@raidcehlalred said:

@n00b100 said:

1. If people are gonna be pushing hard for The Clifford Ball because all the songs were very crisply played, then I'd say we should be seeing a lot more love for Summer 2015 first sets on here.

Apples and oranges, man. Defend 3.0, I'm a fan too .... but what? First set '15 v. festivals?

There's a major difference. One didn't note that Phish played well in 9? - the Ball, one expected it. And then they playing those two days surpassed IT.

The Ball sets were not just crisp.... they were transcendent. The music is laser-like and exciting. You find all-timers in Reba and Wolfman's, and this list goes on. The Lope and the even the Ice and Brother.... Just imagine hearing those tunes played like that during a first set today.

Not to mention something like its Tweezer. Its precision would floor us today. The totally beautiful solo in Hood.

First sets received the appropriate (bordering upon inflated) 'amount' of love this year. I mean, to hear rough versions of PYITE and Esther (both crushed at the Ball).... and Rift and Sloth.... Head-scratching (aside from Esther, I suppose).

and @philantropist

while I love that you're an optimist, to suggest that they are playing tighter now, more than ever.... Much as I wish that were true (see Phish standards above) they can't even seem to decide upon Mike's (or, according to Trey, 'remember' how it was played).

Totally chill with where they are.... But don't we here 'pointless' noodling in basically every Set II opening DWD? (which is like every other show?)

But plenty of room to remain upbeat!

I agree! Well put!
Let me preface by saying these generalizations I make are huge leaps, just made for discussion sake!
I think there is almost a presupposition of some 'noodling' involved in improvisational-rock music. What's striking me as a general characteristic of what I'm hearing now, is the minimal amount of noodling that gets to a maximum amount of cohesive jamming.
In other words there was almost no 'noodling' from '09- Dick's '12, but there was almost no jamming either.
What impresses me now, especially this summer, is that it seems there are many more cohesive jammy moments while the dissonant, unconnected-sounding music is minimal.
We could call it the jam-to-noodle quotient! Or whatever!! Ha!