Well, this being my first show, and not knowing anything about phish except the name and that there were from Vermont, I didn’t stand a chance. Overall, I was totally confused and dis-oriented most of the night. I remember the singing being rather flat, but that the guitarist was insane (Trey was his name, I later came to learn). But the drummer was very familiar. Some days later I realized that it was the guy who played in the lounge of my friends Scott’s dorm at UVM. I spent a lot of time wandering around UVM late at night in the early 80’s, “investigating things”. Never saw phish then in Burlington, and by 1989 I was living in Nebraska. I was home on a school break before Thanksgiving and was hanging in Northampton with college friends. We were all deadheads, and had been out to see Max Creek around the same time. I remember there being a bunch of hassles in the club trying to manage who could and couldn’t drink. It was a very young crowd. Further, I vividly recall this crazy song with words “boy, shit, god and man” with a lot of strange sounds and screaming. (YEM, I came to learn). After YEM and crazy pyrotechnics from the stage (Frankenstein?), we had had enough and decided to leave. We were very, very elevated, and walked from the show to Hadley, MA 5 or so miles away. It was nice to get out of Pearl Street and all the chaos. The stars we great by the river. I do remember the bottle throwing that someone mentioned, but I am not sure if that is a personal recollection or has been over laid on my memory over the course of time. My next show was July of 1992 at Stowe with Santana. That one I was ready for. Having returned from Nebraska, we were now living in Burlington. I had grown a collection of tapes after this show, and was well on my way…Now it’s 36 years later. Last show was Manchester, NH 2025. Still on the train.

Fantastic digital audience source for this first set. Big thanks to Chig Martin for capturing it. A solid first set, even if it leans a bit straightforward for this tour. The heart of the set lands in a lively Bowie that works its way into the official debut of Birdland during Bowie’s opening stretch. Trey uses the moment to introduce yet another crowd to the secret language. Bowie is played tightly, but like the set as a whole, it’s very much standard Spring ’92 fare. And thanks to a plumbing disaster that flooded the theater, the entire second set ended up being performed without microphones.

I’m still new to this world. 8 phish shows since 2023 (being from Colorado is a blessing) and last night was my first TAB show. And wow what a night. There’s something really so powerful with the brass section, and the two percussionists. The funk, the samba, and equatorial/tropical style of this group is such a nice compliment to the phish tunes that I have gleefully come to know. You can tell that Trey is just having so much fun. I’m really constantly grateful that I get to experience this kind of music in my life time. I’m turning 30 in less than two weeks and this show is really kicking off the festivities. And even tho the world and the politics and civil upheaval here at home is a constant pressure. There’s something just so brilliant about being present, seeing someone who has touched your soul, and be reminded Everything’s right so just hold tight. On to Night two. Thanks Trey and Co. yall fucking rule.

Nice audience source available for this show. Big thanks to taper Bryon Sosinski and Jason Sobel for mastering. Trey opens with a playful tease of We’re off to see the Wizard before launching into a raucous Llama opener. A thunderous Reba follows, with Sky firing on all cylinders. Page delivers a standout solo on electric piano during Maze. Set one closes with a scorching Antelope, complete with another We’re Off to See the Wizard tease from Trey and a cool Marco section. The second set kicks off with teases of Auld Lang Syne and Stairway to Heaven leading into a solid Mike’s opener. The band introduces a different approach into a playful version of Hydrogen, followed by a fun Weekapaug. An extended intro into MSO features a multitude of signals, including a Me and My Arrow moment aimed at someone in the front row. The band powers through with a turbo-charged performance. During the ending pause, they break into an impromptu VJ “Pitch! Pitch! Pitch!” The DaaM>Magilla pairing work well together. During the Hood opener, Fish calls out to a fan to let him know he loves his t-shirt and also quotes Marvin Martian. Beautiful Hood. Trey, Mike, and Page are introduced during Fish’s vac solo in Love You, and Fish brings out his Bag-Vac for the Cold as Ice outro. Golgi wraps up a strong set of music. For the encore, the band cools things down with two a cappella numbers to end the evening.

Killer audience source available for this show. They kick things off with a Landlady > Jim combo that sets a great tone early. There’s a cool little All Things tease at the start of Foam and a strong jam in Stash. Fluffhead is inspired, unfortunately there’s a tape flip. NICU features a cool little jam that leads nicely into a tight, albeit straightforward, Bowie closer. Set two opens with Trey wishing Amy from Florida a happy birthday before asking if Jimmy Herring is still in the house. He jokes that they’re about to play “variations on a theme by Jimmy Herring, also known as Buried Alive.” Suzy is lively, and a solid Brother leads into the first TMWSIY > Avenu > TMWSIY of the tour. A smokin’ Possum wraps up the set, complete with two “Ah fuck!” signals when Fish forgets to stop playing for the first one. Fish’s voice goes full Peter Brady during his part in Sleeping Monkey, which cracks everyone up. The walk-out music after the first encore is The Stars and Stripes Forever by the Czechoslovak Brass Orchestra and Rudolf Urbanec. Encore two brings a rippin’ Chalk Dust, and encore three a fun Harpua. Trey takes the crowd to the “jungles of Brazil” while Fish quotes the musical Brazil. There’s a quick Fire tease as Jimmy is introduced, and before Page’s organ solo, Trey calls him “a beacon of light in the world of flight” — the second nod to Clifford Ball in as many days.

My first show and I hated it! Mini tramps came out so there must have been a YEM. I left early, telling my friend Quinn (one of the bouncers - the Cabooze was a big bar for deadheads), “I can’t believe I paid seven dollars for this bullshit.” 🤣 Now, I can’t even begin to calculate how much I’ve spent on them since!

