Check out photos from the show:

http://tinyurl.com/6waaspt

Easily one of the best Phish-related nights I've been to. The way the setlist plays out, this little tour seems like a nice culmination of Trey's orchestral work from the past decade. And Don Hart's orchestrations work wonderfully -- they end up sounding a little like Phish conducted by Igor Stravinsky if Stravinsky had jumped out of a Disney movie and said, "Sure, I'll hop on Phish tour."

The first half flowed beautifully, with a nice mix of old school compositions like Divided Sky and Stash alongside the prettier numbers like Let Me Lie. Guyute Orchestral was stunning live, and it was nice to hear the early bits of My Friend My Friend melding with the ugly pig's theme. Divided Sky was everything I hoped it would be after hearing the Scorchio Quintet version.

Things got real in the second half. TTE is a completely different beast at the symphony, and I came away with a better appreciation for the work. Definitely meant to be a large-scale orchestral piece. I wasn't checking my watch or anything, but I feel like this was close to 30 minutes long. If I Could was achingly beautiful ... complete with a mid-song marriage proposal by someone in the middle of the crowd! She said yes, of course. The response from everyone else nearby was ecstatic, loud enough for Trey and the orchestra to look up and wonder what the hell was going on. But after the song the musicians figured it out, and Trey offered his congratulations, dedicating YEM as the couple's first "post-engagement/pre-wedding" song. Icing on the cake: nice little tease of the Bridal Chorus during the space section.

And then for an encore the second half of the Abbey Road suite and a perfect Inlaw Josey Wales. I'm extremely grateful to the ASO musicians for such fantastic support. Walked out a happy listener.

I don't want to get into a terminology argument, but I think you can go ahead and call it a "Tweeprise" jam rather than a tease; it takes up a good two minutes. Not much else going on in this show, but this "Piper" is must-hear Phish. Also, what is the point of labeling a "Seven Below" as "Unfinished"? Shouldn't you also put that label on "Piper" then? What about "Rock And Roll"--that was definitely not finished.

Set 1
Jim – This is a nice short, frenetic Jim that serves well as a show opener. I really like what Trey does during this with nice complements from Page’s trailing keys.
Golden Lady – Nice, groovy Stevie Wonder song.
Poor Heart – The juxtaposition next to Golden lady is hilarious. Page fires away on the keys in this one.
Guelah Papyrus – Someone in the forum once said that they think Phish was much more technically proficient in 1994 than in the 3.0 era. While it is desirable to argue that statement, this Guelah would be good evidence for the person’s claim. It is perfectly played while retaining the energy and fierceness that 3.0 Guelah’s don’t have.
SOAMelt – Nothing too amazing here, but a thrilling SOAM nonetheless. From 5 minutes on is where it gets interesting and very fast-paced. Around the 6:35 mark I believe Mike teases Simple. I may be incorrect, but it sounds eerily similar to me.
Kung – I was almost disappointed when SOAMelt transitioned into this because the former was about to get exciting. Oh well, I can’t stay upset when there’s a Kung playing.
SOAMelt – Oh wait, SOAM isn’t over! I forgot this is the year of sandwiches, and I don’t have any problem with a Kung sandwich on SOAMelt bread!
Esther – Oh boy do I love Esther. This is one of my favorite purely compositional tunes. It also includes a fun random note signal as well as a Simpsons signal.
Julius – Trey shreds the hell out of this song starting at about the 4:50 mark. Eventually the jam gives rise to a chaotic, slow-paced drum fill which ends in a climactic jolt of energy by Fish and Trey. A short, but truly sweet type I.
Guyute – Something about the short pause between “scampered quickly out of range” and the next segment really wows me. This goes for the pause between “I hope it happens once again” and its succeeding segment as well. It seems so simple, but it’s one of those little things you come to appreciate about Phish. The ugly pig doesn’t disappoint here.
Golgi – Golgi is Golgi.

