The third night of a four-day festival is always the sweetest. Everyone has learned the ropes, such as where the dope burrito vendor is hawking sustenance and when the nearest porta-potties are being cleaned. Night three at Mondegreen brought a very large Saturday night crowd, along with a level of comfort in these new surroundings. This comfort extended all the way to Phish themselves, who delivered two sets of profound jams to 40,000+ fans.
The band decided to come out swinging, starting the first set with the heavy hitter "Mike's Song." The foursome from Vermont has been enjoying opening sets with this song recently, having played it eighteen times between 2022 and 2024, with half of those performances as set openers. The crowd unleashed numerous beach balls that bounced around the proverbial room. Guitarist Trey Anastasio crushed this early jam before the music transitioned into the melodic "Hydrogen." The band completed the "Mike's Groove" trifecta with perhaps the most famous mondegreen from their catalog, "Weekapaug Groove." Ironically, the lyrics were synthesized from mishearing Frankie Valli's "Oh What a Night" many years ago after playing a gig in Weekapaug, RI.
The weather showed signs that rain might be near as the band started to play "Theme From the Bottom." The crowd was well aware and prepared, but thankfully, these clouds had no moisture to disperse. A smooth segue followed into "Blaze On" before unfurling an almost thirteen-minute "Gotta Jibboo." This feel-good summer tune morphed into evil Phish territory, featuring some yummy bass thumps courtesy of bassist Mike Gordon, along with those late '90s era loops from Anastasio.
"46 Days" followed, bringing another short heater to this raging set. The newer tune "Evolve" had a beautiful, mellow vibe, especially with Page McConnell on the piano. This led into a crowd favorite, "The Meatstick," which included the famous dance performed by the band on stage during the Japanese translated lyrics. In fact, Phish has tried to break the world record for the number of people performing The Meatstick as a group dance in the past, but that is a story for another day. "David Bowie" ended the set on a high note, with drummer Jon Fishman leading the closing jam with his racing beats.
The band returned for round two with a deep funk "Also Sprach Zarathustra." A well-placed segue into "Oblivion" started this set off on the right foot. The band floated into more evil Phish territory, much to the delight of fans. A face-melting "Down with Disease" followed, which included "La Grange" and "Eleanor Rigby" teases by Anastasio.
Fishman was on point this evening as he drove the train into another jam vehicle, "Tweezer." Gordon and McConnell played nicely off each other during this nineteen-minute sequence, which had a distinctive blues rock vibe. This eloquent series rolled into "Scents and Subtle Sounds," while maintaining a cohesive jam, as they had done throughout the entire set. The non-stop music ended with a playful "Boogie On Reggae Woman."
The set wasn't quite finished, as the band closed with fiery power chords during "Carini." After stepping off stage for a moment, they returned for a triple encore, starting with "Backwards Down the Number Line." An almost twenty-minute "You Enjoy Myself" followed. The show concluded with the energetic burst of "Tweezer Reprise."
Mondegreen might be over, but Phish is gearing up for their annual run at Dick's Sporting Goods Stadium in Commerce City, CO, beginning August 29, 2024. Tickets for night one are available via this link. Also, they will be back for four nights at the Riviera Maya in January 2025. Click this link for more details.
Check out more photos from night three at Mondegreen. Also, view our prior coverage of the Phish Summer 2024 tour in Mansfield, MA, Noblesville, IN, Grand Rapids, MI, and Bethel, NY, as well as nights one and two from Mondegreen.
Date: August 17, 2024
Venue: The Woodlands
Set One: Mike's Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, Theme From the Bottom > Blaze On, Gotta Jibboo, 46 Days, Evolve, Meatstick > David Bowie2
Set Two: Also Sprach Zarathustra > Oblivion, Down with Disease34 > Tweezer5 > Scents and Subtle Sounds > Boogie On Reggae Woman, Carini
Encore: Backwards Down the Number Line, You Enjoy Myself, Tweezer Reprise
Notes:
1. This was the third show of the Mondegreen festival.
2. Mike teased Passing Through in David Bowie.
3. DWD was unfinished.
4. Trey teased La Grange and Eleanor Rigby in DWD
5. Trey teased Eleanor Rigby in Tweezer.
