“Dirty dirty dirty ripper” is what I sent my friends as soon as the show ended. First quarter felt like Trey teasing us to “approach the night with caution” and with a reminder that last night wasn’t “nearly fast enough for you.” And then they dove into Divided and the team launched. Caspian-Crosseyed each individually were fantastic editions, and then kept coming back with reprise after reprise. The last quarter was just straight dark and nasty, punctuated by an all-venue Carini. 5-song encore just kept going and going, and the Woodstock respect with Fire was a dream send. One of the best shows I’ve seen live.

FACTS ARE USELESS NEXT TO YOUR FIRE

Let’s do it again, shall we? Wiring this one in a day late, after making the drive home to Montreal from Catskills on Sunday and getting some much needed rest. In the interest of time and the work week that I should really be getting to, I’ll spare some of the scene-setting and invite you to check out my review of the 7/22 show for any additional colour.

After a really impressive first set the night prior that saw the band coming out of the gates swinging—with a brief excursion in Golgi, and a big, full jam in Sample—it felt unlikely they’d try and top that to start. Instead we were welcomed with cool, cautionary tone of Evening Song followed by Turtle in the Clouds. I was pretty satisfied with the previous night’s show (even if some of the juke box selections left a thing or to to be desired), and just enjoying the atmosphere.

Vultures felt like it had been swirling overheard for a couple days already given the… actual vultures (not to mention geese) peppering the sky around Bethel. I can’t remember the last time I was so impressed with the crowd, both the energy of the whole room, the new friends made, and the old ones from tour-days past bumped into. My Sweet One felt to me like a nod to this vibe, that old relationship between the band and its fans that was on full, old-school display for the entire run. There were very big moments on this night, and also other moments of improvisation that were downright weird and didn’t always land. But one thing that was undeniable was the energy in the room, and the way it translated to the energy on stage.

In any case, the show felt like it got going in earnest with Undermind, which shuffled for a little while before doing the job of the the now trending early/mid first set 15 minute jam vehicle. No complaints. None, either, with the Fast Enough For You that emerged, which I’ve found myself wishing they'd selected during many another ballad over the years. I hadn't seen this beauty since Coventry and hit a special note.

The Divided Sky was the perfect pairing, and having revisited at least once since, feels like a standout version to me. Tight playing at the outset, a very pregnant powerful pause with huge crowd swells, and then the gentleness of entries into the finale by Trey, with Fish listening intently trying not to overpower the situation (Fish, by the way, was tonight’s MVP; more on that later). It sounds at first like Trey is playing soft and just the tiniest bit slow because he wants to get the notes right, but then the confidence just builds and the solo gets bigger and bigger and the band wallops the finale.

A brief Suzy brings the crowd back to sing-along territory before we’re treated to a set closing Ghost. Speaking of ghosts, I had mentioned in my 7/22 review that Trey seemed to be channeling Jimi’s Woodstock ghost in the set closing Walk Away. That theme would be revisited more explicitly before this night was over, but whatever spook was conjured here to close the set on Night 2 meant business. It’s about 10 minutes but hits full-on hose to close things out. Must hear.

Caspian opens set two in what feels partly like a classic Phish troll move, on a night when many folks (myself included) were calling a big Waves in a nod to 2011. "Afloat upon the waves," instead? In any case, I have no complaints with this call either; ol' Fuckerpants has aged gracefully and yield plenty of beauty jams in recent years. (The only jarring trend I see is the continued short second-set opener that feels deliberately constructed for the free webcast preview.) There’s some great interplay here between the band though, Mike stepping up and continuing with his tasteful playing the way he had on night one. Things suddenly get crunchy, spacey and interesting and then the band drops into Crosseyed & Painless.

For my money this jam is the highlight of the Bethel run, and it begins and ends with the performance of Jon ‘Moby Dick’ Fishman. All over the woodblocks as if Karl Perazzo were somehow hidden behind the kit. Between his playing and the groove Mike is laying down Trey doesn’t have to do much and it works beautifully. At 10 minutes Trey comes in with a theme he’s trying to get to. It feels forced for a minute or so, but Page adds nice texture. And then something clicks at minute 12 with a full band side-step led by Mike, it’s almost Radiohead-like. Trey flirts for the briefest second with his What’s the Use jam trick, but decides that’s too easy, and then they just ride. You know those jams where it’s minute 13 and they are just in full outer-space mode? This is one. They bring it back to the Crosseyed theme in effect mode and then lay her down.

