Phish A Success on Their Own Terms April 13, 1994 - Daily Hampshire Gazette by Sheryl Hunter In the increasingly diverse world of rock 'n roll, Phish stands alone. They hail from Vermont, play jazz-tinged rock and wear goggles when they perform. Many people havn't heard of Phish as they're not exactly a superstar outfit like Aerosmith, yet when Phish takes the stage at the Mullins Center Saturday night, they'll be playing to a sold out house, a feat that the Boston rockers couldn't pull off. The success of these rock oddballs has surely left more than a few record executives scratching their heads. The band has managed to sell over half a million records without the benefit of a hit single, splashy video or record company hype. Like the Greatful Dead before them, Phish has earned their reputation on the road. Playing a different set every night, they have done as many as 200 shows a year which has earned them a loyal grass-roots following. Even the band's drummer Jon Fishman is a bit baffled by his broup's achievements. "I guess a lot of it is a word of mouth thing," said Fishman, on the phone from a tour stop at PSU in State College, PA "I think that some of it comes from over the yoars of our trying not to sound like anyone else and going out of our way to do our own thing." McConnel and singer/songwriter Trey Anastasio have always been commited to doing their own thing. Combining superb musical skills with a wacky sense of humor, Phish plays a unique brand of improvisational rock that borders on fusion while their stage antics include jumping on trampolines and wearing wacky get-ups. The quartet formed back in 1983 when its members were students at UVM. They played their first gig at a ROTC dance and as Fishman explains they have been on the road ever since. The drummer feels that Phish's hard work and devotion to the road has paid off as their career has grown at a steady pace. "We only recently started playing arenas, by the time we played Worcester Centrum this New Years Eve it felt like part of a very gradual progression" Even though they are playing huge venues, Phish's shows remain loose, jam-happy affairs, Fishman said that the band has a repertoire of about 120 songs and they work off a very loose set list each night which guarantees that no two Phish shows will be the same. "When we're playing we have the potential to twist whatever is going on, take it down a new alley and not run out for like three hours"