Summer’s Swan Song?
The Gorge '09 (Graham Lucas)
Phish added one more piece to their massive summer puzzle of 2011 yesterday, announcing a dream-like West Coast stint at the beginning of August and a three-pack to follow at Chicago’s UIC Pavilion—a venue rich in Phish history. Totaling 30 shows for the summer at this point, the season’s most recent addition looks to be the most intriguing leg of all. And adding a twist to things, the band worded their announcement ambiguously—they did not state that these would be the final shows of summer, nor did they say that there would be another announcement—leaving many fans wondering if UIC marks the end of the road.
Hollywood Bowl - Los Angeles
Could Red Light possibly wait for another cycle of on-sales to release more dates? Yes. In fact, in response to an email inquiry about any further shows, Red Light respectfully wrote back “We are considering a small amount of dates around Labor Day, but will be a minute before they are confirmed.” Really? Let’s look at the situation here. August’s tour had been rumored to travel back to the East Coast, hitting venues such as Hartford, SPAC and Jones Beach. But with a supersaturation of Northeast Phish shows this summer, and only one of them sold out, perhaps management nipped those in the bud and replaced them with a Labor Day run. Perhaps Labor day will be in Colorado. But let’s throw speculation out the window for now and look at what is officially on the books, because this run looks to be the peak of the summer!
After one year off, the band will return to The Gorge on August 5th and 6th to kick off the second leg of Summer Tour. Opening up on the most stunning stage of in nation, get ready for two nights of wide-open Phish jams like only The Gorge can provide! After a quick day off, on August 8th Phish will finally play the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles for the first time in their career after years of ongoing rumors. With a capacity of 17,376 (and The Gorge’s 20,000+), nobody should have any problems finding tickets to the first three nights of tour. But the next couple might be different.
Harvey's - Lake Tahoe
Fans will hit the road immediately after the Hollywood Bowl show, because the very next day Phish will arrive in Lake Tahoe on the California / Nevada border for a two-night stand at Harvey’s Casino make-shift 7,000 person amphitheatre on August 9th and 10th. Located in a leftover parking lot with bleacher seating at the back, Harvey’s Outdoor Amphitheatre may prove to be a bit more difficult to grab tickets for. Though the venue, itself, may be a bit roughshod, Phish will visit another beacon of West Coast nature in Lake Tahoe, and fans will enjoy two days in mountains with rental properties and hotels on the lake during a spectacular time of year.
Following another day off, Phish will head from Tahoe to San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park to headline the city’s Outside Lands festival on Friday, August 12th. Headlining the other two nights will be Muse and Arcade Fire, and though the schedule has yet to be released, you can check out the full lineup here. And there’s still rumor floating that the band will also play a solo show at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco the following night.
UIC '98 (Pollock)
Phish may bookend a summer that will open with three shows at Bethel Woods with three shows at UIC Pavilion in Chicago. These shows will mark the band’s first return to UIC’s intimate environs since a legendary three-night stand during Fall ’98. Phish also played two standout shows at UIC in 1994—6.18 and 11.25—and will undoubtedly add to their legacy with a three-pack that could close out the touring season. Moving into Chicago’s gritty, undersized venue for the final nights of summer with a tour’s worth of momentum is the recipe for the perfect storm; an end-of-tour blowout of the highest degree.
Tickets requests are now open for an unusually long, two-week period ending April 25 at 11:59 am est. The Gorge and Tahoe are full General Admission shows and cost only $50 each. The Hollywood Bowl has tiered pricing at $60 and $45 for reserved seating only, and UIC will be $60 for reserved seats or GA floor.
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Jam of the Day:
“Sneakin’ Sally” 8.7.09 II
A gem from Phish’s last visit to The Gorge.
[audio:http://phishthoughts.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/phish2009-08-07d1t09.mp3]=====
DOWNLOAD OF THE DAY:
11.7.98 UIC Pavilion, Chicago, Illinois
FLAC Torrent (via etree), Megaupload < Links
UIC 1998
My favorite of the three nights in ’98, primarily because of the other-wordly improvisation that took place within “AC/DC Bag > Ghost.” Secondary reasons include a blissful, classic “Reba” and a darkhorse “Mike’s that gets the show underway with some dirty funk grooves. During an awesome fall tour, the shows at UIC were among the best, and they are all available for download in Phish Thoughts’ Audio Archive.
