Cheese Sticks, Monkey Jizz and some Wilco too

Wilco kicked off their second annual Solid Sound Festival held in North Adams, Ma this past weekend. Here's an interview/festival review with one of their biggest fans and 4th tier blogger (ranking went down after a disappointing festival tweet performance), Ben Broad:

Jason Taich: give me the highlights (musically) and then highlights (overall)
Ben Broad: we got in friday around 2 or 3 and everyone met up at our lovely Travelodge in Pittsfield
me: who is everoyne
Ben: we grabbed some booze, pounded a couple beers and drove 20 min to the mass moca
sarah's brother, his gf, and her two friends kevin and timmy from highschool that im pretty close with
and then scott rolled in
I rolled a j and we left
me: nice nice
Ben: walked around for a little bit, sky was pretty ominous, but no rain for a while
we saw a few minutes of a couple of bands (purling hiss and pajama club) both were indie rockish
kinda heavy at times, not bad
also saw some of the contemporary art (you wouldnt understand)
me: hahaha
Ben: then wilco was supposed to be on at 9:15 so we got there a few min early, got a decent spot and it started to pour
i was wearing shorts and birks and a rain jacket
that all soaked through by the end of the night
me: uggh
Ben: no, not uggs, birks
me: damn hippy
Ben: before the show, went over to meet up with gar and shar
they had chairs and giant umbrellas haha
me: he's prepared for anything
Ben: then when wilco was supposed to go on, John Hodgman (PC from the Mac and PC commercials) came on and told us that rain was coming through for 20 min and told us some jokes
me: ahh random
Ben: thennnn Mac from those commercials (Justin Long) came out and the guy was like whyd you follow me!
so they were being kinda funny
hodgman was actually the guy curating the comedy series on saturday, so he was supposed to be there
the other guy was a surprise
me: nice nice
Ben: thennnn wilco finally came on, they were awesome, you can find the first night setlist somewhere
we were still getting wet but it finally let up at one point, we blazed and it was good
sarahs brother tweeked for a second
it was funny
he snapped out of it
me: in what way
Ben: he was too high and was like, i gotta get outta here
i was like, no you dont
but for 5-10 min he was freakin a little
me: ooo
Ben: then he goes, man whatd you put in that?
i said, "monkey jizz"
we all laughed
me: lamd
Ben: show ended around 11, we headed back and had snacks and beers
then passed out
we had also bought a bottle of cuervo, thinking we were going to do tequila shots
haha
me: im enjoying the summary but you did not follow my request
Ben: so we forced ourselves to do that on sat night
musicccc
right
they rocked
anyways
me: keep going
Ben: haha
got up at like 10, got panera breakfast (delicious) and showered and headed back to the grounds
the sun was out and it was really nice
we came in when sarah lee guthrie was playing (woody guthrie's granddaughter and arlo guthrie's daughter)
she had a nice voice
me: they play her on WYEP sometimes
Ben: saw the handsome family next, they sing a song that tweedy played last year called so much wine, pretty alt-country
saw a little bit of liam finn, the guy from crowded house
ever heard of them?
me: yeah the name
Ben: pretty cool New Zealand band
then we saw Here We Go Magic
i had downloaded a bunch of albums for the car ride of bands that would be there, theres was my favorite
kinda like an indie version of simon and garfunkel
they were good
me: sick
ill have to check them out
Ben: check out their self-titled album if you can
really really good
then we went to the comedy place, saw wyatt cenac, the black correspondent from daily show, funny guy
then we walked into town and go sushi, then came back for thurston moore, he was really good
me: how far is town from the festival?
Ben: the moca is right in the town
oh and we got BOMB parking spots all three days
like across the street
me: haha
Ben: which was huge becauyse last year we had to take school buses back and forth
but since it was raining it was awesome and we could go get our rain gear when necessary
after some more walking around, there was a big lightning storm coming so everyone went inside
then we came out and it was fine (just muddy on the field where wilco was playing)
i saw rachel mack
me: woodstock eh
hahaha
Ben: and the feldmans again
mudstock
and also met mike eruzioni's cousin
haha
some random guy scott had been talking to
wilco came on, sounded even rockier than the night before
they had played a couple decent new songs the first night, and told us they were gonna play them again to drill them into our heads
they were aight
oh, one big thing i forgot
me: new album soon right?
Ben: wilco tweeted that someone special would be at the dunk tank at 2
me: i listened to one track
Ben: so we rushed over, got right up front and jeff was throwing balls, dunking his two sons
me: hahaa
Ben: i was literally right in front of him
talked to him a little
me: shake his hand?
Ben: we all accused him of getting everyone else at the fest wet and him staying dry
sarah and i high fived him at the end and she asked if he remembered her from last years dunk tank
he said he did, could have been bull
haha
me: still funny
Ben: anyways, back to the show
they sounded awesome and played WAY more songs than the first night
at one point nels and pat were battling back and forth, which sounded awesome
me: sick sick
how many songs?
Ben: we blazed like after the 4th or 5th song, this time sarah did and so did josh's gf
but josh didnt
like 27
me: wow
Ben: so we were all giggly
and people threw a few glowsticks
heres the funny part
me: any rare ones that you hadn't heard before?
Ben: earlier in the day, we had stopped by a tent for some organic cheese farm who gave us free cheesesticks
they were in our pockets for hours
josh (the only sober one) decided he was going to take them, unwrap them and throw them like glowsticks
me: hahahaa
Ben: which was killing us because we were picturing people getting smacked in the face with cheese
and when we threw them we were screaming like "Cheddar!" and "Mozzarella!"
and LASSF
(laughing at solid sound festival)
me: i already got it
and love the idea
Ben: hahahah
Ben: awesome
so i had heard most of those songs before, but they were really really rocking
pull up the setlists if you can
at some point
both nights just really awesome shows
me: i mean, i'd like to listen at some point
Ben: then we set a meeting spot back at the cars, which was good because we all got separated and i lost my sandals in the mud
we got back and played apples to apples and ate/drank
at one point, her friend kevin passed out and we put cards in front of him and we would pick a random one for him each round (we used to do this with my bong sonic and he would beat me)
the game was fun because first of all, the person would pick the card they liked best, and they also had to pick which one came from the passed out kid, which was sometimes easy and sometimes hard
but fun
scott went to bed since he was heading back early sunday morning
me: did he have his own room?
Ben: yeah
he was more comfortable with that
then we went in around noon on sunday, saw glen kotche (wilco drummer) do a percussion set where he actually had this really awesome video going behind him during a song called Monkey Chant
he actually played that when he opened for tweedy at our first tweedy show
me: hahaa
Ben: he had a box of crickets chirping, very cool stuff
then we got some food, walked around and checked out the FALCONRY!
it was just a guy with a van and some falcons, having the falcons fly around
me: weird
Ben: it was kind of boring and people were leaving, but sarah heard some staff members whispering about some special guests coming over to fly falcons
so we stick around
small crowd, but tweedy came over with his kids and did it, cool to see him again
then we went and saw the autumn defense (bassist and guitar/keys John and Pat's side band) and they were a lot of fun
me: and then we left before Levon
or did i jump the gun
Ben: then went to see a little bit of the nels cline/thurston moore duo, but it was kinda just noise
haha yes
and then we left before levon
there was some bad traffic on the way back near 84
and also we needed to go get our dogs from JP and Brighton
so we left at like 420 and got to JP by 7:30
then not back home til almost 9
me: the end?
Ben: because people talk
the end
me: encore encore encore!

