7-25-03 - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Charlotte, NC
review submisions to me at [email protected],
[email protected],
[email protected]
please review the show, not the other reviews....
Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2004 17:23:43 -0700
From: eric tipton
Subject: Re: Phish 7/25/03 review
from Phish.net:
07/25/03 - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Charlotte - Charlotte, North
Carolina
Set 1: Funky Bitch, Chalkdust Torture, Two Versions of Me, Bathtub Gin,
Limb By Limb, Back on the Train, Horn, Golgi Apparatus > Character Zero
Set 2: Drowned > Kung, Twist > Heavy Things, Harry Hood > David Bowie*
Encore: Star Spangled Banner #, Bug
* with 'Tweezer' teases. # - performed a cappella
The drive from Deer Creek was an especially long one. We dropped Malcolm
off at the Indianapolis airport on 7/24. Two of my friends from Denver
that were also doing the whole tour joined our group so that meant there
were 4 people in my car - packed to the hilt to say the least.
I got my first shower in 7 days, for that I was very happy. Dirty hippy
indeed! We stayed in a motel on the border of West Virginia and Virginia
on the night of the 24th setting ourselves up for a 2.5 hour drive to get
to the venue.
Just like my experience in 99 at this venue, gettting in is a bitch. We
met up w/ djancy75 (great meeting you Dave!) at a gas station and
carpooled in w/ him. I think we got on lot around 5'ish after sitting in
line for at least an hour and a half. What is it w/ this place, why does
it have to be so difficult to get to lot? I don't get it and we would
have the same issues a couple days later in Raleigh. Get your shit
together North Carolina, I need 4 hours of good lot time, not two!!
Chilled in the lot w/ my crew, Dave's crew and eventually met up w/ the
ATL/VA crew; hommy, spcwrnglr and met: bina_j, swright, Freedawg, CBD and
I know I am forgetting at least one person that I talked to for a bit
)sorry!) Also, ran into nestamarley and his girl Kelly whom I had not
seen since Bonner Springs so we caught up a little bit.
I was by myself for this show on the lawn. Charlotte has metal stands in
front of the lawn and I plopped myself down in the second row DFC. Best
place to be if you are stuck on the lawn. I had alot of the row to myself
so plenty of flailing around room for yours truly!
First set:
Funky Bitch: 'Bout time we got the Bitch! Nice and rocking.
Chalkdust: Very jammed out, almost 12 minutes. Unfortunately there was
barely even a climax at the end so that threw me off a little bit.
2 Versions of Me:
quote:
________________________________________________________________________________
Marge, beer me!
________________________________________________________________________________
Yeah, I grabbed an ice cold Icehouse I believe.
Gin: Nice! Jamming Bathtub here, easily the highlight of the first set
for me. Around 11 minutes Page and Trey really lock up well and play off
each other very nicely. I don't remember having a problem at the show
hearing Mike, but listening to the sbd right now and I can't hear him at
all during this thick jam, what's up? At 14 minutes the jam slows up a
bit and features some nice playing on Page's part. Trey hits up that
crunchy guitar tone at 15 minutes w/ Page funking away behind him. At
15:30 he hits this really melodic theme - very serene. Trey returns to
original theme at 17:49 and the band follows very smoothly. Excellent
Bathtub - not as good as Shoreline but better than Alpine's. After the
show I found out a member of our crew got arrested for smoking down
during Gin. Total undercovers that looked nothing like "cops". Be careful
in Charlotte!
LXL: I'm a jaded oldbie, and getting sick of this tune. I swear since 97
I see it at one out of three shows. Time for an "attitude adjustment"
that I shared w/ two beautiful North Carolina girls behind me. If either
of you two happen upon this, will one of you marry me? [wink.gif] . Nice
build up in this Limb that explodes at 9:45.
BOTT: Second of the tour. Much improved over the Bonner Springs version
which was quite sloppy and tentative. It's no Nassau but it's a good
little funky jam that I had fun dancing/flailing too!
Horn: Standard. Pretty darn tight.
Golgi: Standard and fun.
Character Zero:
quote:
________________________________________________________________________________
Marge, beer me!
________________________________________________________________________________
Icehouse, pt. II. It's funny watching hippies bang their heads.
First set highlights: Gin. After the runs at Alpine and Deer Creek you
can see the band is doing it's best to dial it back up to that energy
level, but it never got there during this first set. Sick Gin though.
Second set:
Drowned: At the opening notes of this, I just started going apeshit. I
hadn't heard this since 10/5/00 and just love it when Phish covers this
classic Who tune. This Drowned would not disappoint at all. There isn't
anything too wild and crazy about this Drowned but is surely never gets
boring by any means. It is always a treat to hear this tune I think,
especially in the all important second set opener slot. Trey catches a
really nice groove at 11.5 and rides this into a killer segue >
Kung: Again, I am going ape shit at the intro to the lyrics. May I take
this opportunity to say that what they played behind the lyrics is some
funky ass shit! Crunchy, crunchy chords from Trey here, you must get this
on disc and listen to it yourself. Alot of people around me seemed to
have no clue as to what this was which makes it that much more exiciting!
Classic Phish, wacked lyrics and intense all the way through. Fisman was
having a blast w/ this! Absolutely loved it!
quote:
________________________________________________________________________________
We can stage a runaway golf cart marathon!
________________________________________________________________________________
Again I've got to take issue w/ Phish.net and there segues!!! How can
they say Golgi segued into Zero but not put a segue between Kung and
Twist? Fucking crackheads! Kung most definitely segued into Twist, sick
segue! >
Twist: You all no by now I'm not a big Twist fan. But when it morphs out
of such a dark, scary jam; lets just say it works for me in this spot.
Good Twist and it keeps up the sinister feel that Kung managed to create.
Segue into >
Heavy Things. Amazing segue here people. Even though I cannot believe
this gets mid second set placement, my jaw was on the floor purely
because of the smooth segue.
Hood: Nice! Very typical Hood up until 12:20 when Trey takes it into a
new and exciting space. Much edgier than what you would expect from a
"normal" Hood. Until the Vegas Hood, the last thing I expexted from this
song was for it to make a left turn past 10-12 minutes and see the band
take it for a spin into space. That's what they did tonight. As a matter
of fact, I have written next to Hood on my setlist that it "lost me."
Which certainly is not a bad thing, it's something I look for in a Phish
jam, like one of those times where you think to yourself "What the hell
is this song again? Oh yeah, it's still HOOD!" At 19 minutes it gets
really quiet and I was expecting it to segue into something. Nope. One
minute later Trey and Fish urge the band to put their collective feet
back on the gas pedal. Again though it meanders back to space, really
quite psychedelic. 26.5 sees a slow progression back to ending theme of
Hood. After all that craziness that preceeded it, I was really expecting
a much better, bigger buildup to the "You can feel good" part. I felt
good but not as good as I had hoped. This band is not afraid to take
chances. After the feel good part, they jam a bit til Fish busts out the
high-hat; segue into >
Bowie: Beginning is a tad rough. Nothing like Phoenix thankfully. Big
time Tweezer tease by Trey at 10:20. The ending coda is long and
stretched out and is finally done at 15.5 minutes. Good Bowie, but not
close to the heater from Alpine a few shows ago.
