Of all the reasons to be grateful that the spreadsheet exists (speaking as an obsessive Dylan bootleg collector during the B&P/super-slow CD burner era, there are many indeed), I personally think that the biggest reason is that you will find yourself listening to shows that you wouldn't make the...
This show was just incredibly fun, and the evening held a magic that I think was palpable to everybody in attendance.
First set - Reba was flippin' awesome, providing a perfect soundscape to the setting sun, and later on Tube really funked out and went deep... Oddly enough, it seemed like it...
And I see you too!
This show was already special before we walked in the door. The first return to San Diego in 6 years, the NICU printed on the ticket, and for me, the return to the venue where I met my wife and Trey walked off the stage with my one year NA recovery key tag in 2016.
The...
this show is stacked. i am not a huge fan of '99 phish. there are a few good shows in the summer, and the fall/winter tour was pretty much a wash, outside of the spectrum shows, imo. then there is the september 99 shows; the glorious exception to the rule. this one kind of gets overshadowed...
Wow, what a fun show, just finished up couch touring this one - my immediate thoughts are that this was a hot one.
Fluffhead opener - not many openers are better in my opinion, and this was a good one. Up next came the inevitable NICU, since well, the venue is named NICU amphitheater --- they...
Simply stated, Phish's most recent venture last October to Chula Vista was close to "perfect" and immediately joined a long list of "legendary" shows. The primary ingredients required for "legendary Phish show" status include a blend of rarities, unique playing with extended jamming, theming...
Palm fronds shrugged effortlessly at us on our final approach into the venue. Swaying peacefully, purposefully, their silent grace showed us more life lessons than a year’s worth of living – some years at least. Listen to the silent trees. The dry grass on the rolling hills knew what the trees...
This was my 100th show, and I don't think the personal experience I had that night can ever be topped. This is top tier Phish, idgaf how many shows you been to or when you started seeing them, if you don't think this show is at the very least 4.5 stars, you need your ears cleaned. I feel biased...
This show was fantastic and is one of my favorite 3.0 shows I've attended (~60).
If you would have told me prior, I'd be walking after out raving about an NICU and Free, I would have shrugged you off. However, both jams are absolutely must-hear. As are Tube, No Men's and the Sand -> Piper. This...
After the Forum, which sucked, but I had fun, I had high hopes for Sleep Train. The Farmhouse opener was very scary. But the sound was great at the amphitheater, and you could tell that the boys had a little something extra for us. The 555 was a well placed addition to the set. Ghost was crunchy...
Precisely at 5:15 the jam flips to major forming an upbeat "Weekapaug"-esque groove, and Trey slips in the first of three "NICU" teases. After some transition riffing at 7:00, the next segment launches with Moog waves from Page and beautifully coalesces into a fully-baked bliss jam from 8:00 - 10:00. Then, another round of minor funk (w/"NICU" tease) gets heavier with delays and leads into the last verse and one final "NICU" tease > "Slave".
A very neat and surprising -> out of "Fluffhead", and a tremendous jam befitting the North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre. After an extended take on the usual "NICU" jam, Mike suggests minor key and things get good and dark, before they slide into something more tropical, allowing Trey to weave in the "NICU" solo we all know and love (as he will several times in this show). The band snaps into a quicksilver groove at Fish's urging, which gives way to an effects-laden pitch-black zone, before briefly brightening and then dissolving into ambiance and a wonderful -> to a surprise "Bye Bye Foot". Nearly twice as long as any other "NICU", and well worth the run time.
> out of "NMINML". Trey weaves in one of the many "NICU" teases from this show into the first jam, then he suggests minor-key and Page follows him on synths, leading to a lower-boil groove replete with repeating loops and Mike goodness. The band climbs out of the muck and returns to a more upbeat rock jam, with the loops still going, and very neatly returns to "Free" proper.
Excellent -> out of "Sand". A driving, almost composed jam segment emerges from "Piper" proper, Trey hitting on a particularly catchy 70s-esque riff and Fish kicking into third gear. The beat switches up and Page moves to his synths as a new sound emerges, Trey going to his effects to really add substance to the on-stage roux. Fish picks up the pace again and the band moves into a hard-driving rockout, and then a cloud of ambient noise settles over the stage as the jam dies away and Fish hammers on his kit. But rather than end the jam, the band deepens and thickens the ambient cloud, everyone firing off whatever effects they can, Mike going to the drill to add some ear-splitting nastiness. Extraordinarily reminiscent of one of the more wicked improvisations from IT. A true Monster Jam.
"Did they jam out Tube?" YES. Witness the beginning of a new era of abundant "Tube" jams with this version, which, at the time, was one of the most improvisational versions to date, as it moves from funk to a hard-rocking groove with a big peak.
The intial funky jam seems to be coming to an end at 9 minutes, but the jam picks back up and grooves for a few more minutes while Trey plays lead before the jam shifts to soaring, melodic "hose". Returns to "Boogie" with breakdown solos from Mike, Trey, and Page. Must-hear.
"Fluff" is tough to play, and few versions approach Phish perfection. Here, however, the band delivers. The technically challenging sections are super clean; more interesting than this, however, is the tempo, with Trey and Page noticeably at ease. Plausibly because there is no deliberation, the band finds innovation, the jam not only "Arriving," but passing through an extended passage of really cool play to deliver a -> into "NICU."
As was his wont in 2021, Jon Fishman takes this jam over. He puts on yet another master class in drumming. Trey's soloing over Page's synth gives the jam an ethereal feel. Fish faithfully follows Trey wherever he leads during this one, and stands out the entire time. > into "Free".
Trey modifies his tone early on to great effect, and solos quite strikingly. As the power grows, Fish, Page and Mike serve to colorfully and dramatically paint a wonderful, Trey-penned sketch. The powerful peak leaves everyone feeling good, and underscores why we all love this band so much.
A very nice compact version which still manages to include some form of intro, bridge, second refrain, and a darkish and pulsating jam which has a '99 - '00 quality to it.