[We would like to thank Matt Hoffman (@tonapdivine) for recapping last night’s show. Matt is a music journalist and has written for Relix, JamBase, Live for Live Music, the Phish.net blog, and others. -Ed.]

[Author’s note: I apologize for the delay: life happens!]

In writing, as in life and most things, I strive to do the best I can with what I’ve got; fortunately, as the guy tasked with recapping last night’s Phish show, the first of two at the TD Pavilion at Philadelphia’s Mann Center, I’ve got plenty to discuss. And it’s not just the setlist, jams, and PhishStats (h/t zzyxx), though there is plenty to cover there; rather, over the years, my Phish experience, particularly at a hometown show, has come to be about much more. My intention in presenting my recap of this show–an instant legend btw–is to present my take through the lens of that experience, which has a lot to do with the people I’ve met along the way.

Those people consist of friends from childhood and college friends, former colleagues and new collaborators. Some I met through Phish; with others, the commonality arose later. You’ll definitely recognize some folks I’ve gotten to know as a music writer, and as a part of my contribution to the annals of Phishtory (*sorry), I thought it would be cool to share them. (With approval!) I’m also hoping that the patchwork quilt that is my phamily (*sorry) will serve as but one example of the weird and windy paths one’s Phish experience can take and what that looks like after thirty years. I also feel that my friends’ perspectives are the best things I can share in this recap, so without further ado.

First and foremost, this was a really hard ticket to find, based on my experience and what I heard from friends; fortunately, my friends and I, including Adrian–my first friend from just before college (1998) I met soon after my first show, who took me to Coventry in an RV and was a groomsman in my wedding–all managed to make it in. (If anyone’s got a connect for tonight…) Secondly, it was fucking hot: I went to my seat with my friend Evan Schultz (friend since 1998), a rabbi and poet, then quickly retreated to the lawn, where it was cooler. Just before 8, the boys came out swinging with “Punch You in the Eye,” a classic opener that they presented a bit differently by introducing some noisy, discordant jams in the first few minutes of the tune. (They also tried a different take on PYITE in Austin the week before.)

“They hacked their way through that one!” said local drummer Tyler Chiara. (Kevin Rovner Band, Big Boing’s Acid Rainbow.)

The band segued into “The Landlady,” played at the slower pace the band has returned to in recent years, before rolling into what became a 16-minute “Everything’s Right.” As they eased into a jam, Trey began to play with a lyrical cadence that he applied throughout the night to steer the band, who followed suit seamlessly. (You can hear the Trey/Fishman thing start to appear around the 12-13-minute mark.) Local bassist, Jonathan Colman (Muscle Tough, Winderman, Colman, & Kimock), commented on Mike’s efforts to steer the jam towards the Lydian mode, a personal favorite of Colman, who swears by the Lydian Chromatic Concept. (WCK played the after show at Ardmore Music Hall: more on that below.)

They followed that with “Camel Walk,” a bust out not seen in 98 shows almost two years to the day, but kept it short. The band took a breath, then Fishman started in on the hi-hat, leading the band into “Theme From the Bottom.” Chris Kuroda lit the crowd up in classic fashion during the various jams, both vocal and instrumental. Trey played some riffs that I was sure would turn into “Cities” but instead turned into some Leslie-soaked goodness that led right into “Prince Caspian.” Over the next ten minutes, Trey’s lead work took on the lyrical cadence he started to present a few songs back in “Everything’s Right,” but this time leading into a decent “It’s Ice.” “I was hoping to hear ‘It’s Ice,’” said keyboardist Scott Chasolen (Reprise). “Not only to oppose the sweltering summer heat but for some extra research, as Reprise has to perform it twice at both of our upcoming July shows.” The band will reprise 7/4/2000 and 5/3/1993 in New Jersey on July 30th (Morristown) and 31st (Asbury Park). (For my part, I’d absolutely love it if Trey wouldn’t flub some of those descending chromatic runs; but to be fair, I couldn’t do it!)

