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Hampton '09 Remembered

Started by rowjimmy, July 25, 2011, 09:19:44 AM

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alcoholandcoffeebeans

thanks RJ.

i never got to go back through the threads... except i think blat and i followed a little friday night, maybe?

that was a really fun weekend.

:beers:
honest to the point of recklessness...                     ♫ ♪ ılıll|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|̲̅̅=̲̅̅|̲̅̅●̲̅̅|llılı ♪ ♫

DoW

Quote from: ytowndan on July 28, 2011, 07:28:15 PM
Thanks, RJ!  This has been a blast to go back and read. 

You asked a couple times who "voopa" is, he is an old-school shnfamily member.  You were actually the hub's hero that weekend.  Everyone kept asking disco, bvaz and myself how we're getting our updates so much faster than phish.com.  We linked them to the thread and told them to watch for your updates.  I guess voopa decided to play along.
I actually said you were good for nothing but your updates were ok.

I'm not very fond of that voopa guy either.

or ytowndan or disco either.

carbot used to be ok but he talks too much.

but yeah, we had a private chatroom in the hub in case anyone was doing the no spoiler thing.  between that and these threads, I had a blast that weekend.
Music is meant to be heard
***Support Bands That Allow Taping/Trading***

http://archive.org/search.php?query=taper%3A%22Brian%20V.%22&sort=-publicdate

sunrisevt

 :beers:

Kudos, fine sir, on another brilliantly executed exercise in paugage.
Quote from: Eleanor MarsailI love you, daddy. Actually, I love all the people. Even the ones who I don't know their name.

qop24

Seeing as I wasn't around at the time...

What was the whole "no spoiler" thing about? Was there a significant group of people that didn't want to know what was played or something?
Quote from: Gumbo72203 on June 14, 2011, 11:26:55 PM
Trey actually is totally inspired with ideas up the ass

Quote from: kellerb on July 06, 2011, 07:16:17 PM
When you're on droogz you don't remember which eye's supposed to be lazy

khalpin

Quote from: qop24 on July 29, 2011, 08:59:27 AM
Seeing as I wasn't around at the time...

What was the whole "no spoiler" thing about? Was there a significant group of people that didn't want to know what was played or something?
Yes, a lot of people wanted to listen to the recordings for the first time going in blind.  I think it was Mr. Minor's page that offered untagged, untracked mp3s of all the sets the next day just for that purpose.

sophist

Hampton was a special time, and it holds a very special place in my heart.  I know I do a lot of bitching/complaining/hating about this band, and despite that, I still love the magic that comes from this band.  Say what you will about the playing that weekend, but it was fucking magical that weekend.  No show has ever touched what I felt on 3/6/09.  It was one of the most profound experiences of my life to watch them come blasting out of the gate with Fluffhead > The Divided Sky.  To me, this was, and is Phish.  That's the sort of fucking balls they are known for, and the execution of it too, well, it was flawless in my mind.  If there is ever a time where we can say they literally blew the roof off the place, it was in that moment.  The image of being Fish side, and watching them approach the stage, the crowd roared as if Zeus himself had descended from Mount Olympus to partake in the Olympic games. 

I cried when I heard the news that they were done.  I can remember getting home from work, checking my email, and reading the letter from Trey.  I balled as if a family member had just passed away.  I remember the emptiness I felt, the frustration of knowing that feeling when the lights drop that I would never feel the energy, the ore of the band permeating through the room, and orgasmic feeling as the first notes of the show come blasting at you like a sonic wave of everything.  The music coursing through my veins like a drug and taking me on a journey of epic proportions. 

I also cried when they took the stage that fateful night.  I cried tears of unadulterated joy.  It was if I had witnessed part of me being reborn.  It was glorious, it was satisfying, it was powerful and beyond the profound.  Hampton became what we all love about the band, it become more than just four geeky dudes getting together to play a show, it became the experience, the stories, good or bad, they encompass and complete the experience, every piece of the puzzle fits as if some form of determinism molded it to create this amorphous design where each piece is unique yet ubiquitous as well.    Hampton was and is much more than just a reunion run, it was a state of mind where the structures of all our lives reset and the path of our lives also reset.  This isn't to say that the reunion run impacted lives in a way where it shifted course of our lives, but it did mirror the evolution we all have in our lives, it brought forth the notion that certain bands rise above being locked into a phase, and these bands grow and evolve as we do.  That's what Hampton symbolized.  The natural progression we all have as beings, it meant that once again music that evolved in real time would once again be present in all of our lives. 

