This Time’s Gonna Be Different
Is it a coincidence that so many consider 1995 Phish’s strongest year? Could this be because so many were indoctrinated in those 5 years before 1995 and considered the new material being played at that time exactly what they wanted to hear? Perhaps when Phish writes albums less frequently it creates bigger “taste gaps” in between the segments of their fan base in that pop culture changes more in two years than it does in one.
2015 — An Introduction
This year with Phish all started in Miami for me as Phish lept into “the Dogs” immediately recalling the Vegas Halloween show. There, for the second consecutive Halloween, Phish debuted an entire set of new material. What a stellar year 2014 was for Phish and all of us, beginning in New Orleans for the their first Jazzfest Performance since 1996.
Our boys were allotted the longest time slots of all the artists on a bill they shared with Eric Clapton, Robert Plant, and Carlos Santana. Then in June they released Fuego, their first album in almost five years, to great acclaim. The energy from that album and its own special trajectory propelled Phish throughout their 2014 tours. Over the Summer, we got a “Fuego” at every tour stop except Oak Mountain. Trey was proud of his new anthem, “Down with Disease” for the 3.0 era. And a West Coast Fall Tour that climaxed at just the right moment, during Halloween’s 2nd set.
In Las Vegas Phish deployed a new-found sense of song structure and craft, adding samples, perhaps foreshadowing years of future sonic experimentation. In addition, they introduced a new embodiment of theatrics in their show space to augment this new mode.
Who would have thought that just a few weeks after Miami we would be informed that Trey would play the part of Jerry Garcia for the remaining members of the Grateful Dead’s final 5 shows? We endured months of ticketing frustrations and lost our minds over fears of missing out on this once in a lifetime opportunity. We would see one of our heroes serendipitously enacting a dream before our very eyes.
Next we got to witness Mike and his new and improved band storm the country with their groundbreaking sounds and visual effects. We heard new material from Mike that demonstrated a new level of creative maturity, witnessing higher levels of leadership and confidence from Mike.
And there was Chicago, with it’s majestically epic peaks, nuances, and breezy daydreams where, alongside Mike and Page, we saw Trey exceed everyone’s expectations, closing a monumental chapter in the history of American music. An instant legend was born. And this was where this latest chapter of Phish began:
Who would have ever thought that 20 years after what many claim was Phish’s peak year — Phish would ascend to such new uncharted heights? In 1995 and even the years before there was a great influx of Grateful Dead fans to the Phish scene. With the death of Jerry Garcia in the late summer of 1995 that migration was completed. And now, 20 years later, another wave of immigration from that realm as well as a new stronger wave from the general population from the popular success of Fuego which debuted at number 7 on the Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 32,000 copies in the United States alone. A new Phish scene has finally crystallized simultaneously with a new phase of the band. A new generation has arrived and Phish has altered their form enough to keep themselves and this new, more contemporary, audience fully enthralled.
On July 21st, in Bend, Oregon, Summer Tour began. We all heard rumors of new material at soundcheck. Two of these songs had never been heard and the other was one of Mike’s new songs from his Spring tour. Once the Bend run was complete seven new songs had been introduced into Phish’s arsenal: “Blaze On”, “Shade”, “No Men in No Man’s Land”, “Mercury”, “How Many People Are You”, “Heavy Rotation”, and “Scabbard”. The first four of those songs were all new Phish songs while the other three were Mike, Page, and Trey originals from their solo tours. After introducing all the Fuego material in 2013 and favoring it throughout 2014’s shows here we were again with new songs.
Why Do So Many of us Prefer Phish’s Older Material?
For most of us what originally drew us to Phish was not their live jamming but their songwriting and compositional abilities. We must remember that this aspect of Phish has evolved continuously throughout their career just as their improvisation has. With each new song and album Phish has strived to stay “current” incorporating modern musical trends into their traditional sound (read: the sound of Junta, Lawn Boy, Nectar) You may recall the first Phish song I heard was “Sparkle” and that it reminded me of my favorite current band at that time: They Might Be Giants, who happened to be on Elektra records alongside Phish. They Might Be Giants’ 1990 release Flood had gone platinum and they were huge on college radio.