Encore:
Star Spangled Banner: I could have never called this! I really thought
that they sounded very good on this. By the time this was over it was 10
after 11pm so I thought for sure they were done.
Bug: Not done by a long shot! I was really suprised when they played this
in regards to the curfew issue. I really, really like Bug in the encore
slot. I've said it before and I'll say it again. The lyrics to this tune
hit home for me.
quote:
________________________________________________________________________________
There've been times that I wander
And times that I don't
________________________________________________________________________________
quote:
________________________________________________________________________________
Spending or saving
Credit or debt
Which did you think I meant
Nothing I see can be taken from me!!!
________________________________________________________________________________
Great way to end up this evening in Charlotte.
Second set highlights: Drowned>Kung, the segues of Kung>Twist>HT. The
nutty Hood and the encores.
Very jealous of djancy75's front row seat! Atta boy Dave! This was a
pretty good show but just could not follow up on the energy and momentum
that was created by the Alpine/Crick run. Our friend that was arrested
was ticketed and let go but has to return to NC sometime in September I
think to go to court. He said there were quite a few people that had fell
prey to the same type of undercovers. I have seen plenty of undercovers
in the lots before but never seen or heard of them being inside a show.
IMO that is just way to over the top. Onto Atlanta and a ridiculous 7th
row DFC seats for me and Tony courtesy of LMSYEM.
Tipton-o-meter: 7.4 Very good show, not great. The first set holds it
back I thought.
peace,
et
Date: Wed, 6 Aug 2003 01:56:45 EDT
From: [email protected]
Subject: charlotte was "exploratory" phish at its best
Hey all,�
�
I decided to wait about a week or two before i started to give my thoughts
about the shows i saw on summer tour.� I was psyched to get my next dose of
phish 2003...i had seen greensboro on the fall tour and thought that was a
killer show with high energy and a killer killer piper jam.� My first show was
11-02-96 coral sky (crosseyed>antelope sank the hook deep into my soul)�and
Charlotte was my 22nd phish experience.� It being Friday, and the first night
of my first ever three night stand with phish, i was pumped to be seeing the
band again. anyway...on to my thoughts of charlotte.
�
It is true that whomever planned the roads into the venue must have been on
crack.� There was a lack of stoplights and several roads that merged right into
the traffic stream, causing a very slow descent into the venue....that and the
lack of portapoties in the lot�were my only complaints about this entire
show....unlike some people's previous posts on here who seemed more pissed off
at the world and decided to blame it on phish.� I actually liked this venue
once i was inside.� My buddies stubbed me down to the pavillion and we set up
shop on Gordon's side.� This show seemed like it was undersold...which resulted
to plenty of open spaces to fill in.� I have to say that we sat by some of the
coolest people i have ever met at a show...everyone seemed psyched to see the
band and we all got down...hardcore.
�
The show to me know is kinda a blur in my colective consciousness, but thanks
to the live phish downloads, the memories presented to me at this show come
through crystal clear. Funky Bitch, Chalkdust was a super double punch of an
opener.� Right off the bat i couldnt get over how refreshed and laid back the
band sounds now.� I had never heard Two Versions of Me before....this song has
grown on me.....such touching, heart felt lyrics...seemed like a song that trey
wrote for his wife and kids...very emotional with great harmonies.� The opening
licks of Bathtub Gin kicked this set up many many notches.� The verse parts of
bathtub were played flawlessly, but its the jam that really gave me the first
of these "feelings" that i would experience all night long....and throughout
the weekend in Atlanta and Raleigh.� The jam was so smooth and dead on rocking
that within a few minutes i was like "what song are they in."�I was impressed
with the "start/stop" intro breakdown to the jam...nice touch.�Seriously, the
jam was so good that i for a split second had forgotten where i was in the
universe.� I had to give my buddies several double takes in order to make sure
it was really happening....and it was. Phish 2003 is no joke people....there is
seriously a breath of fresh air to Phish now....no slack whatsoever, balls to
the walls, rock and roll.� Limb by Limb was the tightest version i had ever
heard....polished polished polished.� Back on the Train was a nice touch
considering i had just jumped off with my bucket full of thoughts onto phish
tour....great clav from page.� Horn and Golgi was an old school double punch
and i gotta say i thought the Character 0 rocked hard.� Overall the first set
set the tone for the rest of the evening....Hard Rock.
�
The hardcore, kick you in the balls rock theme contined with Drowned....a great
version which after a sick ass jam suddenly got real hard/heavy metal like.�
Trey was ripping this nasty nasty riff over and over again with the sickest
dirtiest guitar tone i have ever heard from him.� The heavy metal kung was a
blast and really got our whole section cracking up laughing.� Contrary to some
previous reviews, KUNG is not just a random occurance that the band just�throws
out.� It like Catapult is always a vehicle for the band to showcase how
differently they can perform this piece every time it is pulled of the
shelf.....very old school indeed. Kung then segued nicely into Twist....which
had a heavy metal kung tease in the opening.� The Twist jam was very very
satisfying with very delicate interplay between all four band members....like i
said earlier Phish 2003 is no joke...every song they play now sounds fresh and
revitalized.� Nice segue into heavy things (this song....along with bug (see
encore) and Velvet Sea always remind me of Big Cypress.)� Very nice page/trey
interplay as trey rips a killer solo in this one.
�
If you want to describe the entire Charlotte experience in�3 words, all I have
to say is HARRY F--KING HOOD.� Now if i were thinking about pre-2003 Phish this
would have been an ordinary, 12-13 minute hood.� After playing the entire song
flawlessly Phish decided to get "out of the box."� Out of the three shows i saw
that weekend, this Hood would ensure Charlotte's place as most exploratory
show.� This Hood was sick sick sick and went places that i would have never
drempt Hood could go. The band's new sound is the shit....straight foward rock
and roll/spacy goodness.� Trey was playing downright DIRTY.� That feeling i had
gotten during the 1st set Gin had swept over me once again...."what song were
they playing before this sick ass jam?" Hands down the most jammed out Hood
ever!!!!!!�If you need an excuse to Download this show look no furthur....you
wont be let down.� Like i said previously....Phish 2003 is fresh and
unpredictable.
�
As the band went into Bowie they presented us with yet another old school 1-2
punch.� 30 minute Hood > Bowie....please pinch me i think i must have drempt
it.� Classic Classic Phish folks.� Acapella Star Spangled Banner....are you
kidding me?� Even this show was on july 25th...i could have sworn it was the
fourth of july.� Had to take my ballcap off for this one and hold my hand over
my heart.....nice nice touch....After seeing the acapella "Carolina" in
Greensboro...i feel lucky to have gotten this gem (last time was 4th of july
99.)
