PORTLAND, Ore. — There was so much speculation as to how Phish might celebrate what was really a plethora of special occasions on Sunday night at the Moda Center.

First off, the evening marked the first time that the band had played in Portland in more than 25 years; yes, that’s right, a quarter of a century.

Of course, Phans were all psyched about the long-overdue return trip corresponding with 4/20 – the unofficial weed holiday – on the calendar. And all of this was taking place on Easter Sunday.

Sadly, as far as the latter goes, those who had Phish covering a whole set’s worth of Chris Tomlin tunes on their bingo cards did not get what they wanted. Also, no Snoop ditties for 4/20 or really any type of a big to-do about the very belated return to PDX.

But, really, why would the Vermont quartet – featuring singer-guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, dummer Jon Fishman and keyboardist Page McConnell – need such gimmicks when they can just focus all their energies on putting on a 3-and-a-half hour show that thrills everyone in attendance?

Why, indeed?

Taking the stage right after 8 p.m., Phish kicked open the first of two sets with a grove-centric take on “46 Days” – one of the key tracks from the band’s excellent 10th studio album, Round Room – which ran some 13 minutes and had the packed house of Phans in full-throttle dance mode.

From there, Anastasio fired off one meaty lead after another while leading his fellow talented musicians through a lengthy workout of the original “The Moma Dance” and right into the group’s popular cover of the Talking Heads’ “Cities,” which eventually transformed into a wild and wooly ride through the Anastasio solo cut “Plasma.”

Stopping for a quick palate cleanser – the always tasty “Bouncing Around the Room” – the band was back off to jam land again, delivering a ferocious stand-alone take on “Sigma Oasis” and then revving right into the guitar fiesta that is “Run Like an Antelope,” the crescendo of which was particularly satisfying on this night.

Putting a bow on the first set with a powerful “Say It to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.,” Phish took its standard 30-minute break before returning for a second set that was basically just one big ol’ long jam session, starting with bright “A Wave of Hope” and continuing through a groovy “Twist” and surprisingly powerful “Scents and Subtle Sounds,” which started off slow and meditative but continued to escalate its energy and intensity levels as it progressed.

The show hit its zenith with a playfully sped-up version of Stevie Wonder’s “Boogie On Reggae Woman.” Some may have read the “reggae” portion as an intentional nod to 4/20, but that seems like a stretch. The song boogied its way into a high-flying take of the “2001: A Space Odyssey” theme, Richard Strauss’ “Also sprach Zarathustra, op. 30.”

The band closed the second set with “Harry Hood” – which, it’s pretty safe to say, was likely meant as a nod to nearby Mount Hood – before ending the show in triumphant fashion with an encore of the Phish staples “Wilson” and “Slave to the Traffic Light.”

It was a great way to mark the band’s first performance in Rip City since a September 1999 date at Portland Meadows, the old horse racing track that closed in 2019. As it turns out, I also happened to be at that show, which the Phish faithful remember for the jammed-out versions of “Ghost” and “Bathtub Gin” as well as the temperature outside – all of which were smokin’ hot.

The Portland gig also served as a nice capstone to the group’s three-show spin through the Pacific Northwest, which kicked off  in Seattle two nights earlier. That show was highlighted by a jam-happy second set that consisted of just five tunes over the course of 75 minutes. Yeah, do the math on that one.

On the other hand, the second show, on April 19, was a bit lopsided toward the first set. It really got cooking with the second song, a wild 20-minute take on “Bathtub Jim,” and concluded with the tremendous one-two punch combination of “Suzy Greenberg” and “Walls of the Cave.”

Mind you, Saturday’s second set was certainly no slouch, especially early on, as the group spent about 35 minutes tangling up just two songs – opening with “Chalk Dust Torture” then disappearing into “Light” only to reappear again with more “Chalk Dust.”

Phish now heads south for two shows at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, April 22 and 23, followed by a three-night stand from April 25 to 27 at the Hollywood Bowl.

Setlist:

1. “46 Days”

2. “The Moma Dance”

3. “Cities”

4. “Plasma”

5. “Bouncing Around the Room”

6. “Sigma Oasis”

7. “Run Like an Antelope”

8. “Say It to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.”

Set 2:

9. “A Wave of Hope”

10. “Twist”

11. “Scents and Subtle Sounds”

12. “Everything’s Right”

13. “Boogie On Reggae Woman”

14. “Also sprach Zarathustra, op. 30”

15. “A Life Beyond the Dream”

16. “Harry Hood”

Encore:

17. “Wilson”

18. “Slave to the Traffic Light”

Follow photographer Leah Flores at Instagram.com/LeahFloresArt.