7-7-00 -- Star Lake Amphitheatre - Burgettstown, Pennsylvania

Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 15:56:24 PDT
From: Gary Fischman [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7/7 Star Lake Review
 
I've read the reviews of this show so far, and let me just say, I don't
agree with the majority opinion which seems to say this show was totally
awesome.  I'm not as down on it as the last guy, Mercatoris, or whatever his
name was, but I would have been had they not pulled out that killer Mike's
Groove at the end.  My opinion was somewhat skewed by strange circumstances
which had me waiting outside well into Divided Sky for my brother to show up
- he did later, but I didn't see him the whole night and was worried and
bumming.
 
(I) The first few songs I heard from the lot, my attention on finding my
brother and later, selling the ticket that I was sure he wouldn't get to
use.  What I heard of Chalkdust sounded raging, but not too disappointing to
miss.  Gumbo and Divided Sky were another story.  With Gumbo, my thoughts
went back to the 1997 show with the amazing, 20 min Gumbo with a jam at the
end that sounded like Franklin's Tower, which I only heard when I got the
tape, because I spent the whole thing in my car on the way in.  This one
funked nicely for a while, but ended way too soon.  When Divided started, I
thought, better sell the ticket now and hurry in.  Little did I know there
were still tix for sale.  I couldn't get much of a deal, since the only
people left outside were Miraclers.  I finally started in on the final
section, which went on for a long time, but never really sizzled like the
version I remember from 1996.  Oh, that sustain at the end, though!
The rest of the first set was strong, but nothing too spectacular:
 
Boogie on Reggae Woman was pretty standard - I went to the bathroom on it
only because I absolutely had to - waited at the door for the final note of
Sky.
 
Funky Bitch rocked.  Page solo well up to his usual, solid bass, just
ripped.
 
Maze - they took a long time to get this one started, but then another great
Page solo burst out.  In the middle of Trey's solo, he started playing a
familiar sounding theme, then Mike joined him, then the rest of the band.
Shafty!  How appropriately placed, as Maze is about being stuck in a
terrible place, while Shafty suggests you could be in Hell and not even
know.  Kind of point/counterpoint.  From Shafty, they shifted smoothly back
into a standard but furious Maze ending.  The definite highlight of the
first set.
 
Back on the Train - nice funk from Page, could funk out for a long time, but
not that night.
 
The Curtain - Yesssss!!  My first since 1995, and I didn't recognize it
until they started singing - just stood there and marveled at what the hell
was this great tune they're ripping out?
 
Character 0 - Oh well, it beats Sample or Cavern, and this was an intense
version.
 
(II)  Unfortunately, this set failed to build on the energy of the first
set.  Instead, the band spent most of it meandering through one limp jam
after another.
 
Ghost - I was psyched to hear this one after an awesome version in Philly
last fall.  But this one was just tepid, a lot of repetitious, waffling
chords from Trey and Page.  Mike and Fish kept up a good groove, but the jam
only peaked once, and then only somewhat, although it was hard to hear over
the crowd screaming at the glowstick war going on simultaneously.  Yes, a
little more volume would have been appreciated - or am I going deaf?
 
Jibboo - Again, this version paled next to the excellent one from Philly
last fall, my last two shows.  Even lamer than the Ghost, Trey's solo was
just too laidback and mild to add much to the proceedings, and then he went
back into the song and ended it.  Just like that.  The song has such an
infectious groove though.
 
Split Open and Melt - Woe is me.  I've been waiting for this great song for
4 years, and when I finally get it, they butcher it.  Not that there was
anything wrong with the composed part, that was fine.  But the jam, after
moving into a dark and scary feeling that could have been built into a
monster, just wilted instead.  Repetitious, boring, lifeless.  Trey started
to pull out of it with a lead, but apparently decided it wasn't worth it,
and the song just ended.  The biggest disappointment of the show.
 
Roggae - After the wipeout that was Melt, I had pretty much written off this
show.  I probably pissed people off around me by saying out loud, "They just
don't have it tonight."  This song came as a relief.  Finally, a song that
was just beautiful on its own, that didn't need a lot of energy to be played
well, that fit the laidback mood of the evening.  I sat down, relaxed, and
spaced to the music, only to be jolted out of my space by . . .
 
Mike's???!!! - What?  I had just about given up on this show.  Stunned, I
got up thinking, I just hope they don't mess this one up as well - it'd be a
waste of a Mike's.  No, they didn't waste it.  Trey served notice from the
beginning that he was taking charge now.  As the fog rolled out over the
stage, the irony hit me that the band was coming out of the fog they had
been in all second set and starting to rip.  A few minutes into the jam, I
realized, this wasn't just a solid Mike's, it was a GREEEEAAATT Mike's, far
better than even last year's Star Lake, or certainly the one on Hampton
Comes Alive.  Then the strobe thing started, and I couldn't resist whooping
and hollering out, "THIS is Phish!"
 
Simple - It seemed late in the set for this one, as it usually goes into a
long spacey jam.  Apparently, the band decided they'd done enough meandering
(although all the Simple jams I've heard have been exquisite), and they
didn't want anything to take away their energy now that they finally found
it.  Simple ended quickly and abruptly.  Then ...
 
Weekapaug - Mike just humped that bass intro so fast and furiously that he
even ignored Trey's attempt to start the song so as to play another round of
ripping riffs.  Then the song started, fast enough to begin with, but
building to such an extreme tempo, it was all I could do to dance in time.
All the while, all four musicians played with searing intensity, but
especially Trey, who just nailed that racing to the finish fluorish he does
so well.  Machine Gun Trey was back, and I was loving it.
 
Frankenstein - Not much to say.  Well played, just like every other time.
 
The show was getting a 3 from me until the Mike's started.  Overall, I give
it a 5.  Summing up, this show was one in which the new school style failed
miserably, but the old school stuff arrived to save the day.


Date: Tue, 11 Jul 2000 11:19:18 -0400
From: Gary Nader [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Review of 7-7-00
 
Finally, Phish has come back to Star Lake!!!!!
From what I have gathered and what my friends who have been to the other
shows this tour- Phish has been HOT!!!
Star Lake is my home venue and also a great place to see a show. I left work
at about 12:30 (Yes!!!), arrived in the lot around 3:30- lots of people,
chill scene, no trouble from the security.
This is the first show that I saw since the craziness of Big Cypress. I have
been going to Phish shows regularly since the summer of 95. I love Phish! I
love the music, I love the fact that tons of my friends are there and its
just great to get away and dance our asses off!!!
 
