Phish bassist Mike Gordon joined firebrand bassist and bandleader Karina Rykman at Nectar’s in Burlinton, VT on Saturday. The sit-in went down just days after the 38-year anniversary of Phish’s first club gig, which took place at the same venue on December 1st, 1984.
Rykman and her band kicked off the show as usual, opening with “Beacon” followed by a continuous sequence of “Joyride” > “All That You Wanted” > “Plants” > “Arbitrary” > “Dirty South”. After playing “Fever Dream”, Karina, guitarist Adam November, and drummer Chris Corsico launched into Rykman’s joyously cynical single, “City Kids”.
About five minutes into the “City Kids” performance, a smiling Rykman stepped to the mic and explained, “I’ll be right back,” before exiting the stage. Within seconds, bass tones were back in the mix—this time, delivered by a new arrival: Mike Gordon. After a few minutes of Gordon grooving with Corsico and November, Rykman joined the group on stage once again to go toe-to-toe with the Phish bassist on the low end.
Cactus did not stick around too long, but the band finished the set strong, supplementing original material with fun covers including “Shaise Longue” (Wet Leg), “Psycho Killer” (Talking Heads), and “The Hardest Button to Button” (The White Stripes).
Karina’s tour continues on Wednesday, December 7th in Portsmouth, NH, with subsequent stops in Portland, ME (12/8); Bridgeport, CT (12/9); and Washington, D.C. (12/10). For more info and tickets, visit her website.
Below, check out a full, pro-shot video of Mike Gordon playing “City Kids” with Karina Rykman at Nectar’s featuring lights by Jeff Volckhausen, front of house mix by Zach Rosenberg, audio mixing by Gabe Monro, and video by Chalkin Creative, Jason Steinberg, Roy Kasten, and Charlie Laud. Scroll down for an amusing studio video of the two bassists and a gallery of photos from the show courtesy of photographer Luke Awtry.
Karina Rykman w/ Mike Gordon (Phish) – “City Kids” – Nectar’s – 12/1/22
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Setlist: Karina Rykman | Nectar’s | Burlington, VT | 12/3/22
Set: Beacon, Joyride -> All That You Wanted -> Plants -> Arbitrary -> Dirty South, Fever Dream, City Kids*, Run of the Mill -> Chaise Longue, Atom Dance, No Occasion -> Psycho Killer -> The Hardest Button to Button, Elevator
*with Mike Gordon
Note from Karina:
I ran off stage and then he replaced me and Jammed with the boys for a minute or two, then I came back and we ripped a 10 mins jam.
[Originally published 12/4/22]
