Phish Tour 2022: Alpine Valley Night 2 – Setlist, Recap & The Skinny

On Saturday, Phish returned to the stage at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wisconsin for the middle night of their three-show run at the fan-favorite venue. The evening may have been short on lengthy, exploratory jams it was highlighted by the return of a Prince classic and a number of expertly executed, multi-section songs and beautiful well-paced jams.

With the stage bathed in purple light, the synth-y sounds of Prince’s “1999” got the night going with guitarist Trey Anastasio, keyboardist Page McConnell and bassist Mike Gordon sharing vocals. The fourth ever take on the title track off of Prince’s 1982 album was dusted off for the first time since 2021, a span of 40 shows, and last opened up a show appropriately all the way back on New Year’s Eve in 1998.

Out of the gate, the party anthem saw Anastasio drop his first solo of the evening as the rest of the band stayed within the boundaries of the classic 1980s bouncy funk hit. Without a pause, the foursome dropped right into their beloved classic “Fluffhead.” The old-school workhorse was delivered with aplomb as the band impeccably worked their way through each section. As the tune wound down, Anastasio trigged a delay loop with a noticeably large grin on his face with the rest of the band following into a spacey jam.

The guitarist took charge, with McConnell utilizing all the keyboards at his disposal as things turned dark and gooey as it segued into “Saw It Again.” The semi-rarity with its dark, plotting pace gave Trey another opportunity to dig in as they landed on something akin to a Parliament freak-out. “Leaves” helped brighten things up, as the mid-tempo tune melted into a steady yet blissful group-think jam that worked itself straight into “Back On The Train.” Anchored by drummer Jon Fishman‘s steady train beat Anastasio once again leaned in slowly building the energy level up to a peak. “Taste” continued the trend of slow builds with Trey calling back to “1999” during the song’s jam.

Next, Fishman moved over to his marimba lumina to single the start of “Petrichor.” The knotty, multi-part Big Boat composition got taken off the shelf for the first time in 81 shows and played for just the thirteenth time since its debut in 2016. The rain-referencing lyrics elicited a huge cheer as the sky opened up a bit during the tune as well as earlier in the day. Phish looked to “The Squirming Coil” to close out their opening stanza as per tradition as the song wound down the stage was ceded to McConnell to unfurl a gorgeous piano solo on his baby grand.

Read on after The Skinny for the rest of the recap and more.

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The second set opened up with “Backwards Down The Number Line,” marking the first time it had occupied that slot since 2013. A quick jaunt through the peppy, nostalgia number bled into the frame’s first foray into extended improv. Patient yet pretty jamming followed with Trey asserting himself a bit more with wah tones while never pushing too deep. As things started to become a bit more spacey Mike plucked the heavy bass notes signaling the start of “Maze.” The always-welcomed Rift track provided a dose of manic, psychedelic energy with fiery fretwork from Antassio throughout.

The band looked to Trey’s solo catalog next, dropping straight into “Mr. Completely,” for its the fourteenth ever Phish version. The Vermont-born band locked in immediately exploring interstellar soundscapes as Trey applied a dark, fuzzy tone before switching gears to a more rock-oriented territory. The nearly 15-minute take also featured Anstastio teasing Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” within it. “Roggae” occupied the ballad slot, with the outro featuring another patient, crescendo-building jam anchored by some stellar guitar work.

Phish once again looked to Anastasio’s work outside the band for a straight-ahead take on Ghost Of The Forrest’s brooding rocker “About To Run.” “Waves” followed as the Round Room track drifted into another steady, mellow jam before Trey called out for “Undermind” to close out the second set. The tongue-twisting, reggae-inflected number found the foursome playing with dub sounds and wah tones ahead of Trey unleashing one last blast of blistering guitar notes. Fishman had some fun triggering some sound effects to help conclude the song with Trey quickly and comically introducing the band and expressing his love for the venue.

“Blaze On” was tapped for the encore with the jovial, reflective song giving the band one more opportunity to stretch the legs this time with some high energy. Phish close out their three-show run at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin on Sunday night. Watch a livestream via LivePhish.com.

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