I have finally caught up on enough sleep to put into words some of what took place this past week in Miami, Florida. One of seven in my wolfpack, I'm sure all of my buddies would agree, it was a unique and memorable experience. By day, downtown Miami is hustling and bustling with workers of various kinds going in and out of shops that may or may not be drug fronts. One of my buddies came to the conclusion that it looked like a European tourist destination circa the 1980's- lots of really outdated stores selling outdated appliances, but nonetheless making a living. Nightfall is when Miami seems to thrive. The skyline is gorgeous and the temperature is warm enough to lie on a grassy knoll at any time and watch the harbor for hours on end. This weekend, however, was not an average one for the already energetic city. Come 12:30 AM, hoards of Phans began flooding the streets, guided by the hissing sounds of the nearest nitrous tank or navigating the nearest arepa vendor to qualm their post-show munchies. The Miami police seemed lost and confused by this population of folks and really had no clue where to start. But alls well that ends well, and the music outweighed any form of crazy lot activity that ravaged the surrounding areas of the American Airlines Arena.
Night One was still a traveling day for many, so the energy of the crowd wasn't ideal, but it didn't detract from the most important thing: the music. Kicking the run off with a blistering "Sample In a Jar," the first set was fun and adventurous. The first highlight for me was "Roggae" which is one of my favorite songs and one which I among others have been waiting to hear considering they were yet to play it since their hiatus. It wasn't the best or tightest version I have heard, but the mere fact that they played it gave me overwhelming joy. A mid-set "Stash" was the highlight of the night for most folks. Personally, I thought they wandered a bit in the middle, but when they collected themselves towards the end of the jam, Trey's crescendos and build-up were as energetic as I've ever heard and they really blew the crowd away. A set ending "Possum" was very focused and well-played- the best version of the tune I've heard thus far.
Set 2 kicked off with a "Mike's Song">"Light">"I Am Hydrogen">"Weekapaug Groove" that was absolutely face-melting. Many have criticized "Light" as it is a new tune and the band is still getting their footing when playing it live, but this version was exploratory and dynamic, shedding a whole new light (no pun intended) on the song. "Harry Hood" is a personal favorite, but the version on this particular night did not come together like others I have experienced. I enjoyed the version, but it took a while to envelope and when it eventually did, it was not as explosive as it could have been. "Character Zero" ended the set with the great energy that has come to be expected of the song, but stacked up short next to the booming encore of "First Tube." One of Phish's only instrumental tunes, Trey Anastasio was hopping and dancing on stage has he made his way up and down the neck while Mike Gordon's bass practically shook the floor of the entire arena. It was a great way to cap off a splendid first night that would basically act as a warm up to the next three.
By the looks of it on paper, night 2 looked like nothing special. A lot of later material and not of early bust-outs may look disappointing on a setlist, but the best thing about this band is that they can make magic out of anything. The first set had some obscure rarities such as Undermind's "The Connection" and "Access Me" which were fun to hear and were interesting breathers stacked up next to heavy hitters like "Maze" and "The Divided Sky." My favorite tune of the first set was the fan-favorite "Reba." A song that I have always enjoyed but never worshiped the way many phans do, this particular version blew me away and shed a whole new light on the song for me. Set 2 is when the show really launched. After an opener of "Kill Devil Falls," the band plunged into a melange of non-stop funk and rock. An always groovy "Tweezer" segued right into the fist pounding "Prince Caspian." The jams didn't stop there as they transitioned into a "Gotta Jibboo">"Wilson">"Gotta Jibboo" sandwich which may have been the best part of the night. Still continuing, the band was a bit rougher in their segue into "Heavy Things," but it produced one of the best jams of the weekend. This tune is normally written off by many fans because of its poppy sound, but they really stretched out on it and gave the song a whole new meaning for me. Not stopping yet again, the band followed up with "2001" which is the biggest mindbender of funk in Phish's repertoire and let CK5, aka lighting designer Chris Kuroda, strut his stuff. Finally, to cap off the series of non-stop jams, Phish returned to one of their classic compositions, "Slave To The Traffic Light" as a slow-rocking set ender. As an encore, they pulled out the obscure lullably-esque "Sleeping Monkey" which displays Fishman's fine falsetto and led us to the greatest possible Phish show-ender "Tweezer Reprise." In my opinion, this was the best show of the run, but I still had 2 more ahead of me.