Beautiful MCass SBD available for this show, with patches throughout from Cruchy’s AKG 451’s. Big thanks to Arty for mastering this one! A clean audience patch covers the first half of Wilson, offering a cool A/B comparison between the audience and SBD sources. Melt is solid, and Trey slips in a nice little solo during Rift. Page and Trey both shine in Maze. Jim is an enjoyable ride. Ice features a groovy midsection, and a smokin’ Antelope caps off a fine first set. Set two kicks off with a subtle Chalk Dust Reprise tease, it almost sounds like they were about to launch into Possum, but instead they dive straight into a raucous Tweezer. Mound pairs perfectly with it, and is followed by a beautiful Reba. Before All Things, Trey jokes that they’d just mutilated it a few days earlier on NPR, then adds, “So here comes the unmutilated version.” Coil has a groovy little outro, and YEM is inspired, with a fun jam and strong B&D section. The VJ segment is hilarious—“White Boys Attack!” lol “Take that rat outta my ass” Wtf!? The VJ then morphs into the fourth known performance of Setting Sail. MSO is super fun, Chalk Dust absolutely rips, and a highly inspired Golgi closes the set in style. A sweet Sleeping Monkey and arena-rocker Tweezer Reprise wrap up the night, as Benny Goodman’s Let’s Dance plays the crowd out.

This was the fall semester of my senior year at college. I had heard of the HORDE bands from the previous summer but not seen a show and didn't know their music at all when a couple friends suggested going to see the WBCN "Rock of Boston" concert at the Garden, headlined by Spin Doctors and Phish. One of those friends went to the box office the day of the show and scored an unused ticket in the first few rows that had just been returned for some reason. The other two of us were up in the stands, at the other end of the arena from the main stage. I'm pretty sure there was a smaller stage at our end, with the various opening acts alternating between the two stages. I don't remember much from the smaller bands, but by the time the Spin Doctors came on we were flying high. They were OK, with a flashy light show synced with their standard rock material. I probably recognized a couple of their hits. The comedy act that came on next was on the smaller stage at our end. I think the bit that got them booed off the stage was some kind of parody of low-budget kung fu movies, complete with fake Asian accents. Unfunny, cliched, and kind of offensive even by 1992 standards. (The friend who was near the main stage later told me that people there couldn't even hear any of it, though, so it might be true that some people were just impatient for Phish to come on.) Finally Phish took the stage. I had seen a couple of Dead shows, and knew they could take most of a set to get warmed up and into their more interesting playing. This band was different. About a minute and a half into the first song (Runaway Jim) they were already into a spacy jam. And the only light show at that point (in contrast to the previous band) was a solid green light shining out at the audience. I was entranced. The next song (Maze) was even better, mixing virtuosic but catchy riffs with more high-energy improv. My memories of the rest of the set aren't as clear 33 years later, but in a single set of little over an hour they managed to touch on all the major features of early 90s Phish: the poppy Bouncing, a vacuum solo (a what?!) sandwiched in Cavern, the serene extended piano outro of Squirming Coil, Stash transitioining between its rhythmic hook and transcendent group improv, a brief vocal jam leading into the a capella Sweet Adeline, and finally the proggy and absurdist YEM (with another vocal jam). By the end I wasn't sure exactly what all I had just seen, but I knew I had a new favorite band. My friends were equally blown away. First thing the next morning I went to the Coop and bought Lawn Boy and Picture of Nectar on casette, and then signed up for some tape trees on rec.music.phish.

Personally, I feel like this show gets (maybe somewhat rightfully) overlooked due to bakers dozen. Perhaps, part of this is needing to be in the building, or maybe my fondness is obscured due to being on the floor, or the people I was with. IDK, but from what I heard that night this show is a true gem. The first set has a few standouts but it became clear in maze and solidified during Jim that they were warming up for something special. Set II imo is some of the tightest, most fluid, playing I have personally seen. Some special standouts too. In particular, wombat, one of if not the first truly jammed out version. Really though, everything from ghost onwards was pretty great. Overall, great show that hints at what would later transpire.

Decent audience source available for this show, video footage as well! The opening of Stash is cropped a bit—ripping version. Solid version of Rift, and Llama slays per usual. Trey gives the Gamehendge cliff notes in Forbin>Mockingbird, and a fiery Bowie closes out set one. Set two wastes no time, kicking off with Curtain>Mike’s Groove. Nice Mike’s with a cool Mainstreet tease. Groove has Mike screaming and shouting “Make!” just like he did in Binghamton. The jam rips, though it doesn’t quite reach the creative heights of Binghamton’s version. Carl Gerhard joins for a solid Brother, and Clifford O’Sullivan, a true beacon of light in the world of flight, pulls out his Bag-Vac for I Didn’t Know—taken just before he DIED!!! Page is back on B3 for Suzy. Hood is beautiful! Carl Gerhard returns for Cavern, and Trey is en fuego during his solo in Fire. Walkout music is Glenn Miller’s Sunrise Serenade.

Others have dug into the setlist/expirence. I wanted to call attention to this being the Mangold Set Trey speaks about after meeting his NFL hero and inspiration for what it means to be a good teammate and showing up to work hard. I take this as a reminder to be grateful for every opportunity we get to share space with our community! Tao Nick on the stairway to the stars!

1st Gen FM Broadcast of this short set—big thanks to Arty for the cleanup. Things kick off with Sparkle. No official notes on phish.com for this show. It almost sounds like Page and Fish might be on borrowed gear. A mutilated take on All Things. ;) Strong versions of Foam and Landlady wrap up this short set of music.

