What a day... First off, the park was open exclusively for the phans!! which was sick, all the rides you wanted with minimal wait. It was fantastic!

Then the show was amazing as well!!
1st set was all over the place with some amazing rarities like Mellow Mood, Buffalo Bill, Ride Captin Ride, and Dog Faced Boy. Totally amazing. I've been going to shows since 95 and even though I've heard the first and most of the Mellow Moods played, I've only caught one Buffalo Bill and maybe 2 dog faced boys before (i think).
Wolfmans was really good, well played, and the Undermind was done nicely. I love LxL and i'll take it all the time! pretty basic but good Character 0.

2nd set was insane! Golden Age opener and it was all systems go for the rest! Mikes was done great into a chill Fast Enough to slow down for a bit, and then with a bumping Weekapaug with Golden Age teases throughout!! totally nuts!
And it didnt' stop there, Whats the Use mushed our brains into a beautiful Theme into a great BDTNL and then BAM!!! 2001 baby!! totally funktified and totally raging with great teases throughout!! The Hood was a great way to end the set, they played it great.
Encore.... Good x Bad x!!!! PHUCK YEA! I love a good Zepplin tune and this one kills it, They used to encore w this a bunch (sorta) and haven't really done it in a while so I was totally stoked to hear it,

This Darien Lake show brought Darien Lake shows up a notch!! Great Day and Great show!!

Best day ever! Amusement park full of heads, relaxing in lazy river with Dead playing over PA in park, camping right outside, then go see Phish fourth row center!!!

I have tried to think of how to summarize my Darien experience, and the best word I can think of, without sounding to simplistic, is FUN!
WifeOhFee and I arrived around 5:15, in time to get on a couple of rides in the park before it closed. Missed out on the .net Ride Of Steel meetup, and rode the mind eraser, which was outstanding, and the Motocoaster which was the most surprising roller coaster I have ever been on.
The looks on some of the Spunion faces coming off of both were HILARIOUS.
Had a brief encounter with @mmetch and @captainpookie in line at the Motocoaster.

We headed back out to our car to hydrate and eat before heading inside. Once in the pavilion, we were stopped almost immediately by a girl who asked us very excitedly to take a Nellie Kane sign that she had made, 1 of about 20. We gladly accepted and said we'd be nice and close, so she gave us two. We got to our seats, and strapped in. When the boys came on, we held up our Nellie signs as promised, along with probably 20-25 others in the pavilion. After the Jennifer Dances sign mention by Trey, I knew the pre-opener chatter would lead to the Nellie opener! This was a premonition of the fun that the band would have this night.
The Nellie--Buffalo Bill (also a nod to a sign that was up front and center)-Mellow Mood opener was not at all what I expected, but it perfectly matched the feeling of the venue. The first set, obviously, was chock full-o-songs. Wolfman's was slower than I have ever heard, with a poised and quick jam. KDF was standard, Undermind was tight, and Fishman's fills brought huge smiles to Trey and Page's faces. Rift felt a bit choppy and off to me. Ride captain Ride really seemed to be the launching point of the show and the dance party feel that would continue throughout. It's Ice was typically outstanding and concise. I was glad to hear Dog Faced Boy and Brian and Robert--two of the Phish ballads that I enjoy the most. Brian and Robert is often stuck in my head, so I was happy to sing along. The closing combo of 46 days, Limb By Limb (which I had been singing on and off for the better part of the last week) and Character Zero was solid and strong, especially the rock ending of 46 days (hear Trey screaming the chorus) and the short LxL jam. Character Zero was as it is and should be.
The 2nd set was where the down and dirty came in. Golden Age was a wonderful opener, and seemed to speak of the current state of Phish, which is a new Golden Age coming in. The transition to Mike's was quick but welcome. I didn't necessarily feel like it was forced, as some other reviews have mentioned, but it wasn't necessarily fluid either. It just sort of happened. FEFY was a great Groove interlude, and the Weekapaug was just plain dirty. Mike's intro was a wonder to behold, and the groove that ensued was funky and filthy. What's The Use was a great treat, and a great segue to the 2nd half of the 2nd set, which was all dance party. The Theme was just beautiful, and, while BDTNL gave me a good chance to retrieve some much needed cold water, I was glad they kept it brief. 2001 was super funky in the way it was in the early parts of this decade, and the Hood closer was typically spectacular. GTBT was really the perfect encore for this show.
A couple of notes:
Throughout the second set, I really started to hear how the band's recent unearthing of Led Zeppelin tunes has influenced their playing. I felt like there were a lot of heavy Fishman fueled tight funky jams, with a metal edge to them--the kind of jams you want to simultaneously get down AND bang your head to. This is a welcome evolution in my world.
WifeOhFee, who, though a music lover and getter of all that is good, has never been a Phish fan so to speak. She saw them a few times in the late 90's and early 00's, when the shows were more of a party then anything else. Long noodling jams are not her style, and Darien had none of them. for her, sober Trey makes all the difference. Darien provided her with her first real "Wow, now I GET IT" Phish moment, which is a beautiful thing for this head of 17 years!!! In fact, she couldn't wait to download the show, and was online last night seeing if there was any way we could get to another show this summer (there's an outside chance at Chicago...).

