Friday, 06/29/2012
Klipsch Music Center, Noblesville, IN
Soundcheck: Mound, Life on Mars?, Joy
Set 1: Crowd Control, Dinner and a Movie, Sweet Jane, LxLLimb By Limb > Possum, Mound, Life on Mars?, MangoThe Mango Song > BBFCFMBig Black Furry Creature from Mars, Strange Design, BOAFBirds of a Feather, Halley'sHalley's Comet, WMGGWWhile My Guitar Gently Weeps
Set 2: DwDDown with Disease[1] > Sand[2] > Twist[3] -> Rift > GinBathtub Gin[4] -> Fluffhead > Ride Captain Ride > AntelopeRun Like an Antelope[5]
Encore: Cavern > Sanity, First Tube
[1] Unfinished.
[2] Walk This Way and Weekapaug teases from Trey.
[3] Trey said Mike's and Page's names with the letters twisted around.
[4] Trey said Fish's name with the letters twisted around. On Broadway tease (Trey), Twist quote, unfinished.
[5] Ride Captain Ride teases from Trey and Page, Twist quotes, Trey and Page saying "Marco" with the letters twisted around, and a "Marco"/"Polo" band/audience call/response.
Performers: Trey Anastasio, Page McConnell, Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon
Notes: Sweet Jane was played for the first time since October 31, 1998 (352 shows). After Sweet Jane, Trey informed the sign holders in the crowd that the band sees them the first time they're held up, so there's no need to hold them up throughout the show and block other fans' view. Page then dedicated Limb by Limb to the people behind the sign holders. Disease was unfinished. Sand contained Walk This Way and Weekapaug teases from Trey. During Twist, Trey said Mike's and Page's names with the letters twisted around. Gin was unfinished, featured a Twist quote from Trey, an On Broadway tease, and Trey saying Fish's name with the letters twisted around. Antelope featured Ride Captain Ride teases from Trey and Page, Twist quotes, Trey and Page saying "Marco" with the letters twisted around, and a "Marco"/"Polo" band/audience call/response.
This show was part of the "2012 Early Summer Tour."
Set 1
Crowd control: I really don't like this song. Super cheesy. Although, it was some what fitting considering how rigorously people were being searched getting in the doors, at least at th gate we went through.
Dinner and a movie: here we go. This was a good version that got the crowd jumping.
Sweet Jane: personally, I'll take cool it down over sweet Jane all day, but hey, we already got cool it down. This was icing on the cake. Good version.
Limb by limb: this limb was solid, but the banter before was hilarious. Don't bring signs and hold them up too long, but we're going to play this guy's sign...
Possum: a solid rocking version. Many dog on possum but I'll take it. It provides trey a sure fire structure to get his blues wailing rocks off.
Mound: after going nearly 70 shows w/o a mound, I got my 3rd in 2 summers. This was a good version and everyone came out of the middle section in sync and soaring.
Life on mars: this set was starting to feel a little hodge podgey, but it was definitely high end hodge podge. Personally, I love this song, and I thought they did another nice job on it.
Mango: a solid version. Trey didn't sound so sharp the last couple times I saw him play this tune, but everyone sounded good on this take. As this one wound down, trey had a little curveball prepared for everyone...
Bbfcfm: boom... They packed maximum weirdness into this wild one. It seems they could have built on this one but they went in a different direction...
Strange design: weird choice after bbfcfm
Boaf: trey sounds very in control as they slam down a nice type 1 jam on this one. It doesn't travel to far out there, so it moves easily back into the traditional ending.
Halley's: I'm a sucker for this song. Once again, trey takes a dominating solo here, but as they are prone to do these days, they shut the door on this one rather abrubtly and go into...
Wmggw: well, if you're not going to get a Halley's jam...
This was a nice pleasant surprise and as phish does, they did this rock classic justice.
This first set was not as silky smooth in the cohesiveness department as the night before's, but it was still a good solid enjoyable set.
Set 2:
This is not a flawless set, but there is still some must hear stuff floating around...
Dwd: I always kind I cringe when this opens a second set because its become pretty predictable, but this dwd is no freaking joke. It's the best one I've seen since the monster from the creek in '03. This one explores 3 or 4 very interesting musical ideas. Also, they move seemlessly between these ideas. Around the 12 min mark or so, trey really starts wirking on a very undermind'esqe groove. I was really pulling for them to drive into it, but they move away. Right as I accepted they weren't going to shift into undermind, trey cranks up...