Anyhoo- the show. I was not going in w/ impossible expectations. I wanted a
solid show and that is what we got!
The first set:
Chalkdust, Gumbo, Divided Sky, Boogi On>Funky Bitch, Maze>Shafty>Maze, GBOTT,
Curtain>Char Zero
 
I was hoping for a My Friend or Curtain opener, but Chalkdust so fine.
Actually- As they took the stage I turned to my brother and said Chalkdust,
but thats not important! The Chalkdust was jammin.....We decided to get
closer, then Gumbo started- YES- and did they bring the FUNK! The first Gumbo
of the tour proved to be a good one. Page was moving through it smoothly and
Mike was getting it on as he did the entire show, esp the 2nd set!  We got
the Divided Sky that we were hoping for... and it was nice. The ending was a
bit different, but still a Divided Sky is rare these days. I started to make
my wa down in the pavillion w/ no problems when Boogi On started...WOW-
everyone around me were Freaking out...I ended up behind the soundboard.
Everyone down there were gettin it on and I was loving it!! Boogie On was not
that long, but it went into Funky Bitch! I could hear this song anytime,
anywhere. That is one thing that is cool about FBitch is that is can be
played anywhere! It was a good..Trey and Page going back and forth and the
lights started to take an effect as the sun started to make its way down!
By the way- the weather was great- perfect day in PA!
As Funky Bitch ended- the dude next to me and I started to talk...They
started Maze and we both freaked! This Maze was pretty normal, then Trey
started doodling and the rest of the band picked up on it and they went into
Shafty!
This is the first Shafty since the only one they have ever done- in
Copenhagen, Denmark. I was actually at that unbelievable run in Denmark in
1998!!
Anyway- I was in a bit of shock that they were doing this and praying that
they would go back into Maze and do the HUGE ending- which they did and did
well!
GBOTT was good to hear. I really like this song, especially that crazy noise
that Trey makes, it was a pretty standard version. Next was...Curtain-YES!! I
love Curtain and accidentally slept through the Big Cypress version. (I made
it through the midnight to sunrise set, but slept a bit too much on the 30th)
Thsi Curtain was great- back and forth, it was great to hear them bust this
massy song out!!
They kind of went into Char Zero. I was happy with the set so a Char Zero set
closer was cool. This was one fo the best versions that I have ever heard. I
also wish that they would not always close a set w/ this song. It jams and
would be a nice opener of middle-of the set song. Just a thought!
 
The set break was cool- met up w/ some friends and partied down.
Everyone seemes happy w/ the set and lots of good energy was flowing at Star
Lake!! I believe that the set break was about 45 minutes- the usual, if not
longer. Sometimes I think that a longer set break is good.
 
Second set: Ghost>Gotta Jiboo, Split Open, Roggae>Mikes>Simple.Weekapaug
Encore: Frankenstein
 
Everyone was greatly anticipating the second set. They dropped a Phat Ass
Ghost- WOW- Mike was all over the place- just straight up Dropping Bombs!
This Ghost rounded out at a little over 20 minutes. I was really into this
jam as it went many places. They were having a good time- smiles galore! I
cannot stress enough how Mike was on- The crowd really feeding off of him!
INSANE!!!
The jam ended up at Gotta Jiboo- which is a great song and has been jammed
like crazy this summer! This one did not disappoint, but was not as long and
crazy as some others this summer. I was happy with the set so far.
With Mike going off- they kept it going w/ a Bad Ass Split Open!! I am a huge
Split Open fan and always welsome the opening bass line. This version was
SWEET! I got a little lost in the middle jam, but they came full circle and
Trey went off at they end- (FYI- my favorite version of Slpt Open is 12/29/95
show opener- Huge!)
 
Everyone was boogying like crazy- what a great site -Phish jamming Slpit Open
and 22000+ dancing like crazy people! I was soooooo happy!
Roggae was a nice breather, but it really wasn' t a breatherv at all. I am a
big Roggae fan... this one was a nice, melodic version...My brother and I
(among other people) and kept saying that we were definitely getting a Mikes
tonight! And we did!
Roggae slid into Mikes nicely. It was not the best Mikes that I've heard, but
needs to be heard. I was hoping that they would not go into Simple, but they
did. It was a decent version, but nothing to write home about! We wanted a
Hydrogen, but Mike started Weekapaug with a Bang! God, Mike was going off-
seriously!!
The Weekapaug was good, really good- it was all Mike. The build up and the
end was great and I knew that that was the end of the set.
The encore- Frankenstein- AWESOME, but really hoping for another song after,
but what can we do?? I love this Edgar Winter Group instrumental! It was
thick and hit the crowd hard!
All in all- I was very satisfied w/ the show! My girl and I are going to
Columbus this weekend!! I cannot wait AND I am surprised that Phil did NOT
come out w/ them in Deer Creek, but there is still two more nights and I am
sure that it will get NUTTY! I went to Deer Creek in 1996 (Div Sky, Tube,
Tela, Maze secong night opener), 1997 -great shows and in 1998- Awesome! My
point is that Deer Creek never disappoints!
Anyhoo- Phish is on Fire right now and the fall will get better! Take care
everyone and we'll see you in Columbus!!!!!!!
 
Gary

Date: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 01:13:09 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: FRONT ROW!!
 
I don't know how to explain how I felt being in the front row.  I have been
seeing them for about 6 years and I have been in the 3rd row, all the way to
the rafters, never in the front row.  I was right in front of Trey, which was
a dream come true  and the feeling I had was overwhelming, like an orgasm.
This was my 3rd show of the tour, Camden were my first 2, and after each of
those shows I left very happy.   So, I really wasn't hoping for anything
spectacular but being Starlake I had a few expectations like the cover tune
and maybe Bittersweet, concidering they played it at Camden I didn't think
they were going to play at Starlake.   I was just happy I was in the front
row.   I am going to share my feelings with you all, on how I felt the show
was.  I may be alittle bias.
 
Chalkdust:  this was a pretty good opener.  Your basic CDT.
 
Gumbo:  Great tune.  It's been Starlake '97 since I last seen this one and
that one was like 25 minutes long.
 
Divided:  Always great.  My friend who was also in the front row was all
smiles with this one.
 
Boogie on Reggae Woman:  There is a funny story with this one.  Did anyone
see a white  T-shirt on the stage?   I threw it up there.  Page picked it up.
  It had a drawing of the T-shirt with Disco Stu from the Simpsons on it with
the saying, BOOGIE ON.  Some of you have probably seen this shirt around.  It
was funny.
 
Funky Bitch:  Pretty Good your basic bluesy bitch
 
Maze>Shafty>Maze:  Awesome.  I was so happy with this one.  It was my first
Shafty.   They pulled that off perfectly.
 
Back On The Train:  Sounded good.
 
Curtain>Char. 0:  Where did curtain come from.  I almost forgot about this
one.  It has been awhile.  Character, not being one of my faves, was
welcomed.  Trey did a great segue into after the chaotic ending to Curtain.
 
Set 2:
 
Ghost:  This always gets me at some point in a tour.  Eversince Virginia
Beach '97.  It was good.  Pretty short.
 
Jiboo:   My second one in 3 days.  This was also short considering the one in
Camden was 30 minutes.  I don't think any Jibbo jam will touch the one on the
4th.
 
Split:  It's been awhile sine I have seen this one.  Great version.
 
Roggae:   Good tune to slow things down.
 
Mikes>Simple>Week:   Never expected another one of these at Starlake.  this
one seemed so short.   This went by pretty quickly.
 
Encore Frankenstein:   Good tune I was hoping for something else but it was
good.
 
All in all it was great show.   it's weird hearing what they say on stage.
The other 3 people with me were smiling happy when we left.  I was too.  I
still can't believe it.  it went by so quickly it felt like a dream.   Thanks
for reading, and I will see you at Polaris.
 
