2025-07-15 Philadelphia, PA

 7 15 25 Philadelphia

Set 1

The show opens with a giant 11 minute Punch! They've been jamming it this year, but I think this is the longest version played to date, no?! Dude! Even better, they ACTUALLY jam this one! Not that they havent been jamming the others, but this one has 5 1/2 minutes of legitimate "actual" jamming, not just "playing around the intro" stuff. Out come the hazy synths like its 1999. Trey jumps on the robo wah for an extended lead section. They actually build the damn thing to a peak! Trey maks a loop of the peaked note and it sustains as he then leads them into the actual song. He then takes the pitch shifter and fades that loop down...dude, that was SICK!!! Jam chart this, NOW! The song itself sounds as good as any other version from this year, not much to say there. Must hear - this was AWESOME!!!!

They immediately follow that up, with a 16 minute Everythings Right. ER is SUPER laid back and chill tonight. Thankfully I wouldn't call it meandering though. They are just chilling in that low key zone. A very nice and relaxing rendition. It's not until the 12 minute Mark that's some real heat starts to build and they kind of rock it to a close. I can't call this must here but it's worth a listen.

A rare, and hot Camel Walk follows and keeps the show rollin nicely. Good stuff.

Theme is up next and, to me, it feels rather fresh coming earlier in the set like this. Standard reading, good stuff. Really powerful finale as always but nothing special overall.

Honestly, its a nice call going into Caspian after. It just....fits, imo. And its better than getting Caspian'd out of a blooming jam, haha. Caspian is basically the equivalent of Theme, except the peak finale absolutely explodes. It's actually took me by surprise a little bit. Honestly this is a light must hear, it just goes on and on and on in the best way!

They follow that with the inspired choice of Its Ice. Unfortunately this is a pretty lackluster version in my opinion. It's incredibly loose and the furthest thing from tight that I can imagine. No big flubs or anything but it's just.... Loose around the edges in the biggest way. Definitely the least great version I've heard in a long while, haha. If it was 2018, we'd be raving about this one, lol

A bog standard About to Run follows. Solid as ever but nothing that impressive.

Thankfully this bland set ends on a very high note with David Bowie. It feels rather lengthy, despite only being 12 minutes. For the first half you go oh no this is just going to be another boring regular version. But then in the back half The x Factor kicks in and they just rage it to the sky. Nothing you haven't heard before but it's an exceptional type 1 reading.

All in all, this set was like a solid B+. It started amazingly with Punch but quickly devolved into a set full of "standard average but good versions of a mostly bland selection of songs".

Punch is the only TRUE big boy must hear, but Bowie and Caspian are legit as hell. ER is worth a mention too. This set gets an "eh"/10 for me. 

 

Set 2

40 minute Sand opener, woohoo! Oh no, does that mean this is going to be one of those "blow your load early and then play catch up in the 4th quarter" kinda sets? Even worse - this might be the most disappointingly boring and non-clicking jam of all time!

It starts great - around 8 minutes, Trey latches on to one sustained note and the boys are off. Into melodic Bliss rock type 2 we go. But it's excellent melodic Bliss Rock! Nicely inspired playing, lots of loops and "substance", etc Great stuff! All the way at the 14 minute point after a peaky bit, the jam proceeds with the bliss rock, but instead also moves into a ridiculously meandering couple of minutes, reminiscent of that late teens portion of the Pittsburgh Mind. Nobody doing anything of note, Trey sounding lost for direction, the jam just floundering along completely lost for what to do. Finally around the 19 minute mark, they kind of start to connect back into a rockier zone. From there all the way to the 23 minute mark, they built the jam into a spectacular peak finale rage reminiscent of "insert favorite peak finale rage section". Awesome stuff and it feels like the jam ends appropriately around the 23 or 24 minute mark. They should have ended it here!!!!

Omfg the next 16 minutes or so are pure torture! From around the 25 minute mark to around the 29 minute mark, they start to go into robo space groove territory - FINALLY SOME DEVIATION!!! Just as unfortunately, it's very uninspired as well, nobody really jumping off the deep end and the playing rather restrained on the whole. Ugh. Even worse, around the 30-minute mark, they shift back into upbeat Bliss Rock. From there they spend the next seven or eight minutes just meandering and floundering along in the most boring and uninspired melodic Bliss Rock whatever the hell you want to call it hell I've ever heard. The gym ends with a nice peak around 38 minutes or so but it's not even that spectacular and when all is said and done it's WAY TOO LITTLE WAY TOO LATE . Every so often they would torture Us by teasing a brief moment of a different direction and then immediately falling back into boring meandering. UGH!!

F this jam. It is trash. This jam can suck a chode. Should ended it at either 14 minutes or 23 minutes ...

Lets hope this 19 minute (!!!) isnt trash as well... And its not! THANK GOD!

MyFe is must hear. A stellar reading full of extra pizazz. Fishman and Trey are going nuts screaming "MyFe!!!!" constantly, lol. The jam begins effing FILTHY MCNASTY. Holy moly is that some tasty jamming! The the next few minutes see them just going wild in the best way possible. Spectacular. Check out the Meowdulator SPAM at the 9:50 mark, lol. This goes until the 10 minute mark. Fishman switches us into a more shuffly kind of zone. From here out, unfortunately we move into major key Rock and rolling, so the funky strangeness is done, but that's okay because the playing is very tight and inspired all around. This is a killer reading that definitely deserves must hear status.

They keep the energy going nicely with standard but excellent type 1 readings of Boogie On and Blaze On.

The set concludes with, honestly, probably the strongest most ridiculous piece of music of the entire show! No, seriously. Carini is only 10 minutes, but it does in 10 minutes more than that version of Sand did in 40, basically. Absolutely UNHINGED, this version is a screaming spitting snarling black hole vortex of ridiculous x Factor magic nuclear bomb destruction. 10 times more EXTREME than your typical type 1 set closing Carini. X FACTOR! X FACTOR EVERYWHERE!!!! THIS CARINI IS ONE OF THE MOST MIND BLOWING THINGS IVE EVER HEARD IN MY LIFE, HOLY MOTHER OF SATANIC HELLFIRE FROM HADES. WHAT IN THE LOVE OF SATAN'S BUTTHOLE CAUSE THEM TO UNLEASH THIS MONSTER!!

5000/10 Carini. Full stop.

Highly inspired 4 song encore! Shade, I Didnt Know, Wilson and Possum! LETS GO!!
Man, we really needed that Shade, I tell you what...

All in all, this was easily the worst show of the tour after Columbus in my opinion. But thats just a testament to the strength of this band in 2025 that a show with THAT MyFe and Carini (I refuse to acknowledge that garbage dump Sand) can be called on the weaker side.

For set 2, MyFe and Carini are all you need. By 2025 standards, this show gets like a 3.7 from me. Or something. I dont know. This show wasnt amazing. Not horrible, but not great on the whole either. 

2025-07-13 North Charleston, SC (I was SUPPOSED to be there! :( )

 7 13 25 Charleston

Set 1

A nice Jim opener. Woulda been my 2nd....if only. Solid enough. Incredibly unincredible, it does its job but that's about it.

Like its 1994, they move right into Foam. Heck yes! Foam is absolutely killer. They nail the sucker, its loaded with energy and it just plain kills. I don't understand all these people I see online saying foam hasn't been good in recent years. That is some grade A b.s. They've obviously practiced the crap out of it in recent times and this is another perfect example of it. Honestly? Im gonna maybe call this must hear!

And into a 15 minute Wolfman we continue. And this version is a FIREBALL!!! Extra thumpin from the get go, it actually spends most of its time in a vampy kind of full band jam. Very little actual quote unquote soloing, if you will. It gets kind of chill for a while which is pretty cool, and then slowly builds to a nuclear bomb finale. Is it unique? Not really? Is it must hear? Probably not, but it's definitely worth mentioning and deserve some recognition. Awesome version.