Miss You shows up in the Trey ballad spot, and I’ll be honest here: this is my favourite of his modern era slow-jams. Maybe it was the gravitas it was seemingly injected with when Bobby showed up to sing it in 2016—or just the emotion that comes through when Trey sings—but it hits me. I’ve gone back and listened to the version from Blossom in 2019 many times (worth a listen), and this one landed in the same way.

Set Your Soul Free offers the big third quarter course. I’m still digesting it. It could easily be labelled SYSF->C&P, as at 5 minutes, Trey pulls out the riff and the first “Still waiting” refrain, and the jam launches from here. It goes surprisingly light and nimble, with Page adding some fun Meatstick swells, and then again around minute 12 Fish and Mike brings things down and dirty. We’re in 8/6/21 Simple mode. Not quite to the level of that monster of a jam, but similar vibe. Fish, again, just destroying everything in his path. The last quarter of the jam goes flat-out weird and atonal, which I’m not just I actually enjoyed, but your mileage may very. ‘Still waiting’ rears its head again overtop this. You’ll want to hear the mid-section peak of this jam, but as a full set-piece I’m not sure it stands up next to the biggies of recent memory.

Trey pulls it back to Caspian, almost as if he had forgotten they played it, but that’s brief and we get a late-set Twist. This jam meanders a little, feels familiar, like Trey is pulling some easy moves to get to a peak, not unlike the jam out of YEM the previous night. But with the energy of the band and the room, they kind of get away with it. The energy keeps going up, and at minute 10, the hose is gushing. Gushing.

I don’t know what we were “still waiting” for by this point, but apparently it was a short nasty Carini to close the set in earnest. I had made my way to the lower pavilion for Set 2 and was pretty close, and you could see Trey and Page full-on cracking up during Carini, as if it was the first time they realized how ridiculous a song it is. That must have struck a chord, because this was also the theme for a good half of the encore. After a poignant Horse>Silent kicked things off, Fuck Your Face and a Buffalo Bill bustout (my first since Worcester 98!) kept the laughs going. They weren’t done yet though. The Buffalo Bill was also an opportunity to single Fish out for his performance on this night, nodding to his solos in the first set and then stretching it out. “Yeah.” “Jon Fishman! Buffalo Bill! Moby Dick! Dick! Dick!”

At the end of another run that might have been enough to duck out, but there was too much energy in the room to exit there. Fire was a fuego call for so many reasons, finally making an explicit nod to Jimi during a run where his influence had only so far been implicit. As if that wasn’t enough, Trey decided to double-down on the Woodstock references and pulls out the Star Spangled Banner *in* the Fire jam. What I loved about that was the band just decided they were going to keep playing Fire and the whole noisy fiasco burned the house down. “Move over, and let Jon Fishman take over!”

Lots of smiling, blown-out faces at the end of this one as we floated our way to the lot. Unlike the night previous, I didn’t get that extra step out of the venue and beat the traffic. Took a little longer to get out of the lot on this night before making my way through the magic Catksill woods, but it was worth every minute. See you in Toronto!

APPROACH THE NIGHT WITH CAUTION
It was scorching outside in the lot and this show would be a night to remember. Evening song was not the most exciting song to get you going, but in retrospect was a strong warning for caution for what was to come on this magical night. This song choice would not convert the free youtube teaser song into a stream purchase…..that was not the intent. Turtles was fun and cheerful and then Trey started goofing with Fish on Vultures pushing those drum fills to the limit (what a treat that was). The Undermine jam really went in some interesting directions and got stretched tastefully….I thought this was going to the be the big jam vehicle of the night - WRONG. Fast enough for you, one of my favorite slower tunes and quite a treat to get. Pretty standard Sky but in the middle of it there was a strong cool breeze that came through the pavilion and hit everyone hard and also some dark clouds in the distance….I don’t know how they time that stuff but it was somewhat a magical moment. There was a big moment of AHHH from the crowd in unison as it really cooled down a long hot afternoon. Suzy was pretty standard and then the first Ghost repeat of the tour was capped a really solid first set.

