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The
Unlikely Corporate Rock Band: Phish
Written
by Michael Black
Over the course of the past fifteen years, there have been few
success stories in the music industry as unique as the rise of
the Vermont based quartet, Phish. Riding their love of rock &
roll and knack for improvisation, Phish went from the humble beginnings
of playing a R.O.T.C. dance to the heights of stardom selling
out venues such as Madison Square Garden. Through the years, the
main force behind Phish has been their unrelenting fan base that
is often likened to that of the Grateful Dead. The fans have latched
on to Phish for many reasons. Musicianship is one reason. Their
set list is always kept fresh and played in an improvisational
style so that the same song might sound different from night to
night. Another reason is the sub-cultural identification. The
fans can be likened to what Peterson and Kern refer to as "hard-core
fans" (Peterson). They travel from show to show together
and typically dress similarly, experiment with similar drugs,
and readily identify with each other as "Phish Heads".
The final reason is that the fans view Phish as an aesthetically
pure group, untainted by the corporate world, and out to "play
just for the music". Unfortunately, this is a huge misconception
amongst Phish fans. While Phish's road to success has no doubt
been unique, it has not been without its fair share of corporate
involvement.
In
turn, I would suggest that Phish is actually no different than
any corporate band. It is important to note that the point of
my discussion is not to label corporate music as a bad thing,
but rather to show that even bands like Phish are both sensitive
and susceptible to the corporate powers of the music business.
Rather than compare Phish to "corporate" bands on an
aesthetic level, I will objectively look at Phish's corporate
involvement in the music industry and investigate specific instances
in the band's history.
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