SET 1: Blaze On, Sand, Mozambique, Set Your Soul Free, Olivia, Everything's Right, ...And Flew Away, Gotta Jibboo, Ghost, Roll Like a River, Simple Twist Up Dave, The Moma Dance [1], A Life Beyond The Dream [2], Rise/Come Together[1]
ENCORE: Carini
INTERVIEW OF CHRIS KURODA, OCTOBER 7, 2000
Almost five years after the interview conducted by Dean Budnick, Chris Kuroda was interviewed by Scott Boyarsky and Hal Waterman, who were involved with the fan website CK5 (http://www.ck5.org, now defunct). This conversation delves further into Kuroda’s work philosophy, his personal tastes, and his life outside the band. A few of the questions are repeated from the previous interview, but Kuroda’s opinions had evolved over the preceding five years.
The full interview was initially published on the CK5 website and republished in the Phish Companion 1st Edition. The interview was then edited and streamlined for re-publication in the Phish Companion 2nd Edition. This blog post includes the edited interview from TPC 2nd Ed., followed by the remaining interview “bonus material” from TPC 1st Ed.
Enjoy! - Matt Schrag aka @kipmat
Interview with Chris Kuroda from TPC 2nd edition
Excerpted from an interview conducted by Scott “Seabass” Boyarsky and Hal “Brother” Waterman backstage prior to the 10/7/00 Shoreline show, the last show before the hiatus.
HW: Where are you originally from?
CK: I was born in Princeton, New Jersey. I grew up in Chappaqua, New York, which is in Westchester County. When I was about 21, my family moved out to Allentown, PA.
HW: What’s the most rewarding part about this job?
CK: Well, my whole life when I was growing up my Father was thirty years at the same company, Wall Street, New York Stock Exchange, executive guy, got in a suit, commuted on a train everyday. Throughout my whole life growing up, I said to myself, I will not be a “nine-to-fiver.” So, when I think back about the whole thing, the fact that I actually accomplished that might have to stand out over everything. The second greatest thing is all the support I get from all the fans. I get a lot of support, and you know, as a human being it just makes you feel so good. And believe it or not, an extremely rewarding thing to me is when I nail a “David Bowie.” It brings tears to my eyes sometimes. Doing the job, that’s how I express myself to the world. I get to express myself through light and there is a lot of joy to that!
SET 1: Back on the Train [1], Love and Regret [2], I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome[1], All Fall Down[1], My Love Come Rolling Down[2], Gotta Jibboo[1]
INTERVIEW OF CHRIS KURODA, DEC. 5, 1995, BY DEAN BUDNICK
One of the many exciting aspects of the week before Phish tour is hearing news about the crew technical rehearsal; where they are, what they’re working on, and especially what Chris Kuroda’s new light rig will look like. As Lighting Director for Phish (a position which also incorporates the role of Lighting Designer), Kuroda has been continually innovative with both available technology and presentation, making the band’s lighting an integral part of the Phish concert experience. Dean Budnick (author of The Phishing Manual and erstwhile Editor-in-Chief of jambands.com, now part of the Relix Media Group) conducted an interview with Kuroda toward the end of the marathon Fall 1995 tour, offering an intriguing glimpse into Life on the Road with Phish. Budnick subsequently posted the interview text to the Usenet newsgroup rec.music.phish, but the interview has not been republished on this site until now. Please enjoy this trip down memory lane, as we look forward to more dazzling lights on Summer Tour!
- Matt Schrag aka @kipmat
[Dean Budnick is the editor-in-chief of Relix and has reported on the live entertainment industry for Billboard, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter. He directed the documentary Wetlands Preserved: The Story of An Activist Rock Club, which opened nationally before airing on the Sundance Channel. He also is the creator and host of the Long May They Run podcast, which reached #1 on the Apple Music Podcast charts, and he has written many books, including Ticket Masters: The Rise of the Concert Industry and How the Public Got Scalped, and a forthcoming book with Peter Shapiro, The Music Never Stops: What Putting On 10,000 Shows Has Taught Me About Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Magic, https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/peter-shapiro/the-music-never-stops/9780306845185/.]
Interview with Chris Kuroda 12/5/95
From: [email protected] (Dean Budnick)
Newsgroups: rec.music.phish
Organization: Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
Okay, here's the text of my interview with Chris. I hope you find it as interesting as I did. This interview took place around 5:00 on December 5th, before the second night of the Mullins Center run.
BTW, after the show Chris told me that he had forgotten to say one thing that was really bugging him. He's asking everyone to stop bringing laser pens to the shows and to discourage your friends from doing so. I noticed one on Trey's guitar on Saturday and people have been shining them up at the chessboard as well. On with the interview....
