Round Table On Round Room December 21, 2002 - Jambase.com By Staff Album Review - Round Room Round Room, a name that suggests the cyclical nature of thought and the ever-evolving history of one of the scene's most experimental bands, has moments of greatness while falling short in equal amounts. Phish albums have been known to be tough swallows for die-hard fans in search of transcendent jams and spacious grooves. Instead they are left with diet versions of songs that can only hint as to what may become a live show staple. In the category of potential though, Round Room delivers the heat. The opening track "Pebbles and Marbles," with its soft beginnings, catchy lyrics and jammed out ending shows the fun is still in the game. The pre-released, "Walls of the Cave" takes the listener back in time to what is perceived to be a post-Gamehenge archeological find. The lyrics speak of "the names of those you couldn't save,You'll find them on the walls of the cave," and "The mountain here is now a hill" urging the listener to "look away, look away" referencing the demise of the fictional Lizard people, and the crumbling of Mt. Icculus, while proving epic in its ending. Phish have produced an album bursting with dust-covered gems. The last track on Round Room shows that this is not a band that slept through its two-year hiatus. A Beatle-esque journey through sound, "Waves" is pure in its sound and versatile in its ability to be stretched and bent into any number of directions. This is the overriding factor of any great Phish song. While many claim the album is "diet-Phish," I say you expect too much from a band that has never relied on albums to generate or dictate the direction of its live show offerings. Many Phish albums in the past have included songs that at first listen are soft and sappy only to be rendered classics as time slips by. While this album's "Friday" and "Mexican Cousin" have a long way to go, counting them, and this whole album out now is a slap in the face to a band whose dedication to their ever-evolving sounds is what drew you to listen in the first place.