I'm only inclined to write this review as I've read a few positive reviews that have already been posted and I had a completely different take on the show couch surfing.

I personally thought the show was pretty disjointed. The band, for the most part, was playing decently well individually, but they clearly were not hooking up and it was also clearly evident (on the stream at least) that Trey seemed to be having issues with his gear for the first 1/3 of the second set. I get it, that happens, but to call this show "off the charts" is a little extreme. I wasn't a horrible show, but it also wasn't something I would consider revisiting on tape regularly.

On paper, that second set looks like a monster, but the segues were mostly forced, the band rarely locked into any cohesive jamming ideas, and there was little flow. Thank god Mike led the charge in getting from "Light" to "Cities." Listen to the "Light -> Cities" and you've covered the main shining highlight of this night in Seattle.

In response to Toe2323, I hope they haven't started a trend of phans commenting on shows that they DIDN'T attend, who've just listened to the first set, and then made a bunch of uneducated judgements...
That's not really what these comment sections are for. They are for those who DIDN'T attend the show in-person to hear from the overall experiences of those who DID attend.

That being said, I've been to about 36 shows since 1992, so I base a lot of my experience on the midwest shows at venues of 2000-6000 people in the mid-90s. And this WAS a really fun show - on-par with the spirit and energy of those small venue shows of days past. This was my second show since a personal hiatus from Halloween '98 in Vegas until this past summer at Randall's Island. Key Arena 2014 captured so much of the playful spirit in the jams of that mid-90's golden-era of Phish, with tight jams and really fun ultra cow funk! Sand, for instance, was a magnificent jam, swirling and ebbing with the vibe of the crowd. If this second set is any indication of the direction of the rest of this 2014 fall tour, then we are ALL in for a treat. Everyone has a personal preference, song, style, etc., but really NO ONE should be hating on shows where the boys are playing this tightly. You should be more disappointed about all the Trey-wrecks from the mid-2000s, not bummed at all by these latest shows.

I have so much more to say, but I think Zzyzx did a better overall review than I could do here. http://blog.phish.net/1413572958/recap-back-in-the-seattle-again

From Couch Tour, deal with it:

This date seems to be a rather unorthodox show. I disagree with the assertion that it doesn't deserve another listen. On the contrary, this is a show where we got to hear two different bands on stage, both of them somehow called "Phish." It's quite a cool show in this way:

The first set treated us to a well-oiled machine engineered by a bunch of Germans or something. Gear issues aside (and I did't think they were all that noticeable, really) Phish the Machine - the Phish of the first set - can be described with one word: Precise. But I'll use some more because adjectives are cool like that. Phish the Machine was fast, clear, with steady tempo, interactive on an incredibly quick, micro level, and precise. It was intense in a sort of Rush / DreamTheatre / RussianCircles / Tool sort of way. For this set alone, Fishman gets the MVP. It's a tight set. It's an incredibly tight set. It's impressive and worth not just one relisten but many. They performed those songs like they would for a live album, very professionally, accurately and quickly but with the added bonus of the live micro-interaction between the bandmates. 1st set was everything I love about Round Room with the added bonus of some very, very strong coffee.

This was not the band we saw for the second set. When Phish in Space came out, it was quite a surprise; the approach and purpose of this new band was completely different. I agree with none but one of the alligator mouths from the official setlist as of the moment I post this, hopefully someone will listen to what an unusual masterpiece this second set is and concur with my assessment and change the official list. If you want to understand what I heard, it looks like this:

Set 2: Down with Disease[1] -> Golden Age -> Fuego -> Light -> Cities -> 46 Days -> Sand -> Backwards Down the Number Line, Bold As Love

The segue from Sand into Backwards Down the Number Line was especially nice, smooth, polite and was a very appropriate shift. But Fuego -> Light is ridiculously exellent, too! The only two songs in the second set that have a clearly defined beginning are DWD and Bold as Love and the only two songs that have clearly defined endings are Backwards Down the Number Line and Bold as Love. Nothing else in that 2nd set ends, per se.
-The intro to Fuego, for instance. It's a whole cool thing that Page made as a segue to bring Golden Age to a piano pivot straight into the opening chords of Fuego! Cool, isn't it? A really neat moment, you should hear it and decide for yourself if it is a segue or not. (It is.) But it's undeniable that Page played a whole new Fuego-specific intro and yet nobody here mentioned it yet? Hmm... Maybe give it a listen and then you can decide on the veracity of the negativity of the critics on this page. It's really cool, it so is.

