so i just wrote out a whole review of this show, but upon further contemplation of this mind-fuck that was utica, i decided to delete it and just say.. GET THIS FUCKING SHOW. RIGHT NOW. DO IT!! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD DOWNLOAD!!
highlights: first set.
other highlights: second set.
the end.
ps- this show could've ended after the first set and everyone would've gone home happy. just sayin.

After Extensive touring with Phish in the 90's it all came to an end at the end of the century. Bad habits had been picked up and things had grown dark. Hearing through the grapevine that the band had broke up and had its own issue was like hearing that an old phriend had stumbled over the same speed bumps. It grew to the point where I couldnt even listen to phish,, It was like looking at a photograph of an old girlfriend that I loved dearly but it didn't work out.

Living and working in Utica, hearing that Phish was again back at it and playing at the Aud was like running into the old love while being out and about. An old phriend practically dragged me to the show kicking and screaming, evening providing me with a ticket.

When they walked out onto the stage there was a glowing cry bursting from my chest. As they broke into my Soul there was such a deep cosmic connection that pointers will do no justice.

It was pure bliss, there was so much built up inside and it all came out in an focused explosion of funkadelic dancing. There was so much energy and light. It was so much fun. The whole show ran so deep. Back to catching shows and loving the music. It's all meant to be...

I was on about a decade hiatus from Phish due to life happening and the band on and off and off again... As they began gearing back up , my kids to were getting older, and my wife and I hit CMAC in the summer. Fist show since Hershey 2000. I caught the bug again..... hard. I was shut out in the lottery so ticketmaster it was. 5000 seat venue with half designated for the lottery, and on sale at the box office as well, I wasn't exactly expecting the same Ticketmaster experience I used to have in the 2nd half of the 90's. You know, when you could tell the lady on the phone you wanted edge seats on Fish side by the aisle and she said ok, no problem! Well, all i got was busy signals and a new-to-me online ticket system. I figured 10 or 15 minutes and they'd be gone. I tried for 2 and in the end, no go. For giggles i tried again, this time for just one ticket, and bam, got it. After explaining to my wife i could only get one, she graciously offered to stay home with our boys and I was on my way to my first solo show. I set up shop to the side of the soundboard. First indoor show in a long time. Philly 99 i think. If CMAC gave me the bug again, Utica poured gravy flavored cement all over that feeling. The sweet sound in that little rink, the awesome lights from Kuroda, the whole Guyute deal..the first set was just plain amazing stuff. Being older however, the shoulder to shoulder squeeze was just pissing me off. Idiots around me... chatting up a storm, pushing... the whole 9 yards. At one point i turned to some young kid and said something like, "damn, Trey is loving on Guyute tonight." blank stare. I was outta there. For the second, i found the sweet spot. It was the back corner of the floor, Mike and or Fish side, right where the curved hockey wall met the rectangle of the bottom of the stands. There was maybe enough space for two people but i claimed it. To my left, sitting on the wall were some jaded vet lookin dudes. Not stereotyping them as jaded vets due to appearance, but rather because of the deliberate and razor sharp attention they were giving this show. A quick conversation verified they were on tour as the one dude told me this is the best he'd seen them play all year. Adding to the jaded vet assumption was the look on his face throughout the show. It was like that of a proud parent consumed with joy as they watch their child return to a hobby or sport or whatever to great success. I let out a yelp when Page started Tela and the Vet dude gave me a "right on". In stark contrast, the younger folks saw it as a sit down song. It was at this point i saw the whole circle of fandom. Everybody's a noob at some point. I didn't feel welcome to the club at my first few shows, but back then ('96) you actually took shit from strangers, you know, the ones who were at Treys conception! VA Beach 97 some girls in full hippie costumes made fun of my shoes! My flipping shoes! Hell, at Watkins Glen the wife and i sprung for the hotel and shuttle package. On the way out to the buses some dick snidlely remarked "thanks for visiting". Argggh! Life is too short for that shit. Sorry, i digress. I love the music in both sets, but there was just something about that 2nd set I'll always cherish. The Sand is still my favorite version I've heard and it capures the vibe of this show perfectly. The Split was awesome and the Tela was just well suited for that moment. There is always room for Piper at any show I'm at, and catching the rare Have Mercy, though much slower than Oswego, was so sweet. If it were still the tape days, my tape would be worn out. It is so nice to have the DVD for crystal clear memories. Thanks for reading my nostalgic look back at a show that speaks for itself.

I'm commenting from my couch tour experience but....this show was epic. The Wolfman's was so solid. Guyute was too..and the Guyute teases in Bowie, Wilson, Saw it Again, and Antelope had the crowd going crazy. All of these songs were, of course, kickin'. The boys were on fire; throwing seven different kinds of smoke! I was stoked when they launched into Wilson..the fact that they never finished it had me anxious for the entire rest of the show. I kept waiting for the "BLAT BOOM" every time the energy seemed to be at a peak, but it never came. The Antelope was phenomenal...the build up was steady and the tension created was powerful, which led the final release being quite orgasmic. I'll take an Antelope at any show I go to.
Sitting in my room, set break seemed to go on forever. I was far too anxious sitting at my computer hoping that the "BLAT BOOM" would kick of the second set with a vengeance, but that didn't happen.

