Part of my full run through of Summer '98, see here

The band hits Star Lake with another cover debut; Trench Town Rock isn't as polished as some of the other covers this tour but still gets the show going with some energy. They follow with a strong Julius, and I do love when they play this song early in a set. This Wolfman's is an extended Type 1 affair in the '98 style, with the band leaving no stone unturned in their examination of the song's themes. It comes to a nice rock peak at about ten minutes in and then we get another surprisingly smooth segue into a major cover bustout in the form of Time Loves a Hero after a nearly ten year gap. This one is smoother than the Marley tune and ends up being a great way to close out the opening part of the first set. Bittersweet Motel provides a cool down, and also give the band their first chance to get a crowd pop in Burgettstown during the "halfway between Erie and Pittsburgh" line.

Reba ignites the second half of the set, and this jam has a very chill groove from Trey that Page accents excellently. This tour has had a number of great Rebas and this one feels like no exception as it peaks. Sloth and Ginseng Sullivan are standard, but good. The band breaks into Fee and, after some misses, the Fee outro finally fulfills it's promise this tour as it fades into several minutes of ambient bliss. The peaceful resolution though quickly subsides as the band drops into a Maze with an extra eerie intro. Trey seems bound and determined to make this one as spooky as possible, and this is offset by Page and Mike darting around the theme and building even more tension. This makes the climactic section that much more powerful as Trey torches this version with an exceptional build further augmented by Page and Fish. Once complete the band immediately jump into Sample in a Jar to close the set out.

At several points during this run I've noted certain shows and performances inspired me to do this full Summer '98 run through, and we have reached yet another one. Set two opens with a monster Runaway Jim. This one starts with some nice Type 1 exploration. At about 9 minutes in Trey introduces a loop as things slow down, launching us into the next segment of the jam. More space loops start to emerge at about ten and a half minutes and while the band is exploring we are still very much in type 1 territory. The band is patient as all get out, as they have been all tour though, and refuse to leave the main theme of Jim until they've oozed over every crevice of it. Finally at around 12 minutes space starts to seep in. Trey and Fish are bending this thing back and forth but Mike continues to arc back to the main Jim theme here and there and Page remains in the same key, as if the band is warping back and forth between the typical Jim jam and breaking free completely. At around 16 minutes Mike settles on a brand new bass line and the band finally takes off in a new direction, with Page adopting a new key. Trey is still mostly subdued here as the rest of the band flexes some muscle. The new theme has a driving force to it. This allows the band to start to build to a new peak. The jam gains emotional force similar to the jams at the Gorge as it builds. At 22 minutes Trey finally rips in and we start to hit peak bliss. After three minutes of hose the jam ramps back down and in again, and Mike takes the driver seat while Page riffs. At 28 minutes we start to build again off of a relentless new rhythm. At 32 minutes the band collapses into space, and Trey teases Maria before the band triumphantly returns to the Jim theme to close it out. An absolute masterpiece that stands with the Riverport Gin or Deer Creek Gumbo from this tour, another example of dominance in the era of The Best Phish.

Meat is a cool follow up. Limb by Limb continues to shine during this tour, there are seemingly no bad versions of this song at this point in the band's career. When the Circus Comes is standard. As Circus drifts off the band drifts into the Down With Disease closer. As I mentioned a few shows ago, Disease closers are straightforward affairs and this one is no different (though it feature some Maria-ish trilling from Trey which feels like a nice callback). This still feels like a very good set overall though. Wilson and Golgi make for a nice double encore.

As the tour is winding down we have another standout show here. Set one has two great sequences (Wolfman's > Time Loves a Hero and Fee > Maze). Despite an OK back half, the second set is anchored by this amazing Runaway Jim and another strong Limb By Limb, plus yet another multi-song encore. While things have been up and down we seem to be ending strong and making a last push towards counting this as part of the era of The Best Phish.