Phish is sort of like golf.
It’s hard to step onto the tee box after six months without swinging a club and blast a drive right down the middle. Hitting buckets in the off-season can help keep the swing in tune, but sometimes it’s hard to make time for that when you’re a parent, or you just debuted your first Broadway musical, or there are elite symphonies who want to play with you. That kind of stuff.
Phish didn’t slice one out of bounds in Bangor on Wednesday, but let’s just say they missed the fairway wide right and dropped an uneven tour opener that was destined to be largely forgotten by time Dick’s rolls around, save for a few sparkling moments. But if anybody deserves a mulligan now and then, it’s Phish, no?
Fore!
A cooling evening thunderstorm gives way to clearer skies, but not before forcing lawn patrons to the balcony for shelter and delaying access for those headed in. Phish tweets from its official account that fans are welcome inside (subtext: Let’s get this show on the road) and takes the stage around 8:23, give or take.
A two minute conversation yields a concise “Kill Devil Falls” opener, which is followed by a greasy and kinda sloppy “Moma.” Mike and Trey try valiantly to hook up, and to punch through with an idea or two, but it never quite gels. This is followed by a weird-but-not-in-a-good-way “Sample” that fumbles along through the final chorus and attacks the outro solo tentatively and quietly. Perplexing.
“Roses Are Free” proceeds like most 3.0 versions (i.e., eschewing improv) but delights the SPAC crowd no less. A punchy “Birds of a Feather” gears things up a half notch.
“Yarmouth Road” makes its debut next, two nights after being sound-checked in Bangor. This new Mike number stirs up a sunny Caribbean vibe not unlike “Sugar Shack” – and at this point, any brand new material is welcome evidence of creative collaboration among the band. More, please!
On paper, “Bathtub Gin” looks like a likely candidate to rescue this wayward set, but is retired before it can realize the peak it seemed to have in its sights for a time. A satisfying “Nellie Kane” pairs up with a pristine “Army of One,” which remains one of my very favorite Page tunes for its elegant changes and poignant, personal lyrics.
Trey struggles mightily through the opening section of “My Friend, My Friend,” which is ironic given how perfectly practiced he is with it in a symphony setting. “Cities” builds to a nice boil before surrendering to a “David Bowie” that once again finds Trey fumbling on the fretboard throughout the composed section. The jam is bright and lovely, however, and flirts briefly with true greatness, tacking a confident finish onto a halting set with lots and lots of songs but not much command.
But ask for redemption... and ye shall receive.
Enter set two, which opens with a cover of “Energy,” a tight little pop bauble by a Denver indie band called The Apples In Stereo. This fetching tune features rich harmonies reminiscent of “Golden Age” and yoganic lyrics like the ones in “Light” – which is what arrives next.
“Light” spent 2012 cementing its status as the baddest jam vehicle of Phish 3.0, and there’s a lot of pressure for this one to perform tonight. But perform it does, eventually, exploring a variety of themes and delivering a generous dose of hard-won, technicolor glory at the peak. It’s one of those great moments at Phish shows that lash out and eat all of the less-than-great moments around it.
“Light” segues into “Mango Song,” which is interestingly placed and quite well-played. “46 Days” is a fucking workhorse, and the band delivers a hot, purposeful version that yet again segues perfectly into “Steam.” Trey beelines for his Whammy here, and summons the whales for a jam that convincingly marries blues, space, and soul.
Phish buries the accelerator now and charges into “Drowned.” Trey leads the jam for a spell, then hands the baton to Page, who soon hands it off to Fishman for a change of tempo. The jam is yet another whale-hailing affair for Trey, but it’s patient, free-ranging, and ultimately fulfilling.
“Slave to the Traffic Light” is yet another perfectly placed song in a well-constructed and well-played set. It’s a soaring, tear-jerking version... which is to say that it’s a perfectly average “Slave.” A smoking “Character Zero” closes out the frame.
In the end, it seems to me that the SPAC audience got to hear two bands for the price of one tonight. Granted, the first band had an off gig.
But the second band breathed fire and took names.
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Note on the webcast: new camera angles and more cameras made for a much more interesting couch experience however I did endure a few pauses and two times where I had to restart the connection. Overall, though I really liked the webcasts direction, quality and variety.
so what's the verdict? Has Trey switched guitars again, or what?
