7-26-99 -- Deer Creek, Noblesville, IN
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Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 19:19:56 -0400
From: Andy Sweet [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7/26/99 Review
First of all I would like to thank Phish for all of the indescribable
music they have provided for us over the years. Without them who knows what
we would be doing. For the pointless disclaimer I have seen 15 shows and I
saw Burgettestown through the Creek this year. I had a tremendous time and
the scene was in full force. The only bad thing I was was the morning after
Burgettstown when people had a WILD argument on how one guy ripped them off
with nitrous. The other guy smashed his window in and all hell broke loose.
One guy had a hatchet but luckily never used it because someone snagged it.
In the end $100 was payed and they were on the road (hopefully not to the
next show). Of course the root of all this hate was the Nitrous scene which
has to stop. So nobody buy nitrous and all will be great! On to the show.
The Scene: Great mood, with some interesting choices as always but I was
always in persuit of the Ice Cone venders because it was tasty and too damn
hot the whole time. Lots and lots of ticketless but that is a given on a
tour ender. I had very high expectations. So high, I thought this could go
down as the best show. Perhaps this was bad but it can't hury to be
optimistic. I did what I had to do and made my way to where I try to always
be: right in front parallel with Page.
Farmhouse: First time with the new intro but you could tell what it was. I
like this song very much and can feel Trey's emotion as he sings from his
heart.
Get back on the train: Another unexpected one. I heard this in Columbus and
thought they might jam it out like the second spot Fluffhead but am glad
they didn't. I love this song but wanted to heard more.
Vultures: I heard this is Deer Creek 97 and it is a Phish song so of course
it is great but one of my songs I could go with out. Keep in mind I am not
being negative, I liked what was going on because there was great energy
coming and you knew it was going to be a great show. The guy next to me who
taught be a lot said Phish were knocking down the pins and this made a lot
of sense.
Sleep: I really don't remember this one so I can't say anything
Gumbo: Great tune.I always welcome a good Gumbo. Some of my favorites are
8/3/98 and 8/15/98. Had some good energy. I can't think of the groove but
it was sweet.
N.I.C.U. I didn't want to hear this since I heard it the other day but who
can complain. You're watching Phish for their summer ender.
Beauty: Nothing much to say, standard as always.
Bathtub: The pins have started to tumble. This Bathtub rocked! I was having
such a good time as was everyone around me. Just a great jam.
Mnts in the Mist: I like this song a lot. I saw it in the spring and love
to hear it. I don't like the negative comments about this song earlier on
this page. This song has some great changes.
Axilla: Guy next to me saw Trey say it and as all Axilla's do this one had
lots of energy.
Stash: This Stash was out there. Insane, wild, melting, everything. This is
improvising at some of its best. Great way to close the set.
Setbreak: A great setbreak because I had tons of energy and hooked up with
an aftershow. I was ready for a great set. My prediction was
2001-Mikes->Piper->H2o Meatstick->Groove E: Hood. Boy was I ever wrong! I
don't know what night it was but there was a large inflatable penis
floating around and Trey gave it to Fish and he busted out this cool beat.
Wolfmans: My first Wolfmans and I was loving it. A great jam with tons of
energy. Bruno was digging it as some other crew watched as well. Just flat
out amazing.
Piper: Easy call. Piper is one of my favorites. I love how Phish blend so
great together and bring it up a notch every time.
Theme: Another first. I have always wanted to hear this song after
listening to Dayton 97. Well done as always.
Disease: At this point I was thinking Mikes or something but Disease did
not disapoint. This is my favorite Disease I have seen and the only one
that beats it from hearing in my opinion is the 8/16/96 set III Disease.
Just sick.
Feedback Jam: I was telling everyone they were going to play 2001 and Trey
even said 2001 Fish was laying the beat down. I think they do this now as a
joke when they were confused earlier on the tour about this one.
SOAMelt: Of course this jam was great because it ended the whole summer 99
tour. I can see where some people were disappointed but you can't complain.
Just an all out great jam. Trey said some comment as he put it "From the
bottom of my Heart" about the scene and about Woodstock. Great speech.
E: At this point 6 dozen roses were passed out and when I got mine I threw
it towards Page. Great show of appreciation by the Phans.
Woodstock: Very appropriate and nice to hear.
Julius: I wanted something better but this was definately one of the
best Juliuses ever played.
Aftershow: Tons of people but I got lucky and Mike was alone right when I
walked in so I had a conversation with him about Woodstock and what Trey
was talking about. He was in very good spirits. Kurodo strolled by very
fast and Fish was on the scene talking about the best and worst songs ever.
I believe he said the best song as Row, row, row your boat. #2 was Amazing
Grace and 4 was Trenchtown Rock and he talked about this amazing Marley
experience which changed his life. He was right in front of the show and
they played Trenchtown Rock and when the women sang "the one good thing
about music is you feel no pain" he started to cry and it changed his life.
Thanks to everyone I met that influenced and or changed me and the guy with
the Phamily pens!
Andy
[email protected]
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 21:35:41 -0700 (PDT)
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Phish Deer Creek July 26th
Forwarded review from my friend John Mahon:
Okay, this was about my 30th show and only my second of the summer tour.
I'll let you know that I ate a gell tab, and it kicked in during the third
song of the first set. While I realize this altered my perceptions, I
have seen plenty of shows in this condition so I believe my views are
valid. I apologize in advance to anyone who cannot handle negative
comments about our favorite band.
Farmhouse-Didn't expect this, but enjoyed it! Got the crowd moving.
Back on the Train-My first, but it was great. It had that familiar
feeling that all good songs seem to have the first time you hear them, and
Gordon showed us some of his skills that have made him so vastly improved
since my first treck to the 'Creek in '96.
Vultures- This song summerized the show for me and seemed to form sort of a
pattern (when considered in the context of Gumbo, BathtubGIN, Theme from the
Bottom, DWD, and most clearly SOAMelt I'll explain below). The paranoia of
aranoia of this song definetly fit my mind set, and I think that of Mr.
Anastasio on this night.
Glisten-(I call this song glisten, but I guess its really called Sleep) I
heard this accoustic at the Bridge School shows, and while I like it more
there, I still enjoyed it this time around. I was at this show with my
girlfriend and this song was really nice to hold on to her and sway
quietly to a peaceful song.
Gumbo-Awesome! I have always liked this one, but ever since Chicago '97
I've realized how good it really can be. This one was no exception, and I
realized that Trey was really focused on his lyrics this night. In fact,
he sometimes seemed to forget about chording away, and instead focused on
enunciating TM's words. He even seemed to be almost SPEAKING the words at
times rather than singing them. The jam on this tune was nice, and not
over-drawn out.
NICU-Unless they start playing this every single show without fail, I'll
never get sick of it. I have the summer '97 tour shirt of Mike as a giant
cactus and the "Swim w/ the Catus & Float like a Stone" line on the back.
