2010-08-05 Greek Theater I

The Verdict:
I don't know what it is about west coast shows, but this is probably my favorite show of the year so far. I've had some trouble finding things to like in many of the Fall '09 and Summer I '10 shows, but this sounds more like the Summer II '09 and Miami NYE Phish that was so fun to listen to last year.

S1 is absolutely pure energy, especially from Trey. This is one of those Trey-dominated shows where he's so on fire that it actually makes the show better that he's running everyone else off the stage. The whole first set is good, but the easy highlights are Wolfman's and KDF.

S2 continues the uninterrupted shredding (even Joy has a bit of a serious outro, that's how intense the energy is here). But there are a few legit jams here in case just having your face melted off isn't enough for you. The "Disease" > "Free" segment that starts the set is one of the best pieces of Phish music of the year so far (which might not sound like I'm saying much, but I am, because this is awesome). Then the "Tweezer" follows up on the early 3.0s tradition of great late-set "Tweezers."

So, yes. Check this show out at all costs. Can't wait for the rest of the run.

Live Review:
8/5/10: Well, Summer II just got kicked off with a pitch-perfect Possum.

8/5/10: Funky as all get-out Wolfman's in the two spot. Clav action, vocal-scat harmonies, and now a slinky Type I solo.

8/5/10: This Wolfman's is going on the highlight reel for Summer II. First entry. Just filthy.

8/5/10: And we roll right into DSky from there...I love where this is going so far.

8/5/10: Great solo after DSky, too. The guys really sound reinvigorated. Whether that leads to actual jams remains to be seen.

8/5/10: Right after DSky on the SBD, someone (Page?) says 'Bitch?' in this really weird tone of voice. Then, Funky Bitch.

8/5/10: I like to imagine he was trying to start a fight with Fish.

8/5/10: And we just didn't hear the 'You really wanna step to this' part of the sentence.

8/5/10: Funky Bitch keeps the energy-ball rolling. Trey is really playing way better than his was during leg 1, at least tonight.

8/5/10: Very intentionally melodic solo in KDF, too. High energy, but with direction at the same time. Looking good.

8/5/10: Long pause after KDF. Maybe they're refueling MegaTrey with jet fuel?

8/5/10: Nah, they were just firing up Mike's 'Boo-bop' Machine. Halley's!

8/5/10: Trey just slam-banged the shortest, most concise-yet-effective Halley's solo ever into Sample. Pretty cool, actually.

8/5/10: The rest of the band just fucking flying past him when he slammed the brakes on was funny, too.

8/5/10: This would be your usual well-constructed, by-the-numbers Summer '10 S1, but Trey is a goddamn hurricane. It is amazing.

8/5/10: NICU, Bouncin' is a nice breather BUT I DON'T NEED A BREATHER I'M SITTING IN AN OFFICE CHAIR

8/5/10: Antelope polishes off the set in style. That's, what, the trillionth Antelope S1 closer since Hampton?

8/5/10: Trey noodling around Call To the Post to start the second set, Mike kicks up DWD feedback during.

8/5/10: We're about halfway through the DWD opener here and it's all just gorgeous, intentional Type I jamming so far.

8/5/10: Heading in an almost blues-rock direction now.

8/5/10: Sort-of Talking Heads section following. This is the real deal, here.

8/5/10: Great outro jamlet, with some syncopation from Fish and space-piano from Page. Space Everything!

8/5/10: Top it all off with a GREAT segue into Free. Why is west coast tour always so much better than east coast/midwest?

8/5/10: This sounds like a totally different band from Summer I.

8/5/10: As Trey starts up Alaska, I'm pretty sure you can hear a fan on SBD yell 'Oh, GODDAMMIT!' If so, it's hilarious.

8/5/10: Though I pick on Alaska, this version is better than most, thanks to yet more precise Trey shredding.

8/5/10: Trey is killing this BOTT, too. Wowzers.

8/5/10: Late-set Maze is a surprise choice.

8/5/10: Well, that Maze definitely didn't suffer energy-wise for being late in the show. The intensity of this show is ridiculous.

