Whenever the final Curtain falls on Phish, and fans debate the band's finest moments, Friday's Haunted House set will be a part of that discussion. So how do you follow up a show like that? Do you ride the momentum to even greater heights? Remember, 11/1/13 was possibly the best show of last year. Or are we doomed to Saturday Night Special meets The Hangover? Phish didn't have to play shows on 1/1/96 or 1/1/00. They would get no such reprieve on 11/1/14.

Photo by @hersch

A tight, compact "Fuego" starts us off. Like its other first set brethren, this "Fuego" sticks to the script, but if amount of Trey-face is a leading indicator, we can put away the Advil. He looks fresh as a daisy and Hangover-free. The blues of "My Soul" follows and gives way to the shuffle of "Back on the Train." After playing no Fuego songs on the one year anniversary of their debut, the funk of "555" delivers our second in four songs. The first "Dog Faced Boy" since 6/8/11 (144 shows) provides our first surprise of the night. Moving swiftly from such tenderness to facial copulation, We get the first "Fuck Your Face" since Phish Trucked our Face last NYE. The two-faced combo is followed by a quick "Horn" before we get another rarity in the form of "Frankie Says." The always welcome "My Friend My Friend" is next. So in the space of five songs, we've been dogged, fucked, blown, sucked and stabbed. What other band has that range, I ask you?

Photo by @languagestrange

At least they leave flowers for us, as "Roses Are Free" continues the string of relative bustouts. The Circus Circus is the place for us, as "Roggae" ushers us under the big top. In the past few years, when we think of the typical first set "jamming" songs, songs like "Gin," "Wolfman's," and "Stash." "Roggae" has quietly been at that level, though this would be a fairly tame version, even by first set standards. "Birds of a Feather" was next and featured a quick tease of "The Birds" from Friday's Haunted House set. "Birds" contained a "Birds" tease. Get it? A typically strong "Wingsuit" (love it in this position) closed the set.

Photo by @taopauly

Set two starts off with "Possum." Played a couple of times a tour, "Possum" is welcome pretty much anywhere in the setlist, even as a second set opener. This version would really serve as a table setter for what was to come. First, "Crosseyed and Painless" wastes little time breaking form. A tight little Trey-led groove becomes spacier, and Page's Rhodes hints at "No Quarter," but instead results in a slick segue into "Light." "Light," augmented by all manner of howling, builds to a serious peak reminiscent of "The Dogs" from 10/31, before quieting down into a serene space. For a minute, it seems like Fish is struggling to keep the jam alive, but then it resolves into a brief full band "Lengthwise."

Photo © Phish From the Road

For the second consecutive 11/1, we get a tease-infused version of "Twist." The 2014 vintage features some "Lengthwise" quoting from Fish before hitting on a more severe infusion of "Manteca" teases and good old fashioned, ferocious picking from Trey. "Twist" cools down until it's just Page steering things into "Wading in the Velvet Sea." After "Velvet Sea" does its thing, the alligator mouths continue into "Harry Hood."

This has been a revelatory year for "Harry" and it seemed tonight would not disappoint. There are all sorts of bells and whistles throughout this version (check out Trey at the end of the "Miner" segment and the plinko-y work from Page during the build). The stage was set for an all-time version when it was abruptly cut short in favor of "Golgi." Don’t quote me on this, but I'm pretty sure that's a felony in some jurisdictions. "Number Line" takes the set fully off the rails, but at that point the damage had already been done. A classic Phish case of subtraction by addition. "Waiting All Night," "Sing Monica" and, for god only knows what reason, "The Star Spangled Banner" filled the encore slot. I could go on, but you probably don't want me to. I was feeling good – really good! – though the third quarter, but seven straight tequila shots have left me all sorts of hungover.

Photo © Phish From the Road

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A sampling of thoughts from last night's historic Halloween gig:

Steve Paolini: Of course, I thought it was a joke. Disney's Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House? The entire Phishbill was clearly a joke, and reports were that the "album" had no – what do you call them? – "songs." My working theory was that this would be the Halloween the band covered an obvious album that literally everyone in the audience would know. Led Zeppelin IV... The Wall... Nevermind... Thriller. Phish had begun using the Phishbill in 1996 when they covered Remain in Light as a way of introducing the audience to musical costumes they might not be familiar with. This year had to be an album that needed no introduction. Because they sure as hell weren't going to play a bunch of sound effects for an hour.

Photo by Rene Huemer © Phish.

Of course, in true Phish fashion not only was it not a joke, but the payoff was better than anyone could have imagined. It was real, and it was spectacular. Ten original jams inspired by the Disney album titles. This was the kind of thing fans speculate about but no one really expects will actually happen. Maybe this was something Phish could have pulled off in 1998, but certainly not in 2014. Think again. It's really hard to overstate how far out in a limb the band put themselves (31 years into their career, no less). This could have been a disaster. Ten instrumentals no one knew during the most anticipated set of the year? Based on a freaking Disney album? And, at least for those of us unfamiliar with the original album, the narration had the potential to come across on the cheesy side. But the jams were so engaging it arguably worked better than any of the other musical costumes. One of the dirty little secrets of past Halloween performances is that, especially for fans who either don't know or don't care for the cover album, there's usually a portion of the second set that seems to drag a little. Not so last night. Not even close. The big question now is, will they play any of these songs again? Or was our trip indeed too short?

Photo by Allie Carson

Dan Mielcarz: What they are going to do tonight? Pavement? Allmans? Jukebox set? Then we see the Phishbill on Twitter. Nah, that's gotta be a joke. The essay is hilarious. They mentioned Houses of the Holy, is it going to be that? Maybe Slayer, that was in there, too. The songs could be Phish song code names? 10pm = iced coffee on the couch. Rage at Nugs during the first set, great Halloween theme to the songs once the stream is up. Fun “BBFCFM.” Good little “Wolfman's” jam. Setbreak. They are clearing the stage! Gravestones going up? Bono's Humility on a gravestone… haha! Maybe they are going to do this sound effects album after all. No, it'll be a Thriller cover or something. Lights. Sound effects. Where's the band? In a haunted house?!? They are going to do this album! Holy crap, they are going to jam this album! Ten brand new tunes? House explodes, band is in awesome makeup. They are facing each other across a square, totally locked in. Every tune is like the best part of an amazing jam. Oh, Page is controlling the narration and sound effects. This is so so so great. Can't believe I wanted Pavement. THEY ATTACK! YOUR TRIP IS SHORT! Think these tunes stay in the rotation? Best. Halloween. Ever. Best. Band. Ever.

Photo by LMo.

Jeremy Welsh: As descriptions and photos of the Phishbill began to appear across the interwebs, one was left wondering whether it was all just an elaborate prank. Because that seemed like something Phish would do. Pick a long-forgotten album from a certain age of fan's childhood and hold that up as the cover album. Hah hah, so really, what's the *real* album?

The evening took on a special life, as only Phish could do, when it turned out that it actually was the album selected for their 2014 musical costume. Sure, there were dancers and props and dead Esthers and Nutbags, along with an ethereal voice narrating surreal "spooky" tableaus. And yes, the band even dressed up. But it came down to the music. The individual grooves – I'm hesitant to call them songs – that highlighted the best of what Phish does. Each moment provided the Why for our infatuation. Offering up peaks or melodies that would *make* the jam of a night on a tour.

I was left wondering whose idea it was. Someone with a kid, maybe. Trey? Fishman? Who had the gumption to present it to the other three? During the playing itself, with Page in charge of the samples, it sure appeared that he was leading the way. But not until the encore, which asked “Is This What You Wanted?,” did I allow myself to think "Holy shit." Phish heard the clamor after the previous year's Wingsuit set and took fans' demands for an album costume to the extreme. And in doing so, gave us an amazing experience. If the joke really was on us, then thanks. I will take Trick over Treat every time.

Photo by LMo.

Tim Wade: Nineteen years after I first saw them, Phish continues to astound me. I was bewildered when I was told that the Halloween costume would be Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House. I considered and rejected the possibility of a free form, set-long jam to these sound effects, and decided that they must be pulling our collective leg in order to maintain the suspense. I’ve never been more happy to be wrong.

Phish pulled off what is likely the greatest of their Halloween gags. It was certainly the most Halloween-y costume they’ve ever donned. The theatrics were topped only by the music, which was fresh and Phishy and completely, utterly sick. It also seemed to immediately pay dividends in the third set’s “Sand” -> “Tweeprise.” I’m one of the people who thought last year’s show was the most amazing Phish experience I could ask for, but I really wish I could have been there last night.

Take a bow, Phish. You deserve it.

Photo by LMo.

Phillip Zerbo: When fans sit around and shoot the shit about Phish, as we are known to do, we are often drawn to fantasy concepts for special sets or shows. “What if they did x, y, or z?” It’s an easy and fun game to play because the process is as open ended as our imaginations. As Phish’s 20+ years of special event traditions have evolved, the concept of an intentionally open-ended improvisational set has been deployed only on the summer gigs – Clifford Ball’s Flatbed Jam; The Great Went’s Disco Set; Lemonwheel’s Ambient Set; the Tower Jam at IT, the Storage Jam at Superball Icks. But even the most fantastical of the fan imaginations could not possibly have envisioned this.

