If you told me five years ago that I would pay money to go see another Phish show I would have told you to go fly a kite. The last performance I saw up in northern Vermont was considered at the time to be the last Phish show ever. From the horrendous weather and muddy fields to the sloppy performance on stage, it was an experience I would like to forget. To me, I viewed this last show as closure. Kind of like a break up between two lovers because, in reality, Phish truly was my first musical love. Yeah, I had been into metal for a short time (Pantera, Sepultura), was obsessed with Nirvana and even went through a little Bob Marley phase like any normal adolescent. But it was Phish that grabbed my attention for over six years and fifty plus live shows.
Since I started to turn away from Phish around 2001 / 02, I began broadening my musical tastes. It started with Wilco, then Stephen Malkmus (& the Jicks), which eventually turned into my obsession for Pavement. Electronic music grabbed my attention and in walked Hot Chip followed shortly by LCD Soundsystem. Now it’s Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver and Deerhunter that visit me often through the iPod. In other words, I’ve evolved. And the biggest difference between these bands and Phish is that their musicianship far exceeds that of the foursome from Vermont. Not that each member of Phish isn’t musically talented. In fact, some of them are remarkably talented and can play several genres of music (rock, jazz, bluegrass). The problem is together as a band they don’t stretch a lot of boundaries in the studio. Most of their talent is left out on the playing field – the live stage.
When I first heard Phish was returning I wasn’t completely surprised. I also wasn’t completely ecstatic thinking I’d go to a show. Having been in the scene, I know how crazy the fans can be and it would surely be a circus at all the first few shows. But when they announced they’d be playing Fenway Park, which is a hop skip and jump from my current abode in Cambridge, I couldn’t pass it up. As I walked up to the park this past Sunday, I saw the sea of dreadlocks, crazy sunglasses, wacky head bands and your typical bug eyed hippy and thought to myself, “I wonder if it’s too late to turn back”. But I met up with my close friends and started to feel that old feeling I use to get when I was about to embark on a live Phish experience. It all starts with your friends and as I think more about it, a lot of what Phish is about is the experiences you share with friends.
My Fenway Review -
By now, most people remotely interested in the band are aware of the songs they played and those of you who don’t like Phish don’t care what they played so I’ll spare you the play by play.
Most reviews coming out give praise to the band, and rightly so. As Phish shows go, this was a top notch performance. The show brought out a few emotions. As expected, there was the sense of nostalgia. But what I didn’t necessarily expect was how much I would enjoy it. Since I stopped seeing Phish, I’ve rarely made trips to large venues. The main reason is there aren’t too many bands out there that can move a crowd of 30,000 like Phish can.
From the “Stash” to the rare “Destiny Unbound” (last performance was in Long Island back in 2003, but before then it hadn’t been played since 1991. The common belief in why the song was shelved was that it sounded too much like the Grateful Dead. For die hard Phish fans, being at a show when they break out a tune that’s been in hiding for a long period of time is like being touched by the hand of God). As they finished off the first set with a climatic version of “Character Zero”, I was starting to remember what all the fuss was about when I was just a young and stupid teenager traveling all over the country.
During the first set break I looked around and saw familiar faces, sparked conversations with strangers discussing our past shows, how we thought the show was going or argued with a Mets fan how the Phillies are going to once again take the NL East. There’s no question that this sense of community was a huge part of why I became a Phish head to begin with. I’m happy to see this community is still thriving, even if it is tainted with a few bad apples here and there.
I do struggle with their new songs. I think a big reason for this is how much my musical tastes have changed. I also don’t like it when Trey tries to sing like a pop star. There are moments in “Time Turns Elastic”, their new 13 minute long epic, where I feel like I’m at a musical. In fact, this song could work perfectly in the musical Tommy. If this were the case, I’d rather here the Tommy song “Sparks” (listen to “Time Turns Elastic” at myspace.com/phish). Towards the end of the song, which turned out to be a 17 minute long adventure, they did manage to pull out a pretty rocking jam. I know, I bet some of you are probably cringing at the thought of standing there listening to a song that long.
They capped off the night perfectly with a killer “You Enjoy Myself” and if you thought the seventeen minute long “Time Turns Elastic” was ridiculous, get a load of the length of this one – 22 minutes!! Oh, BOY!!! From the beautiful appregio at the beginning, to the climatic jam (watch this section in the video below), to the trampolines that Trey and Mike (bass) jump on in unison as they groove along to the song, this truly is the quintessential Phish song.
Phish at Fenway – You Enjoy Myself from hip2besquare.net on Vimeo.
They left us like they did at the end of the first set with our jaws ajar. They played “Cavern”, “Good Times Bade Times” (Led Zeppelin cover) and “Tweezer Reprise”. Those of you who frequent Red Sox games may have heard the house DJ play “Tweezer Reprise” on occasion.
There will always be a special place in my musical explorations for a Phish show. No matter how old I am, I know that if there’s a Phish show around the corner I’ll most likely be there. I probably won’t be hopping in the car to drive from town to town catching ten shows in a row like the old days, but at least I’ll have my chances to meet up with friends, share a beer in the parking lot, look over at my buddy and high five him as they break into a rousing rendition of “You Enjoy Myself” or “Fluffhead”.
Now, on to tonight’s Grizzly Bear show where I look forward to continuing to broaden my horizons and expanding my passion for the glorious thing we call music.
