9-20-00 -- Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, Ohio

review submisions to me, dan schar at [email protected] or [email protected]

Date: Sun, 1 Oct 2000 15:50:34 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 9\20\00
 
So, here I was, at the last show of my three show run, (Merriiweather,
Cuyahoga) and after two awesome shows (especially Merriweather) and I had a
feeling that this show was going to be a blowout, and I was not dissapointed.
 
 
 We arrived in the lots across the street somewhere around 4, right after it
had rained for about an hour. I figured it was going to rain all day, but
before the show we got to enjoy some sunshine before the festivities. Plenty
of acid and molly were floating around, and plenty of extra tickets for that
matter, but no nugs. Thankfullly, there wasn't an overwhelming police
presence like at Merriweather, so my before show experience was mighty sweet.
 
So, after dosing my friends,and myself, we walked into the venue, and
prepared to be dazzled. My friend had to go to the bathroom, so I waited for
her, and the next thing I know, Phish started the opening chords of Cars
Trucks And buses. We then ran up the stairs and descended the very muddy lawn
to the bottom of the hill.
 
I was grooving nicely, and the next thing I heard, was the first notes of
Wolfman's. This had me pumped, because I have a new theory. If there's a
Wolfman's early on, it means the show is going to rock! (Case in point
Nashville 2000, Great Woods 2000) The jam was excellent, and the band was
completely on. It was around this time, that the sky turned completely black,
and I prayed for a repeat of Raliegh 97 where the downpour highlighted the
set. Sho nuff, once Jiboo kicked in, so did the rain. Since I was flying on
molly and amber, the rain was a welcome treat. The Jiboo was short, but
sweet. I had hardly started clapping when I gave way to euphoria as I
couldn't believe I was hearing Mike's!!!!  Not only was the rain a blessing,
but Mike's in the first  set?!!! Needless to say, I was estatic. The last
time I ever heard that rare occurance was Hampton 97 (And that was on tape)
It was apparent Phish was on fire, and those lucky people getting soaked on
the lawn were witnessing an event. So there I was hootin' and hollerin',
while my friend( it was his second show after Cuyahoga) just rocked back and
forth, I looked at him and said "You don't understand how awesome this really
is. But it's all good, the crowd was totally digging this scene. As the
totally solid Mike's drew to a close I knew Simple was coming out of this.
Once again,I was right.(Actually, that's not a hard call) but it was the
first one of the tour, so I was psyched.Plus it was still pouring,and we all
know that rain+ Phish= greatness. The jam went on, and slowed down alittle
bit,and I thought Hydrogen was coming, but , The man who> Malenko shatterd
that theory. But who cares it  surprised me,and the groove was delicious.
Weekapaug slammed into the air with that awesome bass groove,and it just
couldn't get any better (or so i thought) when after Weekapaug, they did a
PHENOMINAL While my guitar gently weeps. Trey, wailed this gem out till I
thought my brain was going to explode!  After it was over, all I could do was
catch my breath, for I was humbled and glowing all at the same time. I
couldn't imagine what the second set had in store for me.
 
 
   After a short setbreak, and after I actually used my pavilion ticket to
get inside(what can i say, I'm a sucker for the lawn), the lights went out,
and First tube got the place jumping. I was dancing between these giant
pillars in the back of the pavilion, as the rave music flew around and
around. Then I heard something strange. were they actually playing Limb by
Limb again right after they did it 2 shows ago at Merriweather? At first, I
was dissapointed, but this version was much better, and the crowd dug it, so
I thought I'd love it too. Dirt smoothed out the edges, and had me shouting
my name into the wind. yummy. Then came the highlight of my night,nay the
highlight of the 3 shows I went to. The almighty It's Ice. I'd been waiting
for this song for a long time, and let me tell you, it was worth the wait.
Phish executed this sonf flawlessly, and the build up part had me tingling
with electricity.  Also, the spacey part had me in another dimension.
Atfirst, when Ice winded down, and the piano hit a few notes, I thought we
were getting Sqirming Coil, but Velvet Sea emerged instead. I'm not a big fan
of this song, but it seemed to fit in nicely. After that I got another treat.
Sand. The rave continued with unending energy as they went into the trippy
jams that we all know and love. I lost track of time as phish wa wa wa wa'd
me into submisson. Then another repeat from Merriweather Guyute. I can't say
this version was better,(If you weren't at Merriweather you have to hear the
way they dragged out the "I'm bouncing like a newborn elf" part), but there
was more energy in this version. It seemed only fitting that they continue
the madness with Big Black furry creatures. I felt like i was at a Slayer
show(Like the Carini at Cuyahoga), and then to top it all off, a great
version of Drowned.(which fit because of the rain that never stopped) . I
knew it was going to be a short encore because they fit in so many songs
during the show. Cavern was definitely prophetic "Whatever you do, take care
of your shoes" because mine and everyone elses were muddy as hell. Aterwards,
i had to clean the mud off at the giant lake outside the arena/amusement
park/racetrack outside. All in all, it was the most fun I've had at a Phish
show in a long time.


Date: Wed, 11 Oct 2000 05:52:36 EDT From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: 09/20/00 review Ok... this was my 23rd and final show before Phish's expected hiatus, so I was hoping for a good one. After enjoying Blossom so much the show before, I was keeping my fingers crossed. This was my first time back in Cincinnati since I graduated from U.C. this summer. My day started with getting pulled over on the way to my friend Ric's house before the show. Fuck! You gotta hate that... especially since it was for not completely stopping at a stop sign. The cop was a real asshole too, with a high and whiny voice. Ughhh! I needed a nice MAKISUPA after dealing with that pig. So anyway, it turned out to be $76 down the drain because I tried to make it there a couple seconds sooner. Oh well... I wasn't about to let it ruin my night. My friends Ric and Joe mail ordered for this show and actually got great tickets -- eighth row, center to be exact! The best I've ever done via mail order is the back of the pavilion or lower level. In other words, I was hoping they could stub me down successfully, being that all I had was a pitiful lawn ticket. Little did I know how lucky I'd end up being. Well, Ric and I did the stub transaction as I ventured to meet back up with him in the eighth row. Wow this was cool! The closest I had ever been before this was at 12/07/97 where we sat directly to the left of Fish (when the stage was set up with him on the far right) in the first row on the lower level. It was so sweet looking over his left shoulder watching him work behind the scenes while having the perfect side view of Page, Gordo, and Trey all night long. And boy, was that a great show! The best TUBE ever! But on this night, I would be the closest I had ever been. Anyway... while I was sitting there waiting for them to come out, I was actually able to see Trey's Leslie Speaker (or amp, or whatever) spinning around in its box. It was putting me in a trance quite honestly. I was so psyched to be this up front and personal with the band. I felt for once like I was one of the beautiful people... one of the envied ones. I know that sounds corny, but it's true. And unless you've ever been that close, you don't know what it will feel like till you are. Meanwhile, I was worried as hell about getting kicked out. You know, some rude asshole coming along and saying "Get the fuck out of my seat!" But thankfully, that never happened. So the lights go down and I couldn't believe it, I hadn't gotten kicked out! This was gonna be awesome. They could've played the weakest show ever and I still would've been so happy just to be that close. Being able to watch them and everything they do... being able to see their facial expressions, etc. CARS TRUCKS BUSES started us off. Oh yes, it was on! Anything Mr. Page does I love, and this is pure McConnell. Surrounded by his piano jazz I was already getting chills by seeing all those guys in fluid action. This CARS was funky, as per usual because it never changes much, and everyone was contributing. Towards the end, I looked left and saw that this dark, blob-like cloud had developed. "Oh shit, it looks like it's gonna rain," I said to Ric, giving me even more reason to worry about getting the boot. But I ignored it, and quickly a hot WOLFMAN'S BROTHER developed. I'm a WOLFMAN'S magnet like you wouldn't believe, but it's another one that's officially O.P. (or overplayed). But this was not your ordinary WOLFMAN'S. This was possibly the best one I have ever heard -- no shit! It fucking rocked and Trey led the whole way 1000%! He soloed for what seemed like forever, hitting all those high notes with authority. This is a must hear WOLFMAN'S... and I don't recommend things unless it's absolutely necessary. Towards the latter part of the jam I was hoping for the WOLFMAN'S > SNEAKING SALLY combo that Phish has become so fond of, but to no avail. After "the best WOLFMAN'S ever" (my comment when it ended) a noticeable rain had started to fall "outside." So much so that it actually began misting into the pavilion while they were playing GOTTA JIBBOO. Damn it!!! I'm sorry, but this song is absolutely horrible. Possibly my least favorite Phish song ever written. I mean, some people accuse really good songs of having dumb lyrics and very rarely will I agree with those people. I have a great imagination and so do Phish and Tom Marshall. But this song blows, lyrically and musically. Thankfully it wasn't outrageously long (although I'd hate to even hear a 30-second version). One