As far as first sets go, I was floored with this first set. Fluid, determined, and passionate are the words I would chose to describe it. 46 Days/Tube opener set an emphatic tone for the evening: dance. 46 Days raged. It really did. Love it in the opening slot. Within Tube's two minutes of improv, I probably tallied 10 minutes worth of hard cardio. The funky dance machine was revving, and when I see funky, I do funky. Train Song was a serene and welcomed transition song - executed beautifully - and set up a that first set Ghost. When Ghost hit, I freaked out. I was thinking, rather EXCLAIMING, that this would be the return of Set 1 Type 2. Apparently I am not Nostradamus, but damn it I tried. This Ghost is nothing special. A perfunctory funk/rock blend that was entertaining, but never gained traction to take it to the next level. Nonetheless, a first set Ghost is always welcomed. Sparkle/Sample brought serious "launchpad" energy - the crowd was dancing hard, ready to explode with anticipation and dance for what lay ahead. Divided Sky. Boom! Pow! Trey navigated this version brilliantly. It was so refreshing to hear the band's tightness, so refreshing to groove to. The jam was short, but above-standard and extremely satisfactory (if those two words are able to be combined together). The Line. I believe I made the loudest, most disappointed sigh of all time when I heard the opening bouncey rhythm of this song... I like that part, until the lyrics. Anyways...it was at that exact moment The Phish said, "You shut your mouth when you're talkin to me, @FunkyCFunkyDo!" They locked into a great rock groove. ::tips cap:: I gotta hand it to The Line, this version was good. This version, if you're a purest, should NOT be skipped when listening start-to-finish. I can't believe I wrote that... wait, yes I can, because I got down to The Line. After feeling quite impressed with what The Line offered, I was anxious to keep bringing the dance. I had emphatically declared earlier in the evening in the lot that we were due for a funked-out Ice (I had been listening to 6.18.94 Ice in the drive to the Forum). Well shit, Phish. Maybe I am Nostradamus after all (I was wearing my Dodgers/Divided Sky shirt too, fwiw). Phish brought the phunk during the breakdown.. Yowza. GET IT PAGE! Perspiration and palpitations a-plenty, I was so stoked with the first set at this point. When KDF hit, I thought, "Man, what a raging and appropriate closer/bookend to the set to compliment the 46 Days opener and the set in general." Trey blasted through this song, leaving smoldering remnants of fans in his wake. But wait, apparently Trey has a heart, because he decided to BRING THE HOSE to wash us all down for a set-closing, arena-rocking, heart-attacking, tease-dropping, dance marathoning Gin. Wow. I changed my underroos at setbreak.

555 opens set 2 and riding my Nostradamus wave of glory, I firmly proclaimed to @uctweezer that THIS would be the version that gets taken for a ride. Nope. A quality set 2 opener in my opinion, this version doesn't stray far from the norm, but sets the table nicely for a nasty jam vehicle. Whoops. Number Line. Not exactly the jam vehicle I had in mind, but you know what, despite it's highly abrasive opening chords this is a pretty dang good song. This version culminates to a blissful peak - just straight-up happy music. I was happy and ready to bring some more dance to the Forum, to shake my funky bad self to the eat of the second set. DWD starts to growl. It starts to grumble. Mike broods. Liftoff. As of today (10.27.14) this is hands down the jam of the tour and a likely top-7 or 8 jam of 2014. It storms out of tghe gates into a Trey-driven, rock groove. They lock into this progression for about two minutes and then dissolve into some dark, gritty space: dissonant and weird but extremely engaging. Then just when you thought it would dissolve into Piper or Carini Trey and Page pick it back up and the dance party explodes. If you like Reading 2013's DWD, this one will knock your socks off. I mean it really rages. You will get goosebumps. You will smile. You will start to dance. You will listen to it again and again. It is that good. It peaks in a triumphant 3-minute explosion of sound that lands, rather crashes (in a good way) -> to Fuego and ignites the crowd. Fuego gets into a short, mellow groove before evaporating into some scary, eerie space. Good stuff right there. Twist follows and is a standard version. Some latin/jazz fusion. You've heard it before. Bouncing is a perfect interlude to a gritty, sultry Bowie. Bowie menaces the unsuspecting LA crowd with some evil jamming interspersed with good old fashioned Bowie rage. What a cool juxtaposition this was to the overall upbeat-nature of the show. Such is the case with Phish: they know exactly how to take you on an emotional, spiritual, and psychological roller coaster during a show. They did so tonight. Character Zero put four more exclamation points on the evening. Rocky Top was bonus Phish.