Point is, Phish in Space was certainly not the Phish the Machine we heard in the first set. All the songs, except for #line and Bold as Love just jammed themselves up into some ethereal space, where they often lingered before giving birth to a new song. The VIP for Phish in Space was nobody because it's impossible to isolate one single true leader or lynchpin. Phish in Space is the MVP of the second set, maybe. I dunno.

Finally, what often unfortunately goes unmentioned is how much goes right when it does go right. Intelligent people, such as we are, are habitually accustomed to being incredibly critical. It's important to recognize our most common bias, that frequent error we so often make when we fail to notice all the things that are going right. A case in point (and to the point) is this show. Phish's harmonies are killer spot-on. It is joy to hear them sing. They're really on top of things, executing them very well. Lots of things. Lots of things that, it seems, many of the critics on phish.net fail to notice. Phish is killing it here, don't let the haters confuse you.

What's especially amazing is that Phish the Machine and Phish in Space were performed by the same four guys, old Nor'easter friends from way back.

If you expect every song to be the Bozeman Tweezer, you're doing it wrong.

-You're gonna have a bad time.

Solidly played. Night 2 seemed more like a tour opener than night 1. Weird song selection, but that was fine. First set was super meh until wolfmans and gin. Treys guitar got screwed up in the mix during sparkle.
Second set was solid, happy to see my first fuego, but nothing that blew me away like Cross and painless last night.
This show was like a solid stand up comedian where you laugh through the show, but you don't get a full on belly laugh where your eyes are watering and you can't breathe. Nothing wrong with that, but it's better when you do.

At least in my little corner of Seattle, the overlap between Phish and the Seahawks is giving people a reason to listen to the band again with open ears. This was my 29th show, and I got to share it with a couple friends who had never been to Phish show before. We all had a blast, and this setlist ended up being a great introduction for new fans.

The first set is overall very tight and covers a lot of territory -- you get old stuff (Cavern, Wilson, Rift), new stuff (The Line), some antics (Lawnboy, Sparkle), a rocker (Kill Devil Falls), and a couple of good jams in Wolfman's and Bathtub Gin. The Gin closer is where I think my friends really started to 'get' what the band was doing musically -- that song is so much fun because it lays down a theme, wanders out into the wilderness until you've almost forgotten where you came from, and then almost magically brings everything back around to where you started. The ability to take audiences on journeys like that is one of the things that defines Phish, and this was a fun outing that made sure people didn't get too lost along the way.

The second set is a great example of how the band can take a group of songs and make a whole that is larger than the sum of its parts. This is another defining characteristic of the band for me, and it was great to hear that on display. Fuego through Sand was particularly good, even if the Sand was a little on the short side for my tastes. Closing the second set with a Hendrix cover was a nice nod to the hometown crowd...and what's not to love about 'Bold As Love' anyway.

I don't think I could throw a lot of superlatives at this show, but I did get everything out of it I wanted -- I had a blast, my friends had a blast, and we're looking forward to seeing more shows together.

The Seattle show's second set had an immediately apparent social narrative to me and my wife. We may be grasping at straws, but in the moment, it was all we could think about.

Down with Disease represents any ill in our society that makes us sick. For me, this can all be boiled down to corporate capitalism. If natural resources were managed like a mission to the Moon, we would eliminate much of our damage to the planet.
Golden Age: Our science and technology can be a big help, but the new rising human consciousness has the potential to be even more powerful.
Fuego: We can't escape our machines, especially the car. Systematic fear runs rampant (war on terror = resource grab) and sometimes, it just ain't worth trying to swim against the status quo tide of our wasteful progress.
Light: Humans know how to live a different way. The truth is out there waiting to be given a chance to take the driver's seat.
Cities: You can't live with or without them where we toil for 46 years as wage slaves while others inevitably let us down.
Sand: Humans are a parasite to ourselves and the planet. We continue to disregard all warnings from nature while trying to put band-aids on things to make it look like we're doing something about it. Non-binding resolutions, no admission of guilt, SEC indictments, drone attacks and so on.
Backwards: If we're ever going to figure out how to exist on this planet sustainable, mutual respect and acceptance are essential. No matter what, it all comes back to being deeply connected to others in a genuine way.
Bold As Love: At the end of the day, we need to be able to hold humanity accountable while displaying love and compassion for all living creatures, that's how it's done. It all ends with love.