thing I did notice and got a kick out of during the JIBBOO jam was Trey and Fish. For some reason, Fish had his mic up to his mouth during the jam after the lyrics were over. Now usually he swings it back over... but this time he didn't. What he was doing was casually talking into the mic while all of them were fully in the groove. And after Fish had been talking for a while, Trey started to crack up laughing. It was really weird... like Fish was telling him a joke (or all of them) through his mic. Maybe they got the ear monitor system that allows them to talk to each other through their mics during songs (without the crowd being able to hear). Like the kind the Dead incorporated in 1992. When "GOTTA JIplay at every show" ended, MIKE'S SONG began. Yes... Oh yes! A mid-first set MIKE'S! This set went from being average to interesting in about two seconds. I knew they were gonna have to do something phat since even we could tell it was raining hard as fuck. Christ, it was almost raining in the pavilion! I was just thanking my lucky stars I wasn't out there. But hey, I deserved it! I've paid my dues! I've been in the lawn at many rain shows. Anyway, this MIKE'S completely went off. The jam was nice and perfect in length, not too long or short. Along with all the lights and mist, I felt like I was at the filming of a music video or something. And it was awesome to see Mike singing up close. He almost looked like a pirate saying "ARGHH!" sometimes. Funny, funny shit! When they finally returned to the "MIKE'S SONG is ending" finale riff, I was praying they'd do the crash landing into I AM HYDROGEN. You know?! Like the old school MIKE'S > H2 with the 25-second heavy metal introduction that makes you want to bang your fucking head! I love that shit and desperately wish they'd do it again. That's possibly the hardest, chunkiest, and fiercest musical section they've ever written. It sounds as if Cliff Burton's Metallica is playing that shit! ...But no, no no... Instead it was the standard MIKE'S > SIMPLE segue, which, to tell you the truth, is pretty fucking cool too (though not as cool). This SIMPLE was tight and the harmonizing was perfect. I think they like playing this in Cincy, as this was the second SIMPLE for the 'Nati in Phish's last two appearances. It was also the second big city song of the night (the first being CARS). The SIMPLE jam was almost short compared to others I've heard. And as Page led us out of the big city while we rode atop his giant piano, we heard Trey picking us up to take us somewhere... somewhere... there's gentle guitar noodling... can't quite hear it... is it I AM H2?! No, Trey picked us up and dropped us off in the middle of the forest... or make that... Gamehendge. Yes, it was the sweet sound of TMWSIY. What a beautiful little song! It reminds me a lot of the carefully gorgeous twists and turns of the MY FRIEND MY FRIEND introduction. And then... we all knew where TMWSIY would magically teleport us to -- straight to Israel for an ultra-dank AVENU MALKENU. Awesome! This set was turning into an absolute Michael Gordon fest and I was loving every minute of it. He never fails to give it his all on this song and I always wonder if some of it has to do with his heritage. His bass solo was early for Rosh Hashanah, but killer nonetheless. With the spotlight shining down on him, I noticed I could actually see his reflection on the side of Page's piano. This was so intense, and made me feel so privileged for being that close. As AVENU was wrapping up, I could tell we weren't headed back to TMWSIY. I saw Trey mouth a multi-syllabic word beginning with "W" to the others. Hence, WEEKAPAUG (that segue was sweet by the way). You have to love how Mike always pimp slaps the shit out of his bass at the outset of this tune, and he didn't disappoint this time either. I wish he'd actually do it for longer, but then again, there are three other people in the band. But this set was a Gordo showcase, so what's a little more. WEEKAPAUG always makes me feel like I'm galloping on a bucking bronco, and as expected, this one jostled every part of my body. Damn, from MIKE'S to PAUG was possibly the best song sandwich I've ever witnessed -- bar none! It was sweet... you couldn't ask for much more. Everyone thought PAUG would be the end of the set until Trey attempted yet another perfect George Harrison impersonation with WHILE MY GUITAR GENTLY WEEPS. And boy, did he nail it! Granted, this wasn't as exceptional or long of a version as 07/15/00, but it was definitely above par. He tore through the guitar solo perfectly. So perfect that I felt like I was listening to "The White Album." And that was the end of an exceptional set. After an average length intermission, FIRST TUBE began the second set. An instrumental to open each set?! That's a little odd. I always think of instrumental openers as kind of a prelude of what's to come... a good example being something like BURIED ALIVE. But FIRST TUBE is not a bad little jam if they don't try to stretch it out too long... it's kinda been growing on me I think. They were really digging it though. I just remember Trey looking up at the white lights, with that shit-eating grin on his face. I couldn't believe I was actually close enough to see the glare off his teeth. LIMB BY LIMB was next... Damn, I hear so many of these that I wish I could give some of mine to someone who really loves this song. I mean I like it, but I don't like that much! Then again, this is one that's also extremely O.P. now. I do love the Page and Trey RIFT-like vocal exchanges though, and Fish's inhuman drum beat to end the song for that matter (I'm glad they decided to start doing that again). DIRT... Ughhh! No comment! Anyone who wants to know how I feel about this song can read my review of 07/15/00 if they want. After DIRT, I heard some precision-like guitar work and noticed IT'S ICE had arrived. Killer! One of my all time faves that I can never get enough of. Page was awesome and nailed every word. And with Gordo throwing in strategically placed bombs with his thumb, it was on baby! During the ascending staircase jam in the middle of the song, Fish got up on his stool and did his dance like I was hoping he would. Then they broke into the ICE jam where I was hoping to hear KUNG (a la 10/29/95), but no such luck. This jam actually meandered in and out of the ICE theme for what was about 10 minutes, until it finally subsided for Page's piano and a great version of WADING IN THE VELVET SEA (or WADING IN VELVEETA CHEESE, or even WADING IN THE HEROIN SEA, as I also like to call it, ha!). The combo of ICE > VELVET SEA was cool to me for a couple reasons. First of all, it was an outstanding Page showcase, with Page's piano laced ICE jam eventually finding its way to the even more piano centered VELVET SEA. But whenever I hear ICE, I always imagine a figure skater (like the one on the "Rift" cover artwork) struggling for perfection, trying not to be distracted by his "mirror image." But of course, "he's falling on the ice -- it cracks," and where else is there to go but down. Hence, his "double wants to pull [him] down"... but down to where exactly? Well, to the icy blue underwater of the VELVET SEA, that's where. A place where our hero (the ICE skater) was unfortunately left to freeze and drown a cold and lonely death. Yeah... I'm just blowing smoke up your ass, but that's the kind of wonderful imagery the ICE > VELVET SEA combo gave me -- seriously. Like I said, I have a great (yet weird) imagination. But I do wish they would've returned to ICE so our hero could've been pulled out of the freezing waters to skate once again. But no, instead we got... SAND?! Yuck! I figured since we had already heard FIRST TUBE, there was no way we'd get this. After all, they are very similar songs... but SAND is a weak attempt at trying to write a good Phish song (no offense boys, but that's my opinion). It's so monotonous (doesn't Mike get tired of playing that same bass line for 15 minutes?) and so lyrically boring that I really can't stand it. During BLAND (Ha ha!), Ric and I actually turned our backs on the boys and crossed our arms, like "We ain't having any of that shit!" Ha! But we only did it for about five seconds, so chill out BLAND freaks. When we turned around, I of course tried to be an asshole and yelled "HARPUA!" as loud as I could during the quieter part of the jam. Ha! But oh well, I was just playing around. Also... whenever they play BLAND, you know Trey's gonna go over and get on those god damn small keys. For my opinion on that, refer to my review of 09/18/00 under "JAM." After BLAND subsided, I looked over at Trey and saw him picking out GUYUTE. You know it's coming when you hear that quick, closed chord strumming. I love the ugly pig though, and was amazed he was making yet another appearance in Cincinnati. Everyone was pumped up for this (as usual) with most of the crowd (including myself) jumping up and down throughout the jam. Every part of the GUYUTE jam is so intense! It starts out with that slow and dreamy part... then moves to the Irish inspired, Riverdance-like section (which the glowsticks went along well with)... then finally, the heavy metal, rip-your-head-off climax (my favorite). Trey was totally feeding off the crowd by that point, being the complete rock star... looking up with that shit-eating grin again while hopping up and down with his disciples. It was like a religious awakening... and I'm agnostic! Another cool thing is how they're sarcastically singing the "I'm bouncing like a newborn elf..." part now... waiting as long as they can before the next line. Funny shit guys... The last note of GUYUTE hadn't even been played before Trey began BBFCM. I couldn't even hear the first couple seconds because the crowd was so loud. When Ric finally turned to me after the third second and said: "Big Black Furry Creature dude!" I was like "Yeah!!!" and started jumping up and down again, but this time harder and faster. More fiercely to try and match this out of control song. I honestly couldn't believe they broke it out. God... I loved seeing Mike step up there and scream with all his might. For some reason I always