Postcards From Page Side: Phish NYE Run – Feast or Famine?

To end 2011, Phish returned to New York City’s Madison Square Garden for a four-night stand that marked their second New Year’s Eve year in a row (and their sixth overall) at the venue. With memories of a very impressive run to end 2010 at MSG, as well as to start 2011, with the first-ever show on New Year’s Day, things seemed to really be clicking for the band. Throughout 2011, they made huge strides in playing and jamming as the year stretched onward, which all led up to this standalone New Year’s Run following no fall tour this year. What were the results? Anti-climatic at best musically, but still a lot of fun overall.

[Photo by Michael Stein]

Now, let me say something and be very clear: there is absolutely no place in the universe I’d rather be than at a Phish show. The vibe, the ENERGY, the people, the ritual are all things I live for and have toured the country to experience for many years. But, sometimes expectations exceed the performance, which seemingly happened this past week for many in attendance (and some watching at home, as the shows were broadcast live via pay-per-view streams). Were there standout moments? Absolutely! The problem was, they were far less frequent than we have come to expect from Phish, on New Year’s runs, and especially at Madison Square Garden. But, on the flip side, did I enjoy these shows as much as many other barnburners of 2011 and years past? Definitely. Just for different reasons than the music alone.

One’s experience at a show depends on several factors including who you are with, the location of your seats, what you possibly ingested and so on. All of those factors play into the overall experience. But it is the music that is ultimately the catalyst which allows for us to enter the portal of the divine. The single biggest reason, besides seeing friends of old this run, that I thoroughly enjoyed myself is easy to explain. It seemed that everywhere I turned, even during a weird song placement or sloppy version of a song I had seen live 100 times, I watched the newer groups of fans soaking it all in and enjoying it tenfold. That – made me smile. To be able to hear the song you came to see – whether it be Farmhouse or Ghost – and rock out in your own world for the first time is a priceless experience. But, that still doesn’t hide the fact that the band members’ hearts didn’t fully seem into it this year.

The 28th saw the first-ever Free opener in Phish History and a with a well-played version of Glide right behind it, the band set the tone for a very high energy night. An early first set Cities was the first true highlight, with bassist Mike Gordon leading the way out of the typical space. But, it was simple things like the mid-first set placement of Contact (which is usually reserved for late second set and more typically encore slot), that summed up a majority of the entire stand: weird. Whether it was placement, execution or reeling in the potential for greatness, the band was playing things safe and hardly pushing the envelope.

Official Video: Contact > Sample

A scorching Birds of a Feather, Carini > Tweezer onslaught began set two of the first show, while a fiery Rock-n-Roll and majestic Harry Hood rounded out the meat of the set. To further set the “weird” mood for the remainder, the band offered up a triple encore of a short Tube, Rocky Top and Tweezer Reprise. Overall, a pretty solid opening frame on a night that often served as a warm up show for the band. The problem was, they did little from here to build on it, and by the time the run was over, many fans were calling the 28th the best overall show of the four.

The 29th opened with a great first frame – more high energy and in my eyes, a great setlist. A second song You Enjoy Myself again seemed out of place, but was a welcome treat by fans and garnered “Ooh’s” and “Ahh’s” from the fans when it started. An absolutely scorching Funky Bitch was a set highlight, with Page McConnell absolutely wreaking havoc on the upper parts of his keys. Roses are Free was another welcome treat, as Halley’s Comet and Run Like an Antelope closed out one of the better sets of the week, and carried over some of the higher energy from the previous night.

[Photo by Michael Stein]

The second set was notable for the Crosseyed & Painless opener before a slightly out of left-field Simple, which melted sublimely into the first Lifeboy in two years, also last played during the 2009 New Year’s run in Miami. A ferocious Mike’s Song, one of my favorite in recent memory, awkwardly landed in Chalkdust Torture, before transitioning into a faster-paced, more upbeat version of the normal soft-as-a-down-pillow-landing-pad of I am Hydrogen. A truly unique segue that will stand out in the memory of those who saw it live led the way to a funky, driving Weekapaug Groove, Character Zero and Loving Cup encore to close us out in arena rocking style. All in all, at this point of the run I still had some high hopes for the final two performances, having found ENERGY and some interesting ideas and efforts, if not execution, from the band through the first two nights.

PAGE TWO = 12/30 and 12/31

But, that was not to be on one of the most lauded Phish nights of the year: December 30th. Coming out of the gates with a welcome Punch You in the Eye, the set immediately took a turn with Prince Caspian that again, seemed out of place in this slot. Backwards Down the Number Line suffered from the same fate, while the crux of this set seemed disjointed. Yes, Divided Sky and Sand offered a nice reprieve in the middle of a head scratching set that was barely saved by a Mighty Quinn (Quinn the Eskimo) set closer. As some of my tweets this night indicated, I wasn’t too pleased – or better yet, understood – just where the quartet was heading.

In short, I was getting musical blue balls. Sure, the 28th and 29th had provided a little nookie, but it wasn’t the all out mindblowing sex-romp that Phish always delivered in terms of pay off before…yet. It just seemed like they were taking longer than usual to get there, which I was hoping would eventually be sooner as opposed to later. One of the beauties of Phish is that when things get going, they seemingly steer themselves – the music guides the band. While most of the time the magical sets seem fluid and allow one to jump down the rabbit hole, experience wonder, adventure and a slew of other emotions before eventually being shot out of the other end with confetti and an often life-changing view and perspective. The 2011 run seemed like one jumped down the same rabbit hole, but got stuck in sludge at times and one hit their head several times on the way out: the same ride, but with a slightly different result, for some.

