What the real fans are saying:

The new lights rock. Thanks for playing a
High-energy show. After hours of mediocre
Music played before Phish, I was ready
For all the other bands to: stop stop stop stop stop.
Tweezer can be in every 1st set and I'll
Never complain. Because I'm a fan of phish.
Kenny Rogers. Been a sing-a-long favorite
In my show-going circle of friends. Cool.
Mikey's new pedal sounds cool. And in case
Some fools didn't know, Jon B. Fishman
Was on point last night. Hood.Light was nice.

i dont know what is with all the negative criticism... Phish knows that no one from worcester was going to be at bonnaroo.. worcester rocked, and Phish treated the fans of bonnaroo to some great tunes from the previous shows.. to all of us that sit at home and listen on couch tour, we cant complain... IT WAS A FESTIVAL SHOW!!!!! of course they are gonna play the same shit.. come on now be smart, and dont hate!!!

That 'Rock n Roll" is epic. This would be a good show to play for someone who's not heard much Phish. A friend of mine who doesn't love Phish really liked the show. Still should have finished Hood..

I was in the crowd, and it all sounded pretty good. Not very fluid though, the flow seemed to be off and the crowd was not your normal phish crowd so the energy was off too. Biggest let down was the jambing, they never seemed to get it going or hit a stride. It was totaly worth the trip for the Shafty bust out though. I heard the first thump from Mike at the end of Carini and got super hyped up. I was yelling "shafty, fuck yes!" and people were looking at me like I was crazy. They had no idea what was going on, it was sad. I nearly creamed my pants, I've been chasing that one since '09 reunion.

Agree 100% with Corey. I was there and have seen many great shows over the past couple decades and dispute any of the criticisms I've read. Repeating songs makes no difference to me as I was at Bonnaroo all weekend, not in Worcester, just like everyone else there. I've seen a bazillion Hood's, having one melt in the middle and turn into Light wasn't bad at all. The worst part about the show was trying to pick a song to go take a leak during, cause it was all right on.

TL;DR: Carini > Shafty > Rock and Roll is worth a listen.

Well, it should be expected that we'd hear a more radio-friendly Phish at the 'Roo. And most of the night was just that: short, crowd-pleasing versions of popular, head-bobbers. For the collector, there's only a few noteworthy jams.

The entire first set was what I would call "loose." The band didn't seem to be "feeling it" for much of the set, IMHO. It wasn't BAD, per se. They just weren't nailing all the transitions. It was almost lazy in a way. But it was NOT badly played. It just lacked the punch and energy I prefer. Funky Bitch was a decent, fun version. The Gambler was... well, a gimmick, really. It was fun to see, but that's about it. Tweezer was... a first set Tweezer. It started out with a nice mellow, minimalist jam, but quickly entered more traditional territory and ended. It was a nice Tweezer, but nothing to get excited about. BDtNL was pretty and melodic, if you like that sort of thing. All in all, a nice but forgettable set 1.

Golden Age was a nice way to open the set. It was obvious from the start and throughout the second set that they were "feeling it," especially trey, who was hopping around and smiling and shouting. Golden Age included the start of an interesting jam section, but it didn't really go anywhere. ASZ/2001 was a very nice version with good groove, though it didn't have any exploration or anything. Chalkdust Torture (weird set placement) actually had Trey going into weirdo-land during the jam a bit. It seemed like he really wanted to take it down into the deep, but they didn't stick with it.

THE MEAT: Carini > Shafty > Rock and Roll

There was nothing too outlandish here... this is Bonnaroo after all. But the Carini actually had a very deep, chunky jam which is worth a listen for anyone. Shafty brought it back out of the deep into a nice funky groove for a short while before exploding into a stellar Type I Rock and Roll. It was hot! That block of songs is what the jaded, critical fan like myself would want to download to hear from this show.

When Hood started, I finally gave up and went to bed... had to get up early for work and it was already about midnight. So I don't know if anything interesting happened with the end of the show.

i will say this show is what i thought it would be... not a barn burner but still loved it and it seemed the band was having fun the whole time. plus i saw it for free on youtube so im not complaining one bit. love tweezer anyway i can get it. and the shafty was welcomed for sure. these guys are just warming up...like they said: know when to hold em know when to fold em.

This was an interesting little show! Polarized opinions abound, as was the case with the 2011 MSG NYE run when numerous phans were attentively watching the webcast in the comfort of their own homes...and, in some cases, the discomfort of their own expectations. The numerous repeats from Worcester were puzzling, to say the least, and I have to wonder whether the band was deliberately messing with the setlist-watchers.

