2-26-01 - State Theatre at Playhouse Square, Cleveland, Ohio

Date: Tue, 27 Feb 2001 20:22:51
From: jim vickers vickers7@hotmail.com
To: dws@gadiel.com
Subject: Trey 2-26-01 review Cleveland, Ohio State Theater
 
By Jim Vickers
vickers7@hotmail.com
http://www.vickers.8m.com
 
        This was my first Phish-related gig since December of 1998. Starting
in 1995, I caught a show or two every tour. My last was at the Cleveland State
University Convocation Center -- just a block away from Cleveland^Òs Playhouse
Square. So, once I heard Trey Anastasio was stopping in the theater district
as part of a 10-show February east coast jaunt, I had to make a point to be
there.
 
        The slight negative buzz generated after the first few shows of the
tour can mostly be attributed to people who expected to plunk down their $27
and get a Phish show. I admit I was a bit wary -- concerned that Trey and crew
may falter by getting hung up on self indulgent, go-nowhere jams that can^Òt
compare to what Phish can create. It wasn^Òt long after the first notes of The
Way I Feel starting pounding through the State Theater that my fears quickly
evaporated.
 
        Trey Anastasio, Russ Lawton and Tony Markellis are a tight core of
players, who seemed to be locked into the same groove all night. The horn
section of Dave Grippo, Jennifer Hartswick and Andy Moroz was also
unbelievably tight (although seemed to falter a bit during short, discordant
chamber music type tunes pulled out over the course of the evening). In the
end, it wasn^Òt a Phish show, it was a jazz/R&B/rock and roll jam show that
was equally appealing. Will you like it? Do you like the Jerry Garcia Band?
(dare I make the comparison?). If you do, you know it^Òs not the Grateful
Dead, but it is very good all the same. This is the same thing.
 
Here^Òs a breakdown on the highs and lows of the night as far as I^Òm
concerned:
 
SET I
 
The Way I Feel: Great opener. Set a perfect tone for the night. Nothing
spectacular other than just really tight.
 
Mozambique: Unbelievable. Thundering drums and bass and created a really
great vibe. It was during this tune that the true power of the horns started
to shine through and I realized this night was going to be a roller coaster
ride. This is the song that grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and pulled
me into the show.
 
Acting The Devil: Short, simple, obscure, cool.
 
Makes No Difference: Slowed things down with this. Great song. By The Band
originally. Trey pulls it off splendidly and makes his guitar sing
beautifully at the end.
 
First Tube: Fifth song in and the first taste of Phish influence. Not
really, since this tune was largely written on the last Trey solo tour, but
it generated much response. When this tune kicked in, the mezzanine section
of the theater was rocking like mad. You could feel it under your feet.
Frenzied jamming and great intense ending from Trey.
 
Burlap Sack and Pumps: New Original from the Trey band. Really good. Would
love to hear this one over and over. Great jam with basically a one-line
chorus periodically thrown in that is always proceeded by a wild ass drum
fill that Lawton made sweet as candy to the ears.
 
Aqui Como Alla: Marc Ribot cover. Have no recollection of anything special
about this song at all.
 
Waves: Solo guitar piece w/ Tony apparently providing some sort of light
accompaniment. Trey speaks for the first time before pulling out this one.
Says it was written/conceived on his first trip far out on the ocean on a
sailboat where he could no longer see land. Talks about weird experiences
when someone yells ^Óplay driver goddam it!^Ô - ^ÓLike that^Ô Trey replies
without missing a beat. Short, sweet, pretty tune in the way that Acoustic
Army or Inlaw Josie Wales is.
 
Bathtub Gin: This is where things got crazy. Tony leaves and Trey starts
jamming the chords to this old Phish stand by on his acoustic guitar. The
crowd knows what it is instantly and erupts. He is obviously loving it. I
thought it was an interesting choice, given the fact that Trey had seemed to
stay away from solid ^Óphish^Ô songs so far on this tour. Glad he decided to
venture a little deeper into the library tonight. It became a mass sing
along from the crowd, which was humming, singing and whistling the song^Òs
usual accompanying melody line. Very hard to explain, but get the tapes.
Trey was loving it, smiling and running through a couple extra rounds
seemingly just to hear the crowd reaction.
 