Peace
Kevin

Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 13:10:50 -0400
From: Jeremy Welsh [email protected]
Subject: Phish - 07.07.00, Star Lake Amphitheater
 
(Let me apologize for the delay in getting this out; we have had some problems
here at work with our In-coming and Out-going mail.  Hopefully everything will
be up and running later today . . . )
 
     Have you ever attended a show where you felt like you were "inside" of
the action?  Not behind the stage or directly involved or anything like that,
but you were so close to the action that you felt a bit removed?  I am not
saying this is necessarily a bad thing, but that is a bit how I feel about
Friday night's Phish show at Star Lake.  All in all, I thought it was a very
good show - everyone was grooving hard, the funk was nice and deep at points,
and we were treated to some great music.  We didn't get Bittersweet Motel or a
cover break-out (or My Friend My Friend), but I don't think those "misses"
will cloud my memory of my 18th show.
 
     I left work around 6:15 on Friday with my girlfriend Laura; we were going
to meet my brother, his girlfriend, and my sister at our seats if we didn't
see them earlier.  I knew earlier on in the week that Laura was going to have
to work pretty late, so I accepted the fact that I was going to miss most of
the Lot festivities (which is ok - I am sure I will get enough out at
Polaris).  We really didn't encounter any problems with traffic - I may not
have even needed to take the back roads.  The procession to the gates were in
full swing as I headed in the VIP lane (connections are nice!).  Coming in the
lots around 7:15, along with parking in the VIP section, were the first things
that worked in "removing" us from the normal show activities.  Out of pure
coincidence, my brother and sister were right across the aisle!  Great stuff.  
We hung out for a while and I did my best to pass out Mockingbird Foundation
magnets (now accepting pre-orders for The Phish Companion - check out
www.phish.net/mockingbird).  Around 7:35, we made our way to the gates; the
lines were surprisingly long, the longest I had ever seen at Star Lake
actually.  I guess they were being a bit more thorough with the bag checks,
not even allowing blankets inside.  I didn't get checked too hard - it was
just a slow process.
     Now, I knew our tickets were going to be nice - 5th row Page side.  But I
couldn't help but smile this big silly grin when we got to our seats.  I knew
this was going to be fun!  We were a bit outside (to the left) of Page, but we
had a great view across the stage from where we were.  These great seats
became another reason that I felt I was a bit in front of the action Friday
night.  It was almost as if the band was playing over us, to the crowd behind.  
Kind of interesting . . . I had been that close before, but not since Prague
98.  And with my last show being Big Cypress, this was a bit of a treat.  
Everyone around us was cool, and we made quick friends passing out magnets and
Swedish fish.
 
Set One: Chalkdust Torture, Gumbo, Divided Sky, Boogie On Reggae Woman->Funky
Bitch, Maze->Shafty->Maze, Back on the Train, The Curtain->Character Zero
     The first set started around 8:16.  I was hoping for a Tube or Ya Mar
opener, something light and funky to get going.  For some reason I didn't
really think about Chalkdust - so when it began, I wasn't too thrilled.  
While it wasn't spectacular, the ten minute version proved to be a good one to
get everyone up and dancing - "Can't I live while I'm young?!"
     Now, it took me a few seconds to ID Gumbo.  One of the fun things about
being so close is trying to read the bands lips - for some reason, I thought
Trey was saying Ya Mar (or maybe my subconscious was putting those words in
his mouth). But I quickly started jumping up and down when I realized what
they were playing - this was a great surprise, and I thought back to the
monster Gumbo that we got in 97. This version was a bit shorter (9 minutes)
but featured some funky repetition and some nice playing by Fishman.
     At this point, I was happy with the way things were going - a full lawn
behind me, grooving, positive fans surrounding me, and a beautiful sun setting
off over to my right over the lawn.  I was in no way expecting to hear Divided
Sky.  My brother and I talked earlier about hearing this song, but I thought
it was a very long shot.  Wow.  I thought it was pretty well done - the
excitement and beauty out-weighed the rough edges. (I loved being so close for
the minute-long Pause)  As it seemed as though they were winding up, I turned
to my brother to see what thought and just saw this huge smile on his face -
to our surprise, the ending was drawn out nice and long. (15 or so minutes
total)
 
*I really haven't mentioned the playing of the band members yet, so let me
just comment on a few things.  For this tour, I had been reading the reviews
rather religiously, and I was happy to read so many positive postings.  And I
was excited to hear what all the talk has been about first-hand.  So I made a
point to try and listen to Page, to see if I could hear him and how he
interacted; and I listened to Trey and see if I could hear him lay off a bit;
and I listened to Mike - boy did I listen to Mike.  ; )  And I did notice some
of what people were talking about - Trey stepped-up when he needed to/was
expected to, but I did see him hold back a few times; Mike was pretty damn
amazing all night, especially that second set (Ghost and Weekapaug!); Page was
a bit low in the mix, but I could hear some really nice playing coming from
his piano.  I actually didn't listen to Fishman too too much on Friday - but
imo, you can always count on him.
 
     My joy kept increasing with the opening notes of Boogie on Reggae Woman -
great song, great placement, and great grouping with Funky Bitch.  Very well
done. This got everyone dancing nice and hard after the beauty of Divided.  I
was expecting a longer Boogie On (5 minutes), but the segue into Funky Bitch
was pretty good and kept things going.  Page took a nice long solo on the
piano during Bitch, and Trey answered back a few minutes later (Funky Bitch
was about 8 minutes total).
 
*From our vantage point, Page reminded those of us in my group of Schroeder
from the Peanuts - with his hands upwards above his head as he played the
keyboard above his piano.  Just kind of funny . . .
 
     The opening cymbal of maze was unmistakable - and should have been
predicted. In the past, Maze has been a great Pittsburgh song, with a few
versions dedicated to Mario (in 95 and 96).  I was looking forward to Page's
solo and wasn't disappointed - he was playing some heavy organ!  And the Trey
solo wasn't too strong, and actually had some good interaction with Page on
piano.  About 7 minutes in, Trey kept repeating a few notes, but I really
couldn't ID it - he kept looking over our direction, to Page, probably hoping
Page would pick up on what he was playing.  It took a few moments, but
everyone caught on . . . and Trey started singing Oblivious Fool, er, I mean
Shafty.  wtf?!  I really didn't think this was planned, as I think Trey needed
to convince everyone.  Wow - the first Shafty in 145 shows!  It was played for
about 3-4 minutes before the band headed back into Maze.  Very cool . . .  
(15 or so total)
     Get Back on the Train seemed decent, I guess.  I have to admit I am not a
huge fan of this song - so I headed to the restrooms.  And while I was in
there, I heard the opening notes that I just couldn't recognize from inside .
. .
     but as soon as I got outside, I ran to my seats - The Curtain!  Very cool
to hear this one (funny, though, missing the beginning; I missed The Curtain
at Big Cypress, not knowing when they would start that 2nd Set.)  This was
well played . . . my girlfriend turned to me and said "This is a weird song" -
yes, it is, I guess. And I was getting all into the climax, as they built and
built and . . .
     Aaarghh.  The transition into Character Zero was rather ugly.  They just
kind of halted Curtain, and tripped into Zero.  Oh, well.  We were already at
75 minutes into the set, and with the Chalkdust Torture opener, I guess Zero
would have to do.
 
