Aaaaaaah 2003 Phish. What can I say about these boozed out Oxy Contin Years. Trey was in true 03 form and so were the rest of the boys. These shows are fun in spirit, and dark and sinister. Check out the truly Orgasmic Twist->Boogie On->Ghost. Pure fire. Great run here, awesome shows, and a must have for collectors of good Phish. Enjoy -AntelopeChsRhttp://www.zshare.net/download/835344140bba3936/
Monday, 12/29/2003 American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
Set 1: Piper, Foam, Anything But Me, Limb By Limb, Wolfman's Brother, Poor Heart,CavernSet 2: Rock and Roll -> Twist -> Boogie On Reggae Woman -> Ghost -> Free, The Divided Sky, Good Times Bad TimesEncore: Waste Encore 2: The Squirming Coil Notes: Piper was preceded by Jibboo and On Broadway teases. Free included a guitar and bass duet jam. A lengthy audience ovation followed Free.
When the Music’s Over, Don’t Forget to Turn Out the Lights. (Published in the second edition of The Phish Companion............Phish tends to piss away its encores. Perhaps it’s just my cynicism speaking, but, in general, I feel Phish views its encores as musical after-thoughts; hastily written epilogues to otherwise energetic shows. Stylistically, this makes sense. After all, the group’s tendency has always been to weave together thematic segues and extended musical medleys, not six-minute exclamation marks. So when Phish returned to the stage for a second encore segment three days before New Years Eve 2003, no one really knew what, if anything, to expect.
In fact, Phish’s second encore ranks among the most surprising moments in my career as a “professional” Phish-head. Over the years, I’ve come to expect musical surprises and special theatrics, but once Phish slips off stage right after their encore, its time for everyone to exit. Sure, I am prone to screaming and cheering for a second encore, but, in the back of my mind, I know this applause will soon be unplugged by Paul Languedoc’s post-show music. Even for a band as adventurous as Phish, once the lights go on, the high school play must drop its curtain, causing Clear Channel guidelines and venue curfews to overtake any last minute musical musing. Despite my cynicism, I understand; after all, I also have a lengthy drive ahead. But none of that really mattered when Phish returned to the stage for a second encore of “Squirming Coil.” Fittingly, many of my concert bootlegs include a brief track titled “crowd noise.” Sitting snuggly between the end of Set II and the encore, “crowd noise” is a live recording's most revealing moment, and the audience’s chance to comment on the night’s performance. There is also a subtle beauty to a crowd’s screams, unifying several thousand fans' disorganized chants into a single musical phrase. It’s almost like an invisible conductor is directing these dialects, smoothing out their rough screams and harmonizing their haphazardly arranged comments. At times, I felt bad for the American Airlines Arena’s staff. Obviously overwhelmed by Phish’s first appearance, staff members seemed genuinely frightened by the crowd’s local impact. So it wasn’t surprising that the arena hurried the group onstage by turning off the lights a few minutes early on 12/28/03. Immediately, the crowd saw their cue and collectively screamed a “woo.” Realizing their mistake, the staff panicked, and brought the lights back up, signaling the audience to cross-fade their “woos” to “boos.” But then, a few seconds later, the lights once again dimmed, ending the audience’s first segue with yet another collective “woo.” It was beautifully chaotic, like a great Phish jam. So when the lights stayed off for a few more musical moments the following evening, I figured someone had simply forgotten to press the on button once again. But for the first time in years, the lights continued to stay off and the audience’s energy began to build. Screams echoed throughout the arena, the invisible conductor arranging his longest symphony. Finally, Phish returned and quickly jumped into “Squirming Coil.” Simply examining its set list, 12/29/03 doesn’t seem like the type of event that would warrant an extra encore. Songs like “Wolfman’s Brother,” “Twist,” and “Free” are excellent jams, but nothing so out of the ordinary that both Phish and its fans would need an extra mini-set. Similarly, covers of the Velvet Underground’s “Rock and Roll” and Led Zeppelin’s “Good Times Bad Times” were enjoyable, but nowhere near as unique as the medley of funk-hits and Fishman covers offered each other night of the New Year's Run. But musically, 12/29/03 ranks not only as the New Year's Run’s best show, but the entire reunion year's most musically adventurous. Refocused, the group continues to weed out its theatrics and filter out its raw early Zappaesque fusion. Instead, the band is masking its jams with what can be called "chord-heavy space," playing a fast, raw synthesis of their '97 cow-funk and Siket Disc ambience. Mixing tight up-tempo group jams and long, lingering emotional ballads, the first set was technically proficient and rock-based; the type of show one would expect during an early night of a New Year's Run. Tight but funky, the choice Hoist selection "Wolfman's Brother" highlighted Phish's post-Hiatus rhythm clarity, with Mike Gordon and Jon Fishman remaining in