All in all, this show, while not one that people may rave about, was as outstanding as I could have hoped for, in so many ways. Oh, did I mention that this was the first night the two of us have spent away from our children since our first was born 3 1/2 years ago? TABOOT!

sometimes the boys just know and one time i made a sign. on this night phish granted me my wish and gave us with all a 2nd set for the GOLDEN AGEs! i had known since the tour was announced that darien would be my 50th and for the occasion i spray painted a canvas sheet that said "GOLDEN AGE for my 50th". with my friends, i held it up for just a second at the very end of zero and trey gave us the ol' wank n' the gun. from there we took off. the opening notes hit me like a screen door and i was taken back to the fist time i saw the band perform the track in albany almost 2 years ago. the fact that mike and co were bouncing teases off us for the rest of this musical journey was the icing on the cake. THANK YOU FISH, MIKE, TREY & PAGE! i've had more than my fair share of amazing memories seeing shows but this one will last a lifetime. can't wait for the next 50!

This show will always be my favorite show solely because it was my first phish show and the concert that changed my musical mind forever. Absolutely beautiful day, which can be rare in buffalo. Prior to this show I had only listened to probably 15 phish songs that I somehow downloaded using a file sharing program. I went with my good friend and his brother and his friends. Partied in the lot beforehand and there we were ready for the show. Lawn section which is what I prefer. I'll never forget when they came on and started playing Nellie Kane. Everyone just started dancing and it was such an amazing thing to be experiencing. I immediately knew this would not be the last time I would be at a phish show. This was before knowin about the following and the band itself. The music was unlike anything i had ever experienced, and I knew I needed more. It was the perfect concert for a first timer. Lots of different styles. A few covers that I already knew, including a zeppelin encore. My first harry hood! Just amazing!

undermind is off the charts good. best pure trey solo of the year, imo. I've heard damn near all of them. pretty darn good show overall. again, undermind is absolutely bonkers good.

Did 12 shows this summer, and this is the sleeper. 2nd set RAAAGGEE!!

I've seen phIsh live roughly 320 times. From my perspective Darien Lake was like shows were when I first started in 1991. On their worst day phIsh is still the best thing going. Sure there's less long jams but Mike n Page are killing it. Mr. Treys playing may have lost a step, her n there, but he's still capable of conjuring up absolute magic! Seemed as though this show was more or less getting a job done. Phish has heart n care about us fans. Let's put it this way, YOU GET OUT OF IT WHAT YOU PUT INTO IT!! So come on out, bring some love to share with the band and your neighbors. Get it while you can folks. Or try Panic! LoL. "Don't you see anything that you'd like to try?" Phun
Happy
Invigeratingly
Special
Heads

Idk why everybody hates on dlake shows, they are all amazing imo. Also as this being my first show, i was unexplainably satisfied. To start off, the setlist completely fit the vibe, and the vibe was very new too me. I have listend to phish years before this, and i always had a small clue on the shows and how they go down, and to be able to walk on lot and experience what ive dreamed about for years was a fuckin gift. Shakedown was nice and small, with a large green hill to chill on to the left, and a nice scenery of farm like characteristics(a barn closer to venue). Growing up in Buffalo NY, i spent my whole day on lot before the show and no time in the ammusment park. Ive ridin every ride there at least twice, hahaha. Raging through the Nellie Kane-Good Times Bad Times, there was a couple things that sparked to me, about how phish loves me as much as i love them.
1) I met new people from across the states, and had awesome conversations with them.
2) ASZ contained a "Happy Birthday" tease. This was suposivily was for a fan with a sign about it being his birthday. Then i thought for a second....and it was my b day too. Not my actual b day, but on that day i was born into the world of Phish. That was the begining to my journey.
3)Unlike reality, I will always remember the day i was born in this world....and if u ask me, thats better than reality.
This show influenced me to follow my boys through out anything. I may only be at a couple of shows....but everyone of those shows were amazing and there is more to come
Thank You Phish!