thought it was Fish who sang it. I don't know why, I guess I didn't think Mike could scream that loud (plus he seems like a laid-back guy). I suppose he proved me wrong, but I still loved it just the same. And with Trey hoisting his guitar up and down during the jam with feedback... oh man... it was like Phish's take on punk rock ecstasy! After BBFCM was done turning the crowd white as a sheet, the lovely Who cover DROWNED began. Damn, Gordo was pulling out all the stops (maybe they wanted to revert to my hypothetical ICE > VELVET theme -- just kidding). But this DROWNED was bliss, with Gordo still nailing the vocals (even the high parts, like: "Set me free-e-hee!") after you know his chords had to be tired from BBFCM. But the jam was awesome, retaining the DROWNED theme while still ripping it up in shreds. I thought there might have been one more tune out of DROWNED before the end of the set (maybe a GOLGI or something) but that was it. Weirdness! I can't think of a time when they just ended with it. But they wrapped it up well and it was a great 10-minute version. I remember seeing a couple older guys next to me who were so excited they were playing a Who song. It made me happy because it was cool to see how much Phish had made them happy by just playing one song. I know how good it feels to hear the boys cover something by a band I love. The CAVERN encore was just that -- CAVERN. But hey, it's another of my all time faves that I could never get sick of hearing (just like ICE and CHALK DUST). I do remember at one point during the ending "Give the director..." part, some guy in front of us held up a sign which read: "Nice Shoes." Trey totally acknowledged it by nodding his head and maybe even giving a wink. It was awesome! Which led me to realize... oh my god... every time Trey and Page looked in my general vicinity, they could really, actually see me! They were able to see me and my face bouncing up and down every time they looked, and every time they did, I acknowledged them back, raising my finger and giving whoever it was my complete attention. Aww! It was so fucking sweet! By the way... the best CAVERN "ever" is 06/22/94 -- hands down! Do yourself a favor and check that one out if you haven't already. So what can I say about this show? Well, despite hearing half of "Farmhouse," it was absolutely killer! I mean, like I said in the beginning, they could've played the worst show ever and I still would've loved it just because of where I was sitting. But damn, I think this show was just as good as Blossom, if not better! It was a complete Mike and Page showcase, and I couldn't get enough of it. I dunno... Blossom and Riverbend were two very different shows, but at the same time two very good ones (if not great)! So the Ohio run was a perfect way to end my show going for a while... that is, until their hiatus is over. And oh... if you've never been that close at a show, I highly advise getting down there any way you can. It's so choice! Late, Cris Coey
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 11:38:23 -0400 From: Brian Muething To: [email protected] Subject: Cincinnati review This is my home town and venue and let me tell you how surprised I was when I saw this venue on the tour dates. It was definitely a different feeling before the show for me, usually Phish shows involve driving somewhere, seeing multiple shows, and this was the first time in a while that I was going to go see Phish for a few hours and then go home and sleep in my bed and not see them again for a while. Usually its such a big event, this was just like going out and checking out a band at a club or something and then going home...its hard to describe what I'm talking about, but oh well. Had 3 extras thanks to some of my idiot friends who backed out, at one point we were trying to sell them for 5 bucks so we could get a couple Sierras, but even that was too high. I had to hang out at the gate for a while just to try and give my tickets away and I was definitely not the only one in that boat. Last shows I was at were the Creek and Columbus, where nobody had tickets, so that was weird. Lawn was an absolute mess. I think CTB is a cool opener and Wolfman's has been sitting in the 2 hole a lot lately which I like. the 1st set Mikes was a surprise, real sick of Simple, but TMWSIY was nice to hear (though I'd bet people outside of the Midwest wouldn't mind seeing it {Alpine 99, Cincy 99, Cincy 2000), plus it gave me needed 1 Time Phantasy Phish points. I love Guitar, this one didn't disappoint. The 2nd set was fun, but I wasn't in love with it, not because the playing wasn't there, b/c of my personal setlist issues...I just don't like some of the songs, but thats not really a valid criticism, just my personal opinion. I'm just sick of Dirt and I wish I could have buried Wading in the many large holes on the lawn so they couldn't find it anymore. Cool to get Iced and Drownded, Caverns always fun. I really think they'll be back on the road in the late summer. See you all then and at many SCI shows between now and then. Brian
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 09:36:58 -0400 From: Adam S. Freimark [email protected] Subject: Riverbend review We got about 20' back from the railing, dead center. They had big screens up projecting close ups (TASTY fretboard shots all night). Why does Trey look exactly like Eric Clapton now? Ok.. First set FUCKING ROCKED ! The rain started in the middle of the Wolfman's jam - I saw Trey on the monitor and he looked weirded out for a bit because the crowd (lawn) was giving huge yells every time a particularly strong blast of wind hit or as the rain started and the band had no clue why... The lights lit up the lawn for a second and and they realized what was going on. It was raining HARD, and it was COLD. So they kept us warm with that nice long jam.. Aweseome! (aveinu malkenu was better in Cinci last fall though). The rain tapered off just after the jam ended... After the WMGGW (normally it irritates me when phish covers this - but I have to admit this was perfect. (maybe the Trey/Clapton thing is getting serious). They worked it hard - listen to the mp3 (GET THIS SHOW) when you get it. THey finished, stopped for a few seconds, bowed in unison, and walked off the stage without a word. Set break I found some friends and got stubbed in - Bren just asked and the guy let her in :) >Set II: First Tube, Limb by Limb, Dirt, It's Ice > Wading in the Velvet Sea > Sand, Guyute > Big Black Furry Creatures from Mars, Drowned >Encore: Cavern Well, she got her Farmhouse on - they played half the album last night. Ice was slick! Bren was freezing (it was even cold in the Paviliion and she wasn't feeling too well (we were both soaked) so we left in the middle of what I guess was BBFCFM - wierd shit, even for Phish. So I missed Cavern but no biggie - went home (got lost (I live 2 miles from Riverbend - three whole turns.. F'cking Magellan) - and chowed down. The whole night, Trey was ON. And as I mentioned, TASTY fretboard shots on the monitors. Finally, a great show! Only complaint is that it wasn't really as loud as I'm used to for them. But since you can see the river on the sides of the stage, seeing riverboats pass during the show sort of made up for it in some way... Adam S. Freimark Further Innovations, Inc. 1026A Delta Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio 45208 800.865.7545 513.533.3454 fax
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2000 05:12:32 -0400 From: Mike Kramer [email protected] Subject: 9.20.00 Review From the beginning I had my skepticism---Phish at Riverbend??? I am originally from Cincinnati and Riverbend is where I first started seeing rock concerts, but for the life of me I could not picture the Phish scene at the security-ridden, boarded up amusement park that Cincinnati calls a venue--my main concerns were that of the sound (I have never thought that Riverbend is sound-friendly....) I don't think the show even sold out. Nevertheless, it was phish, and since they have never played Riverbend before, I had told my girlfriend that they would be bringing out the big boys---I speculated a Wilson opener, a Mike's-->Weekapaug set 1 closer, a 1st Tube set 2 opener, and a Hood encore. Well, almost 2 out of 4 ain't bad. Regardless, we arrived in the lot at about 5:00 and the cops were out in full force. The 2 hours we spent in the lot were very strange as it there was this impending still quietness in the air and the closed carnival gave it an almost eerie, haunting atmosphere. The shakedown was over across the street in this little fenced in area, about 30 yards long and not very wide. Not many venders even bothered and what was there was very controlled--almost herded. Inside, the same vibe--not much noise and excitement, most just chinllin' on the lawn. The lawn was already wet from the previous night's rain and the sod squares were already beginning to slide down the grade. 