2024-10-27 Albany, NY

 10/27/24 Albany

Set 1

The show opens with a very rare Heavy Things. This one is must hear - its fantastic!!!!!! The energy, the playing, the tempo...its all PERFECT!! And Pages piano solo is very inspired sounding tonight as well. A+++++ all around!!

They following that with a killer WGTYM. 9 minutes and firmly type 1. The set placement worked great out of HT imo. Maybe not must hear, but now we have a benchmark of what a "excellent type 1" version of the song sounds like. This song demands a produced studio cut - all those layered vocals etc.

They follow that with the first Access Me since 2019! This sounds AWESOME and deserves to be played at least once or twice a year. Very tight and rehearsed, extra mustard all over this!

MyFriend is only 11 minutes tonight but holy CRAP does this thing smoke!!! It basically stays in a dark and heavy type 1 area, but its just so absolutely ass kicking with not an ounce of "searching". All killer no filler. MUST HEAR!

Yet another rarity, My Sweet One is great - Page crushes his solo. Good stuff.

Limb By Limb is must hear tonight. An absolutely EXPLOSIVE peak fest, it just goes and goes and goes. Wow.

Mountains is next. Ive complained lately about the song feeling almost overplayed lately, but man oh man if they slotted it in perfectly like this every time....this works SO GOOD following that Limb and in the context of the set. Yet another stunning version, if not must hear, really. Killer.

And then.....18+ minute KDF outta nowhere! Lets go!! KDF is absolutely insane. X Factor Magic from the get go. There is no type 1 jam section - they go straight for craziness! The jam begins with a sick-ass heavy psychfunk kind of area. Just total annihilation. Very slowly things become lighter until we are in a "1999 Camden Chalkdust" kind of "soaring through the sky" zone. Uptempo bliss rocking with heavy robo FX usage and synths all over the place. This is freaking AWESOME!!!! Just as slowly and SMOOTHLY the jam shifts back towards an extremely dark and almost evil jam. Just growling bass and dark synths, Fishman killing his kit....wow. Soon they finally reach the expected "bliss rock" section and ride this BEAST to its conclusion.

DUDE HOLY CRAP THAT WAS INCREDIBLE!!!! THAT WAS A "PERFECT" JAM!!! MULTISECTIONAL, NO RUSHING, RIDICULOUSLY SMOOTH TRANSITIONS.......PUT THIS IN THE TOP 10 OF THE YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! INCREDIBLE JAM FOR ANY ERA!!! MY GOD!!!!!!

Smoking Walls closer. It kills. Nuff said.

All in all, this set KICKED ASS!! Sure there are "definite" highlights, but there was a consistent power, energy, extra "whatever" that was palpably present from start to finish. Easily the best first of the 3, imo. Wow. Heavy Things, Access Me, MyFe, Limb, KDF and probably Walls are all genuinely must hear. Wow.

That KDF was the definition of mother effing MAGIC. Oh my effing god.....

 

Set 2

Awesome start with a must hear, 17 minute Everything's Right. This one is extremely funky, alternating light and dark. Disgustingly fantastic version. The back half sees them slowly and patiently mutate the jam into an incredible "melodic bliss" section. A gooey rhythmic bottom of synthesizers with Trey layering atop it. Absolutely magical. Total X Factor Magic - that FELT like a 1.0 jam, the way it was so patient!!!

And into a 24 minute Chalkdust! And boy is it a freaking Chalkdust....I have witnessed eternity, for thy name is Albany '24 Chalkdust.

I cant possibly begin to try to explain this thrill ride rollercoaster monster of a jam (at least on my phone - this one will get a laptop writeup!). This Chalkdust was a true MASTERPIECE. That mindblowing KDF in set 1 is like a type 1 Julius compared to this piece of....I dont even know how to begin to describe it.

Everyone is LOCKED in tighter than a eunuch in chastity. The jam features many different styles and sections, each hitting harder than the last. I know I throw the phrase "all timer" around a lot for emphasis (and I mean it, too), but this. This....

Put this on the Mt. Rushmore of all time Phish. If you wanted to put this among the 75 or 100 greatest jams ever, I would not argue. EASILY on par with the likes of the 8/6/21 Simple, or better. Yes, I said better. Thats how insane this is.

Mexico 2024 is complete garbage for the most part compared to this. Thats how unbelievable this Chalkdust was. I am truly speechless and my mouth was left agape. 

Somehow they just keep surpassing themselves.....anywho, on we go and we get, surprise, a 14 minute Mercury! Yay! And on top of that it has bit of a new arrangement as well. Awesome. Aside from some vocal hiccups, this is awesome and the lengthy outro jam is just killer. Definitely grab this!!

After a perfectly placed and oh so gorgeous Velvet Sea, the set proper concludes with an excellent MEAP. Great as always but not essential.

Very cool 4 song encore of Jibboo, Waste, Bug and C Zero. All of them are excellent and Jibboo particularly has extra mustard. Waste is SO ridiculously emotional tonight.... definitely grab it. Just a next level, hard hitting version. This will make you shed a tear, I promise.

All in all, this show was AWESOME!!!!!!!! This 2nd set goes against anything played this year.

Hell, id say the 4.4 rating on .NET might actually be too low!!!!! This is a "mainstream official release" worthy show ala Bethel 1 or Mexico 2, etc

My god. Everythings Right and Chalkdust were both exceptionally magical and amazing.....and the Mercury was really cool. Waste was just outstanding ......