Photo by Allie Carson

While last night’s inspiring, challenging, kick-ass funfest of a gig was rooted in the Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House, rather than a “cover” in any traditional sense, Phish took over the concept and used the album’s sonic palette simply as guidelines into which they would deliver one of the most engaging, danceable, mind-fucking original concept sets in the history of mind-fucking rock and roll gigs. Make no mistake: this could have sucked. It was risky. What other performing act at this level takes this type of risk ever, much less routinely? With risk comes reward, and the bigger the bet, the bigger the rewards. In this case, ho hum, yet another unique artistic masterpiece that cements Phish’s legend as the greatest improvisational rock and roll band ever.

My Tier One of Phish Halloween gigs is now 1998 and 2014 alone. Lesson? Don’t miss Halloween in Vegas. Moving in to their fourth decade as a band (and my third as a fan), Phish still confounds expectations and leaves the jaws of even the most JadedVet™ drooping on the floor. We’re all going to be dancing, running, driving and banging to this set for another generation. Good work, Phish!

Lily Morton: what happens in vegas sometimes needs to be known outside of vegas. let it be known... last night's phish halloween concert was absolute magic, a spectacular trick and treat for all senses. happily i witnessed the halloween vegas event with my crew on the floor in my favorite spot. mikes side right side. zombies, zombies, walking corpses ohh my...

the haunted house set was aesthetically perfect as a inspiring canvas for ck5. i love the lighting of this set. chris kuroda brought it all on! lightning and darkness, scary, gloomy, light of freakiness. thank you mr kuroda.

when i saw the program, the album cover being chilling thrilling sounds of the haunted house, i recalled the record from childhood and figured phish would do exactly what they did... use the sounds as a backdrop launching into original jams. and the jams did not disapoint. i was floored literally the entire show surrounded by very crazy happy people and this being vegas, the phreak really comes out with phishheads. the energy in the room was intense and focused like fans at an arena all there supporting their home team with no one opposition.

each jam was spot on. i cannot recall a single moment of seaching awkwardness. each jam reflecting the concept of the track on the disney halloween record. we partied all dance hall down and about pounded that floor about... yea. i love phish phans... i stood next to "the dude" all bathrobe clad and sunglasses - "the dude" with his buddy, a sleak sort of white alien panda bear with white fuzzy slippers all claws. the phans brought it too. everyone looked fabulous, truly fabulous.

the third set was over the top fifth gear all the way like speeding down a desert highway without obstacles in a fly sports car. full force on with no breaks. tweezer into sand was so deep... so so deep. this is my favorite live experience hearing sand. sand is a composition i wish they would return to again and extend. the shift of sand to tweezer reprise was really hot. there was suspense... i remember shouting "do it. do it. do it!" this is the band i love and always will love. i enjoyed every moment of the entire event from the moment i walked in the door.

Photo by LMo.

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It’s a feat worthy of mention for an artist (or anyone for that matter) to reach a new pinnacle at precisely the same time as they hit rock bottom.

I don’t have much to say this morning about the show, or the costume set last night. I bet it was wonderful if you were there. I enjoyed what I was able to piece together after paying $30 to experience it in the comfort of home, with friends, on a holiday weekend evening. With that said, let me button up the praise section of this blog and move on to the impolite truths that matter.

Phish:

I don’t want my $30 back. Keep it.

I don’t want your glibly-proffered credit for a future webcast. That’s not what I paid for. At all. Keep it.

I don't want defensive, tone-deaf tweets noting that "many could connect... without an issue." Many people made it onto the lifeboats the night The Titanic sank, but that was cold comfort to those who did not.

What I want is for you to snap out of your interminable sleepwalker's trance and stop neglecting your distribution. I want you to stop behaving as if LivePhish and Nugs aren’t you, and as if the quality of your art shields you from criticism over the quality of its presentation -- which for most of your thousands of your loyal fans and customers last night ranged between non-existent (first 30-40 minutes) to maddeningly pixelated and glitchy (remainder of the night).

Your fans have been extraordinarily patient. We have politely endured years of burpy, buffering streams, surfacing to remark publicly on it after only the worst cases. Are you aware that these problems are chronic? Do you know that last night’s webcast debacle is notable more for when it transpired than how it transpired? We’re used to this shit; we’re just not used to it ruining a high holy day.

Your site traffic metrics aren’t published and I’m not sure how many people opened their wallets last night to watch at home, but I’m willing to bet your webcast audience was at least 2-3 times the audience you had assembled in the room last night. I could be shy by a factor of four or five for all I know. And while it doesn’t necessarily follow from that that our experience is more important, nor does it follow that we should be your careless afterthought.

What you don’t seem to understand is that it doesn’t need to be this way. Live event streaming on the internet stabilized years ago, and bands and festivals have been delivering seamless high-definition concerts to home audiences since before you reformed in 2009. There are vendors capable of managing this for you flawlessly, in their sleep. Yet you insist on fielding the junior varsity.

I don’t know why. No one understands. Maybe Nugs doesn’t take the same scrape off the revenue pile that more qualified hosts do. Perhaps Brad Serling smells nice, or always buys the pizza. Maybe you’re just loyal people who believe in dancing with who brung you.

But Nugs didn’t brung you. We brung you. The party host sitting at home pounding refresh while her party guests politely try to figure out something else to do to pass the time while Phish (notice I didn't say "LivePhish") wets the bed? She’s the one who matters, and she’s holding you accountable now.

Not your partner.

You.

You aren’t the first artists to mistakenly imagine that distribution is someone else’s concern, but you don’t need to cling to errant assumptions. The time has long since passed for you to get this right. Nugs didn’t have a bad night; Nugs is a bad partner who’s either incapable or unwilling to address fundamental issues of quality, customer experience, and brand equity, and you need to expedite your divorce before your friends stop returning your calls.

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Phish hit the stage for their third night at the Bill Graham Civic Arena about the same time World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner strode to the mound for the last of his mostly flawless twenty-one innings pitched. Though it took the band a little longer, both parties ended the night the same way, earning a save (to go along with two previous wins) on the strength of another solid performance and some late game heroics when the pressure got turned up.

Copyright Phish: From The Road

As jubilant Giants fans hung on Bumgarner’s every pitch in the viewing area outside the arena, Phish delivered a measured and workmanlike “Stealing Time from the Faulty Plan” as their first offering. It was by no means a heater, tailing low and outside for a ball. “The Moma Dance” which followed opens with a distinct inflection of “Shakedown Street,” and the band waited patiently while those interested gazed and glimpsed the delivery of six straight high fastballs to induce a harmless pop fly from Salvador Perez (the only Royal to score on Bumgarner during the series) and end the game. Tipped off by the seemingly unwarranted roar in the midst of the first verse, Trey worked an instrumental version of Queen’s “We are the Champions” into the “Moma” chorus in celebration of the Giants’ victory. We were finally back to the business of Phish.

Now “Free” from distraction, both the band and audience alike could focus their attention on what we had assembled to do in the first place....flip cars over and burn shit, naturally...a perfectly reasonable response. But you don’t just rush into that particular human drama kind of thing, you have to build towards an outburst of that scale gradually. After floating languidly in the blimp for a few minutes, Phish picked up their pace a few notches and hopped “Back on the Train” to cover a few hundred miles of twists and turns in rock-strewn hill country in a hair under nine minutes. Hopping off the train, we tumbled down the hill beneath the trestle, popped through a hedge and took a stroll down “Yarmouth Road” to hang with the bees and the buzz in the honeycomb. The hive was a little sticky, mostly sweet, no royal jelly, but definitely buzzing with life.

The second “Strange Design” of the fall and third of the year (thereby matching the song’s number of performances for the previous three years), invites a few more companions along for the ride. The subsequent “Taste” was lacking in any kind of strong flavor, pretty bland salsa all things considered...giving way to a more upbeat but equally standard version of “The Wedge” that concluded with a “Let’s go Giants!” chant from the crowd, some respectful banter from Page, Trey outing Page for streaming Mets games on his organ during shows, and a backhanded dedication of “The Line” toward all losers in sports. (It was a great run, KC!). For any Royals fans in attendance, this song assuredly did nothing to elevate their spirits. It was certainly not the case for the set-closing “Wolfman’s Brother” that followed, however. This one is all kinds of funky, got a little brooding and dissonant at times, but teed up the second set quite well with a much needed dose of energy.