�
Ok i'm gonna say it....BUG ENCORE WAS DANK.� I'm sorry folks...i cant stand
people who witness a great expedition of out of the box jamming like that
serious Hood...then go ahead and dis the band for playing a mellow encore.� Bug
is a great song and hearing it again really gave me that "Cypress" feeling all
over again.� This version, like all of the Phish 2003 songs, sounded new and
fresh....good choice.
�
All in all Charlotte was a blast and really got me pumped for the rest of the
weekend in Atlanta and Raleigh.
�
Mike S.
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 11:37:39 -0400
From: dmac
Subject: dmac charlotte review
Charlotte Phish review
Phish returns to Charlotte-a terrible, terrible place, by any standard-and
puts on a much better show than the last few I saw pre-hiatus, but still
display very little spark or passion.
Charlotte (picture the American South as a great buttocks-guess where the
enema needs to be inserted) boasts one of the country's most generic and
bullshit-ridden venues for music. Verizon Wireless aka Blockbuster
Pavilion-how's that for two soulless corporate parents-features jerkwad
security, bloated prices, and a pervasive, 2003-style fear of lawsuits and
terrorism, although there is a decided schism in that, you can bring in an
empty plastic container, but you can't buy a bottle of water and keep the
cap on "because it might be used as a projectile". Bullshit. They want you
to spill your drink and be forced to buy another one, or some such other
greed-ridden reasoning.
Phish, by agreeing to perform in such a venue, are complicit in this
corporate nonsense. They should be ashamed.
Also, they should be ashamed to put on shows like Charlotte 2003. From my
second-row seat, I could see little rapport between the band members on
stage, with Trey in particular seemingly locked into a very internalized,
kind of unhappy vibe. The look on his face as he leaves the stage following
the first set spoke volumes: A fake, half-smile to the crowd as he walks
off, and then, the second his face turns the slightest bit away from the
crowd, fake smile disappears and is replaced by the unpleasant grimace of an
assembly-line worker getting his paltry break in the middle of long, dull
workday. Wow, very inspiring.
The song selection was not exactly inspired, although you definitely get
your fill of old-school Phish rather than the new stuff. I like the Round
Room material, but I hear the new-new summer stuff is just okay, with Two
Versions of Me being an example of do-nothing, go-nowhere Trey ballad, very
weak compared to the lovely Anything But Me and All of these Dreams. The
highlight of this set is a reasonably powerful Limb by Limb. Bathtub Gin is
usually an exciting bit of business, but this one drags on instead of
building to anything, the jam self-indulgent and played as safe as can be.
Sounds like Page wants to go into Jesus Left Chicago, but it doesn't
materialize. Golgi is well-played. Character Zero is as well, but it stuns
me still how often they play this lame tune. Who have you EVER talked to
that likes this piece? For the answer look to the second word of the song
title.
Second set comes out strong with Drowned>Kung. The band is giggling and
enjoying busting out the Kung, but hey, let's face it, Kung is not a big jam
thing, it's like Catapult or something, it just pops up every so often, is
what it is, you write it down, and then go, huh, wonder what the next tune
will be.
Twist is the next tune, and it is okay, nothing like some of the big ones I'
ve heard. A slap in the face in the form of Heavy Things is next. Weak,
weak, weak, although the drunken yahoos around me really seemed to dig it.
Harry Hood is next, and is a welcome relief from HT. Glowstick war is
cool, but even that has lost some of its magic through the years (although
the look of delight on one of the shaved-head security monkeys is a nice
contrast to the scowling and annoyance that he has previously displayed-or
was that my face??!)
At this point extra bodies are suddenly in evidence, and, even though I have
my second row ticket in my pocket, and am standing in my rightful place, I
am basically told that I will just have to put up with the nonsense of
people surfing down (literally) into my personal space. No sir, not on my
watch. I go and get the security goon, tell him to "get rid of some of
these people", and, me being the force of nature that I am, he has no choice
to comply. He really doesn't get the people I want him to, instead he just
ejects this little dirt-surfer lot chick, and she proceeds to proclaim that
"I didn't know assholes came to Phish shows!" Boo-hoo, back to the lawn.
Besides, look at these guys on stage. You don't want to get to close to
these boys, believe me. Some other chick behind me starts yelling and
calling me names and telling me that if I don't know how to have a good
time, I should stay home. Don't worry, next time I will, but the point here
is, I have a right to groove in my assigned seat without being trampled by
drunken louts, wookies, and little girly-girls who want to through their
sweat-stained, moth-eaten, once-pink-but-now-faded-to-a-dingy-yellow panties
at Mike Gordon. Yea, and back to the lawn with ye, and it was good.
So during all that excitement there is another indulgent jam happening in
Harry Hood. No energy, no peak, no release. They put Harry out of his
misery after 30 minutes or something, and then a brief onstage huddle
produces David Bowie. Why they had to huddle I don't know, just start the
thing, you play it death these days anyway. Bowie features a Tweezer tease
from Trey and Mike smiles, but no Tweezer. Bowie winds up fairly quickly,
but also features a kind of limp jam that really doesn't turn into anything
of note.
Encore break, the acapella mic comes out, and inexplicably they do
Star-Spangled Banner for the first time in however long. Cool, they do don'
t much of this anymore. Even more inexplicably, they decide on Bug for the
electric encore, and boy is that the right choice. It Doesn't Matter. It
doesn't look on stage like it matters much. Where is the joy, where is the
life, where is the passion?
Somebody, before the show, tells me that they heard things are not going all
that well backstage, and that maybe there is another hiatus in store.
Maybe, maybe. I'm not sure these zillionaire musicians have their hearts in
it anymore. That's it for me and Phish, unless I guess they play my town
sometime. Life is too short for this foolishness.
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 15:01:41 -0700 (PDT)
From: john rutan
Subject: Charlotte Review
Very good show.� There was no traffic when I arrived at 3:00, but there was
very little signage for the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater.� All I saw from I-85
was a tiny sign that said "Pavilion".� We rode around a while and asked a local
how to get there and it was nothing from there.� Lot F was very cool, lots of
cops but no hassels.� I� had a very hard time getting in two tubes of glow
rings, they actually called back up!
�
From the front of the lawn, the sound was very nice.� Great neighbors, too!� I
was expecting a Chalkdust, but Funky Bitch was cool.� I even listened to that
from the "Wipeout" show on the way down from VA.� Chalkdust was next, and I
like it no matter how many times I hear it.� I have never heard Two Versions of
Me until this,� and it was a nice ballad for a hot afternoon.� Gin, again, is a
song that follows me around, but I always like to hear it "we love to take a
bath"!!!!� Limb x Limb was a very well composed version, lots of good guitar
work by Trey.� GBOTT is another regular in my arsenal, but again, I only see
these guys once or twice a tour, and I was enjoying myself!!!!� Horn has evaded
me in my 16 shows since 93, and it was welcome!� I was looking for something to
get the juices flowing, and Golgi>Zero did the trick!� This seemed to be a
crowd pleaser,� and it was a nice solid ending to a very enjoyable set.