Up next is....Thread!!!! Oh and its a KILLER version! Tight and rehearsed, this mega rarity finally jumps out there with a jammed out 11 minute reading. It bas spends most of its time in a Melt-esque robo deconstruction kind of psych jam. Or whatever. Definitely must hear!!!

Even better , if you can believe that, is Stash! An 11 minute type 1 reading, the song is tight, but EXTREMELY POWERFUL!!! This is a Kaiju power, Godzilla stomp reading with the most explosive nuclear bomb finale section I may have ever heard from this song. Absolutely nuclear. And it just goes on and on and on and on in the best way. MUST HEAR! Some definite X Factor on this bad boy!!!

Following a fine 555, the rarities continue with a lengthy and expectedly explosive version of Walk Away. Hell freaking yes, lets friggin go!!!! Its WA. It rips. Its rare. Im calling it must hear.

This ass kicking set concludes with perennial favorite Drift. Theres a reason this closes sets, as much as folks hate to admit it - its a killer climax for a set, much like a good Hood (of course not in the same realm, haha). This version is energetic, but kinda rusty in spots from Trey, but not too bad. The reggae section is extra relaxed but not dragging. Very nice stuff! From here, it proceeds to deliver a really excellent peak finale ala a good Hood. It's not must hear but it's definitely excellent. Great ending to the set!


All in all, this set kicked total butt!!! Id say Foam, Thread, Stash and Walk Away are all must hear, with a shoutout to Wolfman and that KILLER Drift finale!. There isnt THAT much to say - it was just a really great first set on the whole

THAT STASH!

Killer set overall even if not 100 percent perfect (ignore my ridiculous nitpicking). Total energy throughout, strong song selection, placement and playing. Wonderful! UGH WHY DID I HAVE TO MISS THIS - I HAD FLOORS FOR IT!!!!!!!

 

Set 2

Opening proceedings, we get a 17 minute Set Your Soul Free! Man, another song I was dying to hear since my first. Unfortunately it ends up being a big nothing burger of a jam...its very disconnected, with everybody unsure what diection to go and nobody taking any lead. It begins with a LONG sectíon of this low key kinda vibe with nothing really happening. Forever. After a long time, Trey has enough and kicks on the robo wah for a brief minute or two up some funky action. Unfortunately it's not to be and they go for broke and do the tried and true raging finale peak instead. It's not very long but it's pretty decent enough but unfortunately Trey ruins it with a clumsy ripcord back into the song proper to close. Yea, I dont like this jam. At all. Nuff said. YMMV.

Realizing his errors, Trey decides to remedy things by launching us into a massive 30 minute Tweezer. The initial round of Tweezer funk jamming is unfortunately pretty uninspired and bland. Man, what is going on?! Thank God, at the 10 minute mark, things deviate finally. The jam turns into a different kind of bliss mode, but they slow the tempo down and it acquires a hefty weight about it. Soon The the synths come out and a heavy, majestic, ethereal soundscape flows forth. Now that's what I'm talking about! Around 12 minutes, they flow into a KILLER slow burn peak section. Trey is just SOARING like a bird into the sky! Absolutely spectacular!!! Somewhere around 14 minutes, the peakage subsides and is replaced with this really cool and nasty kind of hard rocking shuffle groove. It almost sounds like they are trying to set up for Izabella or something!!! THIS IS FREAKING AWESOME!! BRING ON THE X FACTOR!!! Riding this all the way to the 17 minute mark, at that point Trey steps on the wah pedal and its ON! (As if it already hadn't been!). Until the 21 minute mark, the boys gloriously spend 4 minutes laying it on thick just melting our faces like it's 1997 or something. X FACTOR FLOW STATE SUPREME. Finally at the 21 minute mark, it begins to shift again. Tray kicks on some Loopers and it starts to get a little bit more psychedelic and blissful. They ride this new robo bliss until the 23 minute mark. At that point they freaking floor it and it's off to the races with a nuclear bomb peak explosion section that is absolutely ridiculous, that includes Trey setting a loop of one of his held notes so it sounds like his sustain is never-ending. Around the 25 minute mark, that finally subsides. They spend the next 5 minutes or so, teasing in and out of the Tweezer theme/jam, assaulting us with terrific robo funk rocking. Eventually it reaches a point where robo Loopers start to appear once more. And just like that, they deliver the ever more increasingly rare (by modern Phish standards) GENUINE SEGUE!!!

This time into an 11 minute Ghost! My God, that segue was LEGIT! Ghost is killer, actually jamming for a change instead of being stuck in type 1 rock mode. IMMEDIATELY, the jam begins with them diving into this really cool laid back groove zone. Kinda hazy. They explore this nicely before they ramp the energy up. Once cookin again, Trey leads them into a full blown Set Your Soul Free jam that they ride for a good while. Holy mother of x Factor this is freaking awesome! Eventually this section morphs into the expected peak raging once more. 2023 style, they FLOOR the sucker! Off to the races AGAIN! Another must hear!!

Just when you think that was the conclusion to the set, they keep it going even harder with the ridiculous 16 minute Golden Age. GA is AWESOME!! Very unique in my opinion. It never really gets strange, but it definitely goes type 2. The majority of the jam is spent in this really really cool area where everybody is synced up doing nothing but motif jamming forever and ever. You get a motif! And you get a motif! Everybody gets themselves a motif!!! It's incredibly rhythmic and drumcentric. It is AWESOME! Honestly, you could almost call this Golden Age downright jazzy in a way! At a certain point, as with Ghost, they floor it once more. Like the one in Tweezer, this finale is just incredible. It's like a Catholic Mass - its stillllllll going on!! GOOD LORD SOMEBODY CALL AN AMBULANCE FOR ALL THE WASTE THEY HAVE LAIN UPON THE SOULS OF NORTH CHARLESTON COLISEUM!!!

The set concludes on a pretty good note, with the ballad duo of Life followed by Slave. A Life is pretty average for the most part, unfortunately not turning in a particularly great reading. Until that is the finale, where once again they absolutely just shred us to pieces.

The Slave that finishes the set is an absolute monster. Just crushing, they take their time building it just razing everything in sight. Sick.

Even sicker is one of the best encores of the year, with Meatstick, Turtle and Tweeprize finishing us out. Boy, that sure blows my 7/11 encore outta the damn water!!!

All in all, this was a pretty exceptional show for the most part. When it was clicking, which was more often than not, it was just out of this freaking world. The Tweezer>Ghost and Golden Age are up there with the best material of the summer played so far. Obviously if you take anything from the show it has to be those three pieces.

I'd say the 4.3 rating it has on .NET is pretty accurate. If there was a little more cohesion to some songs like Wolfman or that do-nothing SYSF, Id rate it even higher. The main jams were super inspired and this show was an overkill exercise in peak hose explosions, good lord.

Going out on a high note.... 

2025-07-12 North Charleston, SC (I was SUPPOSED to be there :( )

 And now the pain begins

On to the first show I had to miss thanks to my stupid appendix....

7 12 25 Charleston

Set 1

The opens with a 14 minute Moma Dance. Crap, this woulda made up for the one I missed on 12 29 23. Woulda had Moma and Free made up! Moma is terrific tonight. I wouldn't call it must hear, but it comes close to going off the deep end. Trey sets loopers and hints of synthesizer comes out but it never peaks like you expects it to and never really explodes. Still an absolutely terrific opening to the show but not quite most here.

A perfectly placed NICU follows it's nothing special and Trey has trouble with the main lick but it keeps the energy high and the flow strong.

