Phish
8/15/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Back on the Train, Rift, Guelah Papyrus, Scent of a Mule, Jesus Just Left Chicago, Wolfman's Brother, Anything But Me, Babylon Baby, Reba, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues
II: Sand > Light > Dirt, Waves > Undermind > Steam, Fire
E: Camel Walk, Guyute, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Harry Hood
The drive into Chicago was uneventful. I had worked a half day. The weather in the city was gorgeous with temperatures in the low 80s. I parked at my sister's apartment in Wicker Park and then walked to my buddy Steve's place. We drove to our pre-show gathering at Ethyl's on Racine across the Eisenhower from the Pav. It was good to see all of the Chicago crew. The lot was happening with more activity and vending than I had ever seen at that venue. We saw several tanks that had been confiscated. In the lot we also saw a guy dressed as Jesus Christ and this was appropriate with JLC being played in the first set. The posters went very fast and were gone by the time I got inside the building. It was extremely hot in the poorly ventilated, antiquated arena. They have renovated the place and were now serving booze but it was basically polishing a turd. However, I enjoy the gritty vibe of seeing Phish in venues such as UIC Pavilion.
The band hit the stage about 8:05 and it was clear there was a certain urgency to the playing right from the get go. BOTT got the energy going and this continued with Rift. I love the vocal exchanges between Trey and Page on that song. Guelah Papyrus featured its usual stop/start at the end and at this point it was clear how jacked up the crowd was. I hadn't heard Scent of a Mule since Alpine Valley last year. I wanted to do the Fiddle on the Roof dancing but there wasn't enough room in my row on the Page side in section 114. During this song there was a kid with a laser beam which was actually appropriate with the lyrics in Scent of a Mule. "I hate laserbeams". Jesus Just Left Chicago is always welcome and especially in the city of broad shoulders. Trey brought out his best blues licks. Wolfman's the obvious highlight of the first set with some very unusual playing. Page took the jam to a different level with some unique textures which Trey fed off. Anything But Me worked as the cooldown song and it seems like these are the clearer days which Trey longed for in that song back when he wrote it. Babylon Baby was a logical song from Moss for Mike to bring over to Phish. Reba was another amazing version. Once again they did the whistling at the end. Alumni Blues included Letter to Jimmy Page in the middle and during the reprise Trey took his playing to another level. The energy was through the roof which is what you want for a set closer. I was very impressed with the first set and was hoping they could continue the momentum into the second frame.
Sand got the attention of everyone and this was yet another in a series of recent great versions. This eventually led into Light which had jamming that put me in the mind of the rendition they played in Tahoe. They took a similiar approach. The choice of Dirt in the ballad slot was great. They did a fantastic job with this delicate song. I loved the organic nature of the jamming that occured during the Waves > Undermind. This was such a slick segue. They continued the set by seguing into their newest vehicle Steam. Kuroda was on point with huge amounts of fog/steam during that one. A shredding version of Fire wrapped up a short but improvisational set from Phish.
As a result they played an extended encore. Camel Walk in the encore slot put me in the mind of Alpine 99. I think I like Guyute in the encore slot. This version made me appreciate Guyute again. I thought The Horse > SITM was going to end the night. Hood caught the whole crowd off guard. Last night was an above average version. I would say the first night of UIC was one of the best shows of the modern era.
Phish
8/16/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Dinner and a Movie, Ha Ha Ha, Chalkdust Torture, Mexican Cousin, Walls of the Cave, Runaway Jim, Foam, I Didn't Know, Ocelot, Ginseng Sullivan, The Wedge, Limb by Limb, Let It Loose
II: Down with Disease > Twist, Backwards Down the Number Line, Theme from the Bottom, Golden Age > A Day in the Life, You Enjoy Myself
E: Heavy Things, Slave the Traffic Light, Rocky Top
postshow P.A. music was Heatwave "Boogie Nights"
Once again the weather was ideal in Chicago on Wednesday. My sister and I went out for dinner at Pizza Metro where we consumed a clutch pre-show meal. She dropped me off in line for the floor and I got an excellent spot very close on the floor between Trey and Page. I was closer than Antelope Greg who was located off to my left. There were some familiar characters around me on the floor. The show started a little after 8 pm with Dinner and a Movie getting things going nicely. Ha Ha Ha was a request from a banner hanging from the balcony. Chalkdust Torture had the most succesful jam of the first set but yet it didn't stray far. Mexican Cousin is fun for comedic value. Walls of the Cave is pretty tame these days compared to what it was during the post hiatus years. Runaway Jim was well played but the jam stayed type I all the way. Foam continued this song based first set. During I Didn't Know both Trey and Mike held up t-shirts with pictures of Otis Redding on them. Ocelot doesn't vary much from version to version. Ginseng Sullivan and The Wedge were well played but obviously were void of any improvisation. Limb by Limb was a highlight of the first set with the only other jam besides Chalkdust Torture in the opening frame. That was only the second time they've played Let It Loose from Exile on Main St. This was very well played but I'm not sure it worked that well as a set closer. The first set on Tuesday had nowhere near the amount of energy that the first set on Monday had.
