2024-09-01 Commerce City, CO

 9/1/24 Dicks

Set 1

Off with a bang as usual for 2024, the open the final night with the first Dog Log since friggin 2012. And believe it or not, this is must hear!!! Super tightly played with a totally kick ass solo from Page. Wow!!!! Surprise of the year right here!

The following Jim keeps it going, turning in a major rager supreme type 1 reading. The back half positively EXPLODES! Fantastic type 1 version!!!!!

Even better is the following My Friend. Another massive 18 minute version, this one pretty much just grooves along for its duration without ever doing too much in the way of exploration. As with Jim, its an absolute fireball though, and just rips from start to finish. Definitely must hear!!!!!

Up next is a short Tube (not even 6 minutes), but dont let that put you off. This is a wacky, growling machine of a version, with Trey yelling "Science!" throughout ala Thomas Dolby. Meanwhile the robo and bass fx are tearing up a storm. Must hear for sure, definitely an inspired version!

Out of Tube and into an oddly placed mid set Fluffhead! Fluff is EXPLOSIVE with its energy. Not 100 percent perfect technically but its 98 percent there . This Fluff kicks serious ass! This Fluff is a tad sloppy, but jesus christ it is FILLED with next level, 1.0 type energy. So much so that im calling it must hear. That peak finale will give you goosebumps. Serious X Factor chit right here. Holy moly. SPRAY THAT HOSE!!! GIVE IT TO ME!!!! MORE!!!! MORE!!!! MORE!!!!

Thankfully there is a bit more to follow and we get a good Stash next. Not must hear, but worth a listen. Super inspired reading that almost goes type 2. Definitely check it out.

The set concludes with a typically facemelting Life Saving Gun. Not much to say, grab it!

All in all... holy crap! Even by 2024 standards, that set was FLAMING HOT. Dog Log, Jim, MyFe, Tube and Fluff were all must hear, maybe LSG too. Not a single weak link.

A+++ first set all around. This one smokes. 

Set 2 begins with a very nice type 1 Caspian. Terrible opening choice, but at least this is a phenomenal type 1 reading, so that almost makes up for the "limping out of the gate"-ness of it.

Thankfully this is immediately remied by a dang 25 minute SYSF - what is it, 2018 again?! The song rages super hard super long, almost reaching the boredom point. All the way at the 13 minute mark, the jam slows down into a some cool ass "dark aquatic" jamming. Very slowly they evolve this into a crushing heavy jam, like something a 30 minute ASIHTOS might produce...The X Factor is shining DARK, boys and girls!!! I mean, it reaches a point where they could have flawlessly segued into Carini if wanted. Robo wah, bass FX, Mexico Chalkdust heaviness. THIS IS FRIGGIN AMAZEBALLS!!! Around 19 minutes the jam develops a different kind of slow, lilting, quasi-shuffling rhythm about it. Loops are set and we are just swirling down the drain in this swampy, murky pile of paychedelic darkness. Oh my god this jam is incredible. I cant stop headbanging! At 21:20 Trey unleashes the screaming seagulls. Fishman is destroying these drums like a father exacting revenge on a guy that abused his daughter. Somewhere around 22 minutes, the overt darkness slowly starts to shift again. At 23:30 we descend into robo seagull whammy pedal HELL. Ridiculous hazy jamming like its 2004. THIS IS UNFRIGGINBELIEVABLE . Maybe Trey thought it was getting too much so he shifts gears and leads us into a 14 minute Tweezer....

THAT SYSF WAS MINDBLOWING!! IF THAT WASNT THE GOAT THAN I DONT KNOW WHAT IS!!! MEXICO TIER, ALL DAY LONG!!! OH MY EFFING GOD! 

So Tweezer gets up and running great. Super tight and EXTRA funky. You know the juices are flowing when "three orange whips!" comes out to play!!!! This version is 1997 funky!!! They all just lay into it HARD. Trey pornowahing his way around, Gordo crushing with heavy bass effect....wow. Slowly, the jam just evolves hotter and hotter and hotter, reaching an absolutely unbelievable, fever pitch couple minutes of full band nuclear bomb level hose annihilation. The jam quietly fades afterwards and we go into Light. Tweezer is freaking INCREDIBLE!!! X FACTOR MAGIC FOR DAYS!!!! MUST HEAR AT ALL COSTS!!! HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!! MY JAW IS ON THE FLOOR!!!!

And into a 12 minute Light we go. Light is fantastic. As part of the trio it works so well and this version is total, well, LIGHT, but of the highest and inspired variety. This version is fantastic. GRAB THIS!! For the final few minutes they jam on this swirling guitar motif, going type 2 before fading down to a close.

ALBTD follows perfectly like a phoenix rising from the ashes of Light. Screw the haters, this was an inspired and fresh choice out of Light - go LISTEN before you judge. It worked ridiculously well and hit HARD. You absolutely cant play the sequence so far without including this. Total "perfect landing pad" territory.

Getting us back up out of our emotions, they then launch into a standard-yet-fantastic reading of The Howling that just stomps and snarks and blazes hot. The effect jamming in this is soooooo bad ass. Definitely must hear, imo.

Great type 1 versions of More and C Zero keep us rocking nicely before a strong Slave closes the set proper. Definitely grab Slave, its a great one!!!

Insane encore of Sabotage and Tweeprise.

All in all, this show was fantastic imo!! Aside from the admittedly strong-but-misplaced Caspian opener, the whole SYSF>Tweezer>Light>ALBTD is just ridiculous perfection. I dont know how anyone wouldnt be blown away by that sequence, seriously.

Slave and Howling were both excellent and the Sabotage encore was icing on the cake.

If Howling, More, C Zero being the 4th quarter is your gripe with this show (as it seems to be for many), well there are a million ways it could have been "worse". Ill take an up tempo rocking 4th any day, thank you.

Honestly, this might have been my FAVORITE of the 4 nights!!!

2024-08-31 Commerce City, CO

 8/31/24 Dicks

Set 1

A very nice 46 Days opens the show. Great jam, powerful and majestic, almost PJ like! Worth a listen for sure!

Since its 2024, they follow that with a whopping 19 minute Oblivion. Easily the best version since 2023, its jammed out nicely with a few different sections. Maybe no X Factor, but absolutely must hear all the same.

After a ripping Axilla we get a friggin 18 minute Gin!!! Gin definitely has some of that X Factor tonight, spending most of its time in a terrific space disco kind of area. Really fantastic.

After a very welcome Undermind (these setlists have gotten STALE!!!!), we get a must hear version of Maze. Absolutely spectacular reading, this one is just loaded with extra sauce all over. A++++

Freeis good but nothing special tonight. A surprise Most Events Arent Planned absolute crushes and closes the set leaving our faces melted. Grab that too!!

All in all, this set was a barnburner, face melting affair!! Oblivion, Gin, Maze and MEAP are all must hear imo with special nod to 46 Days. Killer ROCKING set! 

Set 2

A rocking and fresh Loving Cup opener gives way to yet another King Ghidorah-sized beast of a jam with a friggin 26 god dang minute Kill Devil Falls. My God.... KDF IMMEDIATELY drops into type 2 after the jam, going into a lovely "delay bliss" area for several excellent minutes before working back into a more typical type 1 KDF jam!! Very cool! Around 13 minutes, the jam dissolves into an incredible "ambient heavenly bliss". Full blown type 2, boys and girls!!! Over the next 5 or so minutes they explore this area before slowly working upwards into an incredible robo-hose explosion. Thankfully they continue onward and the jam gets much more pulsingly rhythmic. Trey executes a spectacular segue into WGTYM....

X FACTOR MAGIC!!! MUST HEAR! GOAT KDF AND ITS NOT EVEN CLOSE!!! HOLY CRAP!!!

So WGTYM is nearly 17 minutes of awesome sauce as well. The jam is mostly very dark and psychedelic - they go far into the "space fire" type 2 on this one. Easily the best jam of all the versions so far. As good as KDF, this is essential.

Another spectacular segue and they launch into a ripping "upbeat" version of Crosseyed. This version is full blown bloody murder hose annihilation. Sick! Jesus christ those 3 were the definition of "they teed it up and shot it out of the park" ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL TRIO OF JAMS!!!! YOU NEED TO HEAR THIS SEQUENCE!!!

The show then takes a detour into darkness with Melt and Monsters. Melt is ridiculous as usual. This one is shorter than most, feeling a like a punch to the face knockout instead of a 10 rounder. Total robot hellscape destruction. Im calling it must hear. Its crazy.

Same goes for Monsters. Not as perfect as that one from earlier in the summer that I raved about (was it East Troy??), but this is in the ballpark. Nuts.

A standard blazing Carini closes the set before a breather Bug and First Tube to send us out.

All in all, another insane set. The hits just keep coming! The KDF>Mind>Crosseyed is total magic of the highest order and the Melt is pure lava. Not much to say - they came to BURN tonight. They friggin RAZED Dicks!!!