Yarmouth - redic!
I have been as critical as anyone out there of this band in 3.0, peaking with the early Summer 2010 run and persisting through the debacles of 2011 when they played inconsistent, with the highs being some of the watershed (or should I say, Storageshed?) moments of this era.
But in time I have realized that comparing shows and stacking them up against each other from a musical standpoint is a waste and an unnecessary exercise. Every show is unique, from the setlist to the versions therein and to the audience's experiences, which obviously cannot be captured on tape. To say "Worcester was a better show than Bangor or Bethel or (fill in the blank)" is inaccurate. It may be that you prefer listening to that show, for whatever reasons. But that's where it ends.
And that is where my criticism of the band ends as well. If they are New Years '11 unrehearsed, that is one thing. But if they play an enjoyable show that is musically decent with some really fresh playing and they're happy, that's all that matters. Case in point: my codeword with friends for when I think a show is bad is "they dropped a Darien". However, I know of many people who think highly of this 2011 show, just as I think highly of Bangor. It's apples and oranges on a large scale day to day basis.
Anyway, I hope everyone in attendance enjoyed the show and for those going tonight, I'm jealous but also happy for you. Live it!
And the whale calls gotta go.
Sick Slave though.
Light is great, especially the mellow outro. Overall I'll take the Bangor GA over this Light, but it's nice to have a couple of stand-out highlights already. 46 Days> > Steam is the other highlight to my ears, but to be honest I think I come down on the "worried" side of the Steam jam debate. That song has so much potential, but if Trey is going to play like that in the jam, I just don't see myself going back to it to relisten.
I was happy to hear Mango Song, but Steam> 46 Days> Drowned was the bomb. Character Zer0 encore felt like it had some extra oomph in the jam. Good times. Luckily the rain held out until the show ended despite all the lightning that was blasting over our heads during the last half of set 2. Got drenched walking back to the car but it was all in good fun.
Really? It's only the second show since Dick's...
Definitely some struggles last night, but, as @bertoletdown elegantly phrases it, the Light was, "one of those great moments at Phish shows that lash out and eat all of the less-than-great moments around it." As this weekend progresses, the ratio of great to less-than-great will no doubt shift in the faithful's favor. Song selection was pretty great last night, too, considering it's only the second show "on the course," to continue the golfing analogies. Looking forward to tonight!
But I stand by the rest of the recap.
Also, as usual in 3.0, mango was butchered right from the get-go. It's baffling that Trey would call for it despite the fact that he very rarely nails the guitar part throughout the chorus and the vocals are usually pretty shaky.
Good review altogether. The highlights of this show (Bowie, Light, 46> Steam, Drowned) definitely made the 4.5 hour trek from Philly worthwhile.
Saying Light, 46days, steam, drowned, and slave were train wrecks is a stretch to the say the least.
It's easy to shake off the dust but more difficult to change the characteristics that define a tour.
Does that make any sense?
Nevermind. Enjoy this video, which was my first and only encounter with the music of Apples in Stereo before last night's show. It's from a compilation disc from the Csartoon Network's Powerpuff Girls. And, yes, I paid full price for the CD and still have it my collection.
Yes. That makes perfect sense. You can tell they're trying to do that with some new material and 2nd set tinkering. It's the 1st sets that could use some work imo...
It doesn't have to be steep, but consistent positive development is more important to me over the course of a tour.
$0.02 and all. I'm still very much a noob.
.net Overlords: Why can't we edit comments on blog posts? Am I missing something?
I agree with Nigel, every show is unique in its own way. Don't put pressure on the guys saying that, oh this show sucked compared to this show(their own favorite). They know their own mistakes or when they felt they were playing a little sloppy. You don't have to call them out on it.
Overall a great show! The guys played very well! Kudos on the 46days, liked very much!
I hope everyone enjoys tonights show, as of myself as well!
Not a fantastic start, but in the right direction.