Nice, crispy DAT audience source available for this show—my birthday show! Big thanks to the mystery taper for making an incredible recording. Things kick off with a well-played Landlady, followed by solid versions of Jim and Foam. Melt is decent, and after Silent, Trey mentions how happy he is to finally be playing Philly. The recording really picks up the crowd’s ooo’s and aaahh’s during DaaM. MSO features an inspired, extended intro, and the audience claps along enthusiastically during Stash. Set two starts with a tease of the Ferris Bueller song that leads into a tight Buried Alive. Suzy is strong, with some extra percussion added during Page’s B3 solo—possibly Trey? A flawless All Things smashes into a ripping mid-set Bowie, complete with cool All Things teases during the intro. Fish also slips in a Long Tall Glasses quote. The Crazy Train suggestions from the crowd crack me up, but instead, Fish treats everyone to his new Neil Diamond number. He even brings out the Bag-Vac for Rosie! Tight YEM closer with Mike or Fish dropping a “saay what?!?” in reference to Wash Ufizi, plus a fun Three Blind Mice tease in the vocal jam that wraps up with the Lights Out.

SET 1: Crowd Control: cool. Forgot Trey used to call for this one a good amount in early 3.0. No complaints here, feel-good opener for this summer show. My Friend, My Friend: perfect follow up, feels good in this spot. Give us some dirt, boys! > Scent of a Mule: yee fuckin ha! This explodes out of the end of MFMF in style. No rest for the wicked so far! Raging klezmer section leads into some marimba lumina playing that almost sounds like an acid bassline, would go hard at a Shpongle show. The audience starts a clap-along, funny. To be honest this is a pretty uneventful Mule breakdown, pretty much just a marimba bassline with no accompaniment. They would go on to perfect the marimba-led Mule breakdown on 7/20, but I respect the attempt to do something different here. Undermind: cool. A little funkier than usual in the composed section. Standard version otherwise. Fish is good at this whole drumming thing, eh? So good that Trey introduces ‘Moses Heaps!’ after the song finishes. Naturally they have to go into a Fish-led song next… A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing: the 2.0 songs keep on coming. My opinion: don’t play this one unless you are willing to jam it. Doesn’t fully work as a type 1 tune IMO. This one has some good rage from Trey though. I Didn’t Know: Trey highlighting Fish again! Cool. Fish is introduced as Moses DeWitt. Foam: very nice. Another Fish-led song. Let’s see how they do. The answer is: very well! A little on the slower side but not many flubs to my ears. Wombat: nice call, they’re having fun. Super tight, SUPER funky version. Good stuff - recommended. Divided Sky: yesssss. I’m grinning ear to ear. Tight composed section, well done. The jam portion and ending are much less inspired. It’s still Divided Sky so who cares. Wading in the Velvet Sea: okay cooldown placement. Good solo. David Bowie: great way to end a set. Concise, raging, rocking Bowie. Good. — SET 2: Carini: the ol’ 3.0 reliable. After the (slightly shaky) composed section, jam starts out in a typical rocking, tense zone, but very quickly moves to quiet major key playing around 5:30. Cute little space here especially with Trey’s strummy riff that starts up soon after. Good playing from Fish. Trey darkens it slightly a couple mins later and then commits to a rock-adjacent space at 9:30. Sounds like it’s gonna enter a cool Camden CDT-ish jam with whale call, but Trey abruptly aborts it for > Waves: it was a solid Carini but they didn’t land on anything particularly special so I understand this call. Surprisingly nice major key peaks from Trey before they return to the head, then Page pushes a very pleasant droney ambient jam with fluttery Fish and plenty of Mike bombs. Remains me strangely of a Necks jam. Trey’s loops starting at 8:45 - lovely. I’m floating in the sea at night. Fades out naturally, no ripcord. Nice Waves here! Recommended. They found what they were looking for in Carini. Wingsuit: biiiiig fan of this placement after the end of that Waves ambience. Nearly any song can be redeemed by a good placement - exhibit A here. Piper: fast as hell to start. This is like an ‘00 Piper in the early going, minus the long intro of course. Trey is out for blood at the beginning of the jam with some aggressive playing but then he hits the wah pedal and we’re in funk zone. Holy clav @ 5 minutes! Really is the instrument of the tour. Back to rock at 6:30, then back to funk at 7:20. This section is awesome and sounds a good bit like the Fuego break, Page ripping the organ and all. Back to rock once again at 9m and with Page plonking those heavy rhythm chords we’re on the way to some nice hose. Totally shreds from here on out. Sounds exactly like a post-BD bliss jam but with that extra edge of a slightly younger Trey’s dexterity and Page’s swaggering confidence. You don’t hear too many jams like these in the first half of 3.0 so this is very cool. Good stuff, check it out! > Fluffhead: wow, Trey’s feeling brave if he’s going for this here (and it’s fast too!) Interesting placement. Yep lol this is flubbed by Trey almost immediately after the vocals - figured this was a bit ambitious. Nothing irreparable. Pretty mundane version from there on out. Heavy Things: Trey is for sure in a good mood if he wants to play this here. Kinda strange spot but I adore this tune. Page gets some time to shine on the organ here, the band (save Fish) cuts out for a portion. Cute. > Slave to the Traffic Light: yesssss. Sometimes this can feel tacked on but I’m feeling this placement big time. Set ender? Standard, though I kinda enjoy some of Trey’s low-end work in the jam. Obviously not an all timer but this peaks convincingly. Nice Slave. You think the set is done and then… You Enjoy Myself: hahahahahaha there’s no way. Fluff, DSky, Bowie, Foam, YEM and Slave in the same show - 1989 called and they want their setlist back! So cool. Opening arpeggios are majorly flubbed by Trey. A couple more light flubs later on in the composed section. A shame! Jam goes quiet almost immediately and the crowd claps along. Very funky Mike and Trey interplay here - reminds me of Khruangbin for some reason. Extremely cool stuff. Man if only Trey hadn’t fucked the composed section so badly. Mike is EVERYWHERE here. Gets dissonant and goofy at 14 mins in, Fish on the cowbell. Then Trey teases Wombat lightly at 15 mins and begins to angle towards a peak, but there isn’t much of one. Bass + drums with Mike’s crazy effects pedals and then a funny, weird vocal jam. Give this one a listen, but the flubs unfortunately preclude the listenability here. ENCORE: Suzy Greenberg: standard. Vibes. — OVERALL: don’t have too much bad to say about this show. Does it lack a ‘big moment’ or two typically present in the greats from this era? Sure - it’s a little vanilla. But there isn’t really a slow stretch here and the setlist is remarkably solid. Maybe not quite as relistenable as some other shows but that set 2 is pretty damn good, I’d be pumped after seeing that. Waves and Piper are quality as fuck, Wombat, Slave and Bowie aren’t too far behind. Check it out. 3.8 stars.