8/5/10: And right after I tweet that: Joy. INTENSITY

8/5/10: Oh dear. Trey is even trying to shred Joy. And it's sort of working. CAN HE BE STOPPED NO RUN

8/5/10: Oh boy. Late S2 Tweezers have been pretty much all amazing so far in 3.0. High hopes for this maybe-monster.

8/5/10: Mike taking the early lead in the jam. Trey staying back. Page adding flavor.

8/5/10: Trey building a nice riff now. The whole thing is really minimalist so far. Very cool.

8/5/10: This is seriously good. Trey's solo is one of those that sounds composed, sort of like 12/31/95 Reba.

8/5/10: Not saying it's AS GOOD AS the Reba, just reminds me of it in that way.

8/5/10: Now Trey closing the jam with a weird mutation of the Tweezer riff. One of my favorite all-Type I jams in a long time.

8/5/10: Page shifting over to the No Quarter organ. Brief space section -> Fluffhead.

8/5/10: Fluffhead is a pretty great S2 closer, I must say.


8/5/10: Trey explaining the origins of the Ocedoc. This is apparently the first show with it. Explains Trey's shredding possession tonight.

8/5/10: Finishes up with a fiery Loving Cup, Tweeprise. Great show.

2010-07-04 Alpharetta II

Verdict:
S1 is another very oldies-centric affair, and it's just as effective as 7/3's S1 for that reason. "PYITE," "Colonel Forbin's," and "Mockingbird" are all early highlights. "Camel Walk" shows up, too. "Bowie" > "Jibboo" might be a legitimate pick for the highlight reel.


Phish - 7/4/10 "Gotta Jibboo" from Phish on Vimeo.

S2 is one of the best second sets of tour. Depends on your enthusiasm for Phish gimmickry, I guess. The "DWD" > "Piper" > "Ghost" combo isn't as awesome as it sounds on paper, but it's a quality run of songs by early 2010, Type II-less standards. There's a quick breather before a roundhouse of a "Mike's" followed by "Tela," and the infamous "Killing in the Name" sandwich with "Harpua" for the bread. The set proper ends with a "Groove" that's as fiery as the "Mike's," and "First Tube" ends the leg in its entirety.

Live Review:
7/4/10: Alright, and we're back in the recent past. 7/4 a capella Star-Spangled Banner opener. Nice.

7/4/10: PYITE is one of my favorite openers. Even in my office, over headphones, it gets me bouncing.

7/4/10: Colonel Forbin's! Maybe this is going to follow 7/3's footsteps as an oldies-based first set?

7/4/10: That PYITE was extra-punchy, if you don't mind me saying.

7/4/10: Famous Mockingbird was a bit rough around the edges (as per usual in 3.0), but is always a joy anyway.

7/4/10: Also, the more older, composed songs played the less possibility of whale-jamming!

7/4/10: Camel Walk is next up.

7/4/10: Next is OCELOT. You all know how I feel about OCELOT. Actually, this version is a little meatier than your usual version.

7/4/10: Page is a monster in Heavy Things. Short but definitely sweet piano break there.

7/4/10: MFMF after Heavy Things. Setlist choices getting a little more random, but I'm still having fun.

7/4/10: High-tempo Bowie to polish off S1.

7/4/10: Trey putting the whale to GOOD use here in this Bowie.

7/4/10: Now that was just a feel-good Bowie all the way around. Trey liked it so much that he just started up Jibboo.

7/4/10: Everyone else sounded surprised. I think they were planning on setbreak right there.

7/4/10: This Jibboo is pretty Mike-heavy. Or at least it's pretty pocket-heavy. Page and Trey are both minimalizing.

7/4/10: Trey's slowly shouldering his way up to the front of the jam here.

7/4/10: Extended ending here that definitely goes beyond the call of shredding-duty.

7/4/10: DWD S2 opener.

7/4/10: The first nine minutes of this DWD are just totally joyful, whale-less Type I rock, then there's a smooth switch to space-funk.

