MEXICO2 RECAP: AND THE OCEAN IS HELL
Author's Note: I usually write these reviews with the aid of extensive notes taken during the show. The Caribbean damaged my phone, temporarily broke my smart watch (messing up my timings), and destroyed a lot of my paper to take notes. We will soldier on anyway!
While Phish have played in Mexico before, this was my first year attending instead of watching on the couch. The one thing that most fascinated me as a spectator were the people dancing in the Caribbean Sea. The waves might have pummeled them, but they were having an amazing time splashing and cavorting. It was a beautiful, warm night in Cancun, and we decided that we would do the splashing ourselves, posting-up not far from the stage but surprisingly far from land... ok, about 20 feet from dry land, but that still is a somewhat abnormal perspective to see the band.
MEXICO1 RECAP: WE'RE ALL HERE TOGETHER AND THE WEATHER'S FINE
[Recap is courtesy of Silas Cole, user @ObviousFool (Instagram @nice_shades), thank you Silas! -Ed.]
As Phish fans, we are creatures of habit. We’ve got our pre-show routines, our standard spots on the floor, our myriad of ways we choose to gamble on the setlist. Despite the mystery of every night being different, we’ve become accustomed to certain elements of a Phish show that give it familiarity. But while we appreciate that familiarity, it is the rare and unique that we truly seek.
Aside from weather fiascos (Northerly 2013, Fenway 2019), Phish has only played one-set shows at special performances (Sessions At West 54th), festivals (Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits, HORDE Tour, Doctor) and as an opening act for Santana (’92, ’96). That means this is the first “regular” planned one-set Phish show. But there’s nothing regular about seeing Phish on the beach next to the Caribbean in the heart of winter.
With the late start time, folks had ample time to take advantage of the endless free drinks. And by the time we started heading for the venue, it showed. General sloppiness aside, spirits were high and the energy was palpable. We ran into fellow .netters @slinky and @slambomartinez and shared some speculation. What unexpected treats were we in for tonight? A 90 minute “Party Time”? A sit-in from a local mariachi band? Or would it just be a standard set of Phish?
MYSTERY JAM MONDAY PART 404
Welcome to the 404th edition of Phish.Net's Mystery Jam Monday, the third contest of February. The winner will receive two MP3 download codes courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. To win, be the first person to identify the songs and dates of both mystery clips. Each person gets one guess to start – if no one answers correctly in the first 24 hours, I'll post a hint. After the hint, everyone gets one more guess before Wednesday at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Good luck!
MOCKINGBIRD AT THE SILKS / NEIGHBOR AT BRIGHTON MUSIC HALL
Please join The Mockingbird Foundation on Friday February 21st at The Silks & Neighbor show at Brighton Music Hall in Boston (Allston, MA), where we will be raising money for music education for kids and young adults.
To buy tickets, visit https://tinyurl.com/rbjrdfu, and for more information on Mockingbird, or to show your support online for the volunteers who operate phish dot net, please visit mbird.org/donate.
MYSTERY JAM MONDAY PART 403
Welcome to the 403rd edition of Phish.Net's Mystery Jam Monday, the second contest of February. This week's puzzle comes courtesy of MJM Hall-of-Famer @justino - thanks for the great clips! The winner will receive an MP3 download code courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. To win, be the first person to identify the songs and dates of both mystery clips. Each person gets one guess to start – if no one answers correctly in the first 24 hours, I'll post a hint. After the hint, everyone gets one more guess before Wednesday at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Good luck!
MYSTERY JAM MONDAY PART 402
Welcome to the 402nd edition of Phish.Net's Mystery Jam Monday, the first and easiest of February. The winner will receive an MP3 download code courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. To win, be the first person to identify the song and date of the mystery clip. Each person gets one guess to start – if no one answers correctly in the first 24 hours, I'll post a hint. After the hint, everyone gets one more guess before Wednesday at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Good luck!
VIDEO OF PRESENTATIONS MADE AT THE MAY 2019 PHISH STUDIES CONFERENCE AT OSU ARE NOW AVAILABLE
Last May, Oregon State University hosted the first-ever scholarly conference devoted to Phish’s music, fans, and culture. The three-day event showcased research from over fifty presenters, representing numerous academic disciplines ranging from sociology to philosophy to musicology. Recordings of conference presentations are now available via a free online archive.
MOCKINGBIRD AT GARCIA PEOPLES' FRIDAY JAN. 31 GIG
The Mockingbird Foundation (whose volunteers operate this site) will have a table on Friday night, January 31, 2020, at Great Scott in Allston, MA, where Garcia Peoples will perform (after an opening set by Owsley's Owls). Tickets for the gig are available here. Please stop by and say "hi" and consider making a donation to the cause of music education for children and young adults.
MYSTERY JAM MONDAY PART 401
Welcome to the 401st edition of Phish.Net's Mystery Jam Monday, the final and easiest of January. The winner will receive an MP3 download code courtesy of our friends at LivePhish.com / Nugs.Net. To win, be the first person to identify the song and date of the mystery clip, selected by MJM Hall of Famer @schvice. Each person gets one guess to start – if no one answers correctly in the first 24 hours, I'll post a hint. After the hint, everyone gets one more guess before Wednesday at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET. Good luck!
SYNCHRONICITY
[We would like to thank Kylie, user @kyphi, for this guest blog post. Kylie has a photojournalism project on Instagram (The Humans of Phish) that you may wish to check out. -Ed.]
