9-24-99 -- South Park Meadows, Austin, Texas

Date: Tue, 5 Sep 2000 14:57:55 -0500
From: Dominic Robertson [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 9/24/99 Austin PhishFry
 
    Well let me start off by saying that this was my very first time to see
Phish in concert. I was kidnapped bye 4 of my friends from Terrapin Station
and we were off to the concert.  I really wasnt sure what to expect. The
minute i stepped out of the car i had an exellent vibe, like a mellow
groove.            Walking down Shakedown Street was one of the coolest
experiences of my life.  Phans were selling "Peanut Butter and gel-tab
sandwiches, emphasis on the gel-tab" "Liberty and Leary Shrooms"........
anything you could want.  The security at the gate (obviously blazed) was
pretty chill. We sat in the middle left of the meadow and ate our caps and
cracked our glow-sticks just as they opened with Tube, just damn funky!
Farmhouse was impressive and i still cant stop singing it. The next couple of
songs got a little hazy as we smoked a blunt and did the jello hippie shake,
but GBOTT was a downright hoedown!!!  very cool.
    The set break was very long but the Full blood moon of the solstice rose
into place just in time for a good seat and the second set was off with the
pace of a scalded ape.
    PEACHES,   ZAPPA ZAPPA ZAPPA!!!! very cool and good cover,  quiet
surprised.  Kindoff wandered off in search of cardboard (weird shroom thing,)
to slide down the grassy hill, but grooved heavy on Wolfmans Brother for what
seemed like an eternity,  and then i was pushed yet phurther into my trip bye
the luscious grooves of Lizards, Sand, just to Peak at the same time to
concert did with an amazing cover of Misty mountain Hop!!!!!!!!!!  The light
work during this song was Insanely brilliant and i was conviced that the
mother ship was coming to pick up phish while they played into the cosmos, so
i did what any trippin hippie would, i rubbed a whole tube of body glitter on
me to show my support.
    Great encore with boogie on and CDT.
    after the concert my friends and I walked down Shakedown steet and played
at a few drum jams.  The show was a spiritual jam session and the vibe was
that of being with thousands of loving Phans and Phriends.
    Then off to Houston for the woodlands!!!


Date: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 00:03:28 -0500
From: Brooks J. Taffner [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Austin 9/24/99 lowdown..

Lot - A+ as always in Austin - very relaxed vibe in the air..everyone was
really nice & out to have a good time! - met some nice people had some
brews & jammed some DEAD on my axe ..and then i heard Dirt soundcheck &
played some lead w/ trey !!! others jammed incl. a great Brokedown Palace
by John? everyone sang !!
 
Set 1
First Tube - an incredible way to start the show. heard this on some trey
shows & Gordo's treatment of the bass parts was keen !! this jam really
funked out !!! >
PYITE !! nuff said
Farmhouse - everyone rips this song apart..i love it & enjoy playin' it as
well...good lyrics & Fish's whiney backing vocals are makin' it a song for
the ages!!!
i was moved..
H2OITS - good backyard tradition - a treat @ any show for me...colours
flutter !!
Moma Dance - Flat? hmm not what i heard - i heard Gordo destroying his bass
as Trey applied the required funky wah guit...Page was going off on this
jam & I love the way trey has mastered the "basic leads" & fills riffs
within, & around the groove.. everyone was really Dancin' & Shakin' their
bones !!
DWD !!! absolutely amazing jammin' took place ...
Roggae was sooooooooo smooth - love the mean chords in the latter parts.
growling !!!! guit
Get Back On The Train !! - i feel that this song really fits into the same
group of songs that Farmhouse came from - excellent lyrics & just good ol'
RnR R&B !!!
mike really was funkin' way out on this line....the boys are gettin' better
!!!
Guyute - was epic for me !!! as always
Loving Cup is a great song but i think ending big on guyute would have been
more effective..
 
