2011

Following up from my last column on the history of Phish festivals, this week I decided to focus on the band’s recent Super Ball IX festival, which took place over the 4th of July weekend at Watkins Glen International racetrack  in upstate New York. While I have previously given a recap of past festivals and also chimed in on the VIP camping options, I wanted this week’s Postcards to get the commentary flowing from all of you – and see what your perceptions and opinions of the weekend were. So please, feel free to participate in the below polls and leave some comments below about what was truly a magical weekend.

[All photos by Andy Hill]

From perfect weather, to the smallest attendance numbers of any festival, Super Ball IX offered a different sort of vibe than past behemoths. I have my opinions on why the numbers were so small – Phish tour manager Richard Glasgow pegged the number at “about 30,000” attendees, which is about two-thirds the capacity of Alpine Valley – but wanted to see if you all agreed with me or not. Whether it was the fact that the majority of the festivities were confined within the racetrack itself, or the fact that they had recently saturated the Northeast with many previous shows during the first leg of summer tour. So, for the first poll, I ask you, why do you feel the numbers of this festival were down compared to past affairs like The Great Went, Lemonwheel, Big Cypress, It and Coventry?

READ ON to take this poll and for more of Brian’s take on Super Ball IX…

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