45 minutes to showtime and most early lawn phans already had damp, brown behinds. The impending doom, however, did not prevail, regardless of the rain, as the boys put on a fantastic show for the masses and more importantly my friends and I had a great night trudging through the mud and groovin' to phish. Here are the details as I remember them: Set I: Cars Trucks Buses -- I am really digging this tune as a set opener, caught this one the first night of deer creek this summer. One of my favorite instrumentals, I enjoy the way Page and Trey bounce off of one another. The middle section was more guitar dominated than I would've liked, as I really get into Page's piano...Still, fun opener which led us into... Wolfman's Brother -- Always a good one early on with a nice smooth funk...I like the more contained WBros that don't stray to far off the progression, thick and concise...nice. Heard a couple small teases in there, too maybe stash or gumbo..hmm.. Gotta Jibboo -- Early but got the glowsticks flying, what few there were around compared to other venues. The heavy rain set in and a cool guy near us shared his tarp with my group. Jibboo got us dancing and moving the tarp to the music...it soon became something to stand on :) Mike's Song > Simple > The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday > Avenu Malkenu > Weekapaug Groove -- Wow. Really excited about this since I didnt get one at the creek. You could hear the opening lick just under the Jibboo applause and I was pumped. Mike's was average, the vocals kinda weak (but that could be Riverbend sound) and Simple was good. I especially like Fish's wood-block work at the end of the phrases. TMWSIY was a real treat and it came off very beautifully, a nice little melodic interlude which, I felt, should have lead us into Weekapaug or elsewhere except Avenu, as this tune is a little too quirky for my tastes...Weekapaug was pumping, and Mike was feeling it...Wolfman and the Mike's Groove seemed to be a foreshadowing of what is to come--this show was a Gordo showcase! While My Guitar Gently Weeps -- Nice closer. Trey was really wailing here, but the lawn pholks seemed distracted...probably ready to get beer, warm food, and dry clothes. By now the lawn was a muddy landslide and the phans were cold and wet. Set II: First Tube -- I guess it's not really an amazing feat to call this one as set 2 opener, but I really wanted to hear this one tonight. The tube was ranging hard adn CK5 was working it. It was this or a 2001 and I was happy dancing fool. It still amazes me how Mike keeps that thick, steady, beat creeping along... Limb by Limb -- One of my favorites in 98 and it just keeps on getting funkier, and a fun one to sing along with. Nice placement and Fish had a short, soft drum solo ---perfect dynamics for the end of this tune. Dirt -- Fitting and well orchestrated tho I would have preferred a GBOTT here ( But I'm sure I'll see one in Chi-town). Trey really had absolute control over his axe here, good stuff. It's Ice > Wading in the Velvet Sea > Sand Compared to DCreek, this Ice was absolutely huge...funky and tight, kudos to gordo once again, I thought they may do a Ice--> ..... -->Ice deal but unfortunately it melted into Velvet Sea. Page had a nice back-to-back vocal set here, but I'm not a big fan of this one, especially after the let down in Noblesville. I was kinda disappointed with Sand in the beginning too, I mean come on--1st tube, dirt, AND Sand??? But the Jam here really started cooking and they found a few really nice grooves. It got me dancing again (it could have been that spliff) and the jam seemed to get so intense that they could'nt do anything with it and could only fade it out...That;s ok because we got....... Guyute !!!!!!!!!!! YAY! This one brought the house down, old school all the way, great anthem, and slow distorted lyrics at the end. A masterpiece. > Big Black Furry Creatures from Mars This was definately the highlight of my show. It's actually kinda of weird, by chance I had the 2.21.93 Roxy show in just before I left for the show and the last song I heard before I locked up was BBFCFM! Very trippy light work from Chris, Mike seemingly having fun with the angst chant, and Trey completely tearing it up on the in-betweens. He got some nice reverb behind his head and was really hamming up the guitar-flair. I didn't really think they would finish it off as it got so spacey and Floydesque between the releases wowo!, I personally felt a Bowie coming on ( but I always feel a Bowie coming on) But I was all smiles from the last mars through another high-energy cover of Drowned!!! Encore: Cavern -- It was nearing 11:00 and I was still holding out for Hood, but by this time I couldn't be choosey at all. Trey returned relatively quickly to finish and Cavern was the perfect way to send us off. After a nice Frisco Melt at Perkins, I took Trey's advice and treated my self and my Birk's to long, warm shower. Fantastic evening and not a thing to complain about--the storm actually made my night even more enjoyable. I'll go ahead and give this one a B+ overall, maybe even an A- because I'm generous and grading scales are relative and mean nothing. Get the tapes! Why? Cause you're a big black furry creature from mars, big black furry creature from mars, big black furry creature from mars!!!!!!!!!!!! Peace All! Cya in Chicago! Kramer
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2017 01:19:27 -0400 From: Michael Bulger [email protected] Subject: 9-20-00 I've never reviewed a show before but seeing as last night might be the last one I can get to for awhile I just have to try it once. I'm not gonna bore you all with my day but let's just say the 7 hour drive was quite a last minute decision. I was all done with my tour and ready to get back to class.. but alas! they got me out on the road again. I've heard quite a few people say that Phish has lost something in the past few years and arguably they've played a few sour shows (see Fall 99). However ever since NYE2000 I've witnessed the boys explore wonderful new sounds while maintaining the rock/groove improvy tightness that originally drew me to their music. Last night was (clich�) no exception. In 32 shows I've never been as far south as this one and the crowd seemed a little inexperienced but ready to have a great time. After peppering the lawn with lollipops I was ready to get down: CTB: I just dig this song as an opener. Page set things off right with everyone hanging on to the groove. Wolfman's: This got those stiff Kentuckians moving. The funk was thick and Gordon seemed to be especially aggressive with his slapping. He was really letting that beast have it and I was loving every minute of it. They jammed this one out for awhile and it almost seemed like they were trying to coax the rain outta those monster Ohio clouds. Gotta Jiboo: This song is a great example of a basically simple arrangement that allows for alot of creative room. Everytime I hear this they find a new groove in the jam. Good Stuff. Mike's Song: WHOA! We knew we were gonna get a Mike's Groove, but the first set?! By this time I was glad glad glad that I had drived. Now if I could just get a Hydrogen outta this... Simple: I guess they do this pair so much because the final note of Mike's and the opening of Trey's Simple riff are so perfect and all, but I'm getting sorta tired of it. Simple has never been a song I look forward to but I didn't complain tonight. The guys were getting real spacey with the jam as a riverboat drifted behind the stage. Pretty. TMWSIY: Ooh, they're slowing down! Is Mike gonna bring that sweet sweet Hydrogen line? What's Trey doing? Yeah!! Thinking that Cleveland was my last show I was ecstatic when they played McGrupps. Now I was getting another of those pesky songs that always avoid me. Avenue Malkenu: What a treat! Whatta set!!! TMWSIY: and again..----> Weekapaug: They were really rollin now and Gordon was on fire for his opening solo. A little shaky on the rest of the guys joining in but that wouldn't get them down tonight. They rocked the casaba as the riverboat drifted back the other way. Great jam, nice way to end a killer set, right? Wrong! WMGGW: Saw this for the first time at Lemonwheel and I'm in love. What can I say? Trey is one hell of a musician and that six-string of his was wailing to us shivering kids on the lawn. Such a great set. Setbreak was cold and muddy with no place to sit down. We got to know some kind kids from Toledo and before we knew it the phantastic phour were strutting back onstage. First Tube: To tell you the truth, my memory of this part of the evening is a little foggy. I do however remember looking over at this older gentlemen with his son and wondering if he liked this song.. Limb By Limb: The opening chords of this song never fail to make me smile. The jam was it's usual self. Not complaining. Dirt: Now I've always liked this song and all but I never thought I would ever say, "That was a phat Dirt!" ::::ehem:::: That was a phat Dirt! It was great to see them rework a slow song like that. At one point Gordon started playing the melody while Trey soloed over it, producing a sweet lil jam. It's Ice: Cool song. A challenge to dance to, plus I was cold, wet, and a little tired. I gave myself a break as they stretched the jam out.. After a while each member just faded out until the speakers were quiet. I remember being excited to see how they would get back to the song and wind it up as usual when... Velvet Sea: Page started to stroke the ivory in that old familiar way. More rest for my aching bones. Gordon's voice was starting to give on this one, but he just kept singing through all the scratchiness of it. Sand: The repetitive bass line of this piece always reminds me of the sound systems at a rave. I did my best trippy-liquid-partykid-dance. Guyute: Man I've had enough of this song. The taunting lyrics and awkwardness of the first part are just not my bag. The progression at the end of this song just loses it's thrill after a million times (the number it seems like I've gotten). Still, it always seems to pump up the crowd. BBFCFM: I love this joke. It's that kinda onstage musical humor that makes me love those four rascals from Vermont. And, yes, Trey is a Jedi. Drowned: Got wet a Darien, got a Drowned. I had a feeling we might hear this tune again, and indeed, that opening piano part rolled over the crowd. Gordon's voice seemed to have cleared up. In fact I don't think I've ever heard him sing so strongly. Good Stuff. Encore: Cavern: Opened with one of my favorite openers, they might as well encore with one of my favorite encores! The funky bass and great vocal lines at the end of the song are just the way to close a show. No need for pretty ballads to send me home, no need for an experiment, just give me the music one last time! Really a great show. The guys seemed well rested and eager to stir up the Southern Ohio crowd. Unfortunately I had no time to enjoy my last lot as we had to make the push back to school. I wonder how my friend did on that 8am test... I'm really going to miss this stuff when they take their break. Thanks to all the good people I've met and all the warm smiles I've seen. We're really lucky to have such a wonderful scene. Despite all the talk of tour getting ugly the good vibes obviously outweigh those bad apples. I'll see you all when they come back. I'll be the kid smiling ear to ear.
