I for one welcome our new corporate overlords. I am sorry, the haters: Phish rocked the SiriusXM-branded show at the Met in Philly. Rocked it hard. Tweezers abound in S1 and S2 highlights were a very strong Type II coda jam out of CDT and an extended, heavy metal Marimba Lumina-powered 2001.

Disclosure: I was one of what I’m told are approximately 300+ fans who wrote our name with a sharpie on a piece of paper early afternoon before the show, and then returned later to stand in line (roughly) in the right order on the Broad Street sidewalk across the street from the Met. Around 715 or 730, amazingly kind gentlemen who I presume were Sirius or band/venue staff started moving us across the street in groups of 10. We were then handed tickets and wristbands and welcomed inside. I am in disbelief that this happened and was real, and expect the dream or simulation to shutter to a halt any time now. Thank you to PhishatMSG and Mdawg for spreading the word about the fan-made standby list on Twitter.

Further Disclosure: I was born in Philly, grew up in the Philly burbs, now own a home in Philly and work in Philly. I have been to all Phish 3.0 shows in Camden/Philly, I have Phish posters in my office and had tried to call in to win tix during almost every Met Drop. I had made peace (mostly) with the idea that Phish was going to perform a free concert at a small theatre in Philly and I was not going to be there. Then see Disclosure #1 above.

The small confines of the Met squeezed the band’s traditional setup, both spacing of band members and CK5’s rig were compressed. No floating / bobbing drone lights tonight, which felt kind of old school.

Trey and Mike seemed dressed up for a Night at the Opera. Page and Fish were in standard attire though.

The band opened with a Hello My Baby acapella bustout, eliciting roars of approval from the Met crowd right out of the gate. Then Trey rips into Tweezer. Similarly to the Ghost at Nassau, we get a Phish classic high up in S1 that very successfully creates Type I peaks. Tweezer nicely > into Free, and we get a standard solid reading of Free at our free concerts. Moma threatens to get just a little outside the funk-box and the band takes us back into the Tweezer jam ! Just a few funky Tweezer minutes before another nice > into Blaze On. Again, a standard solid rocking version. Jesus Left Chicago is a nice surprise and the band tears it up. Did I mention the sound in the small confines of the Met was outstanding? KDF is next, a nice rhythmic jam emerges and before long we dip back into Tweezer yet again ! A few minutes of Tweezer jamming gives way to the always welcome Ya Mar, and then the set closes with DWYS, my third version this year and second in the Met. I think this is one of the stronger GotF songs but I wish maybe they’d insert a bit of extended improv in the reggae portion. In any event S1 Tweezerfest in the books.

Lights hit and S2 opens with the anthemic Chalk Dust Torture. After the standard lyric-refrain closing Trey continues scratching away and we go into Type II, the band creating intricate rhythm-scapes in real time. Very successful CDT jam. And it goes back into Tweezer yet again !! Just a short Tweezer interlude before Trey launches into Mike’s Song. Mike’s is a fist pumping standard-great version, power chords resounding in the small space. The weird and funny pairing of Sparkle (the Met has a sparkly chandelier) and Ass Handed make up the meat of the Mike’s Groove, and then Weekapaug gives us a very fun Ass Handed reprise segment before the traditional feel-good peaking jam. Miss You is a cool down but Trey kind of shreds the shit out of it. Waves (as in radio waves) emerge next, and is nicely played but not jammed, instead moving directly into Twist, which rocks but stays very much within the lines. ADITL is next, a bit of a surprise and it’s a spot-on rendition, maybe it would end the set? Incorrect, instead we get the second S2 highlight in a 2001 that gets evil and weird in the best kind of way. Heavy metal shredding, Marimba Lumina sci fi tones, sick funky synth and bass, this 10+ min version is a keeper. More is next, and you people better believe I am vibrating with love and light as it closes the set.

Waste is poignant and beautiful as always, and then the band blows the doors off with Tweeprise, sending us fist pumping out into Broad Street.

I still can’t believe I got in. Get to Pitt and Charleston if you can.

Average show at best. Bomb Factory this is not. Some cool segues, especially that Tweezer>Free and the Tweezer>Blaze On but utterly devoid of any jamming last night. CDT had promise but forced back into Tweezer for the gimmick. Twist got really crunchy and I thought it would take off but fizzled out. 2001 is the only thing worth revisiting. Nice deep space version. I'm sure it was better in person to be there in such a small venue and to see our favorite band, but couch touring this one left feeling very meh.