PHISH BRINGS THE RAPTURE, SUMMER 2011!

What a day, what a day! My 13th show, and my first time back to my hometown venue of darien since I saw the boys for the first time in August 09'. Free theme park admission with a ticket, so prime! It was a blast riding the rides on such a beautiful blue day, espicially with phans being the only ones allowed in the park! I heard the band rode the superman around 5pm before the show, anyone know if this is true? Would've loved to have been there for that. Also, my girlfriends first show...safe to say she had her face melted a few times over, especially for the 2001>hood. So awesome to finally be able to share in the groove with her at the best show on earth and to introduce her to the scene I know and love. Safe to say shes straight up hooked! Anyways, on to the show.

Overall, a really solid and well played show. Nearly everything was spot on and played with precision, as was almost all of leg 1. Not much open, Type II jamming at this show as I would have liked, but I can't complain one bit. The opening sequence of Nellie Kane, Mellow, and Buffalo Bill was a bit unexpected for me and had a very relaxed feel (especially for an opener), but I was certainly diggin' it. All 3 songs were first timers for me so I was happy to hear them. KDF! the party hath started friends! Not as jammy as the bethel version, but still a ragin' rendition nonetheless. Wolfman's was TIGHT and GROOVY, as it has been this whole tour. Some nice four way communication going on here, dripping funk lines and pleasing exchanges throughout. Rift was played pretty well, but not without a few hiccups. Great to hear regardless, last time I heard it live was my first show at darien in 09', go figure. Undermind was boppin', certainly enjoyable. Ride Captain Ride! I love this tune, somehow I've caught it both times they've played it in the past year. IT'S ICE! YES FINALLY! been waiting for this one. Well played version and it was great to hear the boys fire through it on all cylinders. Dog Faced Boy>Brian and Robert was a bit mellow, but a nice little break before the set closing string of songs. 46 days was straight rockin', and had me jumping up and down like a nut, just barely maintaining my grip on the rail in front of the lawn. Tossed with the salad, and bailed with the hay! Gotta love this tune, a good version no doubt, nothing crazy but solid for sure. Char Zero was char zero, heard it a plenty, but I love it every time. Crowd was going ape shit. See you in fifteen!

Golden Age! did not see this one coming. My first time hearing this one, loved every second. Great way to kick of the second set, and certainly not the last time we would hear that funkingroovin' riff that night, teases abound! Mike's was on fire! not one the way out there, jam-oriented versions of the late 90's, but still played with great intensity and certainly packed a wallop! FEFY was awesome to finally hear. Definitely slowed down the pace, as do most songs sandwiched in between Mike's and Paug, but I was eating it up! The Paug was standout for sure, the boys were really locked in on this groove and throwing in the golden age teases was a great addition. Whats the use? came as a surprise, and shifted the feel from funk to all out face melting psychedelia. A great rendition that transitioned nicely into theme. I must admit, at first I was a little bit disappointed when I heard Page drop the opening notes to theme, not that I don't like this tune, but I questioned the mid 2nd set placement. However, my worries were quickly forgotten when the boys gave us a smoothly flowing and majestic version. The transition to number line was a little shaky, and its placement felt a bit off but it worked. While I feel it's been a bit overplayed this tour, BDTNL has certainly grown on me. This version was quite nice, precise as usual and had great leads by Trey. I was goin' HAM when I heard the droning/delay intro to 2001 out of number line. SPACE FUNK....ENGAGE! This version was absolutely outstanding! Chalk full of golden age teases, oozing funk grooves, and not to mention a flawless Whats the Use? mashup in the middle. What more could you ask for? Hood you say? please tell me more! The segue into hood was done very nicely. I couldn't think of a better way to close this show. The hood was stellar, and IMO, was a bit better than the bethel version I had seen a week or so before. This one contained a feel and sound that was something very special! Great exchanges between the boys, and the song peaked so beautifully I practically lost my shit. GTBT encore was rockin' and rollin' and a perfect cap on a wonderful show. Great work boys! I'll see you at the ball!

