This was a really solid show, especially for N1 Friday standards. Box of Rain opener for Phil set the tone. Simply beautiful.

All of the songs in set 1 had a little extra mustard on them. This version of Free was definitely more notable than the usual run of the mill Frees we get as of late. Excellent placement for NMINML, Theme had a good jam, and Sand rocked on the way out.

Piper in Set 2 was spectacular. On stage, we could see Mike pushing back against Trey when they started to jam, which is probably why we got such a standout version here. Tweezer was an interesting choice, I’m never upset to hear it, however after that Piper, there’s just no way any other song was going to jam harder tonight… still a good version. Trey shut down Mike trying to jam Shakedown in The Howling. Monsters is a spectacular song. And Carini didn’t have to go as hard as it did.

Ghost was a little unnecessary in the encore slot, I could see Trey mouth “no” to Mike right before the started it up. Monkey > Tweeprise would’ve been cleaner but I’ll never complain about more Phish.

Great show. Looking forward to seeing where they go from here with N2!

First and foremost, Rest in Peace Phil Lesh! We love you and you’ve had a profound impact on many of us in the Phish community.

Set 1 highlights: Box of Rain, Free, Sand.

Box of Rain is a beautiful tribute to Phil, you don’t get to see phish play the dead too often! Moma > Free seems like usual first set fare but Free really gets there. Dirt is a favorite of mine, but Wolfman’s through Steam lulls a little for me. Listen yourself, good jams but nothing out of the ordinary. Sand delivers an atmospheric, funky jam that builds to a great peak. Trey, thanks for bringing back the DM2000!

Set 2 highlights: Piper, Light > Tweezer, Carini.

Set 2 opens with an unusually chill Blaze On jam that transitions perfectly into a monster Piper. Trey picks up a melody from Mike and watches Fishman closely as they navigate their way through the coolest jam of the night. They land on Light seamlessly on the back end of a blistering peak. Light finds some dark atmosphere in its short run time before a whimsical > Tweezer. Tweezer does its usual 2024 thing (funk, bliss, transition) but it seems like the band is content with not challenging Piper as the centerpiece of tonight’s second set. The Wedge and the Howling sounded out of sync to me [shrug] see for yourself. Monsters gives us a little more guitar hero Trey. Tonight was the perfect night for Numberline, which made me tear up as I thought about Trey’s relationship with Phil. The set closes with a rager of a Carini, it just keeps on building! So good!

I love Sleeping Monkey in the encore slot, I’ll just have to keep chasing it! I want to address another review and say maybe Trey mouthed “Ghost” to Mike before they played it? Either way, it hit just right for me. They tried Ghost -> Tweeprise in Bethel and didn’t quite nail it, I love that they tried it again in Albany and totally nailed it this time.

Conclusion: This is a pretty good show with a couple great moments sprinkled in. I don’t think it quite reaches the highs of summer tour but it bodes well for the rest of the weekend.
4/5