Corporate promo gig or not, there isn't a Phish fan out there who wouldn't have liked to be in attendance for this show, with its intimate 3,500 seat capacity. Reminiscent of the Flynn '97 which was a one-off small venue show as a Ben & Jerry's promo. To see Phish in such a small venue is a rare treat for any fans who weren't seeing shows in the early 90's.
The Met was one of the most hyped shows in quite some time, and all those who couldn't be there were tuned into the audio stream to find out what was going to go down.

Musically, this show featured some interesting segues, some funky grooves, and markedly slower tempos on a number of tunes. Tweezer, Chalkdust, Mike's, and Twist notably had a more slinky pace than usual - not quite to the extent of a "Slow Llama', but quite apparent. This listener happens to be fine with a slower paced funky groove and voiced no objections. The several return segues to Tweezer made for an interesting setlist construction, but in at least one instance (out of Moma?) felt very forced - as opposed to the same-key slickness of Tweezer>Free. Though 'Hello my Baby' was the biggest show-gap bust-out of the show, the tune that felt like the biggest prize to pop up in the first set was 'Jesus Just Left Chicago' which found Page in very fine form, and Trey boasting some tasty blues riffs. Standouts in Set 2 were, IMO, the slinky groove out of Mike's and the true gem of the night, 2001. The odd Mike's Groove sandwich of Sparkle and Ass Handed were amusing, in classic Phish fashion, but didn't exactly provide re-listen value. The 2001 on the other hand is probably the one track most fans will revisit from this show - 11 minutes of goodness that peak into an interstellar liftoff, aided by deep envelope filter tones from Mike and wild synths that created an exciting, futuristic soundscape. For a tune that seems to rarely get the 10+ minute treatment any more, this seemed to be the gift of the night - with Phish pushing into exciting new territory which I hope will be revisited and expanded upon.

For those who managed to get into the building, there is no doubt that this was a special night - maybe one of the most special nights - in their history with the band. For those listening along at home, there were some tasty nuggets sprinkled here and there along with some playing that was at times disjointed, as if the band was having trouble hearing each other, keeping time, and making cues. That said, the good far outweighed the bad, as it always does with a Phish concert. I, for one, am heading off to listen to that 2001 again.

This show was all about being there, the intimacy of a band and it's fan's. Sadly I was not...I listened in and the first set was pure unadulterated gold, except Drift While Sleeping, a song I love, but Trey got play that song in an intimate setting already so lets just stick to Phish. Other than that, it was a fun rocking good time.

Second set felt like another really good first set and towards the back end they just kept doing their microjam thing and didn't allow much to develope with the exceptionof that gnarly 2001. I ask you is this attendance bias? It might be because Nassau also had the microjam's rolling and it felt fine, and last night I had some moments of "why!?".

The one thing I want to say about microjams is this. It feels ripchordy when done wrong (ha like I know) and it feels like cheating when done right. Like video games, books or movies, music, especially improvisational music needs that journey of exploration and then the satisfying conclusion. The micro jams feel like a cheat code or a fast forward to the end of things. The journey allows reflection and transcendence and if miss one you lose out on the other. As I write this I feel the nagging selfish thought that we are never happy and just need to enjoy the moment.

To my ears it sounds like when they are falling into familiar jam territory they pull the plug and move on. Whats annoying is they are finding these wonderful spacey pockets and or peaks and letting them fizzle out. I wonder are they taking what would be the Curveball jam and spreading it across song codas? Thats why they are just falling into these spaces so quickly because they have been rehearsed and practiced...I wonder.....

Now my other half is digging their segues and it feels like thats the focus of the tour, the segues, returns and playing with time signatures. So for the most part I am digging this tour and 2019 in general but I crave that big monster jam and will be jealous when I miss it. Finally I just wanna say if you were there last night...man that must have been special !!! Hope it was as good as it sounded.

Looking forward to the NYE run! Hope y'all have a great rest of the tour, I will be listening in!

I am absolutely certain that being at this tiny, intimate venue for a special, once in a lifetime performance by our favorite band had to be one of the coolest experiences that any head could ever ask for. That had to be just thrilling... for those in attendance.

