1/3/15 — Miami, FL

Summary

Helping Friendly Podcast Episode Summary: "Miami, FL" (January 3, 2015)
Release Date: January 20, 2025
Host: Osiris Media

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Introduction to the Episode

The episode titled "Miami, FL" delves into Phish's performance on January 3, 2015, in Miami, Florida. Hosted by Brian, Cyrus, and Megan, the conversation navigates through historical contexts, personal anecdotes, fan interactions, and an in-depth analysis of the specific concert.

Historical and Political Context

The hosts begin by situating the Miami concert within a broader historical framework. Cyrus introduces a discussion on presidential inaugurations, referencing James Garfield as the second president to be assassinated, highlighting the tumultuous period post-Civil War:

Cyrus [02:26]: "I think we should talk a little bit about the Garfield inauguration and all the... significant change for America."

Listener Questions and Current Events

Brian addresses a listener's query about Phish ticket prices in relation to rising egg costs, attributing the high prices to Colorado's new cage-free laws:

Brian [03:19]: "I went to the grocery store with my kids... got a 24 thing of eggs and it was $12. I was really surprised."

Cyrus adds context by explaining the legislative changes affecting egg prices:

Cyrus [03:39]: "A new law passed in Colorado or went into effect that have to be cage free now. So eggs are a dozen eggs are like $10 right now."

Upcoming Phish Shows and Personal Plans

The conversation shifts to promoting upcoming Phish shows across various locations, with hosts sharing their attendance plans:

Brian [04:09]: "This week there are three reprise shows coming up... I'll be there. Hope to see some of you there."

Megan expresses excitement about attending:

Megan [05:22]: "And I'll be there on Friday."

Analyzing the January 3, 2015 Miami Show

The core of the episode focuses on dissecting Phish's Miami performance. The hosts discuss the setlist, transitioning between songs, and the flow of the concert. They commend the band's ability to maintain a solid structure:

Megan [35:34]: "The first set is really solid... plasma has like its third time out."

Cyrus highlights the significance of the "Down With Disease" jam, noting its symbolic importance and how it foreshadows future musical explorations:

Cyrus [46:33]: "You hear this jam where the band is really just kind of plain... it's all about chordal connection."

Listener Voicemails and Fan Experiences

The episode features heartfelt voicemails from listeners, sharing their personal connections to Phish's music. RJ recounts how the podcast inspired him to embark on a live Fish Relief Winter '94 tour:

RJ [13:15]: "It actually inspired me to do a live fish relief winter '94 tour, which has been awesome."

Brian shares a profound personal experience from attending the Miami show, where he felt a spiritual connection with his deceased father during the performance:

Brian [62:05]: "During the jam, I got this overwhelming feeling of my dad communicating with me... everything's gonna be fine."

Megan reflects on the rarity and beauty of such moments, emphasizing the therapeutic power of music:

Megan [64:42]: "Those experiences are so rare, especially for people who aren't looking for them... that's just awesome."

Evolution of Phish's Music and Performances

The hosts analyze the evolution of Phish's musical style, particularly noting the shift towards more structured and experimental performances post-2015. They discuss how the band's approach to live shows became more consistent, integrating long jams and seamless transitions:

Cyrus [46:52]: "What you get is this band that is really just kind of plain... they're slowly figuring out how to recreate what separates us from just a great rock show."

Megan adds that the band’s consistency in recent years has enhanced the live experience:

Megan [20:14]: "I think a lot of the stories you read about... their approach to the studio has been as experimental as their approach to the stage."

Future Plans and Podcast Developments

Towards the end of the episode, the hosts discuss future directions for the Helping Friendly Podcast. They hint at upcoming series and episodes, emphasizing audience participation and interactive content:

Brian [69:35]: "We're going to need you... we're going to need audience participation."

Cyrus teases a new series exploring significant moments in Phish’s history without limiting it to the current year, ensuring flexibility and variety:

Cyrus [70:06]: "The structure of this series allows us to explore a lot... with some special episodes."

Closing Reflections

Brian concludes with reflections on the Miami show’s impact and the band's trajectory:

Brian [72:13]: "It's a good point. I mean, you have these moments... like the Halloween 2014 shows pushing them into a new space."

Megan emphasizes the importance of such shows in Phish's evolution, acknowledging their role in shaping future performances:

Megan [71:34]: "They had to have years like this to want to continue to stretch out... take risks and push against the edge."