This was my first phish show, and boy one i will remember. The first set threw me off as i did not expect any of the songs, but i enjoyed them very much. The 2nd set blew my mind away with my favorite song, weekapaug and a killer 2001. Overall great show and a great venue. I just wished they played a little more, damn you darien curfew!

It was a scorcher of a day. I arrived around 2:30 to a partially filled lot. Fans were hittin up the park, though i decided not to. I hungout in the shade, smoked a blunt, and listened to the soundcheck, which was a pleasant treat. I walked in right as the opener sounded off. I didnt recognize the first three tunes. Kill Devil Falls brought some nice energy. Wolfmans got funky and was solid. Rift was good, and Undermind was solid as well. Everything was pretty standard, LXL took off a little , but nothing spectacular. Overall a pretty mediocre set, very poor flow. The second set would not be the same case. GOlden age got us movin rightfrom the start. MIkes kept it goin , untill FEFY slowed it down. The Paug was absolutely outstanding, best of 3.0 IMO (Weekapaug hasnt exactly shined in 3.0 either, though). Try let a note ring, then those beatiful notes from Whats the Use?. I absolutely love this instrumental piece, and have seen it twice now in just three shows. Theme was stellar. Trey botched one part, but gave it another go and was outstanding through the jam. BDTNL was fun and exciting but could have been pushed farther. 2001 brought the heat! The crowd was going nuts, and everyone was groovin like crazy. Excellent whats the use? teases as well. The Hood was a fantastic closer, the peak was unlike anything i had seen in 2010. GTBT is such a fun encore and capped off an awesome day and show. See yall at superball!

First off one of the funniest things happened right away, when they walked on stage Trey immediately went to the front pointed at a sign, and bent down to get it out of the crowd. He held it up for us to read, "Jennifer Dances"! He loved it and kept the sign, and put back by his amps and then came to the mic and said "Finally, finally someone got it right with the signs!"

Then at the end of the 1st set, a group in front me put up a huge sign that said play GOLDEN AGE for my 50th, Trey saw it pointed and showed the other guys and pointed to the sign again several times. So I assume the Happy Birthday teases were for this guy too.

Overall pretty good show, they were all over the map on this one some slow ballads and epic jams. No complaints here at all.

I do like a rollercoaster ride, so I was really excited that the Darien Lake Amusement Park was to be open exclusively to ticketholders for the Phish concert on June 8th, 2011.

I got to town nice and early and checked into the hotel onsite. It was still too chilly for any swimming in their big pool but that’s okay – I had bigger fish to fry. I didn’t have a ticket yet, and on the walk from the hotel to the park I ran into a friend who handed me one for free.

Well, that was a pretty good start to the day.

The entire middle of the day was filled with riding half-empty amusement park rides with a maelstrom of friends both new and old. There were coasters of course, and swingy rides and even a trip down the flume. And anytime I wanted to skip back to the hotel room for a break it was right there.

The evening was of course filled with Phish. Not my favourite setlist but who cares? In this 3.0 era or whatever the kids are calling it the shows are consistently great – to my ears there are no other bands achieving what these guys are achieving and I had a great time.

They closed off the second set with a song I always want to hear, Harry Hood. And then a little rock and roll for the encore: Good Times Bad Times.

I’m sure after the show was nothing but good times but I can’t recall anything specifically. An educated guess would have the hotel rockin’ ’til dawn with an open door policy as strangers made friends and sleep fell by the wayside.

But that’s only a guess.

http://www.toddmanout.com

I would have to guess that you could juuuust barely slide a pubic hair (do they even make those anymore?) between the level titled "impossibilities" and the one labeled "predicting an entire Phish setlist"...i'm sure most, if not all, of us have tried to "call" a show and I know not one person who's succeeded in doing so...myself, included...however, as crafty, playful and unpredictable as they are, if you've been on this bus long enough, you know the boys are going to play certain tunes in certain locales (Cities in Mnnpls/St Paul..Bittersweet Motel in Burgettstown..JJLC in Chi-town)) or on certain days (the dreaded 4th of July Star Spangled Banner)...that being the case, it still surprises me that it took about 15 years and 6 appearances in, or jjjuuuust outside of, Buffalo, NY for the Phantastic Phour to serve up that ol' reggae classic, Buffalo Bill...after all western new york is (for better or worse...the latter of which has sadly become what even the MOST DIEHARD Bills fans---of which I am NOT one---have come to expect) the home of the NFL's Buffalo Bills...now, if I can PLEEEEEEEEZE one day catch that elusively evasive With section of Curtain...