2024-08-30 Commerce City, CO

 8/30/24 Dicks

Set 1

The show opens with a BANG with a facemelter BOTT. Hose all over this, probably must hear. BOTT is BOTT but this one is just fantastic!

And into a 14 minute Wolfman we go! Wolfman is terrific. They almost go type 2 into a little eastern kind of area but correct course and head for the sky. Probably must hear. Just explosive!

After a standard hot Hey Stranger comes the first Guelah since friggin 2022. Played well for the most part, the Asse Festival part is of course kind of sloppy. Still fantastic to hear though!

Following that is an 11 minute No Men. As with Wolfman, this one struggles to "sync up" at times in the jam, yet they push through and just explode to a finale. Great stuff if not must hear.

So far, this set has been blazing hot energy wise, but if Im being honest, it also feels slightly "less than" so far. Wolf and No Men WERE great, but at the same time the jamming was kinda clunky or uninspired. Very hard to explain.

The following Steam kicks things up about 12 notches. A definite damn near all timer, imo, this one is loaded with that extra X Factor. MUST HEAR!!! No, seriously, this one is POWERFUL and the peak section just builds and builds and builds!!!

Excellent Evolve tonight. This one has extra sauce all over. Definitely grab this.

After the first Strange Design since 2022 (ok version, not great), the set ends with a ridiculous, truly-must-hear Antelope. This is a gosh darn 1.0 worthy Antelope. You WILL be involuntarily headbanging! 25 thousand nuclear bombs - thats what this is. Utter devastation.


All in all, I definitely LIKED this set but it just felt like the sum wasnt greater than the parts or something. Wolfman, Steam and that unbelievable Antelope are what you NEED immediately, but the rest was fine as well. Very very hot and funky set for the most part! 

Set 2

The second half of the show opens with what can only be described as a Kaiju sized beast of a Chalkdust. 27 minutes in length, they drop immediately into a black hole type 2 jam for a while before digging themselves out. For about 10 minutes or so they strafe in and out of super tight (listen to the on-a-dime interplay going on!!!!), but ultra powerful "bliss rock jamming", but of the extra inspired sort. Somewhere around 20 minutes things go slightly "tropical" and they build the jam to its incredible, X Factor laden "more hose than a Hood" finale.

That is one jam where I didnt mind it being "in the box". That sucker was TIGHT and everyones playing was absolutely inspired. 27 minutes of just fantastic rocking ecstacy. Wow.....

BUT WAIT! THERES MORE!

A 14 minute Sand follows and keeps the x factor insanity burning strong, perhaps even more so!!!! Sand spends a long time totally laying back in a dark, late night chillout, almost sounding 1999 style. Slowly they work out of it and absolutely effing RAGE for several incredible, hose explosion minutes of jam based orgasmic bliss. MUST HEAR AT ALL COSTS!!! SAND OF THE DECADE!!!

That Sand was an all time classic for any era. Certainly the most UNIQUE Ive heard in a very long time!

And into a dang 21 minute Ruby Waves we go! And Ruby is gosh damn insanity. We are talking 8/6/21 Simple levels of "WHAT THE F IS GOING ON?!" . The initial rocking jam sees them raging hard until somewhere around 10 minutes Trey and the boys all sync up on this unique up and down kind of "zig zag" motif. They rage it hard, slowly increasing the tempo more and more. By the 13 minute mark it sounds like we are in a combination Sparkle/Antelope crescendo jam!!!! From here Fishman adjusts to the faster tempo, giving it a new beat and we are off into alien waters unknown. Insane heavy dark robo funk followed by massive peak finale action.....

Then, WTU comes like a sledgehammer to the face, PERFECTLY placed and making this 21 min Ruby feel more like a 30 minute adventure or something! WTU is noteworthy - extra GRIMY in all the right spots and EXTRA beautiful where it matters. I say chart this just for the sake of preserving its memory...

THAT SEQUENCE WAS TO DIE FOR!!!! 8/6/21 Simple finally has competition!!!! HOLY MOTHER OF X FACTOR INSANITY LETS FRIGGIN GO!!!

And then Possum comes to rip our faces off and return us back to earth. Must hear Possum, for real. Damn near gives Antelope a run for its money.

The set proper concludes with a whopping 16 minute ER! This thing grooves, it rages, it funks and it positively SHINES!! An absolutely must hear rendition harkening back to the songs glory days of Fall 2018. My god.

Mega rare Fee and a post 25 minute YEM to end the show?! Yes please!!!!

All in all ....WAS THIS SET A CRUEL JOKE OR SOMETHING?! WHAT IN THE F WAS ALL THAT!!! ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR FROM START TO FINISH! EVERY SINGLE SONG IN SET 2 IS MUST HEAR!!!!

Dust, Sand, Ruby>WTU, Nuclear Possum (weasel?) and ER were all CLASSIC versions! And that spectacular YEM to close....

How in the F can they top this?! Its 2024, so im sure they will quickly find a way!

That 2nd set was an all timer for ANY era!!!!!

1999-07-09 Columbia, MD

 7/9/99 Columbia

Set 1

The show opens with a good Limb. Nothing crazy but gets the job done nicely. Continuing to ease us into the show, they follow that with a spectacular Farmhouse. God I love the Leslie on this. Really, really great reading!

After a standard BOTT (can you imagine the FLAME this set would catch if it was a modern show?!) we get a positively inspired, by 1999 standards, Divided Sky. Its good enough for me to call it a definite highlight, if not must hear. Its tight compositionally and Trey's soloing is relaxingly laid back yet still powerful. Very nice reading! Take note of Fishman - his playing is so nuanced and TIGHT. The guy was a BEAST in 99.

Unfortunately just as the set was kinda starting to finally get some heat, they follow DS with a rather subpar Train Song ....way to kill the set dead, guys

Finally, we get some ACTUAL heat with the Llama to follow, but my god it almost just sounds out of place by this point. And then Driver is next?!?! Look, I love Driver but this set is just zzzzzzzzzzz

Closing on a high note, Runaway Jim is pretty dang hot. Lengthy and strong version that is probably must hear. Total x factor all over, this almost deserves a jam chart, imo. Killer.

All in all, I enjoyed this set, but the up and down energy fluctuations were just dizzying. Definitely not a great set and there isnt much that NEEDS to be heard. Farmhouse and Divided Sky are both very strong but still not QUITE to that "must hear" level. Jim absolutely burned, but it always does. Jim is probably must hear though.  

Set 2

Always a great sign when Punch opens a 2nd set, especially in 1999 or 1997. Everything sounds about 20 times better than in set 1! Punch is TIGHT, performed as technically well as the best of em. Trey definitely WOKE UP during set break. Or was it the drugs....Either way, a GENUINELY GREAT version. A+

Punch fades to a close with some seagull sirens. Using that perfectly, they sliiiide on into a 19 minute Free>WTU combo. Free is taken at a very slow and downright sludgy pace. This sucker is sssssllllloooooooooooowwwwwwwwww. Holy hell its awful!!! Thankfully, this inspired the jam in a big way. Just sit back and sink into the paych-rock black tar pit that is Trey ripping it to high heavens and Gordo absolutely going THICK. Yo, this jam is crushing! HEAVY FREE!!! LETS GO!!!!! In the end, Free never escapes Type 1, but damn what a type 1 it is!!!!

So Free fades out to ambience and they quietly fade back up into WTU. Gotta love these 99 versions that just lay into the style of the year so hard. Love some modern ones, but the spooky beauty of one like this is just awesome. Killer. Welcome to the HAZE ZONE! This version is total X Factor Magic. Absolutely must hear. Wow.

So WTU fades itself down and they begin Meatstick. I really dig when it "rises" out of nothing like this. Good stuff and the flow of the set so far has been immaculate.

Finally its Big Boy time and we get a 40 minute Mike's>Twist>Paug! The song sounds good, then Trey hits a weird sounding siren loop (sounds like an alarm with dying batteries, lol) and its off to the races. Everyone is just zoned out, grooving it up together for a good long while, nobody in particular taking charge.
After 5 or 6 minutes of this, the jam quiets down into a much more low key groove. Still absolutely textural in nature, this a "whole band working as one" kind of jam. Extremely TASTY. Very slowly, the beat starts to go away and it seems like we are moving into ambient waters. For the next long while, the jam totally collapses as they patiently explore some interesting "space" jamming. Very ethereal yet dark at the same time, all the while somehow retaining a vague sense of groove thanks to Gordo refusing to settle down. Trey goes over to the super high pitched whammy sound and the beat picks back up signaling a return to proper rocking. Yo, this Mike's is killer. They totally put it out and then build it back up so perfectly. As the jam is rocking out again, around the 15 minute mark they go into a full blown Sweet Emotion jam ala Seattle 96!!!! After a minute or two, the jam shifts again and they go into Twist.

Still using the old intro, they slotted that PERFECTLY into the end of that jam! The jam rocks along as usual, getting really chill and laid back as well. Overall, Twist isnt anything noteworthy, its just a really nice type 1 affair.