Sand: this sand is not your daddy's sand. In fact, none of 2012's were. Instead of gordo and fish just sitting on the beat and letting trey bury it, trey rotates brilliantly between rhythm and lead, and fish and, especially, Gordon are constantly shifting the beat. Gordon packs so many different grooves into 8-10 minutes it's insane. Like the dwd before, they move seemlessly between different ideas, and gordo just shines throughout this sand. He accentuates his bomb filled bass grooves with some beautiful flurries of notes for accentuation. This sand moves nicely into...
Twist: this twist was pretty fucked from the get go. Trey missed a verse, and then he had some word play fun. I think the lyric flub threw him off, so the twist jam just never happened. Many had visions of them pulling off another monster, being hot on the heels of the beast in Cincy, but it was not to be. Instead of jamming, they go into...
Rift: well, trey needed to hit th reset button.
Bt gin: bam!! Just what the doctor ordered. Only the 3rd 3.0 second set gin. They quickly move away from the typical gin formula into some very thick "storage jamming." Gordon and fish have some heavy stuff layed down, and trey and page really get something going here. It sounds like this could be heading into gorge rock and roll territory, but it slacks for a moment and trey pulls the cord.
Now, in the realm of phish, I try to focus on what is and not what could have been, but this jam kills me. Maybe it was out of gas and trey wanted to pull it before that was evident, but it seemed if he would have held out a bit longer, this gin could've been an all time keeper. Either way, trey, in what was a pretty smooth segue, moves into...
Fluffhead: well, it's played a lot, it killed the gin jam, but I love this song! They put a lot of fire behind this super sharp version.
Ride Cpt ride: this is a nice rare score and I liked the somewhat odd late 2nd set placement. It went nicely with...
Antelope: the deer creek antelope returns!!! They didn't just play this song at every creek run from '95-'04, they ripped it. Sadly to many, the deer creek antelope had yet to pop up in 3.0. This was a good solid version with some nice ride Cpt teases. Sure, it's the second time in 3 shows I'd seen a 2nd set close with antelope, but fuck it... It's antelope!!
Enc
Cavern: well, I thought it was going to be another standard enc but...
Sanity: good version. Funny placement. Love it!
1st tube: phish closes the creek run down rowdy style. Not my favorite tune but it does the job. Beats another loving cup...
All in all, a damn fine night of phish. Dwd->sand is a fantastic 1-2 punch. Sure, gin didn't do what I thought it could do, whatever that means, but it is a nice departure from the norm. This is another sharp 2012 performance making the deer creek run a strong candidate for 2nd best run of the year... Behind dicks, of course.
Highlights:
Set 1: sweet Jane, life on mars, wmggw (yeah, cover heavy)
Set 2: dwd->sand(must hear!!), bt gin(very interesting and worth checking out)
Plenty of Phish shows have crazy weather stories that go along with them, and one this was no exception. Central Indiana was the hottest since the 1930s, said the weather reports. As we drove into Indiana for the first DC show (which, BTW, did not disappoint), we started to experience the epic heat - we'd step out of the car for a break and come back 5-10 minutes later, suddenly realizing that we were dripping wet.
The heat continued throughout the 29th, and with greater humidity! We got some dinner before the show, and all the sudden the sky got evil dark. Soon enough it started to rain like crazy - and hail! The wind was stupid strong. BUT, soon the storm passed, leaving the air wonderfully cool... at least for a while.
Set 1. I'd never heard Crowd Control and I don't remember much about it. Then BAM, Dinner and a Movie! YES! Second song and the lawn was just RAGING. They nailed it. Sweet Jane - another song I didn't know (I snuck off to the bathroom for that one). Limb x2 was nice, and then they ripped a new asshole in Possum. Possum has surprised me a number of times in 3.0, c.f. the Blossom Possum from 2011... this one, as I recall, just ripped HARD. Great to hear Mound, of course. Live of Mars? was completely unexpected and they played it wonderfully. I'm a big Bowie fan (meaning David Bowie the musician), so I was thrilled, and really quite surprised at how well Trey nailed all the symphonic crescendos. All smiles for the Mango Song. I was extraordinarily excited for BBFCFM, as it's one of my favorite Phish songs (really!). I'd never caught it live before, and I was flipping out with plenty of happy first pumping.
If I remember correctly, the rest of the first set was well-played, but short and to the point (which has been rather common occurrence thus far on this tour... not that I'm necessarily complaining).
Set 2 is perhaps a little bit hazy for me. My buddy and I were both quite happy with the song selection. I had no idea what was going on with Trey and his mixed-up name-twisting. The whole place erupted when Sand segued into Twist. Fluffhead was tight, which is how I like it.
