On Friday I worked in the morning and got on the road. Traffic was as bad as I've ever encountered driving into Chicago. The Stephenson was ridiculous. I didn't get to Chicago until almost 5:30. I parked at my friend Steve's place in Wicker Park. Then we drove to the Soldier Field garage where we ate our carry out from a restaurant called Jerry's. At this point I went off on my own because I was on the lawn. Raising the stage greatly improved the experience out on the lawn.
This first set left a lot to be desired. I spent much of it looking for a friend of mine whom I was selling my extra Sunday ticket to. However, I did meet up with a familiar face, Stickman. The way I figure I wouldn't have run into him had I not been searching for the other friend. Reba had a nice sunset jam but that was really the only highlight in the first set. Stash and Coil they began to turn it on but this was a mere tease. I was disappointed by repeats from Detroit.
Golden Age was taken out for a ride on this occasion. This wasn't on par with the outstanding Hartford rendition but I enjoyed this set opening jam. Kuroda was on point with the lighting. I loved the choice of Mango as the landing point. The truncated Sand left people scratching their heads. Piper bordered on WOO! territory however it did yield a natural segue into Halley's sans the vocal intro. This was the best ever Wombat, confirmed. That piece of improvisation may very well have been the highlight of the show. Chalkdust was used as a rocker instead of a jam vehicle like it has been several times this summer. Slave was appropriate with the traffic I'd encountered. Julius has been used several times as an encore this summer. After the show I walked along the lakefront and around the south loop and enjoyed the city and the mild weather. This is the only time I'll be visiting Chicago this year. All and all it wasn't a bad first offering to the run. The improvisation was better than the Michigan show I'd seen on Wednesday.
We spent the day relaxing enjoying the incredible weather. It was like a gift compared to the horrendous situation we had gone through the previous year. We had lunch from Big Al's Before the show we took some Jimmy John's to eat outside the venue along the lake. On this occasion we again parked in the Soldier Field garage but instead we took the water taxi across Burnham Harbor. We saw Mike Gordon on a golf cart driving through the people relaxing on the museum campus preshow. We spent the first set in the same area toward the front of the lawn but encountered some drama so we moved to the back of the lawn where the sound and view were both better.
The first set was better than the previous night's first set but that's not saying much. Again I didn't care for the repeats from Detroit. Brian and Robert was a good call at that point. Next was my first Wingsuit. Tube and Free both really emphasized Gordo's punchy sound this tour. Trey was really emoting well during Roggae. Heavy Things was a nice interlude before the predictable and fairly short set closing Antelope.
Carini unfortunately didn't yield the gold like it has in recent excursions. The lack of improve in Waves had me disappointed. Fuego lacked any jam but it did have a nice transition into Twist. Light was by far the best jam of the nice. It was a percussive piece of music that allowed Kuroda to showcase his lighting equipment. 20 Years Later also had a brief bit of dark jamming before dropping into another excellent Summer 2014 Harry Hood. I'm glad Steve and I watched this show together. He's like an older brother to me and I appreciate him letting me stay at his apartment for this important Phish Chicago run. Grind, Bug, Suzy isn't a bad encore. I'm a big fan of Bug. It always includes some great playing from Trey. The sounds of Lionel Richie "All Night Long" sent us off into the night.
The Sunday show as my favorite experience of the three night run in Chicago this year. I slept in and was able rejuvenate myself. Before the show we got carryout from Lou Malnati's. What a great decision that was. We parked in the Soldier Field garage and took the water taxi. Steve went off with some friends and I spent some reflection time by the lake. This band and this city have been a huge part of my life. So has the football team that plays in the stadium that was visible nearby with its iconic Roman columns.
I had a floor ticket for Sunday and I took my spot on the floor Page side. Antelope Greg and his cronnies were in their usual location. Maybe it was just being closer to the stage but the first set had a little extra pop to it. Gumbo as an opener is unusual. Followed by a high energy Jim and the rare Tela and we were off to an old school start. I'd heard The Line on WXRT previously in the weekend. Scent of a Mule featured a full band drum session. Next was a Gin that flowed like a geyster. That was the highlight of the first like it typically is. SITM was appropriate with July 20 being a day of mourning for the Iowa City crew and their fallen comrade. Maze had some strong interplay between Anastasio and McConnell. This was a better than usual Ocelot. WOTC was a great choice to solidify a good first set.
The last set solidified the run. This stanza had the best flow to it of the weekend and provided a turning point in the overall arc of the tour. DWD wasn't the greatest version but it was a classically contoured piece of improve that settled nicely into Winterqueen despite some feedback from Trey's
equipment. Theme from the Bottom wasn't necessarily what I wanted but I feel it worked. Mike's Song led into the most atypical version of The Wedge to date. This is a tour highlight for sure. Ghost was like a Studio 54 dance party and dropped seamlessly into Weekapaug. Trey was in full on rockstar mode for First Tube and Character Zero. This was my 111th Phish show and was my favorite of the four midwest performances I saw.
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