A super rare Jesus Just Left Chicago (last one Fall 2023, I think?) is up next. Totally fresh surprise call! Awesome version that delivers the heat. Definitely on the must hear pile.

Quickly they keep it going, launching into a terrific Divided Sky!! Oh how I would have killed to get this! Saw it at my very first show in the same building - the perfect full circle! The palindrome section is TIGHT - as tightly played as Ive ever heard it! The delicate parts are perfectly delicate without any hints of flubbage or looseness. This is what an A+ modern version of DS sounds like. Smashing reading! And then, holy smokes, Trey goes OFF during the solo. This version is EXPLOSIVE!! MUST HEAR!! GRAB THIS SUCKER! IT kills!

Another one from my first show, up next is a jammed out Destiny Unbound! Ok, they are just trolling me at this point. I'm calling this must. It's a terrific version that is extremely funky, with lengthy "Im a Man" teasing throughout. It's at least as strong as the 2019 Charleston version if not better!

After a terribly placed (imo) but typically raging version of Monsters, we get a KILLER 13 minute reading of Plasma. It never strays too far from the box but it's an a+ reading all around. The boys began with the typical melodic chirpy Bliss Rock, but it's just really really good tonight. Very strong with a lot of OOMPH behind it. Eventually it picks up the pace and becomes a lot more rocking, finally exploding in a ridiculous peak finale. Absolutely must hear, all day long!

Following that, the set concludes with an equally destructive 13 minute reading of Bathtub Gin. Your typical type 1 ranger version, it exceeds the usual expectations and delivers a nuclear bomb rendition reminiscent of 12/28/23s version. The finale region just goes on and on and on in the best way melting your face and leaving you absolutely exhausted afterwards.

All in all, I thought this set was a massive improvement from set one of night one. JJLC, Divided Sky, Destiny and Plasma are all must hear with a big nod to Gin and Moma. Not the greatest set of the tour, but it was hot and tight from start to finish without a single wasted moment. Great stuff. 

 7 12 25 Charleston

Set 2

Alright, 12 minute Mikes to open. Mikes is a weird kind of mess. Musially its excellent, but there is disconnect on direction. Early on in the funking, Trey CLEARLY is trying to get them to launch into Cities (and it was perfect!), but everyone else either doesnt hear him or just ignore him, lol. Probably the latter. From there, it basically turns into Gin 2.0. Hefty boy supreme just raging it hot and straight.

Its a great type 1 reading, but nothing special in the slightest.

Hydrogen and Weekapaug are both genuinely excellent regular readings. Weekapaug is nicely patient, taking its time to bloom rather than rushing straight to the finale. Eventually the expected peakage occurs, and thankfully Trey keeps it going, jumping onto the robo wah for a sick jammy section Page on the synth, Fishman playing with the beat. Its a short jam, but oh so tasty and gives this Paug a ton of character. Honestly, Paug creeps into must hear status for me! Its KILLER! Im gonna say you need to check out this Paug. For a "regular" reading, its TERRIFIC!!!!!!!

I am mighty surprised by that Paug!

Trolling me even further, they proceed to launch into a girthy 19 minute Mercury. Thank god this song is having a resurgence! I SO wanted to see this in 2019 and they blessed me with a 13 minute reading, but unfortunately it wasnt a particularly good one. As with the rest of the show, the playing is tight, Mercury sounding properly rehearsed like the other recent renditons. The jam is very patient. After several vampy minutes, Trey sets a looper, Page kicks in the occasional synth flair. Its evolving, but taking its damn time to do so. Eventually they say screw it and the typical rocking finale ensues. Thankfully, the finale is absolutely RIDICULOUS!! A MASSIVE grindy kind of peak. Pure awesomeness. Its just unfortunate you have to sit through a whole ton of nothing to get to it.

This reminded me of the Seattle 2023 Wave of Hope.

They keep the energy going strong with a now rare 12 minute Soul Planet. And thank Christ, Soul Planet is Megaultron high energy from the sun, they FLOOR it on this sucker. The jam sees Trey kicking on the robo wah and Page on the synths. Hurdling through space at a million miles an hour on a course for impact. Eventually the synthy space fire takes on a more night time kind of vibe, Trey doing awesome melodic soloing while Page keeps pace on the keys. The intensity ramps back up and...

HOLYGOD MOTHER OF HOLD ON TO YOUR DAMN SPACE SUIT!!! LETS FRIGGIN GO!!! NUCLEAR BOMB ALERT!! UTTER DEVASTATION AT A MILLION MILES AN HOUR!!! PEAK THAT SUCKER!! LETS GO!!! GREATEST PEAK RAGING IN THE GALAXY!!! I CANT STOP HEADBANGING!!!! THIS IS INSANE!!!! OH MY FREAK GOD OH MY FREAKING GOD OH MY FREAKING GOD OH MY FREAKING GOD.

And then back into SP and its over. Im speechless. What in the F.

And then, trolling me a 4th time, we go into an INSANELY beautiful version of Joy, a song I was chasing and really hoping to catch this run. And my god, the placement out of Soul Planet was just * chefs kiss * . Seriously.

The set then concludes with the massive double whammy of Harry Hood and I Am the Walrus. Holy moly, y'all. Hood is another terrific version, lengtht and patient. The intro jam has some funny brief deviation, but the buildup is where the magic is. Page's piano is extra beautiful on this and Treys responses are perfect.As usual it's slowly ramps up the heat, but this one does it oh so perfectly without a hint of rushing. And then BOOM! Off to the peak finale races!!
AND HOLY MOLY WHAT A HOOD LETS FRIGGIN GO!! Ala something like 12/29/23, this version just SMOKES!! Definitely strong enough for me to call must hear. Wow!!!

Walrus is friggin awesome. Must hear. Not much to say - Walrus is Walrus! Its a ridiculous psychedelic black hole of sonic noize destruction. Fantastic.

Following Walrus, the encore consists of the Carolina I didnt get on 7/11 (they brought the 4 way mic out but then put it away ), and a typically blazing SANTOS.

All in all, im not a huge fan of this show overall. There were a ton of great moments but very little "magic". Almost nothing went outside of really strong type 1, but the energy was high and the playing TIGHT throughout. The setlist was excellent, and objectively this IS an awesome show, but still feels like its lackinf SOMETHING that I cant quite put my finger on. It feels like its a better show than 7/11, but it also feels like it has WAY less "character", making for a less interesting listen despite the higher quality of the music played (does this make any dumb sense? )

My complaints are "listening too closely because thats why I do" nitpicks. For set 2, Weekapaug, Walrus and Soul Planet are must hear, but shout out to the Mercury finale! 

2025-07-11 North Charleston, SC (I WAS THERE!!!!)

 Finally tackling my personal beasts after a week of joking rumination, haha

Onward in my molasses paced 2025 playthrough with 7/11/25

So my appendix apparently had burst the night before. I was dying in pain, on 3 hours of broken sleep, propped up ENTIRELY by excitement/adrenaline and my trusty old Adderall. First show since 12/31/23 - god, time flies! I raged this show so friggin hard, went home and went in the hospital for a week, lol. Thats the context.

I was delirious but I was there!

7 11 25 North Charleston

Set 1

As if by fate, the show opens with the Free opener I missed on 12/29/23 when my train was late to MSG. I remember thinking this felt just like 12/28/23 again. Probably just me being thirsty and delirious, but I recall the energy being HIGH, especially among the room. Genuinely, it just had that air of "tonight is GOING to be special". Phish came on and it all went BOOM! Free takes a minute to ease into things but quickly gains its usual amount of heft. Some nice and chill funky interplay between Gordo and Trey throughout, slowly ramping the heat up as it goes. Awesome section where everyone syncs up on the "start stop" rhythm during the solo section. All said, its an excellent opener. Nothing must hear but its hot and was an amazing experience for me on a personal level. Who doesn't love a Free opener?

