Phish Finally Throws a Soul Shakedown Party amid Tour bustouts a-plenty at SPAC Tonight

Phish Finally Catches Fire at SPAC on the Third Night.

Phish started the third night with an odd opener that kind of predicted the show, "The Wedge".  One of three songs from their album, "Rift". There was also a solid rendition of "It's Ice" and some Page cheese for the olfactory hues, "Lawn Boy" but mainly, it was a well-balanced set of jams and singalongs with the first "Guelah Papyrus" of the tour joining the first "Sugar Shack", the first "Ocelot" and the first, "Scent of a Mule" for this tour. The playing on the Mule and "Possum" was smoking and left the audience ready for the second half and the glorious game of "What are they gonna play next?"

Defying even the best guess, the call was "Soul Shakedown Party" which hasn't opened a second set since ever! Then the funk got deep when "The Moma Dance" stepped up to the plate and went "type-2" and rolled into "Twist" and then the first "Joy" of the tour. Another dip into reggae for the new song, "Breath and Burning" led into the fourth quarter jam of "Axilla> Theme >Harry Hood" then they mellowed it out again with the first "Show of Life" in three years. As I'm typing this, I'm starting to realize just how many songs were played for the first time this tour tonight. Answer: quite a few, check phish.net, I stopped counting. But the jams were only really thick a couple of times but those times made the show. This was a good show for many and a great show for some. How can you not like a "Rock and Roll" encore? It was a perfect way to cap off the SPAC run this summer. We keep looking forward to more as summer tour 16' rolls on.

Written by: Greg Heffelfinger

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Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY

Soundcheck: Winterqueen (at least x2), Guelah Papyrus

Set 1: The Wedge, Heavy Things, Tube, Sugar Shack, Lawn Boy, Sparkle > Sample in a Jar, It's Ice > Guelah Papyrus, Ocelot > Scent of a Mule^[1], Possum

Set 2: Soul Shakedown Party, The Moma Dance^[2] > Twist > Joy > Breath and Burning, Axilla > Theme From the Bottom > Harry Hood > Show of Life

Encore: Rock and Roll

[1] Fish on Marimba Lumina.
[2] Unfinished.

Notes: This show was webcast via Live Phish. Scent of a Mule featured Fish on Marimba Lumina

setlist courtesy of phish.net

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