, attached to 2018-12-30

Review by Phishcake94

Phishcake94 Ok, I was at this show, section 101 I believe. Not bad seats, actually perfect as far as sight lines go. I was out partying pretty hard the previous 3 nights so by the time I dragged myself up to the city, I was pretty exhausted. Still, the show was all around incredible, as almost everyone has agreed. I do wish I had been more well rested, because it definitely took away from the show at the time, but I've listened back to the complete show numerous times and I think it's going to hold up for a very long time.

The first set just breathes creativity, in terms of song choice, set list structure & jams. This is actually the second Alumni I got this year. I believe they opened with it the first night in Camden over the summer, but I could be wrong. The Mike's was typical, I'm a bit surprised to see it on the jam chart. Not that it isn't a solid version, but not many Mike's break the typical song structure much anymore. Glide II was fun. It's cool that even at this point in their history, they can still bust out songs written decades ago that surprise everybody. The 'Paug was great stuff as well. It's always welcome to see that one go longer than 7-8 minutes. The Xeyed wasn't anything special outside of where it appeared in the show. I didn't recognize Bliss at first, but once it hit the main hook I remembered listening to it from Trey's recent solo show. The Tube was equally as fun as the rest of the set. I'll take Tube whether it's spacey or funky. The segue back into Weekapaug set the building on fire!!

Overall, probably the best first set I've ever seen in person!

CA&M is a tune I like in this spot. It gets everyone moving again after set break. Nothing stand out here, but I am a big fan of the Kasvot stuff and was glad to see it get a lot of love over the run, from band and fans. This Everything's Right on the other hand, might be one of my favorite jams of all time! There's just tons of direction in everyone's playing right out the gate. I'm not going to go into great detail about the jam, but its 100% must listen to material. The last 5 minutes or so remind me so much of the Coventry soundcheck jam. The end of both of these jams remind me of watching a sunset, both are just so melancholy & relaxed. I really can't praise it enough!!

Plasma is the next great jam in a set literally filled with them. I dig these low-key groove jams. Mike has some really good runs here, as noted on the jam chart. They really do so much in only 10 minutes. The jam could have gone on for another 10 minutes and I'd have been happy. Light is another 20+ minute jam & there's a lot to dig into. This is another one you really have to hear for yourself.

Always love me some Wading & we get a Split to end probably the best set of the year (though I know that's up for debate). This has probably been the best year for Split in a long time, definitely in 3.0. They take this one to deep space with ease. Just when you think there's no way they can pull this one back in, Trey does just that. I really love the evolution of this song & the fact that they still find new inspiration in some of their oldest tunes.

The 4 song encore speaks for itself, I grabbed my jacket after Wilson, Rocky Top & Cavern, thinking that each one had to be the last one. Definitely draws comparisons to 12/30/97, though a greatly different style. If only this encore had gone on for 30 minutes!


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