And then Rift in the 2nd slot?! Hell yes!! I wasnt expecting to catch another so soon. And man does it work great in that spot, keeping the energy going from an opener. Its like it seals the deal that is going to be a hot night. Rift is another excellent recent reading. It feels slower than some others, but thats ok if it means it helps Trey nail it better, ala Punch.

Following Rift, we get the 4th ever performance of Spanish Moon since its 2010 debut, the first since Chicago 2023. What did I do to deserve this?! It took me a minute to realize what it was but the crowd seemed to pick it up immediately. I remember thinking this absolutely wailed. Also, the show had energy, but it feels like this is when the "warmup" is over and they REALLY kick it into high gear. Spanish Moon is tight, hot and and just nasty in the best way. Perfectly funking and rocking at the same time. Trey just goes off on this bad boy, ripping it, with some great usage of feedback throughout. Definitely the first true must hear of the night!!!!

Up next is my 3rd Reba in 7 shows. Hows that for some modern Phish stats? Now watch me not see a Reba again for 15 years, lol. Reba itself is NAILED, played as perfectly as is possible in 2025. The solo takes forever to get going, but when it finall clicks, BOOM its off to Magicville. Another extraordinary Reba peak! I wouldnt call this must hear, but its still a highlight.

Idk If I picked up on this in person or not, I don't recall, but while the show does have a lot of energy, it also feels very laaaaaaaiiiiiiiid back too, which is unique and unusual for a summer 2025 show. They are just chilling bro.

Following Reba we get the first Devotion to a Dream since 2016!!! Sure it aint Colonel Forbin, but I also never thought Id get to see this either! Another that took the crowd a minute to realize, lol. It was supe tight and sounded GREAT!!! Zero reason this shouldnt be a first set regular!!! Also, I cant believe im saying this, but this was easily the hottest song if the set so far. It cooks! MUST HEAR!

Up next is a very rare 12 minute The Final Hurrah - another song I never thought id get to see! I was pretty much losing my mind at this point considering the setlist! The Final Hurrah delivers a strong type 1 reading. It gets pretty chill and then builds to a big rocking conclusion, unfortunately avoiding the funky robot jamming I was hoping for, lol. I remember thinking at a certain point they could have easily gone off into type 2 and delivered a giant jam and then being disappointed when they didn't. This doesn't come across on the recording at all but that's a stark memory that sticks in my head.

Following the first My Mind since 2022 (good Lord save some bust out for the other shows!!!), we get the next must hear of the night. Hey Stranger is absolutely nuclear! It's not overly long tonight but they drop the absolute Hammer with the sucker. Trey just destroys. I was super excited to get this song as it's one of my favorites of the recent bunch and I was bummed to not get it at the 2023 New Year's run. This one is a definite must hear.

Around this point in the show, I recall realizing this was the most bass-light heavy concert I had ever attended. The mix was terrific - you could hear Cactus perfectly, but there was ZERO bass "oomph" at all. It was incredibly weird to realize. It didn't bother me THAT much as there is nothing worse than a concert where all you can hear is the damn bass and drums at the expense of everything else, but I was actually going "huh, that bass is REALLY thin!". Weird. I understand the complaints now!!!

After a good but kind of average Taste, the set concludes with Walls of the Cave. I was STOKED to finally get one! I didnt care if it was an "average" reading or not. Hell yes, Walls closer, lets friggin go! Thankfully, while not must hear, it does have genuine fire and heat and they burn it down nicely. Killer.

All in all, im really surprised upon relisten - in person I was absolutely BLOWN THE F AWAY by the set I had just seen. I went to set break absolutely destroyed, genuinely thinking "there is no way set to can top this".

Upon re listen, the set was way more laid back and chill then I recall in person. I don't know if that's just the energy of the room not translating to the recording or if that's just because I was hopped the f up and totally delirious at the time, having the time of my life, lol

Musically, this set is carried very heavily by the multiple bust outs and rare songs. Most of the songs sound excellent but there is very little worth returning to in earnest. I would say Spanish Moon and Hey Stranger are the must hear materials with special shoutouts to Reba and Hurrah.

Honestly, from a "holy crap" standpoint compared to the rest of the tour, this set gets like a B+ from me right now today. The setlist does a TON of heavy lifting, imo. Absolutely nothing that is not played well or downright excellent, but at the same time there is very little that is worth returning to after the fact - in my opinion.

  

 

Set 2

Oh boy, here we go!

Fantastically, the second set opens with Slow Llama, and it's a terrific reading, going hard in the robo funk and wall abuse just like I was praying and hoping for in Final Hurrah. Probably must hear - its great as always!! I was SUPER excited to get a Slow Llama - now ive seen both, and in back to back shows!

Out of Llama comes the massive TITAN this show will forever be remembered for. I absolutely lost my mind when Llama melted into Disease. The only other version ive seen was the perfunctory "fakeout" version on 12/31/23 that preceeded Gamehendge, and considering this was the 2nd song of set 2, I KNEW this was going to be THE jam vehicle of the night!! BIG DISEASE HERE WE GO!!

The slower tempo of the evening actually sounds great with Disease, giving it a chunky quality reminiscent of the studio version. In person, while thrilled to get the song and a ridiculously massive version (34 minutes - apparently it's officially the longest version ever played as far as I can find!!!), the gym ends up being a pretty large nothing Burger, which is a real bummer. It basically stays in super extended type 1 the entire time, Trey trying at several points to lead them elsewhere but Fishman just refusing to stop his ratat tat. I swear, there was one hilarious part, where for about 2 minutes, Trey was just glaring over at Fishman, practically BEGGING him to switch it up and let them go deep, but Fishman had his eyes closed just ignoring him, lol. Trey finally straight up just gave up and returned to blissful high energy rocking. This jam though, it just goes and goes and goes and goes some more, feeling like it peeks about 30 different times. Every time I thought the jam had reached its conclusion, they kept pushing through and kept on going! What the corn yo!? I will admit the final peak is pretty damn amazing, well past the 20-minute mark I was honestly just waiting for this jam to end. How much of that was my weekend condition and how much of that was the jam itself, I'll let you be the judge, lol. But I can honestly say this jam bored me - it felt very disconnected and not like there 

 Ok my review above is a little harsh on that Disease. Here's a better breakdown.

I still think it has zero business being over 20 minutes or so. There really is barely anything happening at all until after the 20 minute mark. Its straight up just kinda boring noodling until then, failing to go in any meaningful direction.30 seconds of darkness, Sightless Escape teases there...oi vey. Eventually they switch on a dime back into a slower rocking zone. Im assuming Trey was setting up a return back into Disease proper. THATS when the jam really takes off. Basically, just throw the first 15 minutes of the jam right in the trash. From here, it stays firmly in high energy melodic bliss rocking, but it finally has some OOMPH about it, everyone locked in at last. Saying before that it felt like it had multiple peaks was the wrong terminology - it felt like it had 40 different chances to deep and litoff abd they just never did. It was weird. Anywho, somewhere around 26 or 27 minutes they start to build to proper peakage and its off to the races and the rest is history. Trey peaking us to heaven and the crowd erupting etc. I will admit, this final section was incredible to experience in person.

I sooooooooooo want to call this must hear. If it wasnt so....undercooked, Id be raving. Because the final 10 minutes or so are terrific straight up rocking. was any magic going.

Twist and a still rare The Well (my 2nd!) keep the set going nicely. Twist is actually worth a listen, kind of breaking down nicely into a funky kind of stop start duel between Trey and Mike. I remember they were right up in each other's faces grinning like idiots while playing and it was so much fun. FANTASTIC! It never leaves type 1, but they sure explore it to its fullest. Its friggin LOADED with synths and wacky FX. Even Treys whammy pitch shifter makes a big appearance. Honestly, this should probably be jam charted if it isnt. Its SICK!

