The Verdict:
I'll admit right off that I'm a bit partial to these first four 2015 shows because I saw them in person, and it's always difficult to review a show you saw in person while holding it to the same standards as you've held the 11 million shows you've only listened to on headphones to. But here goes.
Bend I is a great tour opener, but in the light of everything that's come since, it withers a little. I love all the debuts, both during Bend I and Bend II, and I suppose your mileage with this show will vary depending on how you feel about the new songs (both new originals and new covers).
The first set is split between the debut of Trey's absolutely commanding 2015 playing style and a sagging middle section that's as messy as it is been-there-done-that. "Sand" is about as good as it gets without a "real" jam, "Devotion" is excellent, and the first "Blaze On" is a surprisingly confident take. The middle of the set sort of drags the high points down, though, the worst part being a pretty nasty butchering of "Horn."
An uneven first set moves into a much better second set, though. "Ghost" peters out before getting really serious, but it's still a great opener call and worth a listen. "Fuego" veers into a brief but eerie ambient space at its close (its different than the usual outro, which is, admittedly, similar) before landing beautifully in "Shade." And the highlight of the show comes in the "No Men" > "Groove" -> "Boogie On" funkfest. This isn't a sustained "jam," per se, but like Shoreline's S2 run, a couple of songs doing the work here instead of a 30 minute version of one song doesn't detract from the quality of the improvisation.
The Live Review:
7/21/15: Excited to have an excuse to relisten to the Bend run. Still hard to believe that @phish actually played there, and I saw it.
7/21/15: Sample opener. Made Ms. Saxscraper very happy :)
7/21/15: Remembering thinking 'Sounds like Trey has been practicing!' during this Sand. Happy to have been right :)
7/21/15: Relistening to the Sand, I LOVE Trey's tone. Somehow different than usual. Maybe clearer?
7/21/15: Oh yeah, this solo is $$$$
7/21/15: This was the earliest in a @phish show that I've ever screamed at the top of my lungs.
7/21/15: Harmonies seem a lot stronger on this tour, too. See 555 and Rift so far.
7/21/15: Little bit more sag in this set than I remember. Rough Halfway To the Moon.
7/21/15: Trey has some major struggles with Horn, but back in fine form for a Type I DtaD.
7/21/15: Blaze On debut is next. Such a cool song, even without the Shoreline jam.
7/21/15: A little Manteca-y jam tacked onto this shorter version of Blaze On. Love it.
7/21/15: Tube!
7/21/15: Love Page's clav here. So dirty.
7/21/15: Shit, Page is KILLING it.
7/21/15: Nice, bouncy funk in this Wolfman's (as opposed to filthy, disgusting, dirty funk).
7/21/15: With my rose-colored glasses off, that S1 was a little weaker than I remembered.
7/21/15: Great Sand, Devotion, Blaze On, and Wolfman's, though.
7/21/15: When this Ghost started, I was sure that it was freaking ON.
7/21/15: I suppose in a way it was, if by 'it' you mean 'a set full of incredibly funky mini-jams.'
7/21/15: Hot lead from Trey heading into the jam.
7/21/15: Trey keeping things in rock-god mode. Sounds a bit like Fish is trying to push them somewhere else.
7/21/15: Angry, dissonant chords now. Fish winding down.
7/21/15: Ghost jam sort of peters out. Sounded a little like Page might be cooking up something, but then > Birds.
7/21/15: Pretty low on the ripcord meter, though. They kicked around a few ideas post-Trey-solo, but nothing stuck.
7/21/15: 'They Attack!' action from Page.
7/21/15: Mike's. I'm going to retroactively miss the second jam in this one.
7/21/15: Nasty tone from Trey. Page on organ.
7/21/15: Great landing from Mike's into 'The Wedge.'
7/21/15: The Wedge gets extended a bit. Now Fuego.
7/21/15: This Fuego seems to be a higher tempo than the typical version.
7/21/15: I have to admit, when the bottom dropped out of the Fuego at 9:00, I thought there was a serious jam coming.
7/21/15: That said, Shade was a great debut and an AWESOME landing pad for this dark little jamlet.
7/21/15: Shade is such a fucking gorgeous song.
7/21/15: Can't wait to hear that one on the new album.
7/21/15: Awwwww yeah. No Men In No Man's Land.
7/21/15: Definitely more interesting take on this song that I remember. I think at the time I was just in funk-shock.
7/21/15: Doesn't hold a candle to the Shoreline version, but everybody's throwing in some seriously interesting bits.
7/21/15: Let's call it Type 1.5.
7/21/15: Still bummed they fumbled that No Men's -> Groove.
7/21/15: Part of Groove jam sounds like Runaway Jim riff.
7/21/15: Really soaring Groove jam. It's been awhile since I've cared about Groove, but this one does it.
7/21/15: On the other hand, the segue from Groove to Boogie On works just fine.
7/21/15: CDT still seems like a weird place for this set to end.
7/21/15: Love Theme as an encore choice.
7/21/15: Especially when Trey nails that walk-up riff o h m a n
7/21/15: Strong show across the board. I suppose no big jams is a knock against it.
7/21/15: Some great moments in the first set, though, and love those debuts, AND the last half of S2.
7/21/15: Weakest show of the first four, for sure, but a great start.
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