Thursday, October 30, 2008

Twitter Typos

I know I am kind of behind the curve on this one (i.e. Dave Matthews has been doing it for months) but I finally signed onto Twitter yesterday. I’ve also linked my Twitter account to this here blog, so you can follow my micro-mumblings our your right.

Less than 24-hours in, a bunch of my internet-savvy friends have already told me that “they don’t get Twitter” (despite having handles themselves), but I theoretically like the whole Twitter thing. First off, I’m continually fascinated by how RSS feeds have turned our social lives into the Truman Show, and Twitter seems like a natural progression from simply updating my Facebook status every time I pick up my dry cleaning. Second, it is a nice exercise in concise writing since I am told I can’t go over 140 characters, let alone words. Finally, I feel like I have my brightest ideas when I’m kind of buzzed at a bar and being able to upload those fuzzy thoughts before they spill out of my brain and into my trademark 7 & 7 will prove once and for all if they still sound intelligent when I’m not intoxicated.

So I hope you all enjoy, at least until someone figures out how to Twit what I’m thinking directly onto my computer’s screen (think music, girls and chocolate milk, in reverse order).

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Ryan Adams Delivers Stealth Afternoon Gig

This was a fun afternoon distraction...

Ryan Adams & the Cardinals celebrated the release of their new album Cardinology with a secret show at New York's Café Select this afternoon. After several online hints, Adams confirmed the show on his blog around 3:30 PM, shortly before heading down to the tiny café for a 4:30 PM performance. The Cardinals then huddled in a corner of the intimate café for a stripped down, acoustic performance for approximately 75 fans. As expected, the first part of Adams and the Cardinals' set consisted of material from Cardinology---"Born into a Light," "Evergreen," "Fix It" and "Magick"---but Adams later opened up the floor to requests and offered two cuts from 2005's Grateful Dead-inspired Cold Roses: the rare "If I am a Stranger" and a timid "Cherry Lane." Adams then entertained a few additional requests, before closing with another Cardinology track, "Let Us Down Easy." "It was very hot in there, I liked it," he said. "People were nice and the vibe was nice." On several occasions he also joking apologized to the crowd for ruining their lunch.

The entire performance was webcast on Adams' daily blog, Foggy. "I think I am neurotic, I spend too much time alone," Adams posted shortly after his gig. "Maybe I'll nap, gonna set an alarm and then do the secret electri

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

The Other Helping Phriendly Book


I’ve been told---by, you know, all my friends in ‘Nam---that you can tell a lot about a man when he looks death in the eye, and I’d say the same thing about my generation’s other great Judgment Day: Today, Tuesday, October 14, the day the winners of the first Phish Ticket Lottery since 2004 were announced.

In the Jewish faith we are taught that “on Rosh Hashanah it is written, on Yom Kippur it sealed, how many will pass on, how many will be created; who will live and who will die; who will rest and who will wander, who will live in harmony and who will be harried, who will enjoy tranquility and who will suffer, who will be impoverished and who will be enriched, who will be degraded and who will be exalted. But REPENTANCE, PRAYER and CHARITY avert the severe decree!"

And, indeed, less then a week after Yom Kippur---and just over two weeks since Phish returned from the ether---we wait in limbo to see. Who will spend the first weekend of March inside the Mothership? Who will spend that weekend waiting outside in The Lot? And who will pretend they’d rather spend that first weekend of MArch outside in The Lot than in the Mothership after Phish’s parent company Musictoday decides their fate for them>

For even though all my Phish tour companions have spent the past four years trying to convince me that they are “over Phish,” “done with the jam-scene” and “full-on, skinny jean wearing hipsters” (who happen to have a dog named Reba) in the past few weeks I’ve heard from both people I forgot liked Phish and people I just plain forgot about and, oddly enough, each and every one of them plans to spend the first weekend of March in Hampton, VA (there must be a sale on trucker hats or something).