Set 2
An amazing set !!!!!
Peaches was very well played(pat trey on the back !!) amazing tribute to
ZAPPA !
Still waiting for my Joe's Garage Hallowen Show !!  -  Come on Boys !!
Possum was oh so groovy baby !
Now !!! Wolfmans Bro was truly amazing ! - this jam got really outta
control & trey was doing some killer layering of sound !! the entire band
was obviously having a great time !! - had to be at least 20-30 min ?
Lizards....nice treat..good playin' - trey had a lil' blemish @ the end but
i love when he makes mistakes..i always remember them as pieces of humility
in a mad world.
Sand.. new one for me but i really enjoyed it - cool chant lyrics from the
band !!
Misty..Smoke was pouring off the stage & Chris really was going nuts on the
lights .. w/ every nut wrenching scream from page..we all cheered !!
E: Boggie on was really mellow & funkfilled> CDT was the best i ever
heard...Trey Said F*^#k the effects & turned to his killer rock sound that
always works !!!
Good Job Guys !! - houston was sure to suffer from an exausted band who
really laid it on thick in Austin once again !!!!
Da Brookster

Date: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 15:52:26 -0500
From: Tim Hardy [email protected]
Reply-To: ELN/[email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 9/24/99 Austin
 
    I thought this venue was great.  My first trip to TX couldn't have
given me better weather.  We got there early and got great spots in
line.  We were right up in front of Trey for the first set.  I love
First Tube, it's got a great intro and a heavy beat.  I called PYITE to
open, but got it second.  So far so good.  It was fun seeing the
Landlady shuffle so close.  I was hoping for a Roggae, which is very
unlike me, and I got it.  The DwD was great too.  The parts I left out
were quite average.  The second set was pretty awesome, but I had moved
way back on the hill to give myself some room(a lot of room, probably
ten feet to the nearest person) so the high energy tunes were lost on
me.  The Wolfman's was *excellent.*  It featured a great funk jam, but
then Trey turned on his loop(a bit high) and things got even better.
Instead of going into the usual space jam that the Trey loop signals,
Page started playing Trey's chords to Lizards.  This ended up leading
into a DARK jam where Page shifted into a plinky keyboard sound not
unlike those electronic keyboard you may have had as a kid.  Anybody who
remembers the computer game the 7th Guest should listen to the music on
that.  This would fit perfectly.  I found the rest of the set to be
pretty average, although the song selection was quite excellent.  Allow
me to phrase that as everyday versions of not everyday songs(Like an
average Peaches if you can imagine that).  Overall it was a ton of fun.
    Later,
     Ry

Date: Tue, 28 Sep 1999 22:45:43 CDT
From: Stuart Blumberg [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: phish concert review
 
hey,
        I was at the concert in austin on 9/24/99.  Phish was of course
amazing even though I was "way up in the stars" during most of the concert.
On the way in people were selling acid, I must have been offered acid at
least 15 times.  They were selling pipes and all kinds of stuff.  we got
inside and found a place in the audience.  Everyone was chilling on their
blankets and we were lucky enough to get up sorta close.  Before Phish came
on I moved to the back on the lawn to see some friends.  I lay down on the
blanket and was staring up at the clear sky when out of nowhere "Down with
Disease" came on.  Everyone jumped up and started dancing.  If you want to
know what it was like it was like the woodstock videos from the 60's you
always see where all the hippies are dancing all weird and everyone is
blazing.  After a while my body just couldn't take it so I lay down on the
blanket and sort of "zoned out" for a while.  Every once in a while I would
get up and see my bro and some other people smoking so I joined in.  then I
would zone out some more and then all of a sudden a familiar song started to
play and everybody was going crazy.  It was Misty Mountain Top by Led
Zeppelin and being a huge Zeppelin fan I got up and started dancing like all
the hippies.  When the concert was over I made my way to the car and stopped
on the way to feed my munchie's.  After we left I realized that I just went
to a fucking pish concert!!!!!!!!