Copyright Phish: From The Road

Phish returned from intermission with “First Tube” for only the second time in the song’s history (see 9/20/00 Riverbend), invigorating the crowd with another blast of acceleration from the cyclotron. We were off to hunt with the big dogs for the remainder of the show. In celebration of the first anniversary of the Reading “Down with Disease” Phish took this one out for an effects-laden spin that once again trod through “Echoes” space (the seagull’s wail) on its way to an uplifting outro jam that left the song unfinished and my ears wanting just a little bit more of that stuff. The ensuing “Theme from the Bottom” was pretty shallow when compared to the abyssal depths plumbed by the previous version (10/22/14 Santa Barbara Bowl) and served only as the submersible vessel that would transport us to our inspection of the mid-ocean ridge and the relatively rare second set “Split Open and Melt” that was to follow. The jam in this version is alternately warped, stretched, compressed, and dilated as the usually incandescent lava blob ascends from the ocean floor to a less than satisfying conclusion. On a scale of one to Yellowstone, this one had a VEI of less than zero...pretty gentle and not explosive at all. “Heavy Things” was buoyant and lively and briskly carried us with the joy of the lord out of the darkness and into the “Light” of salvation. The jam travels from airy and serene to an undulating electrostatic murkiness that bespeaks an unwritten amalgam that I’d call “The Other One of These Days” were I given to such endeavors. An always rocking “Possum” emerges from the underbrush and the second set draws to a high-spirited close... leaving the encore song selection to make or break this show’s position in the final standings.

Considering the long road to Las Vegas that lay before many in attendance, the choice of “Contact” to open the extra inning was quite perfect. Trey’s humorous quote from Meghan Trainor’s hit “All About That Bass” is an equally great nod to her obvious (yet accidental?) adaptation of the “Contact” melody and the original tune’s all-about-that-bass-playing songwriter. “Meatstick” opened with some atypical organ grinding from Page but was an otherwise unremarkable sausage. The “Character Zero” which concluded the fourth three-song encore of the fall provided the extra mustard that was needed to send us out into the night on our smoldering tear gas infused mission toward Sin City with a desire for more. Which of course begs the question always asked at the conclusion of the show before Halloween...what do you think is going to happen when the lights go down at the MGM Grand Garden Arena?

Recent interviews have suggested that Phish is happy to have escaped the corner they had painted themselves into with the traditional Halloween costume cover album. Having donned their “Wingsuit” and taken that leap of faith into the unknown last year, the band is now free to start a new tradition. Though they have indicated that their opening night of the three-night residency on the strip will be a three round donnybrook, there have been no real clues towards what trick or treat may be “Waiting All Night” for our arrival. There has been an edge of uncertainty in the shows that have lead up to this final stand in the sand. As with all the feasts of Samhain that have preceded, the colors of what is to come have been bleeding backwards into the rest of the fall tour. As we get closer to “The End,” the “Vibration of Life” that emanates from the short-term future grows stronger but still remains excruciatingly indecipherable. Last year The Boys bravely took their leap into the unknown, and trusted their fans to be there to catch them. This year the tables are turned. We are the ones who really don’t know what to expect. We just have to trust that whatever Phish has planned for us...they will be there to catch us as we complete our fall. No matter what happens on Friday, be grateful on Saturday, and remember that you should never miss a Sunday show...especially when it falls on November 2nd and tickets are on the ground.

Photo by Rene Huemer © Phish

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A few thoughts from last night, with the help of LMo.

Tuesday’s Phish gig at the intimate confines of the Bill Graham was another winner that flowed with a perfect harmony. The band's energy and song choices felt synchronized with audience reception and desires, satiating a relaxed and considerate mid-week crowd that was kind and attentive to listening. So, a riddle: how do you make a JadedVet™ dance? Simple! Play a first set that flows like a second set! Extra bonus trivia: did you know that Tuesday’s show was the 25th anniversary of David Steinberg’s first Phish show? Think about that… a quarter century of Phish fandom. Pre-show also included a packed City Hall plaza watching the Giants and Royals battle it out for the Word Series on the big (BIG) screen. Good times!

“Water in the Sky” gave way to the second ever Phish version of “Plasma,” which seemed to catch folks off-guard from a standing start. Charlie Dirksen would like to personally thank Page for performing “Halfway to the Moon” tonight – it’s a really great song. “Poor Heart” and “Gumbo” kept the “Sanity” in check before letting loose on a blistering “Antelope.”

LMo: I like it when a set list tells a story, where the story is something of my own imagination. I love how Phish songs lend themselves with ambiguous and odd lyrics to subjective interpretations. Last night was such an experience, and so the connection goes... into mikes song... the mike’s song started up the party with a deep dark dirty red light kind of a ride. ck5 all in with the dark red as the groove drops. to me this mike’s sounds heavy and hot, a good one. after a deep hard hitting shift in the phases of mikes song the wingsuit comes along to take us on a gliding smooth flight. i love how the song lyrics in wingsuit reflect the sound of gliding in flight. the pace of wingsuit also dovetails the i am hydrogen calm in mike’s groove. i love these calm delicate moments. this version of wingsuit took a beauteous flight. i enjoy floating and swaying along with the shifts and changes, like wearing a wingsuit.

After the rejuvenating experience of wingsuit flight water in the sky... we get a very intense set one highlight moment in the plasma. gumbo is another highlight a very good gumbo, a mood that shifts hot and heavy... a little dirty, in a clean way. i will be dancing to this one alone late at night at times when no one is looking. the shift from gumbo into sanity was so on, without missing a beat. and there are hints of gumbo teased within sanity. As they bring out sanity it was just so fun in the room on that dance floor. such an amusing and honest dance that sanity brings out of me as i feel it - the comic relief moment of our collective day to day frustrations expressed and released. such fun. sanity was a collective release last night. the punctuation of lyrics at the ending is really really sweet. they sing it with love and understanding, not one of us is perfect. this is why i love the phish from vermont.

sanity into an antelope that truly rocked us back to a high speed chase to the end of set one. i recall feeling such fun with this version of antelope as it happened. i shifted around to face my friends a lot and watch them in the running running running in place and time. yes. i love antelope always but last night’s version is set apart as my favorite live experience of this song.

Photo © Phish From the Road

Wouldn’t it have been funny if, after playing a first set that felt like a second set, that they played a second set like a first set? Well, OK, maybe not so much, but that possibility was contemplated briefly as they opened the second frame with “Kill Devil Falls.” Not to worry though as this “KDF” was not roped into any preconceived box but rather got weird and served as a surprisingly well in the kickoff slot to the money set. “Mountains in the Mist” doesn’t evoke the same tick response as those of us who saw a lot of shows at the end of 1.0, which is great because when played sparingly it is a great addition to the ballad rotation. The post-summer of “Fuego” didn’t quite give us a super-charged “Fwaygo” but if you are holding a OVER 12mi ticket, you are a nevertheless a winner. When “Julius” kicked off the set was declared dead and over my one Mr. Dirksen, which just shows that the JadedVet™ isn’t always the smartest guy in the room. At this point in the set things are going great, if perhaps a slight downgrade on the third quarter from Monday night.

LMo: set two was superlative as a whole. kill devil falls starts us off on a really really high note. really jammed and set up some good energy in the room. i noted the excellence of it. and this is why we have the calm moments, the calm of mountains in the mist was needed after that version of kill devil falls. i loved last nights version of fuego as it happened. the now familiar anthem also reflects the rhythm of collective release. i enjoyed he stomp timing of this one. just stomping and feeling the pace of it marching in place.

my collective group thought we were getting a tweezer as they dropped julius. i enjoyed julius mid set this time, as i am familiar with julius mostly a set closer or an encore. mid set this set two just felt right because i was so happy to know there were more songs to follow and more dancing. julius to a hot twist, very hot.

now to note a do not miss - the hood. this is a good good good hood. a most interesting extended version. most superlative. you can feel very good with this hood. the encore: loving cup was truly what it was - a beautiful buzz. there was a lot of love in the room this tuesday night at the bill graham auditorium. i for one really felt it, such love. and that is my overall impression of this night and concert, that of love. this show is one from the heart. if you are looking for a download coming from fall tour to take you there with deep jams and smooth transitions this is the one.

Photo © Phish From the Road

When “Twist” landed, one might have been forgiven to think Mr. Dirksen might have been right, given that “Twist” has morphed from a jam vehicle always pregnant with possibilities to one that if often an out-of-ideas crutch. Not so, Doubting Thomases! The cream of the 2014 “Twist” crop, this version set the stage for a show that shifted the improvisational jewels to the back end. In addition to the “Smoke on the Water” tease from Trey, the “Twist” would be tonight’s home for the homage to Friday night’s performance of Pink Floyd’s Meddle with the hints of “Echoes” that have been a lingering foreshadow ever since Santa Barbara.

An unusual and fun late set “Runaway Jim” then set the stage for the improvisational highlight of the evening, a 19-minute masterpiece of “Harry Hood.” Brimming with confidence, cracking with vital energy, weaving through no less than a half dozen stylistic themes and teases, and concluding with a subtlety and grace appropriate for a band demonstrating peak powers, just days after fall tour obituaries were being written. This is why I see this band, this “Hood.” So much love in the room, really great stuff. “Loving Cup” took it home in fine fashion. Tonight we wrap things up and head on to the land of bright lights. Custy up, rope and ride, bet it all on 17!

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The seventh show of this tour marked Phish’s seventh trip to the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Though BGCA may not yet reside in the highest echelon of Phish lore, it has been home to both unbelievable displays of improvisation and some of the most touching band-fan interaction in the band’s history. Seeing one's favorite band play in one's hometown is a real treat, and this year had no shortage of personal touch for this recapitulator. There was a palpable excitement (and scores of extra tickets) in the air outside the venue while city employees worked to set up the viewing area for Game 6 of the World Series outside City Hall and the Civic Auditorium – that’s right, thousands of Giants fans will descend on “Shakedown” tonight (first pitch at 5:07 PM PDT).