Anyway, the point is that this version was nice as always, and Paige
delivered after Trey's "PLAY IT LEO!" I believe it came as a nice segue
from Gumbo.
Beauty-The only bluegrass tune of the two nights if memory serves, and I
danced my ass of to it. Some kids don't seem to dig the electric
Bluegrass of Phish, but don't count me in that profane bunch. The lyrics
are simple and flow well, and it didn't hurt that I had a lovely young
women named Mary-Pie dancing her ass off right next to me.
GIN-YES! Include this in the Gumbo category of songs that I'll take any
night. Page came in with his usual emphatic pounding on the piano, and
Trey did his usual great job of straying from the songs quirky theme and
returning for the end of the Jam. Not to long, actually just right!
Trey's playing was intense, strange, and tweaked out as it was all night
imho. He seemed unwilling to give us cheap thrills by using an obvious
approach to building up his solos to a creschendo, but instead seemed to
just build and build and build tension, often times trading off the big
realease for strange exploration.
Mtns in the Midst-Again my first, but this didn't due nearly as much for
me as 'back on the train. Without my girfriend dancing closely with me,
this would have bored me. It sounded like Trey started having his first
of several issues with lyrics, and this version as a whole could have
used some practice backstage before the show. Anyway, a little close slow
dancing and half a cigarrete later I was rocking out to:
Axilla I-It's all about the reverance for the witch. Even if I don't
always like it when Phish slows down the action, they almost always do it
succesfully with the overall pacing of the show. The Gin,Mtns,Axilla I
sequence was a great example. I don't think I saw any mention of it on
others setlists, but I wrote down Riker's Mailbox as a segue after this
tune. I might be confused (I haven't listen to any of my Phish CD's in
quite a long time) about what this song is exactly, but my memory is that
it is a kind of melting down slower strange groove, and thats what happend
after the Axilla. If it wasn't Riker's Mailbox, forgive me.
STASH-Yep, sweet. More stangeness and intensity (what do you expect, it
was stash) and I really like the tension in this one. I found it quite
effective. As usually, Trey brought in the ending out of nowhere and kind
of took the rest of the boys by surprise.
SETBREAK:Miles Davis Kind of Blue (Starting with So What)
Wolfman's-A lot of fun with a great jam afterwords.
Piper-Not my favorite tune by a long shot, but I liked this version
because they didn't spend 10 minutes playing those 3 chords during the
intro and cut to the chase much quicker. The jam was solid as usual.
I believe there was a nice segue into:
Theme-I like this song and Trey seemed to really want to push this to far
out places like he did most of the night. He emphasized "don't you see
anything that you'd like to try" more than usual.
DWD- If memory severs, the Theme jame ended witha mike solo, and he
simply just busted into the intro. Fun, but the vocals weren't great.
Great jam though, but I for some reason was picking up some frusteration
or
almost bitterness from Trey:I
assumed it was just me at the time, but I was getting some strange vibes.
He REALLY seemed to emphasize the line about not being able to "..stop
these deamons that keep / dancing in my head"
The 2001 jam was great, as was the trey spacy feedback section with
awesome lights from Kuroda (who seemed to recover from the probable
hangouver from his birthday party the night before)
The bust into SPLIT surprised me, but at this point I was thinking that Trey
was melting in a way similar to me. This was confirmed by his attempt at
talking to us at the end of the Jam. What I was most shocked about was that
he seemed to jump right into the end of the jam and interrupt it by saying
something to the effect of "Its over okay, Summer tour is over." His
monologue left me and those around me baffled. He had one hell of a time
trying to communicate anything tangleable, but he seemed to alternate
between genuine thanks for the audience, and bitterness for the state of
live concerts today and those attending them. He said something (and I try
to summerize if not able to directly quote) about the "shit that went on up
in New York...well, they burned it all down." He basically stutterd,
stammered, and blabbered, and tried to convince us to "stay on the right
path." I (and I don't think I was projecting because I never felt this at a
show before) became convinced that my thoughts throughout the show that Trey
was tripping on something were absolutely and undeniably true.
E:Woodstock
Julius
Alright, don't crucify me, but I think this encore sucked. I don't have
any problems with the (I believe its a CSN song??) selction of Woodstock,
but they didn't sing the whole song and almost seemed like they decided to
sing it back stage inbetween the end of the 2nd set and the encore. I
thought it was clever and smiled, but definetly not up to Phish's
potential. Then, the biggest surprise/dissapointment since I saw that
Phish ended thier carreer at Red Rocks with Golgi and Bouncin': Julius
doesn't make since to me. I failed to see what was supposed to be
communicated to us as an audience (it seemed like Trey wanted to teach us
some kind of message with the Melted lecture at the end of Split coupled
with the encore of Woodstock), although the jam rocked at points as
always, Trey became completely befuddled and useless to sing at one point.
Flubbing is one thing, but I almost expected him to pull a Henrietta from
the night before and say that Julius was merely and excuse to play the
vaccum. I'll take Julius to open a show, or even to close either set, but
not as a tour ending encore done completely half assed.
Summary:
I loved the two shows I saw and considered it a privledge to do so. 2 day
highlights:MyFriend MyFriend ->Jam, Whipping Post, Makisupa/the bands
completely blitzed mindset in the fist set of the first night, Boogie on
->Jam, Suzie Greenberg (the piano solo), The Short but sweet Boogie on Tease
right before the YEM vocal jam, Gumbo-NICU, GIN, Wolfman's, and the SOAMelt
before Trey started jabbering.
After the 2nd night I talked with at least a dozen folks after the show,
and while a good half of them simply said your typical "Awesome show, I
loved it, Trey was great" sort of stuff, the others all had similar
experiences as I did. They all thought there were wierd vibes in the air,
and that Trey kind of bugged out in the second set. After the houselights
came on, every ounce of energy in the venue disappeared. It wasn't just
because the tour had ended. It ended on kind of a bummer.
Flame away, but that was just how I experienced it.
OH, BTW:
I haven't seen it posted yet so the Sound check on Sunday began at 3:35
pm, and consisted simply of one run through of the refrain of Birds of a
Feather, and about a five minute jam.
I was sitting in the same location that I heard the Soundcheck from after
the show (behind the back of the lawn back by the lake), and I was SHOCKED
to hear the sounds of a live band floating across the water. At first I
thought it was a recording, NO, then I thought it was another JAM band,
NO, then I realized that I was hearing a Full on CITIES jam when trey
starting singing "Think of London." Phish sounded like they were
having a blast, and I assure you it was too loud to have been coming from
a sound system other than the PA. Did anyone else hear this? Have you
heard them play after shows before? I really think it was them, because
it was clearly Trey's voice, and I saw the Band's busses pull out of the
venue well after the music stopped again.
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 23:43:29 PDT
From: Kevin Liska [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek Show 2 Review
To: [email protected]
From: Kevin Liska (PhreePhish) [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek Show 2 Review
FIRST of all, you gotta love the lot scene at Deer Creek!!
