[We would like to thank Matt, @scissortail, for recapping last night's show. -Ed.]

With three of seven in the books for Phish’s summertime jaunt in Madison Square Garden, we have what I call “good Phish problems.” When the band walks on stage the first night of a seven night run and delivers a masterpiece—when they capture the mysterious and elusive “flow” so completely—it’s impossible not to compare each successive show against the king.

A misplaced ballad. A standard, no-frills run-through of a song that has the potential to go deep. Extremely weird lyrics about guns.

These do not ruin a Phish show. Not even close. They simply prevent the show from reaching the heights of near perfection. And because we witnessed that kind of show on Friday, these little missteps can be unfairly magnified in the harsh light of comparison. But if your only problem at a Phish show is that the raging rock extravaganza is momentarily interrupted by a perfectly fine (if energy-deflating) ditty—life is pretty good. These are good Phish problems.

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