Some folks pacemakers just arent set to the right bpm to feel the fire anymore. Granted, im no veteran around these parts but I have listened to nearly every show since 2013 and attended a handful of what shows I could in that time. Im 31, but always shunned the Phish for more of a GD and folky allegiance. I now listen back to the old stuff for educational purposes, but I have no frame of reference to WHAT it was like live at Amys Farm or NYE 95 or 1997 or Island Tour, etc. This is a blessing to me. Ive just been listening on my phone and ive gotten chills at moments from Blaze On all the way through this nuclear version of good times bad times. It happens every time I tune in to a stream or go to a show. Anticipation. There is nothing to fear if you stop chasing the "greatest show ever" or simply adopt the mindset that their greatest show is yet to come. I wish I was at this show. These forums and ratings are silly. The internet. Aliens.

It'd been 4+ years since I'd last seen Phish, and boy, alot has changed since then....hell, songs that were "new" to me on this night had already become concert staples since my last show, as evidenced by the crowd participation (like "Fuego", for example). Other songs were apparently new to everyone else too, and this show (as well the night before, I was told) was the proverbial guinea pig for the band to test the waters on 'em. So for me personally, while I did enjoy the show, I spent alot of time digesting this onslaught of new and new-ish material.

As far as the "tried and true" songs go, they were performed with class....that's kind of a back-handed compliment in a way, because the jams, while serviceable, rarely reached "nasty" territory. Trey seemed to wrap up "Maze" prematurely, since Page appeared unready with the organ notes in the finale....shame, because I was hoping for things to climb another notch or two, and maybe Page was too, lol.... I was hoping the closing "Possum" would change all that, being it was their last shot to drive it home....but again, it was enjoyable but kinda mild. I guess I'll never hear a "Possum" like Atlanta '97 ever again, lol...

But to put things in perspective, I brought a first-timer along with me, and she enjoyed the hell of it & is eager to see them again. So, what the hell do I know?

Don't get me wrong. I had a great time, the band was tight, and the crowd was bananas....it'll be an enjoyable listen upon playback, but I don't expect to reach this show when I feel like getting my face melted off, lol...

Not a bad show, not a great show. Most of the new material translates well to the live setting. The first set actually is the stronger of the two sets highlighted by a good Martian Monster, a nice Waking up Dead, and some rarities like Let Me Lie and Lengthwise.

The second set starts out with potential. Mercury was a bit sloppy, but the jam is decent. The first I Always Wanted it This Way showed the potential for the song. It really gives a different platform for the band to improv. Unfortunately, the show takes a nose dive after this. Miss You will be killing second sets for a while. The Fuego>Sand is good, but Joy comes in to kill any energy that segment may have produced. Possum closer that goes nowhere, and a GTBT encore that will be easily forgotten.

The first night was much better. Petrichor/Ghost is one of the strongest openings of the year. Disease>Cities was worth the price of admission.

Overall, interesting to hear all of the debuts...each night had its moments. Night 1 being the better of the two.

This show is closer to four stars than three. While it doesn't have the set-craft and exploratory improvisation of a five star outing, one can find excellence in the beginning and end of the first set, and Mercury through Sand is a solidly constructed passage. I'm sure they will play multiple great versions of I always Wanted it That Way this tour; the debut was no exception. Not too many flubs or clams, which is important for delivering the experience I think they're trying to produce. Charleston is a fine city, and a Phish concert there is a bonus! I am not upset that I attended.

I'm a little concerned about the direction our beloved band is going. I understand that the new album is out and the band is taking a gutsy risk in playing songs for the first time, and I give them a lot of credit for that. I just feel that they have lost their way a little bit. The Charleston shows seemed very rehearsed and structured. I find that the tv screen lighting behind the stage is a distraction and takes away from the music. I love trey band songs when they are played by treys band. The highlights of the weekend were the Friday night Hood and the Mercury on Saturday was very strong. The band seems to be holding back on jams for whatever reason, and the crowd noticed on Saturday night for sure (lots of groans after let me lie). Be Phish. Let loose and jam. I still love you though.