My first show, and this was a lot of fun. Julius and Loving Cup set openers were both great surprises. Soul Planet and Martian Monster are two of my favorites and it was great hearing them back-to-back. The Mikes/Hydroden/Weekapaug leading into a 26 minute Everything's Right in set two was perfect. Everything's Right kicked my Phish Phandom into high gear in March of 2020 and was such an emotional lift during shutdown, so hearing a great version live in my first show was a priceless life experience. This may not be the best show ever (or the best show that week for that matter), but definitely a great first show for me.

Amazing digital audience source available on streaming platforms for this show! It really captures the sound of the Broome County Forum perfectly. Definitely not a SBD as reported. There are a few digi zaps in Reba, Brother, Sloth, and Fire, but the rest of the show is clean. Huge thanks to Mr. Mystery taper! They hit the ground running right out of the gate with a tight Wilson flowing into a fantastic Reba. Trey introduces the alligator pit and references it throughout a red-hot Brother. Every song from Glide through Mound is flawless. The Antelope closer strikes the perfect balance of soft and loud in the jam. Fish even pulls out his bone during the Marco section to top it all off. What a first set! Trey teases Roundabout at the start of the second set, then things explode with a ferocious Mike’s Groove. The Groove is absolutely killer!! There have been some outstanding Weekapaugs recently (ie 11/8, 11/21), but this one is easily the cream of the crop up to this point. “Make!!!” Make turns into Mike, which leads to the band rolling through the crew roster in an absolutely wild version of Sanity. The Hood that follows is beautiful. At the start of Foreigner’s Cold as Ice, Trey drops the fun tidbit that the last rock band to play the Broome County Forum was indeed Foreigner. A fantastic Possum closes out set two. “This is a song about brutal death!” Trey teaches the Secret Language for the third time this tour. There’s a micro Bowie jam baked into the opening of Possum to give an example of how the Secret Language works. Fantastic way to end an incredible night of music!

First rail show for me!!! Right in front of Trey!!! In the Seahawks Wilson jersey. Got a Trey point+laugh after Julius. What a night [b]Boogie On Reggae Woman:[/b] Starting off with some funk and a nice solo by Trey [b]Undermind:[/b] Good work from Page and Trey [b]Bouncing Around The Room:[/b] Standard [b]Birds Of A Feather:[/b] Huuuuge type 1 feel good version [b]Esther:[/b] Couple rough spots but good to hear as always [b]Funky Bitch:[/b] rager [b]It’s Ice:[/b] not perfect put nice Page clav during the short jam section [b]Ether Edge:[/b] jam starts quiet and pretty, then grows in intensity before breaking completely free into the first type 2 of the night and after a couple minutes peaks [b]Moonage Daydream:[/b] One of my most wanted not seen songs at the time. Absolutely incredible smoking version to close the set [b]Everything’s Right:[/b] Jam gets off to a slow start and didn't get anywhere too interesting before segueing into [b]Simple:[/b] Nice Trey soloing to begin the jam and a few beautiful minutes emerge before Trey pushes on. Jam ends in a great peak [b]A Wave Of Hope:[/b] Fun effects usage from Trey and another pretty jam for a bit [b]Simple:[/b] Sandwich!! [b]Beneath A Sea Of Stars Part 1:[/b] really cool no lights moment. Gets weird which is good [b]Gotta Jibboo:[/b] really great energized version especially Trey [b]Suzy Greenburg:[/b] Page’s house [b]Julius: [/b]another set closing rocker. (Trey point!!) [b]Izabella:[/b] cool cover [b]Possum:[/b] ending the show in appropriate fashion Solid show with not a ton of creative jamming in my opinion but solid performances throughout. This is a 6.5/10 show. Highlights are Boogie On, Birds, Ether Edge, Moonage, Simple, Wave Of Hope-> Simple, Beneath A Sea Of Stars, and Julius

