Phish made their return to the Crescent City with their first Jazz Fest show since 1996. The first set saw a relaxed, well-rehearsed band tear through a selection of familiar cuts such as the opening “Kill Devil Falls,” “The Moma Dance,” “Rift” and “Wolfman’s Brother” before Page McConnell (who performed with The Meter Men the night before) serenaded the crowd on “Lawn Boy.” Trey Anastasio dedicated the song to the people of Jazz Fest and McConnell reiterated Anastasio’s previous sentiment on how special it was to return to New Orleans.

The lone cover of the show would come in the form of “Funky Bitch” while “The Line” would be the only Wingsuit song to appear in the opening setlist of the year, serving as the penultimate song of the first set. “Character Zero” brought the first frame to a rocking close.

The second set included a variety of improv-heavy staples, kicking off with a “Down with Disease” that would eventually segue into “Birds of a Feather” after the band’s first true improvisation of the evening. “Twist” would continue its recent trend of featuring quirky, call and response sections from the band before giving way to the fun “Sparkle” and more standard “Free.” “Light” headed a trio of heavy instrumentation with “Sand” and “Harry Hood” following after.

Phish closed their set and show with a heavy dose of their rock influence, including “Cavern,” the a capella “Grind” and the closer “Julius,” ending their Jazz Fest set. Next up for Phish is the start of their Summer tour on July 1 in Mansfield, MA. Before that, Trey Anastasio will hit the road with his band for a trio of dates beginning May 23 in Cleveland, OH.

Here’s a look at the setlist:

Phish
April 26, 2014
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival New Orleans, LA

Set I: Kill Devil Falls, The Moma Dance > Rift, Wolfman’s Brother, Lawn Boy, Party Time, Ocelot, Funky Bitch, 46 Days, The Line, Character Zero

Set II: Down with Disease > Birds of a Feather, Twist, Sparkle, Free, Light, Sand, Harry Hood, Cavern, Grind

Enc: Julius