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 11:42:47 -0400 From: gnamian [email protected] Subject: Riverbend A footnote. To those who did this and other Cincy shows, and loathe hearing Guyute, this may help you appreciate a subtle pun. Cincinnati was once known as Porkopolis for its pork processing and packing plants. If you have been around town this summer, you have no doubt noticed decorated pigs all over the place. And of course the flying pigs at Sawyer point. I relocated to Cincy from NYC. After 10 years here I see the pigs as a city mascot of sorts. It is almost appropriate that this pig anthem is played. Phish is a relatively recent "hit" in this area as well, and to the masses it's still a fun tune with its progression from a slow march to frenzied jig/rill. Lighten up old-timers, let us newbies catch up. Now if they'd cover Pigs on the Wing ... Peace
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2000 18:47:45 EDT From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: 9/20/00 riverbend review having just moved to northern ky, this was the closest show to my home that I have ever been to. a friend and I got out of class at 4(it was raining hard) and headed to my place where we met up with two more friends and headed to the lots. no trouble getting in, but found out the venue was a good mile to mile 1/2 walk away. I don't understand why they parked us so far from the venue in both directions and left the near lots almost empty. once we got there, shakedown was nice and chill. the rain had stopped and everyone seemed ready to have a good time. hardly any cops messing with people from what i could tell. we strolled into the show at a little bit after 7 and found our seats in the pavilion halfway up page side. ctb's opener was nice to hear. great warm up song that gets the crowd excited when they have it going. not the best i've heard but also not the worst. next, wolfman's. a friend and of mine laughed that this song seems to follow him around. I get the same feeling sometimes. nice playing by all though which carried over into jibboo. mike was laying down some great bass lines which had everyone else in the band trying to keep up, but doing a good job. then mike's took over. great space before simple kicked in. good simple which mellowed into tmwsiy. great call. everyone seemed happy. the natural segue between avenu and weekapaug seemed to good to be true and had me thinking the set closer was upon us. not so. my first guitar gently weeps had me praising the second half of this set for days to come. 1st set mike's groove hardly ever fails fo me. I'm glad I wasn't on that lawn getting soaked during it all. 2nd set opener first tube lacked the energy I have heard this song carry in the past(roseland on tape and alpine in the flesh). limb is a good song. nothing spectacular. dirt also has its moments we all like, but nothing new here. what next? Ice. now we're talking. I hadn't heard this song in years and was very happy to be there. they ripped it. a very spacey jam ensued with trey on and off of keys. I kept telling a friend--it was his first show--about the jam they were going to kick it back into at the end of the song. then, they velvet sead it. low point of the show for me. frat kids in front of me were happier than they had been all night. must have been one of their favorites. go figure. while I'm not a big fan of velvet sea, I will concede that it fits into a first set or 2nd to last song of a 2nd, or even part of an encore from time to time. but to cut off a sick Ice jam with it is not right. strange beginning to sand. they seemed like they couldn't decide what they wanted to do. i took off for the bathroom, still raining out there, and could hear page playing the trippy sounds on one of his boards. sounded nice but nothing you haven't heard. the rest of the set picked back up for me. although I hear it a lot, guyute was a welcome treat. I don't understand people's complaints with this one. In my opinion, it will go down in history as an epic song right below the status of yem, slave, hood, fluff. It's great trey songwriting at its best. bbfcfm is so rare it's always fun. drowned closer for those soaked on the lawn was appropriate, but nothing compared to deer creek from summer. i haven't heard darien's from this tour yet but hear it is worth many listens. cavern encore was standard. my last show before the break left me smiling. the strength of the first set saw to that. ice and guyute-->furry creature, drowned was the 2nd set highlight for myself. I'm going to miss these guys, but feel that they will return stronger than ever. have fun until then. Jon
Date: Sun, 24 Sep 2000 20:08:42 -0700 From: Debbie Lewis [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: the phish show at riverbend on the 20th of sept. I just wanted to say that this was my first phish show, and what I experienced was awesome to say the least the atmosphere was freindly.It meant alot to me to even be there my freind and I drove about two hours, and besides the cold rain and the sloshy mud I have no complaints. thanks to sarah. the girl who lives across the river for being so kind!!! To an old hippy and his buddy this means alot . all things considered I will definitely be a regular concert attendy.
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 09:34:05 -0500 From: big pimp [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: 9/20/00 Missed the first set due to I-74 being shut down...And now that I've seen the set list, it was much to my peril! 2nd set: Enjoyable, and very well played. First Tube: This song is overplayed, but it always has great energy and last night was no exception. I was with all the other mudkids in the swamp called the lawn, and all grooved down to this tune. Limb: CK's lights gave this the extra something that it needed. Dirt: Again, overplayed, but this song continues to improve and evolve. ICE: Page rocked on this song, and then it was jammed out, with something like an ambient jam, lasting maybe 10 min, and very serene, tranquil high-pitched sounds. I had the feeling of floating through space. Then the most incredible chord came wafting back to the lawn, a harbinger of... VELVET SEA: Absolutely the best version I have ever heard of this song. Acapella in the intro. All the mudsoaked ppl around were hugging and swaying to the music. Trey's solo oozed and dripped with emotion and made me miss old friends and long-passed relatives. CK hit the stage with a warm velvety green color that set just the mellow mood... Sand: Standard, but with some good funk grooves to dance to. Guyute: I'll never grow tired of this gem. Trey spoke the words and the metallic/demonic/yoda-ish voice resonated all over the venue. With the usual soaring cresendos and runs from Page. Crowd dug this tune and a few glow sticks took the the air. BBFCFM: THIs came out of nowhere, and most ppl in the lawn were really caught off-guard by this. "Since when does Phish do angst rock?" some girl asked next to me. Gordo was the rock-god before the faithful on this one, and seem to me like he was laughing it up, trying to keep a straight face. The lyrics to this one are just plain fun, no anger. Good this hear this one, it had been a while. Drowned: Gordo rules. Never mind the strained voice, the song was cool, and the band seemed to enjoy letting Mike continue as a frontman. ENCORE: Cavern was a hilarious choice, showing that even when a venue has been assailed by rain and is left a pit of mud and slop, the band has the sense of humor to remind of to take care of our shoes. Might have been a better opener, since my birks were completely shot. 2nd set rates: a SIX. Looking forward to being on the floor both nights in the home of the blues-- Chicago. Thanks for reading, Jason Flora
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2000 00:43:04 -0500 From: CookieZeal [email protected] Subject: How about a review from a first timer?? I've been phishing in the CD's for about 3 years and have fallen in love with the band. I have tried to get tix for 3 years as well...to no avail. Well DAMMIT-I got some this time. My first show...and when they opened it with ct&b......I almost cried. I was here man...fucking HERE!!!! Wolfman's kicked in....along with some big, fat rain. I didn't care....way too caught up in the moment. Simple came along...and I did cry.....unreal....but the rain masked my tears rather well. This song moved me very deeply and gave me a great feeling of peace and optimism, thanks guys. I was hoping for several of my favs...and the guys answered with my number one (of many number one's..but this was my #1 of #1's) IT'S ICE. I screamed like a Beatles' fan. And sang at the top of my lungs....unreal...although they didn't finish it off...oh well. The rest of the 2nd set flowed in abject ambiance...until BBFCFM, hilarious! The encore was a tribute to us laws dogs..I'm sure of it...Cavern another one of those #1's I was talking about. It happened, my pfirst Phish pshow. I am a better man for it....I WILL see them as many times as I can. They did not dissapoint....God....I felt like someone out of a Vonnegut novel....a man out of time, out of place....and right at home. ~STU
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2000 00:40:33 -0400 (EDT) From: Alex Hall [email protected] Subject: Riverbend 9-20-00 This was my 11th Phish show, and my 5th in Ohio, my home state. When I heard they were to play Riverbend, I thought it must be a mistake, and the reason for that is, I saw Furthur at this venue in '97, and it was a disaster of sorts, the city definetly wasn't prepared for what looks like a minature city to overtake the parking lot. And the cops just seemed confused and overwhelmed...at least before the show. After the show came cruisers through the lots, bike cops, undercovers, the works. And as a result, no more Furthur at Riverbend. It was suprising enough to see that Phil Lesh was playing here in the summer while I was at Phish in Deercreek, but Phish? C'mon, it seems like it was a disaster waiting to happen, though it was a pretty calm scene. Most of the shakedown type areas were in the lots across the street, and they weren't anything to write home about, and I couldn't believe the amount of extras that were floating around. I bought an extra for the first time so I could pick up a bag or something, and I ended up trading for a $15 hat. Oh well, its a cool hat. I brought two of my friends who hadn't ever been to a Phish show, and it wasn't what I made it out to be, but they were impressed nonetheless. I got stubbed down during Wolfman's first set, and intern missed the rain(woo-hoo!). And, I got closer than I've ever been at a phish show. there was some talk of the sound being shitty, but in my opinion, its always a little less intense outdoors. I guess i'm an indoor junkie(my first few shows were indoors). Rather than giving a song by song review, I'll just tell you what I realized while at the show: No matter how many shows I've seen, and how good or bad they were, The best way for me to describe this, and all other shows is this: PHISH IS LIKE A DREAM COME TRUE. And as for the lots.... KIND KIDS IN PARADISE. Only one complaint....I was really hoping to see a Tweezer first set, and a Reprise encore. Oh well, I've seen it before. Keep smilin" everybody! That is all. Al in Ohio [email protected] (feedback if you like)