Waiting all night with my friend Jason on Alligator Alley listening to West Palm 96 on repeat seemed fitting. I also remember a State trooper and a megaphone yelling at the vehicle in front of us that's how you drive in Arkansas you don't get out of the way when police have lights on not sure what was going on there might have been a band member punking him. He got out of the car was like this is rental I'm not even from Arkansas. I remember walking backwards down the Alligator Alley just to get out and move around and some yelled Possum at me and I was like weird but no there was a dead possum on the side of the highway I almost stepped on. I also remembered some older folks maybe in there 80's just kind of distraught from be stuck in traffic with a bunch crazy's lol. Sun has risen we have not made much progress in traffic overnight couple kids who walked from Ft Lauderdale Airport have shown up and would like to hitch a ride. So finally I looked at Jason I said let hit the breakdown lanes and find out what is going on we make our way to the front a Sheriff is giving us a boat load of shit for having to passengers in the bed of the truck but they let us pass. We make our way to the country store/ gas station at the Big Cypress exit I said to Jason we better fill the truck up with fuel before we get in. I walk into this country store it has been rampaged not much left. I did see a disposable camera one left I should have bought but on our very limited budget we decided against "regret". We make our way to the gate security mirrors under the truck they looked through everything found my marsh mellow sling shot no big loss there. Looked over at the mountain of tanks they acquired probably the largest stack I had ever seen. Now it's off to park and camp made our way onto 8th ave or st what ever it was. Find a spot next to some Florida cats who had a giant light up Santa on a pole which made for easier navigation for the weekend. Time to boogie hour before first set Night One made our way to the field security checking people stuff to get on the field. Walk to empty line with a Rasta dready guy just kept on going not sure why no one was in that line had nothing to declare just walked in. Caught the first set Chief Jim Billy some cheesy Alligator song at this point I need a nap so off to crash for minute. I half a sleep and I hear Wilson from what felt like a mile away. Time to get moving again really just need little pick me up after that don't really remember to much from night one. NYE so lets get this party stated middle afternoon pretty warm out but not crazy for Florida so Spit Open and Melt comes on I decide this is a good time to melt. Things hit me little hard I'm now in the field inventing the Tebow my friend goes and grabs me a lemonade for the rescue and I catapult back on the train funky after midnight jam and now I'm hungry back to camp for some roman and summer sausage that was a holiday gift which was only source of food do to bad planning and traffic. NYE set I'm flying pretty high anticipation got the fther time guy peddling moving a clock that seemed to be for ever cheers to all it's all little meatstick dance and balls flying everywhere I get nailed in the head by a 8ft ball little whiplash no big deal balloons popping disease insanity has erupted at this point. Know I have to take a piss I look at Jason I'll be right back he was like yeah right 80k plus you find this spot I was like no worries I'll be back look around seen some shoes on the person next to me light up Jordan for reference easy. I venture all the way across the field hugged some people drank some champaign make over to the wooden back stage fence to piss with a hundred phans smell was ripe. Then walked back throught the 80k folks in the dark to my friend. Rock and Roll guess everything on outside was alright. Yem and cheesecake just insane probably still the best one I remember brain melted on the ground into this amazing crosseyed that is up their as one of the best but still have the 96 west palm in my head at the time honestly nothing touches that version. I'm full dance vibe through sand and into quadrophonic which would echoe throught the forest and just amazing experience of sound not sure how to explain this but it was pure bliss and enjoyment. Slave comes on and its quite could probably here a pin drop then Trey goes into Albuquerque yells out some random States North Dakota which was funny Jason yells being born there we get a little laugh. Then its reba time fun with some plaster mix. David Bowie always amazing piece. I'm just in the groove at this point until sometime around the horse and Silent in the Morning just quite and making me little emotional at this point probably through bitter sweet motel. Piper comes on and we jamming again free then Lawn Boy emontional again just enjoying the monument. Then hyu and the most insane vacuum echoes through the forest and back to us a sound that is hard to put into words. 2001 into wading in the velvet I believe I'm still wading in that velvet sea. Meatstick still wading the velvet sea lol Then here Comes the sun as they walk of my friend Jason pokes me and he is like its over I laughed no it just began. Still really high feet need a good scrubbing. Some interesting memories like looking at the mercury floating in the canals Giant Paper Airplane the guy dressed as a jester who I though was the devil for a minute. Some nice young lady who was picking ground scores after the show she was cute never got her name but she invited me back to camp way to spun for that. The lovely lady who gave me a single match to light my cig after the show and honestly was probably checking on my well being . The Seminole who told me we where leaving with more garbage than we brought in. The cheesecake light setup made me hungry ck5 Yvonne for giving a burrito love you Vonnie. Captian Cosmo and his boat car.

This show features a decent SBD source for the soundcheck, though the pitch is a touch sharp. The audience recording is clean but a bit muddy. Huge thanks to John Redmond for capturing this one! The soundcheck kicks off with a fun Shaggy Dog that flows into a really cool jam. They briefly hit the Chalk Dust reprise before delivering the first full performance of Lullaby of Birdland, which had only been teased during the Providence Creaturelope. Mound and a smokin’ Maze round out the soundcheck nicely. Set one opens with Trey introducing a celebrity in the front row, Mr. Bruce Burgess, before firing off a Landlady/Rift combo. Melt holds its own, and the DaaM/Forbin pairing lands well. The story is more straightforward than the last Forbin/Mockingbird sequence in Portsmouth. All Things shows a few shaky spots, but a beautifully chaotic Bowie closes out the set. Set two kicks off with Glide and immediately launches into a raging Chalk Dust. NICU features another satisfying jam, while MSO comes across supercharged. Stash is well executed, and Coil showcases a beautiful Page solo. The YEM closer delivers from start to finish. Before diving into Sleeping Monkey, Trey playfully mocks part of the vocal jam.

