Solid show here on Friday night in the desert. The return of Soul Planet was awesome and a great first set treat. The song is really getting jammed far out. My Friend My Friend was a nice launching pad from that jam and was played nicely. More > Ghost was also a solid way to close out the set.

2nd set opens with a Loving Cup which was neat, a great song to hear at any time. Sweet Mikes Groove came after - and the highlight on the 2nd set came next with this Everythings Right, which had a nice long jam in it too - probably right up there with the soul planet jam from set 1. I think Life Beyond the Dream is a great song, and this was a stupendous version. Cities -> Hood were 2 great choices to close us out. All played very well. Double encore with Suzy and Cavern and we have ourselves a pretty darn good show here tonight, I will give it 4 stars.

Must Listens: Soul Planet -> My Friend My Friend, Ghost and the entire 2nd set. Cant wait for more, Phish is refusing to play a bad show currently. It feels like theyre ready to go off any given night

This show rose from the ashes like a Phoenix over the 18 year drought between phish shows in the Valley of the sun. From start to finish this was a high energy show that kept the crowd moving!

I only ask that we don't have to wait another extended hiatus for the band from Vermont to return to the valley of the sun.

Really fun show!

I want to give credit to this show’s opening segment, because it was the type of opening sequence that means so much more in context than it does in a vacuum.

Julius reappears after not being seen since late 2019 and it’s opening notes set the crowd in Phoenix ablaze. Though Julius made its name as a set-closer and encore tune, it makes a ton of sense as an opener. Serving as a high energy, bluesy jam to get the band and crowd feeling good out of the gate? Yes please. Hell, any time Julius is played is a good time, but to open a Friday night show after a significant hiatus? Danger? Yea, we’ve been told to expect it.

Before we could even catch our breath, the first Martian Monster of fall tour (and only second since 2019) comes crawling out of the lurch. The “composed” sections of this particular Monster signaled good things to come, and the band seemed to be doing that thing where they take an innocuous musical segment and layer it so richly with new ideas that it almost sounds like a new piece of music.

Don’t sleep on the length of this one either, because the jam in this Martian Monster might’ve been the best group improv of the whole show. Almost immediately, Mike starts dropping singularity bombs, perhaps signaling the beginning of a funky Mike-driven jam a la Sneakin’ Sally from 11/2/18…but the band modulates to major key…and what they find themselves in afterwards is a space of pure cohesion. Trey and Page start pushing and pulling each other through conversational melodies, almost rowing the big boat spaceship back and forth…drifting off into orbit around the Soul Planet.

And then….liftoff

What a sequence to ring in Phish’s first show in Arizona!

One final note, this may have been the best straightforward Hood peak I’ve been able to catch live. Featured a big minor key jam with its own peak before absolutely crushing the standard major coda.

Thank you Phish!

This was my 300th show! It seems like the more milestones I hit, the more demanding I become. It was my first show of the fall tour and I came in pretty fresh having not paid attention to much else despite my affinity for the new Golden 1 Center in Sacramento that I helped build. Did everyone like it? I hope nobody needed the world class sports medicine facility powered by Kaiser that’s attached.
Anyway, Desert Sky, I mean Ak-Chin, does everyone else remember the Camel Walk and Guy Forget? Well I did so it’s kind of difficult to top that, right?
Especially when I’m so heavily distracted by people asking if my party is “OK”. It’s called dancing, it’s called raging, it’s called freaking out. Perhaps try it and you’ll like it. We were the freakers right by the speakers, we were more than Ok.
Trey put some extra mustard on that Julius so you knew it would be fun. They played some other stuff, the segue into Soul Planet was cool and the jam was fun. I loved dancing to More and we got a bonus Ghost to close the set. I always love when they close a set with 2 or 3 set closers in a row because that creates such a palpable energy going into set break.
Speaking of closers, set 2 opened with Loving Cup. I know I’m getting older because I couldn’t help but think about the dearly departed Sharon Jones. I’m sorry Phish, there will never be another Loving Cup as moving unless you get Mick and Keith on stage too.
My name is Mike and so of course I dig into Mike’s groove with aplomb. I have heard Hydrogen since Dick’s ‘19 so that was lovely to my ears.
But, geez, “Yes! We’re OK, now shh!”
The Everything’s Right was so good but I got sick of the looky loos so I went to get some water and was reminded that dancing in the back with friends is also a lot of fun. Except for the military reject that wanted to know where my seat was. Why isn’t everything GA yet?
Before the nazi grabbed I managed to drop a jump kick to emphasize the Life Beyond a Dream. I returned to my section and several friends followed suit and we were rewarded with a lovely Hood. I love seeing love during Hood. I didn’t see any glow sticks, I only saw my friend giving lots of sweet hugs.
The encore, for this tour, was pedestrian right? No bonus spacey jams last night, just a solid show.