Hood. Truly inspirational playing. It won't hit you like the Hoods of the mid-90s, but this jam will absolutely take you into a dream-like state before Trey reels in the band for an emphatic and passionate climax. Beautiful Hood. Grind. These guys... theeessseeee guys! After all that, let's sing some barbershop. They are just too cool.

Big hugs to @uctweezer. You were so much fun to talk to and see a show with. If our sweat is any evidence of the quality of the show, safe to say this was at least a Class 4. You survived the Thunderdome with the graceful elegance of a California Condor riding an updraft of phosphorescent rainbows. So stoked to have raged with you! Catch you in Vegas my man.

What a great one-off show! Things started out hot. When Trey first hit the stage he was jumping up and down. I could tell he was ready to bring the thunder.

The 46 Days/Tube really got everyone in the Forum going. Train Song?! Okay! Don't hear that one too often. I actually caught the last time it was played at BG last year. Mike sounded really good on that one, good job Cactus. I have to say, the first set had some notable jams. I feel it's safe to state that we were all surprised by the first set Ghost which, albeit not going into any mysterious territory, was a message for us all that the band had a lot in store for us. The two jams of the first set that were hard hitters were Its Ice and Gin. Really patient playing and very extended feeling. The Divided is also a near perfect version. I really feel that Trey was in more of a good mood than normal tonight and was excited to see where he could take everything. Set break!

I was prepared for all out chaos from the top, but I believe the band eased into the set rather than cook us alive from the get go. 555 and Number Line were completely solid and well played, I'll take 'em like that any day. Disease is where the Forum could feel the band really start to stretch. The jam is something to listen because it fizzled into really dark dissonant territory with a giant climax provoked by Kuroda's use of the ceiling lights in the stadium. For any first timer there that night, I'm very happy for you. How many bands successfully bring on such a big silent climax such as that?! The crowd was roaring. The jam flow stayed very steady and ended with a nice major flavored rock out segment. Transition into...Fuego! The seque into Twist really made this version sparkle. Trey is really liking his Echoplex. After the welcome Bouncing breather we find ourselves with the Maze/Bowie hat intro. Trey used this opportunity to enter psychedelia for the last time of the night and freak us out with the Echoplex. (I'm liking this thing too). Solid Zero closer; feels so good.

The boys returned onstage with a blissful and drawn out Hood with more use of the starry ceiling lights. Ahhhh. I actually prefer Zero and Hood in those spots rather than the other way around. Grind capped off the night with a very humurous and impressive performance.

Fall tour has been very interesting and I can't wait to see what they have in store for us at Chula!

This review does not have the benefit of downloading and listening to the show again on fresh ears, just my experience and what I heard of the songs last night live....

The Forum: Very cool venue, parking prices (~25) is the only negative I can say, but hey - It's LA. Easy in and out of the lot and venue, no complaints at all... but hey, I've heard a lot about those ceiling lights that look like stars... where are those? I don't see anything special about the ceiling... what the hell?!? More about that later.

1st set: 46 Days opened with fire out of the gate, instant energy boost to a crowd that was much larger than many people on .net were expecting in LA. Tube most people saw coming('on a freeway to LA'), but no one is going to complain about that, standard Tube, nothing wrong with that. Train Song seemed to just suck some of the now building energy right out of the room, not sure what happened, just was not well received... and then Ghost hit. Did I pass out and wake up in the middle of the second set?? A 4th song of the night Ghost? I loved this song placement, and wish it went deeper than it did, but still a really fun Ghost, got the place moving again. Sparkle was Sparkle, like it, love it, hate it, you know what you are going to get... but it is fun and fast and everyone had a good time bouncing around to it. Sample came next and now everyone was having a blast. Really nice sample, Trey seemed to hit is all perfect, just like he would hit Divided Sky. Sky was amazing. Bliss is the only word for a nailed Divided Sky, and that is what we got last night, I was wrong to assume it would be my highlight for the 1st set. The Line: What can I say about the Line. I enjoy it, but don't love it... I have NEVER seen a mass exit to the bathroom before on this scale. It was to the point that it seemed disrespectful to the band. As if to pay the crowd back for making them heard The Line, they bust into a nasty version of It's Ice. PAGE CRUSHED IT. Is there anything anyone else can do at this point in the tour to take tour MVP away from Page? I don't think so. This version, at least watching it last night was amazing, Page got up, I got down! KDF: I love that they took this song out of the opening slot, standard KDF, lots of fun. Bathtub Gin was amazing. They will credit this song with a 'Low Rider tease,' but tease is a bit of an understatement, they pretty much went full on into low rider for a minute. Crowd went crazy, awesome way to end the set.