Date: Wed, 29 Sep 1999 08:44:41 -0500
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Austin

South Park Meadows is HUGE, a big-ole Texas-sized shed in the middle of
big-ole Texas-sized parking lots (I couldn�t believe how far apart the rows
of cars were AND how far we had to walk to get to the entrance).  We were
later than I like to be (parking at 7:45 for a 7:30 show, getting settled in
a spot literally 3 minutes before the lights went down), but we were settled
as First Tube kicked off the show with a groove.  The crowd was really
mellow throughout the majority of the show.  Punch You In the Eye followed
(almost NO crowd sing along with the "Hey!"), and Farmhouse came third.  All
three were about as straight-ahead as they could be.  Water in the Sky came
next and finally found the boys hitting a little bit of a stride with some
nice bluegrassy solos.  Moma dance seemed relatively short but funky as
always (some nice work by Page, who was a little low in the mix on Trey�s
side).  Down With Disease was the first set highlight for me.  It was quite
experimental, and they got FAR away from the DwD theme (unlike the previous
version I�d caught at Deer Creek this summer � a straight-ahead rocker).
Trey seemed to force the return to the theme a little, but it wasn�t too
bad, and where they had just come from made it easily forgivable.  Nice.
Roggae was up next, and was mellow (fit the crowd) and had some nice
dynamics (love seeing this song at shows with quiet crowds � they can do so
much playing with volume!).  Get Back on the Train chugged in and had some
really nice country funkin� by everyone.  The ensemble mind seemed to kick
in with Water in the Sky, and it was flowin� by this point.  Guyute was
near-flawless, and I thought it would end the set, but Lovin� Cup rocked us
to a close with some fiery leads by Trey, supported nicely by the other
three.  This was one of those sets that was fun to watch and listen to, and
you�re glad you�re seeing Phish and not anywhere else, but there wasn�t too
much new ground broken here.  With the exception of Disease, the playing was
short, tight, and sweet, with a laid-back feel permeating the whole set.

The second set kicked it up SEVERAL notches.  Peaches was much-desired by
myself and it was great to hear (not quite perfect, but damn close), but I
was amazed by the lack of crowd reaction to this tour�s big bust out.  Not
to say people weren�t into it, just that they weren�t vocal.  It was kinda
nice, but I wanted one song where the crowd would feed back to the band.
I�d get it later in the set.  Possum followed Peaches and was shortish but
not a note was wasted.  Great work all around.  Wolfman�s was one of the
highlights (probably THE highlight, if I was forced at gunpoint to pick just
one) of the second set.  It was LONG (I�m guessing 25-30 minutes), the funk
was SERIOUS, and they shifted many times and explored many places.  Top
notch stuff, but too long and varied to accurately describe as "It was this"
or "It was that."  I just can�t wait to hear the recording.  There may have
been a segue into Lizards, I can�t quite remember, but Lizards was great.
Well played (except for one little variance by Trey in the end build-up),
got the crowd moving again.  Always nice to hear.  Sand was next, and
hearing how long it was, I thought it might be the set closer.  It was very
"ambient," I�m not sure that anyone was directing the jam, it kind of
sounded like it was just sort of was happening.  I�ll have to hear this
again (along with other versions, of course) to properly assess.  It was
long, and I guess a word I would use to describe the song would be
"interesting."  The one true segue that I remember was into Misty Mountain
Hop, another first for me, and this got the crowd going!  Page was wailing
on the high vocals, Trey was tearing it up on the �doc, and it was great.
Also, it was very breezy, and they couldn�t keep the stage filled with smoke
for the life of them, so they had it constantly pouring out � it looked like
something was on fire behind Fish � hilarious!  Great closer, the crowd was
finally vocally giving it up for the boys as they decided what to play
backstage.  I can�t ask for more in an encore.  Boogie On returned us to the
mellow groove/funk and then Chalkdust (the crowd�s second appearance of the
night) rocked us again in a version that, despite my catching it many times
recently, seemed fresh and vibrant.

