The Phish cover band, Strange Design, entertained a sparse crowd at the Fox Theatre Wednesday night, giving phans the room they needed to dance and simply rock-out to some of their most beloved tunes.

“We are Strange Design, recreating shows in their entirety…but slightly different…because we’re us,” said lead guitarist Matt Chase.

Strange Design recreated a Phish show from May, 28 1994 in Monterey, CA at the Laguna Seca Daze festival, where Phish played alongside acts like the Gin Blossoms and Big Head Todd & the Monsters. The setlist is as follows:

Set 1: Rift > Sample in a Jar, Foam, Bouncing Around the Room, Stash, The Horse > Silent in the Morning > The Sloth, Maze, Cavern.

Set 2: Axilla (part II) > It’s Ice > Tweezer, Lifeboy > Reba, Fee > Llama, You Enjoy Myself.

Encore: Poor Heart.

In Phish’s ’94 show, You Enjoy Myself featured Les Claypool playing a second bass guitar and a band-accompanied bass duel between Mike and Les in a Dueling Banjos tease during the song. And to think, Les Claypool played at the Fox only four nights before Strange Design…so close.

Boy, Man, God, Shit: Boy, they sound pretty good, Man, they went into a solo, God, they can play Llama, Shit, they went into another solo. The Phish cover band played the composed parts of the songs very well, but it was when they attempted the solos that their music fell a little flat. And no wonder, Phish is a band that thrives on spontaneity and often tries to reflect the energy of the crowd in their jams. To recreate Phish’s jams, or even the style of their jams is virtually impossible. one would have to channel the energy the band is feeling through the mind of Trey or Gordon then through their instruments. As I said, Strange Design covered ‘Llama’ beautifully, most likely because they were able to play the disciplined composition necessary for the song.

It was a valiant showing and I recommend seeing the band for a quick Phish fix anytime. They offered a somewhat shaky trampoline display, drummer Adam Chase donned the familiar circle-printed dress, and Ben Markowitz’s bass-bumping cactus stance was perfect.

So no, Trey’s ginger locks weren’t blowing in the wind, (and they do even in indoor arenas). And yes, Chase did sing the four first words to YEM correctly, unlike Trey. But it was a good time and anyone who sees Strange Design will be able to tell that this band is truly inspired by Phish’s music and does it a great honor – they even did a bonus ‘Fluffhead’ encore. In fact, listening to Strange Design recreate this amazing show made me want to hear some of their original music.

Strange Design plays in Fort Collins, CO tonight at the Aggie Theatre and Vail, CO tomorrow night at Sandbar. Go to the band’s website to vote for a show you want them to play.