The show marked one of my best friends’ 100th show, and .net All Star @Phlorian’s highly-anticipated first show. I was lucky (and early) enough to see both DB and Florian on the floor before the show began, and ended up spending the whole show with Florian. Also in attendance was .net’s other favorite German, Martin, who like Florian had flown across the globe for this tour. What would Florian’s first song be twenty years after first hearing the song “Rift” in 1994? Little did we know we were mere moments away from a touching homage to another fan...

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[For this recap we'd like to welcome Kristen Goess from @2chix1fightbell –PZ]

Last time I had been to Chula Vista was fall 2000 for Phish’s last west coast fall tour. The year before that is still my favorite “Boogie On” to date. Returning to this venue brought back a lot of memories, mostly good, some bad like a terrible sunburn I got after falling asleep in the middle of a dirt field when I was 20. Driving back to that venue was exciting. The venue itself was a full house and a bit more crowded than I had thought. I wound up with a ticket just to the right of soundboard.

“Devotion to a Dream” opener was on point, strong opener, the crowd was pumped and getting down. “AC/DC Bag” is always a high energy crowd pleaser, and the up-tempo continued with a fast “My Sweet One,” which always makes me smile. “Moma Dance” was a nice surprise placement for those wanting to get the set going in a little more jammy direction. I always am wondering if anyone around me remembers the actual moma "dance" – tap tap? This song always makes me reminiscent of one of my favorite “Moma's” ever from Vegas in 2000, and every time I hear this song I always have hope it will peak again... thank god for hope. “Moma” was still solid and loved the placement, I am just selfish and always want more.

“Halley's” was next. Please read "The Death of Halley's," from this summer's Surrender to the Flow article to get my drift. “Funky Bitch” followed the aborted “Halley's”... still high energy, fast, kept the crowd moving. Not my personal favorite in the realm of the Phish catalogue but Page was getting loose right off the get-go, Fish keeping the fast-tempo beat and Trey and Mike following. “Wolfman's” had kind of a weird beginning but people seemed pretty stoked at the possibility for this first set pick. “Wolfman’s” lacked a little enthusiasm and was a mellower start to this classic. Trey wanted to start a vocal jam, Gordon followed but quickly aborted vocals to jam instrumentally, instead. A slow build by Trey on some of those deep KOA licks and Mike joins in with some sick bass undertones. Fish starts to pick up the pace, and the rest of band follows with Trey still laying down those deep tones that I personally crave out of that axe. Trey leads his shreds through the “Wolfman’s” jam while the rest follow, ending on a high note and longest jam of the set clocking in at 12:12 (make a wish :-)).

“Destiny Unbound” was my personal highlight of my first set due to the small jam that was pretty tasty and stepped away from the normal groove of the song's nature. It took me 99 shows to first hear this song live back in 2010. A little flub by Mike when they get back into the lyrics, but most people there didn't even know what song it was so that was easily overlooked.

"Timber” is another song that isn’t played very often but has great jam potential in a first set. The beginning was a little sloppy and a few missed lyrics but didn't seem to bother the crowd.

Photo by @stim_buck

“Tela” is another song I saw once forever ago and then not again until the Tahoe “Tweezer” show, so it's always a welcomed song for me. Still a rarity these days, but I heard someone say they could have done without it tonight; that's one of the things that makes this band so special, because their songs affect everyone so differently. “Wingsuit” has seen so much growth since it's debut nearly a year ago in Atlantic City. I think the crowd's energy can make or break this song. I was into this version – I am a “Wingsuit” lover – though I may not have picked it to end the set. Mike used his drill at the end and closed it out.

“Free” opened the second set, and while always welcomed, it still doesn't ever take me to those places of past where the middle would get so dark and nasty that people would almost fall over from the dance party. Gordon was throwing down the bombs like he wants it to keep going, but then so rushed back into the original meat of the song. A good way to open the second set, just always leaves me wanting more. The “Golden Age” jam gets juicy, blissful and then gets funky for the Page and Trey combo with light licks from the Koa and Gordo adding in his bass line on top of a Fishman who also quiets down as well. Then those strong KOA tones come out that I crave. The jam starts building energy again, Trey uses his echoplex, CK5 lights are going off and the whole band getting experimental before they slow down again, Page picks it up then they settle into “Jibboo”...I love “Jibboo” and for awhile the band forgot about it, only being played twice this summer and the first time this fall. Sweet guitar licks, fast paced, high energy and kept the crowd's energy upbeat. The ever-present “whale call” came in and exited quickly into a Trey-lead jam that you definitely didn't want to end.

“Carini” is now a staple when it comes to second set jams. It came in with a fury and the crowd was definitely feeling it. Fishman was throwing down the tempo and the rest of the band followed. Gordon stayed in the background wanting to drop some serious bombs but staying subtle yet strong. Near the end of the jam, I totally thought “Caspian” was on it's way and actually shocked when “Piper” re-appeared after the Santa Barbara performance. In the new era of the non-slow-build “Piper,” this one actually explores the song and cohesively builds after the initial entry. Trey's fast notes with a little distortion thrown in fit perfectly along with Fish. Page and Gordon were also on the same level and together start building out a jam that is different, a bit dark and exciting. Fish slows it down for a second before Page stands up and starts laying down the funk on the keys along with Trey who keeps the fast pace going and... lift off. Fishman again changes direction and band follows leading to more exploration and was one of my favorite parts of the night. But my personal account on twitter is @30minutepipers for a reason. Like I mentioned before regarding the “Halley's” – there's always hope, and I can't live in the past and the future never comes, all we have is the now, the present, and I sometimes have to remind myself of this especially with some of my favorite songs.

Photo © Phish From the Road

Then the “Caspian” that I heard at the end of “Carini” came, so I was happy to hear this and can always tell Trey is happy to play this song. It gets slow and pretty in the middle before picking back up into what drops into another unexpected “Tweezer.” I was sure “Tweeer” was being saved for Bill Graham after the one in Santa Barbara. After a sast and furious entry, Trey and Page played nicely off one another, nothing super exploratory, just cohesive playing by all members of the band. They slow it all down a bit all on the same tempo in which the band is seemingly calling for "Woos" from the crowd. They continue the jam and begin to get a bit darker with some sweet deep bass lines from Mike, Trey holding back and seeing where they could take it. Page begins to step up as well and then the crowd goes nuts as they begin playing the opening notes to “Rock and Roll.” At a short five and a half minutes, it was still high energy but not jammed out before ending the set with “You Enjoy Myself.” Of course everyone wants to hear this song. It hasn't been in heavy rotation like in years past, so anytime you hear the opening notes you have to be stoked. Nothing strays out of the norm of the song, no extra oomph, maybe a fight bell, but it's still “YEM.”

They encored with ”Suzy” > “Tweeprise.” Usually a fluffer of the band, I would have broken away from the “Suzy” especially with the “Tweezer,” “Piper,” “Suzy” and “Tweeprise” all being played in the same show night one of Santa Barbara, but what it ultimately comes down to is the fact that this band is doing what makes them happy. Every show is a blessing because for so long I never thought I'd ever hear them play again, and now they have been playing for as long as they've been broken up. So yes, while we can't pick our own setlists and some shows are better than others, we are actually the most blessed group of people to see a band that comes out and loves what they do and provide some sort of spiritual mediation for a lot of us.

Have fun in San Fran! Southern California has been a blast and I look forward to returning to Vegas on Halloween for the first time since 2004...10 years! Should be quite the comeback.

Photo © Phish From the Road

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[For this recap we'd like to welcome guest blogger @n00b100 - SP]

After last year's decidedly fun Hollywood Bowl show, which was capped off with a nigh-legendary “Harry Hood,” I was chomping at the bit to get to another show. I was actually excited to hear that Phish's LA area show this year would be in the Forum (home of the Lakers and Kings for many years), because as cool and beautiful a venue as the Hollywood Bowl is, I've always been told by my longer-tenured Phish friends (i.e. all of them) that indoors Phish is a much different experience. So were they correct? We shall see...

Photo by @stim_buck

A very sharp “46 Days” immediately got the almost entirely full Forum out of their seats (I was in the back, so I could see the whole venue easily, and while there were a few patches of empty seats higher up top, the entire lower section and the floor was packed with writhing, shimmying fans), and “Tube” - accompanied with loud cheer at the "freeway in Los Angeles" line - kept the crowd moving as well. One cool thing about the live experience, among many, is watching the band interact and signal each other, and I got to see that in “Tube” as Trey turned to Fish and called for him to move into the bluesy stomp that precedes the final verse. “Train Song,” which is something of a rarity these days, came next, and the harmonies were done quite well (glad to see Mike can still sing this, even if “Drowned” is somewhat beyond him these days), and then came the first surprise of the night - a first set “Ghost.”