     All in all, a very interesting and cool first set.  Lots of surprises,
very dancable, and a good way to start.  I was happy . . .  I think they were
playing Stanton Moore at set-break (All Kooked Up?).  Used the break to meet
up with my friend's Rich and Jenny, ran into Marc (lovin' the beard), and
relaxed.
 
Set Two: Ghost->Gotta Jiboo, Split Open and Melt, Roggae, Mike's
Song->Simple->Weekapaug
Encore: Frankenstein
 
     My friend Rich was actually stubbed-up by some friends, who were only two
rows behind!  And while we were taking our seats, Rich kept saying he was
holding out for his AC/DC Bag and Ghost - well, he got at one.  And boy what a
nice one it was. The Ghost was very well played, pulling in at about 22
minutes in length, and started things off very well.  Mike was nice and fat
through-out (actually, for about all of the set!).  At one point, about 17
minutes in, it got nice and slow reminding me a of a 2001 sort of jam; it was
at this point that Trey played with is keyboard, but that was actually really
limited (almost not worth noting).  It was about this point that a bit of a
glow stick war began - while it was kind of cool to watch the lawn during the
war, it definitely was not cool that someone hit Mike. Why would you try to
throw a glow stick at the band?  I do not understand . . .
     The Ghost picked up just a bit, getting nice and funky, as they
transitioned rather well into Gotta Jiboo.  Should have seen it coming . . .  
Again, this was very well played.  Page and Trey had some really nice
interaction going about 4 minutes in.  Kept the funk going for about nine
minutes.
     There was a bit of discussion after Jiboo ended - I guess Mike wanted to
tell everyone that this was his set.  So they kept the funk going with a tight
twelve minute version of Split Open and Melt.  Wow, was Mike on top of this
one. Mike had a great solo early on, with Page adding some organ work and Trey
holding back a bit.  So great to see him slapping like a madman from so close.  
The jam really started to take off seven minutes in, with Page contributing
with his "chunky" organ.  The transition back into SOAMelt was done rather
well.
     Roggae was a great break.  Boy, do I like this song.  Very nice, giving
everyone a bit of a breather.
     Now, I have been noticing a -> from Roggae into Mike's, but I didn't mark
one down in my book.  I guess the opening notes of Mike's did come out from
within the closing Roggae jam, but it wasn't that note-worthy a transition.  
By now, four songs into the set, I had stopped thinking about what they would
play next - so the Mike's came as quite a surprise.  Two years in a row for
Star Lake - and my expectations jumped, hoping for a rival for last year's
monster (or something that could compete with Big Cypress).  And while this
Mike's was good, it wasn't as big as those versions mentioned above (imho).  
The Mike's lasted for about seven minutes; as I was hoping, the jam turned a
bit dark and Kuroda joined in with some evil red lights (along with smoke that
completely enveloped Fishman and Page).
 
*I haven't mentioned the lights.  And it could be that we weren't able to get
the full effect being as close as we were.  But I did notice them during Funky
Bitch (cool pink lights), Maze, Mike's, and Weekapaug.  I can't get enough of
those "Strobes" that spin vertically, as though they are running really fast
over the stage.
 
     I was hoping for something other than Simple to come out of the Mike's,
but Simple came.  And it wasn't much to speak of.  I always like Trey's little
lick after " . . . a band without bee-bop" but that didn't come through.  And
I really like the jam after the singing is done, but that didn't last too
long.  I did notice some nice work by Page near the end of the 6-7 minute
song.
     I was really prepared for a Hydrogen, telling Laura to keep her ears open
- but what we got was a rather abrupt (and kind of tough) transition move into
Weekapaug.  Huh.  Maybe they wanted to be done with the set.  But even though
the segue was a bit troubling, my worries didn't last for long as Mike started
slapping away.  God, he was all over the place!  Really good opening, with
things slowing down a bit for the middle part.  But just as I thought it was
going to end normally, I was proven wrong again - Trey just kept building,
faster and faster.  I wrote "super fast!!! (piper)" in my book - it was really
cool, with Trey egging Mike on, and Mike stepping up to the call.  This got a
huge roar from the crowd . . .  Very impressive.  Let's see how it transfers
onto the tapes.  With a build-up like this, I knew it was going to end the
set.  And it ended with a huge smile on my face, with hugs all around.
     "Lighters are pretty" I wrote down during the pause - as we turned
around, the whole expanse of the big Star Lake lawn was covered with lighters.  
It was a nice scene . . .  I was really hoping for a Bold as Love, to go with
last year.  I kept saying it was Page's night (with us standing right there)
and while his playing was very good, from what I could hear, he hadn't sung
anything yet.  So with the opening notes of Frankenstein, I was hoping it was
the first of two songs. But alas, I would have to deal with a solid version of
the Edgar Winter song.  I think they might have been tired, or couldn't decide
back stage what to play, so they pulled this one out.  No worries.
 
     I left Star Lake Friday evening very happy and satisfied - while there
really wasn't any mind-bending, type II jams, Phish did treat the 22,000+ in
attendance to the first Divided and Gumbo of the tour, an interesting
Maze->Shafty->Maze, a great grouping of Boogie On->Funky Bitch, and a second
set featuring a great, slap-happy Mike.  You know it is a good show when Laura
was grooving along, and was still smiling when we left.  ; )
     It was great to be so close to the action - but as I tried to explain
above, I felt a bit like they were playing "over our heads" to the lawn
behind.  It made for an interesting time of watching and observing, and I
found myself talking about what was going on on stage a bit more than usual.
     But it was nice to be dancing with so many friends, treated to so many
smiles and laughs.  Friday night at Star Lake only helped in increasing my
excitement for Friday and Saturday in Polaris.
 
Thank you, Phish, once again.  Holding out for a My Friend in Columbus . . .
 
 
jeremy welsh
 
"I call Architecture frozen Music."
     -Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, (1749-1832)

Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 13:38:42 -0400 (EDT)
From: Harrison Clement [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: star lake review
 
 
first off, this was my only show of the summer tour. my last show was
12/15/99. pittsburgh was my 18th show. being the only show i'd get to see
until fall, i was really hoping for a huge show. that kind of expectation only
sets up for dissappointment. luckily, i wasn't all that dissappointed.
 
we got to the burgettstown around 5 but were stuck in traffic for a good hour
before getting into the venue. apparently al gore was coming to some
restaraunt called the pepsi roadhouse, which is right next to star lake. i
heard that al was a zappa fan; maybe he would come by to check out the phish
show. we drove by and saw a cool-looking helicopter parked on the restaraunt
lawn.
 
the lot scene was bigger than i expected sinced pittsburgh was out of the way
for all of the tour-heads. we met some really friendly people.
 
at 7:30, we strolled into the ampitheater onto the lawn. we sat three or fours
rows back from the front toward the center. good seats, nice music before they
came out. they always play some weird shit before the show starts. i've heard
everything from total hick country music to luscious jackson.
 
