After a great Fare The Well and a spectacular Summer tour, the end of the year sounded a little too quite. But that was before I received lots of good LPs to spin...

 

New Year's Eve 1995:
Live At Madison Square Garden

 

Originaly released on 3 CD in 2005, Phish's New Year's Eve 1995 show made its way again to independent record stores on 6 LPs during the Record Store Day on 18th april 2015. This huge boxset is limited to 4500 copies and costs an arm. Of course, no store in France had it and it popped pretty quickly on eBay. Due to its already hish-sky price, scalpers can't charge much more but I've been reluctant to buy one of them over here. I waited several month to see if it would appear on Dry Goods but in september, I've been told by my contact at Phish Inc. that it won't be sold there. Thanksfully, this person managed to got me one of the remaning copies and sold it to me ! I finally received it on the 20th november, around the same time as the other vinyls bellow. But surprisingly, it ended on the Phish merchandise site on 3th december ! Grab it while you can !

The boxset is rather simple but quite nice. With six 12" discs, it's huge and, of course, heavy. It's also my first and only 6 LPs boxset. My second biggest one is David Gilmour's Live in Gdansk with 5 LPs.
All pictures and texts are taken from the original CD boxset but re-arranged on six sleeves and a leaflet. A download card is also included and, if you're lucky (if you're the first one actually), you can use mine : just find it on the pictures. One strange thing : the image used by Phish in february to hint at this release (a green square with the words "Side K : you Enjoy Myself"), isn't part of the boxset at all. Actually, the only green things on it are the tittle's letters and side numbers on the outside of the box.

I haven't got the chance to isolate myself for more than three and a half hours yet to proper listen to the music. I haven't listened to the show for many year actually as I haven't been impressed the first time I heard it. Maybe my expectations were too high knowing that Rolling Stone Magazine named it one of the "Greatest Concerts of the '90s", or maybe I wasn't in a good mood...

 Continue reading...

I'm sure you already aware that Phish's Trey Anastasio will play the five final shows of the Grateful Dead in Santa Clara and Chicago between June 27th and July 5th.

My friend Gilles from Switzerland is trying to go to the Chicago shows.

The three last shows will be webcast but apparently, the MLB stream will not be available in Europe.
They will also be broadcast in a lot of cinemas in the United States.

 

But for us in Europe, the very last show (on the 5th) will be shown in selected cinemas all over Europe on the 6th night ! Holger will attend one of the many events in Berlin.

What seems to be the complete list of cinemas can be found here. As of now, there will be 11 events in France (most by Kinepolis) and one in Switzerland but unfortunatly none anywhere near Lyon where I live...

I would love to see this in a cinema and party the night with other fans. I hope more theatres will be added to the list but the time is short.
Please make it happen !

After nearly three busy months, I finally found the time to continue my series of articles about my trip to the USA. The worst thing is that I really wanted to share this encounter at the earliest but I could not. Sorry for the wait and, as this is the first article of the year (it's about time), I wish you a very good one!

 

Wednesday, October 30th, 2013 - Noon - Philadelphia, PA

After a 2 hours drive, we arrived in Philly at around 12:15. From there I had two options : jumping on the first bus to Atlantic City at 12:30 or wait for the next one at 2:30 PM. I started to get hungry and I didn't want to miss the opportunity to have a walk in the streets of Philadelphia (na na naaa, naaa... na na naaa, naaa...), so I took my ticket for the second one.

One of the fan who were with me on the bus asked me if I had a facebook or something. So I gave him my card with my name and links to my website and the EU Phans Page (By the way, go check Holger's NYE pictures).

 

There's some funny characters in Philly

I put my bag on top of my small rolling suitcase (what a clever idea to travel light) and at the exit of the Greyhound bus station, I decided to go left. At the end of the street, I stopped at the crossroad, looking at the city around me. When the traffic light turned green, I began to cross the road.

And suddenly, I froze, my eyes opened wide and my jaw fell on the crosswalk.

Coming the opposite way, crossing the same road as me, walked Trey Anastasio.

I tried to say something, basically just "Hi", but I couldn't make a sound. I stood in the middle of the road, staring at him. As he was about to pass me, he noticed me with my Fishman hat, my golf-ball-eyes and opened mouth. He removed his headphones, walked to me and HE said "Hi".

I couldn't believed it. I was feeling awkward with my luggages on the road so we went back on the pavement to shake hands.

What went out of my mouth at this moment was certainly hard to understand. Man I was talking to Trey Anastasio!

Basically, I told him that I came here from France specifically to see Phish for the first time after listening to then for 16 years. He asked me from what part of France I came from and I answered "Lyon". He obviously knew the city. I explained to him who gave me the chance to buy my tickets for the Halloween run and he said "Oh yeah! She's great. We love her". After talking about the show the previous night at Reading and telling about a hundred times "That's crazy", I suddenly remembered that I had a gift for the band in my luggages! I asked him if he could wait one more minute because I didn't want to bother him too much. He said "Sure!". So here I am, opening wide my luggage on the sidewalk, in the middle of Philadelphia, before Trey Anastasio's feet! What a funny sight it must have be!