Photo by @stim_buck

Now, if I do have one criticism of 3.0 (I do have a few, now and again), it's that there seems to be some sort of invisible barrier that separates Set 1 from Set 2 these days, and if a Set 2 jam vehicle crosses over into Set 1, it becomes more of a Set 1 "get the people going" song than a Set 2 "improv launching pad." Case in point: “Ghost” on 8/30/13, a very fine and compact version, did not venture beyond its usual boundaries at all. And this first set “Ghost” matched that to a tee, as it served as a “Kill Devil Falls”-esque way to get the dance party back on track after the “Train Song” breather, although I'd never say no to the regular “Ghost” jam and the band gave it the energetic treatment you'd want from a first set song. “Sparkle” (my first repeat from last year) and “Sample in a Jar” came next - your intrepid reporter will admit that he got a soft pretzel and bottled water during Sample, but could hear it perfectly fine in the foyer, and can safely report that it sounded exactly like “Sample in a Jar.”

But “Sparkle” and “Sample,” much like a jet plane testing its brakes before takeoff, were the appetizer to the first main course of the night - “Divided Sky.” The further along I've come as a Phish fan, the more I've come to appreciate songs like this, and “Fluffhead,” and “The Curtain” (either “With” or “Without”) - songs with nary a lick of Type-II improv and that are mainly differentiated by subtleties in the playing, but are remarkable compositions and contain moments of absolutely heart-stopping beauty. As Page's swirling organ part led into Trey's solo moment, I thought about how humbling it was to hear this song, a song Phish has played at some dude's pig ranch, university lounges, some of the Northeast's most famous clubs, on Halloween 1994, during the first night of Lemonwheel, and now in front of my face right at this moment. Then came the pause, nonstop cheering from the crowd, a gigantic smile on Trey's face (I could see it even all the way across the arena), and an absolutely *crushed* version of “Divided Sky.”

Photo by @stim_buck

“The Line” came next - I stayed to listen because I really like the song, and it was quite the juxtaposition to see people dancing furiously and what felt like a quarter of the crowd streaming to the restrooms - and then Page's showcase in “It's Ice” (cool to see a spotlight on him while he wailed on his clavinet), during which time I saw a young teenager about ten sections away dancing his ass off, full spin-move-doing-the-Robot-in-the-Soul-Train-Line-in-the-70s dancing that you just know he's feeling the effects of today. It was great to see. A ferocious “Kill Devil Falls” came next (see what I mean?), and then the second first set highlight in a massive "Classic Gin" Type-I “Bathtub Gin,” replete with hilarious “Low Rider” and “Long Tall Glasses” teases, that built up to a frenetic, double-time close (it's kind of hilarious to see Fish, such a compact fellow, just hammer away on the skins). So that's a heck of a way to end the first set.

Setbreak: I heard a lot of whistling of “Low Rider” in the men's room.

Photo by@Phish_FTR

Set 2 opened with two Type-I dance vehicles, first a well-played version of Fuego standout “555,” then “Backwards Down The Number Line,” which nobody in attendance seemed to have much of a problem getting down to. In person, I was a bit perplexed by the song selection, although in hindsight “Number Line” makes sense as a tribute to one of Mike's daughters (apparently he was wandering around the lot with his daughter, and he informed a few lucky fans that it was indeed her birthday), which, if so, is more a nice touch than the apparently continuing campaign to make “Number Line” The Most Hated Phish Song In All of Fandom. But we hadn't gotten deep yet, and it felt like it was time for the band to stretch their legs.

And that time came, courtesy of the fog of noise that Mike coaxes out of his bass every time they play this song, with “Down With Disease.” The initial jam out of the final verse was kept at a low boil, with Trey playing something that sounded like “Under Pressure” while Page picked out some lovely notes on the organ. Trey shifted to some stabbing chords as the band kept the groove going, searching for the next avenue to explore, which seemed to be coming as Trey worked out the hair metal power chord sequence he'd hit upon in the 7/26/14 “Ghost,” but then Page took over and started playing a repeating, atonal riff that both Trey and Mike picked up on. Suddenly, things got weird and off-kilter, mid-90s style, as the jam seemed to be eating itself; Trey started going to the effects, Fish played around with his beat, and a dissonant wave of noise emanated from the stage. Phish doesn't go very dark anymore, so when they hit this kind of darkness it's always worth hearing. Then comes the magic moment - that roar you can hear from the crowd is Kuroda hitting the "star" lights on the ceiling of the Forum while switching off his own light banks, lighting up the Forum like a huge planetarium, as the band latched on to a 2.0-style groove and Mike found himself a new filter. I've included a picture, which gives maybe 25% of the insanely cool effect those lights had:

Photo by@n00b100

Then, with Mike dinging away on his fight bell and Page moving back to the clavinet, Trey remembered the power chords from before, and all of a sudden we're back in the ‘80s as the band moves as one towards a *furious* peak. Maybe this is attendance bias, but as cool as the 7/26 Ghost is, this jam (thanks to Trey dropping the chords and soloing his ass off) is a total improvement on it, especially with just how massive and powerful the energy built up on stage got. The jam cycled down, Page tickled the ivories, and “Fuego” kicks in. I don't think I can say enough about that “DWD” - it delved into the darkness and burst out into brightness, Trey got himself a nice little showcase, and you could just feel the band's palpable chemistry throughout. “Fuego” was quite nice (especially when it devolved into another spacey piece of business, as the band continues to work the lessons of 1999 and 2000 into their current arsenal), as was the “Twist” that came next (although, as “Twist” is my favorite Phish song from a composition standpoint, it's pretty easy to tell when “Twist” is going to move into Parts Unknown and when “Twist” is going to stay in the pocket), and a perfectly placed “Bouncing Around The Room” gave the crowd a chance to relax a bit and sing along. Hey, I'll take a “Bouncing” in the late second set over “Wading in the Velvet Sea” or “Gotta Jibboo” any day.

And then, with another neat little flurry of effects before the song proper, came the Fall tour debut of “David Bowie,” and this is a strong version given a little extra oomph (as @fracai noted in his show review) by Trey's Echoplex (which he utilized to very nice effect at certain points in the show). “Character Zero” (my second repeat from last year) closed out the second set proper, and with the crowd urging them to return, they came back to give me my third repeat from last year - an encore-slot “Harry Hood!” I certainly wasn't expecting them to give me another Hollywood “Hood” - I wasn't even expecting one of the outside-the-box “Hoods” like Eugene's or Randall's or Philly's - but what I did get, a "typical-beautiful" “Hood” that spiraled upwards to a lovely peak and Trey sustaining one note for an extended period as the star lights came on again and the crowd went bonkers, was more than enough to satisfy me at that point. “Grind,” charming and goofy as usual, ended the evening.

Final thoughts? A quite good show to keep the fires stoked after Santa Barbara's damn good second show. Make sure you catch the “Divided Sky” and that super-fun “Low Rider Gin” - and the “Down With Disease” is absolutely not optional.

Photo by@taopauly

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What a roller-coaster ride Fall 2014 has been so far! As many of you noted in your comments to my Eugene precap, the tour opener was (NOT) all about my high expectations and I completely assumed the role of Sisyphus pushing that particular boulder to the top of my stack of preconceived notions for the always portentous first night. Unlike the band on such evenings, I was not a bag of nerves, I was at home at the Matt Knight Arena in the warm embrace of friends old and new. As expected, and much like that exhilarating rush of the first plummet over the edge of the log flume, the Eugene show was fantastic, made a big splash, and got the seat of my pants wet. No, they didn’t play everything I had forecasted, and I didn’t in truth expect them to do that. I expected a great show and that is exactly what we got. Couldn’t be happier with the song selection and still can’t get “Plasma” out of my head.

Photo by @ebyron

As we made our way north to Seattle, my hopes remained high that the energy from the previous night would carry us and the band through day two. Those hopes were dashed the instant we walked through the doors of the Key Arena and my wife’s excitement to be alive in that moment was misinterpreted by venue staff as excessive intoxication. After ten minutes of interrogation, negotiation, and an invitation for the alcohol monitors to gargle on my nuts the happy vibe was taken down quite a few notches. The Seattle show was thereby destined to be the painful neck-snapping lurch at the bottom of that first rise and fall of the roller-coaster's run. Just to be sure it wasn’t all about my personal experience, I went back and listened to the Seattle show again and reached the same conclusion as I did during the (nod to Jimi Hendrix) experience. The first set is certain to be the nadir of this tour. The second saw a barely perceptible change in direction as we began our slow ascent up the next hill. The dreaded Saturday Night Special had occurred. Much like that day’s homecoming game at Autzen, Oregon just crushed Washington.

Photo by Rene Huemer, © Phish From the Road

Following the lines going south, we hopped off tour in the physical sense and retreated to the safety of the couch. Because the Phish ticketing system is so broken, heading to the Santa Barbara Bowl seemed out of the question. After seeing the images of the venue, both still and moving, and hearing that once again extra tickets were littering the ground unused (AT A 4,500 SEAT VENUE???) I felt blinding rage toward each person involved with the abject failure of the Phish ticket distribution system. There will be more on this later so I won’t steal that piece of future thunder, but seriously, it is high time to institute a ticketless non-refundable (you can’t scalp these or buy them to trade for other shows that also have artificially high demand you worthless scumbag) concert entry system. Other artists do it… our band should too.... get your shit together, Phish!

