Photo Credit: Dean Budnick

On Sunday, July 21, Phish closed out the first run of its 2024 summer tour with a third performance at Mansfield, Mass.’s Xfinity Center, better known to long-time fans and Commonwealth concertgoers at Great Woods. In its first-ever third night at the venue frequented by the Vermont quartet since 1992, Phish showed off the momentum accrued in the first four sets of its tour opener series by cutting deeper into its encyclopedic catalog than before and busting out some true rarities along the way.

Phish kicked off its second set with “Free,” delivering the staple with precision and power and without reaching too far beyond its typical sound, save for some adventurous pedal manipulation from Mike Gordon. The recently released “A Wave Of Hope” then launched the first sprawling jam of the evening, further solidifying a theme of daringly dark exploration demonstrated through the improvisatory runs from nights one and two. The band kept heating up with a massive presentation of “Bathtub Gin,” which featured a jam lined with teases from Trey Anastasio, such as the allusion to “Sand” and a brief, yet unmistakable quote from the Grateful Dead’s “Scarlet Begonias.” This early peak was effortlessly merged into “Wilson,” issued with relatively restrained flair to let the crowd prepare for the next sequence.

At the midpoint in the first set, Phish made waves with the first bust-outs from its 2024 tour so far, demonstrating an appreciation for the fans’ desires and willingness to get weird with coveted odd-ends in the runs to come. The band first dusted off “The Connection,” the lead single from 2004’s Undermind, for the first time since December 7, 2019. This staging was rarer than a blue moon, with Sunday’s rendition arriving as only its sixth-ever live performance since its 2009 debut.

In an exhilarating twist, fans satisfied by the gem from the vault were blindsided by another dust-off in rapid succession; from the track’s final storming chords, Phish exploded into the Sigma Oasis album closer “Thread,” last played on September 1, 2021. While more frequent in the band’s rotation than its predecessor, this staging still only marked the seventh live performance of the 2020 standout.

After closing the first frame with a lightning-quick medley of “Runaway Jim” and “Life Saving Gun,” which was the second and final Evolve entry in Sunday’s show, Phish returned to the stage with “The Squirming Coil,” keeping up its series trend of opening the second set with fan favorite tracks typically reserved for the energy-culminating closer. On Sunday, this fervor was channeled into “Tweezer,” which was the vehicle for the evening’s headiest jam, which spanned from, boxy, abstract recombinations of the four thrill-seeking improvisatory masters to some of the most sonically aligned portions of the evening. The band came together in pursuit of euphoric peaks in a fully transitioned second set, giving highlights with “Twist” and “Crosseyed and Painless.”

Phish wrapped the main portion of its set with “Slave to the Traffic Light,” then returned for an exhilarating encore of “Possum” and “Tweezer Reprise.” With a triumphant tour starter series on the books, the band will return to the stage on Tuesday, July 23 to set off its next mini-residency at Uncasville, Conn.’s Mohegan Sun Arena. For tickets and more information on these shows and Phish’s full summer calendar, visit https://phish.com/tours/.

Get an inside look at the show in the gallery below, courtesy of photographer Dean Budnick, and read on for the full setlist from Sunday night.

Phish
Xfinity Center – Mansfield, Mass.
7/21/24
Set I: Free, A Wave of Hope, Bathtub Gin > Wilson, The Connection, Thread, Joy, Runaway Jim > Life Saving Gun
Set II: The Squirming Coil > Tweezer > Scents and Subtle Sounds > Twist > Crosseyed and Painless > Slave to the Traffic Light
Encore: Possum > Tweezer Reprise