Phish does so many things well. Crafting a set list that tells a complete story, or life cycle, is an artistic act of the highest order. Even though I may not listen to the show as much as some of the others this year, Seattle proved Trey's claim on 7-4-10 that Phish's music tells the true story of America.

I wasn't at this show and haven't listened. I'm more reviewing the people who are reviewing. First, I think people who get the webcast are entitled to post their views here. They paid their money and had an experience based on the music of the band. Why should they not share their experience with us?? Makes no sense.

Which brings me to my next point - the reason these reviews are fun for me to read is that everyone gets something different from each show. What you thought was perfect might be the same thing that made it boring for others. I was at the 11/17/97 show in Denver which is the highest rated show on here. I had it as one of my worst at the time. It was the first show I ever saw solo. I had just moved to Denver and didn't know anyone. I also was chasing set lists at the time. Given those variables, had I written a review I might have torn it to shreds. I mean...Johnny B. Goode?? Who wants to hear that?? I've listened to the show again and picked up on a lot that I missed, but the point is, you don't know what state of mind people are in the leads to great or bad shows. Your seats (or standing room), level of intoxication, people around you, line of sight, sound, chatty Kathy's around you, etc...all play into it.

If someone else had a different experience than you, whether at the show or on the couch, why not take what they say about it and try to see it from that perspective?

Excellent show. Solid performance all the way around. The boys had more energy than Eugene and the crowd did as well.
My highlights:
The Line - super groovy after the slow start to the song
Wolfman's - funky!
Gin - always a crowd pleaser

Fuego! - excellent jam
Light - Cities transition was flawless
Sand - melt your face

Of course when you are up front and they are rocking out right in front of you they can do no wrong. Everyone has their own show and this one for me was perfect.

Having never seen the band in the northwest before, I was expecting a fully engaged crowd similar to what I witnessed at the Greeks a few years back. Even the Eugene crowd on Friday seemed relatively sedated, I think that always has an effect on a performance by Vermont's finest.
That being said, last night's playing and songlist were solid and interesting, similar to Friday, but sound quality was lacking compared to Eugene's pristine clarity, and gear problems were apparent last night. As with the majority of shows I caught this summer, the Board Chairman seemed capable of endless creativity and kept the band and crowd constantly guessing in which direction things would go. The Talking Heads' covers ruled supreme both nights, energy ebbed and flowed as Phish shows will do, but the band seemed intent on staying in the game from front to back, as the unusual encores and first set openers show. The new material was well placed and very well played.
I think the band is in a good spot at the moment, setlists, interplay, and sound qual will likely improve as they head south, and you west coasters should wake up a bit more and chat a bit less. The Phish don't come up this way very often.

Just re-listened to this whole show finally. I was there and had just traveled from Eugene. When I got home, many of my friends who webcasted all informed me how much of a drag the show was. I thought it surprising, I really enjoyed the show, but I was a little mahled out and was rocking the show with a couple cuties, maybe that blurred my judgement. I do recall it lacking the energy of the Eugene show for sure.

OK, so the first set had a lot of solidly played but short and "standard" versions of songs. It lost a lot of steam during The Line, but let's face it, it's the people groaning and running to the bathroom that kill the vibe, it's not the bands fault some people can't patiently wait out a song that isn't their favorite. I would say things could have turned out really different if they went into Also Sprach Zarathustra at this point, but it looks like they weren't in a hurry to go deep this night. It wasn't really until Wolfman's that things picked up, ended on a pretty decent Gin to wrap up first set.

Second set isn't one for the ages, but I think it's very underrated by folks. Pretty good DWD and jam to get things rolling. I'm a big fan of Golden Age, although a little of the cheer was lost when Trey forgot the lyrics/(mic problem?) The Light jam picks things up a little more and that Sand out to put you in a good headspace if you weren't already. One of the better Sands I think I have seen in my limited experience, really. A little BDTNL to piss off the haters, but a pretty good jam comes out of it, Page teases the piano riff to "Sweet Home Alabama" briefly (am I doing that right?) and personally I like when this song gets jammed out. I mean give a little love for the classic G, F, C, progression. Pretty solid encore too. Short and sweet whether you like that or not.