I sit here on the eve of the Gorge run, a run that literally means nothing to me.  It's on the other side of the country, and I'm here in Atlanta, yet, like the start of every tour, I'm anxious as if I'm about to go out on a date with someone I really like.  I'm giddy at the prospect of what may come.  I know where the band stands, but this isn't about that.  It's about the fact that no matter how we look at Hampton, it was a weekend of redemption and joy.  A weekend of bliss, and a weekend of expansion (on many different levels).  I know damn well, had they not come back, I wouldn't share the friendships I know have with many of you. 

George-  the fucking fleet hound himself.  I consider him one of my good buddies.  Despite the extreme excess of shit talking I do to him, I'd take a bullet for him (in his case, it would be a tub of grease). 

RJ- The weeks leading up to Hampton and since that point, I talk with RJ on a regular basis.  Another close friend, and I guy I highly respect. 

Scotty-  The Indie Ferbz.  The people needshould know just awesome the dude is, and the energy he does bring to 3.0 shitty  :wink: shows (sorry I had to get one 3.0 jab in there)

August-  the Hugh Hefner of the paug.  Dude slays p00n like a Redneck eye fucks his sister. 

Dave- reppin' the panic hate like a herp sore in a whore house.  I love it.  One of my favorite people to debate music with. 

Wendell- one of the best dudes on this board.  Not a bad bone in his body. 

Mandi-  love ya.  One of my favorite people on this board. 

Terry- Love ya buddy.  Always a pleasure to interact and hang out with you. 

Queen O' Poppy-  Tiny peen in training. 

Phil-  Cynical, ruthless, and one flannel shirt away from being America's next top frat boy.  drinking beer with phil is like eating roadkill with Dolly, fucking royalty. 

Blat-   :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte: :tte:  Need I say more? 

Kelley-  another awesome pauger. 

Hicks-  My internet brah.  Rage on bro. 

Keller "extreme peen" B- My hero. 

Heath- Another amazing human being, also not a bad bone in his body.  The Dr. Gonzo of p00n.  Most men just fuck a pussy.  Heath gets lost in it, fires off some rounds, and manages to run up a giant god damn room service bill in it. 

There are more of you, and I'd love to show my appreciation, but laziness has set in.  So in typical Sophist fashion, I'm leaving this shit unfinished.  Like the infamous funk trench project, one day, it will be completed. 

Anyway, to tie back into the point of my little speal/essay, it's that the magic of that weekend is uncanny, and I will never forget it.  The good, the bad, and the majestic from that weekend will always be with me. 
Can we talk about the Dead?  I'd love to talk about the fucking Grateful Dead, for once, can we please discuss the Grateful FUCKING Dead!?!?!?!

rowjimmy


WhatstheUse?

Nice right up Sophist, love ya bud!
Bring in the dude!

Hicks

Heh I was just telling Heath and Ferbz last night that you, Grupps and RJ are at the top of the list of peeps from the board that I need to meet up with.

One day. . .
Quote from: Trey Anastasio
But, I don't think our fans do happily lap it up, I think they go online and talk about how it was a bad show.

PIE-GUY

Quote from: Hicks on August 04, 2011, 04:52:31 PM
Heh I was just telling Heath and Ferbz last night that you, Grupps and RJ are at the top of the list of peeps from the board that I need to meet up with.

One day. . .

a lot of flyover states between you folks, unfortunately!
I've been coming to where I am from the get go
Find that I can groove with the beat when I let go
So put your worries on hold
Get up and groove with the rhythm in your soul

sophist

Quote from: PIE-GUY on August 04, 2011, 05:02:44 PM
Quote from: Hicks on August 04, 2011, 04:52:31 PM
Heh I was just telling Heath and Ferbz last night that you, Grupps and RJ are at the top of the list of peeps from the board that I need to meet up with.

