We Follow The Lines Going South
6.7.09 Camden (D. Vann)
Still reeling from Camden’s throwdown as we make our way down to Asheville, the excitement for the rest of this Summer is now bubbling more vigorously than ever. With six summer shows under their belt, Phish looks to dial up the intensity and improvisation as we enter one of the most anticipated weeks of tour. From the mountains of Asheville, to the sleeper in Knoxville (tickets are now going for $12 on TicketsNow!), and from the monstrosity of Bonnaroo to the intimacy of The Fabulous Fox Theatre- this week holds countless promising moments. The venues will be diverse, including both the grandest and smallest stages of the summer, and it’s all kicking off with an indoor GA show tonight in Asheville. Having re-acclimated to the live setting, the band looks to springboard off their colossal night in Camden and continue their fireworks down south.
6.7.09 (D.Vann)
The band members are having a blast on stage night after night; flashing huge smiles, joking with each other and the crowd, and clearly sharing our enthusiasm for what is unfolding this summer. Trey, Page and Fish look like kids in a candy store up there, and while Mike is always more reserved, his bass has been expressing his thoughts in between subtle smiles. This positive energy and enthusiasm has permeated their music into the audience where the crowds have been spectacular. Everyone at the shows is having a blast and it seems that most people are coming for the right reasons- in celebration of Phish. Once again, we are living IT, and it feels so good to be home again.
6.7.09 (D.Vann)
One of the most encouraging trends on this leg has been the copious amount of new songs, virtually all with improvisational potential. Not to mention that when these pieces are compiled onto Phish’s forthcoming album, they may just comprise the most impressive studio effort of the band’s career. Each piece focusing on a different piece of Phish’s sonic repertoire, the new material spans the Phish spectrum from ballads to psychedelia to straight-ahead rock and roll. It will be interesting to watch the development of these new songs and see when they are placed as centerpiece jam vehicles in the show. Personally, I look forward to the time when Phish builds big second set versions of “Stealing Time From the Faulty Plan,” the playful “Ocelot,” and “Twenty Years Later,” just to name a few. And that time could be sooner rather than later. Phish’s songwriting hasn’t been this strong since 1997 when they debuted a slew of new material that summer. And with the way things are going, I think we will continue to hear further debuts as we shift into the southern run.
With the band improving by the night, it has been like watching time-lapse photography of Phish’s re-development. Harnessing the precision and energy that put them on the map, and channeling it into a renewed improvisational spirit, the odysseys that made Phish famous are again knocking on our door again; and we’ve never had a more welcome visitor.
Tags: 2009, Summer '09
Glad you’re in the same boat as me ugly pig.
Hairy pood, just use the sendspace option off Miner’s No Spoliers site for for Camden and any other shows you need:
http://phishthoughts.com/nospoilers/
@old dude. the bend show isn’t gonna happen. but, ween is playing there later in august, and i’m there!
Hairy pood, here’s a tracked version of Miner’s No Spoilers.
http://drop.io/phishcamden
just got back from cruising downtown – they have the whole front of the civic center fenced off – its fort phish down there. The lineup is already getting thickish. Lot has been pushed up the hill and around the corner, but already at 2 or so there were some canopies and the cops are letting kids congregate and do whatever. The bars and etc around town of course are extra full of heads and schwills and dreads – its kind of funny, a tourist may not know anything is happening on some corners, just a few more scragglies around than usual especially fora tuesday afternoon! not seeing many tickets of course, but also a surprisingly low number of ticketless – though it’s still very early.
We were headed back to the car and spotted mr. Michael Gordon (been you to have any Mike, Man?) with a wife and stroller cruising between a 10,000 villages and an upscale furniture spot. Someone stopped him for a picture inside the store, he looked mildly irritated, and we didn’t want a disney world style character line to form so we moved on.
We’re enjoying some downtime right now and headed back out in a bit! Mike’s opener..
oh – I love the jazz conversation – some heady jazz history lessons going on round here – and the “what is phish tour” !! great stuff. And I’m still amazed that it has invaded my town 🙂
is gordo’s wife hot?
@ kevin are hollo
“kaveh,
i’m planning on doing some audience interaction flyers for the fox.
care to help out?”
get the first couple rows to sing the simpsons theme right before the boys start playing. reverse secret language.
@guyforget:
i heard she has a big nose and weird hair!
^nice!.
Guy Forget…now THAT would be a bustout!
@msbjivein…I personally love to do yardwork/landscaping at my house… but getting in the “correct frame of mind”, throwing on some Phish, and then doing yardwork makes it alot more enjoyable…
i was vacuuming my house last week in preparation of my girl’s cousin coming in to town to stay with us. I had the clifford ball DVDs rocking on my stereo to hear over the vacuum. when my girl got home from work and walked into basically a concert, she couldn’t say much due to the fact that i was vacuuming. chalk one up for me.
i never met a man i could not forget except for……
asheville photog:
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=B0&Date=20090609&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=906090805&Ref=PH&Params=Itemnr=1
I can’t wait for Deer Creek. I’m bubbling with excitement.
I had no idea how much fun Trey has playin’ live again (Camden)!! Man, watch this video!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3M0i6qPa3k&feature=related
Pretty cool Glowstick war in Camden, too. Man, I wish I had a second life abroad….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRmCiDdrfYY&feature=related
Another Portlander here! I grew up in SE, moved to Eugene for 8 years and now I’m back and livin in NW. I had no idea so many of you cats were around here. We should totally have a Phish Thoughts BBQ or something in the near future.
In my case, “abroad” means that I live in Europe….now that’s a distance;-)
But once I ignored it and took a plane and saw the Camden 2003 shows and the IT-Festival. Quite an investment, but worth it. I’d give my left nut to turn back the time and have a chance to be at the Hampton reunions shows and this summer tour. Man, I love their comeback. So full of energy.
^JPhishman
I will be at the Phish BBQ. i’m in oly, but i would take my monkey on the train down to pdx for the day/night.
@Al: fly out for the Gorge shows. do it. surrender to the flow.
i used to live PDX
also, that video is amazing. he’s doing the march onstage that he was doing on the island tour
@hairy pood: If I could I would, but I don’t know how….
As a married man with a little daughter and so many duties over here I simply cannot live that dream at the moment. But I will sometime in the future. Maybe next year, when they tour again and I’ll arrange a family holiday in the US…
@ AL….charge your card up and get over here to see some shows your credit card company called and wants you to do it
I don’t have a yard, but I have access to a community kegerator that we can use for the day/night… draft beer, BBQ and melting faces…. sounds like my kind of party! End of June/early July?