Meanwhile, The Well is your standard type 1 reading, but it was honestly super excellent and felt like a genuine cool down that we really needed at that point in the set. Crazy to call it a cool down, but that's what it felt like. And it was perfect!

Thankfully the following 17 minute version of Sightless Escape was absolutely incredible. What the hell?! ANOTHER song I never thought I'd ever get to hear!! Only the fourth version ever played since it's 2019 debut and on top of that it's the longest version ever played by a decent margin. Holy crap this is amazing. Now THIS felt like the "X Factor Magic" was in FULL FORCE!!! They were just locked in together flowing through this sucker like a wave of awesomeness, basically keeping it in one zone, but digging into that one's own so fantastically well I was just losing it. 

Sightless does its type 1 thing for a good while. Eventually something shifts and they all start this new rhythm. It stays "on the ground", but they officially take that turn into "we are taking this baby for a damn ride" territory. Riding hard in that type 1.5 kinda zone, never leaving earth but also straying far from the source, slowly effects and things start to creep in. Very slowly they just keep going and going until the eventual peakage. I really don't know how to explain what I'm talking about, but I swear in person at least, I could feel a MASSIVE difference between this and the Disease. This jam felt....flowing and organically and always on the move with purpose. Hot damn. This had to be the most unexpected thing I've ever experienced in the seven shows I've attended - freaking SIGHTLESS ESCAPE being the damn jam winner of a show. Who would think....

Even better, as the song reaches its conclusion, Trey correctly reads the room and rips us right into Chalkdust!!! And shocked us was FANTASTIC!!! Maybe not the most insane or crazy version of all time, but sometimes a super well-placed, high energy type 1 reading it's just as effective as some kind of giant type 2 multi beast. This Chalkdust felt like the perfect peak conclusion of that Sightless Escape jam. For like the 15th time this night I absolutely lost my mind. I saw an amazing type 2 robo jam space freak out version on 12/29/23, but this was my first regular melt your face type Chalkdust that Id always been pining for.

In one of the best "totally unexpected" moments ever, the jam seems to naturally "stumble" into the intro to Chalkdust This had to be unplanned because even the band (particularly Fishman, lol) seem caught off guard, haha
I mean, you have zero inkling or realization and then BAM you're in Chalkdust like "hold on, wtf. Huh?! OK! " That segue truly comes out of god damn nowhere and it was so friggin magical to experience in person. This is why we Phish, y'all. And then Chalkdust throws down the gauntlet, snappy, energetic and to the POINT, they absolutely razed the coliseum, Trey's solo screaming from the sky like a crashing Kamikaze plane. And its over just as it began but the damage is done, and it was massive. Proceed directly to the burn unit, you've got a 3rd degree ...

Honestly, I wish the set ended right there. It FELT like that was the set closer and should have been. It would have been absolutely perfect. They kept going with a fun Suzy Greenberg, but it honestly felt like one song too many, as if they had just over shot the mark or something like that.

By this time my Adderall was really beginning to wear off and I was starting to feel the pain again in a big way. The first encore was Circus, apparently with the biggest gap ever at 54 shows. Man this was NOT well I needed to keep me going. Circus was pure agony for me, waiting to get through it to see what the next encore was before I could make the choice to run for the car and get home. Thankfully, First Tube was the set closer. It sucked having to run out on it and it absolutely wailed, but I got out and watched the first half from the stairwell before running to my car to beat the traffic out of the arena parking lot. Worth it.

All in all, this was a mind-blowing show to experience in person. I am so unbelievably blessed to have seen it and despite it hurting beyond belief that I had to miss the following two nights, I don't feel bad in any way shape or form that this was the show that I got.

Multiple bust outs, the longest ever version of an absolute classic song, what the hell else could I want?!?!

I'd say the 4.3 rating is pretty accurate, my opinions today are probably just colored because of my in-person experience. Because I really thought this was a way better show than it came off to me while listening to it today.
 

2025-07-09 Columbus, OH

 7 9 25 Columbus

Set 1 

An 11 minute Bag opener bodes well! Its a really good version. Not explosively energetic, but it has a cool kind of jam where they shift key (I think?) which gives the rocking a different flavor. Excellent peak section but not as, well, explosive as it could be. I wouldn't call this must here but it's really good regardless and worth at least to listen.

The following Roggae is a typical average version. Very good and with an excellent solo but at the same time not not exceeding any any expectations.

Great to hear Vultures tonight. A solid version just a little bit shaky on the vocals. Musically it is sound and Trey actually has a very nice solo but on the whole it is, again, nothing special.

After an average Martian Monster we get a pretty good Muml. As with Bag it follows the same kind of path delivering a really good nice version that never completely goes off the rails but also does stretch a good bit. Another version that I can't call must here but is also maybe worth checking out anyways.

Another average reading for the show, Strawberry Letter 23 is great to hear as always and played fine but nothing particularly special in the slightest.

Man this is the most average straight down the middle set I think I've ever heard, what the corn. Okay energy and everyone is playing fine, but Treys playing sounds a bit uninspired and ever so slightly rusty tonight.

Finally we get a genuine must hear. As seems to be the norm tonight we get another fresh set call with Undermind. It doesn't do anything special but is another in a long line of just absolutely off the rail fantastic type 1 readings. Trey wakes up!

The set ends on a high note with the first Petrichor since 2022 (!!!!) followed by Life Saving Gun to cap it off. Thankfully, Petrichor sounds great. Well rehearsed as well it should be!

Then, outta friggin nowhere suddenly ....19 minute LSG. LETS GO!!! The song is hot and the jam begins with Trey jumping straight onto the wah. Amidst Pages robo synths and Gordos growls, he patiently takes his time working in and around the soundscape. He's half "vamping"/half soloing. Throughout, Gordo is way out front, almost taking charge. Eventually Trey starts picking up steam again. They return to jamming on the LSG theme proper. Man, those synths are SICK! Trey starts a little melodic motif while Page is washing us down with his synths like we are at the laundromat. Throughout all this, Trey is still playing rather restrained, hinting at more but never following through. Eventually they all sync up on a cool staccato kind of motif. The jam takes a cool turn and starts to get a lot more low key. Vibrato effects come out, Trey plinkoing it up. Fishman is still rattling away but they are working towards other shores. Trey sets a nice looper for ambience that you barely even notice as they all sync up again on a little rhythm. They ride this for a long time, slowly interjecting with fills and bits. Fishman picks up on it and does some good work accenting the beats. Meanwhile, Trey is doing some nice still-lowkey melodic playing, slowly adding to his loops, introducing some backwards guitar. Fishman begins to ramp up his playing and the intensity slowly begins to build once more. This is a great jam, very much a "full band playing as one" exercise. Killer. Definitely must hear. So while the intensity is ramping up, Trey refuses to let go of his backwards guitar loops. Basically we end up in this kind of fast paced soundscapey area. Not really moving forward at all, just chillin out hanging in one spot for several minutes. Finally, Trey jumps onto the robo wah and we are legitimately back to proper rocking. Loopers still going, we get a kind of dark rock thing going on. Like a slowly building thunderstorm or something. At 15.30 he kicks off the wah and begins to build a peak section, slowly just rocking harder and harder, working thise sustained bends like they owe him money. This is such a "holding back" jam. So primed to just go nuts but they are teasing the crap out of us instead. Unfortunately for some reason we never get any proper peak/resolution and instead Trey leads us back into the chorus to close. Man, talk about BLUE BALLS!!! I cant say that wasnt awesome but it felt a little undercooked at times. Sick on the whole but that anti-climax was super annoying. Still a definite must hear, but I wouldn't call it X Factor Magic at all.

