Long-winded in-person review coming... now!

Awed and Grinning in Sin City

This will primarily be about the experience, and a few rando tips rather than the music itself. Dot net does a better job at that than I would anyway!

At 6.15pm, my two show-pals and I stroll through the casino floor of the Palazzo and arrive at the “holding room,” a mid-size convention/meeting space attached to the long sky bridge walkway to the Sphere. We were amidst a happy, excited and maybe even nervous crowd lined up and anxiously awaiting the doors to open, rumored to do so at approximately 6.30.

A full hour later, we’re still in a dense and getting-a-bit-warm line on the skybridge, but we can see the ticket/security checkpoint ahead. I’m not sure what other entrances are available to get in, but this one? It sucked hot ass. First tip - put your tickets in your mobile wallet and tap. Every person who tried to scan the digital barcode option on ticketmaster stood there, frustratingly trying to properly line up their phone. And not like rando olds who don’t know how to do it - this line is full of concert vets.

Once finally inside, we find ourselves in the cool blue interior of the Sphere. Meditative ambient music plays, and the deep blue is punctuated with red donut-like circular design elements that were hard not to smile at. We had a good 30-40m before the band hit the stage, but eagerly went to check out our surprisingly comfy 100-level seats.

Walking in alone is almost overwhelming. An epically massive, seamless screen slowly changes hue, dancing around the color wheel. A small, tight, unlit stage sits in the center, flanked by six black pillars of standard stage lights. And it was almost all the way to quiet! People were talking, but their conversation doesn’t carry the way it does in most arenas.

Our seats are a few rows under the overhang, bringing us to tip 2 - if you can be choosy about your seat, it looked to me like the 200s and up, or at least not under the overhang, are the place to be. GA is right in front of the stage (duh) but there’s no way you can take that joint in from there. The lower level 100s certainly had a baller view, but your head will be on a swivel. We walked around a bit in awe, like most people were doing, until settling in our seats. I couldn’t help but take pics even of the solid color wall and empty stage, it was just that impressive.

The screen turns to a dull blue, and several roars went up from the crowd, bringing us to our feet. The third roar was the real one. No dramatic light drop, just our four un-caped heroes walking out on stage from the back steps. The energy and anticipation was as thick as the fog Scooby and Shaggy used to cut donuts out of. Gigantic columns of animated pillars rise up from all sides of the screen we’re off with, of course, “Everything’s Right.” It sure as shit was. Tip 2.5 - if you’re even a few rows under the overhang on level 100, you’re not seeing between 1/3rd and half of the screen and ceiling of the sphere. It’s still fuuuuuucking impressive.

The columns morphed, moved, receded and grew, slowly turning, and seeming like they were reflecting the actual lights on the stage. Soon enough you’re looking at visuals rather than the band. They move and morph slow, as did all visual graphics throughout the night. I would guess this is purposeful. Moving any faster and you’re probably gonna get sea sick. Tip 3 - if you focus on the band while the massive peripherals are moving, it actually does give you a sense that you’re moving too. Kinda weird, but there’s no horizon to focus on so it makes sense. When I felt it, I’d look back at the visuals and the room stopped feeling like it was moving with or without me.

The visuals are tranquil and a little trippy overall. It was a mix of animation and some layered photography. The landscape photos didn’t work as well for me, but idk what kind of crazy-ass resolution you’d have to have on an image to make it work up there. The entire first set felt pretty chill, like the band was vibing off the imagery the same way we were.

We get a mid-set Maze, and I find my first real complaint with the venue. There are speakers everywhere. Apparently also haptic chairs, but my ass didn’t sit in it to find out if it was also on the vibe. The audio is called “immersive sound,” which probably has to do with the unique shape of the venue, but I started to notice that some instruments were panned to different speakers, and it changed throughout the night. Sometimes it was drum/bass heavy, other times overwhelmingly Page with little mix of anyone else. During the Maze solo, where Page and Trey exchange licks, Trey’s audio completely disappears. I can see him shredding, but not hear a note. Only Page and Fish. The audio quality has crazy clairty and crispiness, but this mix… thing/issue… happens several times throughout the night. The worst offender was Antelope. I’d go so far as to say this mix thing nearly ruined the best part of the jam. And as we walked out, I heard others who sat in different sections say the same thing.