(I ttok many pictures)
Also, if you ever have a chance to hit the Hooters in Merriville, IN
DO IT!!!!
And now, on with the show review...
Most of the stuff i bitched about in my Alpine review (hitting the stage
late, long set break, really short set II) is the EXACT oppositte at this
show...so i wont complain...
It is really difficult to find any flaws in this show; i mean they were THAT
on.... anyway...
(my times may be a little off... hey you try to remember the timing for
eleven set I songs without paper and pencil!)
Hit the stage at 7:50 (yes!!)
Farmhouse (6:18): Seemed to rock it out more than usual. A great opener and
played flawlessly. Not jammed too much. We then get...
Get Back On The Train (6:30): What a groovy little number! Love the drumming
in it (of course ima drummer myself, and I pretty much like anything Fishman
plays, so im biased). Perfect again!
Vultures (8:35?): My first at a concert; i love it! The music almost has a
gamehenge-like quality to it (say like Lizards or Tela). Personnally I
think the can revolutionize the jam into something much more special, but
they still do a great job with it rocking out the ending.
Sleep (3:08): Is this called Sleep or Glisten? The guy with the electronic
message hat had it listed as Sleep (you know who I mean). A nice little
slow number. 4 songs in and no really serious jams, but thats ok.
Gumbo> (9:30): Bring on the funk! Very nicely done as usual. They spaced
out the jam not too long into it though, eventually leading perfectly
into...>
NICU (5:35?): Always a crowd pleaser. Gotta love it.
(6 songs in, but no serious jams (Gumbo was nice, but i mean SERIOUS!)
Beauty Of My Dreams (3:05): Oh yah! bring on the bluegrass! And unlike a
couple versions I have on tape of this one, Trey nails it (what can I say,
they were on; you wont here a lot of bashing in this review)!
Bathtub Gin (13:58): Here come the jams! A decent-lengthed jam (good
enough for me!) to get us really going. Very melodious, possibly resembling
the 8/9/98 Gin (one of the best I have).
Mountains In The Mist (7:17): a nice new Trey song. not mus=ch to say
about it.
Axilla (4:55): Rockin! I believe it was Axilla II w/ Axilla I ending? I
could be wrong of course.
Stash (14:30): First one in 14 shows!!! I new it was coming! Trey did some
nice things with the melody, dancing around it and such. The jam wasn't
that experimental, the couple minutes was the normal pressure/release
jamming (7/8/94 on A Live One) done to perfect execution. Great trippy
lighting by Chris for this one and the whole set actually (I appologize for
giving Pete Carini the credit for the lights on my Alpine review as one phan
caught and mailed me; obviously he doesn't do the lighting...maybe the
Alpine atmosphere hadnt worn off of me yet when i was writing it!)
Set I: 11 songs, 84 minutes. Can't argue with that!!
Can't remember setbreak too much...40 minutes or so.
As set II started someone through a huge blow-up penis onstage which Fish
used for comic relief. You had to have been there!
Wolfman (19:05 (starting with the Fish/dick thing)): Great funky jamming for
minutes on end! Then about 12-14 minutes through, it took a turn into a
really nice thing. What that was I dont remember (Im doing this review two
days after...god i need the tapes for this show!) But, whatever it was, it
was great!!....>
Piper (9:07): Several power chords were held out... in the same key as Piper
(I knew it was due)!! Thwn it finally started I was extatic. Truly I cant
recall ever hearing or hearing of a bad Piper. If you know of one, I
probably wont believe you anyway. The glowstick war was unreal!! (I you are
pissed about the glowstick wars, just do what i do...throw them behind you!
They wont hit the band , and people can see them coming!!)
Theme> (14:15): My first Theme (they dont play this one that often
anymore!!). Beautiful. They definately didnt have hold the last note out
for 3 minutes though!! Actually i kinda hate that. Thats fine if its the
last note of the show, but here its kinda useless. On the good hand though,
the bass line did flow seamlessly into...>
DWD>Space> (18:04): A rockin Disease, mainly all Trey in the jam. In other
words not too experimental, until...>
**Disclaimer**
When I label the next part as "Space", I AM NOT comparing it to a Grateful
Dead Space or Feedback jam. Whenever I label something on a setlist as
"Space", I use it as a GENERIC TERM describing any effects jam that cannot
be listed as a song. The fact that the Dead often did "space" jams is
purely coincidental (though im sure thats were the term was key-phrased
from). Just so you know...
** **
At this point Trey set an amazing guitar sound loop and began experimenting
with it. The only way to describe it is to get the tapes (if you do get the
tapes, I WILL TRADE for them!! Just so you know). Eventually the rest of
the band joined in the fun. Chris K responded with many strobes and
interesting lighting techniques (If I remember correctly). As this ended,
Fish started up what I thought was the 2001 beat, but was actually.....>
Split Open & Melt (15:28): What a great jam. I had no idea they were going
to end with this. When Trey started talking though, I knew this was it
though. He gave a great speech about the tour, the phans, the world, etc.
Once again, get the tapes for this one.
Set II: 76 minutes
Enchore:
Woodstock> (2:05): Identified right away by a phriend of mine. It ended
after 2 minutes then starting up....>
Julius (9:45): What a rockin way to end the tour. Trey just went completely
nuts to end the song/tour. What a great end.
Like i said, their really wasnt much i could bash at this show (at most,
maybe not enough jamming in set I or the end of Theme and DWD if you didn't
like the space) because they were just SO ON!!!
So i guess its not much of a review; if there were parts in the show you
didnt like, im sorry, but you arent gonna find many better than this in my
opinion!!
later
Date: Mon, 26 Jul 1999 13:46:45 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: deercreek thoughts
let me start off by saying when i was driving into deer creek around 5:00 i
heard a portion of the sound check (beauty of my dreams and day tripper) and
i had a good feeling that the guys were in a good mood. this proved to be
absolutely correct. the only problem with yesterday's was the heat and that
didn't even phase me all that much. the lot scene was about the same as it
always is at deer creek. it was some what different this year because of
the on site camping that the venue is providing and imo this helped out
tremendously with the parking situation. we were only in line for about a
half an hour, maybe forty five. the only bad thing about the lot was that
shakedown is now "walled off" because they decided put up a fence at the
very edge of the path and block off the nearly twenty yards of grass on the
other side. it just made everything a little more crowded that's all. now
on to the show. i ended sitting towards the top of the lawn on page's side
so all of this is from that perspective. meat is a great opener. nice and
funky to get everything started off. looking out on the rest of lawn during
this song was the best part. everybody was just bopping up and down in
unison to the beat. my friend was extra good (i am talking about the song
now). it was extremely tight from the opening notes all the way through.