�
Second set beginning was different as I've never caught Drowned live (no pun).�
Anyway,� I did enjoy, as did all around me.� Go Mike!!� Kung-ok I was not
familiar with this, but they seemed to be having a good time playing it.� Twist
is one of my favorite songs, and this did not dissappoint.� I have heard and
seen it played in a number of fashions, slow-fast-spacy-eeiry-faster-wierd, but
this one was very nice.� Probably my favorite part of the show.� Great morph
into Heavy Things, I enjoyed it almost as much as the GIRL who got her candy
taken from her on the second row with all the drunken yahoos around him (or
her).� It was nice to hear Harry again as I haven't since Merriweather 98.�
Nice and long and jammy, I really did not want it to end until I heard the
intro to Bowie.� Good Bowie, not real long but I love hearing Trey play at full
speed at the end of that song.� Incredible second set is over.� I though they
were going to bust out Carolina when they grouped up and started the Star
Spangled Banner.� It's all good.� Bug was an appropriate encore for this
show-kind of mellow-great guitar work.� Trey, Mike, Jon and Page always give me
a good show and a good time.� I can't wait for the next one!!!
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 23:39:08 EDT
From: [email protected]
Subject: Charlotte Review
This was the worst phish show i have ever seen!� Lacking in sound energy and
excitement.� It seemed completely uninspired.� No one stood out the entire show
for me and out of 50 show it s ranks #50 for me.� Terrible traffic getting in
to the venue the last two time i have seen Phish there.� They should never play
there again.
Two best things of the night were when trey got a little going during GBOTT and
Heavy Things.� Fishman hardly played all night!
Harry Hood sucked!
And Bug was fitting because it just didn't matter.
But I will say they played a very solid show in Atlanta with the highlights for
me being Wilson, Wedge, It's Ice, NICU, Cavern!
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 22:34:18 EDT
From: [email protected]
Subject: review of charlotte show
well we got there late and left early, i was bored, plus i got frisked on the
way in and had to throw my bowl in the trash, drag, i don't know, it seemed like
i was watching a phish cover band or something, i hate to sound all negative,
they just didn't sound that good to me tonight, what was the deal with all the
cops, is that just charlotte or what, the place just seemed full of wannabees,
and if you ever see me talking on my cell phone at a phish concert, please shoot
me in the head.
Randy
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 09:06:33 -0700 (PDT)
From: Nathan Coblentz
Subject: review: charlotte show
I've just got to get my first impressions of this show down somewhere before the
madness of Atlanta takes over.
Bitch was a fun, rock and roll opener, and the Chalkdust took it a little
furthur out than usual. It probably could have gone furthur, but it was early
in the show. Bathtub Gin covered a diverse range of territory, from Page
getting down on the clavs, to a heavy, rockin segment, and a cool, gentle V-I
jam. It might have been better if they had explored one of these ideas more
completely, but it was nevertheless an interesting version. Limb by Limb -
easily the first set highlight. This Limb started out a little on the mellow
side, but kept building and building, and went through so many peaks and
valleys, we thought they would never let it go. Not a whole lot to say about the
rest of the set, but the Golgi was pretty strong.
Drowned opener was incredible. It went into one of those throbbing, trancy but
still guitar-led jams that I think characterizes the post-hiatus sound, and
wound up playing some metal riff that reminded me of "enter sandman." Nobody
would have ever guessed that they would play a Kung chant! About half the crowd
went nuts, while everyone else scratched their heads and said wtf?? The metal
jam went on for another five minutes and came to a halt, and then Twist. Twist
explored some of that same territory from the pre-Kung Drowned jam, and then got
a little darker, before the surprising, out-of-the-blue segue into Heavy Things!
This was a pretty strong version, probably a bit longer than usual.
Last night's hood was completely unprecedented in phishtory. it promptly
digressed from the standard I V IV jam into something much darker and much more
rock and roll. I thought I was going to have to write down an "unfinished" on
my setlist, but they somehow wound up on back in the "feel good" part. This was
a hood for the ages, and the highlight of the show. After hearing this, I got
the feeling that from now on, anything can happen in a Hood jam.
I don't remember the Bowie being particularly special, except for the
oh-so-brief "tweezer" tease that sent everyone through the roof for a few
seconds. Star-Spangled encore was beautiful and moving, and Bug had a nice
solo.
That second set had some of the most serious, adventurous, dark, and evil
sounding improvisation I have heard at a phish show.
I'll give this show an 8.5 for a beautifully played first set, some stunning
improv in the second set, but a fairly unspectacular closer and encore.
check out my trading list at http://db.etree.org/phrodo41
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 13:52:38 +0000
From: Michael Marks
Subject: Charlotte 7/25/03
I live in Charlotte and agree with many of you. VERISON AMPHITHEATER SUCKS!
The next time Phish comes to Charlotte, they need to play at the race
track. The speedway allows people to bring in 14" coolers as long as there
are no bottles in them. That would be sweet.
Well, this show was the only one on the tour that I went to. I only have
two complaints about the show: (1) Heavy Things and (2) the end of Harry
Hood. I think Heavy Things was played well, but it didn't fit in that
second set in my opinion. They were tearing the place down in the 2nd set
and that tune just seemed to put a halt on things. Harry Hood was weird.
Weird in a good way. I've never seen them jam out like that before. I wish
that they would have left it unfinished and jammed it straight into Bowie.
I have very high expectations for Harry Hood (it's one of my favorite songs)
and the end just seemed a little to rushed for me. Other than that, I have
no complaints. Drowned>Kung was the jam of the night. I haven't seen Kung
since my first show 10 years ago. First set was good the whole way through.
I was glad to see Bathtub Gin and I was surprised by how good Limb By Limb
was. I went into the show positive that we would hear Runaway Jim, 46 Days,
Tweezer & Maze. I was wrong about everything. I like it when that happens.
To sum things up: Good show. Bad venue.
Rev. Richard Spurtz
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 13:11:22 -0400
From: Jamie Kirkland
Subject: Charlotte - 7/25/03
Great show. My 22nd. 2nd time in Charlotte. Called the Funky Bitch. Don't
understand why some people think the venue sucks. But then again, all I need is
a cold beer and a toilet and I am happy. All summer amphitheaters looks the
same to me since I'm only looking at the stage. That must be why I enjoyed the
show though, I payed attention to the band instead of the architechture.
Traffic was a breeze. Don't be stupid and take the main exit off of the
interstate. That rule goes for every evnue in the U.S. Took us�10 minutes to
travel from our hotel and into the lot at 5:45. Anyone who sat in traffic for 3
hours didn't think very hard about which way to go.
�
Hood/Bowie was a awesome. Oh no. They played it differently than normal, maybe
I should complain about that.
�
Drowned was the real treat.
�
Good to see the boys really hitting stride this summer after the slow start
this winter/spring.
