PicoBlog

Trey Anastasio & Classic TAB came north of the border last night for a rare show in Toronto. While Phish has performed here recently in 2022 and 2019, this is the first hometown TAB show for me since 2017 and the first one with the stripped-down quartet that has been blazing its way across the Midwest for the past couple of weeks.

After listening along to the previous shows of the tour, my anticipation was high due to the incredible interplay on display every night between Anastasio and bassist Dezron Douglas, who seems to get more confident and assertive on each tour he plays as a part of TAB.

The night began with “Cayman Review,” always a classic opener in my mind as it was the first song I saw TAB perform live in Toronto all the way back in 2013. Drummer Russ Lawton and Douglas grooved in perfect lockstep through the easy space and Anastasio added a little extra mustard onto this version – throwing in an extra couple of minutes of soloing before the final verse.

Wasting no time, “Wolfman’s Brother” was tapped next and saw the band really explore some patient spaces with a commitment to quieter dynamics. Early on, keyboardist Ray Paczkowski hit his Wurlitzer electric piano for some bouncy and jazzy licks, throwing melodies back and forth with Anastasio. The improv was unhurried and Douglas’ bass lines made it impossible not to lock in and dance. While a recent addition to the TAB setlist repertoire, I feel as though a funky vehicle like “Wolfman’s” is perfectly suited to this band – though I did miss the vocal round that we get with Phish.

The extended foray into funk was followed by a tender “Water in the Sky” featuring Anastasio on acoustic guitar – an amazing rendition that featured a breathtaking piano solo from Paczkowski.

Next up, Lawton counted off “In Rounds,” a song that was near the top of the list of things I was hoping for. Once again, Anastasio’s rhythm guitar allowed for Douglas to take the lead, digging in to some stanky lines with a huge grin on his face. The relatively short rendition wrapped up on a high note and led into “Twist.” Douglas once again stood out from the first notes with his thick envelope filtered-tone, spurring the band into some intense Type 1.5 play. Lawton picked up into a double-time groove as Paczkowski let loose on the piano, raising the energy higher and higher. Anastasio gave us the first serious guitar-centric moment of the night with some bent leads as Douglas hit an incredible descending lick. Unfortunately, the guitarist quickly pulled us back into the ending of “Twist,” but the final minute of that jam was really on FIRE.

“Where They’ll Find Us” was a reggae-tinged cooldown (LONG bathroom lines for this one) before “Alaska” kept the mid-tempo grooves going. I thought of James Casey during this song – at the TAB show in 2017, he took an electric saxophone solo that was one of the most memorable parts of that concert. His presence continues to be dearly missed!

The first set wrapped up with a strong combination of “Sweet Dreams Melinda,” a tender “mercy,” “Evolve,” and a ferocious “About to Run,” the closer featuring some incredible fretboard fireworks from Anastasio.

Coming out for the second set, the quartet blazed into an uptempo “No Men in No Man’s Land” with bass once again at the forefront. FOH engineer Garry Brown had the room dialed in to perfection and each note was crystal clear as Anastasio confidently led the band through a tight segment of improv. Throwing in some synth effects, it seemed as though we might be in for some extended jamming, but “NMINML” wrapped up just after the 8-minute mark in favour of “The Moma Dance.”

One of the best things about TAB playing this song is that I finally know the words that Fishman whispers after the first chorus – thanks, Trey!

This jam began once again with Douglas at the lead, the rest of the band relaxing into the groove behind him. TAB proceeded to do what they do best – hang out and let the jam expand around them organically. Eventually switching to lead work, Anastasio locked in on some descending licks with Douglas, who proceeded to absolutely light up the re-entry to “Moma” proper with some chord-like dissonance that caused Anastasio to flash a huge smile to the bassist, his glee and excitement at the musical moment evident.

“Spin” came next, a TAB classic with another syrupy jam for us to sink into. Anastasio blazed through a screaming solo on this one, utilizing his Whammy pedal for some psychedelic effects. Paczkowski’s jazzy piano chords were essential to the mix here, and he was also a standout on a tender “Lonely Trip” that followed, dancing across his piano with an unmistakeable fluidity only he can play with.

“Ocelot” has become an excellent addition to TAB in recent years, with Paczkowski’s MuTron-infused clav sounding like bursting bubbles throughout the relaxed jam. “hey stranger,” another of my favourite recent debuts, saw another incredible segment of interplay between Anastasio and Paczkowski’s Wurlitzer, the keyboardist being the clear standout of this part of the set.

Lawton introduced a concise “The Way I Feel” with its trademark shaker, giving Anastasio a great platform for some more straight-up rock ‘n roll guitar playing.

Ahead of the set-closing “Everything’s Right,” Anastasio expressed his love for Toronto and said he hopes he can come back soon – so do we!

A patient build ensued, sticking to “ER” proper but featuring numerous explosive peaks and even a bonus guitar solo after returning to the chorus at the end.

For the encore, we were treated to two slower tunes in “Long Long Time” and “Love is What We Are” before a blistering “Carini” threatened to blow the roof off of the venue with its ferocity.

With an emphasis on a lot of more mid-tempo groove jams, there was less fire and foot-to-the-floor energy than TAB has displayed on other shows this tour, but the music played was still incredible and the Toronto faithful brought great vibes and energy throughout the night.

Tour continues tonight in Montreal before three nights in Brooklyn this week that will no doubt lead to some big pockets of improv…and I’m very excited for those shows!

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