I�m not good with arbitrarily assigning numbers to rate sets, so I�ll just
say the first set was laid back and fun (as Charlie Dirksen used to say,
"typically great"), and the second set was excellent, great, one of those
sets that keeps you coming back again and again.

 
Date: Mon, 27 Sep 1999 08:57:55 -0700 
From: Catherine Brownfield [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Review for 9/24/99

Well, now that I have had a couple of days to dwell on it, and I am not
sore
and recovering from a mad acid trip, I would really have to say that this
show was pretty damn spectacular!!  It was a rock show at some points, but
damn DWD, Possum, Wolfman's, GBOTT, Sand, MMH, Boogie, and fucking
CHALKDUST
kicked some serious ass, I swear to god that they were going to close
second
set with slave, but they didn't and it is alright....this show was
definitely right up there with 7/4/99, can't wait to see them again, I
think
I am going to have to splurge for a plane ticket and hotel fair in NY or
maybe Hampton!!


Cheers

Austin Brownfield

Date: Sat, 25 Sep 1999 23:17:22 -0700
From: Catherine Brownfield [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Review of 9/24/99
 
Well, here we go, South Park Meadows, and maybe a great show by Phish?...not
quite...
 
First Set:
 
First Tube:  Never heard this one before, neat work from Trey, cool intro
for the show, not really jammed out much...
 
PYITE:  I called this as the show opener and got it as the second song.
Played well and lifted the energy of the crowd, at this point the show
seemed on its way...until...
 
Farmhouse:  This song just plain is awful, not really much to say here
 
Water in the Sky:  This had a short but sweet jam, and was a nice groove,
energy was still pretty good...
 
Moma Dance:  Typical moma, nothing to great with the jam, decent work, but
nothing too far out there...then came the definant highlight of the first
set...
 
DWD:  Hell the fuck yeah!!  I had hoped for this and it was tight, and well
played jam by everyone and nice peaking, seemed like they were about to take
it far out there, but then they just went back to the close, alright by me
though, good disease
 
Roggae:  Great pretty tune everytime you hear it, I was probably the only
person jumping up and down when they started this, great song
 
Get Back on the Train:  This song in my opinion blows the moma dance away,
for some reason moma dances are just flat now, but GBOTT had a tight groove
and some nice work from Mike
 
Guyute:  Almost flawless, lots of energy
 
Loving Cup:  When this song showed up it was very evident that we were in
for a rock show, which is alright, but I am a lover of far reaching jams,
something that is rare for phish sometimes it seems, well played, left me a
bit unsatisfied, but i was ready for set II...
 
Set break...oh no, couple of cubes went down, I was hoping for some good
times  : )
 
Second Set:
 
Peaches:  Hell yeah!!  Well done, high energy, this set was looking
promising..
 
Possum:  Sweet possum, short jam, but well played with lots of energy,
looked great so far, then came the highlight of the second set for me...
 
Wolfman's:  Very nice and grooving jam out of this wolfman's, seemed like we
might have a segue into the first slave of the tour, but alas, they went
into a very nice
 
Lizards:  Awesome last solo by Page, he was really having a great time,
would have been an awesome lizards, but Trey fucked up the ending
 
Sand:  Never heard it before, it was pretty neat I suppose, some of those
effects that Trey were using were a little annoying and then another segue
opportunity to slave arose yet again, it seemed like Trey was calling for
it, but nope... bummer...they went into...
 
Misty Mountain Hop:  Even though I wanted slave, this was a very well played
cover of this Zepplin tune, Page did a stellar job and got a great reaction
from the crowd, I thought that sense there was so many teases for slave that
it might arise from this but for some reason the set was cut short, some of
Trey's toys must not have been working and he walked off
 
Encore:
 
Boogie on Reggae Woman:  This was awesome to see, but was not that
energetic, a little bit of a bummer...then probably the best part of the
show for me...
 