�
Jamie
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 2003 13:13:44 -0700 (PDT)
From: Nick Terranova
Subject: Charlotte 7-25-03 Review
Let me start this off talking about the lot scene.� Yes there were undercovers
busting people.� But that's what happens when you blatantly and openly start
puffing bowls in a public place.� Just because it's Phish doesn't mean it's not
shady.� Just be more careful.� I personally loved the scene.� It was pretty
chill and there were people driving carts around with trash cans so people
could throw their trash in.� I drove a long way to this and planned to hit
Charlotte, Raliegh,�Star Lake, Camden, and IT.� Being the Phish show of this
tour for me I was pumped.�
I have to admit the start of the first set was kind of lacking.��Funky Bitch I
called and it was nice to hear.� It's been a long time.�Gin was experimental
but kind of bottomed out. Limb x Limb picked it up and the rest of the set
pretty much rocked.� Zero is played alot but I like it.� They don't have to
play rare songs for it to be a good show.
The second set was excellent and IMHO one of the best of the year.� A very nice
Drowned led into the first Kung of a very long time.� It blew my mind.� A nice
segue led from Twist>Heavy Things and it's worth hearing.� Crazy�type II Hood
jam.� Never heard one veer off like this.� Right into a Bowie.� Probably for
Kuroda being it was his B'Day.
Star Spangled and Bug left me happy.�
I had a good time.� Not the best but better than average.� People who complain
about Phish through the Dead should stop seeing them and go on Dead tour.� It's
not our fault Jerry did heroin.� Don't take it out on us.
"There is no Hell. There is only France." - Frank Zappa
Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003 02:57:29 -0400
From: Hunter Rogers
Subject: Phish 7-25-03
Charlotte, NC. This was a terrible place and a terrible traffic situation,
there has been bad traffic everywhere though. I liked this show but I think
this was the weakest of the 3 southern shows.
Set 1: Funky Bitch, Chalkdust Torture, Two Versions of Me, Bathtub Gin, Limb
By Limb, Back on the Train, Horn, Golgi Apparatus > Character Zero
Set 2: Drowned > Kung, Twist > Heavy Things, Harry Hood > David Bowie*
Encore: Star Spangled Banner #, Bug
Set 1:
Funky Bitch: This Funky bitch was short, but a very good surprise opener. I
was not expecting to hear that. I like Funky Bitch.
Chalkdust: What a surprise, but seriously this one was cool, it had a nice
little jam, i think it hit the 10 min. mark. I have heard way too many
Chalkdusts but I liked this one alot.
Two Versions of Me: I like this song, Its a little slow but one of my
standards for if i like a song or not is if I can get lost in the song. I
get so lost in this song. I still can't remember what the middle portion
sounds like. This one was like all the other ones I have heard, around 10
min. But I liked hearing it and I was the only person in my section who
recognized it.
Bathtub Gin: I liked the jam on this one alot. Its hard to explain but it
was cool. The rest of it was pretty standard.
Limb By Limb: This was a pretty Trey intensive song. Trey was playing the
hell out of that guitar. I enjoyed this song, I usually am not the biggest
Limb fan.
Back on the Train: Boring. Next.
Horn: This Horn kicked ass. I liked it. I don't know if it was better than
any of the other horns on this tour because I haven't heard them but i
thought it was pretty nice.
Golgi: I really wanted to hear this tune. I love Golgi and I hadn't heard it
yet. It was a standard Golgi though, but Golgi none the less.
Character 0: I don't like this song very much, Next.
Set 2:
Drowned>Kung: Holy shit, I think I just crapped my pants. This was an
incredible combo. They kept the beat from Drowned all the way thru the Kung,
I loved to hear this, I was real surprised by it. I never know what to
expect at these shows.
Twist>Heavy Things: This was pretty nice, I like Twist alot but this Twist
was cut a little short because of the Heavy Things.
Hood>Bowie: Wow. This is a pretty damn sweet combo. I like this alot. Damn
good Hood. 20 min. maybe more. I enjoyed both of these tunes, that hood was
remarkable though, i am sure it is not the best of the tour because no 2
hoods are alike but this one was dank. The David Bowie was nice but pretty
standard.Great Set: Great Jamming.
Encore:
Star Spangled Banner: Cool song, never heard it before. Liked it. BUt the
next song could have been better.
Bug: This is a good song in my opinion but this version is not as good as
many other ones I have heard.
Hope my review helps you out. I would give this show a 7 out of 10 just
because they played alot of farmhouse and the first set and encores here
kinda weak. Second Set was killer though. I love that second set. I still
don't think it is better than Raleighs second set but it was damn close.
Hunter
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 15:26:34 -0400
From: "McGranahan, Harold Alton "
Subject: charlotte review
Writing this wishing I was on my way to Raleigh...
I don't like the venue, not enough people to direct traffic, and always cops
trying
to bust people for anything they can.
But, I really liked the show, I felt they played well...
Funky Bitch-Called it. Glad this opened the night, I was hoping that it would go
longer, pretty solid playing
Chalkdust Torture-This one sounded good, I liked the little jam on the end of
it,pretty standard.
2 Versions of Me-Good song, wasn't too sure about the placement of it, I was
hoping
Bathtub Gin-Excited to hear this one, played pretty solid, went off for a while,
pretty out there, had to kinda stop and start over, but i thought it was a good
jam
Limb by Limb-I like this song, I don't listen to it that often when I've got
phish playing in the car or at home. I would say it was the best song in the
first set.
Back on Train-My second favorite song off of Farmhouse, another solid song, kept
the pace up, crowd was into it.
Horn-Great song, pretty rare, always a treat to listen to, good song to bring it
down a little bit, a lot better than what they could have played, so I was
definately glad to hear it
Golgi Apparatus-An old favorite of mine, and everyone else, everyone was back of
their feet for this one. Another well-played song.
Character Zero-Called this one too. Good way to end the set, I like the song, I
know it gets a bad rep. because it is played a lot, but it seems to get everyone
excited when played.
Set Two:
Drowned-I really like this cover, the 12-31-95 version is definately awesome.
Great way to start the second set, first since hiatus I believe.
Kung-From the Drowned they move into Kung, which for a second I was thought it
was Moby Dick at the beginning. It is what it is, nothing special about the
actual music, just cool to hear.
Twist-Another pick I made, had the crowd into it again, because the majority of
the crowd wasn't into Kung, probably because they didn't know what it was.
Pretty standard, I was hoping this would be one of the big jams of the night,
but was still solid.
Heavy Things-Alright song, nothing speical IMO. But, I enjoyed hearing it, still
good playing from the band, which is always a good thing. It was cool hearing
the band segue into the song, instead of starting it by itself.
Harry Hood-Ahh, this just got a little bit better. Long jam, pretty spacy, could
have gone into a couple songs while jamming it, but took it further and further
from the original part of the song. Then at the end when it picks up, it makes
that difference of rythem and style that much better.