Weird mix aside, that place feels like it was built for Phish. The visuals danced in time with the jams, augmenting in ways we’ve never seen before. I’m a vet of 150 shows, and left slack-jawed at the experience. The sheer joy of seeing the barn on the screen during Farmhouse, where it felt like Phish was playing in it’s front yard. The undulating orbs during Sand, the live visuals of band members falling to pieces and cascading around the screen, the trippy morphing shapes, color bars, kaleidoscopic images, and even the (IMO a lil lame) shape-changing cars during Tweezer were just flat out awesome. I really try not to whip out my phone during shows, but I was constantly trying to capture it to send to friends who didn’t get as lucky with tickets. It was like every song brought a “what are they gonna do now” feeling which we're used to with the music, but now also with the marriage to the screen.

No one knew what this was going to be last night, and now we all have at least an idea. I think the next run here, and maybe even by Sunday on this run, they’re going to have way more things ironed out, and I can’t even guess at how many ideas will spring up for animations and screen experiences for future shows.

All things considered, even with my somewhat limited view, I’d call this an A to A+ experience. If this is your band, this venue experience should go on the bucket list in my opinion.

Visuals: A
Sound quality: A to A+ Crisp, clear and the right volume most of the time.
Feeling when you’re in there: A+ It’s like a comfy high-tech wrap-around Hampton on designer drugs
Excitement for each song: A+ musically and visually
Comfort / space around us: B+, seats aren’t too close. They’re actually made for American-sized asses, and we had enough space to still dance a lil.
Audio Mix: Can’t go higher than a C, which is a damn shame given the clarity and quality. Maze, Mike’s and Lope all had significant panning audio issues often at the worst/peakiest moments.
Ticketing/Security/Entry: F- They can and have to do better, it was dogshit. Hand-scanners alone would have helped. Even the car line at Magnaball was less painful.
Exit: B+, seemed like more ways out than in, and despite being in the herd, it was way better than leaving a venue like MSG.
Gambling and cavorting in Vegas with exited phans after: Come on. Easy A.

Good luck to all trying to find a ticket, and a hearty high-five to everyone who is going.

Well everybody, think we have to add this shows 2nd set to the list of all time psychedelic masterpieces! Never mind that screen action!! Pretty much perfect 2nd set! No filler. Even Fluffhead was dripping. When your slow down song is a jammed out Lifeboy....damn! Paug was not too blazing....but blaze was! Even half the 1st set was magic dosing music. That Life Saving Gun! And I was even straight....but you can just tell!! Congrats to everyone in there tonight that took Shrooms or LSD.

I am not sure I am currently able to judge the music of this one seeing that all of my senses were blown last night, but I'll give it a go.

First off, and this is not meant to be pretentious, but it is hard to separate the music from the spectacle of the accompanying light show in the Sphere for those who were in attendance. The two were intertwined, and it definitely enhanced the experience, and thus the show, above the music alone. There seemed to be a few kinks that were being worked out early on with the sound, which was generally excellent. I am speculating a bit, but I think that the light show for each song needed time to load. This is why, particularly for set 1, there were deliberate pauses between songs (or why when quick song transitions were made, there was a delay of 15-30 seconds before the lights came on). I also suspect that they did not pick all of the songs in advance to match the display, save for Farmhouse, Leaves, and the Mike's Song>Lifeboy>Weekapaug medley. I am guessing they did this so they could balance their desire for improvisation with the need to provide some accompanying thrills, and it generally paid off. I loved the show for Maze the best, and there were many other standout visual experiences, while Tweezer's moving cars seemed out of place (and reinforced the possibility that the visual loops for some songs were not planned in advance). Overall, it was mesmerizing, captivating, and exactly what I had hoped for.

Just over 3h30 min were played, with 2 monster sets where they dared to add on classics like Carini and Fluffhead as set closers. Many songs seemed to go type II (but maybe the lights were playing tricks on me).