Unfortunately, the rest of us got to experience this show via the magic of Sirius XM... and let me tell you... at least for this listener, it was a markedly different thing tuning in from afar. The sound quality was noticeably bad on the simulcast... very compressed and muddy. And the show was, quite frankly, boring. The only moments worth a listen are CDT (which gets horribly rip-corded in order to do the Tweezer weave), Waves/Twist (just because they are great songs... not special versions), and 2001 (the only thing with any replay value).

When I first saw this set list, I thought to myself... FUCK... I wish I could have seen this. Then I saw the dismal score and couldn't fathom the dichotomy. Now,
I fully comprehend the rating and honestly, it's pretty generous. I gave this show a 2 based upon the merits of the 4 songs I enumerated above. Otherwise, this is the worst Phish that I've heard in a while.

Go ahead... rip on me now... GO!

This show's rating should have a big, fat * next to it.

No, it didn't have the depth and exploratory jamming as many other shows, but it was a straight up, high energy dance party with a pretty ideal setlist (for the most part). I don't know if the low rating reflects the poor sound quality for listeners on SiriusXM or bitter fans that think Phish sold out, but the score does not accurately reflect the quality of this show.

Also, I think it's interesting that people NOT going to The Met were worried about it being an amazing show, and people GOING to The Met were worried about it being a generic "radio" show. In the end, it was an above average show and everyone should walk away satisfied. ✌

I hope everyone in attendance had a fun time. Makes me think how cool it would be if Phish did a tour of weekends or residencies at such venues like the Met. Overall, it looks like a good, albeit generic setlist - and sounded just like that. Granted, there a couple of cool things sprinkled in (Tweezer->Blaze On, Mike's Ass Groove, 2001). Glad they saved the new tunes for the phans in Pitt. Here's to hoping I can catch some Phish in 2020!

also, @S1177375 - maybe ease up on the booger sugar?

Fair warning, I have never written a review or even felt compelled to, so bare with with me. However, given the reactions to this tour I'm hoping to shed some light as I was lucky enough to be in attendance.

I'll spare you all of the "experience" narrative as that has been covered in detail. I'm also not trying to argue for ratings (as everyone already knows they are the all sacred higher power we must adhere to when judging a show) but I'm afraid of the fun moments that any fan would/should enjoy listening to, being overshadowed by the stream complaints, exclusivity backlash, and lack of "big" jams. So if you are someone who actually likes listening to phish and not just complaining about them online (its a joke, learn to laugh at yourself you negative nancies), I'm hoping I can provide you with some quick highlights based on my relistening this past week and being in the crowd.

Yes, the 2001 is the only jam that really gets exploratory but the first Tweezer of the night packs a fun punch that begins to slightly soar before a silky smooth segue into Free. KDF also takes a turn towards a serious peak before ripping back into a funky Tweezer (third of the night) that is absolutely worth the quick listen.

While only 13 min CDT does more than I remember in person and is a fun little micro jam (sue me) that around 9:40 gave a brief flashback to the to the tone of Trey's magnaball effect. (Anyone else hear that or am I just crazy?). The Mike's Groove was a blast in person and despite any real jam the tight rocking Mike's Song was something I remember really getting the crowd going. The Weekapaug is the real highlight however, with the ass-handed jam as a fun cherry on top to the groove that looks pretty passable on paper but is a fun listen at the very least. 2001 is the winner of the night. Hall of Fame? No. Are you too good to listen to it? Mike says No.

Overall, it was a fun tightly-played show that will give you stuff to be happy about if you look for it. Will I enjoy relistening more given the fact that I was there? Probably Absolutely. All I know from what I saw this tour it seems to be pretty evident the band is having serious fun every night and showing no signs of stopping. That stokes me up more than a 20 min jam every night.