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 09:30:43 EDT From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: last night show!!! Last nights show was GREAT!!!.....they jammed all the way from wolf mans brother to picture of nectar with a phat gottajibbo to get the rain started....this was my first show in intense weather like this and if you were not there you missed a once in a lifetime apperance by Phish.....thank you once again guys for out doing yourself......phan phorever jpNbumbi
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 14:14:00 EDT From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: Riverbend Bath Well, the rain loves Phish in Ohio. Columbus was wet this summer, but I've never seen a lawn get so torn up as Riverbend's did last night. It was great. My first review: CT&B is always a good way to warm up the feet, nothing amazing, but it always feels good. The Wolfman follows me around, I swear, but I won't ever be one to question song selection, plus I always enjoy the funk Mike throws down on this toward the end of the song. Jibboo: I overheard someone in Columbus this summer say this song is "dead." Sucker, this song continues to rock. Take it for what it is, folks, it's played so as to move you and cause you to have FUN (or isn't that the name of the game?). Mike's>Simple>TMWSIY>Avenu Malkenu>Weekapawg: This is always good stuff. I especially enjoyed TMWSIY>Avenu>Weekapawg. Some nice reggae thrown in there, and I'm extremely soaked at this point, but keeping warm by moving. The My Guitar is such a great cover and was especially pertinent during this song, as the entire lawn let out "weeps" at every high wind or flash of lightning. Setbreak seemed especially short to me. Second Set: First Tube: First time I heard this was at FirstStar Center, and I've been a fan ever since. A good way to inject some evil into an evil 2nd set. Limb: Another of the fairly new ones that don't always review well, but I still like, along with...Dirt, very pretty. It's Ice>Velvet Sea>Sand: My highlights of the night. First Velvet Sea I've seen, and I knew it right off when Paige seemed to strike the first few chords in slowmo. Sand is one of my favorites, almost gives Phish a techno feel. Guyute was good as usual, but the BBFCFM made me laugh outloud, as Phish often does. Mike is definitely the next Iggy Popp. Drowned was a first for me, and couldn't have come on a more deserving night. The abbreviated Cavern was a good call, especially the abbreviated part. I was freezing at that point. Looking forward to indoors in ChiTown. Take care-Chris
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 17:56:19 EDT From: [email protected] Subject: 9-20-00 riverbend, oh. I got there later than i wanted to and the show started as soon as i grabbed a place to be on the lawn. There with two of my cronies, one of them had a pavilion ticket so we decided to get down later on. The weather was nice, and 2nd song Wolfman's forshadowed a great show. Funkin it, band raised a level everytime the crowd cheered creating a thick Wolf Bro to remember. Then came an early show Jibboo, and so came the rain. Big, nasty, cold drops pelted everyone outside shelter, and in response, the band stepped up a notch on the Jibboo, too. Then a surprise- Mike's. As if to apologize for the downpour and help keep us warm, we were treated to a raging Mike's that showed energy, longevity and direction. Right into Simple, which tapered off pretty quickly instead off bee-boppin us dry. There were open doors made by trey that could go either Caspian or TMWSIY. Luckily, they skipped the second MWSIY and moved right into the Groove after Avenu. After an icing-on-the cake Guitar Weeps (I was looking for Frankenstein) that didn't go quite as far as the Polaris version before it, they were breaking. We'd had enough of the lawn, complete with mud-slides and thousands of soaked folks, and headed down. Grabbed a great seat, didn't get fucked w/the whole set II. After such a solid set 1, I wasn't sweatin set II... 1st Tube. Doesn't cut it (where's the Tweezer, Rin Jim, AC/DC Bag?), but LIMB X gave hope of a super jam. It was good, didn't go too far, then it was over... And then the set poo-poohed out. Dirt & Velvet Sea in the middle of set II, eh? Surprisingly, the crowd couldn't get enough of it. Ice showed great potential, starting off with ambiance and then... staying in ambiance for a while... Gaining energy but never peaking. Page started Vel Sea and no return to Ice. Trey spent some QT with the keyboards in Ice, probably the insparation behind playing the Sand. It was time for one anyway, but this was the most boring version I have ever heard. Mike sounded like he was thinking about grabbing a cheeseburger after the show and trey fumbled on the guitar, spending most of his time back on the keys. It tapered off and left a nice amount of time left for any "big-gun" but instead.. Guyute. At this point, I'm declaring the set a personal worst- but at least they didn't close with it. BBFCM from NO WHERE had Trey holding his Languedoc in the air, and the Tweez Rep. strobe lights. I enjoy Creatures- it shows a completely different side of the band and definetely leveled off this very tame set. Obviously they weren't going to close w/it, and Drowned raged out. Trey's jumping up and down in the Page intro, and we're off! They played the tune harder than usual, excentuating like the Who, and gave way to a ripping jam. They ranged about five different directions in what seemed like a shorter than usual version, but played it perfectly the whole time, just rockin it. And then they're gone. Poopy encore, and that's your show! BBFCM > Drowned brought life back to a dying set that was outdone by set I. Outside, before the show, people had trouble giving their extras away, a situation rarely seen. Have fun everybody! -MDC
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 20:32:37 GMT From: bradley thacker [email protected] Subject: cincinatti review (the best review you have ever read) Celebrating my 15th Phish show in my hometown of Cincinatti was not only a treat in itself, but a wimsical, magical, words can't explain this show....and i have been to some good ones!! The lot....Cops everywhere, mainly busting people for drinking...but a lot of them were smiling and nice to the kids in the lot... The clouds looked ominious but i wasn't going to let this stop my 15th show....i hoped that it wouldn't rain....anway Set I: I was expecting a Runaway Jim opener but instead the opening notes of Cars, Trucks, and Buses filled the ohio air.... CTB-like this song, but i have heard it countless times live so it wasn't anything new for me...... Wolfman's Brother-was never a big fan of this song, but BOY!!!! did trey wail on this one and i finally noticed Mr. Rock Star got a haircut making him look even more like eric clapton (more on this later)..The end of this song rocked and made it a new favorite of mine even though i have seen it live about 5 or 6 times Gotta Jibboo-Hell Yeah!! Now we are talking, a pretty standard Jibboo but the clouds came in and started a glow war in the first set....ok a brief word about glowsticks...KNOCK IT OFF ENOUGH ALREADY!! Now I get to what i call euphoria.....i have wanted a Mike's Song since i attended my first show in 97...I have been teased, but never got one....but I did...and in the first set!!!! Mike's- the rain it came down fast and furious and Trey being the jedi he is fought the rain tooth and nail and just jammed on this motherfucker!! I could not take the smile off my face, and danced in the rain soooo hard i lost my friends in the crowd....The jam was just incredible the rain was not going to ruin my first Mike's....I was definately thinking Hydrogen but... >Simple: I think they did this song because everyone was getting soaked and >they weren't......Mud everywhere by this time i was still dancing like it >was 90 degrees outside....the simple jam wound down and then i got.... >TMWSIY: good choice off the wall, surprised a lot of people this was >mike's time to shine in cincy >Avenue Malkenu: entertaining as always....distracted by these dumb shits >in front off me commenting on how they really should play bouncing >more...SHUT UP!!! and no Trey does not match his clothes to his guitar!!1 >Weekapaug: Mike was tearing it up on this song as well as Papa Trey...they >wailed and wailed....giving phans a thanks for putting up with the shitty >weather that they get cursed with every time they play ohio (Columbus this >year and last??) I thought this would close the set but.... WMGGW: OH MY GOD!!! I forgot they did this song....and trey is rivaling both clapton and jimmy page in my book now...He really is a underestimated musician who deserves way more credit....He made this guitar cry literally....I cringed when the lights came up because i wanted to sit down and i was freezing Setbreak: i lost my friends and i am now all by myself, shivering, sitting in the mud...i looked pathetic probably...I was passed by a really beautiful looking girl who massaged the top of my head as she walked by....She passed by again this time sitting down to massage and shoot the bull with me for awhile....she was beautiful, she really was.....her name is Rachel and she is from Atlanta....and she rocks....she kept me warm and i felt really comfortable around her in my weakend condition (damn you E!!!!)