All I have to say is that the Theme > Weekapaug made my head explode. Almost as good as the Light > Weekapaug from 6/23 last year.

I don't really review shows. I'm trying to get out of that habit, but it's tough. Especially when I was there, cause I can get really long winded with it. Anyway, I wasn't at this show, but I streamed it. This isn't a full show review by any means; I'm not getting into details. All I'm going to say is that this show is a perfect example of the flow Phish has right now. None of the songs top 12 minutes, and looking at each set in it's entirety, that doesn't matter at all. Each song flowed perfectly in & out of each other. It was a beautiful unfolding of music. They packed so much in each set. There's a little of everything in it. Rather than a couple 20 minute jams & whatnot in a set, the last two sets are each a continuous tapestry of music that just so happens to include many songs, and it works out beautifully! I really enjoyed streaming this show, and I'm most definitely a little bit jealous of those that were in attendance.

Oh my God! They don't always earn 5's but they also don't always give 3 set gifts mid tour to new venues and offer them free to us on the couch tour as a compensation for their previous show which was good but only half finished. I am not going to make you read my individual song by song analysis, because it is shouldn't take as long to read this as it does to hear a live version. I will say you should have the live version by the end of the day if possible. Here is why:

First, the band members. Everyone will have to offer an observation about something the band members do individually, and I would rather say that Trey didn't miss a beat tonight, and Page kept his newly found leadership role in tact, and Mike and Fish picked up where those 2 left off in a way that really made the whole group shine. It was so cohesive!

Second, the song selection was utterly perfect considering that the spotlight really came down on this show after the previous night. They only really missed queue once (on Meatstick opener but I can see how it would be fun live) and other than that, you would have to be super picky to think otherwise. It was as good or better than Saturday Dick's last year in terms of song selection. Hahaha 3 in? seriously? Destiny Unbound>My Friend? I will harp on that in a second. Unreal for real! Segue'd second set (which is debatable apparently according to this site), and the third set just improved until the Good Times Bad Times really laid down an exclamation point.

Third, there are moments of rehearsed Phish intertwined with moments of beauty. Caspian made sense, in terms of picking up where we left off, and the first set might be the best first set I can remember (again going hand in hand with last year's Sat Dick's, and then before that all the way back to the Everglades (which isn't really a first set but you know) and 97-99 tour with emphasis on Nassau and 97 fall). That is a bold parenthesized thing to say, but again Destiny Unbound>My Friend is a new personal Phish highlight I have witnessed, although from my couch and not to edge out 98 Alpine Encore which was live for me. You know what I am talking about! Bowie was great, and evil, Mikes > Theme gave Theme a chance to shine and this showcased great Trey, followed by the Piper which showcased Page's Hammond. The second set was my favorite. Third set really got off on Light>Hood>Good Times Bad Times (also not to be out done by the Everglades). The DEG tease in Light really keeps tempting a bust out and also gives hope to the possibility of a ?>DEG>Foam. Hint Hint.

Well Encore is Encore. Whatever right?

Well I hate to be that guy again, but after some of these reviews I feel the need to offer a little perspective. This was a fun show to be at, but the purpose of these reviews IMO is to let people know if the show is worth the $ or hard drive space to dload.

Jams aren't entirely about length and shows aren't entirely about jams. That being said, there needs to be a minimum jam to song ratio, especially give the *extremely* narrow rotation of '13. If you don't have some decently lengthy jams, then you're going to play a whole hell of a lot of songs. If you don't have as many songs to play...well you get the math I'm driving at here.

First set had some nice choices in it to keep things fresh but was pretty standard as far as they go. Second set had really nice flow and the jam of the night. Check out the Piper. It is exceptional. Yet I thought the set suffered somewhat from some hesitancy to let the music decide where things go instead of the band, if you know what I mean.

Third set I was getting a little antsy until Light which was certainly a relief to hear as this is THE jam vehicle of 3.0. You can pretty much bank on it going deep, but this one just couldn't get there. I hate to be negative but you can feel the searching, the lack of melodic ideas, and the eventual giving up. I'd be cool with 5 minutes of beatless space until something really takes hold. Which *would* happen if they gave it a chance.

Anyway, Slave and Hood are pretty decent versions as well. Ocelot shredded. Just felt this was an extremely safe sort of show and was a bit of a dissapointment listening back. Again, fun to be at but that's not my point in writing this review.

Really nice Bowie to end the first set. Best Mike's Groove since the CDT>Hydrogen one on 12.29.11. Ocelot is becoming one of those songs where every version is the "best version ever." Or maybe this one actually was the best version ever. It seemed to foreshadow the insane GTBT solo from Trey that didn't quit until your face was 100% melted.

