R17/W04 1995-12-02 Veterans Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, CT

[natronzero]

Set 1
PRINCE CASPIAN – Never understood what's not to like about Caspian. It's typically got a good chunk of transcendent, albeit straightforward, jamming towards the end, a majestic, regal feel akin to parts of Guyute, and some trippy story-like imagery. This version being abbreviated, it's a bit of a letdown. No jamming, no call-back ending, just the barebones song.

RUNAWAY JIM – Nice, well played version, but not much to make it stand out.

MOUND – Always a fun treat to hear.

GUELAH – Standard, played well enough.

REBA – The composed section has a few moments where I'm not sure if Trey is fumbling the notes, or intentionally experimenting with the phrasing – I'm inclined to think it's the first, but it ends up sounding cool. Beautiful buildup in the jam section, reaching an intense peak. I'm not a whistling purist – I've always felt like it's jarring and anticlimactic and kind of ruins the beauty they just built, so I'm cool with skipping it. Overall a very nice version.

MSO – Pretty typical.

FREE – Nice arena rock jam. I like it better without the funk.

TASTE THAT SURROUNDS – Fish's vocals are pretty awkward and the instrumental parts seem aimless. This song was just so half-baked at this point. I'm really glad they kept working on it, because Taste is one of my favorites.

BOUNCING – Good Bouncing. It's never really bad.

POSSUM – Kickass buildup at the beginning! Long and shraging version, and even slightly experimental.

Set 2
2001 – Short but sweet, gets the energy up.

MAZE – Pretty much a scorcher.
   
SIMPLE – Doesn't do much out of the ordinary, but it's still a very pretty jam.

FAHT – Hrmm, ok.

TWEEZER – I love these Fall 95 Tweezers. This one and the one from two nights before (part of one of my favorite sequences ever played) both showcase that spectacular, propulsive arena rock quality that epitomizes this era. Neither goes terribly far afield, but both just keep coming back for peak after sweaty peak, and I love it.

ADITL – This song and Bold as Love, I have similarly mixed feelings about. They're basically straight covers, which is technically impressive, but a little boring, and they're both songs I really enjoy, but I've heard them enough times from the original artists. So when Phish plays them, it really never ever blows me away.

GOLGI – It's Golgi, no complaints from me.

SQUIRMING COIL – Beautifully played Coil, and a very nice piano solo at the end.

TWEEPRISE – The rare Quadruple Set-closer!

BOLD AS LOVE – See ADITL

Show has its ups and downs, but is ultimately pretty good. Reba is really nice, Possum is way better than average, and Tweezer is absolutely killer. The flow feels a little off at times to me, and the filler to meat ratio is high for this period. I think maybe my overall impression is colored by the fact that this show followed outstanding shows that kind of epitomize set flow the two previous nights. I'll go back and listen to the highlights, but I don't think I would revisit it as whole sets like I do with those two shows.

[PIE-GUY]

Set 1
PRINCE CASPIAN – Never understood what's not to like about Caspian. It's typically got a good chunk of transcendent, albeit straightforward, jamming towards the end, a majestic, regal feel akin to parts of Guyute, and some trippy story-like imagery. This version being abbreviated, it's a bit of a letdown. No jamming, no call-back ending, just the barebones song.

That's it. We're not friends anymore.

[natronzero]

Set 1
PRINCE CASPIAN – Never understood what's not to like about Caspian. It's typically got a good chunk of transcendent, albeit straightforward, jamming towards the end, a majestic, regal feel akin to parts of Guyute, and some trippy story-like imagery. This version being abbreviated, it's a bit of a letdown. No jamming, no call-back ending, just the barebones song.

That's it. We're not friends anymore.

:hereitisyousentimentalbastard