Phish on the Borscht Belt

This past weekend, a special group of Phans ventured off the the land of Peace, Love and Music (and jews) in upstate NY. Hunkering down in the glorious city of Liberty, NY, home of the world-famous Liberty Diner (best waitress award 10 years running), the boys found themselves in a very Phishy situation.

Arriving at the Days Inn Liberty around 2:00pm EDT, @jdotson499 took a short nap and awaited the arrival of @bbroad25 and @spacedudeswedishgrandpa. They finally pulled into the parking lot, one wearing a String Cheese Incident shirt, and the other a plain gray shirt (later to be changed into a Phish shirt) and were welcomed with open arms to Summer Tour. A quick grocery/beer run and a little bit of grill-building ensued with uncertainty of the dinner situation. We all agreed it all works out, we're just a little freaked out.

Taich changed into his green Phish t-shirt and we were off to the lots after a quick visit to Yasgur's Field. Lot B, right near the silo, to be exact. We parked it, popped it and let it ride. Enjoying ice cold beer and lukewarm pot, some familiar faces rolled over to our spot. None other than Lapau and her pretty attractive friend came to pay us a visit and hang out! It certainly brought down the sausage ratio and after a couple baggo slaps, they were off never to be seen again, until the walk back to the car. The Meat Protector then indulged in some nitrous and some local women.

Our burgers straight up didn't cook on our grill, but there was no need to fret. We had plenty of carrots and hummus to fill us up and snacks to come. A quick set at Mudstock left us grooving and since we were still a little hungry, we decided to have a quick happy meal before the walk to the venue.

Bethel Woods Center for the Arts lain above the grassy hills. A shed where dreams are made. Walking down to our seats, we were able to see a mass of phans gathered to see The Phish. Our seats were fant-fucking-tastic and gave Space Grandpa plenty of room to groove without any wooks getting near him. We were ready.

Show time. Lights went down around 8:10pm EDT and the boys took the stage and laid down a Billy Breathes favorite in Theme from the Bottom. Not exactly what we were expecting, but a nice delight. From that point on, Saturday night was dark and downnnnnnn, highlighted by a mischevious Cities jam, a rocked out Haley's Comet and Bathteca to close out the set. At some point, we acquired pretzels and water and moved back a few sections to refuel our minds.


