Few openers in the Phish canon elevate joy quite like Fluffhead. Perhaps this is because Fluffhead is synonymous with Phish’s return (see 03/06/09), or maybe it is just a great opener (see 10/23/21) — or both. Regardless, the jammed out Fluffhead that opened 12/29/22 signaled the start of an ebullient voyage for the MSG faithful. Fluffhead was followed by Your Pet Cat — a natural resolution to the teases sprinkled throughout the previous night sets. Your Pet Cat went feral and lurched towards towards the bombastic, before dropping into the brazenly psychedelic Bathtub Gin. Gin churned with melodic spontaneity as Trey commandeered his effects arsenal to deliver a thrilling jam tinged with shadows of dissonant chaos that never fully surrendered to the darkness. Gin capped a 45-minute stretch of brilliant, inspired playing that left us nodding our heads in buoyant approval.

Next came Phish’s debut of the brooding and slinky of hey stranger. I half expected the debut to serve as a breather after the kaleidoscopic Gin, but it wasn’t to be. Hypnotic and rippling with possibilities, hey stranger felt like we were allowed to gaze into that same mandala only to see that it had been stripped bare of its color to reveal its seductive monochrome symmetry. Revving the funk into high gear, Trey launched into the decadent swagger Tube which chugged along smoothly until it careened into its bluesy middle section — form superseding flow. A cool and suave Slave to the Traffic Light followed before the first set closed with a scorching Blaze On that stoked anticipation for Set 2.

In the same way that Set 1 started with a jammed-out standard, David Bowie quickly positioned Set 2 for similar unfettered exploration. This Bowie is dynamic, and the patient guitar harmonics beginning at 5:40 establish a delicate mood that by the 10-minute mark had blossomed into an elegant soundscape that peaked brilliantly before Bowie’s ultimate descent into its frenetic coda. A well-placed Everything’s Right morphed into a surprisingly gritty funk jam, setting the table for a soaring You Enjoy Myself that was executed with exquisite precision, including extra spicy soloing by Mike. The YEM vocal jam dissolved into a Vedic-esque chant that ushered in the opening chords of Ruby Waves. Arguably the highlight of the show, Ruby Waves burst forth mature and glorious. As the jam unfolded the band conjoined to form a sprawling sonic leviathan, appendages pumping with hypnotic fluidity — a mental image no doubt inspired by the Trammel poster released that night. The Heartbreaker tease elicited a raucous response from the crowd, culminating yet another staggering run of improvisational music — a perfect complement to the first set’s opening sequence. A plaintive and dreamy Lonely Trip followed, which juxtaposed nicely against the scorching renditions of Back on the Train and Character Zero that closed Set 2. A quirky animal-themed encore featured an untidy but jolly Guyute and a spirited Possum with lively Trey banter in the final bars.

Like many 12/29s of the past, the 2022 installment delivered as much joy and improvisation splendor that any of us can dare wish for — which left us hoping and wondering if they could outdo themselves on 12/30.