The First Four
6.13.10 (M. Wagner)
Phish couldn’t have opened their summer tour with four more encouraging shows. While displaying precise chops and improvisational acumen, the clearest difference between this summer and last year is the confidence, intensity, and urgency behind their playing. With no members slacking, the band resembles the Phish of old – a four-headed, fire-breathing dragon. The band has obviously reached a level of pure comfort on stage again, opening the door to new possibilities – and some of these scenarios have already begun to unfold.
The band has showcased four different types of shows to kick off the tour, all without repeating a song. While the first sets carried a similar vibe, highlighting different pieces with tension-filled, structured jamming, the themes of the second sets have gone four different ways. Chicago’s proved exploratory and transcendent, with several open jams. Blossom’s turned creatively anthemic, with a menacing centerpiece of “Backwards Down the Number Line,” a jam that easily gets my vote for the defining moment of tour so far. Hershey’s became a fantasy setlist with a balance of grooves and exploration to satisfy everyone, while transforming the GA show into a huge dance party. And finally, Portsmouth’s emerged as a song-based set with a light, summery vibe. Four shows, four diferent feels; the excitement continues to build.
6.11.10 (S.LaBrasca)
One of the questions coming into this summer concerned new covers, with many fans having tired of the same ol’, same ol’. And lo and behold, Phish has come out with three brand new covers in the first four nights of tour. Whether or not these songs will stay in rotation is yet to be discovered, but out of “Look Out, Cleveland,” Instant Karma,” and “Cold Water,” I would wager my money on John Lennon’s classic. In addition, Phish unveiled two original pieces, Trey and The Dude if Life’s “Show of Life,” and Mike’s “Idea.” These two, completely different songs will soon become launch pads for extremely different jams. “Show of Life” carries spiritual and uplifting potential, while “Idea” holds the reigns of blow-out dance sessions with bass-led grooves and two distinct improvisational sections.
Along with their tightness and confidence, the band has also displayed a willingness to take risks, delving into plenty of innovative improvisation. Taking a minimalist approach to many jams, Trey has often sat back, slowly building around Mike’s leads with atypical phrases ranging from bending, sustained notes to short, delicate licks. Hints of a new type of psychedelia have peeked out of this style, something the band may build upon as the tour moves on. The communication between Trey, Mike, and Page has been utterly impressive, and Fishman has been holding things down with authority.
6.11.10 (S.LaBrasca)
The band’s proficiency has not only allowed them to sculpt open explorations, but extremely creative jams that have remained anchored to their song structures. Pieces like Chicago’s “Bowie,” and “Limb,” and Hershey’s “Runaway Jim,” “Split,” “Twist,” and “YEM,” are all perfect examples of this style that has revitalized so many Phish classics over the opening run of tour.
As they moving into the high-key, Northeastern portion of their tour, Phish is riding an undeniable wave of momentum. Between Hartford, SPAC, and Great Woods – the musical dramatics are sure to escalate in what is quickly becoming a very special summer.
Tags: 2010
every song
Make every song you sing, your favorite tune…
lamustang05 is a good stream.
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/lamustang05
Nice
Shine a Light. Good choice
don’t forget your shit!
and good night
it has been fun BB
looking forward to resuming the hunt tomorrow!
Later dick, and the rest of the BB. I’m out as well. Gotta rest my bones for another night.
Back to the hall of justice.
l8tr
-Aqua-
Mustang stram will be up tomorrow too, sounds great
Reading back a couple pages and just about any other show chatter on this board I wonder how the hell some people actually enjoy themselves when they go to shows. Greedy bastards seriously sound pretty fuckin pretentious sometimes. Stick your ear out and sometimes you’re gonna get pissed on but it’s much better than a drought suckas. Just sayin
hahahaha reading back y’all really flipped out in the middle of the set yo
you think you had it bad, I had to watch that ugly-ass basketball game
sign of the apocalypse #73: ron artest was the best player on the court in an NBA finals game 7
I missed fucking Shine a Light?
goddamn
fwiw my takeaway from that setlist is a fairly standard looking up and down type phish show, which is to say a hell of a lot of fun, with possibly the biggest jam segment yet this tour so…
yeah, I want to hear that song too chef
All I know is that the Party Time->Disease->Sand, Mike’s->Hydrogen->Weekapaug portion of the set looks like FIRE. And, if my memory serves me correctly, the Disease->Sand was 30mins of funk-filled bliss. I think it was just the abrupt Trey segue into Horse->Silent from the Sand groove that threw everybody off.
But really, I can’t judge anything legit until I hear the SBDs, so I guess we’ll have to wait. I’m sure it’ll sound better when I hear it with good quality. Sorry if I complained at all – I guess it’s just one of those knee-jerk reactions when looking at a show only by setlist/stream. Oh well.
I’m looking forward to the next 3 nights, they seemed to have started off Hartford with a bang!
I thought the Sand>Horse played nicely, if maybe a bit abruptly
Shine a Light is a fucking hymn, and I’m not religious
unfortunately I’ll miss most of Couch Tour’s show tomorrow, but I’m excited for everyone who will be there. Whatever you think about the tour thus far, the band is having a blast, they’re playing incredibly well, and they are easily capable of shocking us (Walk Away? REALLY?) Repeats? Who the fuck cares! Great shows, great music, great fun, and that’s what it’s all about
If they encored Shine a Light every show I wouldn’t complain
of course, a nice new Dylan cover would be sweet, one of his post-80s songs maybe. I hear something new and wonderful every time I listen to Bob Dylan. Some of the bass work in his 60s stuff is fantastic
and they up and vanish like a fart in the wind
I see how it is
fifth show of tour of course there are repeats, is that even a topic of discussion?
Yes, a few people were already discussing repeats
as I said, who the fuck cares?
repeat play generally = improvement anyway
Yeah I am very thrilled to see them having so much fun up on stage – and you can hear it in their playing.
I love the new covers and I love that they are taking risks and going for thingd, even if they may not always work out (Sand jam tonight, perhaps). Basically, Phish is on a roll right now, and I believe things will only get better from here
sure, that
and, well, it’s just how it is, and always has been right?
fuck, a five show rotation for A-material is pretty deep