But, instead waiting for the Doniac Schvice in the mail, looking for tickets on rec.music.phish or--- gasp---calling their pals on the phone, these days my Phish-revivalist friends are discussing their stories in the comment section of their favorite blogs, texting for extras and, mostly, letting their bros and brahs know what’s up via the Millennial Generation’s answer to the Shakedown Street lot: Facebook.

So I hereby present to you each and every Phish-related Facebook status update that popped up in my feed between the hours of 7 and 11:59 PM on October 14 (or at least those that were still active by the time I started copying and pasting them…a few of you changed your status faster than the final section of “Sparkle”).

Personally, “Mike Greenhaus is feeling more rejected than when Caroline turned him down at the Mock Prom in 7th grade,” but I have faith I will be inside when the lights go down and geeking gears up. If you play in a band, manage an artist or run a post-jam-leaning blog never fear, I’ve removed everyone’s last name to protect the guilty. But feel free to add your own Phish-related status upstate in the comment section.

In the meantime, who’s got my extra? And what exactly is lot inflation like these days?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jennifer please help out the XXXXX phish tix fund (neither of us won the lottery) :( :( :(

Mark will buy you a new car, pefect shiny and new...

Deanne is still waiting... still waiting...

Jen will be joining everyone else online at 10AM on Saturday.

Jordan hopes that he will be there when the circus comes to town.

Heidi is still waiting....

Allie feels absolutely blessed to be going to Hampton, and will bust my ass with TM for the next 6 months to help all of her friends get in... (re-releases, people!)

Marc is stoked.

Scott is wondering if Trey will need his trampoline back?

Aaron got phish tickets!

Sam is did anyone anywhere win the phish lottery.

Christopher has hotels for trade for Phish Tickets.

Mikey is bummed out he didn't get phish tickets.

Jamie did not get tickets.

John has an extra ticket for Trey at Roseland for this Thursday - let me know if you are interested & we can work out the details.

Aimee is disappointed but not surprised:/.

Tara who's got my extra?!

Bryna is putting my rejection aside and getting ready to rock out with the scissor sisters!!

Teddy is listening to the Boss: ride the line of balance and hold on by just a thread...

Deanne is still in suspense.

Bryan is on the phishy loser list, but knowing my luck i probably wouldn't have been able to go anyway.

Chris Denied.

Patrick is happy to have water again. If you love something .. break a water main. If it comes back its yours. If it doesn't it never was

Adam got tix!!!!

Brittany did not get phish tix grrrr.

Dan wishes he could vote for Fishman.

Jen never has phish luck. EVER.

Jaime GOT PHISH TIX!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eric is missing the good ol' mail order days of postal money orders and snail mail to lexington, MA.

Matt GOT MOTHERF*CKING PHISH TICKETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Thanks Dre).

Matthew is thinking that mail order tix are just urban legand, much like the unicorn and the G spot.

Scott is feeling quite rejected.

Erik has been denied by the phish and is OK with it.

Carlin is considering finding 5391 Three Notched Road, Crozet, VA 22932 and burning it down...

Sara is Super SAD & Mark is Angry - We did NOT get Phish Lottery!!!!!

Robert wishes he never saw John Miles dressed as a bee, and wishes he had won Phish lottery...

Greg did not get phish tix either!

Kelly didn't get tix either.

Yoni hasn't gotten rejected yet...

Shaun is gon' PHISHing march 6!!!!!!!!!

Drew will be at a ticketmaster outlet near you this saturday morning. rsvp to reserve your coffee, gooballs, and lot dog.

Tanner is ef.

James ready to do battle Sat AM for tix.

Marc lost in the Phish Hampton lottery. Guess those 50+ shows don't mean a thing.

Regan did not get her tickets, and her baby has an ear infection. Double whammy :(.

John-Ryan also regrets to inform you that your Phish ticket order was a bust.

Adam Didn't Get Phish Tickets...Off To Ticketmaster on Saturday.

