Like so many dying Rust Belt cities in Pennsylvania, I have a long and personal history with Reading. My mom was born and raised there. My dad also had an apartment he kept there because he had so many friends that lived in the area. They met when my Dad was working at Sears and the rest is my history.
I spent a lot of time as a child in Reading as my divorced grandmother and grandfather both lived in the area. My grandmother even had an apartment within 4 blocks of the arena. I also had been to this arena back in 2004 to see Pearl Jam and many other artists on the Vote For Change tour. So a Phish show was as good as any reason to return.
Flashback to August 6th. I was in LA for the end of Phish's West Coast swing. I got up and had a hold on my credit card for 2 tickets for the Fall Tour. I ended Summer Tour and knew I was good for Fall Tour. How cool is that?
I had gotten Halloween but the order I put on my mom's card got Reading so I was good to go. Another friend from Hanover, who has since moved out to the great Northwest, needed a Reading,. Plus, he has been born there. I was able to hook him up and and everyone was covered.
I went to the show solo because I was going to crash at my brother's outside of Philly. I had to pick up Switzer and Josh at the airport the next day and my brother's crib was exactly an hour from Reading and an hour from the airport. On the way there, I was passed by Watson on the road but then never saw him at the show.
Tuesday,
10/29/2013
The
Santander Arena, Reading, PA
Set 1: Cars
Trucks Buses, Stealing
Time From the Faulty Plan, Ginseng
Sullivan, Wolfman's
Brother, Sparkle >
Walk Away, Divided
Sky, Split
Open and Melt[1] > JuliusSet 2: Down with Disease[2] > Taste, Twenty Years Later > Piper > Backwards Down the Number Line, You Enjoy Myself, Grind
Encore: Bouncing Around the Room > Reba, Good Times Bad Times
[1] Unfinished.
[2] Unfinished; Pop Goes the Weasel tease from Mike during intro.
Teases:
· Pop Goes the Weasel tease in Down with Disease
· Dave's Energy Guide tease in Taste
Notes: Melt and DWD were unfinished. Mike teased Pop Goes the Weasel during the DWD intro. Trey teased Dave's Energy Guide during Taste.
You can stream it here
The Lot scene was pretty good.
The had all the vending in one lot but pretty much let people do what
they want. Saw a lot of people locally and from the West Coast. The
unifying thread? Hanover, PA, The Place to Be!
Went inside and found a good
spot. First set was solid and my friend Renee finally got her first
Sparkle after 17+ years of waiting. Melt was good with a dark jam at
the end. But like most shows on this Tour, it was all about the
second set.
We got a Down with Disease
opener and they tore it up. Trey unleashes what might be the
prettiest solo I have ever heard him lay down. It was like sunshine
flowing out of him. It was all HOSE. Really incredible stuff. Sounded
rather Allman Brothers-esque, which got everyone thinking about
Halloween and what album they might cover. Taste allowed us to catch
our breath but that was no slouch either, including a Dave's Energy
Guide tease, obviously in tribute to myself and my relationship to
Reading.
The surprise highlight of the
set was 20 Years Later. A good friend told me this song really spoke
to him as he looked back where he was 20 years ago. It spoke to every
music and jam lover on this night. They went into a deep 3.0 jam that
was just out of this world. I heard Rider teases and Watson heard the
Wheel teases. I'm sure other people heard other Dead-esque jams
throughout the song. Words really can't do it justice so you will
just have to listen to it yourself. Really good, grade A stuff, like
only the Phish from Vermont can do.
And what can be said about the encore? 3 songs, including
Reba! Wow. This was definitely a you snooze you lose, smack dab in
the middle of the week, last show before a hyped big show.
Here's to everyone having a good week and maybe even some Summer Tour dates to be announced!
Dave Kemp
BA American Studies
PhD Rock and Roll
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