Set 1 is basically split into 2 distinct parts, framing the Kenny Rogers guest appearance for The Gambler. The first 5 songs are solid enough, with some extra mustard applied to Sample and Axilla, but overall somewhat rote in execution and lacking flow. The Gambler is a routine version, as it should be, but a treat nonetheless. Such a great song! Things get flowy and inventive from here: Possum is a tease-filled firecracker, Wilson rages, and then Tweezer goes to some interesting places. Free is so-so, but Number Line friggin' explodes with emotion and creativity. Cavern is Cavern, and it brings the set to a solid finish.

Set 2 kicks off with a particularly inspired version of Golden Age, both vocally and instrumentally. 2001 and Chalkdust are intense. Carini -> Shafty > Rock & Roll is the highlight for many listeners, combining rarity and enthusiasm with a touch of exploratory jamming. Alaska is harmless fun, as usual. Hood is tight and patient, but the transition to Light is jarring. Good recovery, though, and Light concludes with a couple minutes of deep-space noise before dropping into a suitably rocking Character Zero > Rocky Top finale.

The triple encore is solid enough: Show Of Life is what it is, Julius opens up to a bit of jazzy thematic improv in the middle (similar to other versions since Essex 9/14/11), and Tweezer reprise is solid enough but they've done better.

All in all, an enjoyable but mostly unremarkable show. The Carini -> Shafty > Rock & Roll is a keeper, as is The Gambler for those who like that song. (I happen to like it a lot!)

I've listened to this show twice now. Yes they played repeats. Yes it was a fest. Yes there were no big jams. Yes the show absolutely rocked.

Say what you will, but IMHO the guys brought fire to Bonnaroo. They played a good show too, not many flubbs, tons of energy throughout.

I really enjoy the second set. All of it. Not what I would have chose if I wrote the set list, but damn fun set.

Guys I was at dcu and watched bonnaroo webcast. Dcu was rockin tour opener. Had tons of fun. Last night was what it was. It was for the masses so of course they stay in the jukebox zone. People at the roo aren't familiar with type 1 jams or how awesome a fuck your face would be so at least the threw in a shifty for the real phans.

I think this show was exactly what Bonnaroo deserves. It doesn't really matter at all actually and has no bearing on Phish as a band or on us as fans. This was the closer to a weekend of industry music, it is what it is and wasn't BAD by any means.

DWD is creative and devouring.

Funky Bith, TMD, Sample were mediocre preludes to a solid Axilla and then the bottom dropped out of the first set, completely.

I have never been a fan of guest appearances for Phish. It's basically a large brick that is thrown in the air before the show and is anyones guess as to where it will land. All that can be known is its going to land hard a compromise some aspect of whatever it hits. Springsting was an ego failure in '09 and Trey must not have been present during this years set to insist on Kenny Rogers after Axilla. Then to play The Gambler, even Kenny was wondering what the hell Trey was thinking. Axilla > The Gambler > Possum has to be one of the worst speed bumps in guest history.

Golden Age was Trey's revenge for Worcester and gives way to a good ASZ that had the crowd pumped. Onto CDT followed by the main treat of the night: A great Carini and then SHAFTY!! wow, playing off the energy of Shafty, a crowd pleasing phenomenal Rock and Roll elevated the entire night.

This is why people sometimes complain about what Phish is all about. After blowing the minds of everyone in attendance, Alaska is once again lost and never quite found by anyone. To make up for it, the band brings us a great Hood with an incredible ability to be the ambient trippy jam of the tour, but is ripcorded for an unneeded Light, blinding the entire moment that made me not really care for the rest of the set.

Harry Hood -> Light was probably the most uncomfortable and neck breaking ripcord I have ever witnessed. Harry Hood should have evolved into Character Zero for a winning segment to close the set.

Show of Life is a great song for the many misguided souls that frequent festivals of this kind. Julius and Reprise bring the show a good end and sends everyone back to camp with satisfaction but perhaps wondering what that really was all about.

From where I was sitting, I thought they sounded tight, with really great playing by all four guys.

For perspective, I should warn that I'm really not familiar with much post-1997 Phish. To my ears, their live performances from 1992-1996 are just perfect, and Junta through Rift (plus A Live One, of course) are where it's at. There are a couple tunes I like off Billy Breathes and a couple off Story of the Ghost, but I don't really know those albums well, and don't know the later albums at all. Although I've listened to tons of bootlegs, it's been almost 12 years now since the only other time I saw them live.

