The Gorge is one of the more magical places to see a concert venue in America, with absurd views from not just from the venue, but the camp sites and even the drive in. The feeling you get walking over that first big hill, seeing that stage in front of a huge natural backdrop, is an unparalleled experience that everyone should have at least once. It makes the huge trek to the venue, which is located several hours from any major city or airport, so very worth it. It’s good to know that Phish recognizes the challenges in getting to the venue, and the natural beauty of place, as the band threw down two of the finest shows of this tour to a crowd that no doubt travelled far with huge expectations.
The first set started off with a few well played Phish favorites – ‘AC/DC Bag’, ‘Timber’, ‘Wolfman’s Brother’, and ‘Funky Bitch’, the last two which seemed to have a little extra heat to them, foreshadowing the rest of the show to come. After a quick break, the band jumped into a rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’, directed to lighting director Chris Kuroda, which featured the entire band jamming the intro of the Rolling Stone’s ‘Satisfaction’, before jumping into a raging ‘Wilson’, which was cut short so Trey could ask the crowd to chant ‘Wilson’ for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson during the season later this year. A somewhat standard ‘Possum’ lead into a ‘Tube’ with some inspired jamming, before slowing things down with the first ‘Secret Smile’ since Festival 8′s acoustic set, which seemed to be a nod to our surroundings.
A beautiful ‘McGrupp and The Watchful Hosemester’ felt perfectly placed for the setting we were in. If you’re ever going to suspend disbelief and lose yourself in the lyrics of the Gamehenge track, this would probably be the place to do it. ‘McGrupp’ segued nicely into Lynyrd Skynyrd’s ‘The Ballad Of Curtis Loew’, which provided a beautiful sing-a-long towards the end of the set. A set closing ‘Split Open and Melt’ allowed the band to get a little extra trippy, giving Kuroda the chance to flex his lighting muscle and put on a crazy show.
After what was most likely the best first set of 2013, the band came out swinging with a ‘Crosseyed and Painless’ opener that featured an extended jam with some weird, mind-altering moments to it, before seguing nicely into an awesome ‘Twist’ with a small ‘Tequila’ jam in the middle, which in itself moved swiftly into a solid ‘Steam’ with ‘Crosseyed’ teases and quotes. Next up was Waves, which has been played beautifully this tour, and featured an awesome, psychedlic outro jam that transitioned perfectly into ‘Twenty Years Later’. A mid second set ‘Mango Song’ gave off an old school vibe, lighting the mood before ‘Bug’, which lead into Kuroda’s birthday ‘David Bowie’ throwdown, which again featured ‘Crosseyed’ quotes and teases, and ‘Bug’ teases in the intro.
A quick run through ‘Rocky Top’, which was probably a nod to the mountains all around, before the band went into an anything-but average ‘Character Zero’. Midway through the song, Trey asked for the lights to be cut out so the band could jam at the moon – which turned into a distorted, psychedelic jam that featured howling from each members of the  band, while Trey created howling noises from his guitar. A beautiful ‘Harry Hood’ encore was followed by a brief but raging version of Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Fire’, and night one was in the books.
After a night full of metaphorical and actual, real fireworks (that seemed to go off all night), night two at The Gorge was ready to kick off. Many in the crowd didn’t love the ‘Architect’ opener, but the lyrics seemed to appropriately reference the amazing natural sites around us. The first ‘Golgi Apparatus’ of tour was played by request, before we got hit with the beautiful composition of ‘The Curtain With’, showing off some of the band’s top notch skill. The next few songs had seen a lot of play in the previous shows of tour, until we got slapped with the debut of a new Mike song, ‘Say Something’, which got generally positive reviews for its old school, funk infused style. In tribute to JJ Cale, the band closed the first set with a raucous ‘After Midnight’ before taking the break.
