12/28/18 String Cheese Incident @ 1st Bank Center - Broomfield, CO

1STBANK Center - Broomfield, CO - 12/28/18

S1: Can't Wait Another Day, White Freightliner Blues*, Eat My Dust*, High on a Mountain Top*, Boo Boo’s Pik-a-Nic* > Take the Money And Run*  > Salt Creek* > Take the Money And Run* > Big Mon* > Take the Money And Run* > Boo Boo’s Pik-a-Nic* > Vamp In The Middle*, Signed, Sealed, Delivered*, Sand Dollar*, Revival* , Colorado Bluebird Sky*

S2: Close Your Eyes > Black Clouds > Jellyfish > Round the Wheel > Texas > Land's End > Texas > 'Round the Wheel > Jellyfish > Black Clouds > Close Your Eyes

E: Rivertrance*, Reach*

* w/ Sam Bush and Darol Anger


Last Friday I made the short half hour drive down 287 to Broomfield for The String Cheese Incident.  I stopped in Westminster before the show to see my friends Eric and Karla.  It was easy to find free parking in the nearby garage.  Before the show it was very cold.  Winter tour for sure.  The arena concourse was decked out in SCI 25th anniversary decor.  They had a room with a bunch of SCI artwork on display.  Preshow PA music was older reggae.  The arena was maybe 3/4 full.

The previous time I'd seen SCI was in Lyons, CO and they also opened that show with Can't Wait Another Day.  The rest of the set was with Sam Bush and Darol Anger playing a variety of bluegrass/newgrass originals and covers from their careers.  The Stevie Wonder cover was fun.  Colorado Bluebird Sky in Broomfield was definitely an anthem.  The clearcut highlight of the set was Sand Dollar.

The setlist of the second set was a palindrome.  I noticed during Land's End that all the songs had been left unfinished.  It made the show unique.  During setbreak I went outside and a light snow was falling.  This was appropriate during the Round the Wheel which I felt produced the best jam of the set.  I sat on the Billy/Kyle side and watching them made the show for me.  Rivertrance in the encore was gravy.  I peaced out during the final song and beat the traffic.  My mom bought my ticket for this show for Christmas.  It was a fun experience and I'm glad I went. 

12/8/18 Aqueous @ Fox Theater - Boulder, CO

Aqueous
December 8, 2018 // Fox Theatre

Set 1: Strange Times, Underlyer > Warren in the Window, Skyway > Pseudo Suicide

Set 2: Origami, Mosquito Valley, Pt. 1 > Kitty Chaser (Explosions), I Can’t Go For That > Split the Difference > Don’t Do It

E: How High You Fly


Last night after the MLS Cup Final match won by Atlanta United I made the short half hour journey down the Diagonal Highway to Boulder.  This was my first time to the Fox Theater.  I found a parking spot down 13th street across from a CU frat house.  I've seen Mungion four times now.  This was my third time seeing Aqueous.  Before the show I grabbed a slice at Boss Lady Pizza.

I didn't stay for the entire show but the venue was pretty much full.  They took the stage to the Gremlins theme song.  Strange Times seems like one of their more established tunes.  Underlyer and Warren in the Window were also songs that I recognized.  The highlight of the show for me was the cover of Oysterhead's Pseudo Suicide.  The guitar/keyboard player did a great job with the Les Claypool vocals.   They did a good job with the Hall & Oates cover.  Split the Difference is a dance number from the new album.  This led into one of their better songs Don't Do It.  The slide guitar part puts me in the mind of Buffalo's other jamband moe.'s Awesome Gary.  How High You Fly is a song off their new album Color Wheel that I enjoy.  It was a good end to the Colorado run. 

12/5/18 Aqueous @ Hodi's - Ft. Collins, CO

Aqueous
December 5th, 2018
Hodi's, Fort Collins, CO

Set 1: Gordon’s Mule, The Median, Realize Your Light > Dave’s Song > Mandela Effect > No Quarter

Set 2: Weight of the Word > Good Enough, Aldehyde > Cheap Sunglasses > Aldehyde

Encore: Say It Again


On Wednesday I made the short drive up I-25 to Fort Collins to Hodi's for Aqueous.  Chicago act Mungion was the opening act.  This was my first time to Hodi's which is located in the Old Town part of Fort Collins.  This venue is smaller than the Aggie Theatre.  I met a few nice people.  It was good to get out of Longmont for the night to see some live music.  It was good for the soul.  They took the stage to the Home Alone theme song which was the movie I had watched earlier in the day.  Gordon's Mule, The Median, and Dave's Song are all tunes I knew.  The highlight for me was Realize Your Light from the new Color Wheel album. I can't say enough how much I've enjoyed their latest studio album.  It's a very mature offering from a band of their stature.  Oddly enough this was the second show in a row I've seen a band cover No Quarter.  When I left the venue there was snow falling and it looked scenic with the Christmas lights. 

