Like 2/15/03 from the prior weekend, this show is unfortunately caught directly between two stellar others. This positioning makes it difficult to provide an unbiased assessment, clear of any heightened expectations generated by a consecutive listen through the entire run. 2/15, though, was nonetheless aided by the meritorious jams executed in Wolfman's Brother, Ghost, and Harry Hood. While this 2/21 definitely has the spirit of a great Phish show, it feels like the band struggles to grasp deeper inspiration at times.

Take the DwD jam for instance: it's a great big jam. But it just doesn't do much; in fact, it hangs on A major with Fishman on the ride cymbal the entire time. Sure, there are some nice moments of riffing from Mike, Page, and Trey, and a cool 2.0 growly ascent to the peak. But this band is damned by it's own high watermarks.

I don't say any of this to mean I disliked the show. On the contrary, there's some really great music and fun setlist choices in here: Wilson > Frankenstein is a strong, well-played opening pair. Lifeboy is a happy bustout, if understandably rusty in spots. Boogie On is short but sweet, offering up especially tasty and busy Mike riffing. I especially love the spotlight moments afforded Mike and Page as Trey/Fish drop out. Antelope also features some really nice energy from Trey, who pulls off a few faster licks. Mike works in some cool moments of harmonic variation to break up the jam pattern too. IDK closes a set since 1991!

Mike's Song opens set 2 with a fairly typical jam for the first ~10 minutes, but eventually Trey put it into neutral and lets Page, Mike and Fish rip over an F# major drone. This eventually collapses into a chaotic and amorphous segment, out of which Fish tries to lead into Hydrogen. Instead, the drone segues into Free, which features some nice Mike and cool start/stop jamming. Waste is Waste for the most part, but there's a nice simple ambience at the tail end that serves up a -> 2001, where Page has some great moments on the rhodes. Trey struggles a bit to pull off the Jesu and Stash teases, but the idea is there at least. Hood bodes well after a long and playful intro. The jam builds nicely before receding back to a quieter space and re-ascending to the peak--it's long, but nothing outside the ordinary. Possum honestly might be the hottest jam of the night, with plenty of great Fish and Trey fueling the fire. Cavern and Velvet Sea are nice choices.

I'll re-iterate that this is by no means a snoozer or a skipper of a show; this is good Phish. But just listen to Simple>Gotta Jibboo from the previous night or Bathtub Gin from the night following, and you'll quickly hear a distinction in inspiration.