Did anyone else hear “Passing Through” at some point during the second set? I started humming the Hey, Heyo Heyo, and it worked but someone geekier than me will need to figure that out.

Please stay safe, wear a mask, wash your hands frequently, and get tested regularly so we can finish this tour as it started. Much love

Over a week after this show and it still holds up, especially after not seeing the band since 2016. Energy from the band and the crowd was there from the get go (perhaps the what seemed to be hour long wait in line got a few people excited once they were amongst the grounds). Both sets, a great balance of songs and they definitely made a point of jamming TF outta a couple new tunes in Soul Planet and Everything's Right. No complaints here, those jams soared. With a good Ghost, magical Hood and Mike's volume swells during the Scent break, this is exactly what the doctor ordered (aside from my gf not getting her David Bowie, soon though babe, soon!). Couple happy campers here!

Yet ANOTHER day home early due to rain, so I continue 2021 with 10/22 Phoenix...

10/22/21 Phoenix, AZ

Set 1

Julius - Excellent version to open. Strong enough to warrant a highlight. Very long, almost 10 minutes in length and full of energy tonight with that chill 2021 flavor undercutting it a tad bit. It's like a laid-back heat on this sucker. Great version, seriously!!!

Martian Monster - THIS IS AWESOME!!!! Like Julius, that chill 2021 vibe adds to this, giving this MM a uniquely laid-back and aquatic type of vibe about it. No face melting, just straight bliss paradise. I've never heard another like it and it's fantastic! Must hear!

>Soul Planet - Trey basically ripcorded that MM but it's ok because....18 minute Soul Planet!!! The jam begins immediately around the 3 minute mark! Trey doing those delay slashes before Fishman amps up the tempo with a strong rat-a-tat-tat groove. Mike is laying it down all over this while Trey lays back and lets Page solo. This soon evolves into Page on the piano while Trey is doing a blissful melodic motif.
---Then suddenly, around 7:45, the bliss subsides for a darker tone. Fishman is still going 1000mph on the drums and Trey is doing lots of great noodle work. Page is pounding the piano, playing off of Trey. This is a jam on a mission! Around 9 minutes, subtle robo FX start to appear, influencing the direction of the jam. Things are dark and kinda eerie. Fishman still blazing, Trey picks up the heat himself and starts ripping it up while Page goes absolutely ballistic on the piano. This is like a guided, heat-seeking missile on it's way to a deadly impact!!!
---Holy crap check out that Robo-delay peak around the 11 minute mark!!!!! Avoiding the inevitable impact and explosion, somehow the jam dies right down to a hazy blissfulness by the 12:30 mark. Synthesizers and robo FX are making their mark. This jam doesn't know what it wants to be, but I'm along for the ride!!! This lasts a while until around the 14:30 point when Trey returns to a more natural sound and the jam starts another slow build to a (hopefully) peak section. For sure, this time.
---By 16:30, the synths are blaring, the jam is shooting skywards, and the proverbial nuclear bomb is in the process of dropping. THIS IS FRIGGIN INCREDIBLE!!!! NUCLEAR ROBOT EXPLOSION!!!!! X FACTOR SOUL PLANET FRIGGIN MAGIC!!! HOLY MOTHER OF CHRIST WHAT IS GOING ON!!!! THIS IS MINDBLOWING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DUDE. DUDE......Sure it wasn't the Shoreline version, but it ended up damn well being the next best thing!

>My Friend My Friend - Genuine segue. How about that, eh?! Sure it's insane and spooky and scary, but after that Soul Planet it's a positive let down, lol.

Bouncing Around the Room - Is BATR. Finally some relief from all the grinding insanity!

Scent of a Mule - Yay! The rare Mule makes an appearance!

More - Is More. Very odd set placement that doesn't do it any favors. Good version but do I really need to highlight this? I mean, it's a fine version, but what version ain't?

>Ghost - And just as you think the set is done for, they whip out a 15 minute Ghost. Hell yes. A wonderful bliss-rager. Light on the funk, but it delivers in every other way. Not exactly must hear, but still a wonderful little Ghost. This is fantastic, there just isn't very much to actually say about it. It gets in it's "lane" and rides that road hard. A+++ little Ghost! It's basically 15 full-throttle minutes of blissful exuberance in the best way! DON'T SLEEP ON THIS GHOST! Terrific peak with a wonderful Julius reprise to tie it all together!!! X FACTOR MAGIC!!!

