Phish's Anastasio swims far out alone June 1, 2002 - Des Moines Register by Kyle Munson Album Review - Trey Anastasio Dude, lemme tell ya, as a fellow Phishhead you really gotta check out Trey's new solo disc. Yeah, it's just self-titled: "Trey Anastasio." Worth buying, even, instead of burning for free, man. I mean, it's killer enough that Phish is still putting out all those old live shows as official CDs. The sound is crisp. A bunch more were released this month. The series is up to, like, a dozen complete live shows. But of course the band has been on "hiatus" for the last year and a half. That made last summer a real drag. But along comes Trey with this new album, and he's hittin' the road! Just imagine Phish crossed with Santana. That's kind of the vibe here. Lots of horns. Man, the horns! See, Trey's playing with a pretty tight band. Mostly fellow Vermont dudes, plus Brazilian percussionist Cyro Baptista. Even jazz trumpeter Nicholas Payton gets to blow his horn as a guest, but it's Trey's core four-piece horn section that defines the album, balanced by his own cool-as-usual guitar licks. (Definitely check out the closing minutes of "Push On "Til the Day.") If Phish is all about the jam, Trey's solo thing is more about the groove. The first track, "Alive Again," could've been a Phish song. But the second one, "Cayman Review," is pure, new Trey funk. You can sing along to it: "Shake me up! Shake me down! Shakin' that thing all over town!" I guess Trey's official solo debut was "Surrender to the Air" six years ago, but, man, that one was all free jazz experimentation. Nothin' held it together. Forget dancin' to it. Then he independently released two CDs of raw songs, some of which Phish later polished for its last two studio albums, "The Story of the Ghost" and "Farmhouse." Oysterhead, Trey's trio with Police drummer Stewart Copeland and Primus bassist Les Claypool, came along last year and was supposed to be the big post-Phish supergroup. Man, I've heard that those guys can rip it up live, but that record just left me cold. It was a little too wacky and not funky enough. Claypool's voice is too freakishly nasal; it would work better for a Muppet. So anyway, this new Trey CD is not only his "official" solo debut but the first important post-Phish album, I think. The groove begins immediately and doesn't let up for several songs, until the sappy "Flock of Words," which is full of strings. That's the only drawback: Some of the mellow moments verge on lame. "Drifting" is better, more floaty. The pseudo-classical instrumentals, "At the Gazebo" and "Ray Dawn Balloon," sound like either OK chillout tracks or just filler, depending on my mood. But "Last Tube," at more than 11 minutes, is a Phish-worthy jam. All in all, the funky grooves more than make up for any sleepy parts. You know what? Trey's little solo tributary is kind of the same thing that Paul Simon, Sting, David Byrne and others have done. Like, once the colossal responsibility of a larger-than-life pop-rock band is off their shoulders, they feel free to explore exotic rhythms, jazzy textures, whatever suits them. I mean, Phish was already pretty far out there, but it sounds like Trey was more than eager to get into a deeper Latin groove. But if ya don't believe me, listen to the whole album at www .elektra.com/treyplayer before you buy it. See ya at the Trey shows this summer!