Phish

I would like to preface this by saying that I am first and foremost a fan of music, as I think it is one of the purest forms of expression we have available to us when utilized correctly.

Personally, I am a massive fan of the rock band Phish. For me, they blend music genres better than any band I've ever listened to and if you wish to enlighten me on a band that does this better I'm all ears...or rather, eyes. Phish began small (their first gig was at an ROTC dance in 1984, and everyone hated it). They slowly made their way to the top of the live music scene on a journey that spanned from the mid 80's to the millennium. They continue to play, though for the greater part of this decade were on hiatus. Their music consists of a blending of virtually every musical genre including classical, jazz, bluegrass, country, funk, rock, folk, a capella, barbershop quartet, avant-garde, blues, folk, progressive rock, and psychedelic rock. They have been heralded by their fans as treating every show as its own unique experience, independent from the rest of their shows. The band engages in a signature style of improvisation which, when they are at their best, leads to a cohesive movement of the band through many themes and feeding off both each others' thoughts and energy as well as the audience's.

Unfortunately, Phish is often scrutinized and 'hated on' by a vast number of people. I am writing to address these criticisms and meet them with counterexamples and points, although I personally think people's hate for Phish is a direct result of an encounter they had with someone who was either a) wearing a Phish shirt; b) mentioned Phish in some way; c) liked the Grateful Dead

Many critics of Phish compare them to the Grateful Dead. Some critics view Phish's music as simply copying the Grateful Dead. This is not true. The only similarities lie in the fact that they jam, and in the culture of the band and it's relationship to it's fans. Generally, when people criticize Phish, they say something along the lines of, "Phish sucks, I hate them," or, "I don't get them," or, "it's un-BEAR-able." Basically, people seldom give solid, factual reasons why they dislike the band, and often times their hate is a result of the fan base. While I agree that there are many-a douchebag Phish fans, the fans I am friends with are kind, intelligent, and well versed in music.

Ok, on to more important matters: My argument for the genius of Phish's music, using my limited understanding of music composition.

I'm not sure if you've ever listened to the songs Reba or Divided Sky, but both those songs make use of polyrhythmics and Divided Sky contains a musical palindrome, which means that it is the same (or at least, eerily similar) played backwards as it is forwards. It also contains a section which switches between 7/8 and 6/8 (I think those are the signs). Reba is fugue-like in its composition, and has segments in which the guitar and keys 'chase' each other, in a sense.

Trey (red-head guitarist with a humorously bad voice) was intensely mentored by composer Ernie Stires. Trey wrote the majority of his compositions, such as Reba, while learning under him, and his influence on Trey's music is supposedly apparent in Trey's compositions, which include, but are not limited to, The Curtain (With), Harry Hood, You Enjoy Myself, David Bowie, Fluffhead, and the two mentioned before. Now, I cannot personally speak on the exact influence, as I did not know Ernie, but many of these songs resulted from assignments Ernie gave to Trey. Ernie died in 2008, and in 2004, his violin concerto was premiered at Carnegie Hall. Carnegie Hall don't lie (a la Rasheed Wallace). So, I find it difficult, unless you can dissect each of these compositions and prove why they are a result of poor musicianship, that you can state, as a fact, that Phish either lacks musical cohesiveness or is not talented.

Their lyrics, often criticized as being meaningless, are, in my opinion, simply difficult to understand. They have flashes of nonsense, but more often than not, are incredibly deep. Their lyrics are, for the most part, penned by lifelong friend of Trey, Tom Marshall. Here is a sample from some of my favorite lyrics of any song, not just Phish:


It's Ice

Lyrics by Tom Marshall

I press on the elastic sheet, I'm breathing through a slice
'Are they worms? or are they serpents?' bubbles through the Ice
The source was quite invisible, the ever present voice
While skating, both legs tracing different shapes I made my choice

I'm mimicking the image in whose radiance I bask
I'm tied to him, or him to me, depending who you ask
Nonetheless reluctantly reflections tumble in
I slide with all the others on the wrong side of the skin

He's fallen on the ice it cracks
will he plunge in and join me here?
he meets my eyes, to my surprise
laughs in full light of my frown
my double wants to pull me down




This poem is about a guy who is skating on a pond, battling with his reflected image on the ice. The poem gives vivid and ambiguous imagery into the experience of the man. The lyrics are give a sense of moral ambiguity in that we really can't tell whose perspective we are getting.

Musically, the song perfectly matches the lyrics, with several themes punctuating the story.



