Since Dave Calarco, a.k.a. Mr. Miner, author of Mr. Miner’s Phish Thoughts: An Anthology By a Fan for the Fans and Phish Thoughts blogger, has seen and reviewed nearly every Phish show since the band returned to action three years ago, we asked him to share his take on the venues the quartet will hit on their summer tour. While our look at the venues focused on the history of Phish’s appearances, his piece contains tips of how to make the most of your Phish experience in each room.
Words: Mr. Miner
With this summer’s Phish dates just announced, the excitement in the fan community has skyrocketed, as everyone has begun to plot and scheme their own summer plans. On the heels of a triumphant year of game-changing music for this era, 2012 is filled with anticipation to see what is next for the band. Will they delve deeper into abstract jamming—a hallmark of 2011—or will they veer off that road? All that remains to be seen, but the one thing we know for sure is where the shows of the first leg will take place. Aside from Bader Field, this tour is comprised of venues that hold a significant amount of Phish lore. But let’s forget about the band for a moment, and take a look at the places where the magic will happen. Below are some tips from personal experience that might enhance your enjoyment at each stop along the way.
DCU Center, Worcester, MA
Phish will kick off this summer indoors in a building they have visited more than a few times. A staple of northeast runs during the late ‘90s, Phish returned to “The Centrum” for first time this era in December 2010, and the venue had changed for the better. Instead of a floor jam packed with seats, the arena had decided to implement a GA policy—the staple of an intimate-feeling indoor show. These upcoming shows have the feeling of something big, as the band will return to a classic indoor arena on the heels of a meh-tastic New Year’s Run with a pattern of blowing out the beginning of tours this era. If I had to choose two shows to go to in on this tour, these would be the two. Though many fans have lamented indoor shows in the summer time, I find the prospect incredibly inviting.
Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Manchester, TN
For festival-goers attending only for Phish, Bonnaroo is a clusterfuck and that’s the bottom line. Depending on your age and place in your show-going life, you will either be enamored by the constant goings on and waves of people, or you will be completely turned off by the very same things. There’s not a hell of a lot of middle ground. Though once the band starts to play and the people who want to see them are gathered in front of the festival’s main stage, it really turns into a festival-sized Phish show with speaker towers and plenty of dance space for everyone and their moms. If you want to deal with the surrounding hassle, the band may expound upon their usually glossy festival slots—the ’09 shows were quite good—but they also might not. With only one show this year, the trek seems a bit arduous following two nights in Worcester and three in AC the following weekend. I wonder how many more people than Antelope Greg will find their way from Worcester to Manchester for the single performance? But if you’re going for other music as well, embrace the madness and have a blast!
Bader Field, Atlantic City, NJ
This set up will new to the Phish crowd, but it seems like it carries a festival feel minus the creative concept and art installations. From what I can tell, there is huge GA field that can fit 60,000 people, and there will be the necessary concessions. However anything beyond this will be a discovery for you and me.
nTelos Wireless Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA
Although this tiny venue’s full GA policy allows fans to go wherever they’d like in the pavilion or on the lawn, once showtime nears, there will be very little room left to navigate the floor or the seats in the pavilion. In order to be where you want to be, get to this show early or you’ll be uttering a lot of “excuse me’s” as you work your way further and further from the stage. The small lawn must open up to some extent due to the amount of people that cram into the pavilion. nTelos, situated right by the water, is dramatically smaller than all other venues on this run, and you will get to know your neighbors quite well—like it or not.
PAGE TWO = Riverbend, Star Lake, Blossom, Deer Creek, Alpine, Jones Beach and SPAC
Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, OH
[View From The Lawn Photo – Some rights reserved by Sonnett]
Riverbend is one of the few stops on Phish tour that still retains its original (read: retro) feel, and has never been renovated to my knowledge outside of this year’s addition of a new artificial lawn. When arriving at Riverbend’s secondary entrances, even the shoddy plastic signs announcing your presence scream of the late ‘80s—and that is part of its charm. Framed with rust colored metal stanchions, the venue isn’t the most eye-popping, but due to the cookie-cutter nature of modern amphitheatres, you gotta’ appreciate the aura of the few OG sheds that are still around. Last summer, Riverbend had one of few GA Pits that was legitimately patrolled by security guards and maintained a semblance of normalcy in terms of its crowd. This might be something to consider when looking for tickets.
First Niagara Pavilion, Burgettstown, PA
Though nothing specific stands out at Star Lake other than its extensive and gravel lot scene, this venue has become a favorite of Phish fans for the quality of shows the band has played there. Starting in 1997, Phish made Star Lake—a venue that has gone through countless corporate name changes—a routine stop on their way between the northeast and Midwest. And starting in the same year, the band has routinely crushed shows at the venue with 2000 and 2009 providing the only arguable exceptions. One tip, at this venue you might as well pay for VIP parking or bring a hibachi for post-show festivities, because you’re bound to wait in line for quite some time to get out of the main lots after the encore.