All in all this was an ok set. It wasnt tired, it wasnt lacking energy, the song choices were excellent and fresh. But nothing really "clicks" in that magical kind of way that makes you sit up and take notice. Treys playing isnt exactly "sticky" but I also cant say it is flowing like on a better night. He sounds rather restrained tonight, rarely letting loose. For instance, Bag is primed to erupt and instead it just kinda...finishes. Nicely, but slightly underwhelmingly. That kinda thing.

There is nothing "wrong" with this set. It's just exceptionally unexceptional. Straight down the middle with no dips and very few ups. Bag and Mull are both worth checking out once and Undermind, though "typical" is must hear. And of course the ridiculous Life Saving Gun - it doesnt top Manchester (imo) but is still a very worthy competitor!!!

This set gets a "eh" outta 10 from me. A solid B+ ish set 

 

Set 2

The 2nd Sample In a Jar set 2 opener of the summer (cant believe I just said that!). I maintain this song shouldnt be within 50 miles of a 2nd set but this is a red hot type 1 reading regardless. Still, Sample is Sample.

Up next we jump straight into a 26 minute Wave of Hope!!! HECK YES LETS GO AMIGOS! Very high energy, we get the expected chirpy melodic bliss rock all the way to 11 minutes. Suddenly they stumble into a terrific and raging peak. After the peak subsides the jam somehow drops into a dark kind of No Quarter area. Unfortunately its only for one brief minute before its back out and into the chirpy melodic bliss rocking once more. This jam is super one note, but I will admit its flowing like crazy. It doesn't feel TOO meandering. At 17 minutes loopers and backwards fx and synths come out and we finally move again into a much darker, super lowkey and downright SCARY area!!! Wtf!! Where did this come from?!?! They explore this awesome area nicely for a few minutes. Eventually they slide back to the light and work their way out. The final few minutes see some X Factor Magic make a big appearance!!! Trey begins teasing the crap outta the descending Petrichor lick. The intensity ramps up 10 fold and we get an absolute monster of a shreddy, trill fest, jaw on the floor NUCLEAR EFFIN BOMB EXPLOSION !!! One of the greatest jam finales Ive ever heard. Pedal to the friggin metal!!!!! And then, on a dime and incredibly awkwardly, Trey RIPS them out of the peak and back into a Wave reprise. Man, that was brutal. They nailed the transition but that was so ridiculously unnecessary and totally derailed whatever flow was happening. That Wave was weird - it wasnt my favorite jam. What they were actually playing was always excellent, but it was so bipolar!! Every time you thought it was going one direction they would yank it and slide elsewhere before said section could truly reach its potential. Outro ripcord aside though, that finale really is something special. Must hear jam, but with some caveats.

We get a shock cooldown tonight with the first PROPER Waiting All Night since 2019!!! The fall 2021 "accidental" version doesnt count! The song itself sounds fine and is super welcome, but unfortunately Trey completely botches his solo, fumbling and falling on his face. Bummer supreme ....

They quickly pick up the pieces and rip into a tight and hot Axilla. Genuinely, its a great little standard version! No jam on it tonight, it magically begins to morph and we slide perfectly into a 22 minute Piper!! All hail the recent Piperaissance!! And thank god Trey actually allows them time to slowly evolve the Axilla outro into it instead of just yanking them into it.

Piper kicks into gear and we are off. Its hard to describe a rapidfire Piper. Early on they begin to play around though and things start to get extremely growly around the 8 minute mark. Trey refuses to go deep though, insisting on upbeat melodic motif playing, yanking them back into upbeat bliss rock territory. At least Gordo is keeping his fx going, giving flavor to an otherwise rote section. From here I just begin to zone out as it becomes the usual, typical "bliss rock to infinity" version we've had beaten into us the last few years. PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST MAKE IT STOP I CANT TAKE IT ANYMORE. Welp, apparently I spoke too soon! Just as im completely checking out, the jam slowly takes on a slightly more laid back kind of night time vibe. If only Fishman would stop his god damn RATTLING and CHILL OUT FOR ONCE!!! Hinting at returning to that awful bliss rock racket, some inspiration begins to spike and we move into more patiently kind of hazy waters. SHUT UP FISHMAN BEFORE I TAKE THOSE STICKS OUT OF YOUR HANDS AND BEAT YOU WITH THEM THIS IS DELICATE STUFF HERE SO STOP IT!!!!! Trey is back to noodly melodic playing except that now its straight up magical. Pages synths beneath add so much, you dont even know ....we are in Bliss Rock Hell, but its at least much higher quality by this point. Around 18 minutes they all lock in hard and we head for a massive peak section. Absolutely expected, but who the hell doesnt love a soaring final just bursting with energy!! I dont want to have to wade through this ja again to reach it, but hot damn, this is what PEAKING LOOKS LIKE!!! PUT THIS IN THE DICTIONARY BECAUSE THIS IS THE DEFINITION!!!! LETS FREAKING GO!!! BANG YOUR HEAD AND GET IT, SON!!!! THIS PEAK IS PURE MAGIC!!! EVEN BETTER THAN WAVE WAS!!! HOLY CRAP IT WONT STOP IT JUST KEEPS GOING!

I freaking hate Pipers like that - but that finale?! Are you freaking kidding me?! They could play Sparkle all night long for all I care if they give us that!!

And mother of god, the most perfectly placed - and gorgeous - Lonely Trip follows. 10/10 on that set placement. Exactly the perfect song at exactly the perfect moment. Played slightly slower tonight, it just spews emotion and honestly made me cry, thinking about my own memories and life...This version is just beautiful. Must hear. Man.....what a tearjerker...God, Treys solo is just emotional perfection. Magic....

The emotions continue as they ease us back into rocking with a wonderfully placed Number Line. It's an excellent version hitting right in the feels. Perfectly emotional with some nice nice peakage. Maybe not must here but in the context of this show it's fantastic.

The set is capped off perfectly with an excellent Loving Cup.

Terrific encore tonight of Bug, MANGO and Antelope! Good Lord! Mango is killer. Tightest ive heard in a while, they nail it!!!

And the show closing Antelope is even better! Antelope has been on a tear recently and this one is no exception. Im calling this must hear. Its several magnitudes more explosive than many "typical" modern versions. A ridiculous finale!!

All in all, this was far from my favorite show and possibly my least favorite of the tour besides Boulder number two. There was a good amount of fantastic stuff but even more that was depressingly average - not in a bad way, just not in a good way either.

Set two brought the absolute fire. The jams weren't completely connected if you catch my drift, but a+ for effort they were definitely trying. The peak finale is on both Wave and Piper are extraordinary and need to be heard at all costs. And the cooldown into that magical Lonely Trip...chefs kiss....

I'd say I agree with the 3.7 rating on .NET. if this was 2015 this would be a 5 out of 5 star show, but when compared to the monsters surrounding it here in 2025, it's lack of flow and excess of issues (even if they are probably just nitpicks on my part), definitely make it fall well short.

Really though, what an incredible time to be a fan that THIS can be considered an off night!!!!  

2025-07-05 Boulder, CO

 7 5 25 Boulder

Set 1

Buried Alive kicks things off tonight. Heck yes. Excellent reading with lots of heat. Great start to the show!

Up next are 46 Days and Birds. Neither are must hear, but at the same time both are genuinely excellent "in the box" type 1 readings. 46 has a great kind of grindy peak and Birds just rages better than you expect it to. Good stuff. What a killer trio to open the show, eh?!

