Thursday, October 13, 2011

Trey Anastasio, The Fillmore, Silver Spring, Maryland

Phish Lite

First, a few notes about the brand new venue, The Fillmore, Silver Spring, which opened in mid-September in downtown Silver Spring. With a capacity of 2,000, it is quite larger than 9:30 Club’s 1,200 person capacity. The set up however is very similar, with a balcony overlooking the stage, and the bulk of the crowd on the main floor. Supposedly the Fillmore also has a VIP section in addition to general admission. The acoustics and the feel are very similar, even considering The Fillmore’s larger size. Getting into the venue and showing ID isn’t as easy as at 9:30 Club, as it seems that they still have a few kinks to work out. However, getting out is much easier due to the shape of the foyer. It remains to be seen over the next months and years how the new venue, which I assume is in direct competition with 9:30 Club, will impact the acts that come to the area and ticket prices.

In typical fashion, Trey didn’t have an opener, he and his band just hit the stage around 8:15pm. And as notoriously cheap as hippies are, every single one in the venue that night knew that they would get their money’s worth from Trey. With at least eight or so friends on stage, including a sizable horn section, Trey played a great mix of classic Phish tunes (“Gotta Jibboo” and “First Tube), other original songs (“Simple Twist Up Dave” & “Night Speaks to a Woman”), well known covers (“Black Dog” & “Devil Went Down to Georgia”) and less well known covers (“Burn That Bridge” & “Alive Again”). Perhaps the most interesting choice was a cover of the trip rock band Gorillaz’ “Clint Eastwood.” The first set focused on much more of the blues rock nature of Trey’s musical influence, with tighter, shorter songs. I thought that it would have been the perfect show for fans of live music that have yet to muster the patience for Phish. The second set was much more instrumental and improvisational, reminiscent of a meandering Phish jam. The show, with a total running time of well over three hours, was a great opportunity to see a virtuoso like Trey on such a small stage. He looked just as at home on the small stage of the Fillmore as he does at a sold out show at Merriweather Post Pavilion or Madison Square Garden.

Setlist:
Set 1
In the Wee Wee Hours
Gotta Jibboo
Alive Again
The Devil Went Down to Georgia
Money, Love and Change
Burn That Bridge
Burlap Sack and Pumps
Push On 'Til the Day
Alaska
Tuesday
Black Dog
Set 2:
Sand
Valentine
Drifting
Simple Twist Up Dave
Liquid Time
Pigtail
Mr. Completely
Ether Sunday
Magilla
Night Speaks to a Woman
First Tube
Encore:
Clint Eastwood
Heavy Things
Sultans of Swing

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