BILLY BREATHES

Since this is my first Phish review, I need to get this off of my chest: I have been a fan of this band for a long time. I saw them a few times back before they made it big, when they would come down to Boston to play in a small club. But since they became the new Grateful Dead, the "Phishheads" have become a nuicance. The last time I tried to see them (luckily I had promo tickets, or I really would have been pissed), I was stuck in a traffic jam ten miles from the concert venue, because fans without tickets blocked the roads. Finally, almost two hours after the show started, I sold my tickets at three times the face value to someone who walked up to the car, begging for spare tickets. The guy didn't have a chance of actually getting there.

Anyway, this album (with it's most hideous cover), and the above experience, marked the end of my interest in the band. The album itself is less inventive to my ears than most of the preceding Phish disks. The songs are mostly folky rock, with a touch of country and psychedelia. I founs very little of the group's usual humor, and no extended jams.

2.5 stars from me.