The thought of Phish playing in the secluded city of Asheville, North Carolina brings about vibrations of unrepressed joy for me. For Asheville is a beacon of light in a state that has drowned itself with socially unconscious laws and norms, for this was also the first time that Phish would descend upon this wonderful city, and in fitting fashion, Phish delivered what was expected of Asheville. The Civic Center (also known as Thomas Wolfe Auditorium) holds a mere 7,400 people, which for most rock bands falls within the par of playing arenas. However, Phish falls within the elite group of bands that can fill stadiums and fields without hesitation. So for them to choose a smaller arena like Asheville, meant that they were attempting to give back to the fans. Instantly the demand for tickets was out of control, and proved to be a fine example of how the age of technology has enhanced scalping techniques, and hindered the casual fan.

I arrived from Atlanta, and found myself within what almost amounted to a mirage of entropy. It seemed surreal to see my favorite city so overcrowded, and yet so jovial too. The euphoria was more widespread than the warm mountain air that afternoon. Vendors were dispersed throughout the town, as a central shakedown street was somewhat void, so fans made due with these constraints. Per usual, the Asheville police did a wonderful job of realizing the modus operandi of jam band fans, and left them to their own devices (for the most part).

The vibe entering the arena can only be compared to that of any special Phish show, the few were beyond ecstatic about seeing the boys in the glorious Civic Center. We staked out a rail Page side, and began to wait for the lights to go down. The usual pre show banter was abundant, what song would open the show, could they bust this out, etc. I’ll admit the opening choice of “Kill Devil Falls” garnished a mixed reaction from the crowd. It was quite palpable who had been around and who was just showing up to the Rodeo. That being said, once the band got to the jam portion of the song, the crowd locked in with the band, and we were off for the night. “Moma Dance” was funked out and had some brief moments that brought me back to the funk days of the band. Then what I perceive to be the first bad choice in set placement of the night, “Sample in a Jar” was next, and I feel it somewhat deterred us from what I hoped would be a show packed with improvisation. “Stash” followed and it was solid, and did contain a couple of dark moments during the jam. What followed next could only happen at a Phish show.

Trey explained how three songs were concocted via Fishman’s diary, and proceeded to play the songs in subsequent order. Those tunes being “Dog Faced Boy”, “Gumbo”, and “Tube”, and yes, the “Tube” was quite funky (better than the Camden version in my humble opinion). We then got another bust out in “Lengthwise”, which was a real treat for me. The band then launched into a fan favorite: “The Divided Sky”, which was nearly flawless and put the Hampton version to shame, and then the second error in setlist placement took place, we got “When the Cactus is in Bloom”, which was a piss break for me. Finally, a classic Hendrix bust out to close the set. “Bold As Love” was well received and well played.

Set two was an entirely different story, and once again, the band perplexed members of the audience by opening the set with “Backwards Down The Number Line”, another new tune that was also well received by the crowd. Finally the highlight of the show happened next, the boys played a deeply psychedelic “Ghost” which was a throw back to that ’99 style of jamming at times, but it also was full of that 3.0 sound (and oddly enough lacked the usual abundance of what I have dubbed the “whale call” effect by Trey). This “Ghost” had the crowd simply raging, and it had a nice and spacey segue into “Fast Enough For You”. What a wonderful tandem in my opinion, and well placed too. “Halley’s Comet” was next and the venue exploded with energy, and had a nice little segue into “Maze”. This “Maze” had potential but it falls flat to me, the boys just couldn’t sustain the energy. They even tried to reestablish a peak with “Theme from the Bottom”, but to no avail; the set just meandered. “Golgi” and “Possum” were nice treats but in my opinion misplaced in the set, and as an encore, the “Loving Cup” was a poor choice to me.

For it being the smallest venue Phish has played in almost nine years, the overall show and setlist wasn’t what it should have been. The central problem of this incarnation of Phish is one of failing to understand Phish itself. The band doesn’t have to play their greatest and most complicated songs night in and night out to blow minds; the band needs to get back to their attitude of pushing limits and pushing the audience. For every show this tour has been a safe show, no real risks are being made, and to an extent that is fine, what we are getting is solid, fun, and well played Phish (unless you count “Harry Hood”) but that is far from the spectrum of mind melting, fuck your face Phish, and for me that is all that I desire from them.

-Sophist