Somewhat tame versions of BOTT and Waves are my only complaints. Also I don't really get the song Strange Design, never have. It makes me feel like I've been temporarily teleported to a Barry Manilow concert, but anyways. No real big Type II monster jams either, Piper and Light were great but didn't really rival the best 3.0 versions.

Overall, the show was a lot of fun, and probably better than I expected given the impromptu 3rd set.

Call it a Saturday Night Special, a Soul Shakedown Party, or a new peak from a band that continues to give and give to its fan base without reserve. Tension/release, intergalactic connections, glorious improv, enough bust-outs for any yearning seeker. If you were present, physically and mentally, and were open to what this band just gave, then I know you walked away with as big a grin as I did. One more night? Let's do it!

I had an absolute blast last night (sober, must include this) and thought the band was so damn precise tight & complimentary.

The piper was sick, light was sick, and I looooved the Ha Ha Ha - possum.

See yall tonight!

This tour has been about bad weather, but also about REDEMPTION. They did it. Three set of pure IT. To be so remote and feel so close. Couch tour has reached all new heights!

So I was trying to just let it go, but it's really getting under my skin and I am just feeling compelled to follow up on my previous review. I PERSONALLY don't like looking at reviews immediately following a show I attended only to see people not in attendance critique a show so incredibly negatively. It just puts a bad taste in my mouth (so to speak) that the rest of my "extended phamily" did not extract the type of enjoyment I did.

I reviewed night 2 of Chicago off an official webcast because it just straight melted my face and I honestly feel like the music was better than any show I've ever attended. When I commented "best show since Cypress" (Cypress being what was meant to be my first show, but was in a very bad car accident a few days before and was not able to attend and later had an opportunity to discuss the show with Trey Anastasio himself- leading me to idealize that performance), I meant just that and I still stand by that statement.

If you all choose to disagree with me, or if you disagree with my distaste for a "couch tour review" that's fine- you all are entitled to your own opinion just as I feel that I feel that I am entitled to mine. For 6 of you to vote my comment down like my opinion is inappropriate or unwelcome, however, really just gets under my skin. I defend the netter community at every waking moment (Paul Glace, the founder of PT, is the brother-in-law of one of my closest tour friends, so the debates are both frequent and heated). That being said, those negative responses to my sharing of my honest (and very positive) opinion really make me embarrassed to be part of this community. I'm sorry if people take offense to this, but I am genuinely bothered by said negativity and felt people should know.

Piper Jam was simply amazing.....with Kuroda’s lites amplifying the performance. Not a fan of yet another GTBT, but from a couch tour perspective, pretty dam great. Really looking forward to some "off the back wall" tracks tonite! Page side!

I've been a loyal fan for 20 years and haven't missed a summer tour. I saw the gamehenge at greatwoods, attended all festivals, numerous Halloween shows and I won't hesitate one second to say this show was definitely top five......for me. Can't speak for everyone, obviously, but I had a blast. Great vibes. Band was having fun. Ha ha ha>possum was really fun! Destiny at any show is awesome and they ripped it in Chicago. Seems like a real fan who attended this show couldn't possibly consider it mediocre.

I heard the soundcheck for this show on our boat docked in the harbor behind the stage, which included a jam to the repeated line "Puppy Puppy Sodomy Orgasm." Phish humorously blared this across the harbor for about 4 minutes. I imagine it could be heard as far as Soldier Field. The next and last song of the soundcheck was Architect.

This show was an old-school barn-burner, reminiscent of some great 90's shows. Slave & Harry Hood>GTBT raged. Classic show and weekend on the lake in Chicago.

This show was a top 5 for me. Mid nineties vibe at times. Manchester in 2010 was a close rival....with the alumni>letters>alumni opener and a Gregory Isaacs tribute and great woods in 1994 was a life highlight for me....but last night was awesome. So tight and they were obviously enjoying themselves!! Cheers boys!

Tell me more about

back on the training > mike gordon's song > themes for bottoms > weeklong groove > golden rage > riding waves > pa pi piper > slayed !

ha, Ha , HA

Sick second set sally$

Fire

Hi all, this is my first review on the Phish net and I'll keep it short. My first show in 13 years, since Big Cypress. Third best show ever, after previously mentioned and of course my first show, 11/25/94 UIC. The combination of lucking out on three sets after so long (with all due respect and a pang of sadness for all you who could only go Friday), the weather, the phlow of music, the combination of tightness and exploration and the song choices all made one ginormous winning combination. (Three words - The Chicago Piper.) Just to make sure, I downloaded the show with the code I got from PTBM and, three listens later, determined that it held up to my expectations. Thank you Phish. I can see couch tourers not being as impressed, but if you were there and did not feel anything similar, you were not really "there".

