Saturday Night Special: Phish Keeps It ‘Simple’ At Hampton Coliseum

Phish continued their sold-out run at Hampton Coliseum last night with a Saturday Night Special for the ages – lighter on the jamming than Friday’s show but heavy on memorable moments and insane energy.

Opening a show for just the second time ever (the other being January 15, 2017), “Boogie On Reggae Woman” set the tone for what would be a show with bassist Mike Gordon at the forefront, his punchy funk basslines riling up the packed arena from the first seconds.

A healthy dose of funk is always a great way to kick off the show, and the band stretched their legs on it ever so slightly, guitarist Trey Anastasio peppering the groove with some subtle delay before driving through a quick and relatively small peak.

“Undermind” was tapped next, the always-reliable first-set vehicle offering a strong Page McConnell organ solo before a nice “Bouncing Around The Room.”

Things dipped into open jamming for the first time with “Birds Of A Feather,” quickly amping up the energy with its signature fast-paced tempo. Anastasio quickly began to weave a melodic tapestry, interacting beautifully with McConnell’s fluid piano as the duo very quickly began to toy with a major modulation and departure from the song’s Type I space.

Not getting there just yet, a fantastic in-between zone was reached with a constant musical conversation happening between piano and guitar, drummer Jon Fishman adding in lightning-fast fills in between the riffs. Finally achieving that major-key shift that they had been hinting at, Anastasio threw in a cool variation on the main “BOAF” riff while remaining in the higher key, beginning to build a glorious peak atop the continued sparkling piano from McConnell.

The first “Esther” since last year was executed with near-perfect precision before a romp through “Funky Bitch” continued the strong flow of the first set with another round of great solos from McConnell and Anastasio.

“It’s Ice” was up next and resulted in some messy play in the composed section, though the band muscled through well before moving into the improvisational highlight of the opening frame in “Ether Edge.” This song has really come into its own this year with big standout versions at the Hollywood Bowl in April and Forest Hills in July, and last night’s is another worthy entry into this song’s development with a distinct, airy and flowing vibe. Anastasio smoothly worked some melodic territory to kick it off, Fish gradually increasing the pace and momentum of the jam behind him.

Building from there, the band hit a modulation and took off atop some subtle synth work from McConnell, whose continued piano play acted as beautiful support for Anastasio’s leads. Breezing through a clean peak, the band dropped back into “Ether Edge” to wrap things up before Anastasio absolutely lit the arena on FIRE during the set-closing “Moonage Daydream,” the David Bowie classic bringing the house down to lead into the break.

The second set began with “Everything’s Right,” many attendees taking the opportunity to engage in a bright sing-along before delving into open jam territory. Fish and Gordon laid down a steady bedrock of funk as Anastasio peppered in some delay, McConnell taking to bouncy Wurlitzer as a start.

Opening up from there, the band toyed with some airy themes before Anastasio settled into a minor key, pushing the improv in a darker direction for a minute before picking up a suggested cue from McConnell and moving into a new key. The jam picked up a little bit of steam from there, the laid-back vibe continuing through a small peak before Anastasio found himself in the opening riff to “Simple,” steadily dropping a beautiful segue into what would become the highlight of the night.

Taking the dreamy “Simple” jam as a launchpad, Anastasio picked out some smooth melodies before the band drifted as one into open territory. McConnell turned to his Rhodes and Yamaha CS60 for a dense foundation of sounds, Fish briefly toying with half-time for a cool effect before continuing his own fluid play.

Anastasio pushed for a major modulation from there, the unique conversational nature of the jam continuing between him and McConnell, with the latter’s combined use of electric piano and synth adding some really amazing layers. Gordon threw in some minor variations as the jam shifted down into a darker tone, Anastasio augmenting his tone and taking things into growly territory.

Setting their sights on a peak from there, Phish spent several minutes on a drive to a phenomenal apex, Anastasio utilizing some blasts of crystal-clear sustain courtesy of his new Dumble amp to really hammer it home alongside some dive-bomb delay effects. There’s nothing like a full arena of people absolutely locking in on the peak of a jam, and the moment was absolutely phenomenal before Anastasio pulled the band smoothly into “A Wave Of Hope” as the improv began to die away.

Riding the wave of momentum, Fish pushed into a fast-paced space almost immediately, Anastasio sticking to some clean rhythm as McConnell employed chunky organ. Downshifting into a more mellow zone from there, Anastasio continued his confidently quick-riffing leadership, McConnell contrasting with steady and chordal Moog One.

Fish’s speedy drum fills elevated the music before Anastasio stumbled back into the “Simple” riff, leading to a cool minute of variations on that distinctive melody as the band eventually dropped away into “Beneath A Sea Of Stars Part 1.”

Gorgeous cooldown aside, the dreamy soundscape created by this song is always an incredible part of a second set, and lighting director Chris Kuroda’s call to completely shut off the massive rig for a minute of full tranquility was fantastic. Phish wasn’t content to just improvise in this zone, however, as they gave us the full weird space-crazed jazzy treatment with a foray into totally experimental territory.

With effects galore, each of the four members went wild around each other, the sonic landscape seeming to stretch on forever as the weird tones just got deeper and deeper. Just when it seemed like the chaos was absolute and all-encompassing, Anastasio offered a lifeline in the form of “Gotta Jibboo,” the song emerging from the haze for an absolutely perfect late-set choice.

“Suzy Greenberg” and “Julius” wrapped up the second frame with an all-out party vibe before Anastasio tore through a double dose of fretboard fireworks in the encore between “Izabella” and “Possum.”

Phish wraps up their weekend at the Mothership with the final show of the 2025 Late Summer Tour tonight (or first show of the official fall season, depending on how you see it), and it’s sure to be a special one. Tune in from home via LivePhish.

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