In summary, go ahead and spin the second set if you're doing chores around the house and need something to listen to. I heard people complaining about segues? I don't go to shows to hear the segues, I don't think they were trying anything fancy, I mean can't a band just switch songs really abruptly? Hey, decent show. Hey is this stupid star-rating thing mandatory?....

Enjoyed this show, though thought the night before was even better.

Lawn Boy was well executed and contained some great bass soloing, Mike's solo is always great and is a reason I love hearing the live versions. Wolfman and Gin were the highlights of the first set though they were pretty standard.

DWD opens the second set and though well executed at first, kinda dissolved, as does GLight and Fuego. Light>Cities also was executed well but had more potential for sure. 46days>Sand was the highlight of the second set for me, I wish it was longer but this awesome Sand gives way to BDTNL, which I could tell upset some people. Some people immediately started talking about how it was a bathroom break song etc and but as the song progressed kinda ate their words. I enjoyed BDTNL but do think about what could've been if they had jammed that Sand out, easily my favorite song of the night, with a great transition/intro. Bold as love was a cool way to end the set and was executed nicely.

Meatstick-Character Zero encore was a fun way to end the night.

Man o man. Here we go again. That show melted my face. I come on here today to see what the rest of the gang thought of it, and sure enough, first thing I see is a bunch of garbage about is "WASN'T EPIC" or "WASN'T TIGHT ENOUGH" or "WASN'T WHAT IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN". Well SHUT UP and get your ass to the show then if you want it to blow your mind. Anyone who's been to a show would know better than to try to gauge how it all went down just by watching the feed. It's embarrassing to read.

Great show boys. Mind=Blown Thanks so much.

This is the first show that I ever was not on the floor for. We were in section 127 row 10, which is Paige side. Despite the lack of boogie room in the stands, I had a great time. In expected Pacific Northwest fashion thick clouds of smoke rose from section 127 the entire show. The boys started out with Cavern which is one of my favorites. The highlights of the first set for me were KDF, MoMa, my first The Line, and my first lawn boy. It was a real treat to be have the view of Paige that I did. It was a lot of fun watching him play from above. The second set was rocking from start to finish. My first Fuego was exciting. 46 Days has got to be one of my favorite Phish songs. The Sand they played was super groovy and jammin. Finally Meatstick for the encore always reminds me why I love Phish. It's such a funny and playful song. The crowd was fun and the music was great. Thanks for the great show boys.

Still trying to gather my train of thoughts for this show...it was EPIC, EUPHORIA, and MIND(s)-BOGGLING....

Noticed I put the (S) after "MIND" as to say I'm not the only one in the minority of opinions that this show was OFF THE CHART!

Please allow me explain....State of Washington, home of the "Legalize It", the mellow crowd with the laid back laissez faire, and the band is ON FIRE. With these combinations, this show had the recipes to make it memorable...and BOYS, did they not disappoint...

As for the set list, tonight was one of those shows where IT DIDN'T MATTER WHAT SONGS THEY PLAYED! Everything they touched on was literally put to SHRED...THEY NAILED THIS SHOW BIG TIME...

After seeing Phish 201 shows, I'm willing to bite the head off of every single nitpicking, judgemental fans of Phish to tell me that this show sucks because of the songs selection...ABSOLUTELY NO WAY JOSE NOT!

As a fan, don't always judge a band by ITS cover, IT'S WHAT IN THE PUDDING THAT COUNTS....this show was literally one for the ages. After 15 shows in 2014, this show was easily by far and away my favorite show of the year FROM THE FIRST NOTE TO THE LAST NOTE...and I've seen some really good shows...

Don't take my words for IT, please have a listen...you might enjoy IT....

