Review from 19 years after the fact... I walked into the show as Nellie Kane was finishing. The venue is really green and there was a nice breeze from the ocean (but not windy). The crowd was small - somewhere around 500 and definitely no more than 1000. I had no tapes, but I had Junta, Rift, and Nectar (I had bought them from a used CD place up in N Miami - we had to move to a warehouse in Miami Lakes after Hurricane Andrew destroyed our office down by the zoo) and I ended up at Bayfront in a serendipitous way. That day I bought Lawn Boy and the guy at the store handed me a copy of New Times that had an ad for the show. I tore it out and took it with me (I still have it somewhere). I was really in love with the Rift album and the show is full of great takes on the songs. My impression of the band was that they were incredibly talented but not incredibly deep - and that was surprising, because I thought Rift was a really emotional album. To understand my feelings you have to think that I never had heard a YEM vocal jam (a true WTF moment), nor did I get the Fishman part at all (Purple Rain... You should have seen the face of the security guard that was standing near me.) After that, I thought that the Free Bird was also a bit of a joke. Now I wish I had paid more attention. The only Free Bird that I've heard since then by Phish was the one in Tennessee that was not in any way at all à capella ;-) And I've never heard Lengthwise since then. Anyway, I was not "hooked", but I did find the r.m.p newsgroup and the next time I saw them (in Apr 94) I had a much better time. Foam, Stash, Ice, and YEM were highlights for me.

THE GOOD: After Phish totally destroyed the Tampa area, they took a breather with this show. The highlights here start with a fiery Jim opener, which, while not as good as the Jones Beach version from 7/23 a week earlier, features a beautiful climax. Also of note is a Stash that meanders until it hits the 7:30 mark, where upon the band locks in an eerie 8-note phrase and things pick up wonderfully. YEM is also strong, featuring a nearly perfect Trey note and one of the better vocal jams of the year. If you're up for some Trey shred, have a listen to this Llama.

THE BAD: The band left it all out on the floor the night before and this show is somewhat moderated as a result. Set 1 has a particularly tepid setlist, while the second set only runs about 25 minutes until YEM starts, and is somewhat short in general. A Sparkle in the meat of set 2 doesn't help much, either.

ETC: The amphitheater in Miami is right on the water, but also just a few miles East of the Miami-Dade airport; you can hear jets roaring overhead in both Foam and Golgi. Listen for an "Entry of the Gladiators" tease in Fee by Page (2:00) and the crowd cheer when Trey relents and sings the verses through a megaphone. The crowd sings along to Lengthwise and continues even though Fish drops out to start Maze. The band teases "Could you Be Loved" by Bob Marley at about the 12:05 mark - this YEM also features eerie whistling in the nirvana section, something that would pop up throughout the rest of the summer.

BOTTOM LINE: 3/5 A few strong points, but this one is pretty straight-forward with an uneventful setlist.