As a 12 year old I was very influenced by older kids and my counselors at summer camp introduced me to the Dave Matthews Band, the Connells, the Smashing Pumpkins, Blues Traveler, and many other “alternative acts”. The similarity of sound between “Sparkle” and They Might Be Giants is no coincidence. The individual members of Phish kept their fingers on the pulse of popular and fringe music throughout those years and, like any artist who considers him or herself contemporary and current, allowed certain mainstream influences. Pop always matters. Even when it sucks.
Now I must make a confession, since around 2005 I have lost touch with most contemporary music, familiar only with major hits I might hear on the radio. I’m pretty sure many Phish fans are the same way — somewhat stuck in the past musically.
We must realize many of those same fans were really digging into music when they came across Phish. This is an aspect of Phish that has evaded scrutiny. Because Phish is so musically sophisticated and diverse, they often enough become the “be-all end-all” of musical discovery by their fans. Perhaps once you go Stash you never go back.
Is this why Phish fans become so easily “jaded” with newer material?
When we are new to the band, the initial slate of songs we connect with are thereafter going to be regarded, by us, as classics. It solidifies the timing of our spiritual tether to the band. New material is more likely be viewed as inferior simply due to the depth of our integration with that originally classic material. Again — this may be due to the phenomenon that after we get into Phish we tune out of the contemporary music as time passes.
The members of Phish on the other hand do not tune out and are continually influenced by that music. If you need proof of this look simply to interviews with the band. This explains why someone like me may not be initially as drawn to a song like “Fuego” or “The Line” as I was with “Sample in a Jar” or “Free.” The music that was likely influencing Phish when I first got into them was an influence upon me as well while the music that led to the writing of more current tracks was less influential on me and hence my instant lesser connection with the more recent material.
We prefer Phish’s older material because we prefer the popular music of the 80’s and 90’s to the popular music of today.
This leads me to my experience in Tuscaloosa on August 2nd. I watched this show with a first-timer and she really wanted to hear “Fuego”. She was younger than me and not very familiar with earlier Phish, save for a few random tracks she had heard. This is a trend I have noticed since 2014 when Fuego came out. So many newcomers are chasing “Fuego” much like I chased “Sample in a Jar” and many others chased “Julius” in 1995.
The newest songs have always been and likely always will be gateways for new and younger fans! We must remember that they are coming from the mainstream world, waters that we too once swam in. So obviously the songs that will most appeal to them are NOT the songs that would most appeal to older Phish fans. Especially this year with an influx of new fans due to the Fare Thee Well experience, we should note that Phish thrives when it is continually refreshed with new, and fresh fans.
When we first start seeing Phish, the songs we most want to hear are the one’s we know best. Phish knows this! There are many reasons why Phish continues to write and this is one of them. People want to hear something current. If Phish stops writing new material they become a nostalgia act, a fate no one wants and which Phish is clearly working hard at avoiding.
It is interesting to note Phish released an album an average of once a year between 1989 and 1994 and then an average of one album every other year between 1994 and 2004.
So back to my original question: is it a coincidence that so many consider 1995 Phish’s strongest year? Could this be because so many were indoctrinated in those 5 years where Phish was writing and considered that material being played at that time exactly what they wanted to hear? Perhaps when Phish writes albums less frequently it creates bigger “taste gaps” in between the segments of their fan base in that pop culture changes more in two years than it does in one.
It’s no coincidence then that when Farmhouse came out it took far longer to grow on me than did Story of the Ghost which took longer than Hoist which was the first Phish album I bought right when it came out. After seeing over 100 shows I sometimes wonder “what song am I chasing now?” At some point I stopped chasing songs altogether and starting focusing on jams as most tour vets do. Now I chase shows and not songs. It doesn’t matter to me what Phish plays anymore — it’s all about how they play it. If you imagine the cross section of Phish experience levels it’s easy to see why any two people might have vastly different opinion of a show — and that’s not even factoring in other personal aspects (ie: how they are feeling that day, recent life events, etc.) While some of us may love a second set comprised of Tweezer > Tweezer Reprise, many who are still in the “song-chasing” phase of fandom would much prefer to hear more current songs that they are chasing and less jamming (or at least — they think they would.) Thus rather a show is good or not subjectively depends just as much on your length of experience with Phish shows as it does with the show itself.