7/4/10: Space-funk is breaking up as Trey is chording arrhythmically with a super-weird distorted tone. Mike with syncopated bass.

7/4/10: That section lasts for about a minute until Trey lays the opening riff to Piper over it. Mike seems reluctant to end the bass-runs.

7/4/10: Piper gets good around 5:30, making an effortless transition back into space-funk.

7/4/10: No funk-filler here, though. Mike's leading the way and Page and Trey are adding spacey effects.

7/4/10: Now Trey adding melody in an Oysterhead-type tone in a high register.

7/4/10: Trey pulls the opening to Ghost out of a loop jam. Can't tell if I should be mad b/c of ripcording or happy b/c lots of mini-jams.

7/4/10: Trey's latched on to a riff in this Ghost that sounds a bit like a slowed-down Manteca.

7/4/10: Sometimes 2010 Summer I sounds like an alternate-future #phish where they never started Type II jamming, but got really good anyway.

7/4/10: Fish drives this all the way to the end, and then we get a neat wind-down ending courtesy of Page.

7/4/10: Trey with a hilariously nasty lyrical biff at the beginning of Waste. Finally: 'Don't wanna be...somethin'.'

7/4/10: It's cheesy as hell, but I love that signature Waste bass riff from Gordo.

7/4/10: 'This set is so good, what can we play that'll piss Ben off? Oh, that's right! Julius!!'

7/4/10: Okay, gotta admit that was a hot Julius. Could probably work to end the set there, but no! > Mike's!

7/4/09: This Mike's is hotter than an elephant ear at the fair. Whatever the hell that means.

7/4/09: Bang-up Mike's > TELA

7/4/09: Harpua (!) follows Tela. Hilariously confusing story from Trey about an ancient American who hates modern society.

7/4/09: Which of course leads into the Killing in the Name cover. Which is awesome.

7/4/09: I love Fish on the vocals for Killing in the Name. Great follow-up Harpua > Groove.

7/4/10: Whoops, last few tweets should be '10, not '09, obviously.

7/4/10: Summer I going out on a strong note. Sort of like a show with a great opening song and a great
encore.

7/4/10: But everything in the middle was pretty boring, honestly. Almost everything. Looking forward to Summer II though. THE GREEK

7/4/10: Mike's and Groove have both been pretty notable Trey Shreds moments in a summer full of 'em.

7/4/10: Fan on SBD screaming 'Play an encore, PLEASE!!! Just one more!' First show, maybe? I think he'll get his wish...


7/4/10: I like First Tube as a tour closer. Provided that there's a lot of feedback and they open next tour with Last Tube.

2010-07-03 Alpharetta I

Verdict:
The first set is the typically well-played, well-constructed set we've gotten (almost too) used to throughout this tour, made even a bit more effective than usual thanks to "Zero" opener and a set of rare and older songs that shift it from a "If you like these songs..." sort of affair to a "Since you definitely like these songs..." sort of affair.

The S2-opening "Rock and Roll" jam is forgettable, following the tired old early-3.0 jam template as it does. The easy highlight of the show, though is "Caspian" > "Tweezer." "Caspian" gets off to a slow, whaley start but quickly moves into a loop-filled nearly-percussion-free space that highlights Trey and Mike's collective melodic playing for some of the more interesting exploration thus far this summer. The "Tweezer" is not exploratory at all, but it's no slouch, and a segue into a cleverly mellow and melodic "Slave" doesn't hurt, either.

Overall, though, despite some excellent setlist choices, the show is sabotaged a bit by its predictability (at this point in the tour) and over-reliance on the whale pedal (seriously, it's an effect, not a consistent tone).

Review:
7/3/10: Alright, time for the last run of Summer I in Alpharetta!

7/3/10: Zero as show opener. I think I vastly prefer it as an opener than a closer. Except at Gorge '13, of course.

7/3/10: Actually, I might take that back. Zero as a slower, warm-up song is a little weird.

7/3/10: 1,000th tweet for what I believe is the second Destiny Unbound of 3.0 (first on was Gorge '09).