I was not too thrilled to hear Caspian start the second set (another tour repeat), but they really dug into the jam and set the stage for the epic Cross eyed which had brought the energy up another level. They needed a breather and Miss You hit the spot. SYSF>CASPIAN>TWIST was just a good flow of hard exploratory jamming and then we got punched in the face with CARINI – super short but hey it is all about the dynamics of the song, really liked the short and sweet version. Hearing The Horse, I immediately thought that this was a good way to end the night with Silent in the Morning but then they pulled out 3 more which Fish was just on fire with the drumming. Trey pulling off that Start Spangled Banner solo in Fire invoked the spirit of Jimi on these sacred grounds. So glad he had the courage and creativity to pull that off.

I gotta tell you, I was a little disappointed at the start of Evening Song, Undermind, Caspian and SYSF. I was wrong to have these impulses as all my doubts eventually become cleared up with the execution and playfulness of the songs. Overall, one of the best shows I have ever seen. The venue is amazing.

Caught the night two festivities at Bethel Woods on couch tour. A sedate start to the show (Vultures was my highlight of the first quarter- the Trey/Fish interplay was spot on, highlighting the expressionist rhythmic stabs and spidery, twisting guitar lines that define that underrated tune) led to a beautiful FEFY bust-out, and then the warm embrace of Divided Sky. No complaints ever about hearing my favorite Trey guitar melody in the middle of that gorgeous composition. A punchy, unexpected Ghost closer after Suzy promised bigger things.

Caspian (eh, you know) and Crosseyed (yesss!) set the table and introduced the running themes for set 2. SYSF is Phish bringing down the hammer. Really inventive, swirling, dark explorations called back to a late 90s approach with hits of 4.0 bliss-hose and mid 90s tease-fests and surrealism layered in to the mix. Superb storytelling through instrumentation on full display. Probably my favorite improv I’ve seen in the dozen shows I’ve live streamed this year. Intense versions of Twist and Carini didn’t stretch as far, but delivered a potent dose of energy to close out the set. The Horse came trotting out for the encore and I expected Silent to send us home, but the band was feeling spunky and graced us with two oddball rarities and an uncommon (in the 21st century at least) Fire complete with Trey’s performance of the Star Spangled Banner interlaced into the driving Hendrix classic. That’s how you put an exclamation point on a Saturday night! Seek out those set 2 jams and bask in the delirious diversity of Phish showcased in that encore. Really good show that built momentum all night!

People. People, people, people. This was a really good show. But I have to share. There is no "woo" in Vultures. There is no "woo" in Vultures. There is no "woo" in Vultures. There was a "woo" during the Tahoe Tweezer, because it was warranted. And the band responded. But the band does not solicit your "woo" during Vultures. It just happens to have stops that you're exploiting. Stop the "woo." Please. Stop woo'ing during Vultures. There is no "woo" in Vultures.