In What Way is 2015 a Peak Year?
Earlier I stated that Phish has now ascended to uncharted heights. Whatever do I mean by that? In what way? Driving back to Charleston from Alabama this past Monday I had a chance to listen to a lot of 90’s Phish and 3.0 Phish jams back to back. My main objective in actively listening was to compare and contrast. One of the first things I noticed was the number of notes Mike and Trey played in 1.0 vs. now. In 1.0 Phish seemed to play faster than they do now. What I mean by that is, in addition to the actual tempos of some songs being more beat per minute, Mike and Trey seemed to have a propensity to cram more notes into a given bar of improvisation. Like an English student who has just gained a monstrous vocabulary, 90’s Phish seemed hell bent on showcasing their musical vocabulary, sometimes to the extent of obscuring their messages for the sake of displaying technical virtuosity. In this manner, it seems to me that Phish used to say less in more time by playing more with muscle than with heart.
I also found that Phish tended to dwell on a particular musical idea for longer in the past than they do now. This is probably simply due to the fact that they latch on to musical idea faster than the used to (read: their ears have improved) Another reason why they may be crystallizing motifs more rapidly these days is because the motifs are being articulated more clearly and with less “searching” from each member than previously required. Thus they are not only arriving at their musical destinations faster due to each member being more in touch with his inner voice, but each of those inner voices has matured to the point of more clearly speaking to each other musically. What I am trying to say here is that Phish is peaking in their improvisational efficiency and clarity right now. If your goal is to receive direct musical communication from the band — there has NEVER been a better time than right now.
When I saw Trey play with the remaining members of the Grateful Dead the first thing I noticed was that his phrasing had become much “cleaner.” I believe that since he was playing with musicians who were less familiar with his style and approach than the members of Phish would be, he made a conscious decision to simplify, enunciating his ideas in such a way that they might be easier to latch onto by his fellow GD50 band members. I think a lot of us heard and experienced this facet of Trey’s performance as Trey being “respectful.” This was simply Trey’s way of enhancing his communication. With the rhythm section of the GD50 band being so much looser than Phish’s, I detected some frustration on Trey’s part in that many of the ideas he introduced at the GD50 shows were not picked up on.
After watching him play with Phish this summer I sense a greater appreciation on his part for his Phish band-mates and the chemistry that they have developed over the last 30 years. And in particular the last 5.
I also have no doubt that Mike appreciates Phish’s chemistry more than ever after investing so heavily in his own band. I believe this greater appreciation by Trey and Mike has led to a more fulfilling musical experience for each of them. If you were to compare what they are doing musically to verbal conversation it is as if in 1.0 they were speaking ultra fast and using very big words and that was the MO. Now at this peak phase of 3.0 they are speaking slowly and clearly and saying exactly the words that best convey their meaning with no need to use their massive vocabulary or technical prowess. In short they are playing with less ego than ever before. As I said in my FU Ego essay last year this leads to a more resonant signal being transmitted both from the band and through to their audience.
On the broader side of things — in 2013 Phish began to hone in on the optimal modern set flow. The fruits of that quest are now growing to unprecedented size and richness, creating a perfect canopy for their fully realized jamming abilities. In shows such as Shoreline, Atlanta (both nights), and Blossom we are seeing a new level of consistency on par with Fall 2013 — but it’s only summer time — and we’ve still got thirteen shows to go! We’ve got Phish coming out of the gates nearly every night, warmed up and ready to jam as a group — second sets with as good a flow as we’ve ever heard from them — new and very positive energy from an influx of new fans and fresh material. Summer 2015 tour is shaping up to be the best summer tour of 3.0 and who know what comes next? At the rate Phish are developing right now by Magnaball, if not Dick’s, 2015 very well could be in running for one of the strongest Summer tours ever. Considering that it took from 1988–1995 for Phish to fully develop the foundation of 1.0 it makes sense that it would then take around the same amount of years (2009–2015) to arrive at the base a new towering mountain of Phish. This time though Phish, along with us, have the benefits of life experience and maturity in order to assure that this time will indeed be different and it will last.
