Show Review - Phish 4/18/25 Seattle, WA
No Rust Here
Phish began their 2025 spring tour last night in Seattle, putting together an all-killer, no-filler show including an five-song second set and incredibly dense pockets of jamming almost everywhere.
As the band emerged to begin the night, eagle-eyed fans noticed that guitarist Trey Anastasio had on his original blonde Languedoc guitar (dubbed “Mar Mar”), which made an on-stage appearance for the first time since 2/21/19 and was used for a full show for the first time since 1996.
From the first notes of “Sand,” it was evident that this would not be your typical tour-opening show, as all signs of rust or hesitant playing that characterize the first performance after a two-month break were absent. Anastasio and keyboardist Page McConnell connected on several telepathic riffs, executing a smooth major-key modulation early on as drummer Jon Fishman joined in on the melodic interplay with rolling fills.
With sights set on an early peak, Anastasio confidently led the rest of the band through a series of builds, eventually bursting forth into an explosion of white-light glory thanks to lighting director Chris Kuroda. The guitarist’s recent solo tour seems to have paid dividends with his dexterity and assertiveness, as tends to be the case when a side project tour immediately precedes a Phish run.
Coming down from the beautiful peak, Fish continued to drive forward as McConnell infused some bright Moog One synth tones and Anastasio engaged in some choppy rhythm work, refusing to take the easy finish and bringing things back around for one more bonus peak, hitting near some “Weekapaug Groove” riffs while doing so.
Kicking into “Kill Devil Falls” next, the band dove right back into improvisational waters, making another early major-key pivot as Fish upped the tempo with some insistent ride cymbal work. Bassist Mike Gordon paved the way with some thick melodic work as McConnell poured soft Wurlitzer tones overtop, Anastasio’s insisted leads driving us closer to another exemplary peak.
McConnell made the switch to piano as Gordon continued to dig in further, using a slightly dirty to offer a nice contrast to the sparkling ivories, which shone further as Anastasio executed some clean blasts of sustain, clearly energized by his choice of guitar.
Bursting forth into our second glorious white-light peak in as many songs, Anastasio unleashed blistering run after blistering run, battling a few technical issues as he hit into some riffs akin to “Norwegian Wood” but never quite playing the tease.
With a perfect re-entry to “Kill Devil Falls,” Phish kept the momentum up with a soaring “Theme From the Bottom,” Anastasio once again taking the lead on smooth and confident phrases, pouring heaps of emotion into the sunny jam before wrapping things up.
“Back on the Train” continued the set and the trend of jamming, achieving absolute liftoff as the band unleashed the longest version to date. Fish went in on some tom fills early on as McConnell took to Wurli, the band patiently grooving in the Type I space. Anastasio made it clear that this was not going to be a standard version quickly, with some mellow riffing that began to drift away from typical “BOTT” fare, bolstered by McConnell’s soft bed of electric piano.
Toying with a major modulation, the band continued to hang out in the choogling groove before committing to the pivot, McConnell’s switch to piano upping the intensity further. Eschewing the brighter mode, Anastasio and McConnell found a darker and gritty riff that they both latched onto almost immediately, the guitarist dirtying his tone as the jam continued to poke and prod at the envelope.
The real ascension into extended territory came with McConnell’s switch to Rhodes and Yamaha CS60, getting into outer space tones as Anastasio flipped on his chirpy octave-up Whammy sounds and Gordon dove into his own bag of eerie sounds. McConnell then moved to a bright pad on his Prophet Rev2, swirling around the inside of the arena as Anastasio picked out gritty riffs.
Fish kept things anchored with a steady hand, providing the foundation for each of the other musicians to lean hard into their own effects, Gordon in particular creating waves of sound and texture as guitar and keys returned to some more grounded play.
McConnell continued to activate spaceship tones on both CS60 and Prophet, alternating between synth waves and thick Rhodes chords before Anastasio took the reins and blasted into an intense delay-drenched peak section with screaming leads taking us home to wrap up this exemplary “Back on the Train” and the set’s first piece of real adventurous improv.
Taking their foot off the gas for the first time in the set, Phish tapped a tender “If I Could” for a well-earned cool-down before rocking through a concise “Tube,” Anastasio standing out with some sharp envelope-filter work ahead of a solid peak.
Gordon got a turn at the helm for “Mull” before a set-closing “Wolfman’s Brother” continued the trend of phenomenal peaks with a patiently-built sunny afternoon motif bolstered by some incredible piano work by McConnell and yet another dose of blistering runs from Anastasio.
Returning for the second set, Phish proceeded to play a nonstop 75 minutes of music packed with segues, jamming, and overall amazing playing that once again did not fit into your typical tour-opening fare.
Beginning with “Blaze On,” McConnell took to some smooth Wurli work as Anastasio picked over top, patiently building within the bounds of the song as the band searched for inspiration. Retaining a loose sense of “Blaze On” for much of its 11-minute duration, the jam eventually morphed into an upbeat motif with McConnell colouring on Moog One before Anastasio initiated a perfect and smooth segue into “Golden Age.”
