Attendance Bias

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. Today, we are taking a ride on the the way-back machine as guest Jay Wilson takes us to the UNH college campus and tells us about his second show–April 11, 1994 at Sively Arena.1994 was a pivotal year for the band in so many ways. In addition to this spring tour promoting Hoist–which was produced to be their most commercially viable album–the band was really showing off their schizophrenic musical style, combining absurdity with prodigious talent, and they were making the final leaps from large theaters to amphitheaters, at least in their most popular markets. Places like The Beacon Theater in New York would soon be replaced by Madison Square Garden, and this was when New England was still their  stomping ground. By 1995 virtually all of New England would be left behind, except for the occasional stop.Today’s conversation touches on virtually all of those aspects of 1994 Phish. But there’s much more to it than that. Let’s join Jay to talk about New Years Eve shows, falling in a hole, and jazz, as we discuss Phish’s show from April 11, 1994 at Snively Arena.Support the show

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. I am not a parent, but something that I frequently hear from my friends who have kids is that one of the best parts of being a parent is that you get to see the world, and the things you love, through the eyes of your kids. If that is a benefit of having kids, then today’s guests must be two of the happiest people in the world of Phish.Those guests are Bobby and Oliver from the Phish Phry podcast; a father and son duo who are doing a deep dive into Phish’s studio albums and release biweekly podcast episodes to talk about their impressions of each album. It’s an informative and fun listen! For today’s episode of Attendance Bias, though, Bobby and Oliver chose to talk about an excerpt from their first show: “Oblivion” and “Chalkdust Torture” from July 11, 2023 at the Orion Amphitheater in Huntsville, AL. This was the first live show for both father and son, and it ended with a wallop.Not only do we get to talk about studio recordings, first shows, and new songs, but a certain guitarist makes a guest appearance that made this first show extra special. But it’s not my story to tell. Let’s join Bobby and Oliver as we talk about “Oblivion” and “Chalkdust Torture” from July 11, 2023 at The Orion Amphitheater.Support the show

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. Today’s guest is Sam Huber, from the Philadelphia area. Sam is an enthusiastic fan who picked a show where the crowd energy just seeps through the audience recording–July 5, 2013 at SPAC in Saratoga, NY.  A few themes come up repeatedly in today’s conversation: how special SPAC is, peacefully surrounded by trees that seem to have an affect on the energy and vibes of any given show, the idea of the band messing with the fanbase by playing certain songs at certain places in the setlist, and how getting in the car unprepared can lead you to the greatest of adventures.On top of that, there is the main idea that SPAC is a family gathering–a homecoming on the east coast. Although it’s just a few hours from New York City, SPAC carries the reputation of being the summer home for Deadheads and Phish fans. Although this was not his first show, Sam was ready to be received by the community at this legendary state park.So let’s join Sam to talk about the reaction to Energy, when the band will break open Yarmouth Road, and more as we discuss the Phish’s show from July 5, 2013 at SPAC. Just a note about today’s recording: there are a few audio glitches toward the beginning of the conversation, but they stop at about the halfway mark.Support the show

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. Today’s guests are able to offer a unique insight into Phish’s music because they each play in a Phish cover band. Not only that, but they both play keyboards in separate Phish cover bands! Nate plays keyboards in a Phish coverband called Adam Knight’s Buried Alive, and Hannah plays keys for the Lumpy Heads. Both bands are based out of the Carolinas and play around the southeast. So if you’re a Phish fan from Ascheville to Atlanta, keep your eyes out for Adam Knight’s Buried Alive and the Lumpy Heads. It may not be a shock to find out that both Nate and Hannah run in the same circles. As a result, Nate took Hannah to her first Phish shows–July 31 and August 1 of 2021; Phish’s first tour back after the postponed 2020 summer tour. While both shows are excellent, Nate and Hannah agreed on one major highlight to discuss today: The band’s 30-minute version of Tweezer that was played on night 2: August 1, 2021. A major highlight of the year, and possibly of the band’s career, this Tweezer journeys all over the place, with ambience, straight rock, funky start/stop jamming, and more. So let’s join Nate and Hannah to talk about why Foam is easier to play than you think, getting some alone time on the lawn, and much more as we discuss “Tweezer” from August 1, 2021 in Alpharetta, Georgia.Support the show