they came out at 8:15 and opened with chalkdust. i thought it was going to be
a killer version because trey was building up unusually slowly. but then mike
was taking charge and brought the jam to its climax a little early; you could
tell trey wasn't ready but ck5 followed mike and trey had no choice. it was
still a firey version. then gumbo started which was awesome. i wanted to hear
it so bad and was ecstatic when they started it up. the funk started and i
thought it was going to stretch out. after a little exploration, they didn't
really find anything worth pursuing, so they stopped. divided sky started
which really got things going. right after the pause, the helicopter i saw
came around from behind the stage and circled to the lot and lowered out of
sight. yeah al! i hope he stuck around for the rest of the show. (just as long
as he didn't dance - have you ever seen that video clip with him and tipper
cutting a rug? - disturbing). a really good divided sky - maybe a little cut
off at the end. then after some discussion, boogie on reggae woman. this is
one of my favorites - being a beginning bass player. mike just went to town
and really set the tone for the rest of the show. it was definately mike's
night. page was doing some coool stuff too. funky bitch was a spirited one and
well placed. nice page solo. nice trey solo. then maze started and was pretty
cool. page really got busy with the dark tension and release style. then, when
it was trey's turn, it seemed like he didn't really have anything to say
(which was true for most of the night), so he forced a shafty segue.
interesting but not a show stopper.  then back into maze for a standard but
great finish. get back on the train seemed like filler at this point. a chance
for the band to relax into something well rehearsed. the end was stretched out
with some interesting interpretation from ck5. i started to really dig this
one. but then it ended. the cutain was a pleasant treat. played really well. i
love old trey tunes that seem to pop up randomly. i knew they weren't going to
close the set with that but was surprized to hear a character 0. it didn't
seem like it fit. it was a good one with the audience chiming in. i'd say the
set was average. they didn't know what tonight was going to be like and the
first set told them what to focus on in the second set.
 
the set break was pretty cool with some mmw playing over the speakers. we
moved away from the annoying people we were next to during the first set. they
were obviously not paying attention to the music, which is fine. but when they
are talking the whole time about how drunk they were at "john's house the
other night" and invading you're dancing space, they tend to suck. it seemed
that the crowd at this one was a little younger and more immature than what
i'm used to at phish shows. maybe i'm just getting older.
 
the new spot was cool.
 
ghost started up the second set. this was definately a good choice because
mike needed some more time to show off. the jam was very interesting. it jus
kept geting more intense, while sticking to the same basic groove. you could
tell that the boys were having a great time up there. a glowstick war started
up which seemed appropriate. (though i am against glowsticks, but for
glowrings). gotta jiboo was a great choice for those that like to dance. a
first for me. trey was feeling it and was trying some really obscure riffs to
turn the jam to type II. they were almost melodic and had great potential but
needed fishman to break out to get going full force. fishman stayed where he
was so they went back into the song and finished it out. split open and melt
was a great choice for this point in the set. the crowd had yet to receive the
hose. the jam started off real well but seemed to fizzle out rather than get
stronger. oh well, it was still great to hear. i don't really like roggae all
that much, but this seemed perfect here. mike was absolutely beautiful. much
more melodic that trey. it was awesome. (don't get the impression that trey
was bad at this show. he was just quiet and much more focused on the groove
and adding to the band rather than controling it.) than trey started up mikes.
i was surprized because i thought they were going to save it for alpine. but
being mike's night, it's only right that they played mike's groove. i've seen
a buch of mike's, but this one was up there at the top. mike was going insane.
he was so into it. he was playing supportive bass rather that taking the lead,
but it complemented trey's fast, intense guitar incredibly. they really belted
this one out perfectly. then they went right into simple. it started out great
but instead of going up and down the scales like he usually does, trey busted
into ambience. after about a minute of that, mike tore up the house with the
weekapaug intro. but he didn't settle down at all for the rest of the song. he
was on fire! he was fucking his bass hard. it was like the bass was this
direct channel into his frantic mind. faster and faster, he was still coming
up with new shit. unbelievable. i was in complete awe (and i thought o'tiel
might have been the one to look up to. nope. mike isn't flashy like victor and
o'tiel. but when he does show off, he is king.) frankenstein was great for the
encore. i love the part where page first comes in. cool as usual.
 
all in all a great show. but most phish shows i go to are great, so it was
average. i can't wait until merriwether and hershey.
 
-harrison

Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 15:01:37 -0400
From: Felix Gottdiener [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: starlake review
 
This was the only show of the summer for me and three friends, so i went
into it without any high expectations.  traffic increased our trip from
buffalo to about five hours, but we made it there at about 8:20, let my
friend park and go to his pavilion seat, and went to will call.  we
missed chalkdust and gumbo(shit!) but made it just in time for the pause
in divided.
Divided:  The crowd was really into this one as trey took his solo.  it
is awesome to see 20,000 phans jump in time to the music, like surfing a
wave.  we could pretty much see the entire crowd from where we were on
the lawn.  the ending jam built up to great heights, and the crowd moved
along with it.
Boogie On:  WOW!  This was already shaping up to be a great setlist,
regardless of the show.  Everyone was dancing as they moved from the
lyrics into some funky space, type 2 stuff.  This tune has potential for
some great funk jams, but after a short time Kuroda turned on white
flash-of-inspiration lights as they moved into:
Funky Bitch:  I wasn't sure this fit, but the crowd loved it.  It
definitely kept everyone dancing.  As the solos started Page began to
rip!  He was on fire in a way that I have never heard before, on tape or
otherwise.  It was as if the band had said "Alright Page, give 'em all
youve got."  He took us through some great jazzy jamming, building the
energy over and over again.  It really stretched to confines of the
solos they usually do in this song.  Great stuff.  Treys solo was good,
but typical stuff.
Maze:  Wow.  One song I definitely was not expecting at this point.
Strange lyrics for such a nice evening.  As the jam started it was page
again, totally leading the way.  Down into some really dark rock
explorations.  It was great to see him taking control like this.  They
built it up again, and trey started playing a riff which i thought was
just improv but was actually the beginning of:
Shafty:  Wow, didnt know what this one was until trey said "oblivious
fool".  a definite surprise.
Maze:  The band exploded back into Maze and totally nailed the ending.
Awesome.
BOTT:  At this point i didnt really matter what they played.  they
decided not to really jam on this one and cut it pretty short.
Curtain:  WOW!  One song I really wanted to hear but didnt expect to
actually get it.  Although they seemed a little rusty, I still loved
it.  The sang the vocals like true arena gods.
Character Zero:  Nice choice for a closer, even though its not my
favorite song.  During the jam, they didnt seem to be able to get the
energy going.   The set so far had been all about page, and trey didnt
rip as much as he usually does.  they eventually got it going though,
and finished the set in fine fashion.
 
