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| Official poster by Rich Kelly |
Don't forget, Phish is webcasting these shows on LivePhish.com.
We're finally on tour. Follow @CoventryMusic for updates.
Here is the setlist for Friday...
The Phish, 7/19/13 Northerly Island, Chicago, IL
Set 1: Suzy Greenberg, Wolfman's Brah, Backwards, It's Ice, Moma Dance, My Soul, Scent of a Mule, 46 Days, Limb by Limb, Julius
Set 2: Down with Disease > Prince Caspian*
*= Aborted after less than a minute. Venue evacuated due to approaching storm.
9:49pm CDT: The live webcast was just disconnected and unfortunately, it looks like the show is over, at least for tonight. The road crew is striking the stage, pulling down the upstage scrims, and lowering some of the lighting rigs. Stay safe, folks.
Click here to see every Phish setlist from this summer tour, plus links to vids and recaps.
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Chicago Recap 7/19/13: Surviving Phishnado By Pauly
I jumped on tour in Chicago. Finally! I couldn't wait to throw down for a three-night bender in Chicago, but got a hell of a way to celebrate my 275th show with the gig getting cancelled shortly after the start of set 2. A nasty storm quickly blew through Chicago, but was severe enough that it freaked out the organizers, who immediately pulled the plug. You always roll the dice with an outdoor show, but Phish has been getting clobbered all summer with rain.They already cancelled one show in Toronto, and after Friday's cancellation, you can't help but wonder if this tour is jinxed?
I knew it was going to be a weird night when I got caught up in a sketchy transaction in the lot with one of the most spun-out spunions I had ever encountered, who was severely gacked up and had an outline of a white powdery substance (I can only presume is cocaine) on his nostrils. The lot scene was weak (no vending and a Draconian scene resembling Alpine Valley's "no fun in the lots policy") which is utterly disappointing compared to the raging "anything goes" scene at UIC two summers ago. Everyone was seeking upgrades to the floor, while extras for the lawn were easy to find.
G-Money was solo up on the lawn, but he said the sound was better than expected. I had floor tix with Senor, his bro Javier, and Benjo (everyone's favorite French Phishead), who was seeing his first show since 1.1.11. Our friend Boogie joined us, who I haven't seen in almost 8 years. She was the culprit behind the glowstick smashing into Page's grand piano during HOOD at a Nassau Coliseum show in Fall 99.
Your first Phish show in a while is always a fun time... regardless of the setlist or how they played. It's like getting laid for the first time in months; that orgasm is always spot on. Plus, I got to see the show with dear friends from NYC that I don't get to see very often. Phish gives us the opportunity to gather together for a shared experience while we get to re-live some grandiose old times. The music is really secondary to the camaraderie, but then again, it was a totally let down that the show was cancelled.
What will Phish do to make it up? I'm gonna say... nothing special. They won't play 3 sets (wishful thinking), but we can only hope they bring their A+ game the next two nights. I hope I'm wrong and they play three sets, but I'm not getting my hopes up high.
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| Courtesy of @Phish_FTR |
So what happened at the show? Suzy opener kicked up the energy level a couple of notches. Wolfamn's Brah is a song I always hear whenever I see shows with Javier ("They're gonna play it all three nights!" exclaimed Javier). I never talk during shows, but took the time during Backwards to catch up with my friend Boogie (she saw so many shows with out crew back in the day, we were all getting flashbacks all night from those wild, halcyon days in NYC pre-9/11). Ice had a tasty jam. Moma funk was welcomed with open arms. My Soul blues jam might have been one of the strongest moments of the set. Fish played with his new toy the marimba during Scent jam. 46 Days has a nice mini-jam. Wanted a more satisfying Limb by Limb (Fish usually kills it) and Julius seemed rushed. The boys cranked out 10-songs in 75 minutes, rather short compared to the 1.5 hour opening sets we had seen most of the summer.
At setbreak, Boogie showed me the local weather radar and the future looked grim. One of her friends was at Pearl Jam at Wrigley Field, but that had gotten postponed due to rain. When Phish took the stage for the second set, I assumed the weather was clear enough for them to proceed. (Meanwhile, up at Wrigley... Pearl Jam waited out the weather and resumed their show after a 2+ hour delay... but their fans had more places to ride out the storm, while we were sitting ducks in the park.)
Second set kicked off with DWD and I was a little let down by the jam (so much potential wasted there). We all wanted something with a lot more firepower, but Trey opted for Caspian. Someone had told Page that they had to get off stage. Page reluctantly walked over to Trey, who thought he was joking. Nope. Fastest Caspian ever. Got aborted along with the whole show.
Of course, there was some confusion... would Phish return after the storm or were we done for good? Cell reception was shitty all day at Northerly Island and it only got worse when the show was evacuated. It was difficult to get proper information -- was the show cancelled or postponed? What do we do? Stick around the park just in case Phish comes back on, or seek shelter?
We got stuck in the "tunnel" and a crazy little party broke out with a street musician entertaining everyone with his sax. Everyone inside the tunnel was jacked up with mixed emotions, but the tunnel quickly became packed and claustrophobic. At that point, we found out that the show was cancelled so we ran through the rain as quickly as we could to the closest L stop. That's it... game over.
First night of Chicago is in the books, but it was a disappointment for sure. Time for Phish to redeem themselves, right?
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