Wednesday 10/16/2013 by ericwyman

HARTFORD: THE VENUE INSIDE A MALL

It had to be the best idea ever. "Let's build an arena and we'll stick it inside a shopping mall." For 1975, it had to make sense. No one who went to the Hartford Civic Center in 80's and 90's can forget the absurd collision of commerce that was the Civic Center. Buy some jeans at The Gap, have dinner at The Ground Round, and watch a monster truck show. What a night!

Technically, the venue inside the Civic Center is the "Veteran's Memorial Coliseum," though now the entire complex is referred to as the "XL Center" through a naming rights agreement with XL Capital. The exterior has changed, the shopping mall is gone and it's hardly the same compared to Phish's last visit in 1999. Of course, the building's most famous and maligned tenant was the one and only Hartford Whalers. Everyone's favorite punchline in hockey, the original building was, for all intents and purposes, theirs. Located in Connecticut's capital city it was one of two venues in the state where you'd expect to attend a major ticketed event, with the now defunct New Haven Coliseum. If it was coming to town, it was probably happening at the Civic Center.

Phish made their first visit on October 23, 1996. The entire second set was highlighted by a notable guest, Bob Gullotti on the second drum kit. A definite precursor to the percussion-infused Halloween show that would come just over a week later. The set opening "Brother" and the layered rhythms highlight a perfect example of the night's music.

One year later on November 26, 1997, Hartford was the Thanksgiving-eve venue for an amazing show in a tour full of highlights. From the opening "Tweezer" to the jammed out "Character Zero," the night was the party that everyone dreams of having with their friends on a homecoming eve.

Fast forward to 1999 and Phish found themselves in town once again, on December 12. Their most recent trip to Hartford features a compact set highlighted by the 30+ minute exploration of "Drowned."

So Phish will once again return to indoor venue in Hartford and we'll see what wonders await. Personally, I'm hoping for the 30-minute "Brass Bonanza."

One final note: Judging by the ticket availability (on a site which shall remain unnamed) this looks to be an intimate venue setup, similar to Phish's visit to Manchester, NH in 2010 where a good portion of the seats will be unsold.

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Comments

, comment by The_Watchful_Hosemaster
The_Watchful_Hosemaster I look forward to this show. This was the venue that I saw my first ever Phish show back in 1999!
, comment by bl002e
bl002e I'm not even a Whalers fan, and I would absolutely lose my shit if they busted out a Brass Bonanza.

What's the deal with the 100s/200s/400s at the top of the venue? Given the similarities of the venue to Nassau (ancient, no-frills hockey sheds that have outlived their usefulness to a professional sports franchise), I'd guess they're skyboxes?
, comment by ericwyman
ericwyman @bl002e said:
What's the deal with the 100s/200s/400s at the top of the venue? Given the similarities of the venue to Nassau (ancient, no-frills hockey sheds that have outlived their usefulness to a professional sports franchise), I'd guess they're skyboxes?
Yeah, skyboxes. They hang down over the upper rows of the 200 sections to a point where they had to install televisions so the top most rows could actually see the ice. Brilliant design. In college you could go to whaler's games for like $10 day of. They gave you the last possible row. LOL

That being said, the skyboxes were where you wanted to be.
, comment by bushwood_a_dump
bushwood_a_dump Great writeup. I'm really digging these venue reviews. Not being from the area, I have little familiarity with these places, and it really helps paint the picture for the shows.

And hey, what 80's kid didn't live for Ground Round night at the mall. Pay what you weigh night, Baby!
, comment by mcwalsh
mcwalsh This is my most anticipated Phish venue! I grew up and still live in a suburb of Hartford. Now I work in the city. The XL Center has been home to a lot of things for me in my youth and adult life (minor league hockey, college graduation, etc.) and now it'll finally be home to Phish!

A note on the seating chart. I noticed when tickets first went on sale, they weren't selling anything behind the stage or to the side of the stage. If you buy tickets now that has changed. I just pulled a 107.

I couldn't imagine being all the way up on the sides for this show. That venue is cavernous as hell! I'll be on the floor. I can't wait!!!
, comment by tmwsiy
tmwsiy Hmm, looking over my pics and vids from Manchester in 2010- the complete arena was full. Perhaps it wasn't a 100% sell-out- but there were no closed sections. Looked like a near capacity crowd to me.

Anyway, totally excited to return to Hartford- lots of great Dead memories there.
, comment by Mr_Miner
Mr_Miner Saw the Grateful Dead there a couple of times. Looking forward to the show.
, comment by sethadam1
sethadam1 I don't remember a Ground Round attached to the Civic Center. But I definitely remember that store where the door was shaped like the whale.
, comment by Cabot
Cabot Saw Van Halen there during their OU812 tour. Fun times.
, comment by tberman333
tberman333 Gotta love the mall (now a high rise apartment building, but it will always be the mall to me!).

Can't wait to see the boys in my home venue again... By the way, my first concert at the Civic Center was REO Speedwagon! I would love to hear Fishman sing Can't Fight this Feeling!
, comment by mmg781
mmg781 My first Phish show was 12/12/99! I remember clapping during Stash, and my buddy (also his first show) was like, "how did you know to do that?". Hometown show. See ya'll on the 27th!
, comment by ColForbin
ColForbin Any excuse to embed Brass Bonanza is a good one.
, comment by earlytimes
earlytimes This place was my goddamn childhood. Tons of Whalers games and each of the aforementioned Phish shows ('97 was a dream). If I still lived in the area I would be there for sure.
, comment by ericwyman
ericwyman @tmwsiy said:
Hmm, looking over my pics and vids from Manchester in 2010- the complete arena was full. Perhaps it wasn't a 100% sell-out- but there were no closed sections. Looked like a near capacity crowd to me.
Oh, maybe that was for The Fresh Beat Band
, comment by WaxBrain
WaxBrain Brass Bonanza all day long!
THE WHALE!!!!!!
, comment by RunLikeACantelope
RunLikeACantelope This will be the show of the fall tour.
, comment by antelope22
antelope22 The author has removed all of the text from their comment
, comment by dpwilljr
dpwilljr I saw my first Grateful Dead show (3/14/81) at this storied venue. I returned twice to see the Dead there in '83 and '87. I remember the mall from the '87 shows.
I also attended shows at New Haven Coliseum in Spring '83.
There is an undeniable energy to indoor shows in Connecticut.
We can only speculate what we're in store for on the heels of the Worcester shows without a day off.

, comment by SOAM_PHAN
SOAM_PHAN was there in 96, 97 & 99. Excited to see the boys here again.
, comment by Shangho
Shangho I was lucky enough to have floor seats at the 96 show,3 rows back!!!An absolutely AMAZING show and my 2nd at that (1st being The Clifford Ball)
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