The last time Phish celebrated New Years Eve at Madison Square Garden, it was an overly-hyped comeback show to what would eventually become a turbulent, short-lived second phase of their career. This time, eight years later, it was a much more comfortable embrace, with the band back on solid ground, an open-ended view of the future, and a proper nod to ghosts of hot dogs past.
Yes, if you thought the ‘Flying Hot Dog’ had found its final resting place at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, apparently it made its way, under cover of darkness, back to the east coast. Its surprising reemergence was a fitting tribute to the band’s illustrious career, and a humble assurance of an auspicious road ahead.
That was of course close to midnight. Three and a half hours earlier, they took the stage to an energetic holiday roar, and wasted little time getting things started with a powerful “Punch You in the Eye,” “AC/DC Bag” combo to kick off the evening. With the holiday jitters out of the way, “Moma Dance” brought the pace down a bit and gave guitarist Trey Anastasio a chance to settle into the first real groove of the night – a precursor to set two, which would find the band locked in, on point, and ironically patient on a night where everyone has an eye on the clock.
“Scent of A Mule,” a rare treat nowadays, added some festive humor, as did the equally rare and quirky “Weigh.” Throw in the second ever performance of “Gone” and only the second “Beauty of My Dreams” played in the past ten years, and there were plenty of stats to geek out over early on. The debut of “Burn That Bridge” – which didn’t feel like a debut at all after soundchecking it so often this year – fell into place as another sultry blues number in the same vein as many newer Anastasio songs. And fittingly enough, “Ocelot” followed suit, featuring the first “Auld Lang Syne” tease of the night. Capped off with a concise and eager “Rock and Roll,” the first set came to a raucous close with the best still yet to come.
The call-and-response of “Wilson” heated up the Garden quickly for set two, and a gritty “46 Days” brought the band down below the waterline for the first time. And aside from a brief breath of air in the form of “NICU,” they stayed down there for the next hour or more. Bassist Mike Gordon added a bounce to the metronome bass lines of "Sand," while Anastasio playfully added light textures and colorful fills above. “Down With Disease” was as festive as always, and crazy enough, Trey looks as happy playing it, dropping repeated knee bends, as he did New Years ’93. But it was the ambient, Zeppelin-esque outro that brought it back to the depths, slowly morphing into “Ghost,” the inevitable song of the evening.
With Page McConnell leading the way, the silky funk and dance grooves soon gave way to a darker, ethereal space, before Anastasio began to build a slow rolling momentum, forging the jam ahead to a rising crescendo and one of the best collective peaks of 3.0. With the countdown to midnight fast approaching, launching into “You Enjoy Myself” was rather unexpected, but not as shocking as when they broke into “Manteca” post-tramps, and teased the refrain straight through to the vocal jam.
As the third set opener “Meatstick” began, the band was accompanied by an array of multiethnic performers singing the chorus in their respective language (a la the now customary Japanese chorus). By the time the four of them snuck off, the entire stage was filled to capacity with dozens of singers and dancers all performing to a pre-recorded version, and sure enough, 10 minutes to New Years the Hot Dog emerged from the back of the venue and chaos ensued.
Phish – "Meatstick" 12/31/10 New Year’s Eve from Phish on Vimeo.
As for the post-midnight set, following the aptly selected “After Midnight,” it was more subdued, and nostalgic. With “Backwards Down The Number Line,” “Waste” and a set closing “Slave To The Traffic Light,” the collective mood was a bit more pensive, reflecting on the year, and thanks to the hot dog, years past.