Set 2
Lengthwise – Sweet start to a set!
Maze – The transition from lengthwise to Maze is cool with the guys still chanting “when you’re there, I sleep lengthwise, and when you’re gone I sleep diagonal in my bed” as the signature high hats begin. An overall well-played maze.
McGrupp – McGrupp is a great tune. 3.0 needs more McGrupp!
Rift – Also one of my favorite compositional songs. The vocal work in combination with phenomenal lyrics is always something to be taken away by.
Hood – This Hood is built up extremely well. Around the 12 minute mark is when the bliss begins! 13 minutes in, a darker progression begins with a more rock-oriented feel. The band will roar in loudness then quiet down, then roar in loudness again, only to quiet down and return to Hood’s main theme… for a bit. Near the 16 minute mark it quiets down completely with only Fish playing the high hats. Then Trey mimics the rhythm of Fish. The two swap playing until slowly Mike and Page join in building tension when Trey starts ripping the hell out of the main Hood theme. At around 18:10 the Trey treatment begins and doesn’t stop for the remainder of the song. I’m not very good at describing jams like these, but let’s just say you can feel good about this Hood. Highlight for sure.
Nellie Kane – Played acoustic, and if you ask me, it’s not as good as electric. Still, it’s Nellie Kane and is warming as can be.
Foreplay/Long Time – Wow! I’ll take the Phish acoustic version of this over Boston’s original any day. The harmony is a lot more natural and clear than the original. This is a super cool way to cool down after the monster Hood.
Chalk Dust - Once again the juxtaposition of songs in the setlist in 1994 was genius, and this is no exception. CDT being the wall of energy it is works perfectly coming out of an acoustic pair. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – half the genius of Phish from 1992-1995 was setlist brilliance and no other era rivals that genius. As for the song, it should be assumed that Trey shreds it like always, but other than that there’s not anything spectacular. It is very short-lived.
Encore:
Sample in a Jar – You know that thing I said about 50% of Phish’s genius in this era being setlist brilliance? Yeah, maybe it’s a bit less. After a show that feels like it was missing one good jam, Sample aggravates me a bit in this slot. Of course I don’t expect a hose YEM or anything, but c’mon. Not even a tasty little Cities? Can’t complain too much, though.

Highlights:
Set 1 – SOAMelt -> Kung -> SOAMelt, Jim
Set 2 – Hood, Foreplay/Long Time, Maze

Overall: This show was borderline awesome. It had the setlist, energy, and goofiness, but missed something. It had a great jam in Hood, but outside of that there was nothing to get lost in. My verdict: a fun and appeasing show with a decent amount of IT to offer, but not well-rounded enough to merit over a 4-star review. 4/5 stars.

My first show. I didn't know as much about the live shows as I should have. Tickets were almost impossible to get. I bought one out front for $35 and the three guys I traveled with from JMU were shut out and left me there. So I had to hope I found a ride home the 4 hours back to school.

I walked in during Mound, I think, because I remember the clapping. I immediately recognized Stash and Coil, so that was fun, but I spent the entire time walking around trying to find friends.

Set 2's stand out was Avenu Malkenu, because I didn't know Phish performed it and I remembered it from when I was a kid. And it's funny to think that the highlight of the night for me was Cavern, which was my #1 wishlist song at the time.

Literally on the way OUT of the coliseum, I found my friends. We packed 6 people into a little sedan for the ride back. Good times.

This show is often overlooked, but it will always hold a special place in my heart.

All I really remember musically was them covering that 80's pop song "Cars". You know.... "Here in my car, I feel safest of all.... In cars..... cars tonight". Or something like that. It was a really smokey venue with low ceilings and it was HOT inside. Also remember that Gordo was there, but actually didn't remember which songs he played until I got the FLACs a few months back. Anyone need copies, hit me up.

I was dancing with this girl and she stabbed me in the eye with her finger. I went blind for a second. Then, using the stage lights she held up her finger and said "Hey, is this your contact?" There it was, on the end of her finger- highlighted only by stage lights off in the distance.

I put it back in and continued to rage!

This is a nice show. Suzy works well as the opener. SOAM is played much slower than it would be played in later years, but this short version is fine. I like the following combo of Tela>Fluffhead a lot. La Grange is pretty good, featuring nice playing from Trey. The placement of Carolina is a little odd, but it's a fine version. The set gets another does of Gamehendge in Col. Forbin's Ascent>Fly Famous Mockingbird. Communication is a fun cover. Oddly enough, this was the third day in a row that it was played, before being shelved for 83 shows. The heavy metal style Wilson to open the second set is real nice, a highlight of the show. Antelope is typically shredding. Then, we get some humorous banter about the heat in the room and Fish telling the audience to take their clothes off. This is only the third Bouncing Around the Room ever played, and there are a few minor lyrical mistakes. Caravan is ok. The fourth ever Squirming Coil is good, albeit with much shorter piano solo than what the song would eventually feature. There's a nice jam in YEM. Bathtub Gin is par for the course for this period. The set-ending Mike's Groove is another highlight of the show, particularly Weekapaug Groove. The double encore of Lawn Boy and BBFCFM features the band playing back-to-back songs of completely different styles. There's a nice SBD recording of this show on the spreadsheet. I'm giving this show 4 stars.