Just Keep Swimming: Phish Packs the SPAC, Once Again
Thousands gather on the SPAC lawn for the second night of Phish’s three-night run.
Photo by Jonathon Norcross.
Phish 2025 summer tour poster via Live Nation.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Phish played three shows at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) last weekend, packing tens of thousands of spectators into the usually serene Spa State Park. According to Setlist.FM, a database that has catalogued nearly one million live shows, Phish has now played at SPAC 27 times, making them one of the most popular bands in the venue’s storied history.
The Vermont-based quartet made headlines when, on Sunday, they used “Tweezer Reprise” as a jumping-off point for a series of jams. Their setlists also included time-tested favorites, such as “Bathtub Gin,” “Birds of a Feather,” “Chalk Dust Torture,” “Run like an Antelope,” “Wading in the Velvet Sea,” “Down with Disease,” “Reba,” and “Tweezer.” Covers included “Loving Cup” by the Rolling Stones, “Rock & Roll” by the Velvet Underground, and “Boogie on Reggae Woman” by Stevie Wonder.
Some oddities and rarities during the three-night run: “Tweezer” was played as an encore for the first time; “N.I.B.” by Black Sabbath was teased several times in recognition of Ozzy Osbourne’s recent passing; and “Happy Birthday” was teased during “No Men in No Men’s Land”.