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Phish Bethel Night One: Setlist and Skinny

Scott Bernstein May 27, 2011 10 Comments

We’ve finally reached the start of Phish’s first tour of 2011 as the band pulled into Bethel Woods in Bethel, NY for the first of three shows at a venue we always hoped the quartet would play.

[Photo via @aaronpethic]

The band dotted the 11-song opening stanza at the venue near the site of the Woodstock Festival with four covers including Walk Away by The James Gang, Roses Are Free by Ween and Woodstock legend Jimi Hendrix’s Axis: Bold As Love. According to Sam Davis of Dog Gone Blog the improv out of Kill Devil Falls was a “full departure from the song structure,” as it contained a “spacious, flowing jam” that was “just amazing.” Surprisingly, there were no new covers or originals debuted during show one of the summer tour.

Set Two kicked off with Carini which led into a Back On The Train with a “patient build up” and “soaring peak” that contained “some of Trey’s best playing in 3.0” according to Guy Forget of Online Phish Tour. A cover of Stevie Wonder’s Boogie On Reggae Woman came next and featured a “weird slowdown” at the end according to Scott Marks for @YEMblog. Out of Boogie On came the first version of Waves since August 2009 and the Round Room tune clocked in at nearly 14-minutes as it went off into a spacey jam space that Davis described as “pure ambient beauty, a fine moment.” Another shining moment was a take on the Talking Heads’ Crosseyed and Painless which Davis felt had a “krautrock jam” and featured Anastasio on “octave dropped riffs.” From there, the group ended the set with a run of heavy rotation originals that left Marks noting the “very inconsistent energy level” of the set. Oddly, Phish did not play Tweezer Reprise during the encore, instead leaving off with just Julius.

HT’s Brian Bavosa will be at all three tour-opening shows and will file a full report early next week. Check back later for the debut of The Skinny, our “box score” of sorts about each gig. READ ON for the setlist…

Fifteen Favorite Harry Hoods

Ryan Dembinsky May 25, 2011 18 Comments

Harry Hood is definitive of the type of song structure Phish became known for in the early days. The song meanders through a number of distinctive sections beginning with a simple minor key reggae groove, which sets the tone with a darker color. From there, the song weaves in and out of a catchy chord progression, moves to a powerfully haunting lead riff and resolves with a long improvisational section based on an uplifting major key progression. The song concludes with a hair-raising crescendo and the celebratory mantra, “I feel good!”

Over the course of Hidden Track’s lifespan, we’ve taken a couple different stabs at making a list of favorite Hoods, and it felt like a good time for the next iteration. It will remain a perpetual work in progress as the band plays new renditions and old gems get discovered, but nevertheless, it’s coming along. This time, we have a meticulously organized, iPod-ready download for your enjoyment as well as a stream at the bottom of the post. While these are mostly audience recordings or soundboards that are not part of official releases, but we tried to normalize the levels and made sure the volume is plenty loud. Without further ado, here is the list…

#1) 1993-12-31 – The Centrum, Worcester, MA – It’s only fitting: arguably the best show of them all should have the best Hood. Ten years from the start of their career, Phish held nothing back and delivered a handful of all-time favorites. The improvisational portion of this New Years Eve Hood perfectly exemplifies the climb from the tranquil beginning to the towering climax. This is my desert island song.

#2) 1994-11-12 – MAC Center, Kent State University – Kent, OH – This gem, like so many others from the era, exhibits very tight improvisation across the board and Trey forgoing his Languedoc in favor of an M-16.

DOWNLOAD: Fifteen Favorite Harry Hoods

READ ON for 13 more outstanding Hoods and to stream them…

HT Giveaway: Phish – Superball IX Tickets + Phish – Live in Utica DVD/CD Set

Scott Bernstein May 24, 2011 343 Comments

Today marks the release of Phish – Live in Utica and we wanted to remind our readers that our giveaway for three copies of the box set and a pair

Phish Live Bait Volume 04 Released

Scott Bernstein May 20, 2011 5 Comments

Last Saturday night we told you about a compilation featuring previously unreleased tracks from past summer Phish shows that was due for release this week and now that compilation, Live

DVD Review: Phish – Live in Utica

DaveO May 18, 2011 10 Comments

My friend Matt once announced to a group of rabid Phish fans that he had never heard the Bathtub Gin from The Great Went, a jam many consider to be in the running for best ever status. He then explained that it wasn’t just because he was lazy, but he was saving it for a rainy day. Your first-listen to such a widely talked about piece of music is something you can only experience once and he was utilizing a little delayed gratification. I took his lead on my listening experience to Phish’s much talked about show in Utica last fall. I had traveled to the Augusta show the night before and went to a couple of the shows afterward, but didn’t make it to Utica. When the reviews started coming in about the all the Guyute craziness I told myself I would employ this tactic and listen to this show when the time was right.

When the news broke that the show would be the next Phish DVD release, I figured actually getting to watch the show as my first listen was even better than I had originally imagined, so that’s what I did. Armed with only the setlist and a general idea of the teases in the first set, I sat down on my couch and watched the show.

When the DVD was announced the press release mentioned that, “A new camera mounted at the front-of-house position accentuated the light show in a way never before featured on a live, indoor Phish DVD.” The camera is showcased, but what seems to be a constant complaint of Phish fans on video releases, the camera shot of the lights rarely lasts for more than 10 seconds at a time, and often ever shorter. The shot looks great, but the viewer can’t truly appreciate what lighting designer Chris Kuroda does for the band in six-second bursts.

READ ON for more of Dave’s thoughts on Live in Utica…

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