SET 1: Jolene, Don't Ease Me In, Midnight Moonlight
SET 1: Atlas Dogs, Moonrise, Wake Up > Atlantic City, Flodown, Elmeg the Wise
SET 2: Rockdale, Seekers on the Ridge Pt 1 > Seekers on the Ridge Pt 2, Red Bird > I'm Writing a Novel, Creatures
SET 3: Silver Rising, Hungersite [1], Arcadia[1], Dripfield [2] > Loose Ends[2], The Empress of Organos[2]
ENCORE: Tomorrow Never Knows [3]
Mockingbird Tops $2m In Grants!
The all-volunteer Mockingbird Foundation has announced fourteen (14) new grants totaling $109,850. They were selected from among 883 initial applicants, and winnowed through a highly competitive, two-tiered review process, Mockingbird's 27th round of competitive grantmaking since 1996.
The winning grants include schools, community centers, and nonprofits in ten states, providing a diverse range of support to a variety of programs serving a number of different target populations. These grants were made possible by generous giving from Phish, WaterWheel, and thousands of Phish fans like yourself, and bring the fan-run nonprofit's historical giving to 549 grants totaling $2,093,507.40.
DEER CREEK 3 RECAP: THE SUN SETS ON SPRING TOUR
[Thanks to our guest recapper Dana Slattery (@tweezeher). -Ed.]
Spring tour feels a little like Summer tour, doesn’t it? Considering some recaps for this short sprint of shows boast it as the first leg of the Summer 2022 run, and I myself had been gently corrected with torches and pitchforks after a post to CashorTrade, it seems debatable. After a 3-night run on the coast of Alabama, and 2 scorchers on a tennis court in South Carolina, the Birkenstock tans on the dusty Deer Creek lot (Ruoff Home Mortgage Center to the layman…) look, feel & likely smell like a Summer tour.
Is it sun stroke or is the nitrous just good? After 2-nights of Phish and 3-days of Phish lot, the lines become blurred. Both were in seemingly endless supply in Indianapolis this weekend. The Sunday show started 90-minutes earlier than the previous 2, bringing a feeling of ‘Let’s get this show on the road’ and "party time." No one is interested in driving back through the mid-west with a trunk full of whatever you brought to the lot. So, yes, deals.
DC1 AND DC2 RECAPS: BIRTHDAYS, HEATERS AND SLOW MAZE
[Thanks to our guest recapper Michael Ayers (user @yhgtbfkm) . -Ed.]
As I was packing my bags to get ready to drive to Indianapolis, my phone beeped with an email address. The fine folks over here at .net asked me if I would be interested in recapping both Friday and Saturday, as nobody had volunteered for Saturday. They said I could even wait and send both Friday and Saturday in one big review as opposed to doing two. After pondering it for a few minutes I responded back that I’d love to, as writing one long incredibly mediocre review would be far less damaging to my ego than two short, incredibly mediocre reviews. So without further ado..prepare to be disappointed.
SOME PHOTOS OF DC1 FROM THE PIT
[Posting some photos courtesy of Matt Bittmann, taken from the pit last night (June 3, 2022, Deer Creek), because the recapper of last night's show will be recapping tonight as well and has chosen to recap the two shows together. Recap will be posted tomorrow. If you want to read a recap of last night don't miss Scott Bernstein's " The Skinny" on Jambase. -Ed.]
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HOOK, LINE, AND STINKER: STARING IN TRAIN-WRECK HORROR AT THE CULT OF PHISH
[This article was published in the San Francisco Bay Guardian in 1999, so is Copyright © 1994-99 San Francisco Bay Guardian. It is being re-printed here, and now, because it is hilarious and its author Summer Burkes is a great writer. Special thanks to Philip Zerbo (co-editor of the Third Edition of The Phish Companion) for posting the text of this article to Rec.Music.Phish in October 1999. Also want to thank Josh Martin, whose recap of Charleston1 reminded me of this article and how I'd wanted to try to locate it and post it to the blog. -charlie]
Hook, line, and stinker:
Staring in train-wreck horror at the cult of Phish
By Summer Burkes
THEY ARE PHISH, I am chum
I must admit, I'd been unfair. I'd hated Phish with a passion since the
moment they entered my consciousness, even though I couldn't ever recall
actually hearing one of their songs.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIKE! (AND HAPPY 11TH ANNIVERSARY 6/3/11 DWD!)
We wanted to wish MICHAEL GORDON a very happy birthday on this, the 11th anniversary of the June 3, 2011, "Down with Disease," that should be (re)listened to at all costs, now, either here on Relisten or on LivePhish.
CHARLESTON2 RECAP: SCI-FI SOLDIERS' TRIUMPHANT RETURN
[We would like to thank Jen Chadbourne, user @Saw_ita_Jen on both dot net and twitter, for this recap. -Ed.]
It was a very humid day. The forecast called for mostly sunny skies with rain right around doors, so it was a bit of a gamble to figure out the calculus of when to leave for the lot. Luckily, hopping in rides with 1.0 friends made that easy.