Santa Barbara 1, as noted by my esteemed colleague TheEmu, saw the band start to do that on stage again at least, the limp and lifeless Seattle show was no reason to start freaking out and throwing stuff. Go listen to Tuesday night’s “Chalk Dust” and “Ghost” again. That shit was proper and completely set the stage for what was to come last night. Sure the intimacy of the venue led to some awkward moments (see “Birds” and “Suzy Greenberg”), but ultimately the train was set back on the right track.

Photo © Phish From the Road

As we all know, Phish will occasionally offer us a glimpse behind the curtain and clouded visions of what is to come. In the days leading up to the most hallowed of eves, all eyes and ears are searching for a clue for the trick or treat that awaits in Vegas. With that in mind, if you were paying attention to @Phish_FTR yesterday, you were not surprised by the band’s invitation to last night’s “Soul Shakedown Party” at all. Happy, grinning ear to ear perhaps, but definitely not surprised. A great way to watch the sun go down on another day in paradise and a terrific start to what would be a wonderful night of music. The first set vibe was focused on the idyllic tranquility of (“Wedge”) Santa Barbara and the state of (“Undermind”) relaxation that arises from (“Horn”) a luxurious full body (“Ya Mar”) massage. The band clearly feeds off (“Jesus Just Left Chicago”) its environment and the warm glow of (“A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing”) the crowd. This first set (“Winterqueen”) had bucketfuls to spare (“My Friend, My Friend”) and a few of them dumped out all over my kitchen as I (“Split Open and Melt”) cooked dinner (I’ll spare you my braise recipe), my wife completed her security clearance documentation for a new job opportunity, and my daughter took photos of the swirling patterns that can be induced in (“Walls of the Cave”) a plate of milk inoculated with food coloring and a drop of dish soap. We ate during setbreak and settled down for set two.

Photo by Rene Huemer, © Phish From the Road

With the Pacific Ocean beckoning in the distance, we ran down to the beach and got absolutely “Drowned” in the chilly and chaotic surf that cascaded wildly onto the shore. Diving deeper beneath the surface we found the “Theme From the Bottom” to be quite pleasing, once again fathoming previously unimaginable depths. Unlike the powers that be vested with the weighty responsibility of determining when or if Phish consciously teases, quotes, or jams another song within a song and deems it worthy of being canonized into a given show’s setlist, I will state unequivocally that Phish played portions of the Pink Floyd song “Echoes” during both “Theme From the Bottom” and the “Steam” that billowed from this eruption of Pompeian lava onto the ocean floor. To borrow the words of another of my esteemed colleagues, this “Echoes” jamakinto is as obvious as two goats fucking in church and if you cannot hear it you are fucking deaf.

As I basked in the undulating flow of “Waves” I asked myself how sick would it be if Phish busted out Meddle for Halloween? About as sick as the strains of both “Stranglehold” and “Mike’s Song” that also reverberated through the “Echoes” in my brain as I fought with the reality that they would actually be covering Trey and the Undectet’s Original Boardwalk Style as a subtle nod to the place (Atlantic City) the old Halloween tradition died and the new one was born.

Photo © Phish From the Road

“Twenty Years Later” marks the thematic divide between the aquatic third and extra-terrestrial fourth quarter of last night’s show. As our kayak returned from the wild ride in thirty-foot seas, we were greeted on land by a menagerie of Animals to close out the show. “Scent of a Mule” found Mike ringing the fight bell like a champ as a frenetic Fishman played alien whack-a-mole on the marimba lumina. The UFOs of course unloaded their laser beams and departed with the monolith to the space disco funk of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” (aka “2001”). Eugene’s missing second set “Mike’s Song” finally arrived with a faithful canine (“Runaway Jim”) as his companion and a blistering “Weekapaug Groove” which OFFICIALLY contained teases of both “Runaway Jim” and “2001” closed out a terrific second set. Not to be outdone, the two thirds animal encore, featuring Page as the jockey now riding “The Horse” into “Silent in the Morning” and a delirious “Run Like an Antelope” that included a festive yet no less OFFICIAL quote and tease of the show opening “Soul Shakedown Party,” took us to the very precipice of the hard 10:00 PM curfew. What a ride!!! Safe travels down to the Forum and beyond. Stay thirsty my friends… the best show of this tour is yet to come.

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Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurant on Paradise Road in Las Vegas will be raising funds to benefit The Mockingbird Foundation, the non-profit whose volunteers help run this site, from October 30 through November 2, about two miles from the MGM Grand where Phish is playing three shows on 10/31, 11/1 and 11/2. Gordon Biersch has brewed a special beer dubbed the "Dubbel Sample in a Jar," which is a "complex, malty ale with hints of spice and licorice, and a balancing hoppiness on the finish," that will be served in a mason jar with the Gordon Biersch and Mockingbird Foundation logos on it.

A portion of the proceeds from sales of the "Dubbel Sample" will benefit Mockingbird. The mason jars are great for storage (not just drinking), and you will be able to purchase them at $5 apiece, too. You can also get one of the mason jars complementary if you order the "Farmhouse Special," a half pound steakburger topped with bacon jam, tomato and arugula, with a fried egg, served with garlic fries and a pint of the "Dubbel Sample" in the specially-branded mason jar. ($18.95)

Those of us at Phish.Net and Mockingbird urge you to support this fundraiser, as it not only raises funds for music education, but it also increases the likelihood that fundraisers like this one will occur in the future in other cities where Phish plays. Thank you!

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Before we get into the play-by-play of Tuesday night’s show, a quick editorial comment. You can say what you want about factors that would drive attendance at these shows down: a smaller fan base on the West Coast, a Tuesday night gig, and the difficulties of getting through Los Angeles traffic for a 6pm start. Phish should be able to fill a 4,500 seat venue, regardless. Instead, under-face tickets were said to be plentiful, and as of this writing you can score great seats for tonight’s “sold-out performance” on Ticketmaster. Of course I’m not breaking any news here, but the culture of ticket speculation is obviously out of hand and keeping away fans who would otherwise attend if the process were more straightforward. But enough of that. On with the Phish.

What a beautiful venue! From my seat on the couch (well, recliner) 2,500 miles away, the Santa Barbara Bowl looked warm and intimate, and I would have loved to have been there to score some of those last minute seats. On top of a smoldering orange sunset and the beckoning wonder of the Pacific Ocean, the band continues to play with a joyful synergy that makes the current era one of my favorites in Phish history. For those of you fortunate enough to have been there last night, my meager words will doubtless be but a distorted reflection of the experience. But I’m going to write them anyway.

© Phish From the Road

I expected to hear some laid-back song selections to match the size and setting of the venue, and was delighted by the choice to open with “Stash,” a jazzy but slightly twisted way to light the burner. “Possum” brought some swamp-boogie down from the top of the mountain to get dancing feet moving before “Ocelot” crept in, strolled around, stretched, roared, and curled up for a nap. The ebb and flow of the first set continued with the reggae swing of “NICU” followed by some more down-home dancin’ music in the form of “Back On the Train.” This “BOTT” is peppy and quick, but take just a moment to listen to the precision of Fishman’s fills. Amazing.

“Limb By Limb” was another appropriate choice for the evening, keeping the tempo upbeat without becoming overly boisterous, and a beachside sunset seems like a perfect backdrop for “Waiting All Night.” By now, the gentle sway of the night was firmly established; smoothly to the upbeat side with “Yarmouth Road,” and then serene again with “When the Circus Comes,” a song which I think would set the mood for later in the evening via Page’s focused, soulful tones. Prior to the pendulum swinging back to the shuffle of “Heavy Things,” Trey took a moment to praise the gorgeous venue, then admitted that he didn’t remember being there to open for Santana in 1993. Maybe that’s just because it was actually 1992, but no matter. It might be fitting that “Stealing TIme,” the only real gritty rocker of the first set, was first awkwardly wrenched into place before closing the first stanza on a high note.

Photo @PhishNQuips

I honestly don’t care how many times Phish wants to open a second set with “Down with Disease” or “Chalk Dust Torture.” If they are going to continue to use these standards as launch pads for mesmerizing improvisation, they can do it every night. Much like the Randall’s version from the summer, the entire band moved as one into the unknown. My ear was drawn from instrument to instrument during the ensuing jam; Fish propelling the music with superhuman dexterity, Mike filling in the foundation with billowing, bubbling tones, Trey sprinkling notes and spraying chords with measured abandon, and Page draping the entire assemblage in a melodious cloak. When it’s all said and done, this might end up being my second favorite “Chalk Dust” of the year, but it is nonetheless a marvelously beautiful example of 3.0 Phish.

As the “CDT” jam pulsed and fragmented to a close, the approaching footsteps of “Ghost” were apparent, and we would be treated to a second jaw-dropping segment. Allow me to reiterate how collaborative this music is: the level of both talent and communication these guys have is mind-blowing. The last 3½ minutes of “Ghost” are absolutely sublime, and as several have pointed out, reminiscent of the TAB song “Valentine.” This was the highlight of the evening for me, as the band reached across the continent to lift me out of my chair, floating on the breeze of their creation. Truly moving.