The second set was really solid too. I'm having trouble picking which one I enjoyed more...I think I'd have to go with set one. All the teases and the energy were just off the wall. I enjoyed every single song on this entire setlist and could go on about them for days. Drowned was great; definitely one of my favorite covers. Sand will always be a favorite of mine but I wish it would have gone on longer..it was only about 10 minutes and after getting a 22 minute Sand last year I always expect the heat in there. Theme and Axilla were both real solid and then BIRDS OF A FEATHER! Totally awesome and pretty rare these days. Axilla right into Birds (and the crowd goes wild!). The SOAM> Have Mercey>Piper>SOAM> Slave was NUTS. I was loving live real hard during that. Piper is one of my main jams and that slave was pretty long and sounded really great.

The encore was alright in my book. I love zeppelin and I love how the boys cover Good Times Bad Times but I was just expected something else...something more. It was definitely a solid GTBT though...by the end of it I logged off of my computer fully satisfied.

After listening live, this show is already one of my favorites. I can only imagine what listening to it all the way through a couple more times in the next few days will do to me. Another epic show boys..thank you for ripping it.
Thanks to taper420 for the perfectly crisp stream...you're the man.
I'll see you lucky ones at MSG in December/January!

Maybe Wilson's "BLAT BOOM" will reveal itself in one of these next few shows when the energy is at its' highest.

My 68th show. Haven't been this floored in a long time. Amazing venue/vibe, great setlist and stellar playing. My buddy and I talked about the show practically the whole ride back to Buffalo. Wow. Phish is back!

It says a lot about how good I think the first set (or, really, the second half of the first set) is that I'm actively waiting for teases of Guyute, a song I have never cared for. The Bowie is grade-A, featuring a goosebump-inducing Wilson/Guyute hybrid jam and a not as thrilling but still pretty cool Wilson callback before the Trill-Off section; McGrupp is particularly inspired; and Antelope (replete with Guyute teases and one blink-and-you'll-miss-it Wilson tease in the intro) is superb for any era, the band building tension by grinding the jam down into an atonal puddle, then heading into a white-knuckle peak (the bobbled transition into Rye Rye Rocco is forgiven with the hilarious Guyute callback). Set II, though, is where the real action is - a quick, rockin' Drowned that segues neatly into a really interesting, atypical Sand (this one's a Fish showcase, IMO) that goes plinko at the end, then a superb SOAM that heads into Type II immediately and finds some beautiful, dark 3.0 space, then segues into a really cool Have Mercy (with really cool outro jam!), which leads into a very good, more relaxed Piper and returns to SOAM for one last thrill. The Slave is the icing on the cake.

There are better shows musically in 2010, let alone 3.0, but I would think the very fine second set should put any talk about this show being overrated to rest. Still don't like Guyute, but I really like this show.

Apparently its not noted anywhere but that night in Utica there was a kid front row with a sign saying Guyutica wearing a Mexican wrestling type mask I had a perfect view of him from the stands pratically next to the stage. Anyway whoever that kid was thanks About the show all i really remember is a ton of Guyute teases

You can tell immediately how loose the band is on this night. Such a great flowing show. It strikes me as a type of show that would make for a great show to listen to while on a road trip. I had seriously considering going to this show but didn't want to make the 5 hour trip. You snooze you lose.

Believe the hype. This is one of the best shows of the modern era.

Just finished the DVD and all I've got to give a big shoutout to whoever that was with the "Guyutica" sign front row Fish side. You made the show bro, thanks.

Don't get me wrong this is a solid F-ing show, but I think we're jumping to conclusions here when we start ranking it as one of the best all-time. I've listen to it twice now all the way through and it is tight, but I'm not gonna get all ass'd up cause the show has a nickname.

This is a warty show. At the time I was rather underwhelmed, preferring instead the two previous nights. With time, though, I've really come to appreciate this night and am even thinking of buying the DVD. I call it warty because it's just that, the opposite of perfect or polished. Yet it's the unpolished playfulness that makes this show rather guileful and fun.

The Wolfman's -> Cities segue is jagged and abrupt, the Guyute antics are fun, but lead to somewhat of a train-wreck in Wilson, Antelope is very unique and features far better Guyute antics than Wilson, the Drowned -> Sand segue is not so much a segue as a ripchord, and the return to Split from Piper is perhaps only 60% together. The first time I listened to this show I was expecting a "perfect" show. A show with smooth segues and coherent jams and antics that complimented the music. I wasn't sure that's what I got.

Now, with the benefit of time, I realize I did get a "perfect" show, just not perfect in the way I was expecting. The Wolfman's -> Cities segue is jagged and abrupt, but both versions are good in their own right and despite it's abruptness the segue makes for two tightly book-ended songs. Non-stop music is always a plus. The Guyute antics in Wilson are still more or less a train-wreck, but they deserve a hand for being so robust and balls-out about it. Way to go for it!