Set 2: I like 555 a lot, but I don't like the placement as a set opener. Not enough energy to set the pace for a big set. Mike drops bombs in the version as should be expected from 555, it is a very solid version despite its placement. #Line: Most people were disappointed to hear it, but they put a little extra mustard on the Allman brothers style jam and by the end it had everyone dancing. After 2 songs, not sure where this set is going... I have been critical of how often they start second set with DWD, but when it hit last night, it announced the start of 2nd set. 555 and #Line were set 1.5, now set two hit, and it hit hard! Nasty version of DWD! Halfway through the song, right at the perfect moment, CK5 won the night and hit us with a blast of the twinkling stars in the ceiling of the Forum! What a moment. They light up the whole room, but instead of seeing everyone dancing to this epic DWD, I looked down to see everyone staring at these lights with HUGE smiles, it really was a special moment, and I hope a Utube video might emerge that will do it any justice. Amazing. Fuego: Maybe it was just impossible to follow the act of that DWD, but Vlad didn't quite impale me. Solid enough, nothing noteworthy. Same could be said for Twist, a ton of fun, as Twist always is, nothing to write home about. Bouncing: I love the placement. You know it is time to slow the set down, Velvet? Nope! Bouncing! I love this song, and I like seeing it in 2nd set, very well played. I enjoyed it quite a bit. DB: I love this Bowie. I love them all, but this seemed like it had something extra on the back end. It went to a lot of different places musically ( as the song is designed to do). Really good version. They follow it up with Character Zero to wrap up a real mixed bag of a 2nd set.

Encore: HOOD! This Hood was huge. It was not rushed at all, had all four band members hitting it hard and together. I couldn't help but think of 'HollyHood' in LA last summer. This jam didn't get to that scale, but where as HollyHood was a re-visit to Tahoe Tweezer, this Hood was all its own. Again CK5 hit us with the star lights, with the band in a really cool subdued ambient jam, all the stage light were off, such a cool effect. Figured a big Hood like that would be a stand alone Encore, but Grind closed out the night, very well sung harmonies. Always fun to the the barbershop Phish.

Highlights: The star lights! I think many bands would have overused the effect, but CK5 nailed it. They made for two really special moments that I will never forget. If Phish ever goes back to the Forum, GO! There is no way to describe the effect that those lights had on my experience at this show. Musical highlights include It's Ice, Gin, DWD (must hear), Bowie, and Hood. Nothing groundbreaking about this show. The big songs went big, no song ventured into uncharted territory, nothing went 20+ mins, all that said 4/5 stars for some really special moments, some big jams, and a great venue.

This was pure arena rock. The ultimate example of how you do a "show for the bros". I don't want rock star Trey every night, but If you're going to take that approach there is no better way to do it than last night. Trey went for the jugular in at least 9 songs. This was not a show for the ambient crowd, but they still fit in some interesting jamming, especially in DWD. Not as elegant as the end of Reading, but Trey wasn't going to be denied tonight, even in a jam that didn't really lend itself to a rock finish. While the second set didn't have the flow and set construction of some of the other top 2014 shows, it still had 3 above average versions of beloved songs with a smoking zero and #line to boot. The 1st set was of course one of the best of the year. You might not appreciate what they did. But it is hard not to be somewhat awestruck by how they did it. A nice big fuck you from Trey to the accusations of a sluggish, disinterested start to fall tour. Not elite, but a top 10 show in a very strong year. Not too shabby.

This show was straight fire. Phish played to the advantages of the Venue which would be the supreme lighting (Stars? HOLY SHIT!) and the energy level. The venue sounded like the Spectrum where the place just gets insanely loud with fans. The setlist seemed to be comprised of a lot of songs involving audience participation (Twist, Fuego, Character Zero, Hood, Etc), my ears are still ringing! Everything was played very well and Trey seemed to be in the fore front and very much in control (Not as common now a days). One of the most solid first sets this year. Really enjoyed myself.

(Posted a sort-of review in this thread: http://forum.phish.net/forum/permalink/1375598213 - may as well re-post here).
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Just realized that I attended my 28th show this year in June (CMAC) as a 28-year-old, and I just attended my 29th show (LA) as a 29-year-old... Heh. Neat.

