PHISH > Walnut Creek

Stick Phish’s Walnut Creek into your home theater and you’ll be thrown into the pre-HD, mid-90s heyday of perhaps one of the most cohesive and significant live music phenomena in recent history. The two-disc set documents the second show of their 1997 summer tour, played at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre in Raleigh, N.C., through a violent storm courtesy of Hurricane Danny.Label: JEMP
[Rating: 4 Stars]

Stick Phish’s Walnut Creek into your home theater and you’ll be thrown into the pre-HD, mid-90s heyday of perhaps one of the most cohesive and significant live music phenomena in recent history. The two-disc set documents the second show of their 1997 summer tour, played at Walnut Creek Amphitheatre in Raleigh, N.C., through a violent storm courtesy of Hurricane Danny. The band’s first full-concert DVD since 2006’s Live in Brooklyn set, Walnut Creek features more than two hours of 5-camera footage in 5.1 Dolby Surround. Highlights include “Down With Disease” segueing into “Mike’s Song,” the only time the two classics have been paired in such a way. “Bouncing Around the Room” and an a cappella performance of “Hello My Baby” demonstrate the refined balance of four exceptionally democratic voices. Footage of Trey and Page during “My Soul” illustrates their guitar and piano virtuosity at its best, and then-new “Water in the Sky” comforts a soaking, yet ecstatic crowd. Though its beauty lies in its simplicity, Walnut Creek dishes up unique, diverse and downright exceptional showmanship to the comfort of your living room.