I think this man may think he knows things.
(Photo courtesy of Libby McLinn at Phish.com)

Everyone's favorite shit-stirrer is at it again. Tom Marshall's new blog entry reads in part:

Hey -- I was happy to have leaked some news about Trey and myself writing again together with my last blog entry. I was shocked that I got about 25 phone calls and 75 emails about it within 2 hours of the posting...and that it made Jambands.com news, and was a major discussion on Phantasy Tour.

I think it was a positive message to Trey though...that people are out there, hopeful and happy...sort of a better message than getting a drink thrown in his face! but seriously...many MANY people continue to ask me...so...here's what I think: PHISH INCORPORATED had to end. I say it that way because it was bigger than just the band...it was everything...a money-steamroller with several people and entire families riding it, sitting in the control seat, pushing it faster...not realizing that the band, which once was happily walking slowly in front of it, now had to run to keep away from the large crushing wheel...and now were occasionally getting their clothing caught, but were just pulling free in several close calls...Fishman's dress...Page's new shirt...they had to unladen themselves to run faster...instruments, common sense, band practice, and hundreds of unwritten songs were sacrificed and were crushed...and those at the helm could only push harder, and speed the machine...thankfully and suddenly, the engine ceased...at Coventry.

Will they come back?

CAN they come back? is the question.

Things are blissfully different now. Even so, they will have to be very smart the next time around.

But rejoice in the knowledge that they are.

All.

Very.

And so begins yet ANOTHER round of speculation about the future of Phish 2.0...if there is a future at all. As I'm sure you can imagine, this has sparked a flurry of PT discussions...and shockingly enough, they're all more positive than your basic rumour thread. (Translation: Only one person quoting Trey's "We're done" letter, two people calling each other douchebags, three people making hotel reservations in Hampton, and the rest cautiously taste-testing this teaser....)

Tom is often hailed as the true insider and as such the voice of truth for behind-the-scenes Phish. (Frankly, I think the true insider is really Brad Sands, and found his interview a few months ago with Jambands to be veeeeerry interesting. However, Brad�s much more likely to fuck with everyone than Tom, so it's probably six of one as to who has more accurate info.) It's clear that he's in contact with Trey and that they're writing again (though he doesn't say who or what they're writing for...), and at face value that's just excellent news. Trey and Tom together form a partnership of opposites and equals: both being equally insane and wise, challenging and stupid, pointed and pointless, careful and irreverent. Their collaborations are ultimately magical in a way that few singer/songwriters combos ever consistently are (Garcia/Hunter certainly...Lennon/McCartney definitely...I'm hard-pressed to think of many more).

I may be speculating too much, but what I think Tom's trying to do is to seed the fanbase with a way to make sense of what Phish has been doing for the past 4 or 5 years. Think about it: it's near impossible for them to come back (especially if the October rumours are true -- the breakup would be a shorter break than the hiatus!) without directly addressing the catastrophe that was Coventry and all the definitive statements and actions from Trey (and the rest of the band) signaling the very bitter end. Most of us have learned over the years to not accept anything out of Trey's mouth at face value, but Coventry was something else altogether: giving away the tramps, the tears during Velvet Sea, the "You can still have fun!" lyric in Wilson, the relentless exposition of song histories, thanking of the crew, booty bumping with the moms (and Tom's final "Marco Esquandolas," come to think of it).

Anyone who says they'd show up with open minds at Phish 2.0 without the real story behind the demise of Phish 1.0 is lying. Everyone wants to be soothed a bit and apologized to for how it all went down and everyone wants to understand how they're approaching the next go-round so we can get on board (or not). This is a band that forged a truly incomprehensible relationship with their fans...and as such we all feel a little entitled to some modicum of truth. Don't get me wrong: I desperately want them to play again, and if we never know what the real motivation behind the hiatus/comeback/breakup was -- but we get our band back -- then so be it. However, if Trey thinks he's going to get up there and play Curtain or Wilson or Hood or Glide without justification or explanation, he's not entering back into this strange dance with the same spirit he left it. Frankly, he'd do best to get up there and never play them again (and that choice, honestly, might be explanation enough in itself).

Nevertheless, I think that's what Tom (and to a certain extent Brad, and some of these other well-sourced rumours) is already doing...slowly telling us what we need to know to clear the decks for the second deal. And as long as there really is a new train on the horizon (and I know from whence it came) I'm certainly more than ready to get back on it.