Phish – September 2nd – Dick’s Sporting Goods Park

Photos by Ty Hyten

The Scene: While most concert scenes can be relatively predictable in terms of who is going to show up, if there is one scene that has become as predictable as June Cleaver it’s Phish at Dick’s.  The energy in the air is palpable as the Vermont quartet has built up a long history of largely stellar performances at the soccer stadium (though admittedly the 2015 run was a little on the weak side) and the Shakedown is a wild open air market offering up all kinds of lot goods from the most insane Mac & Cheese subs (yes, I said Mac & Cheese subs) courtesy of The Gouda Boys, to your standard lyric tees and heady glass, to all the illicit substances your heart could desire.  It’s a crazy scene and, if you can stomach the scent of patchouli, the stench of the legions of unwashed wookies, and the dust of Dick’s lot, then you should check it out sometime.  Bring cash, not too many of these vendors take plastic 😉

Phish: Coming off a blistering two night stand at Lockn’ Festival in Virginia, and an uneven summer tour, expectations were high for Phish when they took the stage at Dick’s and they pushed them even higher when they came out of the gates at full speed on Friday night with a relatively rare opening “Ghost” that made the first set feel like a second set from the word “go.”  The newer crowd favorite “No Man In No Man’s Land” appeared in the two hole and, at more than 15 minutes, was one of the longest jams of the night.  This was shaping up to a VERY good first set no matter what happened next.

What happened next was a series of solid song selections and tight playing from the Vermonters.  From “Breath and Burning” which was debuted this summer, to a pair of early 90’s gems in “The Wedge” and “Stash,” Trey was largely free of the technical flubs that had plagued him throughout the tour while the rest of the band gelled behind him and excelled in their own rights.  The first set on Friday night was truly a team effort and they even showed off a little of their humorous side when Fishman broke into the sleeper hit of the summer “Ass Handed.”   After the light “Alaska,” the band drove things home with a typically fiery take on “46 Days” that sent everyone into setbreak with big grins on their face knowing the boys were back!

The second started out on the right foot (so to speak) with a blistering “Run Like An Antelope” opener that faded into only the fourth “Mercury” the band has ever played.  While the song was a little slow for me coming out of the insanity of “Antelope,” I do enjoy it and think it would have fit nicely a little later in the set.  After the relatively lackluster pairing of “Seven Below” and “Birds of a Feather” the band busted out the cuddly, but muscular, “Wombat” for only the 11th time ever and the second time this summer.  That’s where the party really started.

As “Wombat” wound down Trey kicked into “Tweezer” at nearly “Reprise” pace with a crazy effect on his guitar.  The capacity crowd exploded and the band responded by delivering one of the best “Tweezer’s” of the summer at nearly 16 minutes of insanity that climaxed with a memorable peak where every hand in the stadium was raised triumphantly.

From “Tweezer” the band segued smoothly into the vaguely Bluegrassy “Runaway Jim” which kept the energy high before the set closing “Suzy Greenberg” ensured a 27,000 person sing-along.  Though we all knew what was coming in the encore, Trey took the opportunity to slow things down a bit with “Bug” before the boys blew the roof off with “Tweezer Reprise” to end the night and put the cap on another memorable night of Phish Dicks.  Sure, there were no setlist shenanigans, but there was plenty of powerfully tight playing and the song selection was prime.  It was the perfect way to kick-off a stellar weekend of Phish!

Phish – Friday, September 2nd – Dick’s Sporting Goods Park
Set 1: Ghost, No Men In No Man’s Land, Breath and Burning, Undermind, Heavy Things, Stash, Ass Handed^[1] > The Wedge, Alaska > 46 Days
Set 2: Run Like an Antelope, Mercury > Seven Below > Birds of a Feather, Wombat, Tweezer > Runaway Jim > Suzy Greenberg
Encore: Bug > Tweezer Reprise

Energy: A+
Musicianship: A+
Sound: A
Stage Presence: B
Set/Light Show: A+

Overall: A