then they went into what i thought was just a jam but since i haven't heard
anything off the new disc i didn't know that it was my left toe. this jam
was really cool and this is about the time that my molecule started to kick
in. mlt morphed into a real bluesy rift and all the sudden bam...whipping
post. this absolutely kicked ass. trey was right on in every facet from
his guitar to his vocals. i woke up an hour or so ago and the only thing in
my mind is whipping post, i've been singing it since i got up. makisupa was
cool because they into a reggae style happy b=day to chris kuroda. trey
sang first about how the band was going to get chris "so wasted tonight",
then mike took a solo, then fish sang about getting ire and rolling up a
"giant spliff, mon", then chris took an unaccompanied light show solo. i
love it when the band takes time out and talks to us, it makes it seem more
personal for some reason. i saw it again was a real good choice in my
opinion. i had only heard it on one tape so this was extra nice to hear at
this show that was already leading up to being tops on my long list of
favorites. as i said before, the guys were in really good moods tonight.
boogie on reggae woman was a nice choice. i heard it last year at deer
creek and for the first time in dayton. this was a very solid version "i
like to see in the raw, under the stars above". cavern was all right, but
at this point now that i look back i can see that certain parts of the show
trey didn't "punch it in" like he normally does. this happened during
antelope as well, which by the way was a really cool version like i have
never heard before and i have heard a lot of antelopes and it is still my
favorite song to hear at a show. but anyway. my friends noticed it as well.
it was like trey was holding off or something. it didn't ruin anything
though so no big deal really. second started with boaf and since i was at
polaris i immediately though "oh, no not again", but this version was good
with a solid jam that had a lot of "structure" as opposed to polaris' crap.
during the intermission my roommate found me on the lawn and we started
talking and one of the conversations pertained to how he would like to see a
have mercy or a walk away tonight and i told him walk away would great
because i hadn't almost completely forgot about that song. lo and behold,
out of boaf comes walk away. nothing really spectacular, but really fun to
hear and dance to. antelope was like no other antelope i have ever heard
before, get the tapes and maybe you will agree. my roommate has seen 23
antelopes and he feels the same way. suzie rocked. page sort of missed his
first solo, but more that compensated for it later on with some
extraordinary piano playing during this song. i saw trey take his guitar
off and i knew that fish was coming out to play something. earlier in the
day, i told my friends how i thought fish was definitely going to sing one
of these nights and how i thought he might sing purple rain in columbus
because it was raining during the second set. but he did it here instead.
funny version because he forgot the second verse and "thank us for
contributing to his addiction...playing the vacuum". anytime is a good time
for yem. this was a real good version with trey teasing boogie on in the
middle jam section. the encore was short but sweet. all night trey's
vocals were on. in columbus, he sounded like shit, all out of key and
louder than everyone else, but tonight he sounded good and he really let his
guitar take control during the solos. i can't wait to see them tonight. i
am kind of on the line because i told some friends that either harpua or
mockingbird were due because it is the end of the tour, but right now it is
just wishful thinking. this show has completely restored my faith in this
band. ok, i am out of here....
Date: Sun, 5 Sep 1999 14:12:56 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 2nd night deer creek
Well, I have seen a lot of mixed reviews of this show, and rightly show. The
simple fact is that it was a wierd show. Wierd for the tour closer and wierd
for the Creek. This was my 34th show and my 6th Deer Creek show. I have to
admit, as far as setlists go, it was the most standard Creek setlist I've
seen and quite possibly the most standard setlist I've seen anywhere. It
does seem as though the nights should have been reversed. My friend seems
to think they were pretty hungover, which would make sense the night before
being Kurroda's birthday and all. Trey even mentioned something about being
wasted first night. All this is true, but I truly think this show was a
perfect expample of how you can't judge a show by it's setlist. This show
was truly blistering at times, and there is no denying that. The first set
had a very mellow vibe, but any set that contains more than ten songs I feel
I have gotten my money's worth. Every song was standard, but every version
was through the roof. The Bathtub and Stash jams were so good. I usually
go outside during stasth, but this one had me on my feet dancing through the
entire thing. Axilla, NICU, and Gumbo will never tire me, I love those
songs till the end. And Vultures I find to be a masterpiece. This whole
vibe of *I don't like that song, they play it too much* has gotten
ridiculous. The trick is to let it be new every time, or you will never
enjoy a show. For example, I remember two years ago, everyone love Guyute
and went nuts when it was played. Nowadays, it seems to be the cool trend
on Phish tour to hate Guyute, it's just so silly. Think for yourselves,
people.
Second set: Simply phenominal. I found such a spiritual vibe to be present
during this set. Every lyric cut through me like a blade. Word were words
I sailed upon, now I'm on my way, don't you see anything that you'd like to
try. Wow, I was so blown away. During the space/feedback jam, I was just
waiting for the aliens to land, it was awesome. The jams during every song
in this set were so hot. They just rolled over and over and the energy was
in perfect control. I was truly impressed and despite how standard the
songs were, the set was sweltering.
Now this encore I have to agree with most of the other reviews, it seemed
pretty weak and lacking for the Creek. The Woodstock was nice, but
unfinished. I found the Julius finisher to be a bit of a cop out. Not only
do I feel indifferent about Julius, but this version was hurtin at the
begining. I feel that the crowd was a big part of this however. When
Julius started, the energy died and it was at this time that Trey flubbed
the lyrics. It was almost as if the crowd messed him up. I found it to be
so appropriate that when he finally got the lyrics right, the line he said
was *what's to return on the faith I've provided*. I screamed, *yeah, give
the man some faith, he's a human being!!!!*. So, this left the crowd with a
somber vibe and the campsite vibe after the show stayed somber as well. It
happens, but I personally thought this show was quite incredible, and that's
after 34 shows. First night, of course, was much better, but I didn't let
my expectation get too far out of wack because it was the Creek or because
it was the tour closer. Let it be new every time. Let's enjoy what we
have.
Thanx
Jason
Date: Sat, 07 Aug 1999 18:04:50 +0000
From: michael doyle [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: deer creek 7-26-99&this summer
I decided to write my first review because I feel like it was
necessary to state my opinion of the show(7-26-99) and because I want to
see what everybody else was thinking of it. Let me start by saying I
absolutely love this band. Why else would I spend my time following
them around the country? This summer though I must say I began to
question what in the hell is up with the fab four. I was able to see a
good portion of the tour(13 shows) and I must say a good number were not
up to PHISH's standards. There were many miscues, flubbed notes and
altogether poor playing. I dont know if the new arrangement had anything
to do with this and I am in no way saying that were not any highlights,
there were many (7-1 I,7-7,7-9,7-12&13,7-15,7-16II&7-26)but even during
those shows there were times when I was questioning things.
It seemed at times as if there was bad feelings between band members. I
know that I don't truley know what they were thinking because I do not
have ESP and I have not had any conversations with the band but being
close at every show you are able to see there expressions and how they
interact and react to different situations while they are playing. For
example, the first night at PNC Fish laid down the drum beat for 2001.
You could tell Trey was into it but then out of no where came Mike with
the SOAMelt bass line. You could see Trey and Fish were thrown by it and
so were the phans that were actually paying attention. It was not a
tease, it was Mike saying we are not going there tonight. They did play
2001 the next night but that incident the night before was just wierd.