Setbreak was pretty long.  I got back on the lawn with time to chill
before:
Ghost:  The band stared a funky jam that got everyone moving before
introducing the theme.  Ghost is a great way to start the second set.
The jam almost immediately moved out of funk into more rock territory,
with Mike really laying down some great lines.  This was no doubts a
great jam, but it started to get repetitive.  I wish they had given it
some room to breath and explored more.  Eventually trey started playing
the riff to:
Gotta Jiboo: Oh, what i would do for a Ghost>Sand...but it was not to
be.  I hear the 7/4 Jiboo was a huge yawning behemoth, but this one
didnt really go anywhere.  it fell on trey to guide the jam, and he
really wasnt going anywhere tonight.  still a nice jam.
Split:  Awww yeah!!  My first ever.  The jam started very funky, with
lots of blue coloring (music and lights).  Even with that little
addition they managed to funk it up.  The crowd was really getting a
kick out of being knocked off by the weird time signature.  They dropped
it before long and moved into complete free form.  The jam got far away
from Split territory, slower and funkier, but it didnt really move
anywhere.  Just stayed down there until we didnt know what song they
were playing.  Not especially good or bad.  When they started playing
something recognizable i thought it was a segue but it was actually the
end of split.
Roggae:  I love the jam the have been doing lately where the beat shifts
and they just start to build, and Mike and Fish wasted not time in
getting to that point.  Very nice.  It built beautifully back into
Trey's raging chords.
Mike's Song:  Wow.  This was a great choice.  Mike sang the vocals like
he meant it.  Once the jam started Trey really seemed to find the energy
he was missing the rest of the show and started to rip. Just a hard
rocking Mikes, not evil at all.  Very cool.  This definitely got the
crowd going.  Medium length, hitting the end chords ferociously, then a
uncomfortable segue into:
Simple:  I normally like this song, but it didnt hit tonight.  The segue
into was kinda botched, and there was no jam, just a pause then paug.
But Mike was solid on the lyrics, that about the only good thing I can
say.
Weekapaug:  Very long Mikes solo, Trey started the chords then backed
off and let him funk some more.  He was on fire!  This was a short but
very intense weeakapaug.  Trey ripped it up finally.  A great closer.
 
Encore:
Frankenstein:  Great choice.  Not as intense as it could have been,
except for the page and fish solos, which totally ripped.
 
Overall:  Very fun.  The first set was better than the second in terms
of jamming.  Get the tapes, if only to hear page absolutely tear it up
on Funky Bitch and Maze.  If Trey was really on this would have been a
truly great show, but it was still a lot of fun.  great crowd, venue and
security.  I am very excited for my next show, the band seems to be
headed in the right direction.
-felix g

Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:05:44 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7-7-00 Review
 
 
Finding our way to my last show of the summer was a whole lot easier than in
Jersey. I loved it when we cut through West Virginia. 70 mph speed limit
means drive 85! Fun! The campsite was way down in the corner of PA, about an
hour from the venue, so we went there first and then had to deal with some
crappy Mapquest.com directions to get up to Burgettstown. The lot was weird.
First of all, they charged $7 to park, which is outrageous, especially when
the tickets say right on them "$2.50 parking fee included." Okay, sure. But
whatever, we were there to see a concert.
Set 1
Chalkdust: They start this off and my friend and I look at each other like
"okay, fine, I guess," because that�^�^�s what they opened 6-28 with, the
first
show we saw this summer, with only 6-29 in between. But Chalkdust always
rocks, and it basically sounded like 6-28�^�^�s.
Gumbo: A real pleasure to hear this one. A pretty rare tune, too, so much
that you always want to hear it but rarely think of it. There was a nice
groovy jam, pretty chill too. Trey�^�^�s still a little subdued on the
soloing,
so I�^�^�m waiting for him to crank it up.
Divided Sky: Now, you never really think you have the balls to call a song
like Divided before a show, but I basically did, and man was I soooo happy
when they whipped this out. Just the kind of song that puts a smile on your
face.
Boogie on Reggae Woman: I like this song, so it was good to hear. Now forgive
me, I may have this mixed up, but I believe it was during this song that Page
had just an amazing turn at the piano, just fabulous. If I�^�^�m wrong, then
it�^�^�s during Funky Bitch, but I�^�^�m pretty sure it was here.
Funky Bitch: Another repeat from our last show, but I don�^�^�t mind, this
one�^�^�s
a real rocker.
Maze: Finally some Rift material, which my friend and I were denied at PNC.
Page took a very extended organ solo, doing some weird stuff. Page was
probably thinking, Trey gets all the solos, so I�^�^�ll take this opportunity
and
run with it.
Shafty: Wow. Very surprising. When Trey said the first line I couldn�^�^�t
make
out what he said, so I thought he was just talking, but I recognized Shafty
by the second line. I guess it�^�^�s a simple enough song to segue into if
you�^�^�ve got the right beat.
Maze: Of course they were going to finish it. A strong Maze, and a very
surprising insertion of Shafty.
Back on the Train: I�^�^�m not going to complain, it�^�^�s a good little song.
I
still think it�^�^�s unusual that the Free riff is stuck in there.
Curtain: Another pleasantly surprising rarity.
Character Zero: Another repeat from PNC. I�^�^�m ambivalent on this song. It
rocks and all, but I dunno. I knew it would be the set closer, since they
love to close stuff with this song. But I'm glad they got it out of the way
early instead of deciding to close the show with it, a la 6-29. That kinda
bummed me out.
Set 2
Ghost: Very good, pretty weird stuff. There was a glowstick was in this that
my friend who we were taking to his first Phish show really enjoyed. A really
nice Ghost.
Gotta Jibboo: Okay, yes, another PNC repeat. I really feel sorry for Mike
during songs like this and Sand and First Tube because he just stands there
indefinitely doing the same thing while Trey gets to mess around. It sounded
for a little while late in the jam like Mike was ready to break free of the
looping bass line, as he started to play variations on the line, but then he
went back into the standard bass line and the song closed out.
SOAMelt: It took the Big Cypress CDs for me really to get into this song, so
I was pleased to hear it. It seemed like they wanted to go further with the
jam, but they brought it back into the composed outro before that could
happen.
Roggae: Now I personally like this song, especially live. The jam (that is,
the stuff that�^�^�s not on Story of the Ghost) really isn�^�^�t a jam;
it�^�^�s
bascially the same every time, but I like it nonetheless. It�^�^�s a chill,
almost beautiful (there, I said it) song.
Mike�^�^�s: Now here�^�^�s a PNC repeat that I�^�^�m definitely not going to
argue
with.
This Mike�^�^�s raged, with Trey playing as fast as I�^�^�ve heard him play in
recent memory. (If you ask me, it seems he�^�^�s slowed down a little. By
choice
or circumstance, I don�^�^�t know.)
Simple: My friend, the one seeing his first show, was really pleased with
this one. Man, his face lit up, so it was worth it for me. This was a pretty
abbreviated version.
Weekapaug: Yeah, Mike tears this up every time, and he didn�^�^�t stop
tonight.
More shredding from Trey. I especially liked the ending, where Trey starts
strumming faster and looks at Fish to get him to speed up the beat, and the
whole song just gets crazily fast. I think there was a little holdover in the
outro when it seemed as if they were still a little accelerated.
Encore:
Frankenstein: Another PNC revival. But I like this song a lot. It�^�^�s a real
hard rocker, and my friend, who�^�^�s a drummer, was really digging the drum
solo.
So I�^�^�d say it was a really strong show. Highlights would probably be
Gumbo,
Boogie On, Maze>Shafty>Maze, Ghost, and the Mike�^�^�s Groove. Afterwards we
figured that by the time we found the campground in the dark, and set up our
tent, we�^�^�d get like 3-4 hours of sleep due to work the next day, so we
just
drove straight home from the concert and rolled in town around 5 am, just in
time to see the sky lighten up.

