Phish fans dread void August 11, 2004 - Associated Press By Tim McCahill MONTPELIER -- Ellis Godard doesn't hide his disappointment that Phish is breaking up. The jam band has been around too long, and is too good, to call it quits after their final show this weekend in Coventry, he said. "I think they should keep playing," said Godard, executive editor of "The Phish Companion," a 900-page compendium of facts and music-related tidbits about the Vermont-based group. "I think they've built a great thing. I think they should keep going." Godard isn't alone in his dismay. Fans and music insiders agree that when the lights dim on Phish's last gig it will close an important chapter in the history of jam bands - and leave a void in the music scene that few, if any, groups will be able to fill. Phish, a quartet consisting of Trey Anastasio, Jon Fishman, Mike Gordon and Page McConnell, has built a following of thousands by playing music that blends genres and sounds into songs that are almost orchestral and always unconventional. Bluegrass, barbershop, funk and traditional rock - all have found a voice in Phish's music throughout the band's two-decade-long evolution from garage to festival stage. The diversity of styles translated to a live show guaranteed to be unpredictable, Godard said. "You never knew what was going to happen next," said Godard. "(Playing) in front of 80,000 people, they used trampolines, beach balls, vacuums ... everything from a gospel choir to the comedian Steven Wright." Phish's concerts have also made the band one of the most profitable in the business, with ticket sales figuring in the millions of dollars. But Phish's allure lies in the music, not the money, said Reid Genauer, who co-founded the band Strangefolk in Burlington and now heads another group, The Assembly of Dust. Phish, Genauer said, put a new groove on the classic technique of "tension and release:" overlapping instruments in mid-song improvisations and slowly building to a fevered crescendo, then returning to the original melody to finish out a tune - usually to an explosive reaction from their audience. "What they made use of very consciously is a sort of discordance," said Genauer, 32. "Musical tension that almost feels to the casual listener, to the trained listener like there's something emotionally unnerving about it." "What was neat about (Phish), they used that discordance to create anticipation ... they hit the notes you wanted to hear," he continued. "There is this great sense of release." That discord is evidence of the band's technical range, said Andy Gadiel, founder and CEO of the music Web site jambase.com. "Musically the four of them, while Trey (Anastasio) is the dominant player, the lead in the band ... everybody is at one point leading, everyone is playing off of each other," Gadiel said. "They're playing off each other, encouraging each other, figuring out ways to hook up." Those improvisational skills make Phish a tough act to follow. Though many groups populate the jam band music scene - moe., the String Cheese Incident, Widespread Panic - none has been able to command the mass following that makes Phish a kind of latter-day Grateful Dead. Tens of thousands attend Phish concerts - at least 70,000 are expected to be in Coventry this weekend - with many fans traveling across the country to see the band play live. Phish's popularity and their pre-eminent ranking above other jam bands leave a question that has haunted many since the group announced in May that it would split after this weekend's show: What else is out there? Opinions, and emotions, vary. Some, like Godard, believe there's plenty more life in Phish that the band isn't giving itself credit for. Others see the band's departure from the music scene as an opportunity for up-and-coming groups to find a niche - and for Phish listeners to explore new music. "It'll afford people the opportunity to re-engage with music, to find something new," said Dean Budnick, senior editor of the music magazine Relix and editor of jambands.com. "There's so much more music to be seen. I know a lot of people who have moved on already," said Gadiel. "Phish has opened (people) up to the possibility of music, and what is capable in a live music setting." Article Copyright © 2004 Associated Press