Antelope is definitely the most exploratory of 3.0. Perhaps not the best, but there's not another like it. The first half of the jam is a melt to low energy space very unusual for the song (and for the band, really, it sounds a bit more like a Dead jam than a Phish jam). Drowned -> Sand is still a ripchord, but why dwell on the negative? What positive will come of that? It's time to get down to the groovy-goodness of Sand. And finally, the end of the Split sandwich might be a disjointed, but the first 20 minutes are seriously smooth and coherent jamming. What's a little hiccup after all that?

Fall '10 has been in heavy rotation at the Penn42 stereo for a couple weeks now, and, leaving Manchester out of the equation, Guyutica is getting the most play time. What a fun, care-free, joyous, celebration of music this night was!

This show pretty much sums up what phish is all about if its even possible to do that in one show but Holy Freakin Nuts on Fire! this show was dirty dank! the first had so many guyute teases! which just shows how talented the boys are that they could find a way to fit those lyrics and riff into so many different songs. people will definitely put this up with some mid 90's shows years from now when they go back and listen

Was a non-believer till i heard this show today.. Definitely Phish has got their legs back. Deer Creek/Alpine proved that.. Did no-one notice the Riders on the Storm jam by Page During McGrupp???

This show was phantastic!!!! It was just straight fun from the start!!!

FYI, it's spelled "Genesee".

A very good show, just short of legendary.

The show kicks off with one of the best versions of My Soul I've ever heard. STFTFP has an explosive guitar solo. Wolfman has a fun little vocal jam mid song. Decent segue into Cities. Guyute has a very strong peak it feels inspired (as would be felt the rest of the set). Bowie is strong and very tease crazy. Antelope has a nice middle section, with some weird tense noodling.

Drowned and Sand kick off the second set straightforward. Axila is in a weird slot mid second set. SOAM is short and sweet (although it is not over). The Have Mercy sequence is bizarre, it has a nice little jam with some great pretty riffing by Trey towards the end. Piper has a nice little jam that kicks off pretty quick. The segue into Melt is trippy and cool. The set is capped by a very good Slave with some great patient playing on Treys part.

GTBT? Well it's a great way to end a show!

This show is in the upper tier for 3.0 however I would not award it 5 stars although it is close.

Highlights are numerous: Like My Soul to open, Vultures Wolfman's pairing was great and then Guyute on was unstoppable. Set 2 was 2 sets to me: Drowned through Tela and then SOAM on, both great and different. The whole vibe of the venue, crowd and music was a throwback to another time.

Nigel from Spinal Tap liked to turn it up to Eleven, Phish turned it up to Eleven and beyond, best show in years, saw T-Ride and Broomfield, but coming back to my hometown arena was mind blowing, this was a Legendary show, no doubt

Listening to show at home. Im only at Wilson....Phish is a time machine.

SAND and SPLIT OPEN AND MELT were insaneeeeee, lights were amazing too, they had great jams that night.

SAND and SPLIT OPEN AND MELT were insaneeeeee, lights were amazing too, they had great jams that night.

They came, they saw, they DESTROYED!!!! Solid start to finish i do believe there might of been an "it's ice" tease in david bowie too somewhere in between the two wilson teases and chants check it out

They came, they saw, they DESTROYED!!!! Solid start to finish i do believe there might of been an "it's ice" tease in david bowie too somewhere in between the two wilson teases and chants check it out

Phucking nasty show in Guyutica... !

Save Gamehendge!

]=(Phananas);

What a phenomenal show! Energy was tangible all night, and all anyone could talk about was how amazing this show was. The boys were absolutely locked in, and every turn they took was 100% right. There were very few bystanders, this was an all in show, rocking from note 1, started standard with some rippin' blues, got the Faulty Plan I've been after, then just turned into the set from the unknown. Band having fun, playing with the crowd, crowd having fun playing with the band, starting Wilson before the song, just a ridiculous set! Last poster 100% correct, at the end of set 1 I thought they might have already finished. Set 2 started with a bang and never looked back, the Sand was probably my favorite funk of the night, almost had a calming effect as people dialed in and flowed through the hour glass. Great fucking show.

Referring to Cities... I thought Trey said "UC Factory" referring to Utica Club beer (known to many as U-C) which is brewed in Utica. There is a large "Utica Club Pilsner" sign on the brewery that is visible from the highway as you drive into town.

Best of 3.0. Phish returns to 1.0 with this one.

PHISH PHANS BE ON ALERT!! There is a band named Cantalope that has been performing during intermission at Phish shows. They are three guys in the audience who break out into the sickest jams..No instruments just crazy lyrics and some freestyle..they do a song called David Duchovny which was my personal favorite..Keep your eyes and ears open for three dudes..One of them is really tall, the other two have beards...Really cool dudes and their "music" is INSANE!! Cantalope is the name..They were at Guyutica and people were talking about how they were the highlight!