And into Weekapaug we go! SLAPPA DAT BASS LIKE IT OWES YOU MONEY! Paug absolutely SOARS tonight!!! An absolutely kickass version!!!!! Nothing must hear, just know that its really great.

A terrific Hood closes the night with the hose we all needed. Not much to say! Grab it!!!

All in all, set 2 was miles better than set 1. Most of it, despite being great, STILL felt slightly....less than?? Hard to explain. The whole thing has this "this is great but none of these best anything else played this summer" kind of vibe.

Basically, just skip right to set 2 and let it unfold. Terrific flow and set placements. Free>WTU and Mikes Song are essential, but the whole set just plays out so flawlessly like a constructed piece. Major points for that.

Special note to the exceess expectations Punch and the absolute face melter Paug. Hood can come too.

2024-08-29 Commerce City, CO

 8/29/24 Dicks

Set 1

Well hot damn, an opening sequence of 3 songs in 42 minutes?!?!? Dis gon' b gud.

The opening 14 Cities is like a shot out of a gun. Total energy, this one stays in a "classic rock" kind of type 1, but it absolutely slays while doing so. Definitely a highly inspired opener!!

The following 14 minute Disease is kinda strange. The song sounds great and the jam actually avoids type 1 for the most part. Page, Mike and Fish almost immediately steer the jam towards heavier, darker, more psychedelic waters. Those 3 guys are totally in sync. Trey is hesitant tonight though. Was he having tech issues? It almost sounds that way. In the end, this is definitely cool and totally preferable to another boring "type 1 that doesn't impress" version. Its a bit too "undercooked" feeling for me to call it must hear overall, but you definitely should give it at least one good listen.

And then, woah boy, stuff finally gets REAL! We get a nearly 14 minute Ether Edge!!! Who would have thought THIS song had jam potential?! The song itself sounds awkwardly nice as ever, but the jam is like the Dicks 2023 Piper - it just builds and builds and gets hotter and hotter until by the end Trey has completely melted everyones faces and we are all left going "wtf just happenned?". Definitely must hear!!!

Even better, it segues out (im calling that a segue!) into fast Llama. It takes them a bit to adjust tempos but once they do they are off and they turn in a scorching, if not essential version. Always welcome a fast Llama!

The next true must hear of the night is an absolute POWERHOUSE version of Theme! X Factor all over this one! For whatever reason, everything just clicks into place and they deliver one of the absolute finest type 1 readings of recent times. Totally fantastic. GRAB THIS!!

After a properly played and most welcome Sugar Shack, they move into Ocelot. 11 minutes on this sucker, it actually is quite jammed out!! Awesome "full band" jamming on this!! Everyone is being patient with each other, carefully picking their spots and reacting accordingly. And then of course it all crescendoes into an explosive, raging peak finale.Must hear!! This version is super cool!! FREAKING AMAZING VERSION!!!!

A red hot combo of Golgi and Blaze On close the set. Both are great and Blaze On rages, though neither are must hear.

All in all, this was a bit of an oddball set. Cities, Ether, Theme and Ocelot are all must hear for sure. Disease I could flip flop on.  Not the greatest set ever - the top heavy trio of opening songs kinda ruins the flow a little for the rest of it!

This set had "warming up" vibes or something. Really unsure how I even really feel about it. It's a strange one! 

Set 2

Promising start with a slow burn 15 minute Ghost to kick things off. The jam begins with some darkly funky growling and whatnot. Things are feeling tense! Eventually Trey sets a loop and the jam slowly moves into a more ethereal kind of upbeat bliss jam. Instead of peaking out, Trey starts playing with delays and the jam starts that "flying through outer space" kinda thing. Uptempo Fishman, synths and bass bubbling under, Trey all over the place. Slowly again, it just builds and builds and builds until we are friggin charging ahead like a damn steamroller!! Hose alert!!! Peak! Peak! Peak! Peak! Peak! Lets friggin go!!! Rage that sucker!!! Holy crap!!!!

My goodness, that was a GREAT Ghost!!! A little bit of everything, patiently flowing and evolving from section to section. Definitely must hear!

A 9 minute Wave of Hope keeps the heat going. This one sees the jam doing that "Gorge 2021 Chalkdust" thing of just going super chill. Trey is all over and the jam just sounds like its struggling throughout. Definitely not a great one. Just kinda blah and awkward.

And then holy hell they jump into a 19 minute Sigma!!!! The jam quickly dives headfirst into a powerful and funky jam with Trey setting loops, Gordo all over his FX, page pounding that piano....They stay in this Funk Party zone for a loooonnnggg time, thankfully, patiently exploring every last nook and cranny.
------Eventually, Trey begins a rhythm motif on his looper and the jam starts to shift away from the overt funk. The jam just gets heavier and rockier, but they are taking their sweet as time doing so. This is a jam where you dont realize change is even happening until after th fact.
------Finally they arrive in this incredible zone with Gordo on bass fx, Trey using his octave, Fishman killing his kit.....THIS JAM IS FRIGGIN MAGICAL!!! X FACTOR FOR DAYS!!!!
--------And then oh so perfectly they slow down and Trey rips back into Sigma.

Holy crap, that was hands down an all timer Sigma. That jam was BEASTLY. 

And how the hell do we continue after such a monster jam as that Sigma? WITH A 23 GOSH DARN MINUTE PILLOW JETS!!! LETS GO!!!
------The song proceeds as usual until right at the 8 minute mark they DIVE headfirst into this super unique uptempo weirdo kind of funk (I guess?) jam. Loopers going, the jam sounds like you are swirling around some giant vortex or something. Where the hell did they pull this MAGIC from?!?!? What even is this?!
------Slowly, the jam shifts gears into a super laidback kind of space funk groove. Super chill but totally powerful. Over the next few minutes it slowly morphs into a more "latin" kind of slow burn jam with Trey just building his solo more and more with each passing second. ALL HAIL OUR LORD AND SAVIOR X FACTOR MAGIC!!!!!
--------Eventually peaking a bit, Trey unloads and just tears the roof off. The whole band are just bursting at the seams with power!!!
------Around the 20 minute mark the whole jam quiets down majorly and we are in full blown ambient space bliss, straight out of a 1999 jam. They ride this gorgeous section out to a close.....

HOLY MOLY WHAT IN THE LOVE OF CRAP WAS THAT PILLOW JETS!!!! NEW GOAT!!! THAT WAS ONE OF THE GREATEST JAMS OF THE ENTIRE YEAR!!!!! MUST HEAR AT ALL COSTS!!! 

So Pillow Jets winds down and they segue slickly into 2001. Hell, you might as well just count this as an extension of PJ tonight, eh?

Even better is the downright magical Hood that follows. Incredibly triumphant sounding, this one WILL force a smile on your face and goosebumps down your arms. Must hear!!!! Fantastic Hood!!!!! Wow!!!

Raging SANTOS to send us home.

All in all, yet ANOTHER godzilla sized monster of a show! Forget the set 1 highlights, the Ghost, Sigma and Pillow Jets are what you want!! Sigma and Pillow were seriously both "Mexico tier" jams. Both were unbelievable.

Sometimes the most uneven shows seem to have the most ridiculous highlights!!! Unbelievable....that Sigma and PJ....wow. And people rated that show a 3.9?!

2024-08-18 Dover, DE - Mondegreen #4

 Today we wrap up Mondegreen with Night (day!) 4, 8/18/24

Aka, the "oh no storm is coming!" set

Perfunctory versions of Party Time and Axilla begin the set with high energy but zero replay value.

Quickly, things take a turn for the better with Maze. The guys definitely begin to click and its a great reading, if not essential. Page is extra angsty and Trey crushes the shreddy finale.

They keep going up from there with the first must hear of the night, Steam. An absolutely fantastic reading, they jam it to high heavens, definitely stretching it out within the type 1 confines. Absolute fire and power. Must hear!

Martian Monster and ACDC Bag are both red hot type 1 versions, but the next major highlight is Sigma>Rift. Sigma goes into a deep type 2 for a solid couple of minutes and then segues excellently into a ripping rift. Definitely a combo for the highlights compilation!!!!!

Stash is very good tonight, ala Bag and MM, but Ya Mar feels like it has trouble getting off the ground. The guys have a hard time clicking rhythmically and it just doesnt impress.

Yet ANOTHER summer 2024 Timber follows and builds the heat back up. Definite scorching heat on this sucker. Another raging highlight but just a bit too short for its own good.

Bathtub Gin isnt essential but it does build up an excellent head of steam. A definite headbanger worth a listen!

And then... nuclear bomb Izabella!!!! Izabella absolutely destroys - hands down the best piece of music of the entire set so far. MUST HEAR!!!! ESSENTIAL!!!!

Simple is nice and briefly flirts with type 2 before we get Izabellas rival in Golden Age. MUST HEAR!!! 12 MINUTES OF HOSE!!! X factor all over this sucker!!!

