Phishing for Biscuits: All in the Phamily

In a Boston Globe article published days before Phish kicked off their summer tour at Boston’s famed Fenway Park, the author describes that Phish’s reunion has re-ignited a community of individuals who see themselves as more than just fans (Simons). The article describes that while the most important aspect of Phish is the seemingly unlimited combinations of songs and improvisation the group performs, “a close second is the opportunity to catch up with close friends” (Simons). This illustrates the idea that the Phish phenomenon is about more than seeing a concert, but being immersed in a culture of like-minded individuals whose passion for “epic and diverse concert experiences” causes fans to return show after show establishing a “close-knit community” (Simons).

            Illustrating this idea, the Globe article mentions the Phish pre-show “lot scene,” a phenomenon borrowed from “Shakedown Street” at Grateful Dead concerts in which fans congregate in the parking lot of the venue Phish is slated to play to both socialize and sell homespun goods, food, beer, and jewelry. However, for many the lot is more than a spot to score a new tie dye or a cheap grilled cheese, but a “full blown family reunion” where fans can reconnect with their “Phish pals” (Simons).

            Branching from the loyal community of Phish followers, The Disco Biscuits have elicited a similar communal feeling amongst their fans. Following the Phish example of breaking barriers between fans and the band to foster strong connections within the scene, a hallmark of The Disco Biscuits experience is audience-performer bonding. For example in a feature article from Relix Magazine in April 2005, former Disco Biscuits drummer Sam Altman claimed that the coolest thing about his Disco Biscuits experience was that “the line between fans and the band was so completely blurred. We were all partying. We were all up all night. It was these same kids every night and there was no line between the stage and the crowd.” (Greenhaus).

          However, one of the motivations behind these all night ragers was the predominance of the rave drug, ecstasy in the scene. The presence of drugs therefore conjures an image in the minds of critics of the stereotypical member of this community as a bug-eyed deviant peddling his wares with nappy dreadlocks and baggy pants. Phish fans are similarly stamped as tie die and hemp laden stoners who neglect societal responsibility to follow a jam band indefinitely.     Countering these negative characterizations though, the Globe article argues that most fans don’t conform to the stereotype. The article states that fans are actually “professionals of all stripes…who view their fandom as just another part of their persona” (Simons). Furthermore, drugs are not necessarily the focal point of all Phish and Biscuit concert experiences. For example, harkening back to the “Wharf Rats” of the Grateful Dead era, Phish fans called the “Phellowship” and Disco Biscuits fans called “The Digital Buddahs” have united to travel the globe with their favorite jammers sober and clear headed.

The central point here is that by rejecting the archetype of the “disassociated rock star” Phish and The Disco Biscuits make fans feel more like friends than patrons. This motivates fans to travel within this diverse, colorful community of people bonded by mutual adoration for the performers to find that special feeling that can only be felt when seeing their favorite musicians in action.

 References:

  Greenhaus, Mike. "Pure Bisco: The Trance-Formation of the Disco Biscuits." Relix Magazine Apr. 2005: 64.

  Simons, Adam. "The Return of the Phish Phenomenon." Boston Globe 24 May 2009.

Phishing for Biscuits: Playing with Structure

On Friday October 2^nd, The Disco Biscuits announced their plans to hold their EP release party on October 11 at the recently opened venue “Brooklyn Bowl,” in Brooklyn, New York. While the show was announced rather close to the actual performance date, tickets for the intimate 600 person show still sold out in a matter of hours. Fans experienced similar frustration when the 10,000 tickets available for Phish’s reunion shows in Hampton, Virginia were sold out in literally a matter of minutes. While such difficulty to acquire tickets is frustrating for fans, this week's topic will explore the unique musical approaches the groups take to their shows that cause their tickets to be consumed so quickly.

While Phish certainly did not invent the practice of transitional material, one of the most popular elements of a Phish show is their ability to move through a series of songs without stopping. Transitions are musical content that act as a bridge from one song to another, and often fastens the audience’s attention because they aren’t bothered by constant stopping and starting within the set.