Date: Sun, 09 Jul 2000 16:38:08 EDT
From: Matt Panza [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7-7-00 review
 
I usually go to a Phish show feeling quite nervous whether it will be good
or not. I've seen my share of below average shows and not enough above
average ones. Most of my tapes from shows i haven't seen are just
spectacular which leads me to believe that Phish IS awesome, i just go to
the wrong shows. I've noticed the reviews from this tour have been mostly
positive and the setlists seem more experimental than recent years so i went
to Star Lake with high hopes. Now i think i can say that i have finally seen
a truly great show put on by the biggest and one of the most talented jam
bands around.
     Phish was really together on Friday nite. They didn't waste time
building up the energy when they threw Chalkdust in our faces. Yes, i agree
with all who've said the volume was low throughout the show, but the sound
quality was fantastic. The thing that impressed me totally about the show
was that Phish didn't let their jams get pointless or end up drifting into
ambient space that leads nowhere. Even throughout the extended jam after
Ghost, they still had focus. By the way, if i were on top of the pavilion
looking down on the glowstick tossing, i would think that it would be the
most fantastic sight. But being in the middle of the crossfire makes me feel
like i'm naked in a hail storm. AND PLEASE DO NOT THROW AT THOSE GUYS ON
STAGE. Anyway, back to the show. I felt that every member of the band
contributed to each jam and stepped forward when necessary. Fish pounded
away on Char 0 and made the song swing back and forth. Trey made Roggae
shine with gentle playing. Page's solo on Maze was truly sinister and kept
us lost in the maze. And Mike... he kicked our asses all nite with thump
after thump. And when he wasn't thumping he was weaving intricate designs on
tunes like % Sky. Thanx alot guys for creating great music. See you in
Columbus.

Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 12:38:20 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: star lake review
 
    I just got back from Burgettstown and whew boy, was that one hell of a
rockin', tight show.  This was somewhere in the 50's as far as number of
shows and I was incredibly impressed.  I saw the boys play Camden and I got
what I expected from the venue, but this was night and day for difference in
mood and show.  Lot was kickin, no problem vending and tons of good energy.
You could feel a good show in the air.  Beautiful night, I had seats under
the pavillion which seemd a must after the lawn on the third(can you say
soggy), but the wheather was awesome.  Boys soundchecked with back to back
dog logs, big teaser as it would be but still promising to say the least.   I
wont do a song by song as it seems popular, but rather an overall review.
    Opened tigfht and fast, good chalkdust, funky gumbo- smooth divided.  The
Soud in this place is incredible.  Mike was off the charts, divided was so
appropriate with the whether, and beautiful.  Boggie on was sooo unexpected
but completely welcomed.  It was shjort but really funky, leading in to an
off the charts Funky bitch.  I am a little tired of this tune but not tonight
baby, oh yah.  Maze was deep and dark with an equally deep Get back on train.
 The nclose out a HUGE set with a crisp curtain and Character 0.  I cannot
begin to explain the how tight the band was during this unusual set and how
alive and energetic the band was, feeding and looping off each other to a
tee.    Then we were blown away by the second set.
    Mike took over from the beginning with an UNBELIEVABLE Ghost, so tight
and fast.  Just as the light sticks got outta control and one hit Mike they
pulled out and did a really fast Jiboo.  I was bummed at first because it
felt like the boys pulled out because the crowds was getting too hyped, but
all they did was change the lyrics, Mike pulleed them into the same wavy bass
groove that settled in for the rest of the set.  Mike-simple-weekapaugh, what
can I say, the band was a machine tonight.  The communication and energy at
the core of each tune was just amazing.  By far one of, if not the best
Weekapaugh I have ever seen, never seen Mike sooo Fast, reminded me of
Wooten.  I am sorry the review was much longer than I planned, but check out
the tpaes and you'll know why.  Namaste

Date: Mon, 10 Jul 2000 00:49:47 -0400
From: Chuck Vion Jr. [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Phish 7-7-00
 
     Few would disagree that this show was awesome.  I too felt the energy
and good vibes throughout the air.  I've seen over 30 shows including all the
big ones through the course of eight years and this was one of the best!  The
music was clean and tight with an imaginative setlist.  They didn't zone out
and produce noise for a 30 minute song.  Most fans would rather hear a
variety of songs, am I right?
      I gathered from staying the remainder of the weekend in Pittsburgh(A
rock'n city), that Phish doesn't have a huge fan base in that area.  During
the summer months the average age is much older than many other cities.  The
fact that one could still get tickets the day of the show helps attest to
that.   So, the bulk of the fans traveled to the show.  The very KIND
setlists and groovy jams laid down may have been a Thank You to all those on
Tour. I was lucky enough to be a part of that concert.
     Unfortunately I do have some bad news.  While at the show our truck,
parked under spotlights, was broken into.  The thief took the driver's
prescription eyeglasses along with other valuable items, yet some things of
value were left behind??  Who steals someone elses eyeglasses?  The
perpetrator even used one of the stolen credit cards for gas before the cards
could be canceled. Luckily I was tying one on inside and had my cash and
license with me.  If not, I wouldn't have been able to fly home to New
Hampshire. The parking lot scene was chill so I was surprised to learn of the
robbery.
     It seems that the fan base grows at the younger end of the age spectrum
much faster, giving us young fans without respect for themselves or others.
I don't want to acuse or stereotype anyone, there are tons of good kids out
there, but there seems to be an increase of bad ones at the shows. I want the
crowd of Phish fans to be as diverse as their music, but we all must respect
and help each other if we want to keep the vibe positive.  I know a number of
older fans who have dropped out of the scene because it is getting too
sketchy, too many instances of theft and violence.  That's not what those
four incredibly talented and caring musicians are about. Can't we all just
get along.
    Sorry, didn't mean to get on a soapbox.  The thief could just as easily
been a townie. Everyone have a Phun Philled tour and I'll see ya at the
Tweeter Center.  Oh yeah, for those who sat in traffic Friday night, use your
map!  We found another way into Starlake and sat in only 15 minutes of
traffic, and that was to park..
 
Late, Chuck

Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 00:54:51 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Star  Lake
 
    After sitting in traffic for nearly two hours it felt good to hop out of
the car to be reunited with all my phriends. The lot scene was much chiller
than I remember Star Lake being so the night was off to a good start even
before we headed inside.
    My friend and I sat in the pavilion for this one and after eagerly
waiting for half an hour the boys finally came on. A song by song breakdown
isn't necessary, but the first set rocked. Chalkdust was a nice way to get
the crowd rockin', the highlight for me though was the Divided Sky followed
by a groovy Boogie on Reggae Woman (my personal favorite).
    The boys were definitely hot and I was ready for a killer second set. I
was pleasantly surpirsed to hear the opening chords of Ghost followed by a
funky Jiboo that the crowd definitely was into. Unfortunately I was a little
dissapointed by the Mikes > Simple > Weekapaug. First off, they played
basically the same thing last year at Star Lake, and secondly it seemed that
the boys wrapped this one up too quickly with this standard jam, although
anyone who saw how crazy Mike was jamming was not dissapointed. Frankenstein
is always a favorite, although a Rocky Top first would have been nice.
    Anyways, overall a good time with an especially sick first set. It's been
a phun summer tour so far, bringing out all those things that only summer
tour does. Everyone with sundrenched smiles and that look of timelessness in
their eyes. Hope all you guys are having a good time too, let's ride this
wave as far as it will take us.
See y'all on soon - John

Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 08:00:34 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Starlake 7.7.00
 
For any phans going to the show, there was no better way to have a
pennsylvania day. talk about beautiful-infact, many people were complaining
that they got sunburned in the parking lot. Anyways it was a great festive
atmosphere (as is always guarenteed with a phish show) and i was stoked to be
there.
 