Set 1:
Everything's Right took a bit to get going (perhaps some sound challenges), but was a nice jam.
Back on the Train was really nicely done and had some nice bass and key interplay - Mike came ready to play out of the gate.
Wolfman's Brother was a nice turning point about halfway in where they were getting grungy and experimental and I thought they were looking for a way out, but then they pressed on and found new life for another solid stretch.
Following this was a strong and upbeat version of Maze, really enhanced by the filtered images of the fab 4 breaking apart and pulsating along.
Leaves was pretty and had a blissful jam, definitely worth a listen. The lanterns and visuals were brilliant.
Life Saving Gun was great, and I can see why this is turning into a jam vehicle for the group, quite different and more uptempo than the album version. The moving TVs featuring the band members made for a really cool optical illusion from our end, looking like they were floating
Dirt is a personal fave, very well played. Carini short but sweet.

Set 2:
Sand and Tweezer were a rocking 1-2 punch. The visuals for Sand were stunning, while Tweezer's were a bit distracting for me. Some experimental work, loops, interplay above standard major chord jamming, with lots of peaks and troughs. Crazy that we still were treated to another hour of great music afterwards.
My Friend, My Friend was high energy and had a nice jam
Loved the Mike's Song>Lifeboy detour. Timed the Mike's Song>Lifeboy perfectly as you arrived at the sculpture with a change to nighttime outdoors coinciding with the switch (the only time they seemed to engineer/sync up a song change, likely because it was happening within the same video segment). Weekapaug was a bit anticlimactic with the visual just moving backwards, but I really appreciated what they did with the Mike's Lifeboy Groove as a whole, mixing some improvisation with the show.
Blaze On standard fare, ending with a high energy and well executed Fluffhead.

Encore:
Farmhouse was sweet with the acoustic touch and a Farmhouse with northern lights that made us all yearn to be there, and a lovely Antelope where they managed to build the suspense as we moved through the pixels and lines on the screen.

We are all super privileged to be here, and I really appreciated the extra time they gave the fans. Can't wait to see what night 2 brings!

Jam worthy songs: Everything's Right, Wolfman, Life Saving Gun, Sand, Tweezer, Lifeboy
Special mention: Leaves, My Friend, My Friend, Fluffhead, Antelope

PHISH, THURSDAY 04/18/2024
SPHERE
Las Vegas, NV

SET 1:

Everything's Right: Formulaic major mode bliss jam to kick off the run. Very peaky.

Back on the Train: Trey holding notes and subsequently trilling whilst Page bangs on the baby grand is a lot of fun. Fun Train.

Wolfman's Brother: Nice and peaky, very fun Wolfman’s!

Maze: Standard.

Leaves: Has a bit of whale to it. Barely enough to distract.

Life Saving Gun: Kind of sounds like a DWD jam in the early going. Very fast, fun, and upbeat. They are going like mad. It stays in that vein through the mid 12’s when things take a turn for the semi funky and plenty of cool effects from Page. Would recommend, very fun jam – totally danceable the whole way through.

Dirt: Standard.

Carini: Standard.

SET 2:

Sand: Competent jam with good length and danceable enough for sure. They keep things at a nice even pace, and I felt like Page played the baby grand very well in a complimentary role to Trey. Nice Sand for sure. Good way to set the set. >

Tweezer: A bit too upbeat for my tastes. But objectively listening to this, it’s a good jam. Trey really picks through that solo in the 18’s and into the 19’s – dude can still play the crap out of that guitar. The last five minutes get super weird and a bit dark, very nice turn of events here. Definitely has some old school, Tweezer wind down elements in it – pretty cool. Would recommend. ->

My Friend, My Friend: Nasty, dark, evil and absolutely in your face. Would recommend. Trey in full shred mode! >

Mike's Song: Solid! Ripped it pretty well. >

Lifeboy: Gorgeous, relatively fresh take on this classic. Huge fan would highly recommend!

Weekapaug Groove: Standard.

Blaze On: Standard. >

Fluffhead: Trey gets lost in the early 5’s. Pretty epic flubbing.

ENCORE:

Farmhouse[1] Cool with Trey on acoustic to start and end. Neat.

Run Like an Antelope: Standard.

Summary: Very good show. 4/5. Review is purely based on the music, not on the visuals.

