Wow. I mean, it was such an emotional experience just listening to these three shows that I can only imagine what it must have been like to be there. On the other hand, hearing the recordings with no additional energy in play did allow me to listen to all six sets with complete objectivity and so here are my thoughts.
Obviously, from a setlist perspective, the weekend exceeded even the loftiest expectations and I am thrilled that Phish went deep into its roster. I just hope that the semi-rarities they busted out become semi-regulars and that they keep digging into the depths. After all, I may never attend another concert again if I ever hear Esther live.
But as great as 16-song sets are, I guess if I had any criticism of the weekend is that there wasn\'t a ton of risk-taking and exploratory jamming, two of the reasons why I fell in love with Phish in the first place. Then again, that seems like a fair exchange for the amount of songs they played and for the fact that with the exception of a few key flubs, their playing was crisp, far moreso than on the first comeback weekend. Furthermore, the weekend still had a handful of solid jams and I know the percentage of heavy jamming will increase when they go on a slightly longer run this summer. I\'m salivating at the prospect of a show where they play a 16-song first set and then come back with a five-song second set. Most importantly, I love how they are totally shirking all setlist convention and will seemingly play any song at any point.
Anyway, overviews of each show.
NIGHT ONE
Of course, this is likely because I wasn\'t there and didn\'t get overly swept up in the emotion, but the first show was actually my least favorite. As great as the setlist was, I like the setlists from next two nights better, and from a musical perspective, I just felt like they were playing a bit tenative, like they were trying to hard to not make mistakes, which considering the circumstance, was completely understandable. Obviously, Fluffhead was an outstanding opener and sounded better than most versions pre-hiatus (the first one, obviously). Thought Divided was great down the stretch. Stash took a while in developing but I liked where it wound up. Felt Suzy was a bit rough, especially with the vocals. Trey had great solos at the end of Sample and Farmhouse. NICU and Rift were both excellent. Wasn\'t big on Bowie; felt it was a bit too short and rushed. Tweezer was good though I thought they pulled the plug when it was just getting going. Thought Taste was a bit rickety early yet finished well, same as Divided. Surprisingly found Possum to be a highlight of the weekend with great work from Trey. Hood was poor. YEM was outstanding with a ridiculous Mike solo and was easily the highlight of the show, even with the early abortion, which I still think was done purposely. Really enjoyed Grind as an encore.
NIGHT TWO
Easily my favorite of the three. Just felt the playing was more self-assured, especially from Trey, who I felt led the effort all night. I mean, I know I\'m in for a solid show when Back on the Train opens at nine minutes with a solid mini-jam. Split was the first time I felt they really explored all weekend as that one got pretty way out there even though it didn\'t finish with the normal fury. Thought Trey had some great work down the stretch of Heavy Things. PYITE had the flub of the weekend. Reba was
**** nailed! Loved each and every second of it. It\'s Ice was spectacular. Beauty of a Broken Heart is one of my favorites from the Page album and I\'m glad it\'s made it to Phish. Like it way better than the debut from the first night. Guelah was spot on and I loved how the crowd just starting going nuts before the last verse considering it wasn\'t at a point where there would usually be applause; everyone must have just been so impressed by the way they smoothly negotiated through The Asse Festival. Trey smoked Antelope. Ok, so I want jamming and I get some with stellar showings in Rock & Roll and Ghost. And I actually felt the first half of set two was the highlight of the weekend. Trey absolutely tore it up in Limb, Birds, Piper, and Wolfman\'s. And even though I wish the latter two were a bit longer, they were so good I really can\'t complain. Great to hear Mike\'s Groove, but that wasn\'t really a highlight for me. Just a bit too short and sloppy. A Day in the Life was my favorite encore choice of the weekend, thus solidifying this as my favorite show.
NIGHT THREE
My second favorite show. Just looking at the first set is enough to make a Phish fan pass out. The Bathtub jam was solid. My Friend was accurate and sinister. Scent and Maze were simply superb. I\'m a huge fan of Army of One. And Cars Trucks Buses was one of my highlights of the weekend and exemplified the fact that Page had a great three nights. DWD was exactly what I was looking for. They jammed over the primary theme for about 8-10 minutes then Fishman started a beat that took them into zany territory for another five, which I loved. Trey ripped Seven Below. Obviously, The Horse was euthanized and While My Guitar also limped along. Really thought Slave was excellent as they were patient with the build-up, which led to a gradual heightening of the emotion from the entire run. And you don\'t need to be a genius to call Tweezer Reprise as the closer, but I don\'t think they could have picked a more appropriate song to precede it than Bug. Sheer beauty.
AFTERMATH
So, what do I take away from this six-set, 83-song, and nearly-12 hour monstrosity? Well, I take away the fact that all four members of Phish played well, both in terms of their individual moments to shine and within the context of their jams. I take away the fact that this run pisses all over the 02-03 run and additionally take away the fact that if this is where they\'re starting from, then I am both giddy and afraid to hear what the coming months hold. I take away the fact that Phish seems enthusiastic, both from their play and song selection. I take away the fact that even though Phish still isn\'t quite in the same section of my heart as they were a decade ago, they\'re much closer to being back in that spot as they were when they announced this comeback.
I\'ve learned that my favorite band of all time is back with vigor--with their hearts and minds focused squarely--and is hopefully back for good.
