Phish Summer Tour 2019: Alpine Valley Night 1 – Setlist, Recap & The Skinny

There are certain songs that Phish can open up a show with that tell you pretty much right off the bat that the band is not messing around and that you are likely about to see a heater of a show. “Sand” is one of those songs. So, as soon as the quartet took the stage in the hot and heavy air of the pavilion at Alpine Valley in East Troy, Wisconsin last night and dropped into that familiar bass line, memories of another “Sand”-opening show came to mind and suddenly, the potential for another Randall’s “Chalk Dust Torture” > “Light” > “Tweezer” seemed ripe with possibility.

The group took the tune for a walk, providing some nice peaks before wasting no time and dropping into fan-favorite, the gnarly dance-party-starter, “Tweezer.” Still in broad daylight, fans threw down to this funky number before the jam got beautiful and blissful, creating space to let the music breathe for a bit before returning to the darker, dirtier side. And from that grit, effortlessly and triumphantly, “Free” emerged, keeping the energy level in the pavilion at a record high as the dance party raged on.

More dancing was about to happen, but this time on stage, as Kasvot Växt’s catchy ditty “Turtle In The Clouds” came next, showcasing guitarist Trey Anastasio and bassist Mike Gordon‘s coordinated choreography for a silly little interlude before the band got serious again for a ripping version of the always fiery “Set Your Soul Free.” Realizing perhaps that this was, in fact, still the first set and that Phish shows are a marathon not a sprint, the four decided on a little breather next, with keyboardist Page McConnell emerging from behind the boards to treat the crowd to the loungey “Lawn Boy” before the band continued to roll with the funk as they moved on to the hip-shaking, sultry grooves of “Camel Walk.” Another cool down moment followed, as “Theme From The Bottom” gave folks a bit of a chance to catch their breath before speeding things right back up again with “Rift.” McConnell shined on his solo, with Anastasio providing a commendable effort on his, if falling a little short. Finally, the cherry on top of this funk-heavy sundae of a first set was “Wolfman’s Brother,” letting the crowd throw down and get funky one more time and even peppering in a few solid peaks before a much needed setbreak.

Set two kicked off with “No Men In No Man’s Land” which wasted no time getting dark and intense before an epic, soaring liftoff which gave way to a “Manteca”-like groove before settling into “Prince Caspian.” This once-dreaded composition has earned its stripes amongst fans, promising some serious shredding before its close, which is exactly what this version provided for a solid five minutes before moving onto “Everything’s Right.” Evolving immediately into a dark, bass-led jam, the band comfortably explored this space for seven more minutes before nonchalantly delivering 2019’s debut of Ween cover, “Roses Are Free.”

The crowd’s energy was already feverish at this point which Phish saw and ran with, dropping into the Jon Fishman-driven, space funk dance party that is “Also Sprach Zarathustra.” Out of this epic peak came a bit of a breather with “The Wedge” which actually provided somewhat of an extended outro jam to maintain the built up energy before perhaps the highlight of the second set, “Light” > “Plasma” > “Light.” While the jam out of “Light” seems short, it led so seamlessly into “Plasma” that it felt like the two were made for each other. “Plasma” explored some interesting space before Trey brought it back around to finish off “Light” in a triumphant manner. The subsequent “46 Days” packed a mean punch, as the tune is wont to do, and surprisingly did not close the set, as “The Squirming Coil” came next and gave McConnell the spotlight to end things in style.

Returning to the stage to cacophonous applause, Ghosts Of The Forest tune “A Life Beyond The Dream” opened up the encore, offering up some tenderness to an otherwise aggressively in-your-face evening of music. Then, returning to the theme of the evening, “Tube” brought the funk one last time, letting folks get down before the comical a cappella arrangement of “Grind” to remind the audience that, in the 80,146 days that the members of Phish have been alive, there has certainly been some fun that has been had.

While no jams came close to the 20-minute mark, the tight and concise microjams throughout the majority of the show provided more than enough meat to create a savory treat that was thoroughly enjoyed by many of those in attendance. Ultimately, Friday night at Alpine was an A+ effort with very few (if any) lulls, setting the stage nicely to allow Phish to close out this tour in style. Phish returns to Alpine Valley on Saturday. A live stream is available via LivePhish.com.

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Roses Are Free

Everything’s Right

46 Days

Prince Caspian

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