The first must hear piece of the night follows with a spectacular 11 minute Sigma Oasis. This sucker spends its time i this fantastic kind of "type 1.5" area. Quickly the synths come out and Gordo is on growly FX. The jam is very ethereal, maybe majestic you could say! Unfortunately they slide out of going deep but they proceed to rage it hard to a close instead. The flow on this was magnificent. This was one of the most "complete" sounding versions Ive heard. Definitely some X Factor on this one! MUST HEAR!!!

Up next is David Bowie. The song begins with a near trainwreck and there are a few shakey spots rhythmically throughout, which is a shame as this is otherwise another spectacular recent version. As with the Fluff, YEM and Guyuute from this run, Trey 99% straight up nails this with crazy tightness and energy. This Bowie just EXPLODES. I mean, they all do, but ....I wont call this must hear but its dang well worth a listen!!

We get a cooldownn finally with Evolve. Evolve is seemingly always spectacular and this one is no exception. Must hear all day on this sucker - Trey's solo is one of the best Ive ever heard, doing lots of cool "unique for Evolve" stuff. Sick version, seriously.

Up next comes a 15 minute Blaze On. This version is freaking INSANE!!! Man, this HAS to be in the top 3 or 4 type 1 readings of the last few years. Initially going through rounds of heavy m, bubbly kind of gooey funk, it turns to the expected rage fest. And it just explodes. 10 times harder than usual. It goes, and goes, and goes, and goes. It's like a Catholic mass - its STILL goin on! Picture the greatest Blaze On peak explosion finale you've ever heard taken to the nth degree. X Factor. X Factor all over this bad boy. My god.

The set closes terrifically with the duo of Lizards into A Day In the Life. Lizards is killer. Trey has 1 or two vocal flubs but on the whole this is an explosive reading. This is the first thing from a delicate reading of the song! It's just heavy and emotionally girthy and just explosive in the best way. It's slightly too loose for me to call it must here but like Bowie hot dang is it worth a listen!!

ADITL is ADITL. Awesome.

All in all, this was definitely an excellent set on the whole. There were a few small shakey spots and there were "definite" highlights, but this was a strong set regardless and my criticisms are mostly "listening too closely" nitpicks.

Sigma, Evolve and Blaze On are massive must hears. Especially Blaze On. Oh man ...  

 

Set 2

Very sick rocking start with a "now rare" Wilson into a 15 minute Fuego. Actually, its a Fuego>MyFe>Fuego sandwich! Holy mother of corn lets friggin go!!! The first section of Fuego is legitimately outstanding. In two halves, it begins in a dark minor key area. Not exactly robo synthy, but more "dark and depressed". Its extremely cool and sounds pretty unique to my ears. Terrific stuff. Eventually it shifts major and we are off to the FUNK OLYMPICS SUPREME. For a very gloriously long time they proceed to build upon 7/4's Oblivion and deliver the nastiest, funkiest, most godzilla stomping funk jamming Ive heard out of modern Phish in a hot minute. I honestly dont recall ever hearing another Fuego even in this ballpark of straight of funkyness. I mean, this is ROBOFUNK SUPREME DIRECT FROM NEPTUNE.

GOOD GOD THAT WAS SICK!!

Eventually (and sadly...), the jam reaches a natural conclusion point. With a "I think that was a segue?" transition out, they slide into MyFe!!! MyFe is merely a transition piece tonight bridging the two halves of Fuego. Would love to see the stats - this is surely the shortest MyFe in years.

MyFe reaches the jam and instead of going dark as usual, Trey immediately begins the Fuego themes again and leads them perfectly back into it!!! This is what dreams are made of.....slowly the new 11 minute back half of the song turns into this ridiculous kind of Melt-like wall of sound. Fishman never loses the beat but everyone else is basically completely deconstructing this sucker. And this goes on for a long time - gotta be 3 or 4 minutes;!! WHAT IS THIS MONSTROSITY!!!!! From here, somehow they weave their way back from the abyss they were tetering upon and spend the rest of the jam building to the expected ridiculous POWER ROCK conclusion, eventually peaking out and leading into a surefire segue into 2001...

Absolutely unreal. Now THAT was a unique Fuego!!! Good lord what even is this band doing anymore.

Despite one of the most perfect segue setups I can recall, Trey axes the not-to-be 2001 and they rip into Crosseyed.

AND JESUS EFFING BANANA CHRIST FROM HEAVEN WHAT EVEN IS THIS. NEW GOAT. NEW GOAT STATUS RIGHT HERE. WHAT IN THE F. WHERE ARE THEY PULLING THIS STUFF FROM?!?!

Anywho - Crosseyed is 13 minutes of pure magic. Immediately it feels hotter/more intense than usual (which is saying a lot!). Super uptempo, just bangin. You know we are in for some serious shiznit when Trey is ripping the backwards guitar, doing "happy birthday" teases while Fishman is hooting and hollering behind the kit.

The jam is utter magical ridiculousness. Full blown type 2 for its duration, this is the heavenly Yin to Mexico 2025's twisted and gnarly Yang. Crosseyed's jam is insane. Very 1999 combined with a modern Phish edge (or something like that). Soaring through the sky, the heavens, the ether. Yet at the same time burning with the exploding white hot intensity of 10,000 suns.

It begins by dying down to a more quiet feel, intensity remaining however. Immediately we drop straight into this textural kind of major key synthscape. Beautiful loop and synths combos. Soon some synth washes creep in and frighteningly the jam almost dies. Thank Icculus for Jon Fishman! He goes "nope!" and picks the beat back up. Barely two minutes in we are in this unbelievable haze from heaven!! Loopers, synth washes, tons of power drill..... If Trey kicked on the octave up, I would honestly think this was a summer 1999 jam or something.

With the blissful synth wash bedrock in place, Trey and Page both begin swirling around melodically. Very slowly the jam is increasing in intensity. The power drill pops in and out. Trey begins teasing the Fuego lick and we are just soaring into the psychedelic heavens.

Quickly, the jam RAMPS UP the intensity majorly. Its a swirling, snarling PSYCHEDELIC POWER BLISS jam of epic proportions. The speed increases and Trey unleashes the most ridiculous sonic noize destruction soaring peak explosion of all time. An absolute wall of sound coming at you at 5000 mph. Just as we think we have died and gone to purgatory, the jam dies a death and we go into a 15 minute Everythings Right ....

If this isnt a damn All Timer For Any Era jam, I dont know what the hell would qualify to be. @heathen - if this doesn't do anything for you, amigo...

Honestly, its kind of hard to properly describe this jam accurately. Yet another 2025 "this is UNIQUE!" jam.
I think this just replaced everything else as my top jam of the year so far. What in the love of unholy godly X Factor....

So up next we get a 15 minute Everythings Right. Tight and powerful, the jam begins in a very pretty and low key bliss zone. Its got power but they are chilling out and its glorious. Very "hazy" and synthy yet again. Then all of a sudden at th 10 minute mark it slides into minor key darkness outta nowhere, Trey rocking the vibrato effect for a creepy vibe. And in comes the darkness, stuttering away, creeping in the shadows. Very slowly it increases the intensity bit by bit. Good god the flow on this is insane. They are growing a monster! Tense and frightening, they languish in the extreme haze of this dark night, full moon aglow, wolves howling in the distance....just getting more and more abstract, slowly deconstructing the jam. Darkest, most extreme Everythings Right ever played?! We have straight up descended into the swirling vortex to hell. HOLD ME, MOMMY! IM SCARED!!!!!! Thankfully, just as I was about to lose my mind Trey leads us back into love and light and they rock it to a close like they didnt just take us into the depths of despair and fright, lol. Utter magic, once again. How in the hell do they keep topping themselves?!?!?! This is freaking ridiculous!

Sensing our despair they proceed to give us a double dose of love and light with a rocking More into an excellent Slave set closer. Honestly? That More is so perfectly placed it feels so good when you reach it.