Down with Disease was over twenty minutes long and was the obvious highlight of the show. The jam moved through many different themes before finally settling into a quiet ambient noise that segued smoothly into Twist. Twist had a very nice mellow piece of improvisation. Backwards Down the Number Line had some strong playing from Trey but this version stayed inside the box. Theme from the Bottom harkened back to the pre-hiatus versions. I became a fan of Golden Age at Super Ball IX. The "ghetto blaster" lyric is appropriate for Chicago's southside. It wasn't a very extended version but the spacey outro transitioned nicely into A Day in the Life which was a faux closer. Last night's YEM was a very strong rendition that had great licks from Trey after a solid bass groove had been established by Gordo. Tuesday had another huge encore with Heavy Things starting it off folllowed by a gorgeous Slave to the Traffic Light. Rocky Top was an energetic closer to the evening. This was a fun show. The playing was more straightforward than the night before. I preferred the Monday show to the Tuesday night performance. However, going in I knew it was going to be tough to surpass Monday's superior effort and what we got on Tuesday was a nice compliment to the previous show.
Phish
8/17/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Colonel Forbin's Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird, Gumbo, Possum, Weigh, The Divided Sky, Alaska, Bathtub Gin, Maze, Cavern, First Tube
II: Crosseyed and Painless > No Quarter, Timber Ho! > Tweezer > Prince Caspian > Piper > Ghost > Makisupa Policeman, Sleep, Buffalo Bill, Golgi Apparatus, Character Zero, Run Like An Antelope
E: Funky Bitch, Show of Life, Tweezer Reprise
I spent the morning watching coverage of President Obama's visit to my company in Atkinson, IL. They were using our east warehouse for the town hall meeting. My parents were in attendance. It was amazing to see the President talking about and answering questions from people I know. After this I watched a very frustrating Cubs loss to the Houston Astros. I took the blue line train to Racine and walked over to Taylor St. for Al's #1 Italian Beef for dinner. On Wednesday I was finally able to secure a poster which had a Great Chicago Fire of 1871 motif.
Phish hit the stage a little after 8 pm with the first Colonel Forbin's opener since the 1980s. Unlike the Super Ball IX version there was no narration moving into Fly Famous Mockingbird. This was another weak sauce 3 minute Gumbo with the ragtime ending. Possum has been played to death in the last few years but this was still fun. On the way home after the show I did see a possum. That was my first time hearing Weigh in 80 shows. The Divided Sky harkened the 1994 version at UIC which Trey mentioned on Charlie Rose as a major spiritual moment for him. Alaska is one of my least favorite songs in their rotation currently. It's a poor man's Ocelot. Most people like myself used this as the obvious bathroom/water fountain break. Bathtub Gin was expected but I felt this was the highlight of the whole show. The four songs they put together to end the set were all impressive and solidified the set. I love the interplay between Page and Trey during Maze. Cavern was the faux closer but that songs always brings the energy. First Tube brought the house down (not like Sugarland) to close out the set. I couldn't help but think of the fireworks from Super Ball during First Tube.
Set II got off to a promising start with a huge dance groove with Crosseyed and Painless. "Still waiting" would become the theme of this set as it was vocally reprised several times. I was hoping they were heading for deeper exploration when they settled into No Quarter. I think they need to give that one a rest after playing a few times at several high profile gigs. Trey's guitar work was great during the Led Zeppelin though. Timber Ho! was the third cover in a row to start off the set. This was the first "Still waiting" moment. Predictably this bled into Tweezer. Tweezer was a short version but had a brontosaurus-like bassline from Gordon. Caspian is one of Trey's favorites and this unfinished version worked nicely as a landing point for the Tweezer and as a starting point for the ensuing Piper. This segment from Tweezer through Piper was the improvisational highlight of the second set which quickly took a song based turn after Makisupa truncated Ghost in a miniscule 3 minute version. The key words in Makisupa were comical. Sleep was a nice choice at this point. Buffalo Bill is Phish's ode to Deliverance. Trey butchered Golgi. Next came a below average Character Zero. Run Like an Antelope salvaged the end fo the set. Funky Bitch in the encore wasn't a huge surprise given the sign being held up and since Son Seals was from Chicago. I really like Show of Life and it was a nice moment of reflection before Tweezer Reprise ended the show with authority. In my opinion this was the weakest of the three shows. The "Still waiting" vocals in the second set gave this show a more playful vibe. It had a more celebratory feel where the previous two shows had much more to offer in the way exploratory playing.