The show, and festival conclude with a really killer Fuego. This one is tight, jamming very well while staying "in the box". Just a TERRIFIC all-around kind of version. Id throw this on the compilation as well.

All in all, for a one setter, this was definitely a great listen for the most part. Energy throughout, almost everything felt like it had the potential to go deep even if it wasnt always fully taken advantage of.

Steam, Sigma>Rift, Izabella, Golden Age and that absolute powerhouse Fuego are all truly must hear. Dont avoid this because its only one set - there is a lot to love!!!!

Grading: Exceeds expectations

2024-08-17 Dover, DE - Mondegreen #3

 On to Mondegreen #3!
Dont worry, im gonna sit and do a proper writeup of the secret set. Definitely cant truck review that!

8/17/24 Dover

Set 1

Excellent opening to the show with a classic Mike's Groove. Mikes has extra groove sauce all over it - this one is thick and meaty for sure! The following Hydro and Groove are great as well. None of them are essential, but its a great opening for sure.

The following Theme is a powerhouse with a pretty impressive finale section. Stronger versions this year for sure but still downright excellent.

Blaze On is FANTASTIC! Loaded with excessive wah and keyboard abuse. X Factor all over. MUST HEAR!!!

And they immediately blow that right out of the water with a 13 minute, type 2, X Factor Jiboo!!! When is the last time Jibboo ACTUALLY went full blown type 2?!?!?! This version is insane - the regular jamming gives way to a slow descent into a dark and angry kind of menacingly angsty zone for several glorious minutes. This morphs into space bliss before Trey returns to the song. But then, he decides for a reprisal dip into the jam waters and you get a "bonus" jam just when you think its all coming to a close!!!! AMAZING!!! MUST HEAR!!!! GET THIS NOW!!!!

AND 46 DAYS IS EVEN BETTER!!!!! 46 Days is EXTREMELY dark and swampy tonight - robo bullfrog in full effect, this version sounding like one of those JFAT versions from 2021!!! If you love robo and crazy FX, cat samples, bass craziness...THIS IS THE VERSION FROM YOU!!! Holy crap this is amazing!!!!

The set concludes with solid versions of Evolve, Meatstick and Bowie

All in all, this was easily the least impressive set of the festival so far - by a wide margin. Its all good, but you only NEED Blaze On, Jibboo and 46 Days. And you VERY MUCH need those essential pieces of music! 

Set 2

Excellent opening to set 2 with a strong 2001 into an excellently jammed Oblivion. Borderline must hear, Oblivion just rips tonight. Good stuff.

And into a 19 minute Disease we go! AND HOLY MOTHER OF X FACTOR MAGIC THIS DISEASE IS EFFING INCREDIBLE!!!! After an appropriate amount of type 1, they shift quickly into a speedy, pulsing delay jam. From here they proceed to explore multiple different sections and rhythms culminating in one of the most headbanging, mindblowing peaks of the year. 19 minutes of MAGIC. Now THAT is what a 19 minute Disease is supposed to sound like! ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL!!! HOLY SMOKES!!!!

And from there its a 19 minute Tweezer! Tweezer is just as great as Disease, starting early with filthy mcnasty and crowd participation jamming, going into an inspired "tropical bliss" section and EXPLODING to an epic finale just like Disease. A+ all around. MUST HEAR!!! ALL HAIL X FACTOR MAGIC!!!

And now we get a 16 minute Scents?! Scents is utterly ridiculous, playing out like a 2004 oxy jam or something. The ENTIRE jam is spent slowly crafting a darkly robotic kind of hazy soundscape full of FX and whatnot. Very "avant garde" for lack of a better term. X FACTOR MAGIC THREEPEAT!!! CRAZY!!!

After a hot Boogie On we get a smoking Carini! Yet another definite must hear, this one is nuclear bomb hose city. Essential!!!

Number Line isnt anything amazing tonight but thankfully the YEM is. Rough compositionally, the jam rages hard. Maybe not must hear, but its standard excellent.

Tweeprize and we are out.

All in all, another incredible show. Id say the 4.5 rating on .NET is too high - this felt more like a 4.1 or 4.2 or something. Jibboo, 46 Day, Blaze On, Disease, Tweezer, Scents and Carini are all MUST HEAR.

The rest of the show varies from "standard excellent" to "average but good". There is nothing bad at all but the highlights stuck out to me. Easily the "least" of the 3 shows so far but STILL probably in the top 10 or 13 of the year!!! Hot damn!

2024-08-16 Dover, DE - Mondegreen #2, Secret Set

 Finally reviewing the Mondegreen secret set properly right now. I've heard/seen it before when it happenned and then played it earlier this week when I played 8/16/24, but obviously this ain't something I can just dictate notes about on the fly in the truck

Anywho, on we go!

8/16/24 Dover, Mondegreen

Secret Set, 50 minutes.

-------The secret set begins with a slow fade in of acoustic guitar picking and upbeat background synths. This continues for a good long while, slow acoustic strumming and picking while rain/waterfall sounds lay an ambient backdrop behind it all. Around 3:30, Trey moves over to electric for the first time, and the jam suddenly becomes darkly intense, Page's synth in the background like a siren's warning call. Thankfully, Trey jumps back to acoustic and breaks us out of the impending darkness with more acoustic strumming and we return to pleasant pastures.
--------Sticking to acoustic, the jam begins to get a slightly "acoustic Zeppelin" feel about it. Trey has set a background loop and Fishman is nowhere to be found for the time being. Around 7 minutes, the rainstorm intensifies. Trey moves effortlessly back and forth from acoustic to electric, setting loops, doing little fills, all while Page inserts little synth wash "bursts" beneath, poking in and out of the jam. By 9 minutes, Fishman is still AWOL. The jam is continuing as stated, except now Trey is playing acoustic while - to my ears - manipulating his electric guitar loops underneath. Very cool textural work!!! Definitely a SOUNDSCAPE! Atriums, anyone?
-------- All of a sudden, right around 9:45, Trey starts playing around with his delay pedal (I have one, I KNOW those sounds, lol) and the jam immediately takes a turn for very dark waters. Pouring rain beneath it all, Trey goes back to the acoustic while the rest of the soundscape lingers in the dark and tense kind of area. Still no Fishman! FINALLY, at the 11:45 mark, Fishman enters the jam amongst a wash of cymbals!! Trey moves over to electric and we get a burst of darkly psychedelic guitar playing/soloing. At 12:30 a slow and powerful rhythm finally emerges and we are off to the races!!!
---------So, the jam immediately begins in that "Egg In a Hole", slow-doom-march kind of feel. Extremely dark and heavy. Total "No Quarter" vibes. Trey just soloing away, Page pounding out the piano, Gordo holding it down tight, Fishman smashing those cymbals. By about 14:30, this "down with the ship" jam is in full swing as if this is 25 minutes into a certain massive AC/DC Bag from New Years or approaching the Mexico Chalkdust. HOLY CRAP LETS GET IT!!! SHRED THAT SUCKER!!! Now this is what I'm talkin about!!!!
-----Around 16:30, the overt explosion gives way to a heavier, groovier kind of "swirling down the toilet bowl" type of jam. Holy mother of Satan, this is one of the HEAVIEST things I've ever heard Phish unleash. Holy crap, cue the headbanging everyone. Raise your devil horns!!! Around 17:30, in this cataclysmic Storm of the Century jam, Trey sets some wacky robo loopers and the jam veers totally off course into "deconstruction" land. All hail our type 2 robot overlords!!! Gordo refuses to let the darkness leave and the jam sounds like a star imploding upon itself. WELCOME TO THE MIAMI 1989 DARK STAR, BOYS AND GIRLS!!!!! If you know, you know....
------- Holy moly........After getting our faces pummeled into the ground for the last 8 minutes, the insanity breaks and Trey returns to more folksy Zeppelin acoustic strumming while Fishman takes a breather and the rainstorm returns (did it leave? Or was it just lost behind the hurricane?!). Cool textural synths from Page and upbeat bass lines from Gordo. Welcome to the massage parlor!
-----But not for long! Around 21:45 Trey moves back to electric and they slowly begin to reawaken Godzilla from his slumber once more. Some Caspian-esque jamming ensues so I guess it's not off the deep end just yet after all! This "Prince Caspian in a dream" jam goes on for quite a while. An excellent section of music!!!! Very ethereal and uplifting, like floating serenely on a cloud while the guys jam out behind you. Extremely cool.
-----Around the 25 minute mark, Trey starts "motifing" his way out of this section a little bit. 2021-style Page synths enter the picture and the jam begins a slow build skyward towards the heavens. Wow. Talk about yer high quality slow build over here! Finally at 27 minutes, the synths give way to piano and the jam begins to, again, sloooowwwwllllyyy work its way sideways, if you will. Trey moves back to acoustic, sets a strumming loop and then jumps back to electric (I think?). We are still in "Caspian Dream Land", but it's definitely going type 2 out of it (wait, is this type 3 jamming?! A type 2 jam out of a type 2 jam?!) This LONG ASS "Caspian" jam subtly shifts again around the 32 minute mark into more of your typical "Loving Cup classic rock" kind of rock and roll jam. Lots of loops, Page pounding the piano, Trey just bending notes like his life depends on it, etc.
-----And then, outta friggin nowhere, at the 35 minute mark they shift on a dime into a blazing through outer space, synth laded, spazz out kind of jam. Super uptempo, Trey setting loops again, Fishman rattling those cymbals and going nuts on the kit. This is one of those "runaway spaceship" sounding jams once more. Pounding and filthy Gordo bass. Around 37 minutes, the jam begins to fight amongst itself - screeching sound effects in the background and crazy spastic drumming undercut by Trey's folksy acoustic guitar strumming. ADHD jamming?!!?! Yo, this is totally unique for sure!!! Around 39:30, they enter a "peak to the sky" hose explosion kind of zone. This rocket ride is out of control!!!!!!! HOLY CRAP BRACE FOR IMPACT!!!
----However, at 40:45, they avoid impact and rewind the "build" back a couple minutes as everyone latches on to a new riff/motif all together. It's like they decided to have a 2nd go at the same section or something. Very cool! Around 42:10, Trey begins his "David Bowie peak swirls" and the whole thing just EXPLODES into maybe the greatest hose explosion peak of a year with many great ones!!! Just absolute and utter annihilation!!!!! And then, abruptly, they pull the rug out from under it (definitely way too soon!) and the jam shifts back into a midtempo-yet-heavy kind of stomping rock vibe. From here they go into a "Loving Cup classic rock" jam, just absolutely slaying.
----Around the 48 minute mark, this raging rock jam finally collapses in upon itself amid a lengthy and noisy wash of cymbals, whammy pedal abuse and alien synths, etc. It is time for the beast to slumber once more.....