David Bowie-Called this one too, I know my friend Joe who was supposed to come
would die if he was here. So needless to say he was let down when I told him
what they closed with.He wanted a Hood>Bowie, or Hood, and later Bowie. Back to
the song, another fan favorite, good way to end the set, but could have been
better, seemed they kinda held back.
Encore: Star-Spangled Banner-Acapella, cool to see acapella, but I don't know
why this for an encore. It's not an American Holiday, but I can't criticize my
national anthem. They sounded good.
Bug-Ugghh, Ahhh, Gah. The Farmhouse theme had run it's course with me by then.
Still, sounding good, but I was hoping for something more, especially in an
encore.
Overall I was pretty impressed with the night, I got to hear lots of good music,
and I can't complain about that. I wish the encore was better, kinda puts a
sour taste in your mouth after a pretty solid night. It had potential to be big,
but wasn't. Kind of a trend these days.
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 11:29:04 -0700 (PDT)
From: tom cat
Subject: phish review 7/25/03 charlotte, nc
It's phish, it's summer and Charlotte,�NC is the place to be?
Funky bitch is always nice to hear, and this standard blazed into the great
phish standard chalk dust torture. Both played very uneventfully, as would be
the trend for the night. I figured at this point the show would take off, boy
was I wrong. Two versions of me was a little dull to say the least and�I was
thankful to hear the opening to bathtub. Things started off nicely and when the
jam began I was ready, but it never really went anywhere.� Limb by limb was
nice and for the first time I was in a trance, very much enjoying the summer
day listening to trey start to elevate. Back on the train was fun, as was horn.
Nothing special going on, but emotionally they were putting more on the line. I
loved golgi it was standard, but nice and fun. Zero was as rocking as can be.
�
The second set was looking great. Drowned is a great song, and it plays to
mikes vocal strengths. I absolutely love hearing mike sing this. They seemed to
be having fun right into the jam. soaring into a evil funky guitar riff that
creeps from speakers and oozes through the crowd, and over this riff they do
kung.� twist slowly builds and a fairly good version is played. They took twist
out and I was riding along with the bass and drums, and out of no where I hear
the guitar loop for heavy thing coming through,� and Trey pulls his guitar line
for heavy things, and all of a sudden we have heavy things. It seemed really
awkward.� Harry was nice they were crusin' in the typical hood jam, and trey
seems to be having a conversation with mike, and at that point they abandoned
hood for a crazy jam. It was reminiscent of Dave's energy guide, and after a
while they returned to finish hood. After another conversation between mike and
trey, during the high hat intro to bowie, they headed full steam into bowie.
Star bangled banner was fun, and bug was well played.
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 14:16:53 -0400
From: Tim Loftus
Subject: CHARLOTTE REVIEW
Damn good show all around.
Highlights include an incredible Hood>Bowie that went all over the place and
back again.
Bitch, Chalkdust open was very nice and welcomed, solid first set all
together with a good Limb, a crowd pleasing Horn with bad ass Golgi (thank
God!)
Second set has no faults...I hear a lot of people complain about Farmhouse
songs...get over it...they're here, they're perfected and they're fun. The
beef should be with Round Room...you heard it hear first.
Star Spangled banner a cappella was beautiful...I am Canadian and I loved
it! God Bless America.
No complaints about Bug...just an encore..."it doesn't matter"
I think it's funny to hear fellow phish heads bitching about traffic! You
people disgust me. You should be used to it by now...it was a Friday
afternoon in a big city...should've come early...quit whinning!
Charlotte is awesome place and a perfect location for the boys to bust out
some oldies.
Thanks guys...had a blast!
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 16:31:21 -0700 (PDT)
From: HvnPhun420
Subject: Charolotte review
I must start off by saying that this is one of the
worst places to see phish simply b/c of the traffic
and the cops not giving a fuck...sat in traffic for 3
hrs no lie!!..missed Funky Bitch and heard Chalkdust
as i was walking into the venue...caught Two Versions
of Me and then got settled.....
Bathtub Gin- always like a gin but the jam did seem to
lack its peak, but well played
Limb- wow this was, if not the best song played in the
first set..very powerful jam and what was suprising
about this is that its mostly Fish and Mike leading
the way
GBOTT- very well played version, the jammed didnt go
out to the peaks but lots of beats and smiles came
from this one
Horn- was talking about this song all the way up
there...horn is horn but damn i love it, it just
satisfied the soul.. i am always up for a horn..then
before you could breath..
Golgi- another one that is what is what but i love
that too...the solo just picks you up off your feet
and makes you smile!!
Char0- never displeased with a Char0 but i did think
that the jam lacked its peakness from what the boys
can do...the Golgi and Char0 got the crowd on its feet
and lots of dancing went down.....
SET II
Drowned- hahaha..yes yes yes...a very good opener that
rocks..the jam was rocking too!! i thought it would be
played in Raiegh and i was very suprised to here
it..nice treat from the boys...speaking of treat!!
Kung- kung is kung but how often do you hear it or see
it in a set and at Charlotte...made a very nice segue
into
Twist- a bit different and always sounding better..i
thought it was rocking and pumping with energy and
then out of no where
Heavy Things- i know people dont like this song but it
did have a good jam, maybe because its so simple but i
enjoyed it very much and thought it was one of the
best Heavy jams i've heard in a while
HOOD-..oh man do i have a great deal to say about this
and dont even know how to say it...regular Hood until
the jam..they broke out of it and lost the Hood
melody...i can only explain it as a Tweezer like
jam...going from Hood into dark space and though a new
light...i was very pleased with what was done with the
Hood... it was as if everybody on the lawn stopped
dancing and was wondering, waiting and watching for
what was going to happen next because what happen
was..i think...a first for Hood...it just went and
went and went with cool riffs from Fishman..page took
a few rips at it and that was sounding very
nice...then what seemed like 30 mins the Hood melody
surfaced back up and possibly a new take on the good
ol Harry Hood...i would be very excited to see the
Hood take off from where they took it tonite
Bowie- i knew it would come b/c CK5 B-Day...Happy
Birthday CK!!!...but i dont know about this
Bowie...the intro was just Fishman...and the jam was
like the Hood thing slow and spacey but not on top of
the usual Bowie theme and then the ending was ok and
brought everybody back but wasnt the best bowie i've
seen
-e-
Star Spangled Banner- very pleased to hear it because
i love my country and i love phish and it always makes
me smile when i hear phish do it
Bug- nice closer for the show..Trey was sounding
pretty good and i liked what i heard from him
overall: i'm usually writing and seeing people write
about Trey Trey Trey but damn its Phish Phish
Phish...Trey was being who he needed to be and Phish
worked as a band...if i had to say anything i would
say it was a Fish Mike led show....it felt so good to
see the band play as a band and not one person get the
band going...its going to take some more time but i
feel that they keep doing what they are doing then
everybody will resepct them as a band and just a one
man band....thought they filled their postisons very
well and i will see them Sunday
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 00:47:34 -0400
From: Peter Clausen
Subject: 7/25/03
Traffic was pathetic.� First 40 minutes of second set good, the rest bored me.�
Frankly, all you kiddies are gonna be in for a real surprise when these guys
bail on y'all - AGAIN!� The Dead scene is dearly missed, and the current
generation of ME-ism kids have no heart, and never will.� Example:� Bonnaroo
(joke).� God save us all.