8/15/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Back on the Train, Rift, Guelah Papyrus, Scent of a Mule, Jesus Just Left Chicago, Wolfman's Brother, Anything But Me, Babylon Baby, Reba, Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues
II: Sand > Light > Dirt, Waves > Undermind > Steam, Fire
E: Camel Walk, Guyute, The Horse > Silent in the Morning, Harry Hood
The drive into Chicago was uneventful. I had worked a half day. The weather in the city was gorgeous with temperatures in the low 80s. I parked at my sister's apartment in Wicker Park and then walked to my buddy Steve's place. We drove to our pre-show gathering at Ethyl's on Racine across the Eisenhower from the Pav. It was good to see all of the Chicago crew. The lot was happening with more activity and vending than I had ever seen at that venue. We saw several tanks that had been confiscated. In the lot we also saw a guy dressed as Jesus Christ and this was appropriate with JLC being played in the first set. The posters went very fast and were gone by the time I got inside the building. It was extremely hot in the poorly ventilated, antiquated arena. They have renovated the place and were now serving booze but it was basically polishing a turd. However, I enjoy the gritty vibe of seeing Phish in venues such as UIC Pavilion.
The band hit the stage about 8:05 and it was clear there was a certain urgency to the playing right from the get go. BOTT got the energy going and this continued with Rift. I love the vocal exchanges between Trey and Page on that song. Guelah Papyrus featured its usual stop/start at the end and at this point it was clear how jacked up the crowd was. I hadn't heard Scent of a Mule since Alpine Valley last year. I wanted to do the Fiddle on the Roof dancing but there wasn't enough room in my row on the Page side in section 114. During this song there was a kid with a laser beam which was actually appropriate with the lyrics in Scent of a Mule. "I hate laserbeams". Jesus Just Left Chicago is always welcome and especially in the city of broad shoulders. Trey brought out his best blues licks. Wolfman's the obvious highlight of the first set with some very unusual playing. Page took the jam to a different level with some unique textures which Trey fed off. Anything But Me worked as the cooldown song and it seems like these are the clearer days which Trey longed for in that song back when he wrote it. Babylon Baby was a logical song from Moss for Mike to bring over to Phish. Reba was another amazing version. Once again they did the whistling at the end. Alumni Blues included Letter to Jimmy Page in the middle and during the reprise Trey took his playing to another level. The energy was through the roof which is what you want for a set closer. I was very impressed with the first set and was hoping they could continue the momentum into the second frame.
Sand got the attention of everyone and this was yet another in a series of recent great versions. This eventually led into Light which had jamming that put me in the mind of the rendition they played in Tahoe. They took a similiar approach. The choice of Dirt in the ballad slot was great. They did a fantastic job with this delicate song. I loved the organic nature of the jamming that occured during the Waves > Undermind. This was such a slick segue. They continued the set by seguing into their newest vehicle Steam. Kuroda was on point with huge amounts of fog/steam during that one. A shredding version of Fire wrapped up a short but improvisational set from Phish.
As a result they played an extended encore. Camel Walk in the encore slot put me in the mind of Alpine 99. I think I like Guyute in the encore slot. This version made me appreciate Guyute again. I thought The Horse > SITM was going to end the night. Hood caught the whole crowd off guard. Last night was an above average version. I would say the first night of UIC was one of the best shows of the modern era.
Phish
8/16/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Dinner and a Movie, Ha Ha Ha, Chalkdust Torture, Mexican Cousin, Walls of the Cave, Runaway Jim, Foam, I Didn't Know, Ocelot, Ginseng Sullivan, The Wedge, Limb by Limb, Let It Loose
II: Down with Disease > Twist, Backwards Down the Number Line, Theme from the Bottom, Golden Age > A Day in the Life, You Enjoy Myself
E: Heavy Things, Slave the Traffic Light, Rocky Top
postshow P.A. music was Heatwave "Boogie Nights"
Once again the weather was ideal in Chicago on Wednesday. My sister and I went out for dinner at Pizza Metro where we consumed a clutch pre-show meal. She dropped me off in line for the floor and I got an excellent spot very close on the floor between Trey and Page. I was closer than Antelope Greg who was located off to my left. There were some familiar characters around me on the floor. The show started a little after 8 pm with Dinner and a Movie getting things going nicely. Ha Ha Ha was a request from a banner hanging from the balcony. Chalkdust Torture had the most succesful jam of the first set but yet it didn't stray far. Mexican Cousin is fun for comedic value. Walls of the Cave is pretty tame these days compared to what it was during the post hiatus years. Runaway Jim was well played but the jam stayed type I all the way. Foam continued this song based first set. During I Didn't Know both Trey and Mike held up t-shirts with pictures of Otis Redding on them. Ocelot doesn't vary much from version to version. Ginseng Sullivan and The Wedge were well played but obviously were void of any improvisation. Limb by Limb was a highlight of the first set with the only other jam besides Chalkdust Torture in the opening frame. That was only the second time they've played Let It Loose from Exile on Main St. This was very well played but I'm not sure it worked that well as a set closer. The first set on Tuesday had nowhere near the amount of energy that the first set on Monday had.
