It is odd that in the Napster-fueled craziness of 2000, their biggest marketing success may have been mis-labeled mp3s of a bluegrass version of Gin and Juice.
Saw my first show in Fall 98, post Story Of The Ghost release, and didn’t even hear that record til months after. But by fall 99 I was trading tapes and was familiar with nearly all of the Farmhouse tunes (my high school jam band way playing “Farmhouse” and “Heavy Things” before the record came out). So this record was HIGHLY anticipated. I remember calling in to request “heavy things” on my local rock radio station and it getting moderate airplay.
All that to say, in my extremely biased opinion, Farmhouse is Phish’s best studio album. The Barn has a vibe! Sonically, you can hear it in the recordings. There’s a rustic, woodsy quality to the tones and an airiness to the mixes that make the whole vibe feel intimate. And minimal overdubs make it feel less like a studio record and more like an amazing sounding live recording. Trey’s guitar sounds so good! Ok, gonna listen to Farmhouse now.
It always felt to me like this week of intense promo was less "what do we do after Cypress" and more that Trey thought Farmhouse would be their major commercial success.
I randomly listened to that World Cafe banter recently and oh boy did it get tense real quick there, especially Trey's demeanor/tone if not his words. World Cafe host did seem to legitimately dig First Tube, which makes all kinds of sense.
It is odd that in the Napster-fueled craziness of 2000, their biggest marketing success may have been mis-labeled mp3s of a bluegrass version of Gin and Juice.
Saw my first show in Fall 98, post Story Of The Ghost release, and didn’t even hear that record til months after. But by fall 99 I was trading tapes and was familiar with nearly all of the Farmhouse tunes (my high school jam band way playing “Farmhouse” and “Heavy Things” before the record came out). So this record was HIGHLY anticipated. I remember calling in to request “heavy things” on my local rock radio station and it getting moderate airplay.
All that to say, in my extremely biased opinion, Farmhouse is Phish’s best studio album. The Barn has a vibe! Sonically, you can hear it in the recordings. There’s a rustic, woodsy quality to the tones and an airiness to the mixes that make the whole vibe feel intimate. And minimal overdubs make it feel less like a studio record and more like an amazing sounding live recording. Trey’s guitar sounds so good! Ok, gonna listen to Farmhouse now.
It always felt to me like this week of intense promo was less "what do we do after Cypress" and more that Trey thought Farmhouse would be their major commercial success.
I randomly listened to that World Cafe banter recently and oh boy did it get tense real quick there, especially Trey's demeanor/tone if not his words. World Cafe host did seem to legitimately dig First Tube, which makes all kinds of sense.
If there’s anything I disagree with you about phish, it’s bug.
Really enjoyed that incredible picture of mark and Brian. That’s spectacular
damn that’s a pretty insightful call, Bug should have been the single.