Phish guitarist Trey Anastasio staged a solo concert at The Beacon Theatre in New York City on Friday night. The performance was the debut of the venue’s Sphere Immersive Sound, which is said to be “the world’s most advanced concert audio system.”
According to The Beacon operator, MSG Entertainment:
Sphere Immersive Sound uses 3D audio beamforming technology to deliver targeted, crystal-clear and uniform audio to every seat in the house – setting a new standard for sound quality in performance venues. Following [Anastasio’s] two concerts, future events at The Beacon will continue to utilize Sphere Immersive Sound … The Beacon Theatre audio experience consists of five arrays, which are specifically tailored to the venue and direct sound to its four sections – orchestra, loge, lower balcony and upper balcony – with precision. Traditional speaker technology can deliver an inconsistent and uneven sound experience, but with beamforming technology, sound levels remain consistent from point of origin to destination – ensuring every audience member experiences the optimal sound mix, regardless of where they’re seated.
Anastasio premiered the new audio technology by opening Friday’s concert with “Blaze On.” The first song saw the guitarist looping layers to construct a brief jam that gave the audience their initial experience with the innovative sound system.
“And that sounds pretty immersive to me!” Anastasio said after the first song. “I’m immersed. You guys immersed? Man, thank you for being here with me so much. Thank you so much for being here with me. I mean, my head is spinning. First of all, that’s pretty immersive [and] it’s going to get more immersive. I want to thank everybody at MSG for allowing me to debut the immersive sound system. The funniest thing is that it’s a lot more immersive than standing with my back to the building with no people in it. You guys are the ones making it immersive … anyway thank you so much for being here. Welcome home.”
Trey’s mention of playing with his back to an empty room was a reference to “The Beacon Jams” residency held in late 2020 that featured eight weekly concerts that were livestreamed without an audience.
Trey then played “Back On The Train,” followed by “Mercy,” the latter being the title track to his debut solo acoustic album that came out earlier this year. Following “Mercy,” Trey talked about his experience in New York City during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. He relayed a story of walking to Times Square early on during lockdown and seeing only one person who was playing saxophone, which Trey dubbed a “COVID bazooka.”
The set continued with a tender “Brian And Robert.” Trey then offered a take on the title track to Phish’s 2020 studio album, Sigma Oasis.
“That was supposed to be a mask that you wear to hide your true heart, when it was written early in 2020,” Anastasio said in reference to the song’s “take off your mask” lyrics.
“It was not a political statement,” he continued. “Neither was that song ‘Corona’ – you guys know that one? That was a shocker! I’m not even going to play that!”
Trey gave a shoutout to the top balcony and compared the immersive sound to Studio 54. He then performed “A Little More Time” in public for the first time. The song had previously appeared during a “Rubber Jungle LIVE” broadcast on SiriusXM in May 2021 that was recorded by Trey in his New York City apartment, and is the first track on Mercy.
“Bathtub Gin” came next and led to more immersive looping within a short jam. Trey then rolled through “Heavy Things,” “Free” and “Snowflakes In The Sand.” The guitarist gave a shoutout to Burlington, Vermont-based luthier Adam Buchwald, who built the instrument Trey was playing which was commissioned by Phish keyboardist Page McConnell, who gave it to Trey as a birthday gift.
A song usually sung by Page, “Strange Design,” followed the guitar talk. Trey revealed the song had been written exactly 27 years ago to the day (on the eve of his first daughter’s birth) and briefly sang “Happy Birthday” in honor of the tune. The setlist then stacked up “Theme From The Bottom,” “Steam” and an elongated “Possum,” which he revealed was his Italian grandmother’s favorite song because she thought the “possum” lyric was “pasta.”
“Water In The Sky,” whose lyrics reference the Florida everglades where Phish held a festival on New Year’s Eve 1999, led to a monologue about Phish’s recent visit to Bethel Woods, New York near the site of the 1969 Woodstock Festival. Trey, who explained he’s been to a lot of concerts, “called bullshit” on the reported 500,000 people that are said to have attended the historic event. He ended by claiming there may have been more people at Phish’s Big Cypress festival in 1999 than at Woodstock in 1969.
After discussing the two festivals, Trey dug into “Everything’s Right,” which led to the most intricate and lengthy jam of the evening. The set concluded with “Sample In A Jar” and “The Lizards.” The encore began with another Mercy song, “Roll Like A River.” A deep “46 Days” and triumphant “More” punctuated the performance.
Trey Anastasio returns to The Beacon Theatre for another solo acoustic concert tonight.
Setlist (via Phish.net)
Set [1]: Blaze On, Back on the Train, Mercy, Brian and Robert, Sigma Oasis, A Little More Time [2], Bathtub Gin, Heavy Things, Free, Snowflakes in the Sand, Strange Design, Happy Birthday to You [3], Theme From the Bottom, Steam > Possum, Water in the Sky, Everything’s Right, Sample in a Jar, The Lizards
Encore [1]: Roll Like a River[3] > 46 Days, More
Notes:
- [1] Trey solo acoustic
- [2] Trey solo acoustic; first public performance.
- [3] Trey solo acoustic; first acoustic performance.
This entire show was performed by Trey solo acoustic and featured the first public performance of A Little More Time and the first acoustic performances of Happy Birthday and Roll Like a River. This night marked the debut of Sphere Immersive Sound, billed as “the world’s most advanced concert audio system.” After Strange Design, Trey noted that the song had been written exactly 27 years ago and proceeded to play and sing Happy Birthday for the song.