�
Pete - almost ex-phishhed
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 2003 00:36:18 -0400
From: [email protected]
Subject: Charlotte review
Charlotte, 7/25/2003
Are you f'ing kidding me? This show was awesome! Yeah, Charlotte is not
the best venue, but it was packed, and all of us who are from the Charlotte area
are extremely thankful when Phish includes us in their tour intenerary. The lot
was hot of course, being that we are located in the south, but when the sun went
down the weather was perfect.
First set highlights were an awesome Bathtub Gin, Limb by Limb, which
peaked HARD, and BOTT. The second set run of Drowned>Kung>Twist>Heavy Things is
probably one of the best chains I have ever heard, especially since my friends
and I had been anticipating a Twist all day long. I've seen better Hood's and
Bowie's, but even though they were a little off towards the end of the night,
Phish still sounds better than every other band out there. Period. Awesome
show! See you at IT!
Jason
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 17:25:03 EDT
From: [email protected]
Subject: Charlotte 7-25-03
Awesome show!� The highlights for me were bathtub gin, hood, and golgi
apparatus.� Everything was perfect except for the crazy undercover cops
everywhere busting people.� Had a great time though.� Peace, Alex
Date: Wed, 31 Dec 1969 20:28:38 -0500
From: Sal Paradise
Subject: charlotte review 7-25-03 from Jon Bull
First off, Traffic was awful but, once we got in the lot we had some
beers and played some drums. It was a pretty fun lot scene.
First set.
Funky Bitch: Great opener, but I wish that it had been a little longer.
Chalkdust Torture: This was a very good and it seemed like it should
have got the crowd a little more pumped, but it didnt. I think
everyone was waiting for it to get darker.
Two Versions Of Me: First time I have heard this live. Sounded Great.
Bathtub Gin:Very long version but, the energy just didnt seem to be
there.
Back on the Train: Standard version, well played.
Limb by Limb: Awesome!! This was about a good of version of this song
that you can get. Maybe lasted fifteen minutes or so and was perfect.
Things start getting better from here.
Horn: Very cool, I always love it when they play rarities. Great version.
Golgi: Same as every other one but, boy this song is fun to dance too.
Character Zero: I used to love this song, then hated it, and now love it
again. They always find a way to rock it.
Set Break: Seemed a little longer than usual. I think they wanted it
dark.
Second Set.
Drowned: Very tight with a great jam and a very impressive segue into...
Kung: The segue from drowned had me so thrown off that I didnt even know
what this was till someone told me.
Twist: Not one of my favorites but, it was well played and another segue
into...
Heavy Things: Again not one off my favorites but, the segue was just so
strange and terrific that it had me up and grooving.
Harry Hood: This was what I was waiting for. I had predicted this one a
day before the show. I even had a bet with my friend Jamie that we would
hear this tonight. I knew it was Kurodas birthday and that this was one
of his favorites.( I also expected 2001 but, it didnt happen.) I thought
this hood was great, and the glowrings are always nice. I have heard
better hoods than this but, I am not going to complain because I was so
excited to hear it and thought it was pretty damn good.Thought the set
was over here but....
David Bowie: Great job with the lights Chris. Very strong Bowie. I
thought it was great. Again, not one of the best, but I was satisfied.
Encore.
Star Spangled Banner. Very Cool. It made me proud to be an American.
Bug: I was hoping for something a little harder but I was very impressed
with jam. I have never heard Bug before and didnt realize how far they
could take it out. Great Stuff.
All and all I would say this is your standard Phish show. Nothing really
all that spectacular but I had a great time and so did my friends. I
would say 6-7 out of 10. Check it out if you want too. Its good with
some great segues and cool parts but, nothing to get too excited about.
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 12:08:36 -0700 (PDT)
From: G Antczak
Subject: Review 7/25/03
Arriving a little after 4, the lot seemed sparse and underpopulated. I was
appointed the task of securing prime real estate on the lawn. Around 5:30 I was
still in waiting at the gate, and heard a tardy My Soul soundcheck. A friend
offered me his Section 1 stub for first set, and I proceeded to stake out a
seat 10th row center. The crowd filled in late and the show started around 7:45
The last rays of daylight lit the band for Funky Bitch, a safe bet for the
opener. Trey and Page traded leads briefly as the band probed the venue^�s
musical space. An unsurprising, though not unremarkable Chalkdust made for a
solid opening combination. The jam would slip out of the conventional motif in
favor of loosely bound interludes between points of tension. A steady beat and
a simple chord progression started off Two Versions of Me. Trey and Page
blended the bittersweet lyrics well and calmed the hazy summer evening. I had
gleaned a hint of Bathtub from the pre-Bitch noodling and now the time had come
for set to take off. The jam kicked in immediately with a stuttered syncopated
sequence that led into a full stop/start jam. Fish and Mike pushed the low end
into a pulsing and pounding rhythm. Trey brought out some funk chords to move
the harmony towards exhilarating hard rock guitar licks; Page followed with a
touch of clav while Mike switched the bassline create more movement. The jam
softened as an enchanting melody entranced me. The Gin reprise came calm and
confident. Fish stumbled over the complex polyrhythms of Limb by Limb,
momentarily grinning as he tightened the reins. A healthy dose of feedback bled
from Mike^�s mic before a delicate duet of dancing notes dueled stage right.
Back on the Train came strong and kept the flow of the set moving steadily.
Horn is always a pleasure to hear live; I noticed a strange key change between
verses, but I couldn^�t be sure of what it was. Golgi looked to close-I thought
I caught a Divided Sky tease, but it might have been due to the violent head
bopping that had kept me dizzy during most of the set. A freebie Character Zero
was most welcomed. Trey was stomped around and let loose a top-notch solo.
����������� The first set was solid a demonstrated balance and symmetry
centering on an adventurous Bathtub. The band was not as 'tight' as usual, but
this gave more room for each member to improvise. Chalkdust, Limb by Limb, and
Back on the Train were shorter versions, but the loosened jamming style allowed
the songs to diverge more quickly from their typical themes, though this would
be more evident in the second set. Overall B-.