A somewhat predictable ‘Down With Disease’ kicked off the second set, but the jam ended way earlier than most in the crowd had expected. Not to worry, as it transitioned perfectly into ‘Undermind’, which picked up the slack with an incredible jam of its own. The crowd was expecting some fireworks from the following ‘Light’, but it again ended somewhat quickly, in favor of yet another huge fan favorite, ‘Sneaking Sally Through The Alley’, the first time it was played since San Francisco last year. ‘2001′ brought the dark, trippy lighting and vibes of the previous night’s ‘Melt’, before leading into ‘Walls of The Cave’, which has become one of the bands newest compositions to crush. No one really expected a ‘Fluffhead’ this late in the set, but it sure was welcome, sending the crowd into a frenzy before a set closing ‘Antelope’.
Like the show’s opener, many weren’t fond of ‘Show Of Life’ in the first encore spot, but it seemed fitting, thanking the crowd for making the crazy trek to the venue – but the show wasn’t over yet. We’d leave on a raging high note to Zeppelin’s ‘Good Times, Bad Times’.
If you’ve never mad it to The Gorge, make sure you go – its one of the most beautiful and unique concert venues in the entire world. Phish seemed to recognize this, and the challenges of getting there, and gave a special, well thought out show, timing the lighting perfectly with song selections as the sun set. The venue itself has unparalleled views, and the ‘Vantage’ spot about 20 minutes away is a sight to behold. The fans come prepared, cultivating a mini festival vibe, creating one of the greatest overall concert experiences of the summer.
Setlist Night 1:
Soundcheck: Dogs Stole Things, Farmhouse, My Soul, Farmhouse
Set 1: AC/DC Bag > Timber (Jerry), Wolfman’s Brother, Funky Bitch, Happy Birthday to You[1], Wilson > Possum, Tube, Secret Smile, McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters > The Ballad of Curtis Loew, Split Open and Melt
Set 2: Crosseyed and Painless[2] > Twist[3] > Steam[4] > Waves -> Twenty Years Later > The Mango Song, Bug > David Bowie[5], Rocky Top > Character Zero[6]
Encore: Harry Hood > Fire[7]
[1] Call to the Post tease from Mike.
[2] Seven Below teases from Fish.
[3] Tequila tease.
[4] Crosseyed tease and quote.
[5] Bug teases and Crosseyed teases and quotes.
[6] Band members howled at the moon.
[7] Alternate lyrics “Move over rover and let Jon Fishman take over!”
Notes: This show was webcast via LivePhish.com. Happy Birthday was played for Chris Kuroda (last played March 8, 2009, or 186 shows) and contained a Call to the Post tease from Mike. There was a full-band Satisfaction tease before Wilson. Before the “blat-boom!” in Wilson, Trey, wearing a Russell Wilson t-shirt, talked about how he wanted to hear the Wilson chant this season in Seattle. Secret Smile was performed for the first time since November 1, 2009 (156 shows). Crosseyed included Seven Below teases from Fish. Twist contained a Tequila tease. Steam contained a Crosseyed tease and quote. Bowie contained Bug teases and Crosseyed teases and quotes. During Character Zero Trey asked Kuroda to turn off the lights for a “Moon Jam” that featured band members howling at the moon! Fire featured alternate lyrics from Trey “Move over rover and let Jon Fishman take over!”
Setlist Night 2:
Soundcheck: My Soul, Jam
Set 1: Architect, Golgi Apparatus, The Curtain With, Kill Devil Falls > The Moma Dance > Maze, Beauty of a Broken Heart, Roses Are Free, Say Something[1], Ocelot,After Midnight
Set 2: Down with Disease[2] -> Undermind[3] > Light -> Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Walls of the Cave > Fluffhead > Run Like an Antelope
Encore: Show of Life, Good Times Bad Times
[1] Debut.
[2] Unfinished.
[3] Fishman on Marimba Lumina.
Notes: This show was webcast via LivePhish.com and featured the debut of Say Something. Disease was unfinished. Undermind featured Fishman on Marimba Lumina.
(setlists via phish.net)