Decent SBD source here (with some cassette hiss) up through Tweezer, where it switches over to a clean digital audience source. Big thanks to the mystery taper with the B&K 4011s for capturing this one. Things get rolling with a Buried Alive > Possum 1–2 punch. Possum features some secret language but no instructions, and Trey absolutely tears into it. Henrietta breaks out the vacuum during I Didn’t Know. Trey hits a few sour notes in Sky but quickly recovers and takes it home strong. There’s a tape flip following the Asse Festival section of Guelah, then it’s straight into Rift. Trey takes nice solo in Rift—good stuff. While this Antelope doesn’t quite reach the heights of the Creaturelope from Providence, it’s still a tight and fiery closer to set one. A very enjoyable Jim opens the second half. Trey sends out a St. Patty’s Day greeting before launching into Glide. Poor Heart gets teased before they sneak through the back door into Sloth. A lively Poor Heart follows, complete with some funny banter about Cactus—“the man with the hair!” The SBD fades out as Tweezer begins, then returns with a strong audience patch. This is a thunderous Tweezer, pairing beautifully with Esther. Mike’s Groove may be pint-sized, but it hits hard. Fish introduces the whole band during Love You, along with his new toy, before a blazing Llama shuts down set two. For the encore, Trey mentions, “this is a pretty big room but we’re gonna try this anyway,” before the band delivers lovely mic-less versions of Memories and Sweet Adeline. Both come through surprisingly well considering the setup. The taper didn’t even need to bump the levels.

“What songs are you hoping to hear tonight?”, my friend asked from the passenger seat on our drive from Michigan to Columbus. As Keller Williams’ acoustic cover of Run Like An Antelope blasted from the stereo, I replied that I’ve reached a point in my Phish fandom where I’m looking more for variety and surprise than for replication of any specific endorphin rush from my past… “But I sure wouldn’t mind getting an Antelope!” A scan of recent setlists revealed that none of summer tour’s nine previous shows had been graced by the presence of the swift herbivore. I began to sense a tiny thrill of anticipation, that feeling I forgot. Columbus had hosted several memorable moments in Phish history, including the phenomenal Polaris ’99 Birds Of A Feather selected for a “Dinner and a Movie” webcast and the legendary 1994 performance memorialized on Live Phish Volume 10. Tonight marked the band’s first appearance in Ohio’s capital in 25 years, and its first at Ohio State University’s indoor basketball arena. It turned out to be a show full of interesting song choices, quirky setlist construction, and big jams in surprising places. AC/DC Bag kicked things off with 5 minutes of Bag and 6 minutes of stellar improv, a clear sign the band came to play. Next, Roggae scattered into a tumble of major-key sunbeams, and the first Vultures of 2025 offered the crowd a chance to woo Trey into a broad smile. Martian Monster’s trip was short indeed. Mull, a Mike Gordon original debuted in 2021, delivered a jam so deep and intricate it seemed to surprise even the musicians themselves. Quick takes on Strawberry Letter 23 and Undermind then led to the first Petrichor in three years. I’m a big fan of “Broadway Phish,” and the many musical themes in this 14-minute piece were delivered crisply and cleanly. First set ended with a swirling, stomping, dark and dirty Life Saving Gun, almost 20 minutes’ worth. Very impressive. To everyone’s surprise, Sample In A Jar opened set two, followed by a 26-minute Wave of Hope. Distinctly different jam segments cascaded one after another until a screaming guitar peak crashed back into the chorus and the crowd erupted into a several-minute ovation. We were hushed by the atmospheric intro to Waiting All Night, a gorgeous ballad from the original Wingsuit suite not played live since 2021. Every member executed the song’s layered vocal parts so sharply, you’d never have guessed it. The pranksters onstage immediately swerved into the metallic crunch of Axilla (Part II), whose drippy outro bled directly into the musical centerpiece of the evening: A fire-breathing red worm named Piper. Tonight’s performance of the late-‘90s classic was its longest and finest since the band’s reunion in 2009, and the jam maintained explosive momentum across its entire 22 minutes, driven by Jon “The Machine” Fishman’s hairpin rollercoaster percussion. This was Phish at its antigravitational psychic-network best, the kind of playing that recently has so many jaded veterans shaking their heads and admitting the band might be better now than ever. Brisk jaunts through Lonely Trip, Number Line, and Loving Cup felt like a victory lap. With dopamine surging, I could feel the hooves of my Antelope encore approaching from a mile away, but the band had two more surprises beforehand in the form of Bug and The Mango Song. Finally, Rocco and Marco made their triumphant appearance and carried us across the evening’s finish line at a dead sprint. What a show. Phish wins again! We emerged into the humid summer night completely satisfied, reassured that Phish *always* wins, and our favorite band’s intent is *still* all for our delight.

Crispy dSBD source for this one, with vocals sitting extra high in the mix. Things get rolling with a tight Jim > Cavern combo. Trey’s guitar is a bit buried early on, but the balance gets sorted out soon enough. Reba is smooth and well-paced, and Stash brings the fire as expected. Chalk Dust finds a nice little pocket before easing into an appropriate A-Train. They wrap up the first set with a clean, albeit standard Mike’s Groove. Set two kicks off with a straight-ahead Golgi before bursting into an explosive Llama. Trey blanks on the opening verse of Melt but quickly finds his footing, leading the band through a strong version. Excellent version of Hood — the extended intro alone is worth the listen, and there’s a neat Off to See the Wizard tease tucked into the opening of the jam. After a fun Cracklin’ Rosie, Trey introduces “the man who only sings songs from the two greatest artists of our time, Syd Barrett and Neil Diamond.” lol. Possum closes the set in fiery fashion, peppered with some secret language signals but no explanations. Sleeping Monkey opens the encore, and hometown hero John Popper jumps in during the Let It Be section. He sticks around for a blistering GXBX to cap the night.

Just noticed that David Bowie was performing on this same night at The Starplex Amphitheater in nearby Dallas, TX (a recording of which was released and titled OUVREZ LE CHIEN). Maybe an impetus for the debut of Life on Mars? or just a coincidence. Either way, glad that song joined the Phish catalog, eventually leading to the Halloween performance of Bowie's Ziggy Stardust and Spiders from Mars.