Thanks for letting me in your community and the opportunity to post.

Alright alright!!! Boys make good with 3 sets which makes me not feel so down about the storm!

First set starts with Caspian. Had to. First set was again, fun and musically tight. Personal highlights were I Didn't Know (Can't go wrong with a vacuum solo) and Destiny Unbound (A song I finally got after wanting to hear it for years). Could tell the guys were happy to be back to playing and had some left over steam from the night before.

Second set includes a fun Mike's Groove just as the rain started to fall. Golden Age melts into a fun, 4 minute jam that goes somewhat ambient and dissolves into Waves. Highlight of the set is Piper. Must hear version. Really got into this one.

Third set begins with Meatstick and kind of simmers through the first half. Finally we hit Light which is it's usual greatness and provides a decent jam to get into. Hood follows with it's usual greatness and GTBT closes with pure energy as Trey shreds and the crowd goes nuts. Good times. Show closes with Shine a Light which felt very appropriate for the night for some reason.

Some songs to check out here and an enjoyable show. Some personal favorites made this one super enjoyable, and we got to blow off steam in the rain after our good time was rained out the night before.

First set was solid minus a few minor hiccups, second set made me forget the camcled set the night before. Theme in mines groove was awesome I wouldn't mind that being a regular occurrence. Piper and slave were pure energy! The third set to me wasn't quite as good as the second but had some highlights for sure!

Favorite moment: Ha Ha Ha > Possum.

I laughed out loud and figured they enjoy messing with us. Great times!

Just ridiculous. Thank you Phish and Chicago.

Don't resist a 3-set phish set

I wandered off and ran into a childhood neighbor that I hadn't see in 15 years somehow at this show, and saw all three sets with him and his group of friends, which shows the random happiness of what sometimes occurs.

Apt Prince to start, Ha Ha Ha is when we knew it was going to get weird. Possum is always welcome, and Cities was a great and smooth jam off the coast of Chicago with the skyline in view from a peninsula. I lost a bet with the Bowie/Maze drum opener, amateur hour.

The second set was good, never going to complain about getting back on the train and a Mike's Song. It was a Mike show for the next few with Theme from the Bottom and Weekapaug, Page hammered the groove. The rest of the set just felt right with Golden Age, Waves, Piper, and Slave to the traffic light. Really great finish to the set there, especially with Piper. Then Slave... such a good song to sink into. But the real surprise was next. Like many others, I had tuned out for the weekend. I was really enjoying the show, and felt good to see a full show given the night before. Trey closes Slave to the Traffic Light with "Thanks everybody, we are going to be back for another SET, so don't go away."

I think 50% of the crowd did a double take. WHAT? That was it, he did the slave thing and that is it, right? NO - they posted a three set show to make up for the night before.

Meatstick opener. Bunch of sickos. Wow.

So the show carried on. Birds of a feather, then a breather with Strange Design. Then Ocelot. I remember saying to my neighbor who I hadn't seen in 15 years that I would never hate on Ocelot after that performance. Light killed it, the lights are so much a part of that song, and all the songs, that words are such an incomplete review of any show. Hood allowed us all to feel super good and to get all glow-sticked out.

Closed out right with good times, then shine a light was the right song for such a long show. We felt shined on.

Long (25-minute) soundcheck included Nellie Cane, Jam, Vocal Jam, The Architect, and Burn That Bridge.

I agree with the more negative reviews. I didn't think this show was anything special - neither at the venue or listening to the recordings on the way home.

I am not one to write reviews (this is my first) and typically I am just happy to be at a show and have the boys back. But for the first time since my first show in '97 I left feeling disappointed.

The band sounded tight and the build->release energy flowed fairly well but songs were short, rushed, and fairly bland. It was almost like the focus was on energy and not music/notes.

Saw that Prince Caspian has only been an opener 2 times back in 1995

You can feel good.

July 20th, 2013 was day two of Phish’s three-night run on Chicago’s Northerly Island. I was the first to wake up of the ten or so of us staying at a friend’s house so I got dressed and explored the neighbourhood. I found a cool coffee shop and filled a couple of to-go trays with big hot drinks.

I found my way back to the host house and delivered my bounty to the gradually growing crowd of sleepyheads that ultimately collected in the living room. Someone checked the ‘net and discovered that Phish would be playing an extra third set that evening to make up for having to end the previous night’s show early due to high winds and driving, drenching rain.