Russell was rejected for Phish tickets at Hampton.

Justin love the fact that I forgot to ask for Phish tickets. I've so clearly moved on, yet I refuse to admit it

Andy "We regret to inform you that you did not get the tickets that you requested through Phish Tickets."

_______________________________________________________________

Well, that’s it for now, unless you count such choice text messages as “we’ll be in the bldg somehow” and “we were both denied see you sat morning!” or Gmail favorites like “my mom was denied, those bastards” and “praise the lord, but we are still playing like we didn't get any and have to get all of us in.”

As my friend Bill once said, the world was a far lamer place without Phish. See you all Saturday morning!

Friday, October 03, 2008

The French Rule

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Phish Returns: Hampton Comes Alive In March


As dramatically announced via video, Phish will reunite for a series of shows this March. The quartet's first full performances since 2004 will take place at Hampton, VA's Hampton Coliseum on March 6, 7 and 8, 2009. Earlier this month the band also played a surprise three-song set at the wedding of longtime road manager Brad Sands. The group is expected to announce a handful of additional dates in the near future.

Hampton Coliseum's intimate size and general admission seating has made the venue a fan and band favorite since the group first headlined the room in 1995. Since that time Phish has filled the Coliseum on eleven additional occasions, most recently on its farewell tour in 2004.

This is not the first time the group has selected the room for a special event. After returning from hiatus in 2002, three of Phish's first four shows took place at the spaceship shaped arena, and the group booked a last minute Hampton, VA show after announcing its breakup in 2004. Phish's November 20 and 21, 1998 performances in the room were released as the box set Hampton Comes Alive.

Rumors of a Phish reunion have reached new heights in recent months after the four musicians accepted a lifetime achievement award at New York's Theatre at Madison Square Garden last May. Since that time the players have appeared onstage in a number of different configurations, most recently when Mike Gordon sat in with Page McConnell at South Burlington, VT's Higher Ground this past Saturday. Trey Anastasio has also tested out a number of new possible Phish songs onstage, most notably his co-compositions with longtime lyricist Tom Marshall "Alaska" and "Backwards Down the Number Line."

Anastasio announced Phish's breakup on May 25, 2004, and the group played its final show on August 15 of that year. At the time of his original announcement, Anastasio said, "Last Friday night, I got together with Mike, Page and Fish to talk openly about the strong feelings I've been having that Phish has run its course and that we should end it now while it's still on a high note. Once we started talking, it quickly became apparent that the other guys' feelings, while not all the same as mine, were similar in many ways -- most importantly, that we all love and respect Phish and the Phish audience far too much to stand by and allow it to drag on beyond the point of vibrancy and health. We don't want to become caricatures of ourselves, or worse yet, a nostalgia act. By the end of the meeting, we realized that after almost twenty-one years together we were faced with the opportunity to graciously step away in unison, as a group, united in our friendship and our feelings of gratitude."

A limited number of tickets for Phish's upcoming shows will be available through the group's secure online ticketing system. In addition, the group has issued the following statement regarding ticket scalping:

Phish Tickets has a zero tolerance for scalping and insists that all patrons of our service abide by our policy stated herein. Tickets made available through this site are intended only for fans who are actually planning on attending the shows requested. It is strictly prohibited to resell any tickets obtained through Phish Tickets for more than the purchase price. If you are found to be reselling, trading or brokering tickets that you purchased through our site for profit, Phish Tickets may at its discretion cancel your ticket order and all other pending orders in your name. This cancellation will result in a refund of the total price for the tickets minus a $7.00 per ticket processing fee and any shipping fees that have been incurred with respect to the order. We reserve the right to investigate all orders suspected to be in violation of this policy.

We urge you not to purchase tickets through brokers or "scalpers." These tickets may be counterfeit in which case you will not only be overcharged but will also likely be denied entry into the show.

Meanwhile, Anastasio will also kick off a solo tour at New York's Roseland Ballroom on October 16.