Crispy SBD source available for this show. Big thanks to Arty for remastering this classic performance! They kick things off with a solid Curtain>Melt combo. Melt features a killer little jam. Page takes a B3 solo for the first time, having used his electric piano during the solo section in the first three versions of Maze. Still no tension and release during Trey’s solo. The Sky that follows is blistering. Fluffhead is well played, with a cool Follow the Yellow Brick Road tease during the arrival section. This leads straight into the best Antelope up to this point, and arguably one of the best Antelope’s of their career. This Antelope is absolutely bananas! An inspired Wilson opens set two with fun Somewhere Over the Rainbow teases in the intro. A solid Brother follows. Horse>Silent is still a work in progress, lacking Trey’s guitar trills at the end. Landlady>Lizards makes for an interesting pairing, as does the My Mind>Sloth that follows. Henrietta treats the audience to two solos — one from his new Bag-Vac and the second from his vacuum. The Possum set closer includes another Secret Language lesson, as Trey notes “word has not spread yet since the Portsmouth shows.” Solid but fairly straightforward version. At the start of the encore, Mike says, “I’ve never played one of these before, it’s high time I start,” referring to his new accordion. Beautiful opening to Contact, and Fire rips to wrap up the evening.

SET 1: 555: not thrilled about this as an opener. Don’t mind opening with new songs but this doesn’t do it for me in this slot. Kill Devil Falls: sure, that’s more like it. Decent type 1 peak, sticks to the standard formula. Bouncing Around the Room: meh. Weird flow to start the set. Reba: sure. Fast by 3.0 standards! Pretty nailed composition too, considering the pace. They practiced this one. Jam section is vanilla but very well done from Trey especially. Ripping end with a big guitar peak, then whistling and so on. Quality vanilla Reba, nothing exceptional but very clean. Waiting All Night: big fan of this straight after a Reba jam. Great version. Clean, with organ high in the mix and some Mike bombs that get a cheer. They take some time after to decide on a call. Birds of a Feather: god, I wish I could drum half as well as Fish does on the verses of this one. Below average version. Halfway to the Moon: oof, this doesn’t add much to the set. > Sparkle: not the smoothest version. > Sample in the Jar: yeah, not into this flow at all. A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing: too little too late. Trey develops one or two interesting ideas in his solo but it is short. Stash: maybe we’ll get something going here? Well played composed section outside of one small mistake from Trey after the ‘woah’s, nice and fast too. Jam starts in a jazzy space, nice playing from Page here and in the whole jam really. Trey and Page build up some really solid old school tension and then peak it. The peak is so close to being great but Trey misses a few notes and then is way off at the very end. Close to being a great version but unfortunately isn’t quite one. The Squirming Coil: looooool at Mike’s high pitched screaming during the final chorus. Good solo from Page, nice and lengthy. Ever the MVP of 2014. Page dedicates the song to Pollack at the end. — SET 2: Golden Age: an… interesting choice to have this open set 2, but I prefer it here than ripcording a jam later on. Trey forgets a few lyrics, film at 11. Keep an eye out for Trey playing one (1) chord with wah at 6:30 and the rest of the band changing course on a dime within a literal second. These guys know each other so well. Funky jam finally picks up a fun riff at 9:20ish and becomes groovy as hell - total four headed monster 10 minutes in. Page is a funk machine! Crowd loves the direction things are going at 11:30 and roars its approval. Totally searing clav at 12:50, jeeeesus - this becomes a theme of the ‘14 Northerly run. All of a sudden Fish moves to end the jam and collapses into freeform chaos as 14:30, while Page lays down some g funk synths and Trey loops some effects. Then - bam, all of a sudden Fish reforms the jam at 15:30! Trey signals to bring things quieter again, there’s a brief move into a slow feel, and then the jam falls apart once more into synths and space. Funk fans should definitely check this one out! Great set opener. Crazy that all this is accomplished in a hair over 17 minutes. > The Mango Song: yes!!!!!!! Wow!!!! What a call from Trey. That’s ballsy. Love this song and it’s done well. Sand: cool spot for this. But this Sand is extremely short and is aborted within 6 and a half minutes - it grinds to a total halt with the ripcord into Piper. You can tell Trey is checked out of the jam by the 5 minute mark. What gives? Disappointing. > Piper: well, here’s hoping this is good enough to justify that ripcord. They speed through the lyrics and get into typical fast-paced old school jamming, kind of like a 2000 Piper but with less Trey shredding. Some stop-start work at around 6:30 and the move to funk is inevitable from that point onwards. They lock in on a percussive feel at 7:30, good stuff. Listen to Mike shredding it up with those fast runs! Trey lays down some effects at 8:40 and Fish, just like in Golden Age, takes this as a cue to end. Not sure if it was indeed a cue to end or if Fish misinterpreted Trey’s intentions, but again just like in Golden Age Fish starts up a new beat at a different tempo. Seems like it’s gonna get really interesting with Trey’s delay-based playing and fiery Page piano, true type 2 stuff - but Trey has other ideas, moving -> Halley’s Comet: I mean sure, solid transition. Not crazy about the placement though. Mike doesn’t come in with the ‘doop joop’ vocals until the ‘what would you do’ verse. Song feels incomplete without them! Kinda awkward and uncertain version. At the end Trey is clearly angling towards some other funk tune, and then -> Wombat: lol at this point why not. Love this song and the weird vibes of this set suit it here somehow. There’s clear intent to take this one for a ride very early on after the composed section. Meatball tone from Mike at 4:30 leads to a flurry of Trey and Page interplay at 5:00 – feels uncertain until 6:00, when the rhythm section locks in on a beat and suddenly we’re off. MASSIVE Mike bomb at 6:40. Sort of airy and indifferent space with fluttery guitar for a couple mins, pretty pleasant. Trey pushes for something faster at 8:30, and soon after we’re in a shuffling space with Fish hitting a great beat that reminds me of Jim a little. Unfortunately the guitarist can’t find inspiration here and once again hard rips > Chalk Dust. There’s length to this Wombat but unfortunately not a ton of substance. > Chalk Dust Torture: okay. Man Fish really wants to make this show something - listen to his kick drum work at 5:30ish - WOW. Actually a pretty good type 1 rager here, Trey sounds more comfortable with type 1 playing this show than with boundary-less improv. Slave to the Traffic Light: standard. — ENCORE: Julius: Page out on the organ to start the jam. Fun. Trey’s solo is standard and then it’s over. Low-key version to close the night. — OVERALL: the flow is just all over the place tonight. One or two good highlights in isolation - mostly that Golden Age really - and then a whole lot of meh. The momentum shifts and abrupt transitions between energies in both sets really sink this show for me. I’m a lot lower on it than .net is it seems. Check out Golden Age>Mango>Sand and maybe Reba and Waiting All Night. 3.2 stars.