All in all....my god. What a mother effing jam. I wish it went more "out there" at times, but that's nitpicking as this thing is an absolute BEAST. Top 5 jam of the year? Maybe top 3? I really think its THAT good. It's unique, it flows like a mother, and you'll never have 50 minutes fly by faster than listening to this sucker.

They came to crush, and crush they did. How long will it take Delaware to recover from the fallout? Because they just dropped a nuclear friggin bomb on Dover......

2024-08-16 Dover, DE - Mondegreen #2

 8/16/24 Dover - Mondegreen #2

Set 1

The set gets off to an interesting start with a Bouncing opener! This actually works great, feeling more like an overture or into to the show rather than the "actual" opener. Very cool.

Kill Devil Falls immediately yanks us awake, however. A very interesting version, they take this one for a RIDE!! Not quite the robot hellscape of Light from 8/15, it still follows the same basic course, quickly deviating and totally going sideways for its duration. Relaxingly chaotic!!! Type 2 all the way, baby!! I dont know if Id call it must hear but is absolutely unique as hell and demands a jam chart entry!! Cool stuff!!!

The fun keeps going with a powerhouse Peaches!! The crowd roars approval and the boys burn it down. Awesome version for sure!!!

Free is really good but nothing special overall. Great little standard version with a little more funk than usual.

The first true must hear big boy of the night is Divided Sky. An absolutely inspired version, there is extra mustard all over this sucker. Played flawlessly, it just has that extra specialness about it. In a Gamehendge bereft summer, this just feels fresh!! Grab this sucker!!!

Small steps forward with set as me move into a very, very nice Tube. Only 7 minutes, but the jamming is great. Trey makes wonderful use of the whale siren loop and his delay pedals. Awesome stuff. Throw this on the highlights list as well. The funkiness slowly builds into a sizzling heat and they proceed to just tear our damn faces off. Definitely must hear! Sometimes the small treasures are the best treasures!!!! This smoked!!!

A really, really, extra excellent Mountains gives us a quick breather. Im burnt out on the song but this version definitely made me take notice. Definitely must hear!!! 10 outta friggin 10. This version was downright magical!!!!

Following Mountains, we get what may be the Reba of the year and one of the finest of this whole period of Phish!! Downright flawlessly played and tight like its 1995, it builds to the typical peak, but this one is so good it will give you goosebumps. Definitely must hear! An incredible reading!!!

Then, I was deflated when they moved into Twist (please shelve this for a while, im so done with 8 minute Twists!). However, this one is totally different to the laid back version from Bethel. This one just about goes type 2 and totally reaches a crazy rock and roll energy! This deserves a damn jam chart!!! Must hear? Probably. It's definitely refreshing!!!!

The set closes with a typically facemelting C Zero.

All in all, this set felt like a strange step down from night one for reasons I cant really place. Divided Sky, Mountains and Reba are all essential, while Tube, Twist, Peaches and KDF all deserve major mention.

Definitely a great set but I think it was perhaps a bit too "all over the place", if you will. 

Set 2

And the 2nd set opens surprisingly with an 11 minute My Friend! MyFr is a powerhouse. They dont really take it dark, but the rock it to hell and back.

Just as the jam fizzles out, they launch into a crushing No Men. This one ragers hotter than a supernova, eventually spending a few minutes in absolutely glorious Type 2 "screaming through robo space" land. This kicks SO MUCH ASS!!! X FACTOR ALL OVER!!! THIS WAS SPECTACULAR!! IF THIS DOESNT HAVE YOU HEADBANGING THEN YOU HAVE ISSUES!!!

And just as that jam reaches a natual apex, they launch into a 15 minute Ruby Waves. And holy moly this Ruby is a BEAST!!!! Super powerful, they rage hard until morphing into a funky kind of tropical island jam, or something. Very Twist like. They explore this far and wide until slowly things get dark and the jam devolves into a damn Melt jam!! Dark and broken and screwed up. Just fantastic. Total X Factor on this one. Essential!!

And out of the ashes of Ruby comes Pillow Jets. And oh my sweet Icculus. Top 5 or 10 jam of the summer right here. Holy mother of F......So PJ itself just annihilates, extra sauce all over. Then the jam suddenly moves into a crazy uptempo jam and we get ANOTHER PJ>Your Pet Cat pairing!!! The YPC back into Ruby is utterly DEVASTATING. Outer Space X Factor Dance Party gone wild!!!!! If must hear had a name, its the 8/16 PJ>YPC>RW. An absolutely masterpiece of jamming in league with the best of any era of Phish!!

WHAT ARE YOU DOING JUST SITTING THERE?!?!?! GO THROW IT ON AND LOSE YOUR MIND!!!!!

A nice Ghost keeps things moving. Its an excellent reading but stays in the "upbeat bliss rock" zone. Still, an honestly great version regardless. Really awesome outro with Page and Trey linking up. The outro jam really builds a strong head of steam and they shift flawlessly into a No Men reprise to close this psychedelic sandwich of ridiculousness. Im on the fence about calling that Ghost essential but it was definitely a perfectly fitting component of the set!!!!

Oh my effing god you guys. The Dead had their various sandwiches, but Phish just added a new all timer sandwich to the list......

AND NOW LETS JUMP INTO FLUFFHEAD!

As with Reba, Fluffhead is essential. Yet another dang near flawless reading from the boys. Not much to say. Fantastic.

The Harry Hood into First Tube is so great I'm not even bothering to say how so. Hood is, again, another must hear.....

All in all..... what do you say when you run out of things to say?!?!?! Set 1 was great but felt a bit "lesser" to me for whatever reason.

Set 2 was an absolute mother effing monster. Aside from MyFe, id say basically the entirety of set 2 and the Hood are must hear. For as incredible as night 1 was, this 2nd set was crazy, inspired and totally cohesive in the best way.

Juggernaut supreme.

Yea, I understand the 4.5 rating now...

 

2024-08-15 Dover, DE - Mondegreen #1

 8/15/24 Dover

WELCOME TO MONDEGREEN!

Set 1

The show opens with a spectacular Moma Dance. 13+ minutes and very exploratory, featuring several different sections. Not quite type 2, but definitely far into type 1.5, if you will. Wow!! Definitely must hear!!!

After a ripping BOTT, we a get a surprise 20 minute Wolfman!!! Longest Wolfman since 2009, no??!! This one goes deep into Type 2 and quickly at that. X Factor Magic all the way, this is MUST HEAR;!!! Terrific version, although maybe a little too "in the box", but thats nitpicking. Essential listening!

Next up we get a smokeshow Funky B followed by a stellar Roggae. Grab both!!!

Nevermind, forget those!!!

After a super fun NICU, we get a 15 minute, full blown type 2, NUCLEAR BOMB Wave of Hope! Now THIS was the best version since Mexico! Absolutely extraordinary, this is a damn 100/10 for me. Holy mother of Jesus this Wave is a rampaging monster!!!

The following 15 minute Sand is nearly as impressive. Very different from the Bethel masterpiece, this version is very laid back and groovy. Trey is just playing with his whale siren and loops, doing textural stuff while Gordo and Page do the heavy lifting. Then in the last part Page begins a motif that Trey slowly builds upon. They take several minutes slowly building to an incredible, face melting, world crushing climax peak. Incredible!!!

