Phish Comes Back Strong at Bonnaroo

Phish, the Beastie Boys, Animal Collective, and Public Enemy highlighted a gorgeous day for Bonnaroo yesterday, write Troy Carpenter and Jeff Vrable in Billboard, after a sadly sodden opening on Thursday. In the first of their two days as festival headliners, Phish announced their comeback after a 5-year hiatus with a set full of crowd-pleasers, ending the night with a playful rendition of the Beatles’ “Day in the Life.”

"I'm so incredibly happy to be here," Phish's Trey Anastasio told the crowd. The Beastie Boys were one of the day’s earlier highlights, bringing New York rapper Nas out to debut a track from their upcoming album, while Public Enemy stuck with old school hits. Animal Collective drew a huge crowd at the Which Stage, followed by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV On the Radio, and David Byrne. Organizers say they expect 75,000 to attend the annual Tennesee festival, which wraps up tomorrow with a Phish encore, just shy of a sell-out. (More Bonnaroo stories.)