All in all...wow. Not perfect from start to finish, but there were multiple MAJOR moments in this set!!! Soul Planet and Ghost are hands-down must hear X Factor material, and the opening Julius and Martian Monster more than pack a punch. After Soul Planet the guys seem a little lost for how to one-up themselves and the set flounders, but it's never less than enjoyable. And HOLY CRAP THAT GHOST PEAK!

Great set, if slightly flawed!

Set 2

Loving Cup - Loving Cup to open a 2nd set?! That's new and exciting! Even better? It's hotter than the sun. Killer version! I mean, it's as hot as any other Loving Cup, so you know it's great! I probably don't truly need to highlight it, but know that it's another strong one!

Mike's Song - As with Julius and MM, the "2021 Chill Vibe" is present in full force on this. Not an all-timer or anything, but a very nice little version with some serious GROOVE (as it always should have!). You won't remember this tomorrow, but enjoy it while it's playing today.

>I Am Hydrogen - Great to get, rare as ever. Doesn't really need to be highlighted.

>Weekapaug Groove - Very nice and chill. See Loving Cup - a fine version that does the job but nothing to get overly excited about.

Everything's Right - Hell yes, a 26 minute version?! This better be great! The song itself is extra hot and loaded with an energy unusual for 2021 (you know what I mean). The jam begins and immediately drops into a darker kind of chill zone. Fishman keeping rhythm while Trey quietly does melodic noodles on top, Page answering Trey directly with his keys. This is absolutely wonderful, seriously.
---Around the 9 minute mark, the chill remains, but Fishman introduces a more driving rhythm. Trey finally breaks from the "noodling" around 10 minutes and the jam moves into a feel good area, more upbeat aquatic keys and nice melodic leads. The first signs of robo FX come around the 12:20 mark. Trey jumps on the robo honker and Page moves to the synthesizers. ---Things are getting dark again....The guys are being extremely patient, but never lacking for direction - THIS IS WHAT PERFECT JAMMING SOUNDS LIKE!!! Everyone doing their thing, moving the jam naturally, but never too quickly or impatiently!!!!
---By the 16 minute point, the jam is moving upwards once more, slowly becoming more upbeat without actually going into bliss. Trey is doing these sustained bends while Page is playing classy and suave over on the piano. Then, out of friggin nowhere, at 16:39, the rhythm changes again into something much more uptempo!!!!! The blaring synths come back out to play while Trey is using the robowah to great effect.
---THIS IS FRIGGIN INCREDIBLE!!! Seriously, this jam is SO good!!!!!!! On .NET, they say this section sounds like a jam that could have risen out of a Chalkdust Torture, and that is exactly correct. Then at 20:40 something changes once more and the jam moves into a genuinely blissful and downright cheery section! This is fantastic! Around the 24 minute mark, the blissful rock turns into a slightly latin, Twist-style groove before suddenly dropping out into a jazzy outro. The jam literally just fades out in the weirdest way. Killer....

WOW! Great jam! Doesn't top the Ruby Waves, but it comes close! A top 10 or 15 jam of the year, imo. DONT SKIP!!!!

>A Life Beyond the Dream - Great call out of the death of that jam. They could have played Sea of Stars too and it would have been great. Not really anything special - it sounds like every other one - but still killer.

Cities - Totally unexpected and feels weird coming out of Dream like that! Excellent Type I, but unfortunately way too short for its own good and comes to an end just as it should be lifting off.

>Harry Hood - Excellent reading of Hood tonight. Played tightly all around, the chill vibe of the night gives it a wonderful flavor in the "build up" section after the lyrics.The slow-build nature of the, well, build-up is terrific. I mean, they must take 7 or 8 minutes slowly working upwards bit by bit, taking their time, never lacking for ideas, just savoring every moment of this Hood. This Hood is terrific! Eventually it hits the peak before the "you can feel good" section and the song just friggin EXPLODES like a nuclear bomb! THIS HOOD IS MAGIC!!!!

Suzy Greenberg - Suzy is Suzy

Cavern - Is Cavern

All in all, a very uneven show with multiple MASSIVE peaks!!! In the first set, Julius, MM, Soul Planet and Ghost are what you need. In the 2nd set, really, just grab the incredible Everything's Right and the X Factor Harry Hood. Great show on the whole, but the 3.7 rating on .NET is pretty approrpriate.