Show #6: SPAC Night 1 (Saratoga NY)

2004 Year-In-Review (A Journey Through the Dark Side)
Show #6: Saratoga Performing Arts Center #1 (Saratoga NY)
Date: June 19, 2004
Tour: Early Summer

Set I:

1) Reba - No warm-up required! Through the composed section, it's not picture perfect, but it's all together. The jam is concise, but hits the right peaks. After two nights in Brooklyn, things seem to be running smoothly.

2) Runaway Jim - Trey's voice seems a little tired again? Otherwise, the tempo is up. Just fifteen minutes into this show and already getting two classic type I jams. This is what I needed after that up/down/back/forth first set last night in Brooklyn.

2) Jim (cont.) – 4:00 – Mike and Fishman have created a nice little pocket. Trey and Page are virtually indistinguishable – the true key-tar players.

3) NICU – nothing like a little ska to keep everyone moving. The chorus sounds like its missing a layer (maybe it’s just difference between SBD and the AUDs I usually listen to). Nice way to spend five minutes. As they close it out, they launch into the intro-less …

4) Scents & Subtle Sounds – debuted not even a year ago, and seeing the light of day for only a month, this delicate monster from Undermind returns back to the stage. [edited]

4) S&SS (cont.) – This song takes a turn down a scenic drive just two minutes in – the kind of slow jam that is just quick enough to keep you moving. And then it begins to pick up, and up, and up, and away. A near perfect balance of four instruments, plus the right amount of effects.

Note: Fishman can be heard during the break of silence saying "What a great song!?!" - and he's right.

I hear Page play a couple of notes that sound like ...

5. Wolfman's Brother - no question about it now, this show is delivering THE GOODS.

5. Wolfman’s (cont) – laid-back, funky, and with enough space for all the small grenades being tossed all over the place; vocals are meshed properly. 3:15 and Page surprises me with some new lyrics. 4:00 in and I’m not sure an engineer with a board and computer could make a mix this openly dope.

5. Wolfman’s (cont.) – 6:00 and following a couple of sly punches to the ribs, they push forward in a familiar, yet not-quite-so much, way. 9:00 and it gets dense and the pace picks up a step. There'll be plenty of time for rest at the set break.
^ Can't imagine anyone at this SPAC show feeling unsatisfied at this moment.

6. Walls of the Cave - time for the mid-set lesson on composition, new Millennium-style. What is it about this song that feels forced. Some people head for the can and a beer. But once the first four minutes are passed, they regret their decision, as there's more to this one than it seems at first pass. But there's still something not quite right? Do there really need to be lyrics at this point? I don't know the answer.

6. Walls (cont.) – this jam is so much better once they decide to lay off the mics. It actually shreds. 12:30 – lyrics again … really? Although, only one line which acts as detour sign for some interesting and unique improve. Mike adds a filter that almost sounds like a human voice. After 16 minutes pass they begin to paint an ambient landscape that didn’t couldn’t be found in 1.0.

Fishman’s hi-hat emerges from the ambient abyss,

7. David Bowie – immediately I’m struck how slow the tempo of this Bowie is, but that opens the doors a little for Mike to get more jiggy wit’ it. The pace picks up. Heading towards the opening verses I ask myself what’s with Trey’s tone? Maybe some of the ambient effects are still turned on, suppressing some of the usual heaviness. Or, are they playing in a different key? As with the Reba it’s not perfection, but it’s glued together nicely.

7. Bowie (cont.) - once they pass the 7:00 mark and head on this becomes a model for Type I jamming, sans machine gun.

And that’s it for Set I of SPAC night #1


2004 Year-In-Review (A Journey Through the Dark Side)
Show #6: Saratoga Performing Arts Center #1 (Saratoga NY)
Date: June 19, 2004
Tour: Early Summer

Set II:

1. A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing – returning for an encore performance after its debut at Keyspan three nights ago. Hauntingly heavy, from the very beginning, ASIHTOS emits a dissonant tone. Tonight’s version is more polished than its summer opener version, not surprisingly, considering Phish delivered a grade-A performance last night. Six minutes in and its obvious that the dark depths of this Ocean are to be explored for the first time (the debut was only 7:00 minutes long). This sequel is sure to cause further angst among fans who still cannot believe that the end of the line is approaching. After 9:00 minutes, I feel like I’m swimming in a viscous ocean of some far-distant planet yet to be discovered. 12:00 mark – progressing further outwards with a steady heartbeat, I’m LOST in a sea of psychedelic sound. Batten down the hatches, boys, it’s gonna be a wild ride tonight.
1. ASIHTOS (cont.) – after continuing the dark, exploratory mission a while longer, the afterburners shut-down to reveal this trip’s first destination:

2. Piper – the doors open on the ship to reveal an almost heavenly landscape, just begging to be discovered. Building slowly, the texture of this repeating riff is revealed one layer after another. Following the lyrical interval, it feels like we’re back on the spaceship again (did we even land or was that just an illusion?) heading out into the cosmos again. No question, as five minutes pass we are in an eerie expanse. For this first time this year, I feel like the band and the audience have collectively reached IT. Kick back and just let it wash over you.

2. Piper (cont.) - 9:00 and Page takes control of the wheel. This time it’s Trey who's providing the canvas, letting Page paint the textures. Within a couple of minutes, the two have melded together into a single amorphous ray of big-bang afterglow. All the while, Mike and Fish are steady as the rain underneath. At 12:30 the ship pauses in what feels like-mid air to examine an unknown object hovering above and below.

2. Piper (cont.) - 15:00 - no hallucinogenics required.

2. Piper (cont.) – 18:00 – suddenly I realize that my legs and torso have been moving without the knowledge or control of my head - must be the raw, pure energy that is being transfused from the stage. I think I might actually be hearing Kuroda’s lights?

2. Piper (cont.) – 22:00 – rising like a tempest, Trey delivers a cacophonous melody that feels like distant cousin to Tweeprise and MELTS faces all around.

2. Piper (cont.) – 25:00 - #$^&*!@$#%&%$^&

2. Piper (cont.) – 27:00 – torn to shreds, the jam comes down, offering everyone a chance to inhale again, but doesn’t stop yet.

2. Piper (cont.) – 29:00 – stipped down now, its Mike and fish just keeping it together. A couple of minutes later it feels like something is around the corner …

3. Gotta Jibboo – after that trip through eternity and back, the pulse increases and a bass-led groove is pushed smoothly into the I.V.

3. Gotta Jibboo – 2:40 – echoing out of the undermath, Page’s tonal “alarm” elevates your senses for a moment. No worries though, as Trey follows closely behind with a mellow solo, keeping things in check.

3. Jibboo (cont.) – 7:00 – like Jacques Cousteau with an axe, Trey dives down deep, revealing more of the almost-familiar lifescape. Don’t stop moving.

A short segue and we're hear the beginning of

4. Limb by Limb - if you were expecting a breather at this point, forget it. The exits have been locked shut. This show isn't even over, but I'm already feeling that elation that tells me that tonight captures the crown thus far.

LxL feels stripped down to its essence in the early going, and at the 3:00 drop, it’s confirmed that this is your only chance tonight to come up for air.

4. LxL (cont.) – as with other nights where IT happens, the only descriptions that make any sense are those conveying how and what the music makes you feel (as opposed to what the music sounds like). The title of this song isn’t lost, as both limbs are connected to the I.V. now.

No loss of energy as this poly-rhythmic gemstone comes to a Fishman close. Damn. [looks around and just shakes head]

With a chance to catch only the shortest of breaths, they launch again with a ferocious:

5. Cavern: the lyrics of this funk-filled set closer seem to describe the journey that this second set has taken. As the second verse comes, it's clear that tonight flightplan was uncharted as Trey flubs the entire verse. As the outtro chorus begins to repeat, Fishman joins in the vocals to ensure the ship doesn't get lost. And almost as soon as this song begins, compared to the other flights tonight, it's over.


Encore: Wading in the Velvet Sea - this amazing trip is over and all that's left is this harmonious finale. No arguments from anyone.

Final thoughts - a champion first set, followed by a near-perfect second set. How do they top this tomorrow night? Is it possible? As fans file out, re-attaching jaws and solidifying faces, one can't help but wonder.