Several briefly stated reasons why this show is worth a listen-to: Devotion to a Dream features some truly inspired, Jerry-like boogie-ing by Trey on the guitar, and as is nearly always the case--but it just hits home here--those leads integrate well with the other three members' contributions to result in a conversional Type-I jam, in that, if you are always chasing huge jams like me, and let it get in the way of enjoying a standard show by their lack, this DtaD helps you see the forest for the trees. Waking Up Dead kind of reminds me of The Beatles' Tomorrow Never Knows: very culturo-musically omnivorous in its sphere of influence. The primary connotation seems to be an Egyptian sort of vibe, to me, but it's certainly an interesting composition--and I get a laugh out of the "vac-u-uming" and am simultaneously somewhat unnerved by it, LOL--and I hope it gets a chance to stretch out. Lengthwise is, of course, a treat, and Wolfman's is fun, but that's about all I have to say about the first set.

Mercury is always a treat, and although the true segue is from Mercury into Twist, it's the Twist > I Always Wanted It This Way that interests me most about this show. Sped-up 2001 or not I have always wanted Page to use a more-varied synthesizer palette this way, and it's already paying dividends. Simply captivating and I have high hopes for what will happen with Always Wanted in the future, both near and far. Lovely, heartfelt tribute in Miss You, and I'm beginning to develop a real affinity for this song. Fuego's segue into Sand is not whipcrack-tight, but it's worth hearing in an era where most segues are of the > variety if at all, and the ->'s tend to be less transcendent(?), fluid (I think that's more what I mean) than in years past. Also glad to see Joy still in rotation.

We were up in the lower portion of Section 214. The sound was clear, as were the sight lines.

Aside from the playing of a lot of new material, this was a classic example of the Saturday night special. Lots of energy and some thrilling peaks, but overall it was 'song-y' and Twist provided the only real Type-II action of the night. That particular jam had some legs, but it was clear they wanted to move on to I Always Wanted It That Way.

Unlike N1, the second set never found its momentum, and went between Type-I rockers and Trey ballads. Again, there's nothing to actively dislike here, and certainly no cause for concern, but nothing really stood out, and after the fantastic tour opener, this wasn't what I was hoping for.

The first set was pretty standard as well, although from Lengthwise onward, it was high-intensity and a whole lot of fun.

Overall, a fun show to attend, but I not sure I'll give it more than one complete re-listen. Three stars across the board for me.

10/15/16

Set I:
A Blaze On opener, the first Lengthwise since the MGM run in 2014, Ass Handed and a great little Wolfman's which features some fantastic soloing from Trey makes for a nice first set.

Set II:
Mercury (why the motherfuck wasn't it on Big Boat, DIE EZRIN YOU BASTARD ::tears up cushion: opens Set II, but the jam feels a bit aimless; like it has no solid direction and it's feet are stuck in the mud, so the band opt to > into Twist. Twist initially seems just as perfuntory as Mercury's jam, but after some nice WTU teases, Fish brings the tempo up and Page starts some tension on the Lil' Pumpkin, before fading into strange effects laden territory and going into I Always Wanted it This Way. This is one my favorite tracks from Big Boat, so it's great to see it debut here. The jam afterward rode a nice funk groove, before Page went to the organ (in a creative way, not just spamming it like a... spastic on 9/4/16, but the jam filtered out before it could reach any conclusion and/or it's full potential (a recurring theme throughout tonight) and the band went into Miss You.

Also, just a quick aside, I Always Wanted it this Way has some pretty good potential, in the same vein as Crosseyed or the Great Curve (the latter if it got played more than once), as does More, whose jam last night was fantastic. Anyway, back to zee review.

Another Big Boat cohort, Miss You, seems like it'll be destined for Halfway to the Moon type placement in the future aka Set I. This version pretty much follows the studio format, which I see being the case for the foreseeable future, and frankly, it almost seems un-jammable (though it is a good song), but the next song, is: Fuego. Fuego has tried and failed (for me) to jam this past summer. Many have said otherwise, but in my opinion, it's never clicked. This version is no different, but maybe you'll think different. Then there's a nice -> into Sand, which had a nice funk jam with proficient Trey soloing, especially with some nice peak-y stuff toward the end. Joy brought things down after the high-octane Sand. After that, was Possum. But I couldn't really hear it, as the guy who was streaming it decided to take a shit (bringing his phone/mic or whatever with him) , and then, getting lost on the way back to his seat, decided to sing along drunkenly, before finally finding his way back to his seat by the end of Possum and, the set.