Notable Quotes

• Cyrus [02:26]: "I think we should talk a little bit about the Garfield inauguration and all the... significant change for America."
• Brian [03:19]: "I went to the grocery store with my kids... got a 24 thing of eggs and it was $12. I was really surprised."
• Megan [35:34]: "The first set is really solid... plasma has like its third time out."
• Cyrus [46:33]: "You hear this jam where the band is really just kind of plain... it's all about chordal connection."
• Brian [62:05]: "During the jam, I got this overwhelming feeling of my dad communicating with me... everything's gonna be fine."
• Brian [69:35]: "We're going to need you... we're going to need audience participation."
• Megan [71:34]: "They had to have years like this to want to continue to stretch out... take risks and push against the edge."

Conclusion

This episode of the Helping Friendly Podcast offers a comprehensive analysis of Phish's January 3, 2015, Miami show, enriched with historical insights, personal stories, and listener experiences. The hosts effectively blend technical musical discussions with emotional narratives, providing a multifaceted view of the band's performance and evolution. As they look ahead, they promise engaging content that invites listener interaction, continuing their mission to amplify the fan voice in Phish discussions.

Transcript

[Megan]

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[Brian]

What's the best time of day to get a deal? All day with Jack in the box's all day. Big deal meal. You get to choose from four entrees like the supreme croissant and five tasty sides plus a drink starting at $5. So hurry in or take your time. You've got all day at Jack. Every bite's a big deal.

[Cyrus]

I'm Cyrus.

[Brian]

Hey everybody. Good afternoon. This is the Helping Friendly podcast. It's Monday, January 20th. We are here to bring you conversation about a fish show. I think this is the. Today's a historic day. It's the 60th inauguration in US history. First one was in 1793. Brian, can you run down the previous 59 and just tell us one fact about each of the last 59 real quick we get going.

[Megan]

He probably could.

[Brian]

But we're not. We're not. We're not going to talk about that today, are we? We're not. Well, I just want to agenda.

[Cyrus]

I think that we should talk a little bit about the Garfield inauguration and all the. The entire Garfield presidency and what that led to today. I mean, that was the second president to be assassinated. It was a very contentious time in American history. People were looking for significant change. There was a lot of pushback from the south in opposition to what was happening as the union had taken over after the Civil War. There's a lot of cries that the south was being persecuted and that they were being stamped down. And so they revolted. They wanted significant change. And Garfield came in and said, you know, I'm just gonna toe the line right down the middle and look where it led him. So, you know, it's. It's an interesting America evolves and changes and ebbs and flows, and we will see where we go here.

[Brian]

It's a good question. One of our faithful viewers on YouTube. Do fish prices go down after today or just eggs? I did buy. I bought eggs. I bought. I went to the grocery store with my kids the other day specifically to buy eggs. And I think, like, got like a 24 thing of eggs and it was $12. I was really surprised.

[Cyrus]

A new law passed in Colorado or went into effect that have to be cage free now. So eggs are a dozen eggs are like $10 right now. Wow. So we told the kids, no more breakfast burritos. No more eggs in ramen. No more. We're not baking anything anymore. Like, we're literally just holding on to the 12 eggs we have. That's it.

[Brian]

You just need chickens.

[Cyrus]

Dude, I need to get chickens. But they destroyed my backyard. Yeah, I used to have them.

[Megan]

Really? They destroyed it. They just. That's.

[Cyrus]

That was our. Our Covid pet was eight chickens.

[Megan]

And I want chickens so bad.

[Cyrus]

They were great. They're very. Well, we got our dogs after Covid, but the chicken, the chickens were like, August 2020. We were like, you know what we should do? Put chickens in the backyard.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

And it was fun. Got a lot of eggs, sold some eggs, cleaned up a lot of chicken coops. And then we redid our backyard and said the chickens are just going to destroy it. So we can't.

[Megan]

They gotta go.

[Brian]

All right, so after that lesson, we'll move along and we'll talk about. I do want to say that this week there are three reprise shows coming up. The 23rd, which is Thursday in Pembroke, Massachusetts. I'll be there. Hope to see some of you there on the 24th. Friday in parks at Park City in Bridgeport, and then on the 25th in New Market, New Hampshire, at the Stone Church. It's going to be fun. Then there's four shows coming up. Actually. No, sorry. Five shows coming up. One at the end of February in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. And then Worcester, Mass. Saratoga Springs, New York, and New Hope. So we got like, you know, there's a lot going on. Yeah. Eight shows in the next, like, month and a half, which is great.

[Megan]

And I'll be there on Friday.

[Brian]

Yep. It's true. So come. Come hang out.

[Cyrus]

Gonna be there.

[Megan]

It's true.

[Brian]

Coming out of this, you can see Mary.

[Megan]

Are you gonna be there?

