12/31 - Madison Square Garden - New York, NY - Post Show Discussion

[roggae]

What about the FUN?!?!?!?!

I had fun and will be going back next year. No place else I'd rather be

Same wavelength.

[roggae]

This thread is sad. I know a bunch of folks who had a great time. Most of them like Phish though. Enjoy 2012.

I'm sure if I had been there, I would have had a good time.  At the end of the day, for me, it's still about the music brah.  Nuff said.

Exactly. I dig the music. I love when artists evolve. Haters gonna hate. "too many JAMZ" "too spacey" just imagine what folks thought when James murphy did LCD. It is the Lowest Common Denominator. I do think it's cool for everyone to have an opinion.

[Caravan2001]

Shit was sick!  Awesome show.  If you weren't there, you missed it.  One of the best new years shows I have attended....This thread is laughable.....so is this whole board really....shit pwned....

[mattstick]

So if we're honest about what we thought after watching the show last night we're "laughable"?

I can be critical of the show without bashing those who were there, it would be nice if you could enjoy the show without looking down on those who didn't dig it.

[Caravan2001]

So if we're honest about what we thought after watching the show last night we're "laughable"?

I can be critical of the show without bashing those who were there, it would be nice if you could enjoy the show without looking down on those who didn't dig it.

I have my opinion....you have yours....I'm giving you my perspective from what   I experienced at the show.  You can bash the show all you want, it's not changing my experience..What's laughable is that every time they play a show everyone who wasn't there says what a shitty show it was when they're not really in a position to judge the show.  You can certainly judge the music, good or bad, from what you saw on the stream or heard on the download, but you can't judge the show if you weren't there.  There's a lot more to a New years Eve show than what and how they played...It's also laughable that people judge the show based on the setlist...I honestly couldn't have told you one song they played last night besides Steam and Disease because it didn't matter..

[Caravan2001]

and it was great to finally meet redrum and mbird.  We were holding down the floor.  Anyway, sorry to be grumpy, I'm hungover like a mother!

[mattstick]

I watched the show, it was pretty sub-par for what I expect from Phish and even below a standard of what they've played this year.

Part of reading the setlist and judging the show is looking for flow, sorely lacking in Phish these days.

I've had fun at almost every concert I've ever attended, I just hold Phish up to a higher standard than "I had fun".  For as much as you had, you'll probably listen to this show start-to-finish one more time in your entire life, and once the "fun buzz" has worn off and you go to listen to Phish you won't pick this show.

I used to be there with you... it doesn't matter what they play, it's about the energy and the emotions, etc... but I've changed and become more critical because the band isn't progressing or getting better.

Personally, I wouldn't call it a good thing that you can't remember what they played.

[mehead]

So if we're honest about what we thought after watching the show last night we're "laughable"?

I can be critical of the show without bashing those who were there, it would be nice if you could enjoy the show without looking down on those who didn't dig it.

[mehead]

So if we're honest about what we thought after watching the show last night we're "laughable"?

I can be critical of the show without bashing those who were there, it would be nice if you could enjoy the show without looking down on those who didn't dig it.

I have my opinion....you have yours....I'm giving you my perspective from what   I experienced at the show.  You can bash the show all you want, it's not changing my experience..What's laughable is that every time they play a show everyone who wasn't there says what a shitty show it was when they're not really in a position to judge the show.  You can certainly judge the music, good or bad, from what you saw on the stream or heard on the download, but you can't judge the show if you weren't there.  There's a lot more to a New years Eve show than what and how they played...It's also laughable that people judge the show based on the setlist...I honestly couldn't have told you one song they played last night besides Steam and Disease because it didn't matter..

flip it around bro...much easier to fluff a show when you're there...also, based on these comments, your excitement from this show is coming from your experience, which is fine...just as you say, there is more to it than just what they played and how they played...that's why I go to shows but that's just me...you can remember 2 songs? 

[blatboom]

was that a dig at LCD Soundsystem up there?

[Augustus]

Musically, the show was weak and predictable.
Glad you guys had fun, tho.

[whatapiper]

the LST was quite optimistic in the beginning of that show last night, especially me.   I thought playing was quite solid in the first set despite the lackluster set list.   

Party Time opener was fun and predictable and led to my show highlight, the Light > Golden Age.   Playing was still solid imo and continued into Theme.  Where this show fell off the deep end for me was the mid 2nd set Heavy Things followed by an 8 minute Ghost.   Everyone was ready for this jam to go big, instead we saw them rush to the finish line with an extremely mild Sally slammed into 46 Days and then a raging as always Suzy(thanks Page)

Set 3 started off interestingly with Cavern, usually a closer of some kind.  The energy was high and so was ours at home.  Steam inspired some laughs because of August's 4pm call for a Bag opener and Steam Gag.   Despite that Steam sounded really cool leading up to the balloons dropping, watching Trey and Mike run around the stage was something.   I'm sure the folks dancing above translated better in the live experience.   DWD was quite predictable as well, but that has never stopped us from loving it, the jam was nice and right when it found a real groove to continue forth into the new year oblivion, Trey shut the ship down for a fizzle and continued into The Wedge.  Then things took a strange turn with Alaska and Velvet Sea, remember those mantras we always hear throughout our lives?   "Timing is everything" and "location location location."   First tube was through the roof energy I'm sure and who doesn't love a Slave encore.   

Just calling it how it is, some people paid to see it at MSG, I paid $20 to watch from home, that is what? $2.50 more than what people paid to see that 12/31/91 show.   My opinion is valid along with anyone else who listened in real time or since then.   We wanted the show to be THE TITS but it just wasn't in most of our opinions. 

If BlueBall RawkRipcord makes you happy then pay up.  I still love this band but I'm happy at the moment paying to watch and be critical from home or my local shows.

[Caravan2001]

Personally, I wouldn't call it a good thing that you can't remember what they played.

I am paying the price this morning.

[phil]

I'm not sure what to say about last night's show. It was So Much FUN! but I'm not sure that that's a reason to write the whole show off even though the song selection was whack. The energy in the room was pretty serious, and I feel like Phish didn't capitalize on it like they should have. That said, they did some really good things that will be overlooked and they did some so-so things that people will rave about because of how fun it was. Either way, if you look for positives, you'll find positives, and if you're looking for things to hate, you'll find more than enough of that too.


There's no real way to be objective about this because it's just going to come down to people who were there vs people who weren't like always. I thought last night was a solid show, nothing to write home about but definitely one with some songs I'll revisit.

[whatapiper]

With a paid live simulcast, the rules of review have changed imo