All that to say, I was excited to be seeing them again, but equally terrified that this being a festival show, they'd play mostly new tunes that I didn't know (I realize it's lame to just want to hear stuff you already know, but when you're only catching one show, it's nice to hear songs you love). So while I was bummed that we didn't get anything from Junta, Lawn Boy, or Rift, I was happy to hear several old tunes, and thrilled that I finally got a Hood. Or at least most of a Hood. But I'm not complaining. Ever-changing set lists are part of the deal, so I certainly wouldn't expect to hear all my favorite songs without following them around for lengthy periods of time.

As for the playing, I was quite impressed. In preparation for this show, I decided to check out some of the more highly-rated 2010 shows that are on Spotify (8/7, 10/26, 10/30, 10/20, 6/27, etc) to get an idea about how they're playing these days. I thought they were good, and there were a few moments that made me stop what I was doing and smile, but I felt like overall, something was missing in the feel. I wasn't sure if it was because they're older, or because of the experiences they'd just come through, but the groove just didn't feel quite there. Also, it sounded like Trey was using a pitch-shift pedal for a lot of the solos. Although I could imagine that being cool if you spent a ton of time becoming really really deft with it, I felt like it was distracting his focus from the song, and I thought it really sucked the life out of some of the solos. The point is, I didn't hear anything like that last night. I thought they all played tightly and exceptionally well, and that Page in particular shined with some really tasteful and skilled playing.

Oh, and the lights were phenomenal! I was up in the bleachers on the side, so I didn't get the front-on experience, but they were kind enough to put a feed of that up on the video screens from time to time. And looking down across the crowd, they at least seemed to be having a blast.

In summary, I was bummed (though not necessarily surprised) not to hear anything from some of my favorite albums, but glad that most of the "hits" they played were at least from A Picture Of Nectar and Hoist as opposed to newer albums that I don't know. And really glad to hear that they can still play so well! I'm looking forward to hearing more shows from this tour!

Also: @Jon Fishman. Hydrogen teases.
Xoxoxo

streamed it on youtube starting at Moma...
There were some cool moments... some puzzling moments...
As always when I see their faces and see them trying even if they don't know precisely where they're going, I want to hug each of them and say "Thank You!"

Mostly I just want to say that a Bonnaroo show is NOT part of Summer Tour. Let's not act like it is... it's more of an extracurricular activity for them...

I think it's interesting to see them in one of the rare occasions when the house isn't totally packed with phans already. These are the only shows where that context comes up. Perhaps this was revealed in what did kinda seem like Trey being a little nervous, especially in Set-1.
Bless him for caring. Yes I would be surprised if they "repeated" this many songs so quickly during tour, but even then, I'm not the boss here, they are. I also know that whenever possible, I like to let the songs of the day speak for themselves, which is why I try not to look at Setlists before listening to a show.

If you wanna get all "I can't appreciate the moment and I can't think for myself so I grasp for false cred by talking crap about repeated songs, and 'all hits' etc," than I'm sorry you're so unappreciative of this beautiful chance we have to still see a great band like Phish. I'm sure you wouldn't say it if you didn't care so much about it. That said, don't you worry your pretty little heart... just wait...
Thank you Phish, I look forward to the rest of Summer Tour...

So. much. fan. rage. Oh horror of horrors... country music legend Kenny Rogers joins phish on stage for .... the Gambler! And why? Because they thought it would be neat! For shame!!!

What the hell is wrong with some of you? Why can't Phish play the Gambler? I am listening at work and I think they sound great. I hear things like 'it was a neat gimmick, but not much else.' WHAT THE FUCK ELSE WOULD IT BE?? You know, just people, in a field, enjoying a familiar song. I feel bad for anyone who is actually angered by this. What a waste of personal energy.

Music is fun. Phish is pretty good at it, better than most even. This Tweezer is pretty.

That's all I got. carry on with your raging.

I think Show of Life is as shitty an encore choice an anyone, and when I FINALLY got my Shafty all those kids thought I was psycho with how blissed out I was, but I am truly lucky to have gotten to be a part of this show, and I gained some invaluable insight as to what Phish enjoys about playing shows. Watching them play to a crowd of 30-40K (most people had already left the 'Roo because of the rain or because they weren't interested), most of whom had never been to a Phish show, gave our boys an opportunity to wow the masses in a way they don't get to anymore. Honestly, how many vets of 1.0 can truly remember the way they felt leaving their first show? We spend way too much of our time now dissecting everything about every song, forgetting to be present and appreciate what is happening (Phish is playing!!!). When I go to shows, I always point out to my buddies that the encore has become expected as though we are entitled to it. Watch for it next time you're at a show, Phish fans seldom cheer before the encore, regardless of whether the preceding set was fire or not. At this show, there were several hundred people near me chanting "Phish! Phish! Phish!" with a level of appreciation and excitement that we can't achieve if we're listening for every Trey flub and criticizing every song selection. I think I'd RATHER just go on the oblivious fool.