While I was spelunking in my suitcase, a girl who had witnessed our conversation introduced herself to Trey. She wasn't sure he was really him until I began speaking with him. I finally found the present and handed it to him explaining it was for the whole band. He laughed and looked really surprised. "Oh wait! There's also a card!" It was in my other bag but I found it quickly. When I think back, he certainly took me for a complete loony, totally freaking out in front of him.

The girl asked me if I could take a picture of them with her phone. I said "Sure! If you take a picture of us too!". Taking a picture with an artist, as some people ask during signing sessions, isn't my thing. So I guess if she hadn't been there I wouldn't have thought to ask Trey for it, but I couldn't miss the opportunity!

After that, we thanked him and he went away. The whole encounter didn't last more than 2 minutes.

I stood there, totally in shock. I kept saying to the girl next to me "I can't believe it! That's crazy!" She asked me "Are you ok? Because I'm not! I'm shaking!"

The two pictures have been taken with her phone so she asked me my number. But as I couldn't connect to a cell phone network over there, I gave her my card with my email address and she promised me she'll send the picture. Two of her friends arrived and after a small chat, I closed my luggages and left : "Don't forget to send me the pict!"

 

Back to (virtual) reality

I resumed my walk in the streets, with a big smile on my face, looking for a place to eat.

Ironically, I ended in a kind of snack called Au Bon Pain ("Good Bread", in french). I found a table next to a plug on the wall so that I could refill my phone's battery. The place also had a free wi-fi access, so I quickly went online to share my story, by mail to my family, then on Twitter and facebook.

I couldn't stop smiling and thinking that I was such a lucky bastard! I chatted with Holger while eating my chicken and apple sandwich. As the minutes passed I felt more and more anxious about the fact that the girl wouldn't send me the picture. I kept telling to myself to be patient, that she'll send it to me tonight or even the next day...

But a few minutes later...Continue reading...

With the Blossom 95 download, the Ventura boxset, Mike Gordon's The Egg and three releases for the Record Store Day, Phish knows how to keep us busy before summer tour !

After going under the rain on the 20th April to my local record store to buy the Pink Floyd's See Emily Play and other french 7", the second part of the treasure hunt began on the Internet. But this year, several surprises made the search more interesting and easier.

 

The first vinyl to reach my turn table was the vinyl edition of By My Side, a collection of ballads from Ben Harper. I found it in a french web store (Fargo) thanks to a tweet from Planète Vinyle, a french website about wax discs. But it turns out that I was in Morocco by that time and I couldn't order it right away. I had to wait my return to France a week and a half later, hoping that the disc would still be available. Luckly I made the order almost as I stepped of the plane and got my package the week later for a nice price (25€ including 3€ for shipping).

 

For the next two discs, I had to rely on good old eBay...

 

 

Trey Anastasio's Blue Ash And Other Suburbs is a nice looking 7" Picture Disc which also contains brand new music ! So new I couldn't tell by listening to the first instrumental track if I should spin it at 45 or 33RPM !

It seems like it's been limited to 1200 copies so it's no surprise it was not easy to find it a good price.

I finally got it for 38€ (half of this was shipping fees) instead of the original 15$. I know it's almost third time the price but I don't have a lot or choices, especially for shipping.

 

 

 

Continue reading...

• After Trey Anastasio's Bar 17 and Phish's Party Time, the next Trey studio album Traveler (announced for the 16th october 2012) will be the third studio album to feature the song Let Me Lie. Each version is different and you can listen to the last one here : http://diffuser.fm/trey-anastasio-let-me-lie/

 

• The cover art for Trey's 7" vinyl Scabbard and next LP Traveler can be repeated indefinetly like a wallpaper ! The right border continues on the left side and it's the same for top and bottom. I can't wait to see the bonus 7" !

 

• It's the first time that a cover (Clint Eastwood) appears on a Phish or a solo studio album, if you don't count Nothing and Heavy Things that was played by Tom Marshall's Amfibian and Let Me Lie (I wouldn't call them "covers"). Mike Gordon's collaborations with Leo Kottke and Steamroller Wheelies did feature covers but they're not technically "solo records".

 

• The album's title track isn't featured in the vinyl version of Traveler while it's in the CD. The full length music shouldn't fit on one disc and that's why there's a bonus 7" disc with this song and Greyhound Rising.

Traveler, Trey's newest studio album, was co-produced with Peter Katis (The National, Interpol, Jónsi) at Tarquin Studios in Bridgeport, CT. Musicians include Trey Anastasio Band, Mates of State's Kori Gardner, The National's Bryan Devendorf and Matt Berninger, and Icelandic percussionist Samuli Kosminen.
Pressed on gold colored 180 gram vinyl, the album comes with a Traveler bonus 7" as well as a download card for an MP3 version of the album.
All pre-orders containing the new album will receive one Limited Edition Traveler Lithograph. The print measures 8"x5" and is signed by Trey. All orders will be shipped to protect the LE print.


Track List:

Side A:
Corona
Let Me Lie
Frost
Land of Nod
Pigtail

Side B:
Scabbard
Clint Eastwood
Architect
Valentine

Bonus 7"

Side A:
Traveler

Side B:
Greyhound Rising

Source : http://treyanastasio.shop.musictoday.com/Dept.aspx?cp=943_57958