Blossom Music Center, Cuyahoga Falls, OH
After only two headlining shows at Blossom over the first 25+ years of their career (1995 & 2000), this year will mark the third consecutive summer that Phish stops at the Cleveland area venue. Blossom’s pavilion has a rustic feel, and the wooden craftsmanship makes it seem smaller than its actual capacity. Plenty of space is available in the upper pavilion, especially in the oversized, flat “moat” between the seats and the lawn. Though unlike most amphitheatres, this area is not separated from the seats with stairs, but is on the same plane. This small detail makes a world of difference when watching a show from this popular locale, as the sound is far better than in most walkways of summer, creating a legitimate option for those looking to ditch seats in favor of dance space. With a unique shape to its roof and a pastoral aesthetic, Blossom is a nice change from all the Verizon Wireless Amphitheares that speckle the country.
Klipsch Music Center, Noblesville, IN
I love Deer Creek and always have. The surrounding campgrounds, grassy lot scene, and its placement amidst cornfields in Indiana gives the venue a unique vibe among summer Phish shows. All fans seems a bit more laid back when tour hits Noblesville, partly due to the fact that we usually get to stop and rest for a multi-night stands (in every year except 1995 and 2009). When you get inside the venue, Deer Creek appears to be similar to any other shed on tour. But it isn’t, and I can’t totally describe the reasons why. The venue somehow achieves a more intimate feel than most, despite its 20,000 plus capacity. The aisles between the sections in the pavilion are unusually wide, growing more spacious as you go up, and turning into dance sections once the show gets going. I’ve always found the sound at Deer Creek to be crisper and the fans more respectful than at most tour stops, providing the feeling of a musical church juxtaposed to the frat party of Alpine Valley. And on stage, the band has historically responded, playing stellar show after stellar show in the cornfields throughout their career. After skipping their signature run of Deer Creek and Alpine last year, it will be nice to get back to Phish’s fields of dreams.
Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, WI
[Alpine Valley Photo – Some rights reserved by PedalFreak]
There are two lawns that you really want to avoid on this summer tour, and Alpine Valley’s is one of them. Boasting a slope steeper than many Olympic downhill skiing courses, it’s a wonder people stay on two feet throughout the show. After spending a show on this lawn back in the day, my shins hurt so much from attempting to dance on the extreme angle, I vowed never to return to that confounded hill. And once you step into the giant wooden amphitheatre, the entire venue changes. Though not containing a hell of a lot of space to maneuver, if you post up in the right spot in the pavilion, the sound at Alpine is quite juicy. However, it is definitely one of those venues that one has to sacrifice sound for space and vice versa. Phish has a propensity to throw down big-time shows at Alpine to match its mammoth environs, and everything always seems to work out just fine.
Nikon at Jones Beach Theater, Wantagh, NY
[Jones Beach Photo – Some rights reserved by Joe Shlabotnik]
There are two positive aspects to Jones Beach that likely make it an enjoyable venue for most fans—the crystal-clear, open-air sound and the aquatic backdrop. While many venues are near the water, Jones Beach is right on South Oyster Bay in Long Island. So much so, that if you decide to hang out on the sides of the lower pavilion, you are one railing away from ducks, salt water and seaweed. In addition to the unique setting, the sound at Jones Beach is great. Wherever I have been throughout the venue in this era, the revamped sound system at Nikon Theatre has been booming and clear, something that is hardly a given at summer sheds. The roofless nature contributes to the superb sound quality, making this venue a spectator’s dream. But, I gotta’ say, if you prefer to dance at shows—meaning not in a seat—Jones Beach is the pits. While there is always dance space to find at every venue—indoor or outdoor—Jones Beach has virtually none that I have discovered. An overzealous security team in the lower pavilion forces you into rows, and the rest of the joint is filled with metal railings and seats. One other down point is that as you move up, the two upper sections are “stadium seating” that seem unnecessarily removed from the stage. In essence, Jones Beach has some good points and some bad points depending on your perspective.
Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
SPAC’s surroundings in Saratoga Spa State Park always make it a welcome addition to the touring docket. But there are some things that you should know when entering this place. First off, remember where you park! If you come out the wrong exit from the venue, you have a long and confusing walk in your immediate future. With parking lots far away from each other and a generally disorienting set up, I’ve spent some time trudging through the park after SPAC shows.
Secondly, and more importantly, this is the second lawn to avoid at all costs on this tour. If you are on the lawn, a place I have been for the Phil and Friends half of the GRAB tour in ’06, you are simply not in the concert. You might as well bring a picnic and a boombox, because it feels like you’re that removed from what is going on inside. You are forced to watch jumbotrons because you can’t see the stage, so if you’re into the more casual social scene at Phish shows, by all means, hang on the lawn. But once you step inside, the amphitheatre is amazing—on two levels. SPAC contains a legendary balcony that people rave about and that, allegedly, bounces when the show gets bumpin’. The lower pavilion has been remodeled for this era, and while having a bit less space than the original setup, is still an incredibly high quality show experience.
Lastly, the third thing you must know about is the bathroom situation. There are only two places where there are bathrooms, down low on left side of the lower pavilion or at the very top of the hill, which is a fairly long walk from inside. The lower ones get mobbed at setbreak, so consider that set-closing Suzy Greenberg piss if the opportunity strikes!
Thus completes our tour of Phish’s Leg One stops. June and early July are filled with classic venues that the community has descended upon many times before, so if familiarity breeds comfort, then we should all feel right at home regardless of where we pop in and out tour.
You can read more from Mr. Miner at Phish Thoughts or in his book. We’ll be sure to repost this article just before the tour begins for a refresher on these venues.
Comments
Loading comments...
Leave a Comment