Ummm if you wanted to see a good show...you should've went to worcester. They played for the real phans...and it was awesome. Nobody worth a damn in the bonnaroo crowd knows dick about Phish. I don't think they're gonna pick up on the DEG teases, or Awww fuck signal. I think it really IS time for some people to find a new band, there's a million of them out there bro. If you were at bonnaroo and you missed the tour opener at one of the most legendary venues in Phish history...you're an asshole...you chose the empty artificial party 'jam scene' over Phish...and I personally don't see how you even deserved to hear a heady show when it was clearly played to the masses who are not familiar with Phish...I bet they were the best band there still. Bonnaroo is beat...I bet the promoters begged Phish to headline because it would have sucked if they didn't show up. I could not be any less surprised by the whole situation. I don't even count it is a Phish show.

I just watched a video of The Gambler...I love how absolutely stoked Page looks!

Half the time, Phish should change "Funky Bitch" to "Whiney Bitch". Less repeats that way, and more people will be able to relate.

Just listened to the show again after having been there and have one more thing to add, the "aborted" Tweezer and Hood are both fabulous. If you need to see them finish Hood, go to the next three shows and you are bound to. If it's another 30 minute Tweezer you are looking for, download any show with a Tweezer from late '94 and stop living in the past.

People who used to complain in the 1999-2004 timeframe that shows were getting boring with every song turning into a 20 minute mix-mash of sounds that sometimes melted into cool jams (like me) love what is going on right now. The last couple times I've seen the fellas (my shows are much more spaced out now that I am old) it has reminded me of the good old days, when shows were fun and energetic and the 25 minute Tweezer was rare and still cool and I didn't sit there wondering if they would ever get on to the next jam. To be honest, most of us that have been seeing Phish for the past 20 years LOVE what has been going on for the past 2.

I actually tried to make a generous review from earlier, but still get voted down. This just proves this board is made of whiney extreme 3.0 fluffers that cry and go into denial when Phish plays a bad show. Phish can play 30 song show of their 30 worst songs, and people on here would be saying: "Oh, it was a gimmick set, can't you enjoy it?", or "TRUE fans would've liked this set." Trey can even go on stage, drop his pants, take a shit on the front of stage, then cancel the show, and you guys will still all cheer, and claim it was a top 20 3.0 show. Phish will redeem themselves in AC, i know it, so all of you fluffers just stfu and stop crying about other peoples opinions.

just listened to the first set on xm's jam on. was at worcester for both shows... plane and simple no were near as good. dcu was waaaay better

Highlight of the show was the tortilla war page side before it started. Phood Phight!!!!!!!!!!

This was the show that started it all for me. Say what you will about the Bonnaroo performance, but for those of us with virgin ears it was a life changing experience.

Phish played two public practice shows in Worchester to get ready for the Bonnaroo gig and still managed to come up short. This gig should have been "Phish 101" an intro to Phish for the non Phish crowd. The only show this year which will draw non-Phish fans. Keep it short, keep it simple, and keep the energy level up.

Sounds easy enough, don't play to phish.net, play to Bonnaroo.

Things you shouldn't do ...

1) Don't take all the energy built up in Axilla and throw it away by playing The Gambler - seriously, that is the worst song pairing I've heard. When you get the chance to play The Gambler with Kenny Rogers, sandwich him between Nellie Cane and Rocky Top. Not between Axilla and Possum.

2) Don't play Backwards Down the Number Line and Show of Life in the same show, ever, and definitely not at Bonnaroo. Ocelot and Kill Devil Falls would have been better for the Bonnaroo crowd.

3) see #1 above and don't play Alaska after Rock and Roll. Better yet, never play Alaska in the second set. It wont work, period.

4) see #1, #3 above and don't play Light between Harry Hood and Character Zero.

5) Don't make too many hard transitions, keep the flow as long as possible and group songs correctly.

- Rock and Roll
- Alaska
- Harry Hood
- Light
- Character Zero

It wont work. Ever, these songs will never flow into one another.

Rock Out, or Funk Out, or even Mellow Out, pick one, or slowly transition through all of the styles, don't make to many transitions.