Next came “About to Run,” first released with Trey’s Ghosts of the Forest project, where Trey’s vocals, arguably the band’s most improved player over the last decade or so. “This was probably the highlight of the night for me,” said New Hope-based guitarist, Kevin Rovner. “Trey just rips every time they play it.” After closing that tune with a big rock and roll ending, Fish started light touching the hi-hat again and took the band into the set I closer, a scorching “David Bowie” with Caspian teases and some classic Dickey Betts-style lead work; for some, it called to mind the standout “Bowie” from Mann ‘95. Keyboardist Tom McKee (Brothers Past) put it best: “Can’t go wrong with a first set Bowie!” (McKee will perform as a member of Tom Hamilton’s band at an upcoming free show in King of Prussia on July 25th, a show in Rising Sun’s wonderful “Concerts Under the Stars” series that also will follow a July 24th show with Grace Potter and Karina Rykman, the latter of whom was at the Mann show.)

A bit under 25 minutes later, Phish reminded me why I still go to shows.

It started when the band opened the second set with “Sand,” which became the clear highlight of the night and perhaps the tour to date. (“The “Sand” opener really was phenomenal,” said music writer Dave Goodwich, with Glide Magazine.) As the band moved into their first improvised section, Trey dropped some whale sounds for old time’s sake, then returned to the melodic, purposeful playing he’d applied throughout the night, the band molding themselves around. He played some Weekapaug-esque licks as Page added melodic synth work and continued to drive the bus with Trey adding supporting flourishes and the two continued a playful back-and-forth.

Almost 15 minutes into the tune, Fish downshifted a bit as my dear friend and former colleague Kenny turned to me and asked if they were still playing “Sand;” to be fair, the band was definitely veering into complete new territory. Page’s playing brought a smooth intensity (or intense smoothness?) that reminded me of ‘70s TV. (With an eye towards wearing my biases on my sleeve, I may have an overly sensitive ear for that genre, given my repeated exposure to “Move Closer To Your World,” the sweet-ass Action News theme song–now available on streaming platforms and vinyl–they played on my local ABC station as a kid.) Page continued to add texture to the soundscape as Fish dropped to half time and the structure of the improv approached what sounded to me like (but never actually became) “Mountain Jam” territory.

And the jam kept going. I started recording it to stream to Instagram and kept waiting for a good time to cut off the recording; but it never came. And then my phone died. With that, basically everyone I know cited this first 40-minute “Sand,” the longest ever, on the heels of the longest-ever “Disease.” It was a highlight for anyone I asked about it:

– “It had a half dozen or so distinctly different musical themes.” Dave Goodwich, Glide Magazine.
– “I lived seven different lives during that ‘Sand.’” Dave Avidan, local photographer. (He contributed photos to this recap!)
– “This is exactly why I still see Phish. Once that jam got to about 20 minutes, you could tell that they were in a pure state of improv, and nobody knew what was going to happen: not them, not us. To me, that’s the magic of the band and why I’ll continue to go see them whenever I can: to catch those ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ moments.” RJ Bee (co-founder, Osiris Media; co-founder, Helping Friendly Podcast; manager, Reprise).
– “It’s so refreshing that after all these years, the band continues to push boundaries with inspired playing and 40-minute improvisational explorations.” Jefferson Waful (lighting director).
– "Phish at the Mann holds a dear place in my heart. From summer 1995 to present, they seems to just want to crush the Mann. Having played there 6 times myself, I feel like I have particular insight into why this is. It’s a special place for the fans and a special stage for the bands, and N1 of this summers Mann run was no exception. From the first chord of the night till the end of the show, phish was locked. Particularly incredible chemistry between Mike and Trey was on display from the first jam of PYITE, which never even made it past the first half of the intro before going into exploratory territory. Phish always blows my mind and in particular, Mike was so locked into what Trey was offering up. This was a scorcher of a Tuesday show, with 90% classic cuts, and there were no complaints as far as the ear could hear. While set 1 was blistering and focused, set 2 was a journey. I believe the longest Sand of all time started the frame, and it def went on a ride from minor to major, into a peak, back to minor and then back to major for a second blissful peak. For a jamband bass player going to see Phish is like going to a master clinic. I always learn something new, and I feel like I spent the night in the most engaging 3 hour Tuesday lecture at Jamband University with the best professors in the game. Praise the OGs.” Marc Brownstein (bassist, Disco Biscuits)
– “It was almost too hot to stay in the seats for two sets, but we’re glad we did when they played the 41-minute 'Sand!'” Tom Marshall

