Wednesday, 07/16/2014
DTE Energy Music Theater, Clarkston, MI
Set 1: Wolfman’s Brother, Devotion To a Dream, Wilson > Poor Heart, The Moma Dance, Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan, Lawn Boy, Yarmouth Road > Rift, The Line, It’s Ice > 46 Days
Set 2: Mike’s Song > Ghost > Prince Caspian > Backwards Down the Number Line > Weekapaug Groove > Cavern > Piper > Waiting All Night, Tweezer > Fuego > Tweezer Reprise
Encore: Also Sprach Zarathustra > Possum
and light up that first one when the lights go down
I only had one available so I hit a bowl right after parking and stumbled in and had the second for the setbreak. Worked out nicely.
Oh, here I go again…7/16/14 notes and observations:
Anyway, I just got back and I’m buzzing and each time I see them there’s a point early in the show where I say “Oh yeah…THIS is why I fucking love this band.” I had an absolute ball. My buddy, Dave DID end up being late and he just got a ticket from a scalper like he said he would. He found me on the lawn near the end of Wolfman’s and then rocked out the rest of the night. He even found his two cousins who were both at their first show who joined us for the second set…(though dubiously took off during Tweezer. For shame. (Though it’s possible they went back to their actual seats))
Anyway, I was Page Side, of course. I have not been Page Side for all of the shows I have seen but I have for most of them. Page Side is Rage Side. And, of course we got a Lawn Boy. Hell yeah, we did.
Wolfman’s - A random Dude in the Bathroom was talking about how they’re definitely playing a Wolfman’s this show. I figured they opened with it last time they were at DTE so they wouldn’t play it again. And they open with it again. And a sweet one too.
Wilson - Love it but remember in like 2000 when they’d jam out the part before the “can you still have fun?” line? Why don’t they do that anymore? Both Wilson and 2001 are back to their 1996 length for some reason.
Poor Heart - My buddy Dave’s knowledge of Phish was limited to Rift, the one time he’d heard Fuego, and the other songs I subliminally put into his head when he was my roommate in college for a year. It was cool when he’d get a song he recognized…he liked this one.
Yarmouth Road - It was thirty seconds in when I realized this was the only song I didn’t know the words to. For shame.
Rift - Fucking love Rift. Great choice.
The Line - Told ya they’d play it. I really dig this tune.
46 Days - I called this as show opener and got Set 1 closer. Never would have guessed. A damn scorcher with pure Type I shit.
Set II was incredibly good. Type II stuff all over the place.
Mike’s - What’s better than a Mike’s set II opener?
Sadly, near the end of Mike’s I had to really go piss…apparently the setbreak piss break didn’t take. I had to take off during the start of Ghost which sucked. I really only missed a few minutes but standing in that line and hearing the muffled music made it feel like forever. At one point everyone was there and bummed they weren’t seeing the band with us all staring blankly at the floor and the line wasn’t moving and it had just a depressing mood. Recognizing this, I vocalized:
Me: This is like the worst bathroom ever.
Guy Behind Me Who I Didn’t Even Turn Around to See: Hey man…there’s probably some really shitty bathrooms in Pakistan, ya know?
Me: That’s an excellent point.
Then the next stall opened up for me so I could do my business. That exchange actually happened. Awesome.
Prince Caspian - Type II Caspian! Just the start of the fricking odyssey.
BDTNL- Only problem with this song is it’s oftened segued out of something else and it has a really abrupt start and usually a big key change that is hard not to sound awkward. And I think Trey knows that folks aren’t quite as into it so he always tries to make up for it by killing the solo…this one was incredible. Seriously, at the time of this song, I was thinking it was song of the night. It’s that good. You have to hear it.
Weekapaug - This was glorious. It somehow would meander into weird directions yet keep getting pulled back into the main groove but the band didn’t want to sing the ending of the song so they just kept experimenting…it wanted to go type II but somehow was dragged back into Type I at various points. And then around two or three minutes into the jam it just CLICKED and it took off and the band was just locked in…it was jumping around like an Umphrey’s jam and yet was seamless each time. I could have listened to this Weekapaug for hours. I want to have sex with this Weekapaug.