Damn!!!

All in all, set 1 was a massive success!! Not a single low point and EVERYTHING had energy out the wazoo. Moma, Wolf, Wave and Sand are all X Factor must hear version up with the finest music of 2024.

And the rest just plain kicked butt  

Set 2

The 2nd set opens with...wait for it.....a 25 friggin minute WGTYM. Yup!! And it is sick!!! Multiple sections and energy out the wazoo. Definitely must hear. However, I gotta say, I think im gonna kill Fishman. There were MULTIPLE times where the jam was begging to stretch and move but Fish kept on denying any tempo/rhythm changes. It was maddening!!! Someone take away that damn ride cymbal so he stops the never ending barage of "ratatatat"!!!! Im so sick of it!!

Change the tempo! Play with the beat! ANYTHING but that damn ride/snare combo!!! Im so sick of jams being "stuck" because he wont play something else!! AAAAARRERGFGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!

Vent over, we do get an incredible and massive peak finale that is worth waiting for, but just as it is moving into legit type 2 strangeness afterwards, Trey moves us into a lukewarm yet still pretty exploratory Chalkdust. Great stuff, but needed more heat!!

And perfectly out of the Chalkdust we slide into Light. Light is utterly RIDICULOUS, spendin most of its jam totally deconstructing itself into a dark and menacing robot vortex hellscape. Like, how?! That was LIGHT! Not "Dark"!!!! Must hear!!!!!

And the hits keep coming with a 15 minute Caspian. The song has been on an utter tear since 2023 and this one, honest to god, might just be the best. May all behold the glory and majesty that is KING CASPIAN!!!!! Raging hotter than the sun exploding in THE peak of the night, only to drop into a legit funky type 2 for a while just to build back out to a close. X Factor Magic times 20. Hear at all costs!!!

And just when the set seems done, they LAUNCH like whiplash into my new contender for hottest Crosseyed ever played (just keep getting hotter!!!!!). Complete and total destruction of the nuclear variety. Do NOT miss this!

After a much needed Lonely Trip to cool us down, another banger closes the set. A 15 minute (timing of the night!) smashes us hard, all majestically triumphant. Truly an excellent reading, in the wake of what surrounds it, maybe its not must hear, but it is EXCELLENT regardless.

Great encore of a ripping Possum into a terrific and measured Slave. Not much to say - this is a GREAT one. Throw this in the must hear pile!

All in all, holy mother of OVERKILL!!! This show and set was almost TOO MUCH!!! Possibly dethroning Bethel #1 from its lofty perch, this show is definitely a monster classic of a gig.
There was a TON of jamming! Nearly every song seemed to get an extended treatment!!!

For set 2, obviously the WGTYM into Chalkdust are must hear (I definitely need more time with those - they were great but irritated me at times...) and the Light and Caspian are both essential as well. And that Slave, yo....

Monster gig all around.And that Wave in set one really is THAT amazing. What a day we live in where the mega jam is actually one of the "weakest" of the whole show!! Hot damn!!

2024-08-11 Bethel, NY

 8/11/24 Bethel

Set 1

After an explosive INNYLTB opener (thank god its back!), we immediately dive into a fantastic 46 Days. 46 Days isnt dark tonight. Instead its peaky and majestic. Pretty standard bliss rock but still great.

But then, hold on to your hats because we get a massive 19 minute Gin!!!!!! Gin is total X Factor magic! Highly inspired, it quickly goes into a terrific deep space psych area, very unique and strange. Somehow they move from that into peak-bliss, raging like night 2s KDF before swiftly moving, yet again, into a really killer, speed-funk section!!! Following that, they burn the damn house down with the longest rage explosion this side of the 12/30/23 Life Saving Gun!

Dude, this Gin is TERRIFIC!!! X FACTOR ALL OVER THIS BAD BOY!!!! Holy crap lets go!!!

Shows over, pack it up, nothing more to see here!!!!

And then....FIKUS. WHAT IS GOING ON?!?!?! Dude! Wtf!!! And its not a tease - they actually play the whole song proper!!

Theme reaches epic heights tonight. Not quite must hear but there is definitely extra sauce all over! Sky high peakage!!!

Timber on the other hand, IS must hear!!! A slow burn face melter, this one just crushes.

Same goes for Human Nature. Man, this song just KILLS!!! PLEASE PLAY IT MORE!!! I BEG!!! GIVE ME THAT 30 MIN JAM LURKING WITHIN!!!

Limb By Limb is absolutely must hear as well. Total X Factor all over. Just an insane version!!

After an unexpected Axilla 1, the set rages to a close with an A+ Sigma.

All in all, I thought last nights first set was great, but this was like one heavy hitter after another!!! A FANTASTIC ASS KICKING SET!!!! THAT GIN!!! THAT LIMB!!! THAT FIKUS!!!
Id say Gin, Limb, Human, Fikus, Timber and possibly even Sigma are all MUST HEAR!!!

WOW!  

 Set 2

The 2nd set opens with a perfectly played Buried Alive. Super refreshing! When was the last time it didnt open the show?!?!

Immediately after we get a massive, masterpiece of a jam - a 21 minute ACDC Bag!!! Around the 10 minute mark it shifts into a crazy awesome "screaming through outer space" section where Trey just builds on this sick motif, loopers and synths abound. Eventually they slow it down for a nice bliss rock section before the jam get dark and wacky. FX everywhere. Gordo crushing. And they just blow our minds to its conclusion.

Complete and utter X Factor Magic. A Mexico-tier jam. My god!

And PERFECTLY, they lead us out of the ashes of Bag and into a 16 minute Fuego! A+++ on set construction, boys!! Really good version if not essential. It does funky trop rock for a good long time before going "askew" and sliding to a close

The following Golden Age is total X Factor though!!! A terrific version, this one gets pulled in 20 different directions. They jam the F out of it! Must hear!!

After a short Simple interlude, LSG comes to kill. LSG is total X Factor, going into a wonderful type 2 jam where Trey is going nuts with delays atop Pages synths. Memories of 2021 for sure. Wicked must hear, yo.

Harry Hood ends the set proper. Yet another terrific version, maybe a hair below must hear, but definitely still an EXCELLENT Hood!!!

Nice encore of ALBTD into a hot SANTOS.

All in all, set 2 friggin crushed!!! Bag, Golden Age and LSG are all totally must hear with special mention to Fuego and Hood. This show was an absolute MONSTER!!! How crazy to think night 1 was even crazier!!!!!

On to Mondegreen!!!!

2024-08-10 Bethel, NY

 A week later and we are on to 8/10/24, Bethel 2

Set 1

The show opens with a typically excellent BOTT. Excellent but inessential. Same for the following Sample. High energy and rocking but nothing special.

Thankfully the set pretty much goes straight upwards after these 2!!

We get a FANTASTIC Hey Stranger tonight. A+ all around, this goes on the must hear list.

Even better, we get a shockingly well played Dinner and a Movie outta friggin nowhere! Trey pretty much nails his parts and this is easily the best 3.0 version in years, hands down.

Halleys is weird tonight. It SMOKES and rocks like a mother, but they stumble awkwardly to a close with no jam!

Thankfully, they immediately launch into Sand. And, woah boy, this mother effing Sand. HOLY MOTHER OF X FACTOR MAGIC WHY IS THIS SO INCREDIBLE!!!! PEAK AFTER PEAK AFTER PEAK AFTER PEAK!!! Kinda psychedelic, this version EXPLODES beyond the usual hot Sands we are used to. Insane ...

A wonderfully laid back Gumbo follows abd gives us a quick break. Really great version, borderline must hear.

And then into Maze to kick our asses all over again!!!! Maze is typically destructive. Nothing must hear but terrific all the same.

After a flawless Weigh, we get the jam of the set. A 14 minute Cities featuring a few different sections and styles. X Factor all over this. Must hear!!!

A terrific Antelope closes the set. The lengthy intro jam is really nice and chill and then it explodes and Trey kills us all. Probably must hear.

All in all, I freakin LOVED this set!!! SO MUCH ENERGY!!! The playing was very tight and Trey was melting faces left and right tonight.

Hey Stranger, Dinner, THAT Sand, THAT Cities and probably Antelope are all MUST HEAR!!!!  

Set 2

A high energy Wilson is a refreshing opener. They follow that with a super disappointing 18 minute Disease that does nothing and goes nowhere...sigh ...

After a great little Waves (that segue!!!!) we go into a mediocre Twist to seal the crap deal ... Actually, it IS excellent, but once youve heard 1 eight minute Twist youve heard em all, ya know what I mean? Ill give it to em though. That was a FANTASTIC version overall. Probably must hear .....

They follow that with maybe the jam of the night!! A 17 minute KDF that spends most of its time in synthy looper land exploring the cosmos. Absolutely spectacular version, definitely MUST HEAR. X Factor all over this sucker!!!!