I began to down play that event but there it was again at Deer Creek.
The SOAMelt at DC was totally flat and definately the worst one I have
EVER heard. It really seemed like the whole night that they were just
not themselves. In the beginning of the second set I began to think
back to 10-31-98 which definately had the same vibe. Maybe the whole
Woodstock thing bugged them out due to its effect on how they will be
able to plan huge events in the future. I don't know. What I do know is
that the night before was incredible(W.Post,Maki,Boogie On,funked out
Suzie, P.Rain, YEMw/B.O.jam). That definately knocked a lot of shows
out of my top 5 and I read that Trey ranked it in his top 5. So then
what the hell was up with the next night. Tour closer, Deer Creek,they
blow the doors off that place(usually),for those who dont know refer to
the HPB or Tour Extra99 vol.7 no.6. I know drugs are part of the scene
for the the phans and the band, I just hope this is not leading to any
wierd vibes between band members. During Treys ramble during SOAM it
seemed as if he was paralleling a lot of what happened at Woodstock to
what could happen on the scene if people dont realize that Phish is just
a band playing music, having fun and making a living. Greed exists on
the lot, it might not be some big corporation telling you what you can
and can not do but it is there. Have you ever bought a skimpy bag,fake
doses or argon instead of nitrous?(the last one being there for all you
hippie crackheads out there,you know who you are) All Im saying is the
foudation is there for something beautiful so lets nip this in the bud
before it gets to the Deads porportions. I know some of you remember the
Dead had to write a letter in 95 saying that if things continued the way
they were that they would be forced to retire from the road. Could you
imagine a summer without Phish. I couldn't. Lets hope it never goes
there. Let us make sure that when the band decides to call it quits it
is on there terms, not because of some chumps that don't give a fuck
about anything especially Phish. Well I believe I feel a nap coming on
so its time to end this review. Please remember "We are all in this
together" so stay positive, be safe and hopefully we will enjoy some
shows this fall and on into the next millenium.
peace,
Lincoln
p.s. thanks for reading this and I would love to hear some feedback
Date: Thu, 29 Jul 1999 16:51:45 -0500
From: Leo Wolf [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: phish vs. woodstock/DC second night review
Hey now everyone,
I took a break from phish tour this summer to focus on school and even
missed two of the three midwest shows (I'm from Chicago) in order to go
to (I know I can't believe it either) Woodstock. Anyway, I did see my
26th show on the second night at Deer Creek and while I thought that the
show was mediocre and that the energy level was low from both fans and
band (probably because of the end of the tour), I would like to comment
on Trey's live-music/Woodstock speech and my experience at Woodstock.
So, my girlfriend and I headed out to Woodstock, looking forward to
seeing moe., planet drum, Hornsby, DMB and others. All of the music
that we saw was really, really excellent. It exceeded all
expectations. At the bands listed above (with the exception of DMB) the
crowd was comprised of primarily family and we felt right at home --
plenty of smiles, "brothers and sisters", and excellent vibes.
Outside of those performances, however, evil prevailed. First of all,
grills were not allowed, so while you camped onsight ala Cliff. Ball,
Went, LemonWheel, you were forced to purchase food from booths. The
prices were exorbatant to say the least (i.e. $4 for water, $5 for
burger). Drugs were plentiful but there didn't seem to be a lot of
trustworthy folks around who I would buy hallucinigens from. The
camping was ridiculous as there wasn't nearly enough room and tents were
literally set up on top of one another. There were not enough garbage
cans, and nobody used the available ones, so the place was covered, and
I do mean covered, in garbage. Port-o-pottys were tipped over, creating
mud. People engaged in mudfights and then devolved into jerks when they
attacked clean peaceful people with the mud. Few people were friendly.
A Mardi Gras atmosphere persisted as drunk men yelled "show us your tits
to any and every woman". We felt dirty. We left early because we could
tell that this festival was going down hill. We slept at a brother and
sister's in Syracuse and watched the news which proved our instinct
correct.
The next day we drove 10 hours to the CREEK. We were so excited to be
HOME. The lot was excellent although more crowded than the Creek in
past years. It felt great to see smiles and friendliness everywhere
(and to pay $1 for food!) We smiled through the entire show (I
particularly enjoyed the GUMBO). At the end of a phatty SplitOAM, Trey
gave his speech, which summed up all of the feelings my girlfriend and I
had been having throughout the entire night.
When a lot of time is spent at Phish shows it seems that people begin to
complain (i.e. "it's too crowded", "it's not as family oriented as the
Dead lot was", etc.) All of the people who have complained like this
(me included), need to take a step back and realize what a great thing
we have going for us in Phish. If you can't realize it through thought,
go out and experience something like Woodstock. It gave us a rebirth of
appreciation for the Phish scene and you might need the same.
Take it easy brothers and sisters. I'll see everybody in Florida!
Love,
Marshall J. Harris
"Mutch"
[email protected]
Date: Fri, 30 Jul 1999 20:50:19 -0700
From: Heath Condiotte [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 2nd night deer creek review
Okay here's the scoop on the giant penis that made it's way to the stage
before set 2. The penis's name was "Thundercock", and it toured with my
friends from Oswego to Deer Creek. It's exact length was five feet--quite
a cock if you ask me. Many of you saw it at the on-sire campground as we
ran amuck throughout both days with "the cock". It made it's way to the
showers a few times, the port-a-johns, sjakedown, etc. Everyone loved the
cock (except for a few random folks). Many concert goers even requested
having their picture taken with the cock. (I'm proud to say my picture with
the cock is in the hands of many strangers). Our goal was to get the
inflateable wonder on the stage at the beginning of set 2 to make the band
laugh. Little did we know what would come of it. No, the cock was not a
ploy to get the band to play meatstick, as many assumed. It was just our
gift to the band and the fans. Look for something similar to come fall
tour....
Have you seen my thundercock?
Heath
Date: Fri, 30 Jul 1999 15:28:50 -0500
From: Mark Johanneck [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek 7/26
Well I've been reading some of the reviews of the Deer Creek shows, and
since nobody seems to have the same opinion I have, I thought I would share
my $.02
First off, a little qualifier, I've been to about 20 shows between '94 and
the current Summer '99 tour. Some friends of mine and myself jumped on the
tour in Alpine and managed to catch both shows at the Creek, even though we
had no tickets when we got there. So thanks to all of the kind souls who
hooked up with their extra's (and at face value, the way it should be).
As Phish took the stage for the start of the first set, my friends and I
all dropped. I don't have much to say about the first set. It was pretty
mellow, but I did enjoy it. I really dug Vultures, and the Gumbo>NICU was
incredible, along with the Bathtub Gin and Axilla I. All and all a good
set, but nothing too spectacular, especially when compared to the first set
of the first night of Deer Creek (The Post, Makisupa, and the Boogie on
Reggae Woman).
It seemed to be a pretty normal set break as far as time went, and the
Miles Davis was a nice touch.