The 30th was another special night for longtime fans and new faces alike. This particular show was one of old bust-outs, sweet covers and Phish classics. Kicking the set off with the Bob Marley party-starter "Soul Shakedown Party," I knew this was going to be a fun set. After "Runaway Jim" and ZZ Top's "Jesus Just Left Chicago," the band debuted Hank Williams' "Dixieland Cannonball" which was a fun little ditty and took all fans off guard. My favorite of the set was the bust-out of an 80's Phish regular, the bluesy "Corrina," originally made famous by Taj Mahal. I love the harmonies that Phish puts on this tune and it's the right amount of mellow and funky to fall right in the middle of the set. Continuing with the rarities, us fans were treated to "What's the Use?" and the first "Tela" since 1998. "Tela" is a Gamehenge tune that is always towards the top of the request lists of long time fans and was played to an ecstatic reception. Phish then debuted a new original, "Gone," which is off of their new side-album Party Time. The bluegrassy "Rocky Top," which I thought might have been busted out the night before during the encore, kept fans on their toes as they then ended the set with standard versions of "Chalkdust Torture" and "David Bowie." The band was relentless as they kicked off the first set with the first "Sand" since before their hiatus. "The Curtain With" is always a unique musical journey and one that they have been nailing since their trainwreck version to end Coventry in 2004. Keeping up with the spacey and cathartic jams, they followed up with a rare "Lifeboy" which was slow but by no means drained the crowd. They really got experimental for a 17 minute "Back On The Train" which went all over the place, but not in a bad way. Everyone knew some sort of goofiness was about to ensue when Trey hopped on drums for "HYHU," which meant Fishman was up to something. In the middle of "Love You," Fishman brought out his signature Electrolux vacuum, but had already told the crowd 2 nights previous that that night would be his last vacuum solo of the decade. This meant he had to find someone who "looked like him" to play the Electrolux. He pulled Rich, a lucky fan who was sporting Fishman's signature mumu, out of the crowd to honk on the vacuum and then shocked everyone by presenting Rich with the legendary Electrolux to keep. This series of events pumped everyone up and the band proceeded with a mind-splitting "Free" which is one of my favorite of Phish's standard rock songs. Mike Gordon broke out his Meatlball bass compressor for the supremely funky Stevie Wonder tune "Boogie on Reggae Woman." The set ended with the best "Run Like an Antelope" I have ever heard- one of those tunes that really varies from version to version but is always exciting. As an encore, Page McConnell broke out his giant keytar for a psychedelic take on Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein." On second thought, this may have been my favorite show of the run. It's too tough to tell when you're bombarded by such awesome music!
It was hard to believe it was already the 31st, and tonight we were all going to be treated to 3 sets by our favorite band. Before we knew it, we were grooving to Mike's chunky bass for an "AC/DC Bag" opener, which was fantastic foreplay for the celebration that the night would present. "46 Days" is a tune that never really got to see its glory when it came out earlier in the decade, but it is way funky and got everyone moving. The "Bathtub Gin" that everyone was waiting for made its way into the first set, but the follow-up "Punch You In The Eye" is one of my favorite live pump-up songs and this one didn't let me down. "The Moma Dance" is perhaps the funkiest Phish song there is and it marked the point at which I started to perspire from getting down in the dead center aisle of section 314. "Guyute" is one of my favorite compositions and the band really came alive during the heavier section in the middle of the song. I have really enjoyed seeing "Seven Below" this year and this night's version was no different because it is the perfect balance of energy and spaciness and Trey's guitar perfectly floats above the groove that the rest of the band lays down. A blistering "Julius" rounded out the first set and already I felt like I had sat through a whole show. The Velvet Underground's "Rock and Roll" initiated set number 2 and put the crowd back into gear as it always does. The jam off of the cover brought the band to a 10 minute "Piper" which was airy enough to provide the perfect opportunity to reflect on the past year and anticipate the coming one. I was pleased to hear "Simple," a feel-good tune with an infectious riff and then the bass driven "Theme From the Bottom." The highlight of the set was a very heavy "Ghost" which saw one of the water vendors in the section next to me drop his beverage bucket in order to get down with some of the ladies in the aisle. The tail end of "Ghost" even brought the band to the first "NO2" in a long time which is basically Mike Gordon whispering random sayings into the mic, but many of the more seasoned fans clutched its nostalgia factor and smiled. They capped off set 2 was "Suzy Greenberg" which is normally a burst of energy, but in my opinion has been over-played since their reunion, considering the song used to be a rare fan-favorite. The new year was just a short time away and we had a small breather to get to the ideal viewing spot.
The New Year's set was finally upon us and we were as close to the floor as we could get thanks to a very kind ticket taker (side note: the employees of the American Airlines Arena were some of the kindest and most hilarious people I have seen- they really ate up the whole experience and I can't wait to see a show there again). Just before midnight, the band kicked off with the "Cars, Trucks, Buses"-esque new tune "Party Time" which included a countdown and the dropping of a disco ball. Balloons descended from everywhere and an overwhelming sense of joy occupied the whole arena as the band played "Auld Lang Syne." Apparently Trey wanted to kick off the new decade in style because the song of the week, "Down With Disease," came next. The band absolutely exploded, all the way from Mike's wet bass to begin to Trey's seemingly endless crescendos. The band and the crowd alike were in their glory. When the band wrapped it up, the removal of a curtain revealed a large cannon. In the center of the stage, the disco ball that had descended opened up and who else but Jon Fishman hopped inside. He was loaded into the cannon and "shot through the roof." Following the popular saying, the show must go on and the band looked to the crowd for a new drummer. They picked a stout woman name Sara, who claimed to have been playing for 6 months, but wanted to join the band for her favorite song, "Fluffhead." The tune started rough, thanks to the sloppiness of Sara on drums, but when the verse kicked in, she proved to be overwhelmingly good, leading us to realize that she was, in fact, Fishman in disguise. "Fluffhead," like "Suzy Greenberg," is another song that I thought was a bit overkill in 2009, but when they really get into the compositional part and then return to the chorus, there is no greater energy burst and it is hard to really get sick of. "Joy" was met by groans from some audience members, but it definitely exceeded expectations and by no means "killed the set." Page's delicate piano on "The Squirming Coil" gave way to one of the better "You Enjoy Myself"'s I have ever witnessed and set 3 came to a close. The encore started with Trey thanking all the folks involved with the weekend while Page tickled the ivories on "Blue Moon." After going through a lengthy list of names and making a crack about nitrous dealers in the lot, the band hopped on their instruments for one more. "Loving Cup," a Rolling Stones cover that really meant a lot to me when they encored with it at my first show, was the perfect way to round out a weekend of surprises, classics, and all around good music. New Years celebrations never seem to live up to their hype, but spending the New Year with my favorite band and some good friends exceeded anything I had in mind.
for photos and setlists from the weekend, as well as all things Phish, be sure to visit phish.com
