Phish returned to the MGM Grand Garden Arena last night for the third consecutive show of their 2016 Halloween run. The band offered another evening of salient music although the energy wasn’t quite as there when compared to the previous two nights. Nonetheless, Sunday’s show had plenty of highlights to add to the run with only Halloween left for the band to complete fall tour.
“The Dogs”, “Ghost” It’s been a fun theme to keep with a 2014 Halloween tune to open each night of the run. “The Dogs” is a high energy sender and kicked the night off well before a welcome “Ghost” took center stage. It’s such an easy selection for Halloween, but it felt as though people were pretty fired up to hear it being dropped last night. Although the jam didn’t go too deep, hearing exploratory music a few minutes into a show is welcome for all in attendance. Not to mention that what was explored in the jam sequence had Trey and Page feeding off of each other early while Mike Gordon and Jon Fishman kept a strong driving beat for so early in the show.
Tight Opening Frame The first sets from this Vegas run have featured intriguing song selections, solid Type I playing, and some quality improvisation as well. The latter has remained somewhat contained in these frames, but “Ghost”, and then “Heavy Things” through “Theme” all had a little something extra on it last night. There was a quiet tone during some of this set, especially in “Chalkdust”, but the band was listening to each other. Page and Trey once again fed off one other stylistically during “Heavy Things” to give it an extra polish. “How Many People Are You” featured Gordo ramping his bass driven themes up a notch, and the 21+ minutes of “Stash” coupled with “Theme” landed the set in a worthy place before a mini rocking “Suzy” sent the crowd to set break.
“Down with Disease” I’m not going to try and diminish the “Golden Age” from Friday at all, or the majority of set two from Saturday night, but the first 37+ minutes from Sunday last night will be listened to for many moons. The “Disease” covered ground, offering a soaring peak early, some deep space, and then more infused hose by Trey spread out in a diverse, yet distinct musicscape for 22+ minutes. We got darkness, things got gritty, but the bliss came back around as well. This is a clear example of how much ground Phish can cover when they are patient, hungry, and going for it. The biggest peak towards the end brought the energy of the building to its highest point all night until Trey started grinning ear-to-ear. My view was close to the stage last night and you could see whatever was coming next, Trey was fired up. The segue into “Birds” was as smooth as it gets.
“Birds of a Feather” It used to be a fan favorite for potential exploration with versions like the one from the Island Tour (98) ranking as top moments for the band when they are linked up and playing as a group of one. But in recent years “Birds” hasn’t really exploded like it used to, that is until last night. This was the best version of “Birds” in a long time. Like the “Tweezer” the night before, it’s amazing what this band can do in 12-15 minutes when the playing is ferocious and a groove is agreed upon. This jam built from the “Disease”. It had some bliss, some darkness, and a whole lotta that intergalactic space exploration that’s so interesting to hear in a live setting. A top shelf version for any era, this “Birds” deserve some replay although to do it right just set aside 37 minutes and get that “Disease” in there first.
“Hood” This “Hood” isn’t being highlighted for its otherworld peaks, but rather for the placement in the set, the light, playful jamming that punctuated the start and finish of the tune, and the beautifully inserted “Have Mercy” that sandwiched “Hood”, the first time the classic cover had been offered by the band in over 200 shows.
The mark of a good Phish run these days needs consistency at the core. Each of the last three nights Phish has come out and taken chances. They’ve explored, fumbled a few times, but found each other more profoundly than not. Sunday’s show lost steam after “Birds”, although Trey’s heartfelt words and soaring guitar licks on “Miss You” setup the move into “Hood” nicely. Even though the flow wasn’t as prominent as it was during Saturday’s second set there has been three solid offerings thus far in Vegas, each show littered with prominent highlights. The potential for Halloween to blast off is massive. Concerning the main event, rumors have circled in Vegas from a mixed Bowie and Prince set, to a Clinton/Trump inspired mash up (just kidding). My gut says they’re going to do something that speaks to what went down in 2014 more so than going back to covering a complete album like they have in the past, but who knows? If we already knew it wouldn’t be that fun as predictability and Phish don’t go together so well. It’s the adventure that continues to pull at those enamored by this band, and if the last three shows are any indicator, show goers and streamers are in for some phishy tricks and some stellar treats tonight.
Photos by Brennan Lagassee
2 Responses
You of all people should know B…it’s a full dead set tonight!!!!! Find me in Sec 3!!!
And man that disease was smoking!!!