Down with Disease was over twenty minutes long and was the obvious highlight of the show. The jam moved through many different themes before finally settling into a quiet ambient noise that segued smoothly into Twist. Twist had a very nice mellow piece of improvisation. Backwards Down the Number Line had some strong playing from Trey but this version stayed inside the box. Theme from the Bottom harkened back to the pre-hiatus versions. I became a fan of Golden Age at Super Ball IX. The "ghetto blaster" lyric is appropriate for Chicago's southside. It wasn't a very extended version but the spacey outro transitioned nicely into A Day in the Life which was a faux closer. Last night's YEM was a very strong rendition that had great licks from Trey after a solid bass groove had been established by Gordo. Tuesday had another huge encore with Heavy Things starting it off folllowed by a gorgeous Slave to the Traffic Light. Rocky Top was an energetic closer to the evening. This was a fun show. The playing was more straightforward than the night before. I preferred the Monday show to the Tuesday night performance. However, going in I knew it was going to be tough to surpass Monday's superior effort and what we got on Tuesday was a nice compliment to the previous show.
Phish
8/17/11
UIC Pavilion
Chicago, IL
I: Colonel Forbin's Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird, Gumbo, Possum, Weigh, The Divided Sky, Alaska, Bathtub Gin, Maze, Cavern, First Tube
II: Crosseyed and Painless > No Quarter, Timber Ho! > Tweezer > Prince Caspian > Piper > Ghost > Makisupa Policeman, Sleep, Buffalo Bill, Golgi Apparatus, Character Zero, Run Like An Antelope
E: Funky Bitch, Show of Life, Tweezer Reprise
I spent the morning watching coverage of President Obama's visit to my company in Atkinson, IL. They were using our east warehouse for the town hall meeting. My parents were in attendance. It was amazing to see the President talking about and answering questions from people I know. After this I watched a very frustrating Cubs loss to the Houston Astros. I took the blue line train to Racine and walked over to Taylor St. for Al's #1 Italian Beef for dinner. On Wednesday I was finally able to secure a poster which had a Great Chicago Fire of 1871 motif.
Phish hit the stage a little after 8 pm with the first Colonel Forbin's opener since the 1980s. Unlike the Super Ball IX version there was no narration moving into Fly Famous Mockingbird. This was another weak sauce 3 minute Gumbo with the ragtime ending. Possum has been played to death in the last few years but this was still fun. On the way home after the show I did see a possum. That was my first time hearing Weigh in 80 shows. The Divided Sky harkened the 1994 version at UIC which Trey mentioned on Charlie Rose as a major spiritual moment for him. Alaska is one of my least favorite songs in their rotation currently. It's a poor man's Ocelot. Most people like myself used this as the obvious bathroom/water fountain break. Bathtub Gin was expected but I felt this was the highlight of the whole show. The four songs they put together to end the set were all impressive and solidified the set. I love the interplay between Page and Trey during Maze. Cavern was the faux closer but that songs always brings the energy. First Tube brought the house down (not like Sugarland) to close out the set. I couldn't help but think of the fireworks from Super Ball during First Tube.
Set II got off to a promising start with a huge dance groove with Crosseyed and Painless. "Still waiting" would become the theme of this set as it was vocally reprised several times. I was hoping they were heading for deeper exploration when they settled into No Quarter. I think they need to give that one a rest after playing a few times at several high profile gigs. Trey's guitar work was great during the Led Zeppelin though. Timber Ho! was the third cover in a row to start off the set. This was the first "Still waiting" moment. Predictably this bled into Tweezer. Tweezer was a short version but had a brontosaurus-like bassline from Gordon. Caspian is one of Trey's favorites and this unfinished version worked nicely as a landing point for the Tweezer and as a starting point for the ensuing Piper. This segment from Tweezer through Piper was the improvisational highlight of the second set which quickly took a song based turn after Makisupa truncated Ghost in a miniscule 3 minute version. The key words in Makisupa were comical. Sleep was a nice choice at this point. Buffalo Bill is Phish's ode to Deliverance. Trey butchered Golgi. Next came a below average Character Zero. Run Like an Antelope salvaged the end fo the set. Funky Bitch in the encore wasn't a huge surprise given the sign being held up and since Son Seals was from Chicago. I really like Show of Life and it was a nice moment of reflection before Tweezer Reprise ended the show with authority. In my opinion this was the weakest of the three shows. The "Still waiting" vocals in the second set gave this show a more playful vibe. It had a more celebratory feel where the previous two shows had much more to offer in the way exploratory playing.
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