Phish, neo-crooner add style to CDs September 11, 1998 - Oklahoma Daily By Heidi Holeman Album Review - The Story of the Ghost On a more laid-back level, Phish's showmanship comes in the form of extravagant light shows, extraordinary fingerwork and the occasional on-stage prank. The Story of the Ghost, the latest CD from the Vermont jam-band, evokes Phish's signature free-for-all jams rather than the concise pop that characterizes their last studio effort, Billy Breathes. While Story tends to be more mellow than typical Phish and doesn't include 20-minute songs like Lawnboy's "Reba," there are the occasional wild trips into musical hyperspace, complemented by exploratory but well-grounded grooves. It opens with the somewhat spacey "Ghost," which features a spooky train noise and fades into trippy electronica reminiscent of Steve Miller's "Fly Like an Eagle." "Birds of a Feather" highlights Page McConnell's quick, effervescent organ overlaid by Trey Anastasio's characteristic power chords that signify a launch into jam territory. "Meat" features a Ween-ish electric voice-replay mixed with sung vocals, and while I can't be sure, it sounds like there's a reference in there to that funky, green weed. Hmmmm .... "Fikus" and "Shafty" are both a little too short and underdeveloped, lacking the cohesion and interplay that usually solidifies Phish tunes. And the chorale backup on "Limb by Limb" is a bit much. This is made up for by the tender "Brian and Robert" and "Wading in the Velvet Sea," a pass-the-bong and heal-your-heart number harking all the way back to Junta's "Divided Sky." The Story of the Ghost manages to combine the mellowness of Billy Breathes with the complicated musicianship of Rift and the frenetic jams of Lawnboy. Ghost isn't perfect, but it's damn good. Article © 1998 Oklahoma Daily