Back in the early age of the internet, and before widespread use of cell phones, fans would usually have to wait until the next morning to find out what happened at a concert. I have three vivid memories from undergrad when, while I was sitting at a computer, I felt myself filling with excitement and joy in reading what had happened the night before. One was March 20, 1995, when I read on rec.music.dead that the Grateful Dead *finally* played Unbroken Chain to close the previous night's first set in Philadelphia (stories were coming back that a few chosen fans held up their cell phones for friends; others rushed to use pay phones at setbreak -- it was a big deal). The next was November 1 of that same year when I walked from Studio near the Pantheon to one of the only computer labs in all of Rome, just north of the Vatican, to find out that Phish played Quadrophenia for Halloween. The third was in the Fall of 1996, reading about Phish's famous "M" set from St. Louis, complete with Mean Mr. John Popper (just a week after seeing my fourth and fifth shows).

Fast-forward seventeen years to yesterday morning, when I woke up to hundreds of messages on my phone in the form of Tweets and GroupMe posts describing what had gone down just a few hours earlier in Tahoe. If I had stayed up, I could have even listened along to the Tweezer by means of a fan's stream from the show. Instead, I quickly downloaded the show and was able to listen to the eighth-longest song Phish ever played twice before I even got into work. And by early morning, I was up to my fourth listen (compared to seventeen years earlier, when I was resigned that I would have to wait weeks -- or months -- before I could even hear a note; I remember anxiously awaiting for a tape Vine or Tree for that Dead show . . . ).

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Good afternoon, contestants. We have an unidentified audio clip labeled "MJM CLIV" that requires your attention. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to be the first person to identify the song and date of this mystery clip. If you succeed, you will win one MP3 download courtesy of LivePhish.com / Nugs.net. Each contestant will be allotted one guess per day, with the second “day” starting after the hint is posted on Tuesday if necessary, with the answer to follow on Wednesday. Also to assist you is the All-Time MJM Results document linked by the image below. If you are caught at your place of employment or educational facility by a superior, the blog will disavow any knowledge of your actions.

This blog will self-destruct in five seconds.

Answer: For the first time in seven weeks we have a first-time winner, as @garcia17 completed the mission in identifying the 8/8/93 David Bowie. Awesome show (of skill), great job!

#155 in five.

The conclusion of Phish’s 7th set of shows at the Gorge brought more heat, reverence for the beauty, and some serious exploration and jams. I am not one to try and pigeon-hole a show as “best of 3.0” or “best start to finish show of the year” but it’s hard to argue with the playing on both nights of this run, and night 2 has some pretty goosebump-inducing moments and a second set that should stand the test of time.

George, Washington is about as close to the middle of nowhere that you can find, and an odd but beautiful place for a music venue. The dramatic scenery surrounding the stage is awe-inspiring and humbling. Contrast that with the nearly inhospitable heat and dryness of the high desert summer landscape, and you have the tension and release that mirrors what a lot of Phish music attempts to achieve. It is a must-see venue for Phish fans, and this year many finally checked it off their bucket list.

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1900 miles separate Chicago and George, WA, home of The Gorge Amphitheatre. That’s already a long way to schlepp a band the size of Phish, but the plan was there’d be nearly a week to do it. Then the Toronto show got flooded out, forcing the band to jog eastward another 500 miles for a Monday makeup gig – instead of westward toward Washington at what one imagines would have been a leisurely pace. Like the forces majeures that plagued the first half of summer tour, it’s the kind of unforeseen circumstance that demands teamwork and improvisation. A test of the band’s mettle.

So what’s the verdict? Will we see a road-weary Phish tonight, or a battle-hardened unit that takes the stage at The Gorge with clear heads, full hearts, and a shared desire to win their westward campaign? Let’s find out.

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Disclaimer, I am one of the people who was originally scheduled to attend Phish’s originally scheduled Toronto appearance on 7/9/13, and went to the show. I sadly did not have an opportunity to make it back to tonight’s show. Thanks to LivePhish for the live music sharing capabilities.

Phish love water. Are you wet yet? If you have been seeing shows this tour, you have no doubt been affected in some way, shape or form by water. You might have experienced this in the form of showers, humidity so thick that to dance in it causes those who don’t sweat to sweat buckets, cold torrential rain, rain on steroids, and even floods. You might have had a set cut short, or an entire set cancelled, or an entire show cancelled.

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Here at Phish.net headquarters, we're always looking out for the general well-being of our fellow Phish fans. Rather than venturing outside into this summer's merciless heat and rain, why not stay indoors and take a crack at solving the one-hundred and fifty-third running of Mystery Jam Monday? Just be the first person to identify the song and date of the mystery jam clip and win one MP3 download courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. Each person gets one guess per day, with the second “day” starting after I post the hint. A hint will be posted on Tuesday if necessary, with the answer to follow on Wednesday.

Answer: @ucpete is the winner of this week's MP3 download, as he was not fooled by the Tweezeresque section of the 6/24/97 Wolfman's Brother. Once again, the contestants impress.

Keep on the lookout for MJM #154 next Monday.

Disclaimer: I watched most of this show via webcast, but the stream died during “Gin” and really only got going again for me during “Lizards,” so I had to fill in the gaps by listening this morning. Now let's do it.