At the Barbecue: Grippo, Hartswick and Moroz play a tune by themselves. Not
very interesting. Sounded like someone was out of tune. My buddy and I
thought it was the trombone that didn^Òt sound write, but I couldn^Òt tell
whether they were trying to be discordant or not. Not my favorite by a long
shot.
 
At the Gazebo: Equally a bit of a yawn. These two tunes were the weakest
part of the show. The groups warts showed through hear. It was obvious the
material was new and it was so far off the usual Phish path that it seemed
to throw most people for a loop.
 
Will It Go Round in Circles: A strange cover choice, but it works. An
all-around solid tune. Not one of my favorites of the night, but a solid
tune.
 
Set II:
 
(Come on Baby Let^Òs Go) Downtown: Wow. After an excruciatingly long set
break (probably only about 25-30 minutes but everyone was getting antsy)
they come out with this tune. Catchy and hooky as hell. Just brought
everybody back into the groove. it^Òs also probably time to mention the
lights that Phish light man Chris Kuroda brought to this tour. The first
set, they were a perfect complement to the music, during the second set they
seemed to became an more integral part of the show (but more on this later.)
 
Signed Sealed Delivered I^Òm Yours: The song your mom and dad would know of
the night. Awesome Stevie Wonder cover with Hartswick supplying some kicking
backing vocals. Very tight. Very polished. Very good.
 
Sand: The first really extended jam of the night that set off a glowring war
(for real, and much to my surprise) As the glowrings started taking flight,
the lights were brought down until all you could see where rainbow colored
glowrings flying around the relatively small theater. Impressive. Cooler
than an arena show and intense. Great treatment of this song from all
involved. Never was one of my favorites, in general, but I was absolutely
hooked from the time Trey set the guitar loop.
 
Sunday Morning: Another original. Words were a little bit cheesy -- puppy
dogs and ice cream cone type of vibe -- but the tune was admittedly hooky
and catchy as hell.
 
Nothing But an E Thing: Not much I specifically remember about this one.
 
Happiness In My Pants: Ditto. Oysterhead stuff.
 
Windora Bug: This was the beginning of a very strong ending to the night.
The horn section left so Russ, Tony and Trey could play this one. I like
Tony^Òs singing here. Trey sounded good as well with his rastaman singing
persona. The song eventually degenerated into an ambient middle section. It
got so quiet many people where shushing other people so they could hear the
intricacies. Trey played off this making his keyboard emit a ^Óshooooo^Ô sound
that worked really cool. Then, just when you thought it was over, it started
all over again. Great treatment of the tune.
 
Gotta Jibboo: You knew this was the last one. Long ass jam that went many
places and undoubtedly took some in attendance many places. Very slow, but
interesting build that resulted in a really intense crescendo that seemed
ready to transform into another song at any time, but never did. Seemingly,
built layer upon layer, until they brought it around to the chorus again.
One of my favorite Farmhouse songs and a real treat. At the end, Trey says
good night and walks off. Here comes the encore.
 
Mellow Mood: Yes, yes, yes. I had been wanting to hear this one all night.
Great treatment of this reggae tune, which has really great lyrics and a
really cool, laid back, end-of-the-night, positive vibe. Everyone loved it
and at the end Trey says ^ÓWe^Òll see you soon^Ô before walking off stage and
the house lights come on.
 
        OVERALL: Very impressive group of musicians. After this 10-show run, I
wouldn^Òt be surprised to see Trey pull this group out once more before you
see Phish again. Don^Òt believe the small negative hype there is. Really
fresh, and, despite the warts, an outstanding performance.

click here to return to the 2001 reviews page


hits (many)