sync. Quick, up-tempo romps through "Cavern" -during which Trey actually nailed the song’s lyrics- and "Poor Heart" seemed to break up the jam-heavy set, exploring Phish's late 90's understanding of arena-rock. Pacing their shows with precision, and emphasizing their ballads better than ever, Phish is replacing small, loaded riffs with wilder, darker guitar textures. While this style has uncoiled into "Great Gag in the Sky" jams, this new type of jamming, as first explored in "Seven Below," is most often being worked into worn-out funk vehicles like "Wolfman's Brother." Throughout Monday's "Wolfman's Brother," Phish continued to layer these textures into the group’s traditional cow-funk, further signs that the group is learning to play more subtly with age. While the sing-along set closer of "Good Times/Bad Times" was a welcome surprise, it seemed like Phish's American Airlines Arena show wouldn't stand out from its immediate Thanksgiving Run predecessors. But after the quartet returned for their second set, it become clear the group had something special up its sleeve. Tearing into a tight "Twist," which segued into an ambient jam that remained more focused then similar '99-'00 experiments, Phish gently weaved into an equally adventurous "Boogie on a Reggae Woman." While Trey’s guitar guided each song early on, Phish's front man let his band mates lead the core of each jam. This change of pace is particularly apparent on "Ghost," the group’s purest funk song, and a number that truly elevates Mike to band leader. Acknowledging Mike's lead instrumentation, Trey also played a gentle guitar-bass duel during “Free,” a surprisingly subtle mix of Pumping Iron adrenaline and brotherly love. Often times during the Hiatus, Trey cited his fans’ increasing emphasis on song requests as a major reason the group needed a break. “People started caring more about what we were playing, instead of how we were playing it,” he often said. With this phrase in mind, it makes sense that Phish chose this unsuspecting night to offer a second encore. In their minds’, it is equal, collective group interplay, not a brevy of spectacles, that warrants additional set times and potential curfew breaks. For a ballad, “Waste” is a controversial song. Some people feel its chorus, “come waste your time with me,” is Phish’s way of telling fans not to blindly follow their tongue-in-cheek fantasy tour. Others feel it is the group’s most loving lullaby. No matter what connotation this number has had in the past, when placed next to the crowd’s most victorious noise creation, “Waste” didn’t seem cynical. It seemed symbolic. From “Divided Sky’s” silent jam to “Limb By Limb’s” drum outro, Phish were on this night in Miami and decided to celebrate with “Squirming Coil,” a lengthy gentle jam that left all in attendance with a good taste in their mouth, Phish included.
American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
Set 1: Wilson > Sand -> Shafty -> NICU, Weigh, Cities, Strange Design > Scent of a Mule, Bathtub Gin -> Also Sprach Zarathustra
Set 2: Tube -> L.A. Woman -> Birds of a Feather > L.A. Woman -> Makisupa Policeman -> P-Funk Medley, Makisupa Policeman, Down with Disease
Encore: Contact, While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Wednesday, 12/31/2003 American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
Set 1: Wilson > Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, The Moma Dance, Guyute, You Enjoy Myself, First Tube > Tube
Set 2: Stash, Seven Below, Lawn Boy, Chalk Dust Torture -> Slave to the Traffic Light > Chalk Dust Torture
Set 3: Jungle Boogie > Auld Lang Syne > Iron Man, Runaway Jim -> Simple > Reba,I Didn't Know > Feel the Heat > Hold Your Head Up, Run Like an Antelope
Encore: Frankenstein Notes: The brief conclusions of Wilson and Tube completed the versions from the previous evening. Weekapaug included Jungle Boogie lyrics and a Divided Sky tease; Weekapaug, YEM, First Tube, and Chalk Dust also included Auld Lang Syne teases. Seven Below was unfinished. The house music played over the P.A. during the second setbreak consisted solely of songs that referenced “cars” in their titles. As midnight neared during Jungle Boogie (a Phish debut), Fish’s drum kit was wheeled to the side of the stage. An Austin Cooper Mini automobile was lowered to the stage from above. The Miami Palmetto Senior High Band and cheerleading squad emerged from the car one-by-one, giving the impression that they were all in the car together. In reality, the car had touched down over a trap door in the stage and the guests came out from underneath. Also emerging were dancers similar to the bunny-women present at the IT Festival. The marching band joined in on the jam that emerged from Jungle Boogie. With the stage covered with marching band members and dancers (some even on top of Page’s baby grand piano), an emcee (dressed in an Eddie George, Tennessee Titans, #27 football jersey) counted the clock down to midnight. A massive balloon drop followed. Phish then led the marching band through an instrumental version of Iron Man. For his “first song of 2004,” in honor of the Miami Heat, Fishman performed the Phish debut of Feel the Heat. HYHU contained more references to “Henrietta’s Heat” as Fishman took laps around the stage. Frankenstein was preceded by a Fluffhead tease.
