Phish opened Mondegreen, their first festival in nine years, on Thursday, August 15, 2024. The event took place at The Woodlands, a well-known festival venue in Dover, Delaware, adjacent to Dover Motor Speedway. The band delivered two sets of blissful joy in this lush, green setting, much to the delight of fans.
The sprawling festival grounds encompassed several miles and accommodated at least 40,000 fans. The grounds included a City Hall structure made of cardboard and a Bizarre Bazaar that featured products from well-known Phish collaborators, such as artist Jim Pollock and photographer Rene Huemer. The Heliograph, a centralized, multi-level structure near the stage, provided fans with a bird's-eye view of the grounds. DJs performed from the Heliograph at night.
The music began with a mondegreen, which is a mishearing or misinterpretation of a word that gives it new meaning, in the Phish original 'The Moma Dance.' The lyrics contain the phrase 'the moment ends,' rather than the title. 'Back on the Train' followed, along with a deliciously funky, nineteen-minute 'Wolfman's Brother.' Bassist Mike Gordon drove the jam during this early heater.
'Funky Bitch' and 'Roggae' followed, with short but sweet versions. Phish dropped their second mondegreen of the night with 'NICU,' which contains the phrase 'and I see you.' This song included a boisterous organ solo by multi-instrumentalist Page McConnell. The band closed the set with two fifteen-minute jams, starting with the newer tune 'A Wave of Hope' and finishing with the heavy hitter 'Sand.'
The band returned for round two with the new Trey Anastasio Band tune 'What's Going Through Your Mind.' This song was debuted the week prior in Grand Rapids, MI, with the assistance of special guest Billy Strings. The band melted some faces with a twenty-five-minute mondegreen special that ventured into type two territory, clocking in as the longest jam of the evening.
The music flowed into the quintessential Phish original 'Chalkdust Torture,' followed by 'Light.' A fifteen-minute 'Prince Caspian' concluded this non-stop sequence with another vibrant, extended jam. Drummer Jon Fishman was locked into the groove. He also sang the refrain for 'Crosseyed and Painless' by the Talking Heads, a fan-favorite cover that did not disappoint, even though it only extended slightly past the nine-minute mark.
'Lonely Trip' provided a much-needed chill moment before the set ended with some tasty peaks courtesy of guitarist Trey Anastasio during 'Everything's Right.' The band returned for an encore with an electrifying 'I Saw It Again.' Anastasio added extra lyrics referencing 'a Phish festival from this point of view,' 'two moons,' and 'a gorilla in a Fishman dress.' He was referring to the gorilla in front of the Dover Motor Speedway that had been adorned with Fishman donuts prior to the start of the festival. The show ended on a high note with 'Slave to the Traffic Light.'
Phish is up next for their annual run at Dick's Sporting Goods Stadium in Commerce City, Co, starting August 29, 2024. Tickets are available for night one via this link. They have also announced another Mexican beach getaway at the Riviera Maya in 2025. Head on over to this link for more details.
Check out more photos from the first night at Mondegreen. Also, view our prior coverage of the Phish Summer 2024 tour in Mansfield, MA, Noblesville, IN, Grand Rapids, MI, and Bethel, NY.
Date: August 15, 2024
Venue: The Woodlands
Set One: The Moma Dance, Back on the Train, Wolfman's Brother, Funky Bitch, Roggae, NICU, A Wave of Hope, Sand
Set Two: What's Going Through Your Mind -> Chalk Dust Torture -> Light > Prince Caspian, Crosseyed and Painless, Lonely Trip, Everything's Right
Encore: Saw It Again > Possum, Slave to the Traffic Light
Notes:
1. This was the first show of the Mondegreen festival.
2. Fish teased Heavy Things in Wolfman's Brother.
3. Mike teased Sneakin' Sally during Caspian.
4. Trey teased Crosseyed during Everything's Right.
5. Saw It Again contained additional lyrics from Trey referencing "a Phish festival from this point of view," "two moons," and "a gorilla in a Fishman dress."
Set list provided by phish.net