I need to preface that is was my wife's first show in five years since she became pregnant with our daughter and I think the Phish Gods were on her side last night ???? What a night.
I got to say I was a little disappointed with the opener and had a fear that since the previous night was an old school banger that tonight would be a new song snoozefest ????, but I was definitely mistaken.
Yes Turtle in the Clouds is new, but I enjoy it and they seem to play it , doing a little dance and whatnot, it's a fun song . Vultures is always welcome, My Sweet One is one of my favorite bluegrass songs, I got it at my first show in 95 so it'll always have a place in my heart (but I was glad they were one and done w bluegrass songs ????), Undermind was nice and had some nice Fishman action, Fast Enough for You was the chill, slow, bathroom break song, but it's beautiful and one of best slow, bathroom break songs they have so I'll gladly take it. Divided was great as usual and of course Suzy was top notch! Thought they were gonna end there, but no, they gave us Ghost, nothing too crazy but a solid Ghost.
Ok, now onto the main event!
Prince Caspian, ok, I mean, its Prince Caspian and it was a solid Caspian but then came the highlight of the show imo, Cross Eyed and F**king Painless ????, absolutely ripped this one and had some deep groove jamming! Fishmans drums were on point w this one (I mean, they always are but this song and basically all night, he was on another level). Then comes to what I'd say was the only let down, Miss You, I figured they had another song in them before slowing it down and this song basically brought the show to a halt lol, but ok, they fired it up again w Set Your Soul Free, not my favorite, little corny imo but they usually jam it out so I was patiently waiting for the jam and of course they didn't disappoint. That jam was another heater that went up a notch right after the Cross Eyed tease. They ended the SYSF jam by going back into and finishing Caspian respectfully. Twist around is always welcome, as is Carini, and I know Carini is borderline overplayed nowadays, but this one definitely had a little more gusto on it, a ripping Carini to end the set.
Encore time ????
I honestly thought they were going to end w Horse Silent after that 2nd Set, and I would have been content, it's beautiful and could easily been a good encore.. but not today! Fuck your Face killed as usual , ok great ending, wait! Buffalo Bill ???????? was amazing, a fun rarity, but they still weren't done ???? They ended w a homage to the original Woodstock by absolutely shredding Jimi Hendrix's Fire w a Star Spangled Banner tease taboot!
Overall it was quite the show, definitely top shelf Phish with minimal fluff, and if you weren't there, the 2nd set/encore is definitely worth spending some time with ????

Besides N1 in Philadelphia Maine and this show the tour has been lackluster thus far but this show was great! I love the song Evening song. It reminds me of a fine red wine like the song Secret Smile . . .I see that girl in the corner I see you looking at me I'm looking at you as the cool safe morning midday and then evening fades into disturbing afternoon nightmare nights . . .I do not trust those Turtles or those Hares or those Raccoons on my porch there. . .I do not trust the Walrus and I do not trust the Vultures that pick my bones clean. . .I do not trust the Lizards that slither beneath me. . .and I do not trust the Walls or this Cave I do not trust the Horse that I named Hope slash Grace and I do trust the Soul supposedly set free . . .I am not free and will I ever be be E E E Then the band says fuck your face Justin what do you know I a here to kill you my name is Buffalo Bill and I need you to wear this ACDC Bag and then i will hang you and set you on Fire and Jimmi will laugh from the hell fire and the drugs will rise and cry in agony and disperse there with lots of chemistry splattered on the blood stained walls of irony What a great show ! APPROACH the NIGHT with CAUTION TRUST is for fools or Christians lol so stay away from Churches Esther they will kill you I loved this show it was the only epic almost but not quite Legendary show of this tour thus far

Bethel night 2 took a long time to get going. Evening Song is a supremely horrendous way to open night 2 on hallowed grounds. TITC kinda got things going a bit, but it wasn’t the punch needed to reset after the mega downer opener. Continuing the lackluster show was Vultures and My Sweet One — two songs that I usually enjoy, in this already deflated set didn’t add anything. Undermind had a great jam tacked onto it and was the highlight of the set for sure. FEFY is another tune I love, but again, this was tucked in the middle of a sloooowww show. The rest of the set is whatever, Suzy seemed to get things going but ghost was meh.

For sure set 2 had to rip given they held back the last set and most of Friday right? Nah. Opening this set w a short caspian was a miserable choice. Crosseyed could have saved the set, but despite its length, it was mostly aimless noodling. Miss you to follow that? Cmon dudes. SYSF jam was pretty cool, but they never really seemed locked in. Weaving back into Caspian instead of continuing to jam was a total cop out given how lackluster the caspian was. It was a lazy segue and served no purpose other than to ripcord a jam. Twist and Carini were neutered.

The encore could have been cool, but they started with a sloooow tune. Horse->silent has its place in so many spots, but not as an encore in a slow show. FYF felt like a slap in the face, and while I enjoyed the Fire, they should have either opened the show with it, or opened the second set with it and jammed the hell out of it. So many cool things they could have done with that idea, but it felt like too little too late.

The whole second row of the 100s secretion had left before the show was over. I’ve never seen so many people not dancing / sitting at show in my short career.

Hands down the worst show I’ve ever seen.