While this song was one of the premier jam vehicles of the 3.0 era, it had been since 2018 that we got a 20-minute rendition, and last night more than delivered with a wonderfully multifaceted piece of music that went to all corners of the improvisational spectrum.
Wasting no time, Anastasio led the band from the upbeat Type I portion into a grooving minor key, Fish tapped out the rhythm on cowbell as McConnell went right back to bouncy Moog work.
Developing into a moody space, Gordon went into a synthed-out tone as Anastasio got into some gritty riffs, Fish matching both musicians’ riffs with well-placed fills before switching to a more driving beat.
As the jam continued to unfold, Anastasio and Gordon linked up again before the guitarist led the way into a major-key modulation. McConnell hopped to piano as he began to throw riffs back and forth with Anastasio, the guitarist hinting at some “Wolfman’s Brother”-like melodies as the piano took on a laid-back chordal quality.
Settling in around an upbeat descending melody, every musician on stage worked it into their playing, coming back to it every few bars as they added more layers to the sound. Fish continued to drive the intensity forward as Anastasio smoothly switched between lead work and rhythm as the jam flowed into a gradual ramp-up, the band setting their sights on a peak.
McConnell built underneath the guitar leads like a rising wave, his insistent piano supporting the soaring riffs as Phish executed their mastery of major-key jamming that had been on full display through the show so far. More blasts of sustain from Anastasio spurred Fish on to mirror more melodic riffs on the drums, but McConnell continued to stand out with more aggressive piano playing.
Descending from the absolutely phenomenal peak, Fish went back into the “Golden Age” drumbeat for a smooth re-entry, seemingly fading away and setting up the next song – but Anastasio had other ideas and continued jamming, pushing into a weird and dissonance space with chirpy notes, Gordon getting weird on some Chase Bliss swirling tones as the band moved into a double-hit motif reminiscent of “Split Open and Melt” in both its notes and level of dissonance.
Gordon’s wild swirling textures continued to layer in as Fish went from hi-hat tapping to a driving beat, the rest of the band sticking firmly in weird-sound land as a rare instance of fantastic post-peak jamming threatened to come apart at the seams at any moment.
As Fish continued to push into a more consistent beat, the rest of the band only got weirder as Gordon came through the mix with some aggressive arpeggiated riffs, McConnell working some minimalist Moog before Anastasio called for a transition into “What’s Going Through Your Mind,” the pulsating rhythm emerging from the murk.
In addition to “WGTYM” being one of Phish’s best debuts in recent memory, it has cemented itself as one of the most consistent jam vehicles in the band’s arsenal, and last night was no exception. The improv kicked off with a propulsive groove with Anastasio and McConnell sparring over top, the latter on sparkling Moog synth work.
Gordon made his presence known with some nice melodic riffing as McConnell alternated between leads and pads, the whole band then locking in on a motif suggested by Anastasio, their telepathy and collective musical brain shining for the umpteenth time.
Some shining Wurli took on a supportive role as Gordon hit into some more insistent riffs, acting as a massive driving force as the jam smoothly slid into some atmospheric Type II territory.
McConnell layered textures as Anastasio leaned into some layered sounds of his own, repeated circular riffs adding a beautiful floaty effect as the rhythm section continued to steamroll forward, picking up more speed and intensity as Phish “opened the portal,” as referenced by the band in their recent New Yorker interview.
Exploding into yet another amazing peak, Anastasio hit the apex with some well-timed rhythmic chords before flipping into lead mode and ripping into a screaming, soaring peak that had hands raised and smiles on faces across the entire arena. This sustained moment was full of so much power and emotion, and can only be achieved when Phish is playing at a high level and is warmed up and deep into a set of music the way they were last night.
Twisting down from the apex, Anastasio dirtied his tone and went into some wah riffs before the band smoothly returned to the chorus of “WGTYM,” closing the book on almost an hour of nonstop A+ quality Phish.
My only real piece of criticism about last night’s show was the call for “I Always Wanted It This Way,” it being far from my favourite song – but it kept the energy high and quickly segued into “Ghost” among blasts of McConnell synthesizer.
At this point, the band was playing with house money and set their sights on one last towering peak jam, closing out the 75-minute, five-song second set that I think can universally be agreed upon as well above almost every expectation for a tour-opening show.
The “Ghost” peak not only brought more joy and catharsis, but featured some wild work from Anastasio as he drenched his playing in delays, cultivating a crazy motif before landing hard into the crunchy riff of the song to close the set.
“Bug” began the encore before a raucous “Possum” brought the Friday night show to a strong finish, Anastasio once again putting his well-practiced chops on full display as he continued to clearly be enamored with playing his Mar-Mar guitar.
4.0 Phish has delivered each trip out to the west coast, and it seems as though Spring 2025 will be no exception – with the second night at Climate Pledge Arena coming up tonight, I can’t wait to see what the band has in store for us after such a hot start. Webcasts are available for the whole tour via LivePhish.com.