© Phish From the Road

Ironically, “Birds of a Feather” brought me back to Earth. Like “Stealing Time” in the first set, it seemed a touch out of place, with the abrupt transition from “Ghost,” a chaotic jam, and rough landing that Trey said was “weird” and “freaked me out a little bit.” Page took a quick baseball poll, and Trey further mocked the end of the “Birds” jam before introducing “Wombat.” My favorite quadrupedal marsupial stumbled a little bit out of the gate before finding the herky-jerky crepuscular funk groove I love, then spun himself into a flailing, distorted haze. An odd “Wombat,” to be sure, with more unusual antics on the way. A mid-set “Tweezer” is always welcome, and this version marched determinedly onward, missteps be damned. An emphatic theme from Trey and Page, complemented by massive rolls from Fish, dominated the jam, which dissolved into a spacy section of repeated “Julius” licks that finally gave way to the song itself.

Photo by @stim_buck

“Piper” followed close on the heels of “Julius,” and flirted briefly with “L.A. Woman” before making a beeline back out to space, falling away, and leaving Page to work slowly into “Wading in the Velvet Sea.” Trey actually played with some “Curtis Loew” type licks that I think would actually be a nice add to “Velvet Sea,” but only a few times at the start of the song. To close the set, good ‘ol “Suzy Greenberg” started with another stumble, prompting Fish to chide Trey with the lyric “I wish you’d look at me before you count off the song!” And that’s why even the flubs at a Phish show can me make me giddy. “Boogie On Reggae Woman” > “Tweeprise” proved more than just your obligatory encore, with a strong jam out of “Boogie On” punctuated by dizzying echoes from Trey.

It’s still early in the tour, and things are only going to get tighter and more impressive as Halloween draws near. This was a thoroughly enjoyable show, with a one-two punch in the second set that simply demands that you don’t miss one of these shows if you don’t have to. I sure as hell wish I was out there to see what happens next. Be safe and have fun, everybody!

Photo by @ebyron

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by David “Zzyzx” Steinberg

Part 1: A Brief History of Being a Phish Fan in Seattle

In the early 90s, I was living in southern New Mexico attending graduate school. The conservative town was a bad fit for me, so I was looking for an escape. The chilly mist of the Pacific Northwest seemed to be about as far of an escape from the fiery Mesilla Valley desert, so cars were loaded, apartments were found, and jobs were located. If there was one thing I was worried about, it was not the lack of Phish. The year before I moved, Phish played two northwest runs. 1995 had one in October. We were able to give thanks in 1996 with a Tofurkey Eve Key Arena show. No, we weren’t receiving the dozens of shows that a New Yorker gets, but it wasn’t bad at all for being tucked away in the northwest corner of the country.

Then came The Gorge. Phish played the amphitheater in 1997. The venue was amazing. It was a little annoying to have only two shows all year in our region, but seeing Phish in an environment like that more than made up for it. 1998 and 1999 had a return to The Gorge as part of a more extended tour of the region – but, of course, sans Emerald City – but then after the hiatus we moved into the current pattern. Every other year Phish would play a two-night run in George, WA and then move on to other parts of the country. No one could blame Phish for doing so. If I were in a band and I could play against the backdrop of the Columbia River carving a canyon through basalt, of a land so desolate that you can’t see signs that humans inhabit the planet on the other side of the stage, I would most definitely do the same. It’s one of the most amazing places to see music in the world. The only problem is that – at 160 miles away and over a mountain pass – it’s not somewhere where you can see Phish and also sleep in your bed. It’s local and exciting, but not the same as an actual in town show.

Part 2: A Brief History of Being a Seattle Sports Fan

What’s the history? Pain. The Seattle Mariners are one of only two teams in Major League Baseball that have never even played in the World Series. The Seattle Seahawks have had more luck recently, but prior to 2013 had but one Super Bowl appearance, one in which dropped passes, a few questionable time management moments, and a series of increasingly bizarre calls, missed to the point where the referee actually later apologized, ruined their chances. The SuperSonics won an NBA title in the 1970s but then were bought by an owner who immediately worked to poison the team’s relationship with the community in order to make sure his insane arena demands would be rejected so he could move them to his home town. This isn’t to say that there haven’t been moments of joy and wonder, but – just like a hometown show – the ultimate prize has never really been attained.

Part 3: Joining Forces

At a Trey solo show in Seattle last spring, the guitarist mentioned the Seahawks’ new quarterback Russell Wilson and how it would be cool if the team played Phish’s “Wilson” chant for the fans to do. At the end of his speech he said, “Guaranteed Super Bowl.” This is something that I also have always wanted. I sent a letter to the Mariners back in the 90s asking that Dan Wilson have “Wilson” for this walkup music, a letter that received no response whatsoever. This gained some traction though. First in preseason, and then during the season, the chant could be heard. Random references to it could be seen throughout the city. School marquees said, “Ba-bump, ba-bump WILSON.” The Seattle Great Wheel and the town’s mayor tweeted videos that featured the song. Phish were featured in an NFL Films production. My team, my band, and it was ridden to a championship. Without question, this was the best year of my life as a Phish and sports fan. Not only did I attend my first ever victory parade, but I did so with my favorite band as a soundtrack to the event. How could it be any better?

© Phish From the Road

Part 4: The Reward

After an all east coast summer, the fall tour was announced, and there it sat. October 18, Key Arena, Seattle, WA. Phish would come here for the first time in 18 years. It would be not just a long awaited return but a celebration of all things that happened last year. What could mar this?

The day before the Seattle show, Phish played Eugene, OR. While driving there, my phone suddenly lit up with messages. Percy Harvin – an explosive player who helped seal the victory the year before but didn’t seem to be clicking this year– was suddenly traded for very little. The Seattle sports world suddenly moved from party time to confusion. Maybe that would work itself out, but Phish were still playing the Key. Phish fans would be hanging out by the Space Needle, and the International Fountain. This is a big deal!

A few minutes past eight, lights went out. The band came on stage, perhaps to play the “Wilson” to end all versions, but not to start. We’d first have a “Cavern” interlude, but then it came. I was thinking of all of the things that I would do if I were Trey in that moment. Maybe I’d license a few Russell Wilson highlights and we’d hear Steve Raible’s voice over the PA. Perhaps I’d sprinkle a few further playings of the riff throughout the night. Nothing like that happened. The crowd chanted, people were excited, but, quite surprisingly, Trey didn’t even mention the team or make any comment at all throughout the song. It was put out there, but just as something that happened, not as the big deal that the song and the team represented.

With the expected highlight of the night not being one, that did free up some room for the rest of the set. “Moma Dance,” while still played close to its 3.0 norm, showed a few signs that the band was willing to open it up a little, to play some subtle variations on the theme and keep it interesting. “Lawn Boy” had a few extra antics from Page as he played up his Vegas lounge act for all it was worth. Trey not only nailed the riff in “Sugar Shack,” a progression that has been a rough spot for him over the years, but he felt confident enough to play around with the theme. “Wolfman’s Brother” hit a nice peak. The set closing “Bathtub Gin” had an even better one, an intense finale that got the blood pumping and the crowd dancing. The first set might not have been one for the ages, but it was definitely fun.

After a short break, Phish came out again and referenced the last Seattle show. The earlier Key Arena night had a show opening “Down with Disease,” one that was incredibly strong. When they did the same in 2014, once again a Seattle fan’s mind was thinking about repeating. The jam started out strong and then found a funky space. Page was adding a few beautiful fills. A spacey element was introduced. At the point where things were shaping up so nicely, they moved into “Golden Age.”

Initial disappointment over the end of the jam couldn’t last too long. It’s a fun cover, and hearing Trey suggest that the return to Seattle after such a long gap meant that we were in the right place was very nice, and – again – this song leads to a jam. It got weird and spacey and showed a lot of promise, but again was quickly abandoned, this time for “Fuego.”

“Fuego” versions from the summer were mixed. Some extended out to long jams, others were played more close to the vest. This one was less of a Fuego and more of a Prius as it took a hybrid approach. The final chorus was never sung as another intriguing space jam was formed. This one was given a little more room to breathe, but again perhaps ended a tad soon as “Light” started.

© Phish From the Road

The fast funk jam that followed led to somewhere interesting. For the second straight night, Phish covered a Talking Heads song and once again turned the tempo away from their usual pace and closer to the original. Eugene’s “Crosseyed and Painless” was slowed down and Seattle’s “Cities” was sped up. It was an interesting take for Phish, hearing them play the song like that. It wasn’t as fast at the original – or Mike’s solo versions – but showed something different, improvisation that didn’t come out of a jam but instead from an arrangement choice.

If the night could be said to have a theme, it perhaps was made clear during the “Sand.” One of Phish’s strengths of the past few years was to be able create these uplifting jams of effortless beauty. They’d built and penetrate your mind and soul and body and make it impossible to do much else but dance euphorically. The “Sand” started that approach. Trey found an amazing riff. The rest of the band joined in. This was going to be it, the one moment of the night where the Key Arena totally exploded. Just as it was getting there, “Backwards Down the Number Line” started up. And while it was a great version with a strong mid song break, it also pointed out what could have been.