The day went by quickly. Our host Katie had planned a boat cruise for us which would end at the venue, but wind on the water had cancelled it so I spent the day jamming (there was a Martin D-28 upstairs) and learning a few nifty nylon tying tricks from Katie’s husband Kim, who was a knot-tying enthusiast. What a nifty hobby. More useful than playing guitar and about as lucrative.

This would prove to be the least eventful evening of the run (by far) and it’s no surprise (to me at least) that the action of the first and third nights created a memory vacuum that eliminated much of the to-and-fro of this middle night.

I recall being very impressed that the paved ‘floor’ section of the outdoor venue had a lettered and numbered grid painted on it making it very, very easy to find your way back to your spot. “Let’s see, we’re at N30…okay, here is K35, now L35, M35…bam! N35!” Now head towards the stage past N34, N33, etcetera until there’s your crew, right where you left them at N30. It’s a great system and every venue should should paint similar grids on the floors. Using the floor grid we managed to watch all three shows from precisely the same place each night.

Before the concert started the customary question was posed: “What do you think they’ll open with?” I thought the question was absurd. Could they possibly open with anything other than the previous night’s aborted Prince Caspian?*

Of course they couldn’t (I would have done the same thing, especially if it had been a different song), and about thirty thousand of us shared a little laugh with Trey as Phish started the night where they had left off the night before before carrying on into an extra-long first set. There was a good little rain during the second set but nothing we couldn’t dance off, and by the end of the third set everyone was dry again. And happy. Almost thirty songs and they still had plenty of heavy hitters left over for night three.

Mid-show there was a bit of schtick when the band pulled a half-dozen people up out of the audience and onto the stage. The group said they started out as stormchasers and they eventually came to be following the band. It was pretty funny though it soon became obvious that there was a put-on being put on and whattya know? there was. Finally Trey introduced the group as members of the local Second City troupe and the band got on with the show.

After the concert we hopped the now-familiar subway route back to our host home where I spent the next several hours being introduced to String Theory: The Remarkable Art Of Rope-Tying. I tell you, it’s amazing what some people can do with a piece of rope. It’s like origami, but with rope.

*“Last night was the best Caspian ever,” or so went the standing joke-of-the-day about one of Phish’s lesser-loved songs.

http://www.toddmanout.com

Great show. The high of the weekend. Off the top of my head, the Light in the third set was a face-melter from up close. Trey played some great lines in Theme too. The crowd near the stage was really friendly and generous.

Both the second and third sets were really, really solid all around as I remember. The whole band was tight, maybe too tight.

Great show, I loved it. I thought it sounded like there was a timber jam in light but its not listed on here...cavern>bowie is great...theme>weekapauge is awesome...ocelots been really good all year...whole show's good, fun 3 sets

Tour!!!! Not your either! Damn you autocorrect

That was supposed to say started your so hot, not started for so hot.

Just ridiculous

Sooooooo gooooooood Chicaaaaaaaaagooooooo!!!!

Did the webcast....... Killer!!!!!! So many highlights.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ll9x9rvs1o1qd24gvo1_1280.jpg

I feel so bad for Chicago phans. Phish started for so hot and then fizzled at one of the worst shows I've heard, second Alpharetta show, followed by a rained out Chicago affair. Yikes. But this Saturday Chicago show was supposed to make it all up to the phans who got short changed on Friday. I wa expecting huge things from this show. Boy was I wrong. This second Chicago show was three sets I nothing. It looked like it could be all that we thought and more when twist came out so early. But they didn't bring it on this 3 set night. They must have left it at home because it was nowhere to be found. Not on the golden age. Not in te piper. Not in the waves. I was so excited to hear waves, one of my newer rarer favorites, I cued up mr pipe and directed my full enthusiastic attention to a Waves that let me down. I watched the waves like I watched the rest of the show, completely unmoved. I don't think there's any question that this was a mediocre show. I think the people saying top 5 and best since big cypress must be trolls trying to get a rise out of real phans. That's the only explanation I can find for these other reviews. I love phish. Haven't missed a New Years since 1992. Big cypress was a phenomenal experience. And there have been a few hundred shows since ten that were better than Saturdays Chicago 3 set show. This one is completely skippable. No highlights, no downloads worth buying or relistening to. Nothing to see here. First 6 or 7 shows of tour were special. This Chicago show is not special at all. Just a very flat uninspired collection demonstrating how average their awesome songs can sound when they're not hooking up or having a blast. Hope my favorite band can turn it around after very disappointing visits to Georgia and Chicago.

I'm really not in support of couch tour people reviewing shows off the bat and all, but I gotta do... Best show since Big Cypress, IMO.