....the lights came back on she took my hand, helped me up...and we got First Tube: I could hear this song every show and it would never get old...and i know why they call it first tube now, if you really consentrate on the song....your in a tube and its stupednous.(HA) Limb by Limb: Me and Rachel danced our asses off on this one...the jam was incredible...we fell in slipped in mud several times but thats all right..... Dirt: One of my favorite ballads by these guys....i shut my eyes for this one and felt a body cluthing mine....it was hers and it was beautiful....it felt soooo good!!! Its Ice: Another favorite of mine the jam was incredible maybe one of the best ones yet, but they didn't finish it> >velvet sea: another ballad, trey must've known some skinny shivering near >sick rolling mess guy was out there meeting a girl and having the greatest >15th show ever!!! again embrassed by love and good feeling about everything >Sand: sorry love the lyrics, hate the song....i have no opinion on this >one Guyute: Oh Yeah!!! why do people bitch about this song?? Its great the jam and guitar part towards the last verse is amazing if played right and it was...could've sworn this would be the last song but.. >BBFCFM: Trey is a fucking jedi...i am convinced when he picked his guitar >up and the end and did all kinds of weird rock god stuff...he is quite a >performer.....thought this woudld be the last one but.... Drowned: "set me free!!!!" man they really cook this song when they play it and it is sooooo breathtaking.....phish really makes cover songs there own.... E: Cavern: I expected this one coming....the take care of your shoes line really hit everybody considering there was mud everywhere I give this show a ten!!! After the show....Rachel and I chatted about phish, god, love, politics, the perfect grilled cheese and exchanged addresses and i will be going to atlanta in november..... THANK YOU TREY, MIKE, JON, AND PAGE FOR THE ON GOING MEMORIES AND THE DIRT YOU PLAYED WHICH PUT ME ON CLOUD NINE!!!!! RACHEL I WILL SEE YOU SOON BE SAFE ON TOUR!!!! brad "cheese"
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 21:48:25 EDT From: Kevin Janes [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: 9/20/00 Cincy hey now~ number 11 for me and my last for some time (no telling when they'll return from their "break"). it wasn't the best show I've ever seen, but was not as bad as some of these reviews have been depicting it. it had some stellar highlights such as the whole Mike's>Simple>TMWSIY, etc. plus While My Guitar was a treat. I thought the rain would dampen my enjoyment (no pun intended) but it seemed to heighten it. I was one of 'em cheering every time the rain got hard or lightning struck! It was damn cold though... the second set was not quite as good as the first, but that's ok, I'll take any Phish show any day over school or work! I absolutely LOVE Dirt and thought the Wading was perfect, the best I've heard yet. They nailed it beautifully! BBFCFM was pretty random, my first time seeing this one, but made me laugh and forget about my numb limbs for a few minutes. I've never been much of a Drowned fan, but they seemed to play it nicely last night. the encore was fitting (take care of your shoes). part of me wanted another song as well, but the rest of me wanted to get into my heated car and find some dry clothes. Overall, a great show to end my touring run which started in this very city at the Crown on 11/14/98. enjoy the rest of the phall everyone, wish I could catch another show but alas, I'll have to wait until they return, whenveer that may be, peace... Kevin
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 03:37:53 -0500 (EST) From: Matthew G. Small [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: 9/20/00 The atmosphere was super kind as my friends Triple J, Drew, and I melted into the 'bend late Wednesday afteroon. The silent, boarded-up Coney Island section of the park gave a summer's-end aura the evening. As we made it to the lawn, Cars Trucks Buses delighted our ears and reminded us of what we just endured: Cincinnati's finest in traffic inefficiency. Wolfman's Brother had a funk-a-fied ending jam that was perfectly executed. After a slight pause, Trey struck the first note of Jiboo - waited - then delved right into the tune. The crowd didn't seem to care much that this song has been showing up quite frequently of late. Everyone was grooving and getting into the set. Besides, we had more to be concerned about, namely the dark storm clouds that were beginning to hover above us. Suddenly it bust open pouring rain, drenching everyone on the lawn and igniting the band to delve further into the Jiboo jam. This resulted in a 3rd-song glowstick war?! which naturally had everyone feeling pretty good. Mike's>Simple kept the energy high, and I think the boys surprised everybody when they eschewed Hydrogen for TMWSIY>Avenu Malkenu! The rain was still falling in windy sheets when Weekapaug got everyone moving again. While My Guitar Gently Weeps was a surprise bonus after the Mike's workout. Trey was wailing! Set break afforded us the chance to dry out some. The rain had finally ceased. We tarried too long outside milling about and heard First Tube as we were making our way back in. This one was money from the beginning! Limb was (dare I say) standard, as was Dirt, but both were much appreciated. Things really started to get crazy during a supremely tight It's Ice. This floated around the murky bottom for a while before dropping off into Wading. A twofer for Page! We all agreed it was much better placement than the last WITVS. Sand kept disco phish alive and continued in the water leitmotif. Guyute was raging as usual. Another smaller glow-stick war erupted in the pavilion. It was like a collective realization that CK5 was going to town with the lights, obviously stoked by the flying neon. The surprise of the evening was a super-rare BBFCFM (my first!). Mike was hilarious! He was so on they decided to jump right into Drowned, another welcomed repeat of the tour and perfectly appropriate for this wet night. Nothing too ambient about this Drowned. They pretty much stuck to the song structure and finished strong. We were all calling a Slave encore, but instead got a tongue-in-cheek Cavern, sending us off into the night not too worried about our muddy, skunky footwear. Overall a phantastic show. I'm not going to bother to rate it; that's up to the avid listener who MUST get these tapes. Thanks for listening and much peace to all. See ya in Chi-town! Smiles, Smalls
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 09:40:09 EST From: Jason Flora [email protected] Subject: 9/20/00 review Missed the first set due to I-74 being shut down...And now that I've seen the set list, it was much to my peril! 2nd set: Enjoyable, and very well played. I'd rate it a 6. First Tube: This song is overplayed, but it always has great energy and last night was no exception. I was with all the other mudkids in the swamp called the lawn, and all grooved down to this tune. Limb: CK's lights gave this the extra something that it needed. Dirt: Again, overplayed, but this song continues to improve and evolve. ICE: Page rocked on this song, and then it was jammed out, with something like an ambient jam, lasting maybe 10 min, and very serene, tranquil high-pitched sounds. I had the feeling of floating through space. Then the most incredible chord came wafting back to the lawn, a harbinger of... VELVET SEA: Absolutely the best version I have ever heard of this song. Acapella in the intro. All the mudsoaked ppl around were hugging and swaying to the music. Trey's solo oozed and dripped with emotion and made me miss old friends and long-passed relatives. CK hit the stage with a warm velvety green color that set just the mellow mood... Sand: Standard, but with some good funk grooves to dance to. Guyute: I'll never grow tired of this gem. Trey spoke the words and the metallic/demonic/yoda-ish voice resonated all over the venue. With the usual soaring cresendos and runs from Page. Crowd dug this tune and a few glow sticks took the the air. BBFCFM: THIs came out of nowhere, and most ppl in the lawn were really caught off-guard by this. "Since when does Phish do angst rock?" some girl asked next to me. Gordo was the rock-god before the faithful on this one, and seemed to me like he was laughing it up, trying to keep a straight face. The lyrics to this one are just plain fun, no anger. Good this hear this one, it had been a while. Drowned: Gordo rules. Never mind the strained voice, the song was cool, and the band seemed to enjoy letting Mike continue as a frontman. ENCORE: Cavern was a hilarious choice, showing that even when a venue has been assailed by rain and is left a pit of mud and slop, the band has the sense of humor to remind us to take care of our shoes. Might have been a better opener, since my birks were completely shot by then. 2nd set rates: a SIX. Looking forward to being on the floor both nights in the home of the blues-- Chicago. Thanks for reading, Jason Flora
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 08:58:08 -0400 From: Dennis [email protected] Subject: review I thought last night's Riverbend show was mediocre at best. The setlist was ok, and they seemed to have a good momentum going throughout most of the first set. Cars, etc. was ok, nothing to write home about. Wolfman's just isn't one of my favorites, Gotta Jiboo was alright, but I think it's a tad overplayed. Simple was ok... and pretty much the rest of the set went on like this.... not bad, not great. I thought the 2nd set was a yawn. First Tube and Cavern were highlights, but neither were over-the-top. I had great seats in the pavillion, and I was surprised by how muddy the sound was. I heard a lot of people blaming that on the venue, but I've seen lots of shows at Riverbend, and acoustics have never been that big of a problem there. I think the mix was just bad. The scene was pretty average outside. TONS of cops all over the venue property, which was expected, and that pretty much eliminated any scene in the actual lot. Across the street were a couple of little lots where smaller Shakedowns were, and I didn't see any hassles over there. So all in all I'd say it was a pretty forgetable evening.