10/26-28 Phish @ Allstate Arena - Rosemont, IL

Last Thursday I made the difficult solo drive back from Colorado to Illinois.  The weather was overcast and I listened to the Nebraska movie soundtrack while driving through the Cornhusker State.  I made it home around midnight.  My parents were both waiting up for me.  It was good to see them and my cat, Mattie.

I took I-88 into Chicagoland which is a change of pace.  It reminds me of when we first moved from Glen Ellyn to Geneseo in 1990.  That's the highway we took that day.  This was a return to my original home area with Phish playing in suburban Rosemont.  This was my 5th and 6th time seeing the band in the area formerly known as the Rosemont Horizon.  I stayed at the Hyatt Place with friends from Decatur.  It was nice to be so close to the lot/arena.  We had a good view of the O'hare runways.  Driving through Aurora and being at the end of the runway reminded me of Wayne's World.

Before the Friday show I met a nice guy named Mike from Massachusetts who I was able to talk Phish shop with. It wasn't difficult to call the Punch You in the Eye opener.  It's cool during Martian Monster how they move the lights up and down.  Axilla kept the energy going.  The opening notes of Reba were received by a huge cheer from the 85% full arena.  These were the only midwest Phish shows of the year and I felt the crowd was energetic all weekend.  Reba reached an amazing peak.  The set would continue with a speedy MSO followed by the best Mercury they had played to that point which would transition into the David Bowie cover Moonage Daydream.  Great work from Trey and the entire band.  Walls of the Cave wrapped up a fantastic first set.

When they open the second set with Tweezer you know they're feeling it.  This was a top shelf version that would include a jam based around the second track they played during set II of Halloween the following Wednesday.  This segued into Golden Age which kept the improvisation going before slowing down with the Trey Anastasio/Tom Marshall ballad Frost.  Limb by Limb was a really classy choice after the cooldown.  It built the energy back up slowly and prepared us for the Sand and fun Possum that would finish the set.  Wilson, Tweezer Reprise was a high energy encore.  This was one of the best shows I saw from Phish in 2018.

We spent Saturday relaxing and watching college football.  I checked out the PhanArt show going on in the lobby of our hotel on my way to the nearby Starbucks.  Iowa State defeated Texas Tech and Iowa lost to Penn State so it was a good day.  Before the show I talked with Steve Vollen and caught up with how he had been lately.  It was good to see him.  During the first set I had an unfortunate encounter with a chomper and had to relocate.  This show had a better first set than second set.  Stash had a jam.  Dogs was the second song of the weekend from the 2014 Halloween show I attended.  Blaze On was a better than normal version as Trey hit some powerful peaks.  Vultures was a real treat on this occasion.  I find myself moving through time.  Roses Are Free was a geyser of energy as they crushed the Ween cover.  46 Days kept the rock going.  The tour's only David Bowie was exactly what I was looking for in that slot.

Moma Dance unless it has a jam needs to be confined to the first set.  This was a well explored 25 minute version of NMINML.  Steam is getting played out.  Chalkdust didn't stray far.  I don't mind Joy.  They want us to be happy.  Suzy wasn't really what I was looking for in that spot.  I feel like I had seen that show before with the Rock and Roll encore on a Saturday night.  It was the 5 year anniv of Lou Reed's passing so that was a nice tip of the hat.  This second set left me disappointed.

Sunday was spent watching the Jets v Bears and the Packers v Rams.  Once again the teams I rooted for won.  This first set was rather lackluster.  I don't mean to be harsh but c'mon.  Tube was a better than average version.  That's about all their was to report on.

Carini was the second set opener I wanted but there wasn't much of a jam as they went quickly into No Quarter.  It became apparent the set would be song oriented.  Cities was appropriate with me having recently moved to Longmont, CO.  Find yourself a city to live in.  Jibboo was a good call but less than 10 minutes could have been much more explored.  Twist > What's the Use > Twist wasn't what I was looking for.  It was good to see the end of the show with Sand and Frank.  Shade is one of my favorite Trey ballads.  I did really enjoy the Plasma they played.  Character Zero was a rocker to end the set.  This show needed a Fluffhead encore.  I drove back to my parents house after.  It reminded me of how many times I'd made the drive from the city.  I'm starting to get over Phish.  This was a tough year for the band.  The music had its ups and downs.  Curveball was a great loss.  I'll reassess next year what my involvement with the band will be. 

9/15/18 String Cheese Incident @ Planet Bluegrass Ranch - Lyons, CO

Last Saturday I celebrated my 12th year without drinking by ironically going to a concert put on by Mountain Sun.  This two day event at the Planet Bluegrass Ranch in Lyons, CO was known as the Colorado Kynd Festival.  It doesn't get much more Colorado than standing in a mountain stream listening to Yonder Mountain String Band and The String Cheese Incident.  The crowd was very family oriented.  I'm not sure I've ever seen more children at a show.  I was enjoying the Speedy West on the PA system before SCI.  It was good to see Whitney from work and Kacie from Iowa State.  I spent the show with Angelo and his family.  They were very generous and I liked their creek side location on the Kyle side.

