PHISH, FRIDAY 12/29/2023
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
New York, NY

SET 1: Free: Standard. >

The Moma Dance: Standard.

Maze: Standard.

Evolve: Standard.

Stash: Really solid jam here. It doesn’t necessarily have that signature moment or section that would cause me to assign it as having replay value, but this version has great placement and keeps the momentum of the set high. Good stuff Phish.

Back on the Train: Standard.

Theme From the Bottom: Standard. >

Mountains in the Mist: Awesome placement. Love this one anywhere they want to play it though. Anytime. Anywhere.

46 Days: Standard.

Drift While You're Sleeping: Little sloppy in the three minute range.

SET 2:

Chalk Dust Torture: This jam starts off well enough but in not much time it devolves in pedals and effects. Cool if that’s your thing. It even has a woo jam that the band actively solicits – ugh. There is a nice held note by Trey in the mid 19’s. Outside of that, this jam is pedals and effects. You will love it if that is your deal. It’s not mine. Decent enough segue into Oblivion. >

Oblivion: Definitely a fun listen right here. I guess I would try and best describe this as a playful jam. Trey just seems very joyful the way he plays through this one – see the stuff that is happening in the 13 minute range – some stop/start stuff – Fishman crushing it. Check out what he does at 13:10 on the LivePhish recording. He creates this neat high pitch effect and then uses that as a launching pad. Big held note. But, guess where that leads? You guessed it – the bliss crutch. Dude just is laser focused on getting himself into that space as often as possible. I liked the 6 minute range up through the 11 and a half or so minute range. The rest of it – no thank you sir.

What's the Use? - Standard ->

My Friend, My Friend[1] - This was the highlight of the night, very cool jam – Fishman killing it once again – this jam gets dirty and nasty – not afraid to play in the shadows and the muck and the mire, great job Phish – very cool and would recommend! Cool segue into Sand. ->

Sand: Cool jam, but…the last almost minute or 90 seconds is…yeah…you guessed it…

About to Run: Standard.

Harry Hood: They crush this peak! Absolute blitzkrieg! Woooooo!!!! Trey blows the roof off at 11:54 – lil bit of that old Phish magic right there. Would highly recommend!

ENCORE:

Lonely Trip: Standard.

Carini: This sure escalated quickly! Very loud and very high at just the 4 and half minute mark, nice! Great way to finish this show, nicely done!

Summary: They played that first set very safe. Well played for the most part with the anchor being Stash, but no signature jams to return to. Second set looks fantastic – on paper. MFMF and Hood were awesome! The rest is just not for me. Cool encore! I prefer 12.28 over 12.29. Would personally hit this as a 3.8spel/5. The current rating on Phish.net is Overall: 4.348/5 (302 ratings).

Replay Value: My Friend, My Friend, Harry Hood

[1] No "Myfe" ending.

My Friend, My Friend did not contain the "Myfe" ending.
SHOW RATING
Your rating:
Overall: 4.348/5 (302 ratings)