7/3/10: Wow. Trey usually botches Rift, but this was above and beyond. He dropped out completely for a good 30 seconds at one point.

7/3/10: Rough start to McGrupp (!), but a nice Page-led, salsa-jazz style jam in the middle makes up for it.

7/3/10: Early(ish) Gin. Trey singing along with Page's piano.

7/3/10: This Gin is extended and blessedly empty of whale pedal (for the most part). Trey slowly easing into his usual solid shredding.

7/3/10: Follow-up with Mountains in the Mist. The usual great set construction, but with a rarities flavor. Liking it so far.

7/3/10: Mountains in the Mist is pretty much made for a whale solo, but I've heard it used so much lately there's no novelty to it.

7/3/10: NICU next, with a solo from 'Leon.'

7/3/10: Gumbo, and My Sweet One with a 'bluegrass bass' solo from Mike.

7/3/10: As is becoming usual, there's no outstanding moments in this set, but it's solid front-to-back so far (minus some Rift issues).

7/3/10: Stealing Time was a pretty strong mixture of whale-jamming and normal rock shredding.

7/3/10: Strange Design! I know I usually talk up the great song choices in these 2010 S1s, but this one is extra great.

7/3/10: Good mix of rarities and older songs, with the occasional, well-placed newer song.

7/3/10: SANITY! Trey gets the lyrics for the second verse from the audience. Some particularly insane
laughter between verses.

7/3/10: Yes, I just reviewed the quality of the laughter in Sanity.

7/3/10: What else do you close a mostly-oldies S1 with? Antelope, of course.

7/3/10: S2 kicks off with Rock and Roll. Pretty standard Type I business with a few Mike and Page flourishes thrown in for good measure.

7/3/10: Last minute of the jam transitions into the tried-and-true distorted space-funk that pops up so often in these early 3.0 jams.

7/3/10: Quick segue into Caspian.

7/3/10: Trey's putting the whale pedal to decent effect here in Caspian.

7/3/10: Mellows out around 6:00, Trey starts up some guitar loops.

7/3/10: Fish has dropped out completely, maybe Mike too.

7/3/10: Really neat jam space here. Would love about ten minutes of this.

7/3/10: That's okay, a > Tweezer is a good enough consolation prize :)

7/3/10: Some serious funk riffage from Trey and Mike in the early bit of this Tweezer.

7/3/10: Wow. This Tweezer doesn't go anywhere weird, but it's a perfect funk-rock, 'standard' version. Really, really solid.

7/3/10: Oh, and if that wasn't enough, we end with a great little fade-out -> Slave.

7/3/10: Great, super mellow Slave jam with a 45 second (?) sustained note from Trey.

7/3/10: Bouncin' now. Great Caspian > Tweezer -> Slave, but I think that might be it for the jamming for the night.

7/3/10: Perfectly serviceable late-set Possum, followed by Number Line.

7/3/10: Number Line's good, too, albeit a bit too whaley. I just get a little frustrated when S2s coast to a stop like this, I guess.

7/3/10: Really great Trey and Mike interplay at the beginning of this Hood jam.

7/3/10: Really great melodic playing, similar to the earlier Slave.

7/3/10: Really great Really great aaaagh I'm tweeting too much about shows that all sort of sound the same help

7/3/10: The whale is seriously calling here at the peak of this Hood.

7/3/10: Very similar to the Slave: great, mellow melodic build, but then a messy, disjointed peak.

7/3/10: Trey's bringing the house down on this Loving Cup, too. Maybe I should give up and accept the Summer of Shredding.

7/3/10: Welp, Sleeping Monkey, Tweeprise encore'll wrap this one up. One bright spot early in the second set, but otherwise typical 2010.

2010-07-02 Charlotte

Verdict:
This show starts off with a first set that's more like what we've come to expect from Summer 2010 first sets and less like what we've gotten the last two nights. There's no real standout jam or song here, but the entire set flows nicely, and there are little surprises ("Mexican Cousin," the mini-jam in "Bag," the alternate lyric in "Vultures") that make it clear that the guys are having fun. The don't sound like they're trying to stay awake throughout the set like they did on 7/1.