Good recap.
a) name another band with a list of roughly 500 tunes in their active repertoire
b) physically play a tune as hard as MFMF or mango and play it perfectly every time
c) play any of said 500 tunes with a multi million dollar light display going on in the background less than 10 feet behind you
d) come up with a set list featuring variety and change, EVERY SINGLE NIGHT
As a professional musician, speaking from experience I can tell you that not every note in every show is going to be perfect. It is these less than stellar moments that make the amazing moments possible. If every note was played perfectly every time and every song raged for 40 minutes, as some 'fans' expect, then there wouldn't be any amazing moments at a phish show because there would be no difference between anything. It's the yin and yang of Music. If they didn't play, say, BDTNL (a song that takes a lot of heat from people), then the raging Reba that might follow it wouldn't have the same effect. On 6/23/12 in burgettstown, the first five or six songs of set 2 absolutely raged. It was 45 to 50 minutes of pure phish genius. Once that 7th song started, in this case Bouncing, 'fans' started to whine about it. That BATR was an absolutely perfectly placed song though. If every single tune was a complete smoking rager all the time it would become monotonous and boring. That breather tune perfectly set up the killing Julius> slave that ended the show. Had it just kept on rocking hard throughout the whole set, it would not have had the same effect.
Moral of the story:
These four men are absolutely fantastic musicians, and part of being a fantastic musician is making mistakes. It happens. So what that SPAC's mango song wasn't the tightest? You try playing any one of 500 random songs from memory. Can't we just enjoy our favorite band for what they are? Incredible innovators and improvisers? After 25 shows since 1997 (I know many of you have seen many more than me) which include the Hampton comes alive shows and New Years '10, I finally realized that 'set list chasing' ruins the show. They'll always play things that you weren't expecting and things that 'disappoint' you if you worry about the set list. Instead, focus on each individual show as a personal expression by the band, and enjoy every tune. In Charlotte '12, they played a bunch of classic ragers. Fluffhead, Bowie, Crosseyed> McGrupp, Tweezer> Hood just to name a few. These tunes were all amazing,but what set that show apart for me were the 'breather' tunes. The energy during heavy things (much to the disdain of the whiners) and the horse> silent made that show. It made all the other amazing tunes have those phishy moments that we all know and love. Look at the bigger picture, folks! They're not always going to be perfect, but that imperfection is what makes the other moments possible.
Lets all just be glad that our favorite band is still touring 30 years later with all the original members (sorry daubert/holdsworth you guys don't count). How many other groups can say that? Not many. And let's be honest, who wouldn't rather see phish struggle through mango song than see some other crappy band? I'd take the struggling mango any day of the week.
My fellow phishermen/phisherwomen, please keep this in mind the next time the boys play a sour note. The bottom line is you're still at a phish show. Life could be much much worse.
See y'all at merriweather!
a) name another band with a list of roughly 500 tunes in their active repertoire
b) physically play a tune as hard as MFMF or mango and play it perfectly every time
c) play any of said 500 tunes with a multi million dollar light display going on in the background less than 10 feet behind you
d) come up with a set list featuring variety and change, EVERY SINGLE NIGHT
right on, bro. Preach it.
Bottom line is that I think you may have conflated criticism and complaining. Overall, at least the complainers are paying attention and give someone an objective basis instead of naive fluffery. If each show is such an amazingly unique and only positive experience then we cannot review any of them.
Seems completely fair to me to hold the band to the very standards they created, especially in this era. As for "a"-"d," yes of course that's true and part of the reason we all love phish. But does it follow that, therefore, we can't point out any of the negatives of any show? In fact, maybe we should just copy and paste that list as the review for every show.
You've set up a false disjunction so either a) WE LOVE PHISH AS MUCH AS YOU DO AND WOULD NEVER "COMPLAIN" or b) don't appreciate phish because we ever say anything negative about a song/performance.
Seriously, can't it be both? Love phish and because we love em are totally willing to point out the lows as well as the highs?
I play music as well. Would you agree that there is a minimum standard of competency that you would hold yourself to when it comes to your command of a song before you'd step onto a stage and play that song (knowing that mistakes will always happen)? There is for me, albeit far lower than Phish's.
Phish trusts their fans and sometimes they lower the bar and take a flyer with a tune they haven't played recently, or practiced, hoping that muscle memory will carry the day. Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't. Noting that in a blog or in discussion comments is pretty much the norm around here and has always been. Phish obviously doesn't care one way or another, so I'm not sure whose delicate sensibilities you're trying to protect.