Cavern - Only thing wrong with this Cavern was it meant the end of that sick Weekapaug with a (somewhat awkward) segue into it. My sense of time was so off I was thinking this song could end this second set…it would have been a short set but it felt like I’d gotten a ton of music already.
Piper - For this, I wondered why they even play the start since they jumped right into more Type II guitar stuff for the jam. Glorious.
Waiting All Night - So glad I got this one. I needed a breather and it sounds great. Trey was hitting those notes nicely. Seriously, Caspian>BBDTNL>Weekapaug>Cavern>Piper was an awesome and exhausting batch of music.
Tweezer->Fuego - Been a while since I got a Tweezer. And I was shocked when I heard the first notes of Fuego since they played it just last night. Man, when they sing the “Vlad the Impaler” line and the song just explodes, it’s unreal.
2001->Possum - 2001 is always nice but was short and I was glad it didn’t close the show. Possum was excellent…the jam kinda lost its way as it slowed down with Trey just noodling as Mike was intently watching him and waiting for a point to kinda jump back into the song. Only Trey was off in lala land so Mike just kept watching and rolling with it. Finally, at the right moment, Mike and Fish just conspired and threw out this nice groove where Trey could easily work his solo back into the main song. It was fascinating to watch these pros just observe and adapt on the fly like that.
Absolutely loved the show. Just happy and glowing now. This is what it’s about.
i found this morning i sent 3 text messages to myself from the show last night:
“Fuego tease in 46 days” (of course everyone caught it but ya never know)
“Only 4 tapers… how times have changed”
“That real quiet pretty jam part of Backwards” (seriously, just like El B was saying, this has got to be the best type I BDTNL)
I thought the show was great last night, especially the second set. They got right down to business right from the Mike’s opener and didn’t let up. It was definitely one of those sets that felt like one 1.5 hr long journey rather than a collection of individual tunes. I appreciate that, often even more than having one monster 20-30 min jam followed by a bunch of other tunes.
Really liked having a chance to see some of the new tunes too. I’m a big fan of the new album and was delighted to hear that they sound even better live. Fuego is a killer song to see them play 
“Only 4 tapers… how times have changed”
There was one out on the lawn that I saw which was kinda weird. I wonder how the quality would change out there or if it matters.
It was definitely one of those sets that felt like one 1.5 hr long journey rather than a collection of individual tunes.
The coolest part was when they finished Waiting All Night and I realized this was the first time they actually ENDED a song in that set and didn’t just segue into the next one. And like you said, there was no 25 minute epic but a series of 10-15 Type-IIs that kinda felt like they all flowed from one to the other. When they played Piper after Cavern it felt they were just continuing the Weekapaug from earlier. A transcendent set.
I’m a big fan of the new album and was delighted to hear that they sound even better live. Fuego is a killer song to see them play
Agreed. I really wanted Waiting and Fuego and got both and I dig the Line as well. I noticed they kind refined the lyrical back-and-forth parts in Fuego…they seemed a bit disorganized in other performances…I think they’ve been fine-tuning how they want to do that part live.
Wooie! A great night with Phish in Michigan! Look at that assonance there.
Beers with friends in lot. Check!
Great spot on the front of the lawn. Check!
Wolfman’s Brother opener was funny because it’s what they opened with last time they were at DTE for Mike’s birthday (party). Was it a nod to that awesome day? Maybe so maybe not. Devotion to a Dream was actually one of the highlights for me. I know some do not like this song, but I’m really just sold on it, and my buddy who also really digs that song was right there with me. High fives etc bro out blah blah. Stealing Time was another highlight for me, as far as actual song choices go.
