The Sphere is an amazing venue that was designed primarily for live music. If you love live music, it’s a venue you need to check out, in my opinion.
I’ve been very fortunate to attend 21 shows at the Sphere:
U2 – once
Eagles – three times
Phish – five times
Dead & Company – eight times
Zac Brown – once
Postcard from Earth – once
The Wizard of Oz – twice
Overall, my experience has been incredibly joyful. I thought U2 was an excellent first choice and the only band that used different scents and fully customized the stage with LED interaction.
The overall video presentation from the Eagles and U2 was more refined and higher quality compared to Dead & Company and Phish. They also played the same songs every night for 30+ nights. That said, many of the visuals from Phish and Dead & Company were amazing and equally well produced. Their shows felt more psychedelic and more like a traditional concert experience, which isn’t surprising since Eagles and U2 were primarily seated performances, while Phish and Dead & Company were more like dance marathons.
Phish’s use of the sound system was far superior to the other bands I saw. They moved the sound throughout the room, and at times it felt like you were inside the music rather than having it come straight at you. Dead & Company did some of that during “Drums” and “Space,” but in my opinion, Phish executed it better.
I hate to say this, but I felt Zac Brown’s show was somewhat disjointed and overly dark in tone. They missed an opportunity to create a more intimate connection with the audience by relying heavily on pre-recorded video. It felt like a lot of emotional overload—just my opinion.
Postcard from Earth was a very good experience overall, though the last 10 minutes felt a bit depressing.
The Wizard of Oz may offer the most complete use of the Sphere. It engages all your senses and even creates what feels like a tornado (or at least a powerful windstorm) inside the venue.
I’m looking forward to seeing Metallica, and I hope Phish returns every year.
I miss you Bobby!