The boys opened with chalkdust torture, which i don't think they played since
PNC Arts Center. a genuine rock song, you know? after looking at setlists i
could feel divided in my bones (but not until after gumbo ofcourse)...Boogie
on reggae woman was just jammin right into funky bitch and just when you
think the jam has been laid out, maze crawls out of its hole and they take it
to town. thank god bott was better then conan.
 
It seemed it would be hard to top the first set, and when i heard ghost my
heart about sunk. unfortunatley i've seen this one too many times (as i'm
sure others have) and i worried that we would get a bouncing, bold as love,
or god forbid another squirming coil in the burgh. but hell no, gotta jibboo
showed its face and i was loving it. this is usually the second set opener,
which although common, would have been better then ghost.
right after jibboo my buddy beth and i booked it to the little girls room
only to here the fist three notes of Split open and melt---we booked it out
of there. walking back to the stage it was great because people everywhere
were singing "down down down, we breath deep..." i love this crowd. anyhow,
roggae took the level to serenity for a few until the band busted into
mikes>simple>weekapaug. similar to last year, yet missing my left toe.
anyways page busted a funk on the groove and anyone who saw a brown haired
chick with gems in her hair and a pink shirt on (me) would know how
absolutley i was loving it.
 
frankenstein was the encore, not one of my personal favorites. sample or dirt
would have rubbed me better...but i'll just have to wait till the creek!
pura vida phish phriends
Dawn

Date: Mon, 17 Jul 2000 11:57:54 -0400
From: c [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: star lake 7/7/00
 
This show was sweet. It was my first phish show and it definatly won't
be my last.  There was ton's of energy before the show in the parking
lot.  We got in the venue several minutes late due to crowds at the
entrance.  It was definatly one of the best concerts that i have seen.
 
chris w [email protected]
 
p.s anyone have any spare columbus tickets

Date: Sun, 09 Jul 2000 23:10:12 EDT
From: katie goad [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7.7.00 Starlake
 
A great time for my first phish show.  Never had an experience quite like
it. Not like any other concert I've ever been to. I started at the top of
the lawn and just HAD to boogie my way down to the back of the pavalion
seats. Unlike seasoned Phish followers, who seem to be not thrilled with
repeated songs...I was completely exhilarated to hear ANY song for the first
time live. Chalkdust got everyone moving.  Divided Sky is a personal
favorite. I as well as the audience welcomed it. Off the new CD, Back on the
Train is one of my favorites. I once said to my boyfriend who graciously
introduced me to Phish and took me to this show, "Phish sounds like a couple
guys riding a train." Many of their songs just remind me of a crazy train
ride. We were dancing to Boogie On and I said that I would like to hear a
train song! So along comes Train. The first set was great...the second set
was even better. Ghost was awesome..but Gotta Jiboo was amazing...its also
one of my favorties. The glowstick things were going crazy sometime around
this portion of the show....so cool. The lights also went crazy sometime
toward the end of the show...if you weren't trippin already, you would've
been after that. Frankenstein left me wanting more...even though i was
freezing. I would have stayed all night to listen to more jams.  All in
all...a great show. My best ever.
 
 
Kate

Date: Sat, 08 Jul 2000 17:11:10 PDT
From: "James Derdock, Jr." [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Star Lake Review
 
I started out the show in a bad mood because my water was "over 20 oz." so I
couldn't bring it in.  I ended up paying 3 bucks for a water and they
wouldn't even give me the bottle.  Oh well.
 
The show opened with Chalkdust, which is not too exciting to hear anymore
but I don't mind it.  However, I really minded it this time because the
volume was down A LOT lower than usual.  Unfortunately it stayed like this
the whole show.  I didn't really get going until Boogie On.  I called this
one before the show and was excited to hear it.  After a good Funky Bitch,
they broke out Maze which was wacked out.  It had a super dark and almost
evil feel to it which was spooky and great at the same time.  The
transformation into Shafty was perfect and it was perfect back into Maze.
This Maze>Shafty>Maze may be one of the best things I have seen at a Phish
show.  The rest of the set was inspired as well, especially Cuirtain.  I got
over the volume thing once I got into the music, but some people didn't.  I
think this is one of my favorite sets I have seen.
 
I didn't feel the second set was as strong, but by no means a
disappointment.  The Ghost was unbelievable, but the rest was pretty
standard.  I enjoyed Mike's playing in Weekapaug.  He was going off and Trey
started to come in, but Mike gave him a look like "Wait a minute, I've got
more" and he just kept going.  I can't wait to here that on disc.
 
I like Frankenstein as an encore, but here the volume really ticked me off.
Frankenstein NEEDS to be loud.  Page sounded great, but just way too quiet.
Overall a good show, but Boogie On through Ghost were unbelievable.


Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 01:13:19 -0400
From: Joseph Scaletta [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Starlake review
 
Chalkdust opener:  Standard - but not loud enough.  The volume needed to come
up a notch all night
 
Gumbo:  Rare (1st this year?) Serious type II jam after verses
 
Divided Sky:  A surprise - well done - the crowd begins to lively up.
 
Boogie On  -  Sweet but cuts off short with excellant seguae into :
 
Funky Bitch -  Go Mike!
 
Maze:  Sounded excellant with smooooooth transition into:
 
Shafty:  wow.  surpise back into Maze
 
Train:  Almost expected the Shafty>Maze reprise to close the set.  Standard
but sweet.
 
The Curtain!:  Wow - from out of nowhere
 
Character 0  >  Sweet transition from Curtain - jammmmmmmin'
 
Long first set with some nice surprises.  Excellent weather and a cool scene
- not many hassles.
 
II
Ghost:  Solid >
 
Gotta Jibboo  Hot, crowd definately into this newer tune.
 
SOAM:  funky but basically standard.
 
Roggae:  Nice placement and great transition into:
 
Mike's > Simple > Weekapaug:  It was due.  Whole crowd was shaking their
asses hard.
 
E:  Frankenstein:  Sounded great.  We were expecting a Velvet Sea afterwards
but this ended the show.
 
I could go into further detail about each song but I won't.  The show was
excellent and the boys are sounding great these days.  They seem to have
gotten away from the continuous type II stuff from 99 and are really mixing
it up.  Trey is playing some inspired jams these days ( in my humble opinion.
)
 
Thanks!
 
Joepa

Date: Sun, 9 Jul 2000 01:55:04 -0400
From: Robert Montgomery [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: phish
 
I gotta tell ya, they seem to like this place.
StarLake seems to capture them in a festive mood.

Date: Sat, 8 Jul 2000 01:35:31 -0400
From: Jake Mercatoris [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Phish 07-07-00
 
I'm not going to do a full song by song breakdown, because I don't feel that
this show warrants such a thing.  I only have one word for the show as whole,
however, and that is nothing but WEAK.  These are some of the most talented
musicians on the planet, and they have the most capability, but they churn
out a run of the mill performance like this.  I'm truly disappointed.
 
Jake

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