Worst show of the tour but the band is playing really well it just didn’t have any jams but I’m still excited for tomorrowI have a few predictions and the rest are hopes and dreams of what I’d love to hear
We still haven’t got a YEM. So I expect small trampolines and hopefully a really long bass jam and a very short vocal jam not a fan of the vocal jams I love sneak and Sally through the alley but not when they do a vocal jam in the middle. Here’s my long list of things they must still play and probably won’t play and all of which I hope they play some of because this would be at least four sets
Trenchtown rock because Pittsburgh is shaped like a trench and I love Bob Marley going with the reggae Rastafarian theme they already played drift while you’re sleeping so mellow mood and have mercy passing through is the only song I like on Kasvot I don’t mind pussy drop interrupt middle of the road you never know and Marissa And crazy sometimes all great Mike solo songs as far as Bluegrass ginseng Sullivan is my favorite if I could and fast enough for you if it’s going to be one of their original tunes. Yeah I am I’m pretty much betting has to be played At least in North Carolina if not PA. I love Esther contacts foam and icculus and sanity from their first album Yet to be played. Now for rarest of the rare Colonel forbin into fly famous Mockingbird Tela McGrupp And the watchful hoseMasters And most peoples personal favorite Harpua. Not mine mine is lizards harpua is a close second or third behind maze and Reba and Harry hood I love all the dog songs dog stole things the dogs are pool and there’s probably other ones that I’m forgetting but I have three cats so I’d love a my pet cat. Onto the list again the squirming coil a very elusive coil I’ve been to 19 shows this will be 20 and I’m still not caught that coil I feel like the devil and I am Satan trying to catch that darn thing I already mentioned Reba they still haven’t played that I don’t really want to hear run like an antelope but they got a play it at some point. I love the mango song very underrated song just like sleeping monkey it’s right in the middle of popularity but it should be up with simple in FarmHouse. My friend my friend is an absolute masterpiece like guyute. Prince Caspian but they just played it at the same venue so I hope they don’t jam it out again and less they can top the last one which is very unlikely waiting in the velvet see but only if they jam out with a really nice guitar solo that peaks properly a lot of times they’ve been just letting it die out and playing it really mellow I don’t like the velvet sea played mellow. I like it played really building to a climax like they do with slave to the traffic light and Reba and hood but all too often they do it like versions of when the Circus comes to town or farm house we’re just stays really mellow that’s OK but it’s not favorable Speaking of building to a climax with a guitar solo dirt I love the song dirt lyrics and all I really hope to hear that again I haven’t heard it since 2 22 2003 and 11 29 03 both 16 hrs ago. Piper I would love a second set piper opener with the really long jam Guy Forget. But it sounds like key for shay when they sing it. Round room and Mock song are fun little songs They’ve already played light but it has potential every time to be amazing I heard it last at Meriwether 816 2015 but it was a terrible version totally blasé. Even sneak in Sally through the alley couldn’t save that show. SASS I love this song I heard maybe their best version of it the best two versions one at Camden 730 and then again a year later at Camden 812 both amazing versions I would love to hear the song gone mostly because of the lyrics but the music is pretty as well those are some poignant lyrics I too was a former heroin attic so I can totally relate to treys lyrics on that one. Devotion to a dream is a nice catchy song better than heavy things or bouncing around the room but still very normal and catchy but if it’s played during the first that It can be nice. Running out of time would be a nice slow song after a big jam in the second set also poignant lyrics and in that vein a life beyond the dream a ghost of the forest masterpiece Albeit slow Listen to the guitar solo at blossom this last summer it is epic I want to hear those two black stallion’s again. Way down in a hole or make sure that my grave is kept neat from the donuts covers those are two really fun songs I want to hear a show of life encore or a Petrichor maybe I’m the only one that likes that song but I think it’s beautiful I always wanted it this way when we’re in a zeppelin ish psychedelic second set part like a no quarter But I don’t particularly like no quarter I would much rather hear their original I always wanted it this way. There are far better Zeppelin tunes than no quarter in my humble opinion. I would love to hear golden lady instead of boogie on reggae woman every time and there was one song by Stevie wonder which would fit perfectly into phish repertoire. Much like the Zappa instrumental peaches en regalia It has no lyrics and it’s off Stevie wonder’s best album in my opinion Songs in the key of life It is called contusion and it sounds like trays guitar which has that Spanish Santana sound and if they’re in the mood for a really good melody I’m not sure if Trey can pull this off or convince the other bandmembers but my favorite is summer soft that is one of most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard in my lifeThey obviously like golden lady so if I can’t get summer soft I’ll take golden lady. Just a few ideas to make my favorite band even better I love you guys you bring happiness to my life like tray says in bittersweet motel rock ‘n’ roll is a bunch of bullshit on a certain level but music is not music is the realist thing in the world to me and I could not agree with that statement more