One day. . .

a lot of flyover states between you folks, unfortunately!
It'll happen.  I'm sure of this. 
Can we talk about the Dead?  I'd love to talk about the fucking Grateful Dead, for once, can we please discuss the Grateful FUCKING Dead!?!?!?!

rowjimmy

Quote from: sophist on August 05, 2011, 08:10:49 AM
Quote from: PIE-GUY on August 04, 2011, 05:02:44 PM
Quote from: Hicks on August 04, 2011, 04:52:31 PM
Heh I was just telling Heath and Ferbz last night that you, Grupps and RJ are at the top of the list of peeps from the board that I need to meet up with.

One day. . .

a lot of flyover states between you folks, unfortunately!
It'll happen.  I'm sure of this.

For true.

We should all do a run of mid-west Akron/Family shows.

sophist

Quote from: rowjimmy on August 05, 2011, 09:19:05 PM
Quote from: sophist on August 05, 2011, 08:10:49 AM
Quote from: PIE-GUY on August 04, 2011, 05:02:44 PM
Quote from: Hicks on August 04, 2011, 04:52:31 PM
Heh I was just telling Heath and Ferbz last night that you, Grupps and RJ are at the top of the list of peeps from the board that I need to meet up with.

One day. . .

a lot of flyover states between you folks, unfortunately!
It'll happen.  I'm sure of this.

For true.

We should all do a run of mid-west Akron/Family shows.
I could be down for that. 

::peeps Akron site for tour dates::
Can we talk about the Dead?  I'd love to talk about the fucking Grateful Dead, for once, can we please discuss the Grateful FUCKING Dead!?!?!?!

Gumbo72203

Loved reading the post, RJ.  Overdone to the extreme, just the way it should've been. 

Anyway... Phish at Hampton.  Many things.  Its funny... because out of all the Phish shows I've seen, theres more crystalized moments from Hampton than any other shows I've seen, I think.  At least more that readily come to mind. 

There were a few great highlights, I think:  the jamming in Stash, Tweezer -> Taste, SOAM, and GBOTT.  Those 4 jams remain concretely intact in my mind, and I feel they hold up upon repeated listens.  And theres something weirdly fresh and unique about their contents. 

However, this is primarily due to one thing:  my finally being able to experience the live creation of the sorts of things I'd been pumping into my ears for years previously.  Its one thing to listen to Reba on headphones, but then when you're experiencing that songs structure live, its a COMPLETELY different experience. 

So, I don't even know how to begin this.  But... there was a lot of good things that weekend.  I went solo, and ran into friends I'd never met before.  I believe it was Tet and Redrum (?) who I first met, because I saw Tet's 'paug shirt.  Thats where my picture is from, with my ticket hanging around my neck in a Mets lanyard, dangling in front of my Trey shirt I've never seen anyone else ever have or wear. 

Friday night, I just found the first empty seat I could.  I sat next to another guy, and we saved each other's spots as we got beer for each other.  I had been texting RJ back and forth, but was extremely anxious about meeting these people in real life.  I mean, I'm Gumbo.  From the 'paug.  These are people against whom I've wielded iron-wrought weapons of type-scorn for their lack of appreciation for the 6/23/04 Crosseyed.  Would they accept me as a person?  What would they be like?

So, somehow, during pre-show, the universe just kind of made me get up out of my seat.  I'm alone at my first Phish show, which just happens to be the first Phish show of the resurrection.  How else am I supposed to spend it but with the people I've talked to every day for the past few years? 

I don't even remember much of going down there, but I remember that it was RJ, Birdman, Slim, Caravan (for a minute?) and 'pauger-in-training, Pieguy.  Chatting, shooting the shit.  I distinctly remember being completely underwhelmed and blah-zay about the situation...  which was weird, because I'd have thought that I wouldn't be able to control my excitement, that I would be the living embodiment of my posts.  I had figured it was the Wellbutrin that I'd been taking for a couple years...  anti-depressants level you out so that you don't feel much of any extreme of emotion.