A lot of people think Phish fans are simply people too stoned to listen to 'good music,' or are only in it for the drugs. I could not disagree more. I can't tell you how many people I have met that have been turned onto Phish by an older cousin or older brother. One of my friends at college used to listen to a lot of Phish, and respects the hell outta them. His brother introduced him to the band's music. Both of them are punks at heart, and his brother is in a punk band. Personally, I was at a CD store, and saw the album Farmhouse (which was the only song I knew by them). It was 4 dollars, and some random guy next to me said, "Hey, get this one," and handed my Lawn Boy. I have two friends that are twin brothers and are in a progressive metal band, and both like Phish, one more than the other.

You don't have to listen to the jams, cause I will openly admit that they can be abrasive to some ears, but for purely educational value I hope you at least give some of those a listen. Also, I would like to mention that Phish accomplished essentially everything they have accomplished with little to no help from the media and/or the music industry. In fact, they did their best to stay away from it, because they wanted to do things their way. For their penultimate show on the eve of the new millennium, they amassed 85,000 people to a Seminole Indian reserve in Florida on December 30th and 31st. The show was the largest millennium eve concert of that night surpassing shows by Aerosmith, Billy Joel, Eric Clapton, The Eagles, Kiss, Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Elton John. The band played their marathon set from midnight to 7:30 am, without stopping. They had portopotties on stage, and security guards to ensure the band didn't wimp out.


And just because I'm curious, what are the last three shows you have been to?

The last three shows I saw were the Allman Bros and Levon Helm at Jazz Fest - It was rather surreal seeing Levon Helm on stage with so many great musicians (Allen Toussaint, Ivan Neville, Dr. John, and Stanton Moore) was magical. My only experience of him playing live is in the masterpiece concert film 'The Last Waltz.' The Brother(s) were on fire, pulling out all their best songs for a beautiful day in New Orleans. Derek Trucks has a broken foot, but it did not stop him from playing what was perhaps the most soulful guitar playing I have ever witnessed. I missed the Whipping Post, but that was in order to be on time for.....


Les Claypool on the Creole Queen Riverboat - Best show of my young life, hands down. Nothing I have ever been to could match the atmosphere of that show, and coupled with Claypool's mastery of the bass, it was simply euphoric.

Rainbow Revisited

A few months ago, I blogged about an annual gathering in a nation forest called Rainbow Gathering. In the aforementioned post, I glorified it. I was recently thinking about it because I have two friends that plan on spending the greater part of their summer at this place. At first, it seemed really cool. You know, hippie's wet dream. But, after a little speculation and thought, I realized the heavy amount of risk involved. First, lets review the pros:

1) Living self-sufficiently (kinda, not quite sure how far exactly how far they take it, but refer to the last post.)

2) Inappropriate bonding (I guess this could be pro, con, or what the hell)

3) Living with hippies, who tend to be some of the kindest people on the planet

4) Living in nature, which is pretty damn cool

5) It's free. No money involved here, just bring what you got and trade it for stuff.


While that covers most of the bases, let's look at the cons:

1) You could get injured, and although they probably have free health care, it probably sucks. In fact, a guy died because the health care was so bad

2) As a result of your injured foot becoming infected due to lack of antibiotics, it will have to amputated. Bummer, man.

3) A friend of mine said one of his friends went to rainbow gathering. When he came back, he was crazy. There are crazy amounts of powerful drugs at rainbow, and if you don't have any kind of mental meter as to what to do and what not to do you could be S.O.L.

I could probably keep going, but you get the point: It's not all happy, and it's not all fun 'n' games. People die, people get beaten.

Be safe.

The Dear Hunter

With music marketing transforming and bands looking for new ways to make money, Boston's The Dear Hunter, who released their most recent album Act III: Life and Death in June of 2009, has taken this approach:


After touring throughout most of 2009, the band has now been working on what they call the "Limited edition Lifetime Fan Club Package." Despite the somewhat cheesy name, the package is pretty sweet. They made 250 copies of it, all of which have now sold for $125 each.

Here's a look at the contents, take from their website:


* 'Act I: The Lake South, The River North' and 'Act II: The Meaning of, and All Things Regarding Ms. Leading' on clear vinyl with brand new, never-before-seen artwork encompassing both ACT I and ACT II.
* A download card that will contain several never-before-heard alternate versions of songs from ACT I and ACT II.
* A new digital-only EP featuring 3 brand new songs (unrelated to ACT I-III), available only to members of the fan club upon purchase.
* A lifetime “The Dear Hunter Passport,” which guarantees entry into any show, anytime, anywhere in the world. Specifically, a laminated pass with their picture on it. *
* A personal thank you in the liner notes of ACT IV, which is currently in the works.
* A hand-written letter from singer/songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Casey Crescenzo.
* A signed poster of the artwork for the limited edition EP.



To make it even more special, there will be ONE Golden Ticket placed in the vinyl packaging that guarantees the recipient a private performance by The Dear Hunter anywhere in the U.S. of their choosing, whether it’s in a club, living room, back yard, school gym, etc.