Right about the time the second set was getting started I was beginning to
feel the effects of the dose. The Wolfman's opener was excellent and moved
into Piper nicely. Now this is several days after the show, and some of my
memories admittedly are a little muddy, but I seem to remember them teasing
Also Sprach in the jam of Piper. It seemed to me they were trying to move
to Also Sprach (as they had been teasing throughout the first night of Deer
Creek) but for whatever reason it didn't move that way. With a sudden stop
and quick start to Theme from the Bottom, they were moving along but I
could tell that Trey was upset as they played Theme and the anger or
whatever seemed to be directed at Mike. As some one else mentioned, Trey
seemed to be emphasizing "Don't you see anything that you'd like to try"
which he almost seemed to be growling at Mike. At this point is was
becoming obvious to me, at least, that something was up with Mike. He
didn't seem to be "getting" the groove. From Theme, them moved right into
Down w/ Disease which I was hoping would bring Mike back to his usual
incredible playing, but beyond the opening notes to the song, he still was
struggling. He was playing Disease too fast and Trey was having trouble
singing it right because the tempo was off. Again in this song he was
almost always looking at and seemed to be singing to Mike, emphasizing
"waiting for that time, when I can finally say that this has all been
wonderful, but now I'm on my way." Someone else was saying they were
getting some weird vibes from this part of the show, and I couldn't agree
more. It was definitely messing with my head. With Mike not on top of his
game, Trey (and Page and Fishman) took over. That feedback jam that Trey
did with his loop and delay pedals was simply awesome. Between that and
the incredible light show that was going on at the time, I had to sit down
so I wouldn't fall down. Once again they seemed to be trying to go into
2001, but once again Mike simply refused to follow (or maybe his head was
someplace else and simply couldn't follow). After searching around for
what to play, he finally busted out with the base line for SOAM. The rest
of the band followed and did a good job with it. Then Trey went on with
his speech about how they really enjoy doing what they do and it's all very
special and all the stuff about Woodstock (and I think he was very subtlety
apologizing for the lackluster performance that night and possibly at
Alpine). Anyway I was glad he made the speech and tried to turn the vibe
around because I didn't want to leave with all the negativity that was
hanging in the air. I also think that they didn't want to leave the last
summer show before 2000 on a weak note which is part of the reason he was
getting so emotional during the show. So when they came out for the
encore, I think they wanted to lighten things up and send everyone away on
a positive note. The Woodstock they played was definitely the Joni
Mitchell song and although they didn't play it particularly well, I enjoyed
it. I personally think that the Julius closer was more intended for Mike
then anyone else. Trey seemed, once again to be singing to Mike and
emphasizing "Don't blame it on yourself..'Cause if you lay it on your
brother when your sleeping, you'll wake in the morning you'll be gone."
Maybe he was trying to make amends with him because he was being so hard on
him during the show.
Now I know some of you are thinking I'm crazy, and while I tend to agree, I
also happen to know that Mike was not on top of his game that night. We
camped next to some tapers and go to listen to the show again that night
when we got back to the campground. With a second listen, it only
confirmed my feelings about Mike's playing that night. For a good example,
when you get the tape, listen to how late Mike comes into Julius. Trey is
already singing before mike strikes his first note, this is definitely not
normal. The whole point of this is not to trash Mike or Phish, but simply
to point out that Phish are not Gods. They, just like the Dead did, have
off nights. That is all part of the game when your on stage and
improvising, trying to let it flow. But when I hear someone come out of a
show like that saying it was the greatest show they've seen, I wonder what
show they were at, because they obviously didn't hear the same thing I did
(and this is true of some of the people I was there with).
All and all, I had a great time at Deer Creek and wouldn't have changed a
thing. I think that the scene at Deer Creek is something very special and
you can bet that I'll be there again next year. I hope everyone had as
good a time as I did and hope to see you all there again next year.
Date: Thu, 29 Jul 1999 16:47:45 -0700 (PDT)
From: Blaine Sheaver [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: deer creek
This is just a point that I would like to make. I saw some remarks
about the Woodstock encore and I think that people have missed the
point. I do not believe that it was just randomly cut short. You see, I
wasn't sure if they were playing what I thought it was and it was cut
short right before the line that would have told me for sure that it
was in fact Woodstock. It was a very symbolic place to end. I checked
it when I got home. The line is as follows...
"By the time we got to Woodstock, We were half a million strong, And
everywhere was a song and a celebration."
Well, I think we know now that it wasn't like that this year. And
you should know that the ramifications go far beyond the burned
trailers and trashed equipment. Big fat rock shows with camping just
got a black eye and it will be harder and harder for us to have ours.
So if you thought Trey was too preachy I hope that you can see that
both the band and us have a lot at stake here. As much as people hate
to admit it, bureaucrats (mayors, police, city councils, you know,
folks generally considered to be uncool to begin with) ultimately
determine if these events take place. Now the idea of 100,000 Phish
fans camping for the weekend carries with it a whole new set of
baggage. Trey started by saying, "Well I guess you heard about the shit
that happened in New York..", to which I would responded, "No, I
haven't heard any news. I've been camping in a dusty field waiting to
see the best band around." I hope I have that opportunity in the
future.
Date: Sat, 31 Jul 1999 01:44:10 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek Closer Review
I just wanted to submit a short review about Deer Creek.. The bottom line
is - Neither the setlist nor the jamming did the tour closer justice. I saw
17 of the summer shows including Atlanta and Great Woods, and the intensity
just didn't measure up to a suitable finale. The band opted to forego
several regular rotation songs like Foam and Mule, but did manage to toss
out 8 or 9 more BirdsofaFeather. Had day 2 of Deer Creek been anywhere but
in the closer spot, I wouldn't have nearly as much of a problem with it.
How did that Theme get into set II? They were on such a great groove with
day 1, I suppose I set my expectations too high.
Excellent tour otherwise. Quick summary - Less Meatstick dance - More
Meatstick jam whooaa o Take Care Everybody
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 20:07:22 PDT
From: Dan Daly [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: 7/26/1999 notes
I'm not offering much of a review here other than to say that I thought both
nights of Deer Creek were mind-blowing. Having been in Atlanta for the 3rd
& 4th and at Starlake, I had very high expectations for these shows - last
two shows of the tour, awesome venue, getting ready for Fuji Rock, etc.
Anyway, I wanted to tell others that weren't there and remind those that
were of something that I thought was very, VERY funny. When Phish came out
for the second set of this second night, someone in the crowd blew up a huge
inflatable penis, and the fans tossed it up to the stage. Trey
instinctively handed it to Fishman, who then placed it in his lap sticking
straight up into the air. This thing must have been 6 or 7 feet tall!
Fish, then reached around it and played a little beat. I think Fish wanted
to show us how much he liked playing for us. It was truly fucking
hilarious.