Chalkdust:  I haven't heard any of the recent chalkdusts, but this one was
very very nice, I wish some of the other jams went out there like this one
did, good ending, pretty good show, but not the best, hopefully Raleigh and
Big Cypress will be better...peace
 
Austin Brownfield

Date: Sat, 25 Sep 1999 02:43:39 -0500
From: katie dunaway [email protected]
To: [email protected]
 
PhiSh lifted their left foot in the air tonight in Austin TX and squashed
South Park Meadows like a bug.  First tube(Last Tube?) and pyite were
pretty good cosmokid phunk rock intros to the Texas/big easy weekend.  They
eased off with farmhouse and water in the sky giving everybody the
opportunity to appreciate what a smart meteorological decision they made
playing Texas in late September rather than July.  Moma Dance Was Phunky
bUt a LiTtle PHlat.  Never fear Mike was here in the spotlight to lay it
down with a phat Dwd intro that lead into an especially liquidy jam. Roggea
reminded us of the circus comes to town atmosphere of last years austin
outing.  No relaxin to much Mike got us Back on the tRain.  Then a
shameless Guyute, Lovin Cup rock n' roll closer for the long first set.
Lovin' cup was the last song of the first set in Texas last year too!
LONG      ASS      SET       BREAK   >  LONG ASS SET BREAK .   .  .  .
Peaches en Regalia woke the crowd from what seemed like a long pause
between sets.
Duh Da duh da duh da duh da POSSUM rocked the party down to the ground.
Wolfman's bro was gratifying but not nearly as exciting as the Lizards that
was gubba gubba great.  But phish was not done not by a long shot
Sand?(F1rst TUBE?) was down right d i s co !!!  PHIsh then played super
star dj's -here we go- super star dj- here we go!  How do you fade disco
sand into MISTY MOUNTAIN HOP!?!  They did and then proceeded to to beat
this pre-millennium crowd over the head with a song whose lyrics
seemed poignant.
 
So the left foot had been dropped mashed stomped down on by the giant
dusty sneaker that is phISh.  What was left was that turn of the foot that
slight ankle rotation that completes any good stop. . . . Encore . . . .
boogie on regea woman.  ahhh yeah you know what i'm talkin bout boogie on
reggae woman smoother than 250 dollars worth of pudding .  Big finish
chalkdust torture see you in HOUSTON.

Date: Sat, 25 Sep 1999 04:09:49 -0500
From: Julie Chalkdust, but they had a difficult time getting the funky Boogie on
going, like something was wrong and the song came out flat.  The band had
incredible momentum built up through the second set which was gone in a
hurry as the guys came back out, finishing off the show. I suspect there was
one more jam that was coming out of Misty and they had to cut the set short.
        This was a really solid show with some incredible moments.  Down
with Disease was very long and had a long jam coming out of it that really
worked.  It was the standout of the first set, though First Tube>PYITE was a
great opining, and Moma Dance ended on a really neat sort of place that was
somewhat different than any other time I've seen them do it.  The second set
was really hot right up until whatever happened at the end that caused the
set to be cut short. Peaches!!!>Possum, Wolfman's>Lizards, and Sand>Misty
Mountain Hop were all great, but the guys really seemed to be building it up
for one more wave before ending the set.  There were sound problems all
night, with the sound fading in and out a lot, and there was some feedback
in Wolfman's that was giving them some trouble, so I suspect that there was
some technical problem that caused the set to be cut off.  There was a stage
tech messing with Trey's effects pedals during Mt. Hop immediately before
the abrupt exiting.  It really looked like Paige, Mike and Fish did not
fully know what was going on when Trey left the stage so something must have
happened suddenly...
 
I hope they make up for cutting the show short tomarrow night, but this was
another really good show by Phish.
--kyle


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