Slave and More are both strong typical readings. Neither must hear.

The encore is a SPECTACULAR Buffalo Bill>Harry Hood combo. Hood is unfreakingreal tonight. One of those magical, perfectly created versions just oozing with passion and purpose. The build up/peak goes on forever and will just leave you shaking your head in awe. No its not a 1.0 Hood, but itll do!!! MUST HEAR!!!

All in all, this set two was a damn BEAST!!! The Fuego Sandwich, The Heavenly Crosseyed, The Dark and Scary ER.

Bruh. How they doin' that. Seriously. This band/tour just keeps getting better. Set 2 of night 2 was perfection from start to finish, but I think the 3 big jams of this 2nd set maybe blow away those of night two (except that Tweezer). And that Hood?!?!? Fuhgeddaboutit!!Move over 12/29/23 and 12/30/24! Theres a new sheriff in town and his name is BUFFALO HOOD!!

I get the 4.1 rating on .NET. It was a slightly mixed show ON THE WHOLE, but the highlights were so astronomically insane... Man...Im kinda speechless after these last two shows. 

2025-07-04 Boulder, CO

 7 4 25 Boulder

Set 1

12 minute Gin opener tonight. Gin is pretty boring for the first two thirds. The finale absolutely explodes but its nothing special in the long run.

Up next is Moma. Good stuff but positively average in the most extreme way.

Following a rare Beauty of My Dreams, Theme delivers the same "good enough but also excessively average" level of quality the rest of the set has achieved so far ....

Rift is strong overall but again nothing special.

What in the heck is going on?? This is the most AVERAGE set of the whole year so far. The playing is fine and the energy is basically there, but there is nothing, at all, remotely "impressive" or "memorable" about any of this...

Finally, the first keeper of the show is an excellent 14 minute Oblivion. Nice and tight with excellent groove power, this one kinda develops this unique kinda vaguely bluesy vibe about it. Around 6 minutes they shift into this stoccato kind of area. Trey sets a looper in the background for texture. Yo, this is a sweet little jam! From here, the jam proceeds to start to swirl into this washy kind of vortext. Trey flirts with going major key but the rest of the band amusingly subvert his efforts and force it to stay dark. Slowly some robo and wah effects start to seep in, Page is washing us down with synths and the whole thing becomes downright growly. This is SICK!!!! Just a mushy, gooey, oozing kind of Oblivion. Into the swirling vortex we are sucked ...COME GET YOUR HELPING OF ROBO SOUP!!! Good god, listen to Gordon absolutely tearing it up on this sucker. Anyone saying they cant hear him are lying - hes way up in the mix (at least in this show), and its glorious. Man, I really cant say enough about this Oblivion. Must hear all friggin day - this is the definition of FILTHY MCNASTY!!!!

Yo dawg, you need that Oblivion in your life, stat. Got it? Good. Now go rage it loud and heavy.

Perfectly, the song ends and they immediately launch into Timber. Right away, Timber starts flirting with a really cool kinda dark vibe. Terrific version, it rips as usual. Awesome feedback squeals as the song swirls to its dark peak. Trey kicks on the Leslie giving the peak a unique flavor. Terrific little Timber. I'd call it must hear in tandem with Oblivion.

Up next is a super rare Guyuute!! For some reason Trey sings it an octave up and it sounds terrible, lol. Thankfully, musically, they friggin CRUSH it! Pig slaughter supreme! The technical parts are NAILED and th energy is over the top. The "swirling vortex" section is played as good as any great 1.0 reading. This version was nuts. Must hear, man. My god.

The set comes to a close with the duo of BOTT into Most Events. BOTT is truly terrific. A genuinely EXCELLENT reading, possibly must hear because its just that good. Good lord, this is one of the most spectacular type 1 readings ever. No. Really. Its EXCEPTIONAL!!!! MUST HEAR!!!

Most Events is typically strong but breaks the run of must hear material.

All in all, this set started ridiculously unimpressively. Skip STRAIGHT to Oblivion and just delete everything prior. With Oblivion they kick into high gear and the rest of the set kills. Oblivion>Timber, Guyuute and BOTT were all must hear, imo. Fantastic readings. 

 

Set 2

The second 2 opens tonight with a 12 minute Simple in a rare set opening spot. The tempo is kinda slow and sludgy on this one. Eventually the song shifts into this cool kinda driving rock section. Trey flirting with loops/textural backwards guitar stuff. Super cool. Suddenly some synths come out that sound like a talk box and the jam kinda starts to sound vaguely like a Sweet Emotion jam or something. And then the space robots slowly creep in. Welcome to type 2. This is sick as hell, like some kind of outer space sonic "wallpaper". Very late 90s in that "slow build evolution" kind way. Freaking SICK. Eventually Trey returns to melodic playing sans FX but Gordo and Page are refusing to totally return from orbit. The jam is kind of in this "late night, floating through the stars" area. Super cool when Trey flashes on the Leslie for a bit. God, this jam is so SICK!! Just cruising through the night sky. Slowly it winds down to a close and into Mind we morph.

The tempo slowly decreases and they sliiiddde flawlessly into a 14 minute Mind! THAT FREAKIN SEGUE WAS LEGIT AS HELL. And this version is freaking AWESOME!!! Immediately immersing itself completely into darkness, Trey raging the porno wah, Page laying down those foreboding synths. Then the two of them sync up on this melodic line...this is magical. Freaking X Factor Magic. They rage the melodic space rock until 12 minutes when it goes full ambien wash before Fishman brings the beat back and they take this space jam to a slow, but incredible breakdown/meltdown close. Just as you think its over, Trey launches back into a ripping solo. Full deconstruction. Complete abstraction....add that jam to the hall of fame for dark/spacey/melty jams. Holy mother of awesomeness. Honestly? That was at least on par with - if not BETTER - then the 44 minute Pittsburgh reading. Complete focus and perfection.

And, with another perfect segue, we launch into an 18 minute Tweezer and the universe explodes.... And Tweezer....another UNREAL reading that just spits, snarls, crushes and annihilates everything in its wake topped off with the most ridiculous peak finale imaginable. For my own sake, I will write an extended review of this. There is SO much going on and its unbelievably perfect just like Mind was.... 5000/10 reading. Very "Raleigh 1999 Sand". Dark and powerful. THIS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST, MOST PERFECT TWEEZERS LAID UPON OUR UNWORTHY MORTAL EARS!!!

Then comes the Godzilla stomping No Quarter we were certain would come out of Mind. Delivers just as you expect absolutely killer fantastic.

And then into a 15 minute Disease?! Are you freaking kidding me? What the heck is this set!!! And its the most ridiculous type 1 reading of recent times, even more than that amazing version from spring tour. This version is absolutely screaming from the friggin sky!!!! This one just SCREAMS!!!!!!!!!! Holy hell talk about capping off a set! Another must hear!!!

If you can believe it, they double whammy us into an 11 minute Ghost. And, if you can believe it, it puts that Disease to shame! Just like the 12/28/23 Gin>Ghost, just when you think things cant get any more nuclear, they come out and bomb you 20 times harder just because they can. This has GOT to be the strongest, hottest, most EXTREME "type 1 set closer" Ghost ever. Its not just blazing, its downright solar. Add in a ridiculous wall of sound style to the whole thing and its just a 5000 ton sledgehammer to the face. And then some.

Holy shiznit.

Hot encore of a blazing C Zero into Tweeprise.

All in all... ok, I understand the 4.5 rating on .NET now!!! From start to finish, set 2 was pure magic. The jams were incredible, doing anythinf but stay in the box. The heat was out of this universe. The flow and segues impeccable. The X Factor Magic off the scale....

In years to come we will remember this 2nd set as among the finest ever unleashed for any era. Period.