The highlight for me was definitely the encore. Sanity? Are you kidding me? Talk about another song that I would have never ever expected! This was just so much fun. It was great to watch the huge monitors hanging from the pavilion and clearly see how sincere Trey looked as he sang the unsettling lyrics. First Tube was a great way to wrap up the DC shows, being a wonderfully energetic tune. Near the end Trey was doing his overly-excited hop-up-and-down, take-two-steps, hop-around-again thing (exactly as I remember seeing him do it from a video of the Tweeprise that closed one of the Island Tour shows from back in 98).
According the this fan, DC lived up to its reputation. I made lots of great memories.
The first set through BBFCFM is perfection. They really took their time and played everything very well. I was a bit disappointed that both BOAF and Halley's had almost zero improv. I love the placement of those two songs back-to-back, but they both felt a little rushed.
The DWD > Sand to open the second set is some of the best jamming from this tour so far. If you haven't listened to it yet, you're missing out. I do love Rift, but I thought Trey's decision to abandon the Twist jam was a little hasty.
Fluff > RCR > Antelope speaks for itself. Trey absolutely shredded the latter two, and Page really shined on Fluff.
A really surprising and energetic encore capped off a spectacular two days at Deer Creek. "I lost my mind just a couple of times" this week.
Hope everyone keeps having fun and the band takes a few more chances on stage. If it does not work sometimes making the mistake is the most beautiful thing! Peace!
both nights are a must download in my book!
The first set got off to a quick start with a semi-rare Phish tune Crowd Control. It was my first time ever hearing the tune, but it suffices as a set opener to get everybody moving. From there, Dinner and a Movie, which hadn't been played since the '11 UIC run in the same exact same set placement, surprised many but was a welcome addition. The elusive song selection didn't stop there with Velvet Underground's Sweet Jane being busted out, the first time in over 14 years and only the 3rd time ever.
The first set didn't end there with surprising songs; Mound and Life on Mars? were both played for the first time since SBIX. Musically, the highlights of the first set would have to be the tight Mound and Life on Mars? (thanks soundcheck), and the raging Possum.
Now for my favorite part of the show and coincidentally the first leg of the '12 tour, the 2nd set.
The musical highlights of the night all occur here. DwD was energetic and flowing. Sand was just flat out jammed out, definitely a must-hear highlight and in my opinion DwD>Sand is the highlight of the tour so far.
Twist had a clever maneuver from Trey, which broke from the usual Twist verses, that he twisted Mike and Page's letters in their names around. Twist was tight with more room to jam, although it was abruptly cut off with Trey leading the band into Rift.
The Rift was a basic one and not out of the ordinary. Bathtub Gin held a very tight jam led by Page when Trey was "twisting" Fish's name around. Although the Gin is short (only 8 mins), it is a pleasure filled 8 minutes that segues seamlessly into Fluffhead (another one of my favorites).
The Fluffhead was played very precisely and tight with little miscues. Out of Fluffhead came Ride Captain Ride, yet another rare bustout. As it was my first Ride Captain Ride, I was ecstatic when it was being played.
And to close the second set, Run Like An Antelope was a blast. With teases from Ride Captain Ride, Twist quotes, and more it's an action packed Antelope that ends with a little game of Marco Polo with the band and the crowd.
The encore was raging with an always energy filled Cavern segued into a Sanity. The sanity was insane. The band knew they couldn't leave everybody off with Sanity, so they busted right into the groove full First Tube.
To wrap it all up, the second night of Deer Creek had it all with many rare live songs in Crowd Control, Sweet Jane, Ride Captain Ride, and Sanity, jam filled ragers in DwD, Sand, and Bathtub Gin, and tight played complicated pieces like Fluffhead and Mound. The combination of these made for a great time for everybody at the show. I'm glad to be able to say I was there, and I enjoyed being there with all of you who made it as well!
Second set picked back up where night one left off. Out of the gates the DWD->Sand->Twist grabbed me and I found my self back on the intergalactic space ride I was on during last nights second set. Even though this Twist didn't have the layers and girth many have this tour it still was placed perfectly for me in the set. To my delight I then got 3 of my favorite Phish songs in a row with Rift->Gin->Fluffhead. Trey's crazy lyrics during Twist and Gin left a memorable uniqueness to the set. Showed me once again the band is just having a lot of fun right now. Ride Captain Ride played well to the theme of the night as bustout city. I think everyone was happy to round out the set with Antelope. This kept the party going and kept the dance grooves going.
Cavern->Sanity->First Tube finished things off in perfect fashion and ended one hell of a Creek run.
I think many left this show happy and they definitely got their money's worth and then some. Not at the level we got in night one but still left us with a lot of versions to listen back to.
Thanks again boys!!