Free download? (I'm new.)

Anyways, did anyone hear a quick BBFCFM tease early in the second set? Thought I heard one right as they were coming out of Mike's.

All these reviews are good, but for anyone reading this: I dont know why there is no mention of the Manteca teases throughout the whole show (especially the second set). If you listen to the show, you will hear many, many manteca teases.

Sorry I'd like to make a statement about my Good Times Bad Times Statement... I know they played it a few shows ago but what I was trying to say is that I really haven't heard it in a while and loved it!! I caught a bunch of them in the late 90s and early 2000s so that's really what I was getting at... anyway???

My 25th show and my buddy's sister scored us 2nd row in section 200 day of the show. We had lawns that I bought months ago when tix were released so we sold those off. Also hooked up with a lot of other friends from southern Ontario since this show is as close as Phish came to us on this tour. I was stoked for some serious fun and everything was falling in place for a great day.

What a scorcher though. Lot scene was great and Shakedown had lots of great variety for goodies and eats.

First set was unique in that they played Nellie Kane and Buffalo Bill for people that had signs. Trey also grabbed a Jennifer Dances sign from someone in the front and I thought we would see that at some point too. I got a lot of "firsts" in this set like Nellie Kane, Mellow Mood, KDF, Undermind, Ride Captain Ride and 46 Days. Also got a lot of "treats" like Buffalo Bill, It's Ice and Rift which I have only seen once before. I realize that may not make this a great set without them nailing the tunes. Highlight's were the high energy jams in Wolfman's, KDF and 46 Days and the intricate band play in composed numbers like Rift and It's Ice. They had a few flubs but they were minor and, overall, those songs were well played and great to see.

We went back to the lawn at set break and hooked up with some old friends that I had not seen in years. I kind of missed Golden Age and first part of Mike's getting caught up with them but as soon as Mike's jam kicked in, we had to get back to the primo seats we had down in front. Mike's kicked ass and they really seem to be digging the mellow tunes out of Mike's b/c FEFY was a surprise here. I do like this song and it has been many years since I have seen this one. At Alpine Valley last year they did Dirt out of Mike's so I am noticing a trend of Mike's>insert lullaby>Weekapaug. Weekapaug was it's usual raging self but they had some nice funky jamming in there as well which made this version a bit unique from others I have seen. Page was on for this one.

What's The Use was cool, but I found it strange that it started from scratch and was not jammed into, which is the usual placement I see for this tune. Energy went vary high from the Theme Jam>2001>Hood.

What a fantastic 2001 with the big time funk and lots of teases on Golden age and What's the Use again. Hood was always uplifting.

I just went to the Pine Knob show last Friday so GTBT encore was a bit of a letdown for me b/c they encored with that a few days earlier. I know I should be grateful for Zeppelin but I was praying for a Harpua or something b/c someone had the "oom pa pa" sign" in the front and Trey sure was taking requests that day. But, alas, it was not to be. No complaints though. The boys brought the energy tonight and I am always privileged to see them and, after 25 shows, my love for this band and the fun at the shows is still going strong. Come back to Toronto sometime boys so we can have you in "our house"

Golden Age was in pretty much every jam in the 2nd set. Weirdest 1st set I have ever seen. Total left field. Trey was picking tunes off signs in the front that people had for a bunch of the 1st set. The dude with the Buffalo Bill sign lost his shit. Funny stuff. Dog into Brian & Robert really had me scratching my head. Highlights of the 1st was KDF and 46 Days.... really killer jams and high peaks. 2nd set had some stellar moments but was up and down... Fast Enough and What's the Use really dropped the energy that was built up by the previous songs... but they built it up from Theme and the rest of the set was killer. Great jamming. I'm still not really sure how I feel about this show overall. There were flow issues but some of the stuff was top notch. I have to listen to it again. Nice to get the free download.