this is a damn fine show, despite a mediocre first set. david bowie, while relatively short and to the point, is a nice odd ball choice for opener. they do a tear of songs that i don't really get into, although this julius, like the msg version, is pretty rocking. a good funky bitch picks it back up before going into sample. boogie on, as most 09 versions go, was short and sweet. let me lie and beauty of a broken heart kill what momentum there was before a pretty fiery stash closes an up and down first set.

the boys come out hot with an inspired version of drowned. they drive drowned into a nice little version of twist around. this transition was not quite as forced as the deer creek combo over the summer. this faded into a rollicking good piper. this covers some interesting ground before finding its way into furry creatures. i know many people hate this song, but i must say, i love it. there is some good fishman/home town fun mixed in this one... check it out. this is followed up by the world's fastes tube. they really haven't taken this one for a serious ride all year. burgettestown started to get there, but alas, it never did. anyway, back to this one, nice snappy version. i could see this being a single on some sort of live cd. this theme>maze combo features some nice work by trey and page. maze has been a really good song for the guys this year, and this one is not an exception. i'll put it right up there with shoreline and alpine as my favorites of the year. the horse>silent worked well. i don't usually like zero; i find it to be a bit cheesey, but it works will here. typically, zero closes things out, but phish has been tacking on little bonus treats after it all year. the boys kick out a little bonus first tube to close out this rocking set.

good times bad times is a fitting encore for this some what lop-sided show. the first set is very missable, but the playing in the second set ranges from strong to must hear. at the very least, check out the Drowned>twist>piper>bbfcfm, it will be worth your while.