One additional note - in the Happy Birthday part of the first night's show,
the reviews I read said that Fishman only babbled. I was on the lawn and
could still hear him very clearly. In a great Jamaican accent, he noted
that Chris will roll a giant spliff, but then not share it with anyone.
Again, fishman had me holding my gut laughing.
Thank you, Fish and thank you Phish
Date: Sun, 25 Jul 1999 21:18:21 -0000
From: Mark Maynard [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek review
Sorry, after reading reviews on Alpine I had to say:
I love to hear people complaining about hearing a song twice in one week or
even twice in a row. Some quotes from some people on this board: "the
first set was ok but it was misplaced....." Misplaced? So you are the
expert on when Phish should play certain songs now?? Maybe you should
apply for a job with the band so that you can make sure they dont play
anything out of order.
Another quote: "I thought they might play some sort of sell-out set with
DWD....know what I mean......" I wont name who said this but you can read
his name on the reviews. You are a fool........ DWD is a great song. Why
people label this song, which was released as a video on MTV, a "sell out"
song is beyond me. Take your head out of your ass.
It seems to me that people who are seeing phish for the first time or
perhaps those people who see the occasional show are the ones that arn't
bitching. And do you know why???? Maybe because phish is a rock and roll
band and when you see a band for 2 months straight things might get
boring. There is no band that can perform at their best every night no
matter how bad you want them to. Phish does not live to respond to the
tour-heads every beck and call. You fuck'in losers that go to every show
and then bitch about 80% of them, get a job and see phish once in a while,
you will learn to appreciate them. Grow up and lighten up. What is
happening to the phish scene?????
Bring on your rants fools. I am sure that I left tons of open ends in my
comments. But unlike a lot of you I have other things to do except think
about phish. And oh yeah I gotta get up early to work tommorrow. That is
the word for today JOB. "J...O....B" Get one...
Sorry for the repetition if you read this under Alpine reviews too,
Maynard
Date: Fri, 30 Jul 1999 09:42:13 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek Thoughts
I've been having mixed emotions about the Deer Creek trip this year. Only on
a few occasions have I seen two nights in a row be so opposite in energy and
vibes. Usually the weaker show falls before the hot one, but I guess from
what I heard about Alpine from several people, the first night at the Crik
was the cleanup. And boy was it ever. Several "first time this tour" songs,
and three not played in awhile cover-song treats. First Meat opener ever, a
jammed out My Friend, a super fun Suzy G that I haven't heard in three
years, among other unpredictable mayhem, and no Meatstick. It was an
emotional evening, as well. Hearing Chris Kuroda thank the guys for the
birthday tribute in Makisupa ("Hey guys, this is Chris in the light
booth....you guys are the best")was goose bump inducing. You knew you were
at a special show. At the evening's end, we all wondered how it could be
topped. After attending 35 shows over 8 years, it had broken into my top
five, among shows like 7/31/93, 6/22/94, 12/7/97 and more recently 12/31/98.
I should've known that it would take some treats to make the tour's last
night just as special, but never thought it would feel this way. Despite the
fact that I was feeling ill from heat exhaustion the whole first set, I knew
the vibe was missing. The opener (Farmhouse) was appropriate, as several
farms are visible from the lawn, but lacked the vim that can make this song
occasionally fun. The jam felt flat to me, so I hoped that it would re-coup
as the set went on, but between every song there were long pauses while the
guys just looked at each other, as if they were waiting for someone else to
take the initiative to start something. On most nights, the moment a song
ends (or before), someone is itching to start the next, but this night they
looked at each other and seemed to wonder. The highlights were short lived
and a hot moment would be followed by mellower songs and unfocused jams that
were funky but quickly faded. The second set didn't have any big surprises
either, until a nice Down with Disease that everyone thought was going into
2001, but Mike had different intentions, or just wasn't paying attention. I
have always liked a good and scary Split Open and Melt, but everyone felt
like the set was finally evolving and it changed directions again. Not a
single rare song, or tour firsts. Just mediocre versions of songs that were
played throughout the whole tour. For a special night like a tour closer, at
Deer Creek no less, I felt that there wasn't a special moment that signified
that. It seemed all rehash to me. It was nice to hear Trey talk about what
was going in New York at the end of S.O.A.M., as I had heard several people
grumbling about it throughout the weekend. It was obvious that it had been
bothering him and he had to share his feelings about it. Point was taken and
they left the stage. I felt a bit disappointed, but when they waited so long
to come back for the encore, I was guessing that they were working something
out backstage, something they'd never played. Upon their return, I
recognized the song with the first line "I came upon a child of God, he was
walking along the road...". I thought, "Wow, they are making a real
statement here." It was one of concern and heartache for the state of
affairs in the live music industry. The whole reason Joni Mitchell wrote the
song in the first place was to let music bring people together in peace in a
time of war and unrest. I was worried that people weren't catching on. I've
never heard Phish make such a statement before. I'm not sure how everyone
else in the crowd received this. I looked around the lawn behind me and
people just looked confused and tired. The entrance of Julius got some good
responses, but I thought "Julius? Is this gonna end the tour? Why?" I tried
to get on the vibe and enjoy it, but as Trey butchered the second verse, I
was lost completely. The ensuing jam was fair, but not anywhere as poignant
as I've heard this song end a first set or open a mid-tour show. At it's
conclusion, the crowd roar was as dull as I've ever heard it, the lights
came on, and the mood was never so somber. Was there anything about this
show that was unique as it should be for a Deer Creek tour closer? As far as
song choice, aside from the first encore, I found nothing. Was it the heat?
Was everyone dead tired? Were the events at Woodstock on the minds of the
musicians, channeling the uneasy vibes into my soul, inhibiting me from
really enjoying myself like the night before? Am I just too damn critical
about the band that has been a huge part of my life for 8 years? Whatever it
is, I plan to re-evaluate my expectations and look forward to the next shows
I attend and hope for the best. The next morning, the sun came up and
restored my faith. This is still just a band, and we take what we want from
it. We must not look for the destination, but enjoy the journey itself. For
that is why I keep coming back for more.
-Rob Mottice
[email protected]
Columbus, Ohio
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 18:53:51 EDT
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Deer Creek- quick thoughts
Just a few quick thoughts on Deer Creek: First, thanks to the band for the
great summer tour. It made things exceedingly special having them close
out in my home state. Second, why no Meatstick? I thought it was a virtual
guarantee the second night. After hyping it up to all my friends back
home, the whole crew wanted to see what it was all about. Maybe the band
is worried about overplaying it, but I really hope they break it out in
Chicago this October. It's just so fun if you let it be. The second set
was sweet for me, with the call on Piper and Theme making me feel self
satisfied. I enjoyed the DWD, especially Mike's plucking on the bass a la
Phil Lesh. Only disappointment was the lack of a 2001, teased in the weird
feedback jam. Woodstock was good to hear, though after not being near a
television or newspaper I had no idea what Trey was referring to. It is
pretty special though, this whole Phish scene.
Thanks for the memories everyone- see you in Florida.
