Photo Credit: Rene Huemer

Phish returned to Toronto for the first time since 2019 last night, marking only their third appearance in Canada since 2000. The performance featured a heavily jammed “Theme From the Bottom,” an extended “Sample in a Jar,” and the tour debut of “Death Don’t Hurt Very Long.”

The evening kicked off with “Sigma Oasis,” which melted right into “Blaze On.” The 20-minute segment was filled with powerful grooves from bassist Mike Gordon and blissful melodic lines from guitarist Trey Anastasio. The band gave the audience a short reprieve from the opening jam-fest when Anastasio addressed the audience, stating, “Man, it’s really great to be here. I just wanted to say thank you for having us. We love coming to Toronto. Thank you, we’re really excited.”

Phish then jumped right into “Steam,” which they followed with “My Sweet One,” an energetic bluegrass tune. Next up was one of the biggest jams of the night, “Theme from the Bottom.” The band brought out a particularly exploratory take on the song, performing one of the most extended versions in recent history. Anastasio and keyboardist Page McConnell led the band to joyous peaks before the song melted into a fun and funky “Wombat.” However, the first set jams weren’t over yet, as Phish brought out a 12-minute “Stash” and followed with “Sand” to close out the first set.

The night’s second set opened with an extended “Sample in a Jar.” The ‘90s-era single was not truly jammed-out until the 2017 Baker’s Dozen run at Madison Square Garden and has since only been stretched out on occasion. “Sample in a Jar” extended into a spacey, delay-filled funk jam and transformed into “Down With Disease,” which stretched for over 18-minutes.

Anastasio’s thematic playing in the jam led the band into the tour debut of “Death Don’t Hurt Very Long,” which was brought into “Twenty Years Later.” The segues continued as Phish kicked into a particularly improvisational “Light” that led into “Bouncing Around the Room.” Next, Phish brought out more spacey funk, jumping into a short “Also Sprach Zarathustra.” However, the funk was not yet over, as “Also Sprach Zarathustra” made its way into Robert Palmer’s “Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley.” After a huge, arena rock style ending, the band went right into “Free” to close out the second set.

Phish returned to the stage for an encore of “Lawn Boy” and the catchy “Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S,” which was sure to be stuck in audience members’ heads for the remainder of the night. Phish will make their way to Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, Wis., for a three-night stand beginning this Friday, Aug. 12. 

Tickets to the band’s upcoming shows can still be purchased here.

Phish

Budweiser Stage – Toronto, Ontario

Aug. 10, 2022

Set I: Sigma Oasis > Blaze On, Steam, My Sweet One, Theme from the Bottom > Wombat, Stash, Sand

Set II: Sample in a Jar > Down with Disease > Death Don’t Hurt Very Long > Twenty Years Later > Light > Bouncing Around the Room, Also Sprach Zarathustra > Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley > Free

Enc.: Lawn Boy, Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S