So I had to wait a little while before I wrote this review, because I really wanted to reflect on the experience I had just had. Let me say right from the start....incredible! This was my 10th show (6 in 2.0, 4 in the 3.0 era) and it now goes down as the best show I have ever seen. Yes, better then 3/6/09 Hampton. Here is why:

Venue: Oh wow. We took a ferry over from Norfolk, which in itself added some real value to the whole experience. I mean, how often do you get to Phish shows on a boat? nTelos is small (6,500 max), so my group of 15 charged right to Page side/Rage side got to about 5 deep from the rail, and made camp. Everyone around us was incredible! Chad if you read this, thank you for the great time! Overall the security was VERY laid back, everyone in the crowd was amazingly cool, no pushing, no dickheads anywhere, and the dance party got nuts at times! Some of our group sat on the lawn as well, and they said the sound, vibe, lights, and people were just as amazing up top. Kuroda did a great job with the lights also. He played against the canopy top of nTelos very nicely. If you were on the dance floor, looking back to see some bouncing light every now and then was just what the doctor ordered. However, the shear small size of the venue made the night. If they ever play here again, I would fly from anywhere in the world to see it!

Music: Now I have read a lot of talk about this being a "two first set" show. Which in some ways it was, but you need to understand the energy of the show, and given that, it was perfect! Yes only Gin and Slave bust the 10 min. mark, but when things are happening fast with the energy they were you don't need super, drawn out Type II jams. You want the rage! Before the show got underway, my buddy and I ran into a guy in the bathroom carrying a massive, hand painted Tube sign. We look at each other and just think, yeah that would be sweet if they played that. Hello Opener! Our list of love to hear songs included: Moma Dance, Bathtub, Slave, Wilson, 2001, & STFTFP. Guess what we got? Everything! Only low point of the show was Cold Water, because I think the crowd was trying to figure out what the song was and what to do. Idea has some real room to grow BTW and could definitely use another couple go arounds. A Day In The Life brought my girl and I right back to Hampton for an amazing moment together. And then it happened, the one thing I never thought I would see. After a Heavy Things tease for the encore, the bass notes I crave started pounding out from the right. It was First Tube! I instantly began to jump like an African warrior heading out to a hunt. I raged harder then I ever had, in fact, my calves will be sore for days because I jumped so high. Being as close as we were, and jumping as high as I was, I like to think I shared a moment with Trey, causing him to jump higher and play harder as well. Sadly, we all know that is more then likely not the case....but it makes me happy to think it is.

Big Thanks: Big thanks to the city of Portsmouth! I am a 757 guy and I can tell you right now your city did a better job then anyone! From the boat operators, to the police, to the parking officials everyone was SUPER friendly. I mean scary, out of their way helpful! They even set up a public parking lot and made it a camping area! WTF! Take note SPAC because this is how you keep fans coming back for life! I did not see a single person get hassled either. Big thanks to the guys in the lot, thanks for doing your thing and giving us a place to hang. Huge thanks to all the new people I ran into, sorry if I forgot your names, but Chad is a standout and I look forward to seeing you again if you read this.

Next stop Merriweather!