Date: Tue, 27 Jul 1999 19:12:32 -0500
From: Kevin Hanley [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Phish 7.26.99 Review
Hey now,
I just returned from the Creeks and thought I would write about both
shows --- I also saw Columbus and Alpine, but much has been written
about those already and the general stuff (ironic encore at Columbus,
Trey's screwups at Alpine) was of the same opinion as mine.
So my 17th show comes after a great night camping at Dead Creek
campgrounds, under the big trees....great campground, walking to a show
rules! We got a nice spot on the lawn, left-center, and we saw....
First set:
Farmhouse opener was nice and standard, I was hoping for a Foam or
Llama, but good nevertheless. Get Back, very common this year, still a
nice tune. Vultures was the first tune I really got into -- I liked it
back in '97, still like it now, the harmonies are well-sung. Sleep
was new to me, mellow tune....but Gumbo, yes! They slowed the Tempo of
it, and phunked it out in NICU, which blew me away since we just had the
double-Leo delight back in Columbus! Beauty was beauty, standard.
The Gin was GOOOD.....well-jammed it started an uphill trend in the
set......Mountains was a nice mellow tune for a change (I have a hard
time taking other mellow tunes like Circus, Roggae, Frankie Says, etc)
but Axilla set the stage for the raging Stash that closed the set ---
Trey took this one really far, and he used a nice mix of the newer sound
he plays from his guit with the more old school wailing guit circa
'93. I would say that NICU, Gin, and Stash were the highlights, but
overall, a relatively average set (but *average* Phish is still
incredible!).
Set break was the average 40 min or so, I was hoping (as were 10,000
others, I bet) for a 2001 opener, but...
Second Set:
...the Wolfman's was a beaut! My last one was Vegas, where it segued
into Piper (after a 20 minute Ambient jam) so I was eager to see what
they would do with this one...and it was much more structured than
Vegas. I liked this Wolfman's much better, and when they started to
tone down the music in the search for a song to play, I heard the
familiar chords to...Piper. But this one was started quickly, and as
it gained momentum, so did the crowd, who started boogying like crazy!
The Theme was very well-recieved by the crowd, and it led into a smoking
Disease that had one of my favorite Phish jams in it, ever! Alongside
the Free jam in Columbus, this jam was just Trey pointing one big phat
hose at us and dosing us with gallons of notes! The jam mellowed out
into some feedback, mainly featuring Mike, then Fishman begins the drum
beat to 2001!!! I was jumping for joy, and then I hear the bass lines
to SOAM....argh!...what a tease! But this SOAM held its ground, it was
jammed out nicely and featured some great Treyspeak at the end of it.
He basically talked about how they were backstage and how they agreed
that they are so lucky to have phans like us and to have the ability to
put on shows like this, and then Trey mentioned how "today's live music
concerts are going down the tubes..." and how when greed takes over, you
will have problems like in New York. Now, I didn't know, nor did
anyone else around me, what he was referrring to, but we were told later
about the rioting at woodstock. He then thanked us for everything,
that they had a great time, can't wait to tour in the fall, and how they
are excited about Japan.
So the encore, fittingly, was a song with references to Woodstock, and
my buddy thought it was a Joni mitchell tune, but phish.net says
otherwise. Julius as the last song, though, was a letdown of
sorts....the song raged despite Trey's lyrical flubs (which are becoming
quite common lately!) but how about a nice Guiter to send us weeping
home? :-)
While I think that the first night was better, both nights at Deer creek
did not dissapoint, and they made up for Alpine's show (sans the phat
4-song encore), and of course, the whole ambiance and environment of
Noblesville always makes it that much better. But I did happen to
catch my eye on some NIEGHBORHOODS being built up on SR 235!!!! I hope
we don't loose the coolness of the Creeks to the Greedy Gregs of greater
Indianapolis....go develop in Terre Haute or somewhere!! ;-)
Can't wait for fall tour,
Mike
www.public.asu.edu/~mjhanley <--tapelist and more
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 1999 10:05:40 -0400
From: "Gagliano, Michael (Cahners - CHI)" [email protected]
To: "'[email protected]'" [email protected]
Subject: deer creek 7/26/99
Quick qualifying statement. Have seen 45 shows since 1992 and have seen 4
shows this tour. This show was simply awesome. The vibe from the opening
note was incredible. Although Farmhouse isn't my favorite opener, there was
something that said "TONIGHT WILL ROCK!". Get Back On The Train was great
with Page jamming on the moog organ. Vultures was the biggest surprise of
the night for me. Total arena rock song. Fishman was on fire on this one.
Sleep was short and sweet. Gumbo was well played with about a 8 min jam
that segued into NICU with Leo taking charge on this one. I can live
without Beauty Of My Dreams, but it was well played. Next was Bathtub Gin
and Trey did not let us down. He fuckin' wailed on this. For a first set
Gin, the entire band was locked into an awesome groove! After about a 10
min jam, Trey led the band back into Gin. I never have heard Mountains in
the Mist and hope I never do again. It's just too slow for me, sorry. Thank
God Axilla was next because it got the Creek rocking complete with the fade
out ending(Axilla II?). The finale of set I was indeed the best version of
Stash I ever witnessed. Trey did not miss a beat. I'm not bull shitting
anyone when I say Trey took Stash to new heights. It wasn't an extremely
long Stash, but an excellent JAM!!!!!!!! I would say the first set was about
80 min.
The second set was the best of the 2 Creeks and Alpine in my opinion.
Wolfman's jam was incredible! With the jam snaking thru 2 or 3 different
grooves(Mike leading the way!), this was just your typical great Wolfman's
JAM!!!!!! There was only a couple of options to come out of the jam and it
was Piper(I thought maybe Ghost or Maze). This song ALWAYS kicks ass. When
the band speeds up at the end, the crowd generally loses it and I did too!
Theme was next and the band did not disappoint. Again Trey was on fire. He
built up the ending frenzy perfectly! The true highlight of the night was
what followed. DISEASE>FEEDBACK MELTDOWN>SPLIT OPEN. For this 30 min
segment of the show, the band was transcending. The Disease was the best
since the WENT 97. No ambient jam, no slow shit, just complete Rock and
Roll! After finishing Disease, Trey took the boys into SPACE! This was
insane. For 5 min I thought I was at a 1973 Dark Star. Of course Split
Open had to be next. Page and Mike led this song tonight. I'd give this
Spilt Open an 8/10. Trey gave a little speech about the Woodstock scene and
for the encore they did just that sing WOODSTOCK! Although short, it was
well placed I thought. The only letdown was the uninspired Julius complete
with messed up lyrics by Trey.
Overall I'd have to rank this as one of the best shows I've seen. In
general, the entire tour was great! I think we all have to cut the band a
little slack. Sure they make mistakes, but as we all know when one sees a
bunch of shows in a row, the intensity tends to decline and that tends to
lessen an opinion of a particular show. But when I hear the tapes days
later, they rock!!! Can't wait 'till the GORGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mike Gags
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