We got to the lot around 4:20pm and jumped in line. At about 5:00pm there was incoming lightning, so the venue and band touring crew made the call to go ahead and pull us into the venue to shelter in place in an effort to weather the storm. We all posted up in the hallways to wait it out, and wouldn’t you know it, the lightning blew over without a drop of rain! So the show was not delayed, nor was it shortened to one set, which was the dreaded outcome had the lightning postponed doors.
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CHARLESTON1 RECAP: A REVIEW OF THE CONCERT PHISH PLAYED ON 5/31/22, AS INTERPRETED THROUGH THE DANCES EXECUTED BY THOSE IN ATTENDANCE
[We would like to thank user @Jmart, Josh Martin, for recapping last night's show. -Ed.]
Here’s the thing: You like Phish. And if you’re reading this, chances are you actually love Phish with a chunk of your heart so large as to baffle most of your family and other acquaintances.
From your love of Phish, we can deduce something further: You love to dance. You have a repertoire of moves to fit any occasion. Imitating someone else’s moves in your crew is valuable social currency.
How do your dance choices reflect your show experience? Let’s discuss.
(For sake of reference, all dancing was observed from the floor, halfway back on Mike’s side)
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ORANGE BEACH3 RECAP: A UNIFIED JOURNEY FROM THE SHORES OF ALABAMA INTO THE REALMS OF SPACE
[Phish.net thanks volunteer recapper Rachael Wesley (rachaelwesley.com; Instagram: @rachaelwesleywrites) for recapping last night's show. - Ed.]
We all Phish for our own reasons and rage in our own ways. For me, I love reuniting with my favorite people while exploring parts of the country I might otherwise never visit. So, when Phish announced their tour opening run in Orange Beach that began the day after my 40th birthday, it was easy for me to decide how to welcome in the new decade. Nor was it difficult to convince my crew to head to Alabama, a new state for several of us, to celebrate with me. We rented a large condo at the Wharf big enough to accommodate us all and spent the weekend swimming, eating, and Phishing. There was no better way a Phish fan could usher in a big birthday.
Register Now For Golf In Denver!
Registration is now open for the Seventh Annual Runaway Open charity golf tournament for Phish fans, to be held in Denver 9/3/22 (the morning between the first 2 and second 2 shows of the upcoming Labor Day's run at Dick's.) We'll have to up 120 players this time, with a shotgun start at 8:30, coffee and a group photo to get you started, on-course contests, raffles at the clubhouse, lunch and gift bags included, and more TBA.
Every previous year has sold out, and built a waiting list that we couldn't satisfy, so please register early. To encourage that, we're honoring our past pricing of a $150 donation per player until Memorial Day. From May 30 to August 20, the donatoin request jumps a bit to $165; and for the final two weeks before the event, late registration will be $180.
We're also inviting a range of sponsorship opportunities, including item donations for the gift bags, sponsored team names, sponsored hole signs, sponsored foursomes, and if anyone knows a business interested in the visibility, event sponsorship ("Presented by..." on all collateral and future promo.)
Mockingbird Supports Sunset Park
The Mockingbird Foundation has announced an unsolicited $1,000 tour grant to Sunset Park High School in Brooklyn, in celebration of Phish's ongoing four-show run at Madison Square Garden. This is the only NYU Partnership high school in Brooklyn. Of the students, 92% are minority and 85% are economically disadvantaged. It's also right down the street from a mass shooting that happened less than two weeks ago.
RISE/COME TOGETHER
Depending on your occupation, avocation, or academic background, odds are good that writing about math and numbers is not a focus. A career counselor might’ve probed your algebraic aptitudes and sure, if you checked the right boxes, you might find yourself in the role of a unit forecaster, a number-crunching investigative journalist covering exchange rates or commodity futures, or maybe even a bohemian poet/numerologist. The insurance and finance industries also have a place for the number-focused thinker in the occupational role of actuary. An actuary leverages math and statistics to derive a financial value from the measurement of risk and uncertainty....
EVERYTHING IN ITS RIGHT PLACE
In the mid-1980s, a handful of students got together and formed a rock band on campus. Inspired by artists such as Neil Young and Talking Heads, possessing a collective vision for a particular sound of their own, and spurred by a restless curiosity and desire to explore, they practiced relentlessly through the decade, gigging throughout their college town, and steadily attracting a following....
Mockingbird's 25th Anniversary
We are proud to announce that The Mockingbird Foundation, whose volunteers manage Phish.net, was incorporated as a New York not-for-profit twenty-five years ago on March 28, 1997. Since then, the Foundation has donated almost $2 MILLION in grants for music education for children and young adults in all 50 states. We couldn't have done this without you, and your ongoing support!
Learn more about Mockingbird's work at mbird.org and please, if you appreciate this site, consider making a donation in any amount (every dollar really matters!), so the Foundation can continue its mission to fund music education programs nationwide.
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