[Photo by Michael Stein]

Now, while many fans continued to be bored with the remainder of the show, I truly enjoyed the second set at the time. I think part of it was that I realized things couldn’t dip much lower, and that I didn’t care what they were going to play, I was going to enjoy it as much as possible. And I did. The mid-set Piper that was finally the breakthrough jam we had been waiting for, and clear highlight of the entire four nights, was a sign in my mind that the band had finally arrived where we had all been waiting. But, more odd placements of Julius and Golgi Apparatus, both often late-set tunes, seemed to derail any momentum that was built up this night. Yes, a very fun and strong Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001 theme) saw Mike lead the charge, and a David Bowie, Squirming Coil combo closed out the set in old-school fashion, which leads me to say I don’t have as much hate for this set as others may. I simply enjoyed it as it happened and took it at face value, with a great Piper tossed in.

Which leads us to New Year’s Eve. A true sacred night in the Phish universe. Three sets of fun, a prank/gag tradition in which the band showcases their goofy side, and often times an exclamation point on a great year for the band and fans alike. Kicking off with the appropriate AC/DC Bag, the band had one final chance to set the record straight, and seemed to want to do so. But again, a poor setlist choice and placement of songs led to a staggered flow for the opening stanza. A strong Gotta Jiboo and very fun Fluffhead closed the set and whipped everyone into a wild frenzy, before a very short intermission and one of my favorite sets of the run.

[Photo by Michael Stein]

Party Time foreshadowed the impending flip of the script to the New Year, while an adventurous Light, complete with Page on the theremin and “Storage Jam”-esque jamming a la Super Ball, before Trey took a weird route into the cover of the year in my eyes: Golden Age by TV on the Radio. While not as strong a version as some others this year, it is the lyrics of this tune that allow me to take off my critics cap, take a step back and realize that we are still *extremely* lucky to be seeing Phish in 2011 (and now 2012!), and that we sometimes need to simply live in the moment, which can be the revival and Golden Age of not only the band but ourselves.

One of my other favorite tunes, Theme From the Bottom, lifted me higher before a straight-forward Ghost segued into possibly my favorite cover of old: Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley. With remnants of December 30, 1997, the night Phish busted out Sally, going through my head, and remembering how it felt to be there on that night, I boogied away without a care as this set funked forward. Capped off by an absolutely teethy and ferocious 46 Days, the set grew with each and every lick from guitarist Trey Anastasio, before McConnell took center stage and again straight murdered his baby grand piano during an all out attack on the set-closing Suzy Greenberg.

Always one of my favorite setbreaks of the year is the jittery, anticipatory one before set three on New Year’s Eve. Waiting to see what the band has up their sleeve dramatically and musically, is often a thrill. So, when the band hit the stage around 11:45 or so, and opened the set with Cavern – another surefire set closer – I again felt upside down, but went with the flow. Trey then eased his way into Steam, the band’s solo new original tune of ’11, and one of the strongest lyrical efforts from Tom Marshall, ever.

Steam > Auld Lang Syne > Down With Disease

As the band played the tune, and lighting designer Chris Kuroda enveloped the band in fog (“steam”), 2011 drew to a close. The recap off of Phish.net gives a succinct picture as to what the gag was and what transpired to ring in 2012.

“Prior to “Steam,” a steam kettle and hot plate went off on stage, with Trey acting like he was attempting to put out the steam. Shortly after the song began, steam also came from the floor near the soundboard area. An amp (with the steam kettle on it), a keytar, a bass, a vacuum, and a few lights were then lifted off the stage. A woman in the front of the stage tossed a “Steam” sign into the front row, then rose with a barricade and security guard before eventually being lifted up over the band. Several other aerialists (clothed in various casual attire, equipped with black backpacks emitting smoke and lights on their backs) subsequently rose up from the crowd and ascended and descended several times. The first aerialist counted down to midnight, at which point balloons were released from the ceiling. The aerialists later returned with lights in their hands for Down with Disease, which also featured Trey and Mike being raised up and back down a few times before finally rising several feet on hydraulic lifts.” [via Phish.net]

Now, from more than the factual recap above, let me say this was simply awesome. While the remainder of the set again had me questioning if Phish forgot what date it was, I really appreciated the thought put into the stunt, specifically because they related so well with Steam’s lyrics, meaning and story of a fleeting soul, represented by the Steam.

Again, we are lucky to still be doing this, and I am lucky to be able to get my thoughts down about this – whether or not it was the greatest stand in Phish History. That is a moot point if you look at the overall message, isn’t it? Although I do see why some fans could be upset by a lack of blockbuster jams, myself included at times.Listen to the 12.31.10 Ghost and try to tell me that Phish even approached this level of enthusiasm and creativity at any point of this New Year’s run? With the possible exception of the Piper jam, it simply can’t be done. It’s like a defense attorney taking on a client that they know is guilty as sin.

But I am honestly still debating this run, and left squarely in the middle of the spectrum. Musically, it left a lot to be desired, but for an experience, it was tons of fun. There’s still no place I could or would rather be to ring in each New Year than with Phish.

Happy New Year’s!