Tonight also marked my girlfriend's very first show, and she had a wonderful time. More fun than she expected to have, actually, which means a lot coming from someone who never knew anything about Phish until she met me 16 months ago.

What a night. A non-traditional opener in 46 Days, right into a tight, funky Tube, a surprise first set Ghost (!), a gorgeous Divided Sky, and a really fun Gin complete with Low Rider tease.

Now, that second set... I had read earlier about the twinkly lights in the ceiling, but they weren't on when the show started so I just figured maybe the reference was about the lights illuminating the stairs... NOPE! What an absolutely outstanding surprise. The roar of the crowd when those lights came on was one of the loudest, most powerful things I've ever been a part of, and you could immediately feel how much that energy helped launch the band even further into the stratosphere. They just kept pushing and pushing and pushing... peak after glorious peak... I was nearly in tears.

And then I did get a little misty-eyed during Hood. When Fish's opening fill popped into the air, I actually hesitated for a moment before I cheered. "Did they REALLY just... they did. They really did just drop Harry Hood in the encore." My absolute favorite song in the world, plopped firmly at the finale, just for me. What a beautiful version, too... I'll be listening to that for years to come.

It has literally been a dream of mine, something I've longed for very deeply ever since my first show in '09, to finally fall in love and take the lady to see my favorite band. Well, not only did I get to do that tonight, I even got to hold her tight and sway along during an utterly stellar reading of my favorite song. And in the extra inning slot, no less). Wow.

I just had to share. Thank you, Phish. My cup overfloweth.

46 Days: short but very high energy version to start

Tube: clav city. Not too long but fun as always

Train Song: 52 show gap. Mike sings

Ghost: they do the usual type 1 build and hint at breaking off but instead return to the song. Kinda disappointing short one but only the first set so it’s ok

Sparkle: standard

Sample In A Jar: solid Trey soloing

Divided Sky: great performance

The Line: Trey is a little rough here

It’s Ice: he makes up for it and the jam is super funky. Nice one

Kill Devil Falls: average build and peak version, solid

Bathtub Gin: jam starts with fantastic Low Rider and Long Tall Glasses teases before soaring up into a glorious Gin peak + smooth return to end the set

555: interesting choice for the opener. Not jammed, but a nice version

Backwards Down The Number Line: another strange choice with just a type 1 jam. Song is good, just not ideal in this situation

Down With Disease: ahh here we go. First type 2 jam of the night. Mike chimes in after a while and it gets slightly weird, kinda like a 1995 jam. They pick up the pace and shift to a more uplifty vibe (fight bell) which leads to a spectacular peak. As they settle down Page starts

Fuego: dissonant type 2 exploration with lots of cool spacey effects. Very nice

Twist: stays close to home

Bouncing Around The Room: standard

David Bowie: awesome spacey drill intro. Otherwise normal type 1 version

Character Zero: Great high energy set closer

Harry Hood: playful intro and a gorgeous long jam. Treat for the encore

Grind: lil acapella to end the show

Nice night in LA from Fall Tour 2014. 2 great jams in the second set, and a nice array of songs otherwise. Trey has some troubles in The Line but otherwise everyone plays well. This is a 7/10 show. Highlights are Ghost, It’s Ice, Gin, DWD, Fuego, Bowie, and Hood

This was my very first Phish show. It was all very spontaneous and I was very fortunate to catch this. The Forum interior had recently been remodeled and it is a great venue to catch anyone there. Highlights were the epic, rocking, middle part of the jam during "Down with Disease". "The Train Song" was really pretty. A dreamy "Divided Sky". "David Bowie" was my favorite Phish song growing up so was very stoked to catch this jam out. "Kill Devil Falls" became a quick favorite. The crowd gave a warm cheer at the "freeway in Los Angeles" mention during "Tube" and Trey responded with a nice chuckle. Everything flowed, nothing felt out of place. Very memorable.

As mentioned before in a few reviews, Trey brought his chops out to the Forum during this show. There has been a ton of negativity surrounding Big Red's playing, too much rhythm not enough lead.....blah blah

He brought his A game to the forum, all hands on deck. The DWD is probably the highlight of the show, a real rocking 3.0 ending built on the same theme as the MPP1 Ghost.

The tease during Disease is "Nothin' but a Good Time" by Poison. Really outstanding work from all members of the band in this version.

This tease should be added to the setlist no doubt. It's a recurring theme I have been noticing in quite a few jams from this year. None are as prominent or rocking as this one, but it seems Trey has had fun with it recently :-p