And this message from frontman Casey Crescenzo:

"After the past 4 years of operating on the standard record cycle system,” explains Crescenzo, “we had been searching for a way to step out of our box. As soon as this idea was presented, we were offered one creative opportunity after another—re-examining our approach to the visual nature of projects from the beginning of the band at the same time we opened the creative floodgates on new material in our home studio. We have always held our fans and friends in such high regard, so offering something special like this is truly exciting, and it gives fans a chance to become an even bigger part of what this band is about."



Personally, if a band I had invested interest in did this, I would buy it in a heartbeat. What do you think of this, and will more bands start to gravitate toward this style of marketing.



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LA Greencorps

Our experience with LA Greencorps was met with its fair share of challenges, but we managed to produce what I thought was a clever and genuine project. Our counterpart, Gregory, had difficulty meeting with us at times, but it tended to be simply because of his busy schedule. From what I could tell, Gregory participated in LA Greencorps in conjunction with DJ-ing, producing, and being a student. The project was a collaborative effort that I am proud of.

Fanatical

We all know them. They obsess about music. Not just any music, however, but a single band. Some love Radiohead, some love Springsteen, some love the Dead. All these musicians/groups have overly devout fan bases, yet they all seem to have (relatively) tame fanbases. I'm not here to talk about their fanbases. I want to talk about Insane Clown Posse. I know absolutely nothing about the band other than it is from Detroit, and it is pseudo hip hop, and while I'm sure the duo isn't a couple of psychotic, ultraviolent individuals, their fans, known as Juggalos have been known to commit violent acts, including murder. Before you tell me how stupid I am for talking about ICP like this, understand, I know nothing about the band, and have never met a Juggalo. However, according to Wikipedia, authorities have classified Juggalos as a gang in Utah, Arizona, Monroe County, Pennsylvania, and Modesto, California. Also, there have been numerous counts of fans committing violent acts. I am not trying to show you how evil ICP or Juggalos are. I want to try to figure out why this relationship exists between the band and its fans. ICP's songs feature lyrics that serve as morality tales. The group uses over the top lyrics to grab the attention of the fans, and their songs focus on a variety of issues and subjects including cannibalism, necrophelia, racism, bigotry, child abuse, domestic violence and murder. The group uses these shocking themes to get the listener to actually think about the stuff their talking about, rather than just passively listen. I think this band is massively misunderstood not only by the public, but also by many of their fans. I do not doubt that the majority of Juggalos understand the message ICP is sending. I just can't help but think that there is some connection between the themes of the songs, and the notoriety of the fan base as violent.

Ameriville

A perfectly executed commentary on the inefficiencies of our government, Ameriville delivers to the audience premier writing, acting and a thick message. The play began examining the effects of Katrina, but moved on to various broad messages regarding issues with mismanagement. The message behind the play, though important, is rather obtuse, and purely rhetorical. However, let this not overshadow the superb acting and compositional skills of the Universes team. Each scene flowed in and out of itself, with fast paced lane changes between humor, tragedy, outrage, and nonsense. Executed flawlessly, and held down by the awesome performance of Ninja aka William Ruiz (chalked full of beatboxing and voice impressions), a cathartic and mesmerizing piece of work.

Fishman busts the Scalper Kings

From Phish.net:

Four individuals have been arrested on a 43-count indictment related to wire fraud and a host of related crimes perpetrated in wildly successful attempts to siphon tickets from TicketMaster, MusicToday, LiveNation and others, for resale through ticket brokers. Wiseguys and its various fronts and subsidiaries stole hundreds of thousands of tickets per year over the last 5 years, including approximately 20% of seats for the Phish reunion shows at Hampton in March 2009 (see page 46). Internal emails among Wiseguy employees indicate that the thieves had cornered the market on illegitimate access to online ticket sales and, in their words, monopolized access to the best available seats. The indictment was filed by US Attorney Paul J. Fishman.

From nj.com:

Lowson's lawyer, Mark Rush, said Wiseguy Tickets simply devised an ingenious way to buy tickets for brokers, who resold them to fans. The company moved 1.5 million tickets between 2002 and 2009, making more than $25 million in profit, authorities said.


That's over $3 million profit every year, for seven years. I hope these guys get all their money taken from them, and it is donated to the organization I plan on forming-F.A.N.S (Fans About Not Scalping), because, quite frankly, I would rather sit in the rain outside a venue than pay over face value for a ticket, based on principle alone.
I find it criminal that these people do this, and they need to be stopped. Unfortunately, the good people of the world have not yet been able to indict LiveNation and Ticketmaster for being evil just yet, but I think help is on the way.