So from being from the east coast Key Arena was a venue that I was really looking forward to seeing. This venue holds a lot of history inside these walls. This was my Nassau Coliseum of the run. So to show my respect I strapped on my green new balances to pay tribute to the late departed Supersonics that once held court in the building and was ready to show some east coast love.
It seamed like the band was ready to to the same. Coming out of the gates blazing with a well suited cavern to get us warmed up and blood flowing. After catching my breath for a brief second the the home town crowd got what they wanted ,the anticipated "Duh-Dunt ,Duh-Dunt"and they were loving every minute of it. Though it was very short lived like it was all summer. I thought the transition into Rift was ok and well played. Trey seemed like he was having fun w/ Moma. But to it sounded like to me that the rest of the band had trouble getting on the same page with it,and got a little out of sink. After that the boys also payed there respects to the Sonics with The line . After that the set kinda lost its short lived luster for me . Although it was nice to sneak in a Sugar Shack. Only the 17th one played. I didn't get the whole Wolfmans>Sparkle >Gin thing but hey that's been typical of first set song selections these days. But hey not really anything to complain about thus far.
Know the second set on the other hand to me was fucking amazing on all different levels up until a certain point. And if you were there you know what I'm about to express and talk about. To me the DWD was a good selection to open the set with. It gave them a chance to work out the kinks and try to get in sync with each other. Something I thought was leaking in the first set. Golden Age I thought was well played. This is where you can see the fans starting to get back into the show. Then Fuego really started to get the crowed dialed in and you can really see the vibe the band was getting off it. The Light all the way to Sand was pure fucking madness and the crowed was so showing there approval. To me I was really digging that hint of funk-ness that really miss from back in the day that Trey was laying down in that cities.. The light>cities transition really got my blood boiling and the crowd was feeling it as well. I thought how they dropped into 46 days was a perfect fit in keeping that funkiness alive and flowing. This is the sound I came to hear and at this point from what I can see and feel they finally had hit there stride and they knew it and we were ready for them to blow the roof off the building and we where ready for it!!! If you were there you know what I'm talking about. The emotions of the crowd when the finally went into sand was amazing. They were loving every minute of it. This set had everything going for it. Great flow and amazing energy. The 6:48 of sand was just pure perfection. The prelude of 2001 started ringing through the speakers and you can hear the crowd go nuts. The place just got 60 degrees hotter from the intensity of what was know a full fledge dancing party. The Key Arena was about to be set on fire. Everything that I hoped for while I anticipated coming here. And just as fast as the heat rose the air was sucked right out of the building. The sudden abortion of 2001 into the ill fated BDTNL. It was like seeing Kemp getting stuffed at the buzzer for a game winner. And the crowed let them know the disapproval and let down. They officially lost me and left me shaking my head why. After some of the most intense crowed felt music being played they dropped the ball and could finish the money shot. Though the bold as love was a nice attempt to try rebound from what could of been a highly talked about night the damage was done. Then realizing that all was lost there was nothing left to do but leave us w/ a meatstick>character encore shaking our heads even more.
In all in all I left the show some what pleased. I took it for what it was worth. The potential was there. If that 2001 was not aborted that show would be defiantly talked about a lot more. The Key Arena was everything I thought it would be in a venue. As for my statement earlier on the nice tribute they did by playing the line for the Sonics, I take it back I dedicate it to the band cause they really missed the big shot in not hitting that 2001. You went from possible champs to mediocre.

My first and only show that I've caught. I've listened to plenty of LP, though, to know that while this wasn't the best Phish around, it was still pretty solid. I'm no musician, so while maybe the band wasn't connecting like I've seen in other reviews, I thought it was still a solid effort, and I wasn't disappointed. My brother-in-law, who's been a Phan for years, really enjoyed this one as well. Highlights were The Moma Dance, DwD, and Light > Cities > 46 Days > Sand (which IMO was the best part of the show - great segment). Could've lived with the > BDTNL, but they can't all be zingers, right?

Anyways, solid, if unspectacular, show. My Key Arena experience was a blast.

I had a blast at this show.
first set
I really liked wolfman's, and gin in the first set, i thought kdf, cavern, the line and sugar shack were solid, and who can complain about lawn boy

the second set
i thought DWD>Golden was ok, i loved Fuego through backwards line. The Sand would be a highlight at any show, And thought the bold as love was great. Meatstick was solid, and fit the mood of the crowed, Zero was standard, and is over played.

this show is not for most phans. It reminded me of 93,but with more sound effects. some songs are shorter then most versions,but I find myself listening to the second set often. This was great live experience, witch did not translate to the webcast as well.

This was my fourth show, first time on the floor.

