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Phish Dusts Off “The Sloth”, Delivers Near-Seamless Second Set On Night Two At Alpine Valley [Photos/Videos]

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Phish returned to Alpine Valley Music Theatre on Saturday for night two of their three-night run at the storied Wisconsin venue. After a mediocre show on night one, night two saw the band return to form. Although the show lacked a true improvisational centerpiece, it saw the band dust off some of their most beloved material while masterfully weaving improvisation throughout the show, highlighted by a relentless second set.

Phish got the show on the road with a classic opener and Gamehendge favorite, “AC/DC Bag”, which drew big cheers from the crowd. The island vibes of “NICU” kept things moving before an oddly placed “Shade” slowed things down. This is the third time “Shade” has shown up this summer, and while it’s nice to see the tender ballad played more frequently, this version brought things down a bit when the show was still just getting going. That being said, the song did feature a particularly beautiful solo from guitarist Trey Anastasio.

After a brief pause, Phish picked things right back up again with “Funky Bitch”, Anastasio kicking into another gear with bluesy, spot-on playing throughout. “Blaze On” gave the band an opportunity for their first jam of the night, as they showcased their patented tension-and-release style before moving into a more ethereal vibe. Keyboardist Page McConnell made good use of his synthesizers as he guided the jam into a more patient, breezy space, which preceded a move into the always fun “Ya Mar”.

After a quick take on “Frost”—appearing for only the 5th time ever—Phish started up a three-song movement of Gamehendge rarity “The Sloth”, the Mike Gordon-penned rock freak-out “Fuck Your Face” (closing the second-shortest gap between performances in the song’s history), and the evil Rift classic, “My Friend, My Friend”. These three songs back-to-back-to-back packed a major punch, turning things up several notches with noticeably confident performances on all three, especially on “MFMF”, which was dark, dirty & distorted, as it should be.

 

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7/13/19 Alpine Valley 📸 @rene_huemer . . #phish #phishsummertour #treyanastasio #mikegordon #jonfishman #pagemcconnell

A post shared by phishfromtheroad (@phishfromtheroad) on Jul 13, 2019 at 7:18pm PDT

Instead of the typical maniacal laugh that ends “MFMF”, Phish started up the Kasvot Växt centerpiece “The Final Hurrah”, complete with its comical “Faceplant Into Rock” samples. The song, a callback to last year’s Halloween gag/cover set, transitioned into a rocking “Character Zero”, which inspired huge crowd energy. It’s nice to see this song outside of the “show closer” slot, and it fit perfectly as a set-closer here after the high-octane second half of the first frame.

“Halley’s Comet” started off set two, and Anastasio could hardly contain himself as he added some extra gusto to the vocal-heavy song. “Halley’s” quickly made way for the dark psychedelia of “A Song I Heard The Ocean Sing”, which found the band exploring darker vibes as they ramped up to a true Type II moment courtesy of McConnell and drummer Jon Fishman.

The darkness of “ASIHTOS” soon made way for the bright, bouncy “Runaway Jim”. The song was played well for the most part, save for a few vocal flubs from Anastasio, but he and the rest of the band recovered for an interesting, pulsating Type II jam. Eventually, the beat dropped out and was replaced with a more patient tempo that led to a great few minutes of full band improvisation before shifting into “Undermind”. This track, from the band’s 2004 album of the same name, saw McConnell deliver a strong solo right out of the gate. Anastasio also took his turn delivering a dextrous solo as Fishman added some great drum fills toward the end of the song,

 

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7/13/19 Alpine Valley 📸 @rene_huemer . . #phish #phishsummertour #treyanastasio #mikegordon #jonfishman #pagemcconnell

A post shared by phishfromtheroad (@phishfromtheroad) on Jul 13, 2019 at 8:08pm PDT

“Ghost” had potential with a “Psycho Killer” tease, an aggressive, dark beginning to the jam section, and a blissful build with a gorgeous peak. It’s hard to believe this “Ghost” clocked in at just under eleven-minutes-long, and one feels like they could have kept it going had they wanted. Instead, they transitioned into their cover of TV on The Radio’s “Golden Age”. “Golden Age” also seemed to start off on a very interesting foot, with a “Tube”-esque groove emerging from Fishman and bassist Mike Gordon, before the bottom dropped out and was replaced with a tight funk groove.

By the time Phish got to “Back on the Train”, it was easy to tell that they were really feeling it, The song’s driving shuffle was tight and on point, and gave the band the platform to really take this “BOTT” to the next level. The jam may have been short, but following a few moments of seemingly laughing to himself over a few notes he was repeating throughout the set, Anastasio turned in a raging version of this song with a huge, bluesy peak.

Phish – “Back On The Train”

[Video: Sojahsey1]

To close things out, Phish turned to “Harry Hood”. The beloved live favorite is one of Phish’s definitive classics, combining intricate composition and stunning improvisation into a true masterpiece that is one of the cornerstones of the band’s catalog. Last night’s version was another example of why this song is so important, as the band offered a strong, confident jam that took the song up to the fourteen-minute mark, an exclamation mark on a mostly non-stop second set.

For the encore, Phish turned to another Kasvot Växt song, possibly the favorite of the bunch from Halloween 2018: “Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.”. Appearing in the encore slot for the first time “S.A.N.T.O.S.” set the crowd on fire as they loudly chanted the song’s “HI-HO, HI-HO, HI-HO!” line. Anastasio returned that enthusiasm in kind with a blistering solo that helped bring the high-energy show in Wisconsin to a close.

Phish returns to Alpine Valley tonight for the third and final night of their three-night run which also marks the conclusion of the main portion of their summer tour. The band’s annual three-night run at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Denver over Labor Day weekend is all that remains on their 2019 schedule.

Check out some photos of the performance below courtesy of photographer Keith Griner.

For a full list of the band’s upcoming tour dates and ticketing information, head to Phish’s website.

Each show on Phish’s 2019 summer tour will be rebroadcast on SiriusXM Phish Radio (Ch. 29) at 12:00 ET the following day. Subscribe here.

Setlist: Phish | Alpine Valley Music Theatre | East Troy, WI | 7/13/2019

Set 1: AC/DC Bag > NICU, Shade, Funky Bitch, Blaze On, Ya Mar, Frost, The Sloth, Fuck Your Face, My Friend, My Friend, The Final Hurrah > Character Zero

Set 2: Halley’s Comet > A Song I Heard The Ocean Sing > Runaway Jim -> Undermind > Ghost > Golden Age > Back On The Train, Harry Hood

Encore: Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.

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