A giddy, anticipatory vibe pervaded the Atlantic City boardwalk before the first of the final three shows of Phish’s Fall Tour began. Under heavy skies, bemused, early-arriving heads wandered the wide, wooden pathway looking for tickets and sipping beers. In a surreal twist, emanating from the loud outdoor casino speakers was none other than the Grateful Dead and select Phish tracks — the weekend-long soundtrack to chilly strolls from hotel rooms to Boardwalk Hall.
This was a new venue for the band that all in attendance seemed to agree worked very well. Aesthetically and acoustically, this antique, arched-ceiling room seemed to take everyone a bit off guard. As a result of it’s charmingly lit Radio City-esque interior rooftop, it’s 14,000 seat capacity never seemed cavernous, but instead like the perfect home for a long Phish weekend.
The first set of the weekend, while perhaps not to be known for it’s transcendent jams, still had the diversity and energy characteristic of the best Phish shows. As a spotlight illuminated the enormous flag hanging from the rear wall, the band gathered around a single mic to sing an auspicious “Star Spangled Banner” to the pumped crowd. Proving that a deep groove is the revitalized Phish’s greatest new strength, the band eased into a swingin’ “My Soul”, and didn’t let up through “AC/DC Bag”, “Ocelot” and “Sample in a Jar”.
The first left-field choice of the show, Traffic’s “Light Up or Leave me Alone” also came across as slightly unfamiliar or unrehearsed to Trey, who struggled with some of the guitar hooks. Page redeemed the tune with a nice Wurlitzer solo, and the whole band rallied for the first passage of the show to approach an open jam. Mike’s “Sugar Shack”, one of the most compelling tracks on “Joy” for it’s groove and progressive structure, was a welcome choice for this set but also had it’s share of confusing moments. This one definitely deserves a backstage run-through. “Moma Dance” galvanized the room, and led straight into an extended, Eno-inspired “Cities”. The fractal-ized “Cities” jam bled into a hair-raising “46 Days” that had Page screaming in the last chorus and Trey unleashing some acidic, rapid fire runs. An exciting conclusion to what was also one of the most clearly mixed arena sets I’ve ever witnessed.
The always welcome “Punch You in the Eye” led us into a second set that found the band confident and comfortable enough to dig in and unearth some new improvisational surprises. During the somewhat rare “Sand”, Trey found his voice, earnestly darting around the rest of the band, intent on crafting a new experience, which he achieved in the emergence of gnarly diminished scale runs. In a textbook example of the efficacy of musical contrast, that dark space evolved into the sunniest groove of the evening, with the now enraptured audience in tow. The demonic “Carini” riff then sputtered to life from this brief left turn, signaling the official start of the middle of the set.
The opening figure of “Corrina”, that at first sounded like “When the Circus Comes to Town”, evolved into a lilting, hushed version of this song that made Boardwalk Hall seem like our living room. Listening to Phish deliver this Taj Mahal classic confirmed that perhaps the greatest signal of this band’s return to form is not solely it’s ability to deftly navigate it’s own maddeningly intense instrumentals (like the “Fluffhead” that closed the show) but also it’s new confidence in laying down a classic of the American songbook. The satiated, grateful audience that filed out into the cool ocean air seemed well aware of this extended moment in Phish history.
Reviewer/artist Garrin Benfield’s sound has been described as Freestyle Acoustic Rock. His music is a blend of moody, guitar driven rock and polyrhythmic groove all run through the filter of a very serious Singer/Songwriter. In addition to hundreds of solo and full band shows around the country, Garrin has shared the stage with numerous headlining acts, and was asked to open for Dan Bern, Boz Scaggs, Kaki King, Rickie Lee Jones, and Page McConnell. Keep up with Garrin’s music at garrin.com
Concert Photography by David Oppenheimer