But then the lights went down, a roar welled up, and these people came out from beneath us and walked on-stage.  I'm quite disappointed that I don't distinctly remember the moment when we all realized that it was Fluffhead that was ushering in the rebirth, but a few seconds into it, I just kind of broke down.  I was on the railing, both hands hanging on for dear life.  I couldn't even dance. This overwhelming rush of emotion just landed on me, and all I could manage was a modest swaying back and forth as I cried hysterically.  I couldn't talk, I didn't acknowledge anyone, I couldn't (and kind of didn't want to) keep my head up... all I was doing was crying. 

By the time Fluffs Travels had come to us once again, I had composed myself a little more, and I remember RJ kindly sharing, although I'm not sure where in time this happened; things all night are a blur.  But then the music was rising, tightening, and winding itself up for the first "white-light" climax releases of the night, and the pressure wave of the simultaneous "fluff - HEAD!!!" from the PA and the crowd in front of us knocked me down once more and the feeling of joy coursing through my veins and goosebumps on my skin kicked over the composure, and I found myself crying all over again.

The next thing I remember though.... clearly:  the music finished, and I manage to kind of hap-hazardly clap, the kind of clap you do when you were just hosed by a sick set, and you're tired, but still swaying to the beat in your head as the band raves up. 

And then Divided Sky knocked me down.  I vividly remember falling down backwards into the stairs, and just putting my head in my lap, bawling like a baby.  It was too much.  I was seeing Phish finally, they played Fluffhead, and now they're playing Divided Sky.  I am seeing Phish play Divided Sky.  I couldn't take it.  I don't remember how long it was until I could stand up again, and the memory of this song is hazy, but I know that the emotional release had been properly executed by the most perfect combinations of songs: Fluffhead and Divided Sky. 

From then on, I believe i was able to dance and enjoy the glory unfolding in front of us.  I remember watching Trey work the whammy pedal with every solo, and remember the sound of the slapped bassline in David Bowie: something that I did NOT know existed, and had never heard or picked up before.  THAT was fucking awesome.  That, and being the only one to call the segue into Taste like 3 minutes before it happened (seriously, how did nobody else pick up on that?  its so obvious!!!)



The 2nd night was just as good as the first, and I have many good memories of this night.  The main one I have is strange, because in my head, I remember it almost as if I were viewing it from above:  the setbreak, when our family got together for the first time. 

Theres a calmness and stillness that was somehow imparted on this moment, because I have this memory of just leaning on the railing, with WTU, RJ, Slim, Pieguy, Birdman, Aug, and other around, just hanging out at setbreak.  I remember leaning up against Mandi, as she ran her hands through my hair, and there was just this sense of wholeness and like... right-ness in it.  It felt right.  It was good. 

And I still remember WTU's voice when they broke into Rock and Roll.  A voice already hoarsened by 3 sets of Phish, this squeeky rough "yeeeaaahhhh!" as he pumped his fist in the air and spun around in a circle. 


But mainly, I remember the conversation I had with RJ before the show.  Just about everything...life.  Wholeness.  Continuity.  Grandness.  And the music started, and I still remember the tug-of-war inside myself of wanting to blurt out "Their jamming it!!!!" with GBOTT, but not wanting to jinx the version. 

And then Brian and Robert.  I don't remember specifically what happened, or how it was said, but RJ opened my eyes to this song by explaining the song's purpose and character, that it is the anti-hose.  Its mellow hose.  Its Phish doing sublime, gooey Pink Floyd.  And thats when I keyed into Fishman's ride cymbal, and Trey's soulful bluesy guitar bends.  I have never looked at this song the same way again. 


So, in the end, TLDR.  I know theres people I'm forgetting that I met, and I'm sorry, but the memories of hanging out with the main crew inside and with Phil and McGrupp outside on Saturday before the show are awesome, and I'm glad I know what you look like. 



lol...  and RJ, remember talking about Aug's Nike shoes?  omg, how you would NEVER wear those!!!!  haha
"Just drink some water, and breathe through your nose."  -Slim, 3/7/09


Quote from: redrum on April 04, 2010, 07:45:51 PM
%% with alternated lyrics about a 1995 jeep cherokee that was also sacraficed on this tour.

Quote from: blatboom on November 04, 2012, 08:46:54 PM
I think I got it but he's such a spaz he'll probably never open this thread again

antelope19

BUMP!

4 years ago.....the weather was so much better!
Quote
Good judgment comes from experience, and a lotta that comes from bad judgment