MSG 4 Review

Live Long, Prosper, and Pass the Ice Cream

Tonight marked my 168th time seeing Phish, and somehow, still, they found a way to surprise me.

It also marked a handful of firsts. A first true New Year’s Eve kiss. A first Spock’s Brain chase caught. A first time fully surrendering to a “live long and prosper” mindset as more than a joke, more like a guiding principle. Beam me up, Scotty. Here we go.

First and foremost, a huge shout-out to my loving boyfriend Steve, who braved the rail with me for four nights in a row. That alone deserves its own tour poster. We dressed accordingly, cheap Amazon LED shoes and bow ties that lasted maybe five to ten minutes before surrendering to entropy. Worth it.

Tonight was Steve’s fifth show, and we have developed a dynamic that feels both ridiculous and perfect. We share this band. He is Spock. I am Data. I receive logic. He delivers it. Regularly. With precision. I also frequently get asked, “Do you want the Vulcan answer or the human one?” Reader, there is only one correct choice, and it is always Vulcan.

On night one, I told my best friend Sean that it would be hilarious if they busted out Spock’s Brain. I said it half joking. The universe was listening.

We walked onto the floor around 7:40 PM, fresh and ready, settling into the hearing-accessible section. I cannot overstate how meaningful that space is. People fully grooving by feel alone. Sign language interpreters translating joy. Balloons passing through the crowd so vibrations can be felt. It is a reminder that music is not just heard. It is experienced.

We have had access to upper suites all run, but I kept choosing this space. Roped off. Rail-adjacent. About fourteen security guards deep. Page side. Some of the kindest humans on the planet. Proof that maybe this place is not so bad after all.

We all arrived after dinner at The Little Mermaid, which was excellent, thank you very much. The band burst into Free, that classic Mike funk swagger, followed by Birds of a Feather. All weekend I kept saying this felt like old-school Phish, especially early on, and night one confirmed it.

Bouncing Around the Room landed as a reminder that Tom Marshall once said he knew Phish had made it when the entire Garden sang along. That tradition is alive and well.

Stash came next with crisp clapping, followed by Waste, which I still believe is the truest distillation of Phish’s emotional core. Gentle, earnest, devastatingly sincere. My Friend, My Friend scratched a personal itch, and A Life Beyond the Dream hit hard. That song matters to me. It always has.

Kill Devil Falls, then More. During the Baker’s Dozen, this was the song I came out to. Night three. I remember looking around MSG thinking, “I could scream this to everyone here and no one would care.” Half of what I said was lies. It took courage. But the life that followed? Skyrocketed.

Monsters followed. Then Life Saving Gun. Still no overt theme, but hints were forming. Ice. Cream. Bells somewhere in the distance.

Second set opened with Sand > Fuego > No Men In No Man’s Land. I begged to sit. My legs begged louder. Steve, however, does not bend easily when Pylon is calling. Up to the sky bridge we went, catching the tail end of the madness, saying Happy New Year and “I love you” to friends old and new. Shout-out to Meesh and Benny. Congratulations on conjuring life in the year 2026. Meesh, you glowed.

Back to the rail I went. Steve was easy to spot, deep in his glowstick era.

What’s Going Through Your Mind has been a favorite since Mondegreen. Dance like a fool every time. You Enjoy Myself followed, and yes, we all saw the poor soul misplace Trey’s trampoline mid-song. Trey corrected him live, without missing a note. That man’s origin story now includes public YEM shame. He survived. Barely.

Then came It’s Ice. The bell. The ice cream man. I touched the man. I did not touch the bell. Tragedy is relative.

Milk cartons. Ice cream props. A freezer portal. Harry Hood descended like a blessing, followed by 2001, and suddenly we were all in space looking for Spock. Fish disappeared. A fake Fish emerged with a bomb pop. This is why we keep coming back.

Auld Lang Syne brought my first real New Year’s kiss. I love my Spock. Deeply.

Tweezer > Piper > S.A.N.T.O.S. closed the set with ferocity. Kasvot Växt continues to age like wine and gasoline.

Encore time. Trey grinned. Milkmen appeared. And then it happened. Captain Kirk we have found him!!

Spock’s Brain.

I told Steve that morning that most fans will now love-hate-despise-love him . But when you chase something long enough and it finally lands, the joy is irrational and complete. Funkier than expected. Teased earlier. Fully realized at last.

Tweezer Reprise sealed it. Spock recovered. Order restored. 2026 initiated.

Phish has now played 91 shows at Madison Square Garden. Ice cream felt appropriate.

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Live long. Prosper. And never underestimate the bell.