Posted by zzyzx
(Published in the second edition of The Phish Companion...)After the amazing show of 12/30, people were of two minds about New Year's Eve. Most people figured that there was no way that the show would live up to the previous one. Others had more hope. In either case, excitement was high before the show, as is only proper for 12/31.This show starts with a what if. I tried to sit with my friends George and Elayne, but we couldn't find seats together. As a result, instead of sitting with close friends, Melissa and I sat near a bunch of screaming people who were more focused on the fate of various balloons and the state of their cocaine supplies than the music Phish was playing. I wonder if this review would be a lot more positive if that were not the case. The show started off interestingly enough. Taking a page from the Disco Biscuits play book, they finished the "Wilson" from the night before, before starting "Mike's Song". Like most 2003 versions, the "Mike's" was short and didn't really go anywhere, but the "Weekapaug" part of this complete breakfast got my blood pumping early. The "Auld Lang Syne" tease served as a reminder of where I was, what I was doing, and why I should be excited about it. I know that people in general don't want to read about “Guyute”, but something impressive happened in this one. During the fast part of the jam after the jig part, Mike and Trey were having a long conversation. They played their difficult parts perfectly while having the chat. That made me become even slightly more impressed with the band. A solid “You Enjoy Myself” served as the likely set closer. Normally NYE sets run close to an hour. Instead though, we got a slamming “First Tube” which then led to the other Disco Biscuits moment, finishing the 12/30 “Tube”. The setlist games were pretty fun and you have to appreciate anything that has the result of giving us longer sets and shorter setbreaks. The first set break was under a half hour. The first real highlight of the show was the start of the second set. The “Stash” was long and interesting, albeit more melodic and spacey than high energy. When paired with an energetic “Seven Below”, this worked really well. One Yinged, the other Yanged and this was a great half hour of music. While the rest of the set did little for me (the “Chalk Dust” -> “Slave” > Chalk Dust” was a lot better on paper than it was live), at least we were going to get one peak worthy of this run. After four days it was finally upon us. My side stage seats let me know that it was a car behind the curtains, but I was dying to know what they would do with it. The setbreak music made me even more curious, as they played a lot of songs with a car theme. I didn't see how they would be able to fit the car onto the stage until the set started and they moved Fishman's drum kit. Then the car came down and many, many, many marching band performers came out on stage, to the tune of “Jungle Boogie”. I think if I were sitting anywhere else in the building, I would have been amazed by this, but unfortunately, I was right by the stage. I could see the trap door opening to let people in through the car. It's better to have illusions sometimes. 2004 started off the way that every year should. After a brief “Iron Man” instrumental, we got a long, exciting “Runaway Jim”. The first ten minutes of the song were just okay, but then Trey counted out a jam to Fishman and things really took off. The jam became an energetic thing that vaguely reminded me of “Satisfaction”. After six minutes or so of playing that theme, it went into a spacey build jam like the end of “A Day in the Life”. That was the tension, the release was the return to the jam. A minute later they did the build jam trick again, this time to a different theme. This was a great jam and I was getting extremely excited for this set. Maybe this show would rival the previous one! ...Or maybe it wouldn't. Perhaps “Simple” should have the line, "What is a band without buzzkills?" because that is the role that that song takes on these days. Two of my favorite jams of the year - this “Jim” and the Philly “Twist” from the Thanksgiving Run - were ended by a segue into “Simple”. That is reason alone for me to root for its retirement, or at least a return to the Summer 1994 anarchistic versions. Follow that with a sloppy “Reba”, and the set seemed lost. The best thing about this part of the show was a sign that someone was holding up in the air, "Just doing some stretching." It's nice to see fans with a sense of humor. Speaking of which, we got a return to the wackiness during “I Didn't Know”. The vacuum section morphed into a cover of “Feel My Heat”. This was classic Phish silliness, and the joke continuing during the “HYHU” that followed. "Can you feel that?,” Trey asked, “That's Henrietta's heat!". This is the sort of wackiness that I always hope for in a third set environment. As I was walking back to my hotel after the “Frankenstein” encore, I was pretty down on this show. The stunt seemed more confused than anything, lacking the style of the giant hotdog or the obvious theme of the “Seven Below” snowstorm. The sets were all inconsistent; every one had some mediocre moments. Now that I've had a day to fly home (and catch up on my sleep some on the airplanes), I'm a little more positive about this. Sure, it's not 12/31/95 or Big Cypress, but this is a welcome addition to the NYE pantheon. Between the setlist games, the two great jams, and a few minor bits of wackiness, this did what a NYE show was supposed to do. It was a capping bit of wackiness to end a really good four show run. I can't really ask for anything more than that.
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