After a really nice Sea of Stars and an excellent "peak explosion" Numberline, the set concludes with a MELT YOUR FRIGGIN FACE OFF Ghost into Tweeprise. Ghost is must hear. Total annihilation!

Inspired encore of Velvet Sea into a great Runaway Jim!!

All in all, KDF, Twist and Ghost are what you need from this set. Total energy throughout, it just lacked flow and had a rough start with that waste of a Disease.mA killer show still, this is deserving of a 4.1 or so, not the paltry 3.7 on .NET.

Great stuff!!!

2024-08-09 Bethel, NY - SHOW OF THE SUMMER!!!!

 Holy hell, after month long break I finally get to continue 2024 today. Ive been so dying to get to the Bethel run!!

The show gets off to a wonderful start with an unexpected First Tube!! Really great version friggin LOADED with energy! Awesome!

And they immediately follow that with.... a nearly 15 minute, nuclear -friggin-bomb No Men!!! This sucker is MUST HEAR all day!!! It absolutely blazes, jamming its way to a laid back bliss zone before they kick up the heat again to finish. The final peak explosion section is one of the most "OHMYFRIGGINGODTHISISINCREDIBLE!!!!!" things Ive heard out of 2024. That is saying A LOT!

As with First Tube, a refreshingly placed Cavern keeps the energy going. Great little version.

But then, wait for it, in slot 4 comes....an 18 minute My Friend My Friend. And yes, my friends (pun absolutely intended!), this sucker is a monster. Around the 9 minute mark they slide oh so smoothly into a groovy kind of heavy funk jam. Welcome to type 2, boys and girls! This thing absolutely COOKS!! This thing is the Groove Machine Supreme!!!! Thankfully they stay put in this zone for a good, long time. Eventually Trey starts soloing atop everyone and the whole thing just starts to levitate, Page answering his soloing back on the keys. This sick funk jam lasts to about 14:30. From there it begins to get a little more "abstract", briefly flirting with deconstruction before they all lock in together on an upbeat groove and ride that sucker to the finish line....

X FACTOR MAGIC!!! MUST HEAR!!!! ALL TIMER VERSION RIGHT THERE AND ONE OF THE BEST JAMS OF THE YEAR, HANDS DOWN!!!!!!!! 

After Trey acknowledges the ridiculousness of the jam just unleashed, they give us a great little Bug to cool us down. Great set flow/construction with that choice! Really, really strong version. Not essential but worth a shout out!

And following up with Julius, everyone probably thought "oh no, this will be a short set". Thankfully that is not the case and this Julius is just another steamroller version is a set chock full of fiery heat. Page lets it rip on this sucker and the whole thing is just a wonderful little high energy affair. Great stuff!

Following in tonights vein of songs in unusual slots, we get a nicely grooved out 2001 next. This is a really, really good version! Extra mustard all over - the boys are LOCKED IN and the playing is creative and energetic. Im gonna give this a definite must hear! This thing smokes!!!

Continuing on with its tear since 2023, a ripping Taste follows. Super tight sounding rhythmically - once again, they are locked in tight!!! Total X Factor all over this bad boy. Pages piano solo crushes, Trey has tasty fills out the wazoo, the whole thing is played as good as the album version. This is a friggin FANTASTIC version of Taste!!! Absolutely must hear!!!!

And with that, the set finally comes to its actual conclusion with a spectacularly hot Character Zero. Just blazing. Maybe not must hear but it is total facemelting regardless!

All in all...HOLY CRAP THIS SET FRIGGIN KICKED MY TAIL!!! ABSOLUTELY KILLER FROM START TO FINISH!!!!

No Men, MyFe, 2001 and Taste were all 10,000 percent must hear. Pure X Factor awesomeness all day.

And the rest of the set was an exercise in refreshing song placement and selection with dang near all of it loaded with endless fire and energy.

This was a tippy top tier first set. Hands down. Wow.  

Set 2

Oh no, the set is opening with The Wedge. I love the song but maintain it should pretty much never leave first sets, though for some reason usually appears late in a second, and inexplicably OPENS the dang 2nd set tonight. Really good version but this was the first mistep of the show, imo.

Points for continuing to be creative with the set placements though!

In classic Phish manner, they immediately right their wrong and proceed to launch into a dang 24 minute Tweezer! Lets go!!!!!
----The first section sees them diving into laid back night time kind of chill grooveout. Very rhythmic. Trey picking his spots to jump in and out.
----Eventually Trey leads them into a more ethereal and uplifting kind of bliss section.
----Thankfully this doesn't last long and quickly Trey has set a loop and its off to robo noise and deconstructionville!
--- And just as soon as that section arrived they transition smoothly back out into good old fashioned rock and roll jamming.
Dang, this Tweezer is getting taken for a ride!
----They move right back out again and into another more groovy and slightly weird area. Very rhythmic, Trey with the robo octave goin (or whatever that effect is). They are just raging up a storm - listen to EVERYONE playing off of each other so flawlessly!!
----They are listening to each other, big time. This jam just wont stop morphing! There have been 10 different sections, each one just FLOWING so unbelievably smoothly into the next!!
From there, they proceed to reach "peak building finale section" time and rage it to a close.

X Factor strikes again! That was a terrific Tweezer hands down! Too "ADHD" for me with the constant switching from section to section, but it was all done SO PERFECTLY that I cant really complain!!

Of course this is must hear, what are you, dumb?

Golly!  

So that epic Tweezer ragefest mcgee concludes and Trey leads us into a 13 minute Pillow Jets. Honestly, this just might be my favorite since the debut!!! Its total face melting destruction, taken to Split Open and Melt levels of gnarly robo deconstruction!!!! Holy crap run for your life!!! The dying robo devil is here to take our souls!!!!! X FACTOR ALL FRIGGIN DAY!!!

And then....oh boy...THEY LAUNCH INTO A LIGHTSPEED TYPE 2 DANCE PARTY!!! WTF IS GOING ON?!?! THIS IS AMAZING!!!! HOLY CRAP WHERE DID THEY PULL THIS JAM FROM?!?!? EVERYBODY CONJURE THAT THUNDER, BABY!!!!

Holy smokes. The boys are positively INSPIRED tonight!!!!!!!!!! My goodness!!! This was insane!!!!

Now THAT was the GOAT Pillow Jets. Hands down. You have to hear this to believe it. That was some 1.0 level unpredictability. Oh my freaking god.... 

So that Pillow Jets insanity reaches a natural conclusion point and Trey leads them perfectly back into a Tweezer jam again. Am I hearing Manteca jamming? And even in this little 3 minute jam, they keep the inspiration going, taking it deep into a cool night time zone with Trey motifing all over the place. Fantastic!!!!

...and into Piper they slide!! Finally a damn Piper transition that didnt feel like a ripcord!!! And Piper is 15 minutes tonight!!! It rages nice and hot as usual until things get weird around 8 minutes in.
----Trey sets a loop and its off to the races!!! The jam takes on a really dark and menacing kind of MyFe vibe, if you will. They build a sonic soundscape - Page on watery keys in the back while Trey rhythmically keeps a vamp going. Fishman, of course, going banana sandwich on the kit back there.
----Trey continues his "Cinnamon Girl" one-note solo until somewhere around 11 minutes they start to break free of the spastic flailing around. Fishman is playing around with the beat a lot, thank god.
----This eventually builds back into a ridiculous, flaming hot finale section to send us on our way out. And we even get a minute of Tweezer jamming tacked on the end!!!
-This jam sounds like a runaway spaceship or something. Another essential piece of music from this epic show. Hot damn!!!!! May we thank the Conjurers of Thunder for continuing to bless us with the X Factor Magic!!!!

Finally getting the cooldown we need, they move into Shine a Light. And my god, what a perfectly fitting song and placement. It fits soooooooooo good out of that Piper! Great version!!!

And what a perfect way to end the set proper but with a dang 12 minute, type 2 Chalkdust!!! The song sounds great and the jam begins by immediately going into that "late night robo" vibe we have heard throughout the show. Page and Trey quickly link up for a really cool descending melodic moti that leads them into a lengthy "King Crimson" kind of upbeat section. Sick. And from there they rage it all back out to a close....another essential piece of music!!!! THAT PEAK FINALE IS MOTHER FRIGGIN EXTRAORDINARY!!! BEST CHALKDUST SINCE MEXICO HOLY MOTHER OF CRAP!!!!!

The highly inspired encore consists of awesome versions of BBFCFM, a surprise insanely killer Jibboo and the perennial favorite More to close. All are worth your time

All in all...what the hell was this show?! This felt like a Mexico gig or something!! Hands down THE show of the summer so far and its not close.

Tweezer>PJ>Piper and Chalkdust and Jibboo were all essential pieces of music

10/10. Its hard to picture how this show could have possibly been any more extraordinary.....