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 04:56:19 -0700 From: Kareem Abou-Gharbia [email protected] Subject: oh ohio. what a night for me. phish was a little bit of everything tonite. my personal highlights were simple and cavern. while my guitar gently weeps was THE way to end any well-played set. the crowd was gracious as always. the band, even more gracious, or maybe graceful. i hope to see phish in 20 years and here the exact same set. except this time, it would be the 2nd time around. haha. goodnight Set II: First Tube, Limb by Limb, Dirt, It's Ice > Wading in the Velvet Sea > Sand, Guyute > Big Black Furry Creatures from Mars, Drowned kareem (i live for dank)
Date: 21 Sep 2000 07:47:27 -0700 From: John A Blakeney Jr [email protected] Subject: Riverbend Perspective My third Phish show experience was one of more than just music. And this probably isn^�t the typical review that you receive. Anyway, the ride there was good although it seemed to take forever. I was just so excited about seeing Phish again!!!!! The parking lot was fun to warm up in, although I wish we had had the chance to see more. I just wanted to soak it ALL in, and not miss anything!! And the show was great, despite of couple of episodes. The first major episode took place during the middle and end of Wolfman^�s Brother. A good friend, who was celebrating his first solid year sober (much congratulations!!!!!!), went into a seizure in the 8th row. Everyone around was a little caught off guard, and as you can imagine^�friends were looking their friends thinking, ^�Man, what the hell is he on?^� Well, you can^�t blame those people^�they just didn^�t know the circumstances. A great thanks to those around us that did offer their aid. I think what overtook my friend was th! e intensity of the situation when the lights went down, the loud music, the occasional smoke cloud (triggering in his mind, a time of his life that was out of control), and his unfortunate lack of rest from the previous night. Regardless, he did have a seizure right there if front of everyone, and afterwards I did my best to tell him not to worry or be embarrassed. Personally, I just think it would be a really tough thing to have a seizure in the middle of a big crowd, and then stand up and try to regain your composure. After things cooled down, and everything was under control, we started to once again get back into the show. And as the show continued, my friend and his brother felt that it was a little too loud in the 8th row, all things considered. After making a dodge to the restrooms and regaining my seat, I made arrangements with them to enjoy the rest of the first set from the 8th row while they escaped the mayham up close and move to the back for some air. Betwee! n sets, we were all pretty cold and wet, and decided that maybe we had all had enough. Walking around near the vendors, I heard the band open the second set with First Tube. First Tube is by far my favorite tune right now, and if there was anything that I wanted to hear, that was it. I darted up the stairs when I first hear that guitar rift, and was able to catch it from the back of the lawn. Meanwhile, I was of course thinking that I could be way up front in the 8th row (center mind you) really getting my dollars worth, but hey, so it goes. We left the show early, with absolutely no regrets. I love Phish, even though I feel that I am kind of jumping on the bandwagon, and can honestly say that they are probably the best band I have ever seen perform. My first 2 shows, FirstStar Center in December, sold me as a fan hand over fist. However, like I was telling my friend^�s brother as we were walking out of this show, I love Phish, but when it really comes down to it, I woul! d rather be a good friend than a good fan. Any feedback, I would love to hear it: [email protected]
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 04:27:14 EDT From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: River Music Center, Cincinnati, Ohio SWEET MOTHER OF GOD!!!!!
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 17:28:57 GMT From: trent miller [email protected] To: [email protected] Subject: Cincy show review..... Cincy (Riverbend) Show Review Thur. 9-21-00 Phriends, I'll start this review with a quick personal note....I'm a huge phan who has been to about 40 shows over the last 7 years and I've loved every one...... Cincy show road trip as we do every fall but this one just never happened. Don't believe the hype if you missed this show you didn't miss much. First of all it was very cold, rainy, and muddy which would do it for most people, yes this was annoying but for a great phish show I'd sit through about anything.......the problem was the sound!!!!!! I've probably been to over 100 concerts of all kinds of bands in all kinds of settings and have never had such horrible sound. We were on the left side of the lawn(page side) and we couldn't hardly hear anything. We tried to move several times and same thing. There was simply no energy from the crowd because there was really nothing to hear from the band? What happened? I've never missed a song while attending a phish show but actually left the show half way through the second set. I couldn't believe what I was doing but there was really no point in being there......I felt like I was listening to a bad bootleg on a bad stereo turned way down! I love phish and will be in chicago this weekend but I felt that everyone should know what a disaster this show was. I've never seen so many people leaving and uninterested by what was being played........Thanks should be good times in chi-town.... T
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 02:00:19 EDT From: [email protected] Subject: review 9/20 This is my first review after being a long-time observer and listener. I think the band is constantly improving, and the texture and variance of their played is evidence for my experience...just compare second sets for the past few shows and it seems these musicians can do anything. Well, just about anything...before the show my traveling companion was vending various ales and lagers to help her travel on, when the policeman intruded on our day. Big fine, court date in Cinci., etc...be careful friends. But the music is the common chord amongst us, and I enjoyed myself throughout the cool breeze, mud, police, and rain. Set I: Umm...Mike's>Simple>TMWSIY>Avenu Malkenu> Weekapaug and it was amazingly beautiful. The other tunes were great, esp. CTB and Wolfman's. Set II: Everyone is a critic, and I heard the usual fever of people not being able to get what they wanted. Anytime you can hear music played ranging from the poetic Wading in the Velvet Sea, to the jazz-space-fusion-funk of an ambient jam, to staight punk rock of the furry creatures, then I respect what I am a part of beyond verbal communication! Love, Tom
Date: Thu, 21 Sep 2000 01:29:08 EDT From: [email protected] Subject: 7-20 just returned back to dayton and thoguht id give my first review. very laid back lot scene, nice layout with the downs around. ctb-nice way to get it kickin as the storn headed in wolfmans-very funky, got things jamming gottajibboo-nice jam, im sure the boys with the shirts will love that one mike's> simple> very nice, was gordon all over this show or what TMWSIY>Avenu mulkenu nice way to keep things flowing as the strom was in full force weekapaug-love this song, always have and always will, fun hearing no TMWSIY, good variety while my guitar-oh man, is trey really a jedi. damn, what a way to end it setbreak-very chill, all the lawn folks were very had. even thoguh i lost my shirt to lauren im sure she needed it more. 40 or so minutes later... first tube-boom, oru car talked abotu this the whole way there. they really seem to enjoy this song. wow limb, dirt- standard, dirt is always nice to slow thigns down. ice- beautiful, what a fun song, fishman seemed very excited wading-once again, a nice slow down, good to hear sand-more farmhouse, still fun after cuyahoga. guyute-damn, i hope this happens once again. BBFCFM- haha, gordon is awesome. never seen it live, loved it. drowned-more gordon, the boys seemed to love this song. cavern-nice way to end things. overall, one of the more fun shows ive ever attended. the storm was amazing, great venue. hope to be in chicago. peace
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