So, the first five songs of Set 1, even with the (too) rare Crossroads, are just ok in the grand scheme of things. They serve as an extended intro to the evening, and that's fine. Once Theme hits, it's, without exception, two hours of outrageously good '97 Phish. The Antelope that closes Set 1, I've finally decided, is my all time personal favorite (and this is coming from someone who's daily alarm is set to the 12/6/97 version), and the Tube in Set 2 is a perfect 10-minute distillation of what the band was doing during this time period. It's exceptional.

It's 2019, so I'm not breaking any new ground when I say that 1997 was a, um, good year, and 12/29's Theme through YEM is a helpful primer to understanding why it was so good.