The show starts with a fan request as Trey asks what a “0-172 Dinner and a Movie” sign means, and then announces that “This is for you!” “Dinner and a Movie,” not seen since Deer Creek last year, is slightly undercooked and direct to video, but typical opener “AC/DC Bag” is right behind to get the set’s musical boulder rolling down the mountain. As “AC/DC Bag” dissipates, Trey holds on to the last and highest note while Fish leads us into the “Maze.” This is the kind of strong, complete rendition that makes “Maze” a great first-set tune. Page dances all over the organ, with attentive compliments from Trey, who then fires off a picture perfect solo to bring us back home. “Mound” is up next, and is a bit of a struggle in places, but “Funky Bitch” is served up Chicago style, with a deep Mike crust, swimming in Page sauce, and secret Anastasio spices.

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Before we get to Saturday’s action from Phish’s gig at Northerly Island in Chicago, let’s briefly consider, “well, how did we get here?” The “here” is a three-set show, a structure typically reserved only for Phish festivals, Halloween, and New Year’s Eve performances. The “how” was Friday’s show that was abruptly halted eleven minutes into the second set during “Prince Caspian,” due to the approach of potentially severe thunderstorms. The venue was immediately evacuated, and soon thereafter it was announced the show was cancelled.

The upwards of 30,000 attendees exited the venue as swiftly and safely as the venue’s island logistics allowed. Fans were chill – to everyone that was a part of not making headlines, great job! On the level-headed end of the spectrum, fans acknowledged that while it was obviously a bummer, shit happens. Lightning strikes are powerful, majestic, yet often deadly events. Trey did in fact famously take a more carefree approach when on 7/22/93 in Stowe, VT, in response to the staff talking about canceling the show due to the danger of electrocution during a show that took place in a total downpour, “Fuck that. Put the plug up my ass and count out Llama!” In this spot, however, public safety and a sober assessment of very real risk rightly won the day.

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IT appeared at first that things would be horrendous on Northerly Island Friday night. The weather reports ominously foretold thunderstorms, and the venue reports (especially about the lawn) in the weeks before the show were bleak. But as Phish opened with “Suzy Greenberg,” the crowd roared with glee.

The weather was as gorgeous as gorgeous could be, with an intermittent breeze cooling down the 90+ degree ambient temperature under a largely blue sky. The set featured a funkalicious “Wolfman’s Brother,” and Fish dazzlingly engaging the audience on the Marimba Lumina during “Scent of a Mule.” There was also a memorably must-hear version of “Limb by Limb,” masterfully crazy-fingered by Trey. Fans danced-off calories left and right, including calories earned pre-show drinking copious amounts of “Sample” ale in mason jars at Rock Bottom brewpub’s wonderful, all-weekend fundraiser for The Mockingbird Foundation, whose volunteers manage this site.

It was easily among the tour’s finest first sets. What would the second set bring? Would we get yet another powerful second set of tour, fans wondered as the sky steadily darkened, and lightning began to twist and pounce on the horizon, both Page, and Mike, side.

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Hang with me a minute...

If you stipulate that this tour ends at the Hollywood Bowl instead of Dick’s (which happens three and a half weeks later and is... well... Dick’s) then we’re nearing the halfway mark of summer tour 2013, with tonight being the 10th show of 22. Wow. Time flies when you’re having fun, and it’s safe to say that tonight’s show in Alpharetta had fun in spades. In fact, each successive outing now feels more playful and sure-footed than the one before it, and that can only be a good thing, right?

Right.

Tonight’s first set kicks off with a “Runaway Jim” that meanders through a breezy sonic meadow before being propelled to a quick peak by Mike Gordon’s insistent bass lines. [“Jim” is typically on the shorter side when played as an opener and this is no exception.]

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Phish returned to Georgia last night for the band's 41st performance in the state, dating back to 2/1/90. For a band that traces its roots to the Green Mountains of Vermont, Phish has logged a healthy amount of its road time in the Peach State. In fact, while Georgia ranks ninth in terms of most visited states, Atlanta stands a proud third in terms of most frequented cities, trailing only Burlington, VT, and New York City. And Phish has returned to Georgia every full performing year since 1990 with only two exceptions, 2004 and 2009. Over these years, Atlantans and nearby Athenenians have witnessed some spectacular Phish shows. And amidst a long, long list of exceptional individual song performances, here's a quick year-by-year sampling of some especially noteworthy Georgian renditions:

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We now bring you live to another after-school special edition of Phish.net's Mystery Jam Monday! You know the drill: be the first person to identify the song and date of the mystery jam clip and win one MP3 download courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. Each person gets one guess per day, with the second “day” starting after I post the hint. A hint will be posted on Tuesday if necessary, with the answer to follow on Wednesday. Good luck!

Answer: With his fifth win in the last seventeen MJMs, @PhreePhish wins this week's MP3 download by identifying the 7/12/00 Crosseyed And Painless. Well done!

MJM CLIII in V.

In the lot before last night’s show at Merriweather Post Pavilion, @mikh2wg, @the_Crested_Hogchoker, @GhettoSloth, @ivy_light and myself were discussing how many people (including some of us) had a strongly negative reaction the first time we heard Phish. It seems so unthinkable to me now that there was a time when a friend gleefully played for me a newly acquired tape of 8/14/93 and my response was something along the lines of “Well, that’s nice, dear. But do you realize that idiot is trying to play a vacuum cleaner?” Sloth speculated that 30% of people hate Phish’s music the first time they hear it. I was one of those people once, but almost two decades later, here I was about to see my 30th show. Ain’t love funny?

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