, attached to 2018-07-22

Review by lincolnfrog

lincolnfrog First set was exactly what the doctor ordered - chill, fun, groovy, comical, beautiful. Curtain With is one of my favorite memories from the Gorge 6 years ago and was great to hear them reprise it again. Everyone was expecting a Reba and this one was well executed through the composed section and the end jam was majestic befitting of the scenery. There is nothing quite like watching the sun set over the gorge while a Reba jam floats across the sky. Stealing Time from the Faulty Plan exemplifies what I have been hearing from Trey this tour - eschewing the standard, tired rock guitar jams for extra crunchy, saucy weirdness with some deep pocket.

Quick note on Waiting all Night - I heard them soundcheck a WAN at Shoreline a couple years ago and Trey just let loose for like 5 minutes on the jam, sending these soaring sustain notes, flying on top of the song and delivering a blistering conclusion. It was awesome, and every time I am at a show and they start WAN, I am hoping he will do that in a show setting. I was so sure he would do that on this version at the Gorge given the contours of the show, but alas, it still hasn't materialized.

Wombat was, like Stealing Time, extra saucy and dank - really fun version. I got my first Tela, which I have been chasing forever, and again it felt like perfect song placement.

Second set is, without a doubt, one of the best sets I have seen. It was perfect, blissful psychedelia of the utmost vision and patience. Trey dripping little droplets of guitar bliss over the top of some of the chillest, locked in Fish/Mike grooves I have ever heard. The space they hit near the end of C&P is my happy place, and then they kept finding their way back their throughout the set. Twist patiently slips onto the scene after 18 minutes of deep, mysterious grooves and then continues the theme. This whole section of the set is reminiscent to me of jams like the Fukuoka Twist and also the Bethel Waves Soundcheck. Speaking of Waves, right as I was thinking that it arrived and acted like a Coda on this perfect, blissful trip into the Infinite. The splash into Miss You was welcome - great placement for this song I think, unlike the shoehorned Farmhouse from the previous night. It was a perfect moment for reflection and to appreciate your loved ones there with you at the show - always important to remember them and love them while they are around because, as we all know, the glass is already broken. It brought me to tears and carved perfectly into the contour of the final section of the show.

Fluffhead was a time to rage - goodbye psychedelia, hello crazy composed Phish followed by a great shredded ending. Trey seemed to have some trouble lifting off right at the beginning of the end section - it seems like he is still adjusting to some gear changes, been hearing that all tour so far, but when he finally does come in hard, his tone is screaming and a blistering ending solo follows.

Split Open and Melt is the best version I have heard live - it really opened up in the jam and they went back to the dark, dripping space for a while. It felt like they lost the framework of the jam entirely near the end but nobody was in a hurry and it just kept cruising along. Trey very patiently brought back the split hits and Chris was RIGHT THERE with him on the lights on the very first one, which was amazing. They hybridized C&P and the end of Split to puncuate the end of an absolutely spectacular, all-time show. The setlist looks amazing on paper but is even MORE amazing on listen!

If you didn't find what you are looking for in this show, I am not sure you ever will.


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