              Because The Disco Biscuits were so heavily influenced by Phish’s musical practices, transitions also became an integral part of their live show. However, The Disco Biscuits have since taken this practice to the extreme, and often times play entire sets of 1-3 hours without stopping once. As guitarist Jon Gutwillig described the practice in a 2008 interview, “we do improv between the sections getting from one song to the other so we don’t have to stop, and a lot of the time those are the part of the show that the fans like the most because it’s exciting to guess where the jam is going, and it’s danceable” (Gutwillig Interview).

 Furthermore, the Biscuits use fresh and innovative techniques to play with the structure of their songs. Imagine an average Disco Biscuits song as a composition that begins with a structured hook before ultimately transforming into a climactic peak. The hook of a song is soulful and melodic, and often contains the song's vocal section. Once finished with the composed hook, the group transitions into an improvised jam section that builds momentum until the song culminates with a final composed peak, a fast-paced musical section that serves to complete the song with high intensity. While the group sometimes plays such songs straight through, they often tweak them in topsy-turvy ways that maintain an atmosphere of mystery and surprise throughout the show.

For example, The Biscuits will at times play the hook of the song, transition into a totally different song, and then transition back into the peak of the first song. In addition, the Biscuits at time play “inverted” or backward versions of their songs that start with the peak before dropping into the hook.  The Biscuits also play the “ending only” of their songs in which only the peak is played and not the hook, or “unfinished” versions that feature the hook without the peak.

These practices allow Phish and The Disco Biscuits to keep their song library fresh, as the different forms of improvisation and transitional material ensure the same songs sound different every time. This leads fans to snatch up tickets as quickly as possible, lest they miss something truly unforgettable.

 References:

 Gutwillig, Jon. Interview produced by Diana Costello. “The Disco Biscuits at Nokia Theater New Years Eve Run 2008.” Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5G7UKxQT6g&feature=player_embedded. 30 Dec. 2008.

Phishing for Biscuits: A Live Experience

As The Disco Biscuits continue adding dates to their immense fall tour and Phish continues to prepare for their first multi-day festival in a half decade, it seems like a good opportunity to briefly shift the focus away from the current events surrounding these two groups in order to describe some of the unique performance tactics the groups utilize when playing live.

            Referencing historic events like rock and roll originator Little Richard swinging from an 100 foot rope over a Memphis stage to The Who’s Keith Moon exploding his drum set on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, Phish and The Disco Biscuits have adopted the concept that their music is as much about the stage show as the music proper. Accordingly, while skeptics may question why fans would go to such trouble to see the same group play similar material night after night, it is because the groups have set a precedent of creating one-of-a-kind live experiences rather than just concerts.

            For example, during the final late-night set of Phish’s third multi-day festival called Lemonwheel, guitarist Trey Anastasio lit a fuse that traveled from the stage to the fence bordering the festival, and ignited an enormous model elephant into an array of fire and water works while the group played a cover of 20^th century composer, Henry Mancini’s “Baby Elephant Walk.” At another Phish event, the It festival, the group awoke the festival goers with an unannounced, spacey, ambient set atop an air traffic control tower that began at 2:30 am. Phish is also well known for their tendency to switch instruments mid-performance, and using seemingly non-musical household items like Jon Fishman’s vacuum cleaner in a select few of their live shows. Such unique performance methods drew a massive crowd of 85,000 eager fans to the 5^th Phish festival, Big Cypress, held in Southern Florida on the eve of the new millennium.

            Following the example of their predecessors, The Disco Biscuits have also integrated theatrical means into their shows to create an experience for their audience. For example, at this past summer’s Camp Bisco, a multi-day festival organized by The Disco Biscuits, the group entered the stage as alter ego “The Perfume,” a side project in which the members perform Disco Biscuits songs in non-traditional ways. The resulting performance included a hip-hop version of their song “M.E.M.P.H.I.S” and a calypso version of song “Once the Fiddler Paid.” In addition, at a performance at New Jersey’s Starland Ballroom in February 2008, guitarist Jon Gutwillig paid homage to the destructive tendencies of ‘60s rockers like Pete Townshend and Jimi Hendrix when he demolished his guitar in front of the sold out crowd.

            As you can see, the two groups see their job as not only playing their instruments, but also creating an environment of fun and surprise throughout the performance. Consequently, Phish and The Disco Biscuits have cemented a reputation of crowd-pleasing shows that not only illustrate great musical virtuosity but also constantly keep audiences wondering what’s to come next.