Who voted this show down? This was the beauty and majesty of this band at full force. A true classic. It doesn't matter, I know but for gods sake this was monumental and the people who shoved this down the stream are jaded. The whole show was beautiful from front to back. I have to type more to qualify for a real review. The Phish cant stop and they wont stop.

If you can make it through Buried > Bag without wincing, you are likely also a fan of 85-86 era Phish. The entire show is way off, and it’s not just Trey; Mike and Page are wild throughout, and Fish, from the recording, sounds like he might be frustrated with the other guys in the first set, to the point in Bag where I thought he really might stop playing. A bunch of short, flubby tunes put this set out of its misery. Set 2, if you are a fan of the IT 46 Days, offers a little more than the first. DWD is a solid, dark, rhythmic version that will make you wonder, perhaps aloud, “is this from the same show?” Indeed it is, and trash immediately follows. But the Disease is pretty freaking good.

I'm noticing these show reviews are of the SBD / tapes audio. I was actually AT this show. I'm that old. I remember the covers most, and the fact that there was a keg just outside the door behind the stage. The band and 1-2 crew were just hanging out there drinking and smoking with us like regular Joes. Kinda funny to think about that these days. Trey was a big fan of sleeveless cutoff T-shirts and white basketball sneakers with the tongue sticking out back then. Also Fish with the long hair and racquetball goggles was a fun look. ~Nigel

Decent audience source for this show, with just a touch of cassette hiss. Big thanks to Dave Shanker for pulling this one down and Todd and Arty for getting it into circulation! Things kick off with a nice Runaway/Foam combo. Stash slays. Showboat Gertrude’s bag-vac is barely audible during I Didn’t Know, which Trey dedicates to Nectar himself, somewhere out in the audience. Solid Reba. I’m loving Page and Trey’s solos in the newer reworked version of Rift! Page takes the spotlight during Magilla, and Llama rips per usual. A solid YEM closes out the first half, with the first extended nirvana section. Set two opens with a standard Golgi. Tweezer is fairly straightforward but rocks hard, and Eliza provides a nice landing pad. Some tasty B3 action from Page in Ice’s midsection, followed by another pretty Coil solo. Page kicks off Bowie with a shoutout to Matt DeCorletto and friends, sending them to the Flynn Box Office, while Mike has fun deconstructing Matt’s name. lol The band goes backwards down the setlist line during the hi-hat hijinx, teasing every song that came before Bowie up to the first set-closing YEM. Rippin’ version all around. Cracklin’ Rosie ends with a big atypical flourish, MSO closes with an extra-long pause, and Cavern wraps up set two. The encore starts with Sweet Adeline coming through loud and clear, followed by a well-played Weigh and Tweezer Reprise.

Absolute barn burner of a show! Wolfman, like Buried Alive the night before, is such a classic show opener. I must admit I was wearing my Llama shirt so I was pretty stoked to hear a nice FAST Llama in the 2 hole, even if Trey flubbed the opening bit at first. The Martian Monster was funky af, Trey had a lot of fun with the crowd during that long pause in the middle of a beautiful Divided Sky, and the Axilla was fun and rockin! I've always thought that Taste is [b]way[/b] underrated and they gave us a good one to end the first set. But the 2nd set is really where it REALLY took off. The Carini/Light sandwich was over 30 minutes long and melted my face clean off; everyone was screaming when they went back into Carini!!! It was one of those evil Phish jams where they get so far away from the song during the jam, almost to the point of leaving the audience confused, and somehow bring it back without any pointless noodling in a way only these four can. This gave way to Sand, which they once again used as an extended jam vehicle that got weird but funky. This was my first Lizards and they rocked it the fuck out, and the YEM to end the set had it all: Trampolines, the vocal jam, and more importantly, they came out of the vocal jam with more instrumental jamming that brought down the house. I don't care what anyone says, that YEM holds its own against any 1.0 YEM, and I confirmed that listening to the soundboard recording a week after the show, so don't tell me it's attendance bias! Finally, the closing Encore was, I believe, the 2nd longest Meatstick ever played. Boy did it get funky and jammy, all 12,000 of us were dancing our asses off like we weren't tired from 2 straight nights of dancing. Definitely their best show of September, and that 2nd set may be the best set from 2025. Killer show, blew the first night out of the water.