The second set is weird (for a second set), but is good unless you want to belabor the lack of a marquee jam. "Drowned" goes long but doesn't really go deep...and that's about it. "46 Days" and "Twenty Years Later" both deviate slightly from their typical direction (vocal jam and 2.0 darkness jam, respectively). The "Carini" > "Fuck Your Face" segue is just ridiculous, and couldn't have happened with a better pair of songs. The "YEM" is 23 minutes long and features nearly full versions of "Proud Mary" and "Get Back" in the vocal jam. So, much like the first set, there's a lot of energy here and some fun playing around. Which is par for the course for a solid Summer 2010 show so far. Just no jams, still.


Phish - 7/2/10 "You Enjoy Myself" from Phish on Vimeo.

Live Review:
7/2/10: Doing 7/2 now. Probably going to hit 1,000 tweets, too. There might even be one semi-decent jam or something to get excited about!

7/2/10: Buried Alive opener! I'll be happy to eat my words if this show turns out to be a barn burner.

7/2/10: AC/DC Bag next. Sounds a bit more energetic already than last night. Hopefully the guys got some sleep/caffeine.

7/2/10: Trey and Page Buried Alive tease in Bag.

7/2/10: Weird, synth-y tones from both Trey and Mike during the mini-jam.

7/2/10: Vultures! It's like they're reading my mind.

7/2/10: 'Like a potato to the throat' alternate lyric.

7/2/10: The outro jam is...wait for it...Trey noodling with the whale pedal. SURPRISE

7/2/10: Wolfman's, with a full-on Mike takeover about halfway through. I'm already liking this way better than either of the last 2 shows.

7/2/10: Trey soloing over some almost-plinko funk from Mike and Page now.

7/2/10: Goes all-out rock and roll for the peak. Great bit.

7/2/10: BOTT next. I don't know why, but I never get sick of this song in first sets. Same (mostly) with Wolfman's.

7/2/10: This is some serious Marty-McFly-At-The-Enchantment-Under-The-Sea-Dance guitar solo shit here.

7/2/10: Trey's shredding The Wedge again. This always freaks me out. His playing is something like 400% better than last night.

7/2/10: MEXICAN COUSIN!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA

7/2/10: Okay, now that I've calmed down a bit, the obligatory late-S1 Stash.

7/2/10: Subtle, mellow section slowly building to higher tension in the middle of this jam. Page with some great piano work.

7/2/10: Great Stash, even though it didn't deviate much from the 3.0-usual Composed > Mellow Tension > Rock Tension > Peak structure.

7/2/10: Looks like Sparkle, CDT to close.

7/2/10: CDT is yet more totally ridiculously good Trey shredding. Is this a different guitarist than last night? Is Trey a alien?

7/2/10: About 9 minutes into Drowned, the guys move from typical Type I to a Page-led funk jam.

7/2/10: Now Page and Mike are stacking arpeggios on top of each other. Pretty neat.

7/2/10: 46 Days with vocal jam outro > Twenty Years Later.

7/2/10: The outro on this version seems more drawn-out and distorted than usual. Very 2.0-sounding, to me.

7/2/10: Super-uptempo Lizards is next. Page is owning his piano solo.

7/2/10: Trey struggling a little bit with his chosen instrument, the guitar, here in this particular version of LIZARDS

7/2/10: Late-set Carini! This is during one of those periods when Carini wasn't allowed out to play for long. Nice to hear it, regardless.

7/2/10: Oh, amazing-as-all-hell Carini -> FYF. BOOM

7/2/10: Feedback gives way to > 2001.

7/2/10: This is by no means an old-school 2001, but it's got some legs.

7/2/10: YEM time. This second set has finished really strongly for a 2010 show.

7/2/10: Trey and Mike tease FYF in YEM.

7/2/10: Trey hits another great rock peak at around 14:00, and Mike follows up with a SERIOUS bubble-
bass solo.

7/2/10: Proud Mary in the vocal jam.

7/2/10: Now Get Back.