Replay Value: Life Saving Gun, Tweezer, My Friend, My Friend, Lifeboy

[1] Began and ended with Trey on acoustic guitar.

The band took the stage while the pre-show electronic music continued. During Back on the Train, psychedelic images of passing countryside were displayed behind and above the band, rotating in opposite directions in different sections of the dome. During Maze, psychedelic live images of each band member appeared, stacked on top of each other. These images then fragmented and spread out, dancing and turning throughout the jam. During Leaves, several giant paper lanterns appeared, flanking the stage, while the dome showed a multitude of paper lanterns floating over water, with the moon shining above. During Life Saving Gun, the dome displayed stacks of old-style televisions with rabbit ears, with each television showing a live shot of one of the band members. These TVs moved and rotated as the jam progressed. After the song, Trey said that he "loves any song with a Jon Fishman percussion rinse," and told the crowd they should see the Sphere from the stage. During Dirt, the dome showed a forest view, looking upwards through trees at a purple-hued sky. During Tweezer, a field of multi-colored cars appeared behind the band, changing in size and shape and with their headlights blinking on and off in patterns, while other cars drove past overhead. My Friend, My Friend included live spotlight silhouettes of the band members projected across the entire dome. The projections during Mike's Song made it seem as if the venue was outdoors, with the band playing in front of a body of water with a rotating sculpture on the far shore. During Lifeboy, the sun went down, and a number of other rotating sculptures lit up in the sky, creating a golden star-scape. The sun then rose again during Weekapaug. Farmhouse began and ended with Trey on acoustic guitar, as well as images of a farmhouse in a field under a night sky filled with stars and aurorae.

One more fun fact for the Phish kids…

Approx 20 years ago to the day, phish played Vegas and Trey was at his all time worst. His voice was shot and he misses several notes/changes in quite a few songs. Not his best 3 nights. In fact, the 04/17/04 Vegas show would be the last played before Trey posted his breakup letter 05/25/04.

Phish 2004 Breakup Letter

Compare last night’s Lifeboy to the one from 20 years ago….

Phish Lifeboy 04/16/2004. Las Vegas

The tweezer jam mellow was my favorite of N1 but I was not there for the visuals
I think I know what the themes are but I am not certain. I think N1 is landscapes nature scenes or just flat earth and n2 is obviously water but n3 is either Fire on the Mountains or perhaps just Fire or maybe mountains and valleys and N4 is of course now still a total guess but if n3 was actually atmosphere or AIR and n1 covered all types of land then N4 cannot be air but then would either be Outer Space Aliens or maybe People or Animals again but they already did that and already did the Fire Earth Wind Water show of elements second set so who knows. Any guesses guys?

Looks cool! I noticed there were no amps on stage tonight, so the sound must be different inside the sphere than a normal show - from both the audience and the band's perspective (I just heard from a friend it's little akward... although I'm not physically there to hear for myself, I do trust his opinion). However, it does sound amazingly great at home tonight, as it's mixed down to stereo the same way a normal show would be.

I know it must be a little different in that room tonight. To me, it does appear as if they can hear each other more clearly without stage amps, sounds and other stage noises bleeding through the various mics and such. Tonight, the stage-sound wasn’t exactly on stage to be amplified at all. This means the central source of sound (stage-sound) wasn’t present for the audience, the band, or microphones on stage to pick up sound bleed. This factor will ultimately change the sound altogether and you will only hear a stereo mix through the PA system or in ear monitor headphones.

If the source stage-sound is not present, it would sound very different than a band with amps on stage all playing together in one place as a single unit/source of sound, which is then amplified, mixed, and fed into a PA system.

Normally, the stage-sound itself is amplified to be heard from greater distances (louder)- but the sound is still originating from the stage itself, and you will hear a combination of both stage-sound and the PA amplified signal together.

Tonight however, the stage-sound was elsewhere and the amplified signals were sent back to the PA speakers/band as a mix - kind of like a studio setup.

As a live playing musician, I personally always rely on my stage sound before anything sent back to me in a mixed form. I can't imagine what it's like to play only hearing mic'ed amps through in ear speakers but not behind me... it's almost as if they are in a studio session tonight... kinda sorta in a way....