The encore was Good Times, Bad Times; obviously untouchable, bringing an end to 15/10/16.

OVERALL: A good show overall. Maybe it was just that it was the first full first show I'd heard live since Dick's N3, but this night was a lot of fun, despite an admittedly limited amount of jams that really went anywhere. There was a real energy and willing to get some jamming done, and that alone counts for a lot, even if a lot of efforts tonight didn't really bear all that much fruit. But still, this show has heart and is overall a fine show, at least it was in the moment.

HIGHLIGHTS: Wolfman's Brother

RATING: 3.5 - 4/5

''-19 can't do shit!''

Had a blast, and I was with 2 first timers and 1 at his second show. Although this show didn't give us anything super special, the floor was a great time, and everyone was dancing for the most part. Yes, things have become a bit chatty, but I'm not one to complain so much. It is what it is.

I was very happy to hear that my friends wanted to go to a run of shows with me, so I traded my Alpharetta and Jacksonville tickets and acquired floor passes for us. They loved N1, but the second half of the first set and the Possum and GTBT really sent them into a frenzy. They've already asked me to go to more shows. Now their wives also want to check the band out.

As far as the new songs, I like them. IAWITW really has some legs, and I can this being a jam vehicle in the near future.

Highlights for me: WTU?, Timber (Jerry), Maze, Carini, Wolfman's Brother, Mercury, Sand, Possum, and GTBT. One of my buddies present is a huge LZ fan, and he absolutely went nuts when he recognized the beginning riff.

I felt this show lacked flow. There were fantastic moments, mainly What's the Use, Timber (the solo was so flavorful), Lengthwise into Maze, and Mercury->Twist. But I felt like it was up and down with tempo and energy all night. As soon as momentum was built, they'd bring it down to a crawl again via one of the new ones. Anti-climatic. The floor was also super-packed by the end of night 2.

I'd call Set 1 average and Set 2 below average. If you had to hear two songs off this song, make them What's the Use? and Timber. Both were incredible versions. The sound was very well-mixed too. Other than Fishman's vocals being too loud at one point, the mix was stellar.

I felt this show lacked flow. There were fantastic moments, mainly What's the Use, Timber (the solo was so flavorful), Lengthwise into Maze, and Mercury->Twist. But I felt like it was up and down with tempo and energy all night. As soon as momentum was built, they'd bring it down to a crawl again via one of the new ones. Anti-climatic. The floor was also super-packed by the end of night 2.

I'd call Set 1 average and Set 2 below average. If you had to hear two songs off this song, make them What's the Use? and Timber. Both were incredible versions. The sound was very well-mixed too. Other than Fishman's vocals being too loud at one point, the mix was stellar.

It'd been 4+ years since I'd last seen Phish, and boy, alot has changed since then....hell, songs that were "new" to me on this night had already become concert staples since my last show, as evidenced by the crowd participation (like "Fuego", for example). Other songs were apparently new to everyone else too, and this show (as well the night before, I was told) was the proverbial guinea pig for the band to test the waters on 'em. So for me personally, while I did enjoy the show, I spent alot of time digesting this onslaught of new and new-ish material.

As far as the "tried and true" songs go, they were performed with class....that's kind of a back-handed compliment in a way, because the jams, while serviceable, rarely reached "nasty" territory. Trey seemed to wrap up "Maze" prematurely, since Page appeared unready with the organ notes in the finale....shame, because I was hoping for things to climb another notch or two, and maybe Page was too, lol.... I was hoping the closing "Possum" would change all that, being it was their last shot to drive it home....but again, it was enjoyable but kinda mild. I guess I'll never hear a "Possum" like Atlanta '97 ever again, lol...

But to put things in perspective, I brought a first-timer along with me, and she enjoyed the hell of it & is eager to see them again. So, what the hell do I know?

Don't get me wrong. I had a great time, the band was tight, and the crowd was bananas....it'll be an enjoyable listen upon playback, but I don't expect to reach this show when I feel like getting my face melted off, lol...