This was a BAD show. I'm sorry, but not everything in life can be flowers and happiness. Yes, I know as how impossible it may sound, but this was a BAD show. Then to come on .net, then see people who express their opinion get -1, is outrageous. If you are allowed to say when Phish plays good shows, they should be allowed to say when Phish plays bad shows. Sorry, but I'll fluff 3.0 when it deserves to be fluffed, but this was just a very bad show. You can come up with excuses, and be in denial all you want, but that will not change the fact that the almighty Phish played a bad show.

just got done hearing the whole show. and both at worcherster. bonarro is a sideshow dont be suprised the show was still killer. to new heads.

So. much. fan. rage. Oh horror of horrors... country music legend Kenny Rogers joins phish on stage for .... the Gambler! And why? Because they thought it would be neat! For shame!!!

What the hell is wrong with some of you? Why can't Phish play the Gambler? I am listening at work and I think they sound great. I hear things like 'it was a neat gimmick, but not much else.' WHAT THE FUCK ELSE WOULD IT BE?? You know, just people, in a field, enjoying a familiar song. I feel bad for anyone who is actually angered by this. What a waste of personal energy.

Music is fun. Phish is pretty good at it, better than most even. This Tweezer is pretty.

That's all I got. carry on with your raging.

the first set i have to admit was not the best but it was still sweet i feel they wanted all the people at bonaroo to hear all their hits and try to lure them in... but that second set was striaght filthyness and i couldnt have asked for them to play any better. the weather was awesome too i was expecting 100 degreess dusty blazing sun but it was misty and cloudy and chilled. I drove all the way down from woosta and im glad i did because that was a great expeirnce

i got striaght shaftyed and the rest of bonaroo will just go on oblivious fools!!!

Phish shows are all about unpredictability, right?

How often do you catch a segue out of Harry Hood?

They played a good show for people new to Phish. You cant expect a festival show to be as good as a regular show if your a big phan. A 27 min YEM is amazing but to someone who has never seen Phish before it isnt gonna make them fall in love with the band. Bonnaroo features just about every type of music, so Phish wasn't playing to just jam band fans they were playing to bluegrass, pop, electronic, hip hop, etc. fans. They played shorter more recognizable songs to introduce the thousands of people there that where at their first Phish show.They gave the newbies what they wanted... HITS. And for the real phans there they throw in a few treats like Carini > Shafty and a spacey Tweezer. Bonnaroo isnt gonna give you the best of Phish but it is gonna give you the chance to discover endless amounts of new music and see some of the worlds greatest performers (Radiohead, RHCP). It was great over hearing people walking out that just realized how amazing a Phish show and will now check out how funky and wild they get on their own tour.

As for the repeats from Worcester... who cares. They repeated great songs. Also if would went to Worcester and then drove 18 hours to Bonnaroo you are a WOOK and missed an opportunity to see Radiohead play one of the most beautiful live performances ever.

I was one of the few who trecked from Worcester to 'Roo. Do I have the right to be upset about the repeats?
Anyways I thought this show was a bit underrated. The tweezer was nice, shafty is a highlight for me as well. Kenny kinda killed the flow of the first set in my opinion. Light is worth a listen as well. A light drizzle was falling down on this Sunday show and it felt AWESOME. A nice changeup from the heat and dust of the previous day.
3 stars

yeah I don't see why people talk negative about this show either. I mean it was an all around amazing show but it was phish being phish and being damn good at it! but I will say that this is my favorite tweezer from 2012 besides the 12/28/12 one!

Streamed the show on youtube. The first set was sloppy and you could see that trey was nervious. The letdown of the set was tweezer, not only did trey mess up the opening riff but when mike and fishman had a good groove going he just stopped the entire song to play free which i felt was a horrible transition.
The second set i enjoyed much more. no big jams but decent. Carini> shafty was enjoyable. Trey was more into this set jumping up and really getting into the music. was he nervious about kenny rogers ?

The one negative criticism I felt was that Alaska was a little
Too slow tempo wise. But I think it's cause Trey's usual tendency
Is to rush thru it. Might have been deliberately slow so people
Could take a leak and buy a hot dog.

skip it.

people judge this show not on the actual merits of what was played but rather on the fact that it happened at Bonnaroo. If it had happened anywhere else, all that would be talked about was the sick Carini>Shafty>RnR. As far as the playing. listen to BG2 or ATL then get back at me as to how "bad" this show was. All i see in most reviews is "im from the northeast, the show was not in the northeast so it is bad. very bad. oh its hot. there are bands that normal people have heard of. whine, whine, bitch, bitch." yall are pathetic. still pissed about repeats, flubs and lack of flow after leg 2?

I like how people look at shit, smell shit, hear shit, even TASTE shit here and then tell others it's chocolate cake! GROW UP PEOPLE! This set is SHITTY!