Set two started off with a familiar DWD and into a couple tunes which the crew was ok with not hearing again, then we went down into the abyss once again. Makisupa in the respective houses of each member got us giggin' and groovin and ready to watch HOUSE (M.D.) and smoke a spliff! Somehow, we ended up with chicken fingers and fries that hurt our tummies but then Hood brought back memories of Worcester night two and put us in a trance. Cavern brought some momentum back to the set and a stellar Bowie capped it off. We needed our The Beatles phix and The Phish fixed it phor us. Wow. Best show of our young careers? I think so. On the way home, my cohorts told me I should go to sleep, so I did. I was very helpful getting back to the hotel. To really cap off the night, we hit every fast food joint within 5 feet of our hotel, but only McDonalds had shakes and McFlurries but Gramps got burgers and shakes from every place. Then, we slept lengthwise.

Housekeeping! 10:00am EDT, did we really sleep that late? Time to hit the diner for a late meal, while i nag the crew to go swimming. Our waitress hated us from the get-go but our food did not. If @AbelTheSamet had been there, he would have been swimming in steak n' eggs. FINALLY we hit the pool with some brews and bitches and took in some sun, quite the refresher. Afterwards, we hit the showers and got ready SANS phish shirts (thanks Swee-Pa for the peer pressure).

Let's go check out the Woodstock museum! $15?! We have to park WHERE? Someone wasn't happy, but with a few keen moves, we were able to set up a great escape plan for the end of the night. We hiked up the hill to the meh-seum then made our way slowly down Shake, where it intersected with Down. Steak and veggie kaysadillas were pretty tasty and Space Dude broke a $45 dollar piece--Correction, he bought a chillum for $35. Worth it. For a few moments, the group split up, Pitt vs. while the Boston boys chatted with our lot neighbors and the web designer from OnlinePhishTour, way cool! Jase is back, time to go.

We headed toward the venue slightly on the earlier side to meet with Eli. You may remember him from such films as; IT, Phish 3-D and Clifford Ball. Nice guy who got us some nice seats. Again, NICE SEATS, slightly more centered this time. A couple minutes later, Aladdin pops up next to us and asks for JLT's ticket stub (in your hand) to bring his friends down. He almost doesn't come back which sends Louis Tacchi into a short panic, but the stub is returned.

Finally, Bethel night three is underway with AC/DC Bag, which I guess I was hearing live for the first time (ZZYXX). Highlights from this set were tight renditions of Rift, Ya Mar and Timber with a nasty Suzy while Scotty was on a piss break and a phan favorite 46 Days. A crowd-pleasing Antelope ended set one with a bang and a BAM.

Set Two, sick Mike's song and since 'Son had been begging the Phish gods all weekend for a SIMPLE, he got it and boy did we dance, all the way into Weekapaug, RI. Meatstick with Japanese lyrics made me want sushi and Light>Slave closed out the excellent set. First song encore was Loving Cup, being slightly overplayed, but still a great tune, and since Bethel weekend opened with a Tweezer, it was only appropriate that the boys closed it out with a Tweeprise (BB's 7th) as loud as the speakers could go.

We ventured back to our 'tel and passed out hard. This was the end of our Memorial Day Phishstock Extravaganza. A weekend for the ages, with many many jokes we cannot remember and many good times we always will. Hope we can go back to the Bungalo's for a vacation sometime again soon.

Top 10 (or so) 'Bums of 2010

In no particular order...


Yeasayer - Odd Blood
Beach House - Teen Dream
Local Natives - Gorilla Manor
The Roots - How I Got Over
Arcade Fire - The Suburbs
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest
LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening
The National - High Violet
Girl Talk - All Day
Gorillaz - Plastic Beach
Drake - Thank Me Later

HYHU

Come on Ben! only 30 more minutes til you can go home! Hold your head up!

Welcome Lippo!

Huge News! We have a new blogger!

Aaron "Moonbaby" Lipsett will now be posting things to make us laugh and cry. Let's go get some fucking snacks!

Phantasy Phish

In my rather inebriated state late sat night, I scripted up a nice and semi-realistic Phish set..check it out:

Set 1: Punch you in the eye, Ocelot, Tube, Wolfman's Brother, It's Ice, The Wedge, Ya Mar, Cities>David Bowie

Set 2: Carini>Mikes Song>Taste>Hyrdogen>Weekapaug Groove, Split Open and Melt>Light>Ghost, Golgi

Encore: Waste, Frankenstein

Freakout 08 vs Freakout 09

me: Still don't know the difference, I'm pretty sure it happened on the strike of midnight NYE 08...Thus, Freakout 08 and 09 were both the 7 Eleven incident

you: me?