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. Today’s guest is Ryan Thompson who is here to tell us about Phish’s show from August 10, 1997 at Deer Creek. The fall 1997 tour is the one that is better known, but there were a lot of quirks, idiosyncrasies and highlights in the summer of that . 8/10/97 features all of this and more.When I listened to this show, I understood almost immediately why Ryan chose it. Aside from the musical highlights, which we discuss at length, the famed “cow funk” isn’t all quite there, but we see the inklings of it. In addition, this wild and wacky second set makes this show perfect for Attendance Bias; it’s one of those shows where the second set only really makes sense if you were there. Summer ‘97 had a few of those moments in the years before webcasting when the listener had to picture what was happening on stage because the audio recording alone couldn’t do it justice.So let’s join Ryan Thompson to talk about Tinley Park, King Crimson, and Phish’s show from August 10, 1997 at Deer Creek.Support the show

Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. If you have a pet, especially a dog or a cat, you may want to bring him up to the speakers for today’s episode. That is because today’s guest is Jordan Sheldon, the founder and operator of Dog Faced Toys–the online pet shop for Phish themed dog toys. For today’s show, Jordan chose to tell his story of being surrounded by friends at a high point in his life’s journey: June 30, 2019 at Camden.You all know that I love dogs, so when Jordan’s business began to pop up in my social media feed, I knew that I had to have him on the show. Really, it was pictures of his Corgi, Butters, that convinced me. All joking aside, Jordan picked a show that exemplified the entire summer 2019 tour, and also expanded upon a previous episode with friend of the podcast Alyssa Poland, who chose a show from the same 3-night run. It was a tremendous amount of fun, and Jordan clearly has a lot of passion and excitement for this show that had an old-school setlist, yet simultaneously presented some of Phish’s best new material at the time. So let’s join Jordan Sheldon of Dog Faced Toys to talk about squeak toys, rarities, and taking the ferry back to Philly as we discuss Phish’s show from June 30, 2019 at Camden.Support the show

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Send a textHi everybody and welcome to this week’s episode of Attendance Bias. I am your host, Brian Weinstein. As a podcast host, I am always on the lookout for new podcasts and I recently found out about one that I really enjoy, and so I reached out to the hosts to come on Attendance Bias. Luckily, of the two hosts, one of them is a big Phish fan, while the other is…well, less so. I’m never one to exclude, so today, I welcome the co-hosts of the podcast Rock Docs: Andy and Dave. For today’s episode, Andy chose to tell about his homecoming show: October 23, 21 at Chula Vista.Rock Docs is a podcast where our two hosts choose a music documentary (not always rock and roll), and provide an extensive review of it. It combines two of my favorite interests: music and movies, taking a look at both some of my longtime favorites like Festival Express and The Last Waltz, as well as introducing me to new music and movies that I otherwise would never pay attention to. Rock Docs is available wherever you find your podcasts.It was also fun that, while Andy had emotional ties and experiences to today’s show at Chula Vista, Dave is the first Attendance Bias guest who is not a Phish fan but still listened to the nearly-3 hour show and was able to contribute and outsider’s view to balance all of the gushing and hyperbole from your resident fans. So let’s join Andy and Dave of Rock Docs to talk about Garth Brooks, light funk, and much more as we discuss Phish’s show from October 23, 2021 at Chula Vista.Support the show

Send a textIt's over! The Lucky 7 shows of Phish at MSG over the summer of 2023 has come and gone...and BOY do we have a lot to say about it.  Join me and friend of the podcast Ben Fortgang as we review the last two nights of the MSG run, and the summer residency as a whole.Thank you for listening and regular episodes of Attendance Bias will resume this week. Cheers!Support the show

Send a textIt's mid-week and we are now officially more than halfway through Phish's 7-night run at Madison Square Garden. I get the feeling that we could ALL use a day off, and what better thing is there to do on your day of than...talk about Phish?! Ryan Storm of Storm Sound was gracious enough to take time on his day off to recap the Tuesday and Wednesday night MSG shows! It's another quick and dirty recap with no edits, music clips, or extraneous info, but plenty of uses of the word "energy" when discussing the Garden.Enjoy your day off and have a great end of the run!Support the show