I. My Soul, Mike’s Song > Driver, Brian and Robert, The Wedge, Limb By Limb, Fikus, Billy Breathes, Beauty of My Dreams, Weekapaug Groove
II. AC/DC Bag -> Ghost, Reba, Farmhouse
E: Guyute, While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Source: Flacs: Audio Technica 815 (shotguns) > Sony SBM-1 > DAT (@ 48 kHz), MP3s: Schoeps
Tags: Summer
I
C
Haha. Pre show at the crib?
yep. will rage it out. been waiting on this shit since Hampton. hopefully won’t be spun for morning opens. gonna hit work all week.
train comin in
have fun kids
summer tour lookin huge
laterz
Worked all days after ’98 NYE run, with exception of NewYears Day. Was spun every night. I was a younger man then though. Good luck with that.
summer dates with more to come? cool!
Although I won’t be hitting any of these, glad to see some shows out west.
“dollars decision definitely. (yay, onomatopoeia).”
are you sure it isn’t alliteration?
Good morning peeps!. I was half expecting the site to read something about people still being pissybut glad to see the constant positivity Miner. Now time to d/l this bag>ghost I’ve been hearing about.
Hollywood bowl looks a lot different than I expected, what’s the consensus on the venue?
***********
Are folks still mad at Phish?
mornin’ all
psyched for the chicago peeps. love that venue. I personally haven’t seen phish there since 94, but it’s the kind of room you remember.
my brother is really putting the pressure on to get me out to tahoe. not in the cards, but I like that he’s trying. that will be a fun two-fer.
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for those who may be interested, rubblebucket dropped a free download of their new album yesterday. you can go through their process to get it (entails giving out four of your friend’s emails) or you can grab it from my orangeness. it is in the rubblebucket folder (obviously). kind of tame compared to their live show, but gives you a flavor of their sound.
“. hopefully won’t be spun for morning opens. gonna hit work all week.”poop
You sir are the shit. Don’t know how your gonna do it but have no doubt you will 😉
“Are folks still mad at Phish?”pig
when are people not?
of course, no way to listen to*.rar at work…buttholes!
well interesting state of affairs for Leg II.
will be hitting the hollywood bowl show. i have a friend in LA who has been asking me to visit for years.
my guess is this will be the skip show.
i will probably try to find a ticket day of show. does this sound reasonable?
17K venue, out of way location in soCal…
its either superball or visit best friend in LA for a few days…
Don’t sleep on the Mike’s from UIC – it’s noice… Obviously the Bag > Ghost is the supreme cream jeans as well
Tahoe may be calling me. Anniversary of Jerry’s passing too? Could be a really special time in a beautiful locale
good point waltzer 🙂
Really wish I could do Gorge or Tahoe. THat photo of Harveys looks stunning!
And yes on that Mikes.
Oh and UIC. Any consensus on the difficulty of these tickets? I feel this one might offer headaches.
spun in the morning at work = anxiety
@T3
If I remember correctly you went to see those guys based on my reccommendation about a year ago? I might be taking too much credit for myself :), but glad you’re digging them!
They’re at Higher Ground up here on 4/29, pretty excited. The new album is a great album imo.
And comrades, I need some n00000b help:
At the Gorge there is camping, yes? Is this included if I buy a ticket to both nights, or do I need to go on some other website and buy a camping pass?
Also, are there any decent, cheap ho(mo)tels in the vicinity? Thinking the AC/shower could be great after the desert heat.
who wants to see phish in a beautiful setting anyways? hartford and camden are beautiful in the summer too ya know. 😉
jtran, nothing for miles, bring a tent, and a shit tent
and tell em, this is america gawd dammit, the land of the free, home of the brave. and i’m an american i should be able to sleep anywhere i want, FOR FREE!!!
@jtran
I had seen them open for MGB at the Paradise in fall 2008 (when they were rubblebucket orchestra) and knew that the percussion guy for mike was from their band. I think I was trying to see if they were still worth it and you gave me the good confirmation. saw them at a tiny place kind of near fenway and had a blast. the kidz were getting down that night.
the album is solid for sure. just finishing up my first run through and at least a few songs are familiar from seeing them live. glad I grabbed it!
Triangular Daisies is unbelievably catchy
C’mon Poo G.
There is nothing like staring a cursor who wont behave when hitting work after a Phish show. I remember Monday after the 98 UIC Sunday show with that massive Gin. Work the next day was a little……..labored to say the least.
-Aqua-