Trey Anastasio brought his solo acoustic tour to Rochester at the Kodak Hall on the campus of the Eastman School of Music on Wednesday March 12. In the end it wasn’t strictly acoustic nor was he strictly solo, but Anastasio has always been one to color outside the lines.
A hushed buzz of anticipation built inside the gorgeous gilded theater, strangers swapped excited remarks in the comfortable and loungey restrooms, in the bar lines and amongst the three tiers of seating. It was like waiting to see how that roll of film comes out, what would develop over the next couple of hours when Anastasio took the stage in the Photo City?
The colors of full band Phish or TAB songs got stripped down to black and white. The drum kit, massive keyboard setup, bass rig and backing wall of amps replaced by a chair, table and small bank of pedals. When Anastasio finally emerged the buzz erupted into a roar. A lone spotlight hit him and he introduced himself with a simple one word “Hello.”
Some lasting snapshots from the evening.
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The set opened with “Just a Touch,” a song played only once at Anastasio’s Beacon Jams during the thick of the pandemic. This was it’s first performance in front of a live audience and it was touchingly dedicated to the late James Casey, saxophonist in Trey Anastasio Band who tragically passed away in 2023. A special shared moment right off the bat.
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Anastasio connected further with the audience reminiscing about some early local gigs, like the time they played in the dining hall at the University of Rochester in 1991. He also told the story about how Santana would invite them to play with him when they were opening for him in 1992. At the Finger Lakes PAC (now CMAC) in nearby Canandaigua, drummer Jonathan Fishman asked if he could play his vacuum. Santana agreed but in Anastasio’s retelling, Santana appeared horrified on stage as Fishman proceeded to play his barely-musical cleaning appliance. Anastasio does a pretty spot-on vacuum impression incidentally.
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Without his bandmates, Anastasio needed some occasional help from the audience. During NICU and Limb By Limb the crowd joined in with perfect harmonies, this was a seasoned group that needed no cues. The repeated “And I’m taken faraway” refrain was reminiscent of the chanting scene in Close Encounters of the Third Kind, a beautiful communal moment.
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Without request, the audience turned AC/DC Bag into a folksy sing-along and it worked incredibly well, eliciting a mid-song “nice” from the song leader.
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The night was not without some signature “jams.” Utilizing multiple layers of looping, Anastasio explored the depths of some of the material, most successfully during “Back on the Train.”
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Looping was also employed for non-jammy enhancements, beautifully so in a hushed “Farmhouse.”
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“Gumbo” reworked with a slow blues edge.
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The intimacy of getting requests heard and granted, first with the damn-this-is-better-acoustic “Bug” and later with the is-he-really-going-to-play-this-this-deep-into-the-encore “You Enjoy Myself.”
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Shouting out for your friend’s birthday and having Anastasio lead the whole theater in singing her “Happy Birthday.”
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As great as having the audience join on some songs or playing with his own looped creations, it was great when Anastasio had Jeff Tanski (apparently an Eastman School reject) join on keyboards. Most incredible of their collaborations was a late set performance of “What’s the Use?” The prog rock instrumental was transformed into a gorgeous classical piano and guitar duet that was perfectly situated in the home of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. The only shame was they didn’t make use of the grand piano likely sitting just backstage.
Most of the evening developed into memorable Kodak moments, though there were some on the roll that didn’t quite turn out. Anastasio’s foot was miked, but instead of a folksy foot stomp addition, there was a distracting low murmur akin to hearing a subway car pass below. Kudos to the encyclopedic Anastasio for his willingness to try any material in the solo format, often with a moment’s unrehearsed notice, but some tunes didn’t quite translate. “Wolfman’s Brother” was barely hanging by a thread, your brain mentally filling in the gaps.
Despite a few throwaways, most were winners. Let’s order doubles!
Setlist via Phish.net
Just A Touch [1], NICU [2], Evening Song[2], Brian and Robert[2], Back on the Train[2], Farmhouse[2], I Never Needed You Like This Before[2], Backwards Down the Number Line[2], Wolfman’s Brother[2], Winterqueen[2], Evolve[2], Gumbo[2], AC/DC Bag[2] > Chalk Dust Torture[2], Limb By Limb[2], It’s Ice [3], Bug[3], Frost[3], Flying Blind [4], Happy Birthday to You[2], What’s the Use?[3], Drift While You’re Sleeping[3]
ENCORE: Mercy[2], Never[2], Sleep[2], All of These Dreams[2], You Enjoy Myself[3], Wilson[3]
[1] Trey solo acoustic; first public and first acoustic Trey performance.
[2] Trey solo acoustic.
[3] Trey acoustic and Jeff Tanksi on piano.
[4] Trey acoustic and Jeff Tanksi on piano; first acoustic Trey performance.
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