I love Phish today because I redeemed my ticket stub online and got a free soundboard download of the whole set! In a world where nothing comes for nothing, this obviously isn't really free. I did pay 60 bucks for my ticket, when it used to be 50 (which is still expensive), so part of that extra 10 dollars definitely went to the free download cause. But I won't hate on the Phish organizations for trying to capitalize on something we're all after. You better believe I would have downloaded those sets off megaupload regardless, just as I have with every other show I've been to (18 tomorrow... small but growing!). And I certainly did that for all the epic sets that I couldn't be at, which happens to be way too many but, alas, you can't go to every Phish show.
That said, about the organization charging us for what we get for free, I love the viral spread that Phish live recordings induce. Buying a ticket to a taper section is a clear option when purchasing tickets- these boys are so okay with people recoding the shows, they make a special section for it (usually with a great view). In fact, they kind of owe it all to the tapers. Because of them, their first few songs and CDs spread like wild fire, by word of mouth and making a tape for someone; the band was way ahead of the game on this one, making sure people had free copies of their music without MySpace or the new wave of social media public relations. This was good thinking, boys, very smart indeed.
I can download every Phish set every played. Can you imagine that? All the Halloween albums like we talked about yesterday, all the highlights of 94-95, all the festival sets, all the misery and disaster of Coventry. You can get it all here:http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=p8WKkpP-TKpO1VnQgcff6EQ&gid=7
and I want you to use this site because that's how Phish gains and maintains its popularity. By giving out their love and music for free. It's a genius plot. Not to even mention that 95% of these downloads are soundboard material, if not actually soundboard (which is much harder to come across, I've found). Even some of the older recordings are pretty top notch for a live performance.
In the end, that's what really matters for Phish anyway- the live shows. The studio stuff, that was all a formality; the boys admit in the Phish Book that they put less than half as much effort into any one studio session as they do to single show. The live shows got passed from person to person, creating that much more of a stronger bond between phans. As a sociologist, I'm constantly searching for what brings people together under music. This is certainly one aspect, and it will continue to keep our community together. To be able to talk about shows that neither party attended is quite a remarkable experience. And to feel that shared bond over an experience you can only imagine- that's Phish. That's bonding.
Sorry to be brief today, I have to finish my vacuum for this weekend. Check back tomorrow to see what my phavorite thing is as we kick off the HALLOWEEN RUN IN ATLANTIC CITY!!!!! Count down 23 hourss!!!!!
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