����������� Page rang out the opening chords to Drowned and Mike boldly
proclaimed the opening of a powerful second set. The jam came like thunder and
boomed with furious intensity. After breaking into a throbbing heavy-metal
riff, Trey stepped forth to utter a single word, perhaps "cool" or "come"? Much
of the crowd was perplexed, was it a new song? Nay, it was Kung and it beckoned
the wrath of Phish. Rules left to the wayside, the night would take an unusual
Twist. And so it was, perhaps not a seamless segue, but it fit like an old pair
of patchwork pants. And around it went, a song that seemed stale pre-hiatus
breathed the sweet air of the southern night. Then with a sly glance from the
chairman, the flow was channeled through the boards. Then: Heavy Things!? Page
wound into the opening chords and there we were. Perhaps this song was once a
pop-filler, but with newfound energy it was joyfully welcomed. The crowd gained
a moment^�s rest before Hood. The band seemed intent on creating as much space
as possible for improvisation. The intro simmered and reduced to the bare throb
of Fish^�s bass drum. The crowd rejoiced ecstatically. During the typically
light-hearted build up, Trey walked over to Mike and held a brief caucus. Soon
Harry was abandoned in favor of a hard rock jam, pushing further outside. Like
an unbridled beast it raged chaotic and reckless; even the band was tossed
asunder by their creation. Lingering patiently, Harry seized an opportune
moment to regain control. But the set's psychedelic aims were far from
satisfied. The composed sequence to Bowie was sloppy, though not unpleasant and
even blended with the passionately unkempt nature of the show. And so was
Bowie, free and adventurous, even boasting a distinct Tweezer tease amidst the
ever-changing expression, leading to the climactic resolution.
����������� The second set boasted a consistently open and exploratory jamming
style, though precision and cohesion may have been sacrificed, the gamble paid
off with jams that left the ruin of expectation in their wake. Overall A-.
A couple mics were placed down stage for the encore. I missed the rendition of
Star Spangled Banner during the NBA playoffs, so I suppose this made up for it.
Bug, though not as gratifying an encore as one could hope, was nonetheless a
proper ending for the show.
����������� This show had a great overall flow, each song complimenting its
predecessor. The four songs from the bemoaned Farmhouse proved strong showings,
notably Twist>Heavy Things. Kung made a tasty post-hiatus return. And the jams
from Bathtub, Hood, and Bowie will be sought by anyone with an appetite for
saucy psychedelia. Overall A-.
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 11:56:24 -0400
From: [email protected]
Subject: 7/25/03 review
��� We arrived in the lot around 5:30 after fighting through traffic to get in.
We were in good spirits has we rolled into the lot. My buddy and I had been to
all three Hamptons & GSO in the winter and had high expectations for what was
to come. We had two newbies in our group pre-show and it was good to see the
lot from their eyes, everything thing was new and fresh.
�
The lot scene seemed pretty cool not a lot of hassle from where we were parked.
It was a great day and we had plenty of cold beer as we settled into our chairs
in the lot to due a little "people watching". This is one of favorite
activities at a show as we "phans" tend to be a little on the strange side and
you never know what you way see.
�
��� Headed into the show around 7:10, security was pretty lax in my opinion. No
problems what so ever. Made are my toward are Pavilion seats, stopped an got a
$7 beer (yes I did say $7). I still have ticket stubs that say $17.50 on them,
but oh well times they are a changin'. I wont review every song as I'm sure all
others will go into that in later reviews.
�
Set I:� Nice Funky Bitch, I was glad to see we didn't get a Chalkdust opener,
as me and my buddy had feared. That would bite us on the second song of the
set. I thought the first set was nothing to write home about pretty standard
stuff from where I was sitting.
�
Set II:�� Highlights for me were the Kung, first time I had seen this since
Hampton '95. Harry > Bowie I thought both of these were jammed well, and are
definitely worth a second listening to.
�
e: Star Spangled Banner -- 1st time I had seen this since they did on the
Hampton runs, always nice to see the boys put down their "tools" and bust it a
cappela. Bug was pretty standard, as was the whole show in my opinion. Onto
Raleigh with hopes and dreams.
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 4:22:33 -0700
From: Aimee and Graham McElveen
Subject: Charlotte Review
traffic sucked.� got to the lot around 6.� chilled and went in.� enough of the
bullshit. (you gotta hate the peeps that write 5 f*cking paragraphs about the
lot scene.
�
first funky bitch since hiatus. short and�sweet
�
chalkdust....went out there, then all of a sudden came back to the regular jam.
2 versions of me...took a leak during 2 versions of me. i REALLY like this song
though. almost seems like a cover, as the melody seems too good for phish.
gin--took some time, but not that impressive.
forgot what came next, but the limb by limb was great, and i had heard great
things about it since the boys came back, and they didn't dissapoint. gbott was
the same 'ol. was expecting a jam to hook it up, as the last 2 were f*cking
sweet, but it was standard.
horn--really surprised and happy to hear it. great version.
golgi--same ol rockin golgi. thought it was the closer but....
character 0....glad they got this outta the way....and it rocked....finally
went to my seat and the pavillion sounded TIGHT. shoulda been there the whole
time.
set break....was setbreak.
drowned....TIGHT!!!!! was hoping for crosseyed, but definitely suficed. rocked
the house.
i think kung was next. maybe after twist. but allz i can say is that i NEVER
expected to hear this. thought it was catapult at first, as the jam going outta
drowned (or twist, like i said, i can't remember), tightened up,�all of a
sudden, WE CALL UPON YOUR...whatever they say. WE CAN STAGE A RUNNAWAY GOLF
CART MARATHON!!!! holy sh*t. i heard a kung. like i said, never really thought
about it, but never thought it would happen. they sung it to the music. f*cking
sweet.
twist--(if it came after kung)--not my favorite song, but heard great things
about it this tour, and it didn't disappoint. good stuff.
i think hood came next. i've heard people say the hoods they've seen this tour
have been out there, but listening back, they really haven't. maybe i was just
drunk (didn't do any drugs), but my god....this went WAY WAY WAY out there, and
then right when you thought there was no way to recover, they brought it back.
un-f*cking real. this went so far out there i couldn't f*cking believe it. good
stuff. i couldn't decide if the jam was tight or a flop, but either way, they
came back from throwing batting prarctice to the scrubs in left field to the
full on f*cking to bringing it back to the chorus, which f*cking rocked.
show over. 11:00. but no....BOWIE. tight, nothing special, except i thought
they were gonna play TWEEZER. hotlanta is in for a treat. good bowie, not
stellar, but not bad either.
encore.....everyone thought they'd play carolina. star spangled banner. tight.
considering they brought voice coaches in for the basketball game...it sounded
really good.
bug.....great song.....better than we expected..thought it would be a friday or
all of these dream or velvet sea (which i like), but it was a great encore.
alll in all...it was a great f*cking show...probably the sleeper of the tour.
good stuff. glad to see phish back in action, and sound as good as they ever
have. peeler probably won't agree, but i give it an 8 out of 10.�
�
see you fools in RALEIGH!!!
�
Joel Olive
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003 4:32:18 -0700
From: Aimee and Graham McElveen
Subject: Charlotte Review (again)
forgot something. never been stoked to see heavy things, but the SEGUE (for the
lack of a better spelling ) was SWEET!!!! i cant't believe they segued (sp?)
into that song, but it was f*cking great.� twas a REAL segue.
�
Joel Olive
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