Synchronicity is when no observable cause connects two events, yet a meaning exists between them. In other words, these are your cases of real-life magic. They’re the moments that likely won’t rearrange the course of your life, but remind you that the cosmos are capable of playing little tricks to help you remember the mundane, in fact, does not always have to be so mundane.
MYSTERY JAM MONDAY PART 400!
The Mockingbird Foundation and our friends at Osiris present Mystery Jam Monday Part 400! For this momentous occassion - the 400th regular edition of the Mystery Jam Monday series, and the first puzzle of the decade - we've got the puzzles and prizes to match. Let's get down to the nitty gritty:
The Contest
1. be the first (or second, or third) person to email the correct songs and dates of the four mystery jams below to this email address
2. each jam is connected to the next by a theme; you don't need to identify the themes to win, and the themes only connect consecutive jams (not all four)
3. every 72 hours or so, I'll provide another hint until it's been solved - THERE IS NO NEED FOR ANYONE ELSE TO PROVIDE HINTS, PLEASE (that means you, writes one of the answers on the blog bro)
4. EVERYONE, including MJM Hall of Famers, is welcome to participate in this MJM contest
The Prizes
1. first place will have first choice of one of the three prizes; second place will have second choice, and third place will win the remaining prize
2. the three prize options are:
a. one brand new copy of the limited edition Billy Breathes vinyl (RSD release 2018), courtesy of your host and the Mockingbird Foundation, autographed by Phish lyricist Tom Marshall (thanks Osiris!)
b. two screen printed posters (both the blue/red and the orange/blue) by Drew Millward for the 2016 New Year's Eve run at Madison Square Garden, courtesy of fellow MJM Hall of Famer, @wforwumbo, and the Mockingbird Foundation
c. one Osiris limited edition poster autographed by its cofounders, Tom Marshall and RJ Bee, courtesy of our friends at Osiris
3. all three winners will receive a LivePhish MP3 download code as well, courtesy of our friends at Nugs.net / LivePhish.com
MSG4 NYE RECAP: THE CURSE OF ZAMFIR
[We would like to thank Cotter, the youngest fan ever to recap a show for this blog, for recapping last night's NYE show. (Note that he also recapped MPP2 in June 2019 for us.) Happy New Year's everyone! -Ed.]
Last night was the single most memorable night of my life. The tangible excitement surrounding the holy grail of all Phish shows was contagious as it spread from me, to my mom, my dad, and even my twelve-year-old brother, who’s first show was a three set show!
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MSG 3 RECAP - WOW
[Phish.net would like to thank Jeremy Willinger for recapping last night's show -ed]
I bought a brand new mini-notebook yesterday afternoon to record my impressions while jamming at MSG. At around 11:30PM last night I crammed a wrinkled, bent, stained, stack of paper that resembled a notebook back into my pocket. On the pages were various scribbles, time stamps, and ruminations that started off very legible and devolved into an alphabet soup of observances and compliments around the beginning of the second set, for some cold, cold, cold reason...
Let’s just get the overall review out of the way: This show was absolutely epic! It is a must listen - especially the second set - but the first set has gems, pleasers, and stunning musicianship all its own. Truly, 12/30/19 will be talked about in the pantheon of shows for the ages and reinforces why Phans will do whatever we can, and endure or inure any and all unforeseen circumstances to see this foursome again and again. Now, onto the show.
MSG2 RECAP: FEELING GOOD ABOUT YEMSG
[We'd like to thank Mockingbird's own David Beckwith, @Slewfoot (IG: @davidgbeckwith), for writing last night's recap. - ed.]
There are some dates that can quickly send a shiver down the spine of a Phish fan. For many, 12/29 is one of those dates. The amount of tremendous music that has been created on this night throughout the years is somewhat staggering, perhaps equaled or surpassed only by the following night. 12/29 is also a very personal date as it was on that night in 2013 that I got back into Phish after thirteen years. On a whim, I decided to watch the webcast. I was blown away by what I saw after being out of the game for so long. These guys were having FUN and it showed – no turning back from there!
So what would last night’s show bring? Would it yield one of the longest, zaniest jams ever like on 12/29/94? Would it contain some classic, joyful funk like on 12/29/97? Would it be an underrated hidden gem like 12/29/16? Or would it be an absolute scorcher like 12/29/18? As we should have known, it was none of those things. Because 12/29/19 was its own show, its own element, just like the nights before and after it…and that’s part of the beauty of it all.
After fortifying ourselves with delicious pizza and wine nearby, we headed over to the venue. The vibe inside was all smiles and buzzed with excitement. We found some friends right in front of the soundboard and got ready. People around us were being very gracious and courteous which added to the feeling in the air.
MSG 1 RECAP - A PROMISING START TO YEMSG 2019
[Recap is courtesy of user @bobbker, Bob Ker, (@Phish1999at2019 on Twitter). Please remember that recaps are written by VOLUNTEER FANS. Their views are entirely their own and are not necessarily shared by anyone who volunteers to work on Phish.net. There is no such thing as an "official" dot net recap of a show. -Ed.]
The little-loved sibling of the annual New Year’s run, Phish’s concerts on December 28 have historically offered sporadic highlights but rarely, if ever, have produced a classic. More often than not, the band uses the night to limber up after a dormant period, eschewing strong setlist construction in favor of running through songs seemingly intended to get their muscle memory going. The enthusiasm of the audience and energy in the room makes it a worthy date on the Phish calendar, but in the opening night of the New Year’s run, the crowd traditionally writes a check that the band puts a 24-hour hold on.
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