2024-08-07 Grand Rapids, MI - with Billy Strings

 Set 1

The show opens with a damn BANG tonight!!! My Soul and Undermind tear th roof off and the 16 minute Oblivion absolutely annihilates!!! I guess Billy kicked them into high gear!

HOLY CRAP THIS OBLIVION IS UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! NUCLEAR BOMB ROCK AND ROLL DESTRUCTION!!! LETS FRIGGIN GO!!! X FACTOR FOR DAYS!!!!

Seriously, that was one of the finest versions ever played. Ridiculous.....

Up next is a gorgeous Driver. Pages piano solo is wonderful. This is REALLY great and definitely on the must hear list.

555 is high energy as hell but doesnt really click til the raging finale. Definitely not bad in any way but not essential either.

Birds of a Feather follows the template set by My Soul and Undermind. Its short, blazing hot, and to the effing point. Not exactly essential in the grand scheme of things, but it crushes you while its here, ya dig? Killer. Give this the "underdog" award or something. It absolutely smokes!

Ether Edge continues its recent upwards evolution with another practically jammed version. Absolutely killer. It builds and builds before turning into interesting spacey kind of bliss rock.
Definitely must hear. Massive potential with sucker. Its begging to just burst open one day!!

Unfortunately, Trey kinda ripcords us outta the jam. Fortunately, its for Its Ice. Even better, it sounds GREAT tonight. Trey perfectly nails his parts, its played at a good tempo and the whole thing sounds like a shockingly well oiled machine. Man, 2023-2024 has been the best period for Its Ice since probably the 90s. PRACTICE PAYS OFF!!!!
Screw it, its so well played I'm calling it must hear. A+++++

This excellent set concludes with the nuclear bomb duo of About to Run into Walls. Predictably, both are absolute smokeshows. Not much to say. They both annihilated. Period. About to Run is totally must hear. Just total annihilation on that. And Walls is full tilt wah drenched nuclear bomb annihilation.

HOLY MOTHER OF SATAN THIS IS THE HOTTEST WALLS IN YEARS. INSANE!!!!!! WHERE DID THEY PULL THIS FROM?!?!

All in all, this was terrific first set. SUPER HIGH ENERGY!!! Oblivion, Ether and Ice, Run and Walls are must hear, while My Soul, Undermind and Birds all absolutely blaze. Night 1 probably had the "better" overall set, but hot damn there is nothing wrong with this. Its a barnburner, facemelter kind of set.

JUST THE KIND OF SET I NEEDED THIS MORNING!!! BANG YOUR HEAD!!! LETS GO!!!!!   

Set 2

The 2nd set opens with a solidly standard SANTOS before a terrific 13 minute Wave. Wave goes deep into heavenly bliss looper land before finally robowahing to a conclusion. Killer version. Probably must hear!!

And into an absolutely glorious type 1 Caspian. Terrific segue outta nowhere as well! Extra mustard all over this one! Id call this must hear.

From there we go into a terrific 12 minute Light. MUST HEAR! X FACTOR FOR DAYS!!! The jam immediately goes into darkness and they proceed to basically deconstruct the song into some robo fx sonic hellscape like its summer 2021 again. Pure type 2 all the way. Serious type 2!! Must hear!!

After the Phish portion concludes with a ripping Loving Cup, they bring Billy back out for the Phish debut of Whats Going Through Your Mind!!!! Sick on all levels, the outro jam is pure guitar histrionics.

Immediately they top that with an unbelievably mind blowing Wolfman>DDHVL combo.

Wolfman sounds like an incredible laid back southern rock kind of jam. Wolf as played by the Allmans?! Trey and Billy just egging each other on to more and more extreme ripping heights. At one point they both hit a "Divided Sky" note and hold it - TOGETHER - for what has to be a solid minute or more. My god. This Wolf is pure insanity. X Factor Magic for days.

BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!!!

Shockingly, Wolf drops into a totally unexpected bluesy darkness. Here comes type 2!!! Even more ridiculous is that Trey lays DDHVL atop the bluesy swamp murk basically giving us a dark blues version if the song!!! What in the love of F..... Billy pushes this one over the edge and straighr into the lava....this is a serious contender for the greatest faceMELTING jam I have ever heard in my life. This is just PURE INSANITY!!!!! MUST HEAR MUST HEAR MUST HEAR FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR FIRSTBORN!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thankfully they give us time to recouperate with a gorgeous version of Evolve. Stunning. Billys solo is just fantastic!!!! Trey follows with his solo, and its a damn strong one, but good lord Billy just elevated this to the stratosphere. MUST HEAR!!!!!!!

After a gorgeous acoustic Mountains we get a ripping Blaze On. Christ, Billys fills underneath Trey just spruce the song up so much!!!! As predicted, Blaze On is a firestorm. Total annihilation. Good stuff.

Awesome encore of Ginseng and Old Home Place before Frankenstein to close it all down.

All in all, another absolute smokshow gig from the boys. Massive energy throughout. Id say, Ice, About, Walls Oblivion, Light, Evolve, and the Wolf>DDHVL are the true must hears of the show. Maybe Wave as well.

It did feel slightly inferior to night 1 in a way I cant describe, but its vague. This show CRUSHES. Period. I dont know how anyone could leave either night and not be picking their face off the floor....

On to Bethel!

2024-08-06 Grand Rapids, MI - with Billy Strings

 Set 1

The show opens with the quasi rare Strawberry Letter 23. Great pick! Very good version if ultimately inessential.

The following Sigma Oasis, however, is absolutely essential!!! 11 minutes long, this one feels incredibly inspired. Everyone is "in sync" and its basically one giant nonstop orgasm. One of the top "peak explosions" of the year. Absolutely terrific. A+++++. Wow!!!

After a super rare and well performed Peaches, we get another must hear with Tube. Only 7 minutes, and treading most of the same ground as Sigma, this Tube nonetheless turns in another positively INSPIRED performance. It just FEELS amazing!! Must hear all day!!!

Theme follows suit and builds perfectly upon the high energy, inspired playing laid down in Sigma and Tube. Trey is AWOL in his solo at first, but eventually wales up and the song just friggin EXPLODES like I havent heard in a while. Hot damn that was SICK!!!

Stash is 13 minutes tonight. Basically, its Theme part 2. Not terribly unique, but its SO goddamn powerful and explosive that it will just knock your socks off. My god.

A quick Train Song cools us off before a final trio of fire to end the set. Steam is, again, explosive. Trey absolutely dominates this poor song and delivers a DEVASTATING solo. Incredible.

Rift is another A+ version. Trey struggles ever so slightly with the fast ascending lick, but other than that it is perfect and will have you headbanging like a Slayer show!!!

The set concludes with a giant 16 minute Gin. Yet another full tilt barnburner. Not much to say. Essential - its just SO kick ass...PEAK OF THE MILLENNIA!!! RAGE IT!!! HOLY FREAKING CRAP HOLD ON TO YOUR PANTS!!!!;


All in all....HOLY SMOKES!!!! Energy out the damn wazoo! This set KILLED! The song selection was kinda boring but who cares when pretty much everything knocks it outta the damn park. This was back to Sphere 2024 overkill jamming. If you want your face MELTED, this is the set for you

Sigma, Tube, Steam, Stash, and Gin are all MUST HEAR and Theme is definitely worthy of a listen. 

Set 2

The 2nd set opens with a quick 1-2 punch of Free into Sand. Both are too short for their own good, but while Sand fails to fully ignite, Free absolutely crushes. Not must hear, but this Free definitely deserves praise. Played perfectly and molten hot. A+ little Free!

After Sand comes a big boy 18 minute Ruby Waves. Unfortunately, the song itself and the peak finale are great, but for the rest of its duration Trey cant seem to get out of the damn way and let the jam do what it wants to do. Not a bad one, but certainly not must hear and also incredibly frustrating....

Thankfully a magical, X Factor loaded Harry Hood brings it all back. Must hear.

Now the fun begins....

At this point Mr. Billy Strings joins the stage and they launch into a massive 23 minute Moma Dance. Guitar histrionics and X Factor galore! 1,000 percent must hear - this is SICK!!!!!! Even more incredible is that it goes full blown type 2 for the majority of its duration, moving flawlessly from hard funk to ambient bliss to face melting peakage....The flow on this is unreal. This is one of the finest pieces of music Phish has ever been involved with. Incredible.

Basically, apply the above for Possum and ER. Both are 100,000 percent essential. Possum even had friggin sweep picking.....Possum is indescribably hot and ER is 15 minutes of blissful, raging, psychedelic mastery at work. All hail our lord and savior X Factor Magic!!!!!

Throwing Billy a bluegrass bone, we get an awesome pairing of Nellie Kane and Beauty before a typically destructive party Carini to end the show proper.

All in all...jesus christ that was incredible!!! Dont forget the Harry Hood, but you can basically trash the start of set 2. The Moma was a TRUE all timer (not just saying that!), as was Possum and ER. Grab those and Hood.

As a whole this show was kinda all over the place, but the highs were pretty spectacular.

Hot damn....