_Photo via @PhishFTR_

As the hometown San Francisco Giants played a pivotal World Series game in Kansas City, fans gathered outside nearby the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium to watch the game while Phish performed inside the venue, making for a direct clash of the music and sports worlds. The band’s second night at Bill Graham was worthy of going up against the big game as the quartet delivered two compelling and innovative sets.

Highlights from the first include an early “Mike’s Groove” that followed the “Crowd Control” opener. Phish also delivered their second rendition of TAB’s “Plasma,” which they debuted at the tour opener in Eugene, OR. This was the first time the song appeared in the first set. “Gumbo” triggered a tease-a-thon for the final two songs as the tune was teased by Anastasio in both the following “Sanity” and “Run Like An Antelope,” which closed the set.

The final frame of Phish’s second night in San Francisco was highlighted by some atypical improv, particular in the opening “Kill Devil Falls,” which hasn’t seen extensive improv like this since it last appeared in the second set on 8/25/12. The second “Mountains in the Mist” of 2014 followed (last played on July 30 in Portsmouth, VA) before “Fuego” got back to its improv-centric ways. The 12-minute jam saw the band stretch the tune out for the first time on this tour before leading into a more standard fare “Julius.”

The final three songs of the set encompassed almost 45-minutes of music, starting off with a 15-minute “Twist,” marking not just one of the best of the year but one of the best of the 3.0 era. “Runaway Jim” extended past the 10-minute mark, seeing a rare second set slotting before the closing “Harry Hood” saw the band recall some of the stellar versions played during the summer tour. The 19-minute jam was patient, building up to the type of peak that fans have come to expect from the song. An encore of “Loving Cup” closed the show.

Phish will return to Bill Graham Civic Auditorium tonight.

Here’s a look at the setlist as it appears in our Box Scores section:

Phish
Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA

Set I: Crowd Control, Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, Wingsuit, Water in the Sky, Plasma, Halfway to the Moon > Poor Heart, Gumbo > Sanity^ > Run Like an Antelope^

Set II: Kill Devil Falls* > Mountains in the Mist, Fuego > Julius, Twist > Runaway Jim > Harry Hood^^

Enc: Loving Cup

Notes: *Unfinished ^with Gumbo tease ^^with Funk #49 and Have Mercy teases

Source: Phish.net