Phish
Phish

Taking a page from the Grateful Dead's Dick's Picks series, Phish have begun their own set of album releases available only via mail order. However, unlike the Grateful Dead who are releasing concert recordings, Phish chose for their first release a series of demo tracks recorded between 1984 - 1986. This self-titled album was originally distributed only to Phish's family and friends. Over the years, these recordings naturally found their way on to the tape trading circuit, although the quality of these left a lot to be desired. Last year, the band remastered and officially released these demos on a single, self-titled disc.

It's an interesting collection of sixteen songs that demonstrates Phish's early penchant for playfulness in the studio, as well as their conceptual approach to the album recording process. Sound effects are used to link songs together, and experimental weirdness abounds.

The album also features some insight into Phish's early influences. The instrumental And So to Bed concludes with the same chord sequence as Jorma Kaukonen's Embryonic Journey, and of course Letter to Jimmy Page pays tribute to Led Zeppelin.

However, when all is said and done, this is an album that was obviously never meant to be released. There's nothing revolutionary here and many of the songs are incomplete ideas waiting to be finished. Consequently, the disc is best left to the most die-hard of Phish fans.  ½

1 Star:   Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!