzy Heavy Things makes a good companion to the first set's Jibboo.    
7/01/12: Some great Trey/Page interplay here.      
7/01/12: > Joy  
7/01/12: Julius      
7/01/12: Trey ripping on Julius. Then end set.      
7/01/12: Standalone Meatstick encore. That's fun!      
7/01/12: Overall, a show that really surprised me by transcending what it looked like on paper (another too-straight 2012 show).      
7/01/12: Fantastic first set, with a perfect setlist, a legit jam in Fee, and really strong takes on Maze and Coil.      
7/01/12: Second set had a nice mini-ambient jam in C+P plus a solid segue into No Quarter. Loved Light -> Frankie Says jam -> Light.
7/01/12: Ghost was short, but exploratory nonetheless, and as much as I want to call a fourth quarter slump after t… https://t.co/btHG6xlNTw