Phish delivered a performance that will easily be remembered on Tuesday, July 15 as the group made their highly anticipated return to Philadelphia’s iconic Mann Center (TD Pavilion at The Mann).
The pre-show buzz permeating throughout the capacity crowd was palpable, as were the sweltering heat & humidity, reaching a fever pitch as the quartet opened things up just before 8 p.m. with the Gamehenge classic “Punch You In The Eye”. After a typically well-received “Punch” that saw lead guitarist Trey Anastasio sprinkle in some subtle teases of the “Theme from S.W.A.T.”, the group continued to heat things up with the guitarist’s ode to affirmation, “Everything’s Right”.
A funky take on fan-favorite “Camel Walk” was bolstered by Mike Gordon’s syrupy bass lines before things mercifully cooled down a bit with the water-themed trio of “Theme From the Bottom”, “Prince Caspian”, and “It’s Ice”. The opening set then wrapped up on a dramatic note with a dark & brooding version of “About to Run” before Anastasio’s guitar fireworks lit up a standout rendition of “David Bowie”.
A shockingly brief setbreak (only twenty-five minutes!) was punctuated by the opening chords to “Sand” and what proceeded to occur over the next hour was the stuff Phish dreams are made of.
What is already being affectionately referred to on various Phish-related fan sites as the “Mann Sand” (or more cleverly “Mannd”) the group ultimately stretched “Sand” to the forty-minute mark. Teeming with inspired playing from all four members, particularly Page McConnell’s chameleon-like keyboard work, the group seamlessly navigated through a half-dozen or so distinctly different musical themes. Soaring and triumphant peaks were countered brilliantly with moments that found the band teetering on the edge of dissonance in what was ultimately a master-class on ensemble-based musical improv.
Almost sadistically, the band offered no respite for the (still sauna-like) conditions inside the pavilion as they immediately launched into an extended take on “My Friend, My Friend”. A wildly entertaining, and atypically dark, outro jam continued the display of truly remarkable playing from all four members, ultimately bringing the opening two-song sequence to the one-hour mark and placing it among the pantheon of some of the most inspired musical output of the group’s “4.0” era.
Relatively brief takes on Stevie Wonder’s “Boogie On Reggae Woman” and Anastasio’s “Blaze On” kept the massive dance party going strong before wrapping things up just before 11 p.m. with the musical chaos of “Carini” that featured a nightmare-inducing jam that can best be described as “Evil Phish”.
The band closed things out by taking advantage of the ample time remaining before the 11:30 p.m. curfew, delivering a relatively rare four-song encore. A somber take on the Anastasio-penned ballad “Shade” proceeded a hilariously entertaining “I Didn’t Know” that featured an always-welcome vacuum solo from drummer Jon Fishman (who was affectionately introduced to the audience by Anastasio as “…a permanent resident of Fishtown, Mr. Moses Heaps, Mr. Moses DeWitt and Mr. Moses Vincent). A raucous version of “Wilson” namechecked the nearby suburb of King of Prussia, much to the hometown crowd’s delight, before another fan-favorite, “Possum”, sent the sated audience into the humid Philadelphia night.
Perhaps it was the band’s newly revamped stage setup that harkens back to their embryonic days with Fishman setup on stage-left that contributed to the particularly inspired playing this evening or perhaps it was just Anastasio’s well-known affinity for all things Philadelphia. Whatever the source of inspiration, there’s no denying that this was the kind of performance that fans will remember fondly for years to come.
Phish returns to the Mann Center this evening to wrap-up their two-night run before concluding their summer tour later this month in Chicago and New York.
SETLIST 7/15/25
Soundcheck: I Never Needed You Like This Before (x7)
SET 1: Punch You in the Eye > Everything’s Right, Camel Walk, Theme From the Bottom > Prince Caspian > It’s Ice, About to Run, David Bowie
SET 2: Sand, My Friend, My Friend, Boogie On Reggae Woman, Blaze On > Carini
ENCORE: Shade, I Didn’t Know, Wilson > Possum
Trey teased the Theme from S.W.A.T. in Punch You in the Eye and Prince Caspian during David Bowie. Following the My Friend, My Friend jam, which featured the band singing “Myfe” at both the beginning and end, Trey commented “we heard some of you thought we forgot the ‘Myfe.’ We did not.” Trey then quoted My, Friend, My Friend at the end of Carini. During I Didn’t Know, Trey introduced Fish as “he’s dressed in green, he’s the baddest vacuum player you’ve ever seen, a permanent resident of Fish town, Mr. Moses Heaps, Mr. Moses DeWitt, and Mr. Moses Vincent.” Trey subsequently sang alternate lyrics about being “that far gone.” Wilson was introduced as being “about an area that you know very well if you live up here” with “the homeland” later mentioned in the song.
