Photographer Andy Hill was on site at Watkins Glen race track to cover the first day of Phish’s Super Ball IX. Here’s a look at what he came up with…
READ ON for a full gallery of Andy’s fantastic photos…
We’ve reached the start of Super Ball IX, the ninth Phish festival since 1996. The three-day concert takes place at Watkins Glen International racetrack in Watkins Glen, NY and kicks off with two sets this evening.
[Dusk after Soundcheck, Photo by Patrick Jordan]
Sam Davis of Dog Gone Blog will be reporting live from the event for @YEMblog, so be sure to follow along. You can also listen to tonight’s show on over Bunny Radio which will be simulcast over Sirius/XM’s Jam ON. READ ON for the setlist and The Skinny for Night One of Super Ball IX…
Those Phish fans who won’t be in attendance at this weekend’s Super Ball IX festival in Watkins Glen, NY will still be able to hear each of the band’s seven
Today marks the release of Phish – Live in Utica and we wanted to remind our readers that our giveaway for three copies of the box set and a pair
While we are still a month-plus away from the kickoff of Phish’s most ambitious Summer Tour since the late ’90s, and several months away from their ninth festival – Super Ball IX – it’s a good time to take a look at how one very important aspect of the Phish festival model has changed before anyone has even stepped foot onto the grounds at Watkins Glen. Just as Phish is offering tiered pricing options for their standard, summer shows (typically $45 for lawn tickets and $60 for pavilion seats) they also have offered several “VIP” options for the festival for those a little fatter in the wallet. So let’s breakdown the main options for those camping on-site at Super Ball IX…
General Admission – This option is the standard festival ticket that have been fans only option since the band’s first festival, the Clifford Ball in 1996. At a reasonable price nowadays, $200, Phish is allowing patrons to pay in installments for this, and all other options, a very wise move in this still-hurting economy. This is and forever will be the standard, Phish festival experience that 95% of the masses will enjoy, and the one that many of us grew up with: Pull up in your car, park, pitch a tent and figure the rest out as you go – much like the music of Phish and the spirit of their festivals.
READ ON for more of this week’s Postcards From Page Side…
Nearly six months after rumors started circulating that Phish would throw a festival at Watkins Glen International race track over the Fourth of July Weekend, we finally have an announcement. The festival will be called Super Ball IX and will take place from July 1 – 3 in Watkins Glen, NY.
This marks the first music festival at Watkins Glen since the legendary Summer Jam from 1973 that featured The Band, the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers Band.
Last month Phish announced the first leg of a summer tour that includes four shows in New York State. We thought perhaps the festival wasn’t going to happen since the band scheduled so many performances within striking distance of the Finger Lakes region. Guess we’ll see how the previous announcement effects attendance at Watkins Glen.
Tickets go on sale this coming Monday, April 4, through Phish’s MusicToday ticketing site. Travel packages are available through CID Entertainment and camping information – including a “tental rental” option – is laid out on the SBIX site.
READ ON for a timeline of the events leading up to today’s announcement…
You might remember Michael Printup as the Watkins Glen International president who denied that a Phish Festival was confirmed to take place at the track over the Fourth of July
Yesterday, BandsThatJam.com set the Phish blogosphere abuzz with an article that claimed Phish signed a contract to play eight sets over three days during the Fourth of July Weekend at Watkins Glen. The post went on to say tickets would cost $200 and that re-entry would be allowed to the site throughout the weekend before ending with “This has been confirmed and contract has been signed.” Today, Watkins Glen International president Michael Printup denied those reports to The Elmira Gazette…
“We don’t know who is putting that out. There are a bunch of erroneous sites out there,” he said. “We’ve been working with a concert promoter. But we don’t even have a contract. It’s all wishful thinking. We haven’t even signed a contract with a promoter. You do that first. Then it’s up to him to see what band he gets.”
Printup also mentioned “Watkins Glen International is looking at some kind of summer concert, but it’s too early to even start talking about bands.” We reached out to Bands That Jam yesterday for clarification on their report and the site’s editor Pete Stergion responded, “the WGI President has to deny the story. They can’t publicly confirm until all the loose ends have been tied up. Our source has given us credible, specific information. Our source is not a Phish fan so they wouldn’t even have the ability to make up the information which is very consistant with what Phish has done in the past.”
Stergion went on to say, “People need to realize that Watkins is a VERY small town. To organize something of this magnitude it requires co-ordination with a lot of different people and when you have a town this small it’s hard to keep secrets. We’re standing by our story & our source.” Whether Printup is offering some misdirection is up for debate, but we do know is that no permit has been issued for a mass gathering at the racetrack. As always, no Phish concert is confirmed until it is listed on Phish.com.
[Hat Tip – @TylerCurtis]
UPDATE: This story was updated at 10:52PM with Bands That Jam’s response to The Elmira Gazette. READ ON for more from Stergion…