After a hardy tour opener in Eugene, this show certainly didn't live up to the previous night. I felt there was a bit too much up and down in the song choices--too frequently I went from dancing my ass off to just kinda standing there not knowing what to do with myself as the band went into one of their more "ballad" down tempo songs. Well, at least for the first set.

I got my song chaser Gin tonight, and it was a solid version. Definitely not the best I've ever heard, but certainly a delight for what it was--and my lot card of the night.

That second set though. I think my highlight was Cities. It was certainly the song I rocked out to the hardest and to have that transition into 46 Days and then into Sand? Wow. Seriously, that Sand could have gone on for much longer and I would have been happy girl.

Still a solid show even though I felt that set one was a bit of a slow lift off. At least set two made up for it.

Most frustrating part of the night? Probably getting on the floor itself. Seriously the KeyArena needs to get its act together. First we were told to go to section 104 to get on the floor. OK, done. When we get there, we're told to go back to the top of the stairs to get a wristband. Alright. Seems reasonable. Until you witness the clusterfuck that was the wristband line. I don't know if I can even call it a line...it was just a huge cattle push of people...no one quite sure if we were in the right place because there was also a merch table and beer line in the mix. So you had to serpentine yourself to get to the first stop, which was a guy who would punch your ticket. Then you had to fight your way to get to the table for a wrist band. It was a mob, not actually a line, so it was pure chaos. Once you got that, great...now fight your way back out of the line so you can actually get to the floor. BUT WAIT...you still had to show your ticket and wristband! I get that this is a way to prevent people from swapping stubs...but honestly the system was still broken. I could have easily slipped my ticket to someone in the stands, who could have easily by-passed the guy punching tickets (since mine was steady punched) and just get a wrist band. Then show said ticket and wrist band to get on the floor. I'm sure it didn't prevent anyone from getting on the floor who shouldn't have been. Really the way to do it is punch the ticket and give a wristband when people were just entering the floor so that it was a single-file line, with one guy punching tickets in an orderly fashion....so that way as people queued up it would be obvious if the ticket was already punched.

But you know what...I guess I don't care. If KeyArena wants to have a messed up way to deal with floor tickets--fine. They shouldn't be fooling themselves that it's preevnting any ticket swaps. And moreover, it shouldn't be a goddamn hassle on my end. All the wristband employees were pissed at how they were getting treated, which I feel bad for, no one should be disrespected....but what the hell do you expect when you make the process goddamn difficult? People are going to be a little more rude when they process is unclear and unorganized and demand that you wristband people faster. Geez.

So if you do KeyArena again and you have floor, arrive early so you can avoid any shitstorm that you might need to deal with.

Hoeveler,

I would personally rather here from folks who were NOT at the show since attending a show creates a bias commonly and clouds your judgment to some degree on how good the music actually was. As mentioned, my comments were strictly in relation to the first set and I will comment once I listen to the 2nd set tom on the show as a whole. First set was very average though IMO which is not a bad thing as the average Phish show in 2014 is still excellent! But there is nothing "epic" in this first set and nothing to suggest (I will reserve final judgment for when I listen of course) there is anything "epic" in the show at all. It screams average Phish show in every way which is not a bad thing as many bands would kill for this type of average. Beyond all that, if you still have a problem with my comments, I don't really care. Cheers.

I love this band and this community, and I hate to be this negative, but if you truly believe that "Meatstick" --> "Character Zero" is "a fun way to end the night" and not "the epitome of the most phoned-in encore ever", I am not super convinced that you have ever actually seen this band perform live.

That being said, the second set of this show was very fiery (especially "Cities") from start to BDTNL.

This show sucked. First set pretty standard stuff left you waiting on a break out second that never came. Transitions were abrupt or non-existent. Jams lacked any substance frequently getting stuck in a black hole of sleepy Page clav riffs and Trey playing Wacka Wacka guitar. Trey's soloing oscillated between defferential or at worst uninspired with a habit of just laying down rhythm while no one else introduced any motifs. I'm all for slow cooking but eventually you have to serve the meal or risk letting it slide into unappetizing mush. Stayed in cause of this stream, that was a mistake.

Epic???? Hardly, but I can only judge the first set so far as that is all I have listened too. First set was fine, pretty solid and nothing really to complain about, but nothing to get excited over either. Very by the numbers average first set. Curious to spin the 2nd set, but first set is far from "epic" and just very average.