Just like last year, Phish and the Seahawks’ had interweaving. Instead of the easy good times of 2013, this was a bit more frustrating. However, even if things weren’t quite working to full effect, there still were the glimpses and moments that pointed to brighter days to come. Not every day is going to be the best. Maybe this set will get few re-listens, but – much like the early season for the Hawks – there are hopeful signs that show that the better nights of this town have potential to be epic. Phish playing Seattle, fans taking over Seattle Center, some nice peaks and Phish playing some favorite songs – these are their own rewards.

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I’ve quite deservedly earned the reputation of someone who complains a lot about the lack of Phish shows in Oregon. Going beyond my typical “Phish last played Oregon in 1999” whine, allow me to provide you some perspective as to why exactly this fact is so particularly unfathomable whilst pre-capping the band’s triumphant return to the Beaver State and their first annual visit to the Matthew Knight Arena. You read that right… this is a PRECAP of the Eugene show.

Because there are a limited number of us in the Pacific Northwest, there is no official webcast that will allow one of my east coast colleagues to do a couch tour recap, and there is a high likelihood that I will be unable to go to the show tonight, rage Eugene afterwards, drive to Seattle for the next show at the Key Arena, AND write a recap… I am going to provide a forecast for tonight’s gig based on a historical analysis of what came before. We can discuss your displeasure for this approach and/or how chillingly accurate (I am not crazy) my prognostication was in the comments below. But first… let’s get back to that whole perspective on the lack of Phish in the Pacific Northwest thing I mentioned above.

Matthew Knight Arena

The Grateful Dead last played in Eugene, Oregon on 6/19/94, performing their last show of a three night stand at Autzen Stadium. Inexplicably, the last time Phish played in Tracktown USA was a month earlier in the Silva Concert Hall at the Hult Center on 5/19/94. Let that sink in… the Grateful Dead… featuring Jerry Garcia on guitar… played in this Merry Prankster Mecca more recently than Phish. WTF? Having listened to all five of the previous Eugene shows in preparation for pre-capping tonight’s show I have to ask why? Why Phish WHY? Sure… there were subsequent shows in Salem and Portland as recently as 1999… but still… that’s 15 years without a Phish show in Oregon. Are you kidding me?

Prior to that seemingly final Hult Center show, Eugene had been enjoying a fairly regular return engagement with the Phish. One which previously had included one show each at Woodmen of the World Hall (4/4/91) and the University of Oregon’s EMU Ballroom (10/10/91) and two performances at the Hilton Ballroom (4/22/92 and 3/30/93). If the string of shows was a relay race, the Matthew Knight Arena show tonight is going to be the anchorman… a really slow anchorman who dropped the baton numerous times during his lap around the track and took forever to come back. But nevermind all that… let’s delve deeper into the past before we get to the prognostication. To understand where we ended up we have to go back from whence we came.

WOW Hall

The 4/4/91 WOW Hall show (capacity about 400) is best known for the “I Dream of Jean Jeannie” version of “David Bowie,” the intro for which, in addition to containing the aforementioned “Jeannie” theme song tease also has a clear through the wormhole puff of “Gotta Jibboo”... I shit you not. The “Bowie” jam is clearly the ferocious vortex that was required to suck the “Jibboo” smoke that far into the past. Go back and check it out and tell me I’m wrong… and then listen to the solid first set “YEM” while you are there. This show also features a first set “Colonel Forbin’s” > “Mockingbird,” a second set Fishman “Love You” long time, and a double encore each bearing two songs.

Six months and six days later (10/10/91), Phish doubled down (I’m noticing a trend) and through the sponsorship of Associated Students of the University of Oregon (ASUO) came back to play the EMU Ballroom (capacity about 800) and delivered a tight high energy affair that is really exemplified by an insane “Brother” and sublime “Reba” combo to open a solid second set that also features a great high energy “Antelope” and closes with a raging “Mike’s Groove.” Tack on a “Squirming Coil” with a tail of “Fire” encore and you really can’t complain, comrade.

EMU Ballroom, University of Oregon

Six months and twelve (double six) days later (4/22/92), the boys were back in town for U of O’s Earth Week celebration and the first of their two performances at the Hilton Ballroom (capacity about 1,400). An extended “Wilson” featuring an explanation of “The Secret Language Instructions” with Fishman on trombone is the centerpiece of a second set that also includes another glorious “YEM,” a “Cold as Ice” > “Cracklin’ Rosie” > “Cold as Ice” and the ever elusive WEST COAST “HARPUA!” complete with an invitation to Fishman’s after show party in his Hilton hotel room (623… factorially speaking). Anybody have any stories they want to share about that scene?

The following spring (3/30/93) Phish returned for their second engagement party at the Hilton Ballroom. To get a good grip on this show go directly to the first set “Stash” to hear an angry “Timber (Jerry)” jam morph into a delicate “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” tease from Page. The second set is well constructed and a non-stop good time. The “Tweezer” is all about the chairman of the boards and some heavy metal funk before devolving into a “Lifeboy” breather to prepare for the “Psycho Killer Mike’s Groove” (dedicated to Mike… by Mike) that was going to comprise the meat of the set. This one also included Fishman’s take on “If I Only Had a Brain” and a “Big Ball Jam” for good measure.

Hilton Ballroom

Which brings us back to 5/19/94 and the Hult Center (capacity 2,448… another double double?), the band’s most recent visit to Eugene prior to this evening’s return. This one tears out of the gate with a streaking “Halley’s Comet” that crashes quite abruptly into the fifth consecutive “Llama” to be played in Eugene. Yup… every Eugene show to date has had one taboot, taboot. For the second Eugene show in a row… the first set is dominated by a sick “Stash” and the second set is built around a “Mike’s Groove” centerpiece. The “Theme to I Love Lucy” which appears in “Weekapaug,” “Big Ball Jam,” and “Harry Hood” completes the loop on television show teases that was initiated in the WOW Hall “Bowie” and the show concludes with a four song encore (more “Echoes” of 4/4/91) that includes another version of “Fire.” That’s “Fuego” in Spanish.

Silva Concert Hall at The Hult Center

Having safely returned back to the future we are now prepared to construct our great expectations for this evening in the form of some probable highlights of tonight’s show (see below). Taking heed of the great philosopher Carlos Santana’s words ”Those who cannot remember the pasta are condemned to reheat it” and “Only the Dead have seen the end of Weir” and based entirely on historical trends for Phish shows in Eugene, Oregon we can be absolutely sure of what should come to pass this evening. Phish just can’t help being Phish...and certain places attract certain songs like moths to a flame.

1. “Lllama” has been played at every Eugene show to date. Why break the streak now?
2. There will of course be a healthy selection of “Fuego” tunes...but considering the numerological recurrences of the past “555” is a lock.
3. The first set will feature another above average great performance of “Stash” that will include a rare opening frame Type II jam. That jam will be hotly debated for the “Dark Star” tease that it will be alleged to contain.
4. The second set will include an above average great performance of “Mike’s Groove” with multiple Simpson’s (goodnight Springton… there will be no encore) secret language cues, some humorous banter (are those things real?), and a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Careful with that Axe Eugene” somewhere in the mix.
5. There will be a Fishman song… it should be “Bike” for what it’s worth.
6. There will be an acappella song… fingers crossed for “The Birdwatcher” or “Free Bird!”
7. The other numbers that are already in the Eugene 50% club and therefore highly likely to be played include: “Suzy Greenberg,” “Golgi Apparatus,” “Poor Heart,” “Cavern,” “Divided Sky,” “Runaway Jim,” “The Horse” > “Silent in the Morning,” and “Sparkle.”
8. The songs that will join the club when they are performed this evening include: “All Things Reconsidered,” “Big Ball Jam,” “Fire,” “Foam,” “Glide,” “Guelah Papyrus,” “HYHU,” “My Friend My Friend,” “My Sweet One,” “Reba,” “Rift,” “Antelope,” “The Landlady,” “The Oh Kee Pah Ceremony,” “The Squirming Coil,” and “YEM.”
9. The encore will be a cover of the Lead Belly song “Goodnight Irene” played in the style of Eric Clapton’s cover of the tune with a lyric change to “Goodnight Eugene!”

I know what you are thinking. “All Things Reconsidered” even “The Landlady” doing “The Big Ball Jam” thinks that last one is a stretch. But hear me out. This year marks the 50th anniversary of prankster patron saint Ken Kesey’s gyppo logger master work Sometimes a Great Notion. The book about the lumberjacking Stamper family of Wakonda, Oregon takes it’s title from Leadbelly’s “Goodnight Irene” lyrics:

Sometimes I lives in the country,
Sometimes I lives in the town,
Sometimes I take a great notion,
To jump into the river an’ drown.

Which of course evokes visions of the similar rhyme scheme in the ever elusive, I’m talking the last one was at the E Center on 11/2/98 and we all know what happened there, WEST COAST “HARPUA”... wherein the Phish from Vermont will finally come back to your town Eugene...a nd help you party down. “Twenty Years Later”... it’s still upside down.

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