The first set was highlighted by Missin' Me > Rivertrance.  I liked the groove that Keith and the drummers built from Illegal > I Know You Rider.  Jen Hartswick did a great job per usual during the songs that she sat in for.  Panama Red and This Must Be the Place were appropriate with me having just moved to nearby Longmont, CO.  I've never seen SCI so close to home.  During Rollover I made my way back to my vehicle.  As the Shake Your Body encore ended I was hitting the road.  That cover was during the awkward years when they were known as The Jacksons just prior to Michael going solo.  Years ago I had a dream about me living in Colorado seeing SCI in a mountain venue.  At some point during this show I thought about how that dream had been realized. 

8/31-9/2 Phish @ Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Commerce City, CO

Following the debacle at Watkins Glen I decided it was time for a change.  I quit my part time job I'd been working and secured a place to live in Longmont, Co with a friend.  On Wednesday August 29th I made the arduous journey across Iowa and Nebraska into Colorado.  I spent the next day relaxing and recovering from the drive.  On Friday I met up with Justin Murphy and his crew from Ohio on the ridge overlooking the soccer fields in the camping area.  It was a nice spot to people watch.  It was good to meet up with the Auburn crew of Pat, Kasha, Ryan, and Heather.  I spent all three shows in the stands with them along with Travis and Nate who made the trip out from Iowa City.

It was good to see familiar vendors in the parking lot.  The Gyro man had the best food on tour this summer.  There were five or six rows of shakedown street in the Dick's Sporting Goods Parking lot.  It was quite the scene for the end of tour finale.  Friday night had a message in the song choices and lyrics that dealt with the Curveball cancellation.  You could tell the band had gone through a huge ordeal.  I dropped off my cans for the food drive and got the commemorative pins.  Upon going into the venue after the soundcheck I bought the event shirt.  I've bought all 8 Dick's Phish event shirts.

I liked the Friday offering.  In the first set there was a well executed Ghost > Crosseyed segue.  Set II was highlight by a strong Mercury, Light pairing.  On Saturday it became somewhat warm in the campgrounds during the day.  They soundchecked Shade which was appropriate.  I liked the first set on Saturday better than the second.  DWD might have been the highlight.  To end the second set there was a strong Slave to the Traffic Light.

Sunday didn't turn out to be the huge end of tour blowout that I expected.  Things fizzled after an interesting Tweezer.  Song selections toward the end of the set and encore left me disappointed.  It was a weird summer.  Alpharetta was great.  Then the devastating situation at Curveball.  Dick's would have been better had they actually played two weeks prior.  I met some good people and had a very good experience.  The next morning I drove back to Longmont to start my next adventure.

8/17-19 Phish Curveball @ Watkins Glen International - Watkins Glen, NY ***CANCELLED***

I was up before the dawn on Wednesday and got on the road at 4:45 am CDT.  My vehicle had been packed since Monday.  I had thought about leaving on Tuesday and cutting up the drive but I decided to hold my horses after hearing about the flooding around Watkins Glen, NY.  The weather was great on Wednesday and Thursday.   I had Sbarro at one of rest stops in Ohio on the way.  My goal was to get to Watkins Glen International by sundown which I accomplished.  This was my third festival at this facility so I was familiar with the lay of the land.  I had a great camping spot in shade atop a hill in a location in Quadratic that was closer than most of the Glen Close camping.  I met all the people camping around me.  Scott and his girlfiend from New York, NY, Dobbs and Tracy from Stowe, VT, and the guys who operate the Black Bear restaurants in Morgantown, WV.  The vibe was great.  Ryan and Heather from Auburn were camped nearby.  From their makeshift living room setup you could see the lights of the stage.  I was having the time of my life. 


Thursday I woke and enjoyed the coffee from the nearby vendor.  There were real bathrooms very close.  I liked the pizza sandwiches the West Virginia guys were cooking.  One wonders how many of those I would have eaten?  Before the soundcheck started I walked over to the gates.  They weren't letting people into the food area.  The security had the gates all ready to go.  They had been told to wait.  4 pm was the scheduled start for the soundcheck.  Phish's buses arrived on site to the cheers of excited fans.  An hour ticked by as I waited for the soundcheck to start.  I was pacing around the campground wondering what the deal was.  Around 5 pm someone walked by and said the festival had been cancelled.  I turned on the onsite radio station The Bunny on 104.9 WNGZ and heard the official announcement about the water being deemed unsafe.  It was like being gutpunched.  I had looked forward to this since January and even before when the festival was in the rumor phase.  After that I didn't feel in the mood to socialize.  I got to sleep as early as I could.  Before it started raining too hard I was able to get my campsite taken down and loaded up.  I got on the road at 6 am CDT.  It took me 14 hours and there were about half a dozen storms I drove through plus Friday rush hour traffic south of Chicago.  It was a long sad drive.  I'll always wonder what could have been?