Marshall also cited the next tune, a comparatively paltry (lolz) 19-minute-long “My Friend, My Friend.” This included a sick jam in its own right, with Trey screaming about the knife over ascending mountains of sound. After the jam, the band sang “Myfe,” with Trey lightheartedly clarifying that they did not, in fact, miss it. “Boogie On Reggae Woman,” which they inserted into Mike’s Groove during Mann ‘23 night 1, brought pure funk and led into an incendiary “Blaze On,” where Trey had another opportunity to showcase his vocals. Next came the set closer, another highlight of a jam and one that they also played at the Mann in ‘23: “Carini.” Chris Perella (Rising Sun Presents, Ardmore Music Hall) called this an all timer, and I agree: in a mere nine minutes, they went from major-key bliss to a darker funky groove, with MFMF teases, eventually finding their way into an unadulterated sonic hellscape propelled by Fishman, clearly the MVP of the jam and possibly the night. They took this song to places I’d been hoping they would back in ‘23, consistent with how “into it” the guys clearly were. (Trey, in particular, had a shit-eating grin on his face all night.)

Marshall also cited the next tune, a comparatively paltry (lolz) 19-minute-long “My Friend, My Friend.” This included a sick jam in its own right, with Trey screaming about the knife over ascending mountains of sound. After the jam, the band sang “Myfe,” with Trey lightheartedly clarifying that they did not, in fact, miss it. “Boogie On Reggae Woman,” which they inserted into Mike’s Groove during Mann ‘23 night 1, brought pure funk and led into an incendiary “Blaze On,” where Trey had another opportunity to showcase his vocals. Next came the set closer, another highlight of a jam and one that they also played at the Mann in ‘23: “Carini.” Chris Perella (Rising Sun Presents, Ardmore Music Hall) called this an all timer, and I agree: in a mere nine minutes, they went from major-key bliss to a darker funky groove, with MFMF teases, eventually finding their way into an unadulterated sonic hellscape propelled by Fishman, clearly the MVP of the jam and possibly the night. They took this song to places I’d been hoping they would back in ‘23, consistent with how “into it” the guys clearly were. (Trey, in particular, had a shit-eating grin on his face all night.)

They returned for an encore that began with “Shade,” followed by Nancy’s “I Didn't Know,” last played 47 shows ago. (Fun facts: the average duration between performances is 47 songs, and the second-to-last time they played it was 47 days before the last time they played it.) Trey cheerfully ran to take over the drums as he introduced Fish’s vacuum solo: “he’s dressed in green, he's the baddest vacuum player you've ever seen, a permanent resident of Fishtown [Philly neighborhood], Mr. Moses Heaps, Mr. Moses DeWitt, and Mr. Moses Vincent!” They closed out the set with a classic 1-2 punch: “Wilson,” followed by “Possum.”

My dear friend Andrew, whom I’ve known since I was an infant and haven’t seen since a White Stripes show in 2004, put it best when he described what he liked most about the show: “for me, last night was just about spending time with old friends…they could have played terribly, and I would have left with a smile.” I agree, though having been to a clunker or two in Philly over the years, it doesn’t hurt that the music was epic.

After the show, Winderman, Colman & Kimock played a late night set at the Ardmore Music Hall. As previously announced, they invited guitarist Rob Compa (ex-Dopapod) to join, and Tom Hamilton joined as a last-minute addition and surprise for those who attended. (Hamilton recently sat in with Colman’s entirely improvised project, Dungeon Crawl, so he had at least one rep under his belt jumping into a band with the bassist.) WCK have been playing together off and on for some time, recently releasing their first single: an instrumental version of “Help on the Way / Slipknot!” that’s been seeing some coverage by local trendsetting independent radio station, WXPN. While they didn’t play that tune at the after, they did play a variety of tunes, both pre-existing and improvised, composed by them and others. This included a new Compa tune, “Walton Goggins,” by his new project, Night Zero, as well as covers by Dopapod and the Greyboy Allstars. For Colman, it was poignant to bring Eli and Rob together since Dopapod’s open-ended hiatus was announced in 2024. The trio will perform again tonight, with a sit-in by Eggy’s Jake Brownstein on guitar. (And if last night’s show is any indication, maybe there will be more surprise guests?)

Tonight’s show is shaping up to be as hard to get into as last night and likely rainier. The show and the after are not to be missed: will have to delay sleeping with one eye open, gripping my pillow tight, for just a few more hours…as a wise man once said, “Blaze on!”

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