Although I was on the lawn, I had pac seats that were pretty close to the stage (and I bought them for the price of a lawn ticket!), and I decided to go check those out for Yarmouth Road, Rift, The Line, and It’s Ice. I was very glad to catch Yarmouth Road because I thought Trey did a great job improvising off the melody. Rift was sweet to see up close! As I watched it I remember Fishman in that radio interview when he said that Rift is a song that’s better with a slower tempo (than 1993) because you can “hear the music go by better”. I think The Line is a great song with a great build and I was glad to be there for it. The real money here was IT’S ICE. FREAKIN WOW KIDS. Funk jam damn!! Must-hear!!
Mike’s through Cavern felt like a complete set. I agree with El Bastarde up there saying it felt like the show could’ve ended there, but when I looked at my clock, it was only 10:06! I was feeling a YEM for sure. If you hate Caspian and #line, you probably would’ve reaaaaalllly hated that segment there, but I’ll tell you what, the #line was kicking and there is nothing better than being at Phish with your friends belting “ooooooooh to be prince caspian!!!”
Waiting All Night was placed and segued into perfectly, in this fan’s opinion. Fuego was really a shocker, since they had played it the night before. Thanks Phish, you know I wasn’t in NY.
I also agree with Doug’s statement, that the 2nd set felt like a complete journey rather than a bunch of songs. The segues were thoughtful and the energy was flowing. Whatever your opinion on Possum, this one is worth listening to.
aaaaannnddd here is the condensed version of all that: listen to It’s Ice, Ghost, Weekapaug, Possum.
it’s what they opened with last time they were at DTE for Mike’s birthday (party). Was it a nod to that awesome day?
It made me wonder if they actually check such things. That was three years ago so maybe they figured it didn’t matter.
Devotion to a Dream was actually one of the highlights for me.
I like it…the song kinda has the same beat as Jessica from the Allmans and I heard traces of that tune in the jam too.
The real money here was IT’S ICE. FREAKIN WOW KIDS. Funk jam damn!!
Oh yeah! Page got super-funky during the breakdown jam…I kinda wished they had extended that part longer rather than jump back into the song. It’s strange, I have weird luck of seeing It’s Ice despite it not being that prominent.
Mike’s through Cavern felt like a complete set.
Piper too. For every song after that I was thinking “Okay, THIS will be the last song” and they just kept playing.
I was feeling a YEM for sure.
So was I!…even wore the IBM/YEM shirt as a case of wishful thinking. We knew were all due for a huge jam-engine song at some point and they went with Tweezer instead. Which was still pretty badass.
Waiting All Night was placed and segued into perfectly,
Absolutely PERFECT placement. I think I would have passed out if they played another upbeat song.
Also: did anyone else think Trey was attempting to segue into Weekapaug from #Line?
This set was brought to you mostly by the key of G and its modes.
100% on the Paug attempt by Trey
also, we must never forget the It’s Ice FONK JAM!
i was making my way down from the lawn back into the pavilion and completely losing my shit as the funk deepened… hilariously, where i had popped a squat to share my J with some lawnfolk, the guy behind me pointed at an object in the grass near me and asked, “is that glass?” to which i replied, “nope, it’s ice.”
we must never forget the It’s Ice FONK JAM!
With that and Moma and a few other songs, I heard a lot of PHUNK! at the show. Again, I wish they had extended Page’s funk jam a bit longer…they had something going there.
“is that glass?” to which i replied, “nope, it’s ice.”
Nicely done. My buddy Dave knew the song but couldn’t remember the name so I said told him and he said "So, that’s “Ice”? “No, No…IT’S Ice” Not confusing at all.
show was awesome! only complaint is that i wish that they had actually jammed tweezer, but i still enjoyed the “Tuego”, if you will.
my father-in-law had a blast (he’s 69). he was asking me “what is the internet saying about the show?” the morning after and asked me how he could download the show. he’s also planning on going to more shows and kept cranking the volume any time phish came on sirius on the ride back home.
overall though, had a great time and got the itch again after not seeing phish since 6/24/12.