After a weekend of fun and three nights of spectacular jams, Phish closed out Mondegreen with one long marathon set starting at 1 p.m. due to a forecast of severe weather.
The matinee show time combined with grey clouds hanging overhead made for a surreal atmosphere—even more surreal than the rest of the weekend—and an 11:30 a.m. DJ set from Questlove, who was originally scheduled to close out the festival, only exacerbated the strangeness. Nonetheless, the age-old adage “never miss a Sunday show” held true.
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“Party Time” set the tone for one last beach ball bonanza, followed by “Axilla”, which increased the already intense energy. The band dialed it up even further with “Maze”, which saw Trey Anastasio lock in with Page McConnell with laser focus. You could see the band trying to find a groove at first, but somehow doing it like a well oiled machine.
All four musicians were really locked in for “Steam”. Especially impressive were the soft vocal parts from Trey and Page. After years of being known as a band that can’t sing quite as well as it plays, Phish’s vocals have really improved since the switch to in-ear monitors, especially quieter parts.
The pre-recorded intro to “Martian Monster” always draws a cheer from the crowd, but this version also spread a smile across Trey’s face thanks to Page’s creative use of sound effects. Big Red responded with some wild noises of his own. They carried that positive energy into “AC/DC Bag”, which opened into expansive jam.
During “Sigma Oasis”, Trey sang the lyric “take to the sky” at the moment the clouds parted and the sun shined on his face before the start of a noodly jam.
By “Rift”, it was becoming clear to fans that this was not a long set, but a marathon set that would likely be the last of the festival. Trey was absolutely beaming from ear to ear as he watched the audience clap along at their self-appointed part in “Stash”, which featured a “who can play the softest” contest to start the jam, with Trey plucking some harmonics (a recurring element of nights three and four) to get his bearings before chasing down playful runs.
The relaxed island vibe of “Ya Mar” fit with Sunday’s “Party Time” vibe and the pre-show music they played over the PA. “Timber (Jerry the Mule)” was the second cover in a row—there would be four total in the set, making it the most of the weekend—and this mule had a little kick.
“Bathtub Gin” seemed like it could be a set closer, with Page leading the charge on clavinet into a funky little vamp, but the band pushed on with “Izabella”. The Jimi Hendrix cover made its second appearance of the summer—similar to Thursday’s “Peaches en Regalia”, which was busted out earlier this month with Billy Strings—though it was not the Hendrix song most expected to hear this weekend (“Purple Haze” is the most famous mondegreen).
After nearly two hours on stage, Phish started to wind things down with “Simple”, but right when it started to get into a murky jam with Trey’s elastic leads, they cut the cord. “Golden Age” (the fourth and final cover) featured a funky jam with some potential, Trey’s guitar echoing off the Heliograph and Page bouncing on his clavinet—his go-to weapon throughout this set.
The frustration among fans was palpable when the band returned for an encore and Trey wondered “where this big storm is.” Could this really be the end already? The foursome finished the festival with hot “Fuego”, which ended in an atypical way with Trey singing the chorus over the riff that the jam created.
Though the ending was a little anticlimactic, Phish pulled it off: The band’s first festival in nearly a decade was a smashing success and proved just how far the band has come both since Magnaball in 2015 and since its formation 40 years ago. No doubt there’s plenty more amazing things to come from Vermont’s finest. Next up, they’ll close out their summer tour with their annual Labor Day Weekend trip to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
Headed to Dick’s? Be sure to check out Live For Live Music‘s full schedule of late-night programming at Cervante’s Masterpiece Ballroom. Head here for more details and tickets. Those unable to make it in person can tune in to Phish’s nightly performances via LivePhish. [Note: Live For Live Music is a LivePhish affiliate. Ordering your webcast via the links on this page helps support our work covering Phish and the world of live music as a whole. Thanks for reading!].
Click below to view a gallery of photos from Sunday at Mondegreen courtesy of photographer Peter Wallace.
Phish – “Party Time” – 8/18/24
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Setlist [via phish.net]: Phish | Mondegreen | The Woodlands | Dover, DE | 8/18/24
Set 1: Party Time, Axilla -> Maze, Steam, Martian Monster, AC/DC Bag, Sigma Oasis -> Rift, Stash, Ya Mar, Timber (Jerry the Mule), Bathtub Gin > Izabella > Simple > Golden Age
Encore: Fuego
This show was part of the Mondegreen Festival and was originally planned as two evening sets. The start time of the show was moved to 1:00 PM EDT due to possible inclement weather. Axilla had the Part II ending. Trey and Page teased Mercy, Mercy, Mercy in AC/DC Bag. Trey teased Izabella in Simple.
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