7/2/10: Day in the Life encore.

7/2/10: Well, that show doesn't win any awards for balls-to-the-wall jamming. But, it's much better than either of the last two shows.

7/2/10: And better than most of Summer I before Merriweather and Camden. High energy, good song choices and solid playing throughout.

7/2/10: Didn't make it to 1,000 tweets, though. I'll have to come back for 7/3 soon.

2010-07-01 Raleigh

Verdict:
So I thought that this show was a bit of an improvement over CMAC, but not by much. The first set, while built with the same brilliance as most 2010 S1s so far, is marred by a pretty serious dip in energy compared to previous shows. The whole precise, predictable, workmanlike approach to S1s only really works when there's the enthusiasm to back it up, and it's mostly lacking here.

The energy comes back a bit in the second set, but it ends up being more like another first set, so I don't know how much of a consolation that is. A promising "Halley's" makes a great -> into a "Light" that explores a space that melds '09 ambient jamming with '10 loop-jamming pretty brilliantly, if briefly. "Light Up Or Leave Me Alone" features an excellent Trey solo, and the band finally gets back on their usual track...oh, right around the "Boogie On" encore.

Live Review:
7/2/10: I usually find 3.0 Llamas pretty tepid, and this one isn't much different, but Mike's doing his best to hearken back to the 90s.

7/2/10: Always glad to hear Roses, but this version is a bit flat. Hope this isn't a sign of things to come.

7/2/10: Okay, there's a little swagger peeking through in this KDF solo.

7/2/10: Time Loves a Hero cover next.

7/2/10: Not too familiar with this tune, but I like Fish's drumming quite a bit.

7/2/10: Now Alaska. The guys sound tired. Not sloppy, just tired.

7/2/10: Fast Water in the Sky!

7/1/10: Ah, crap. Last few tweets should obviously be 7/1/10, not 7/2/10.

7/1/10: Standard S1 Jim, Moma. So far it's an average set lacking the usual '10 energy that boosts it to slightly above average.

7/1/10: Maybe this Divided Sky will help kick things up a notch.

7/1/10: This DSky jam is whale-ful. The composed part was pretty sharp, though.

7/1/10: Looks like Cavern to close S1. This set has been pretty underwhelming.

7/1/10: Really, all that's really saved many of the paint-by-numbers S1s lately has been the band's energy. Even that's gone tonight.

7/1/10: S2 opens with Number Line. Trey is whale-shredding the crap out of it. At the very least, the guys sound a bit more awake now.

7/1/10: Solid Halley's with a neat -> Light.

7/1/10: Well, there's a fair amount of whale-wanking until the 7:00 mark, when Trey pulls everyone else into space with feedbacked chords.

7/1/10: Page has a nice piano riff going here, Mike playing something angular and dark on top of it.

7/1/10: Really neat rhythm-heavy jam space here. Trey and Page playing delicately on top of it.

7/1/10: At the 12:00 mark, Trey brings back the Light riff out of the ambient space. Neat jam.

7/1/10: Average-great Fluffhead. The > Have Mercy is awesome, though. Love this cover.

7/1/10: Light Up Or Leave Me Alone mega-bustout features some absolutely SERIOUS Trey soloing. First time he's sounded like himself tonight.

7/1/10: Pretty typical Mike-based Free > Velvet Sea. Weird time for the setlist to get jukeboxy, but there it is.

7/1/10: Coil, Suzy to finish S2. Really weird end to a weird set.

7/1/10: Light > Fluff > Have Mercy, Light Up was a great run in the middle of the set.

7/1/10: But the beginning was standard S1 fare and the second half is one of those shows where they play like 4 'closer' songs in a row.

7/1/10: To be fair, this is a pretty hoppin' version of Suzy. Page is nuts, and Fish is having a great time with his screaming parts.

7/1/10: Extended Boogie On as the encore eases the pain a bit.

7/1/10: This is what the majority of most '10 shows sound like, which is what makes the lack of jamming palatable.

7/1/10: In this show, though, they pretty much saved it for the encore.