[Brian]

Yeah, I'll be there. Yep, I'll be there. Nobody cares if I'm gonna be there or not. Megan, this is, like, not true. 2017, it's like, you know, they're like, oh, yeah, of course. Talk to him.

[Megan]

I see how you're mobbed at these shows. Don't act humble, please.

[Cyrus]

Mobbed with RJ is literally one of life's greatest joys. I don't understand this. Nobody cares that he's there. He's got the greatest vibe. Somehow everything works out, even though he gets you into the concert, like, 60 seconds before the band comes on stage.

[Megan]

Yeah, but then my soul. Totally fine. So he'll be like, see, I knew this was gonna happen.

[Cyrus]

And he. He knows the songs that you want to hear and also the songs you don't want to hear, so that he can make fun of you and share in your joy. And randomly, he'll, like, put his arm around you and be like, man, I just love you. And, like, it just takes, you know, a standard version of funky to, like, new heights.

[Brian]

Yeah. Hey, man, just saying, it's a. It's a fun experience, going to concerts. All right, what else we got? What else you got to say, guys?

[Megan]

We have another episode coming out next Monday. Library card.

[Brian]

Thank you.

[Megan]

Yeah, we're talking about Northwoods by Daniel Mason. And there's been a few people that I know that have gotten into the podcast and have read the book and are very excited for this conversation. So we're starting to get people reading with us, which is really exciting and the whole point of the show.

[Brian]

Brian, can we digress for a minute and just talk about the past. This three days of football we have going on? We're on day three. There's only one football game today, but past two days of football have been incredible. What a great. What a great diversion from regular life. What was your high. What was the highlight of your weekend? Sports watching?

[Cyrus]

Well, I'll just say I. I had a. I was in the wilderness with football for about a decade there. I just. I was. It was. It was so violent and so, like, militaristic, and I didn't really like the culture. And then three years ago this last week, and I got Covid, and I was in this very room watching movies, watching tv, and I turned on the divisional round of the NFL playoffs and saw, like, three classic games, and I was like, you know what? I'm back. Like, this is. It's so much fun to watch. Like, this is my favorite weekend of football of the year. Four really great games. I really Liked the Bills Ravens game last night. Super intense. I dig Josh Allen. I dig everyone up in Buffalo. I relate to those people as a Chicago Cubs fan, like, that kind of sadness. There's, like, a very specific type of fan who likes that kind of sadness and that kind of torture. I am one of those people, and so I relate with those folks and hope. I'm hoping the Bills win the super bowl this year. Great classic game in the snow. The Philly Rams game was really wild and sad to see Detroit lose the way that they did.

[Brian]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

Were you a Lions fan growing up? I know you were a Tigers fan.

[Brian]

Yeah. Yeah. You know, in the. In the amount of time that we had for. For to be an NFL fan, which in, you know, in the Midwest is not a lot, because we got a lot of college football to care about.

[Megan]

It's true.

[Brian]

Yeah. But. Yeah, well, it's, of course, like. Because when I was growing up, as, you know, Perry Sanders was. Was. You know, so. Yes. But, yeah, it's sad. I have a bunch of friends who are Lions fans. It's a. It's a sad way to go out for them. And who knows? This Jaden Daniels is the real deal. So.

[Cyrus]

Yeah, there's only one team that picked a quarterback in front of Jaden Daniels. Do you know who that team is?

[Brian]

Yeah, I do.

[Cyrus]

Good thing I swore them off in 2012. But, no, it was fun weekend. Meg, I. I know you watched some football. You had a very important opinion that all football games should be played in the snow. Which. Which is kind of controversial around, like, football. Football purists versus.

[Megan]

Oh, come on. It's so romantic that way. It's so romantic.

[Cyrus]

I'm on the page with you. I'm on the page with you. Yeah.

[Megan]

I mean, listen, I don't watch football, but my husband put it on last night. My daughter was entertaining friends upstairs, so we came down to eat and put on that Bills Ravens game. And the snow, it was just. It looked so magical. And that's exactly like. I grew up in Michigan. That's how football games should be played. And my friend is a rabid, rabid Bills fan. And he was telling me stories when I saw him recently about how at that field, sometimes they don't have time to shovel all the snow and it compacts into ice. And sometimes you are standing on ice for the entire game. And that. It's just. It just takes a lot. And he brings his kids up there, and they had great stories about it, too. So there's something kind of great about suffering for Sports like that. I'm into it.

[Cyrus]

Suffering sports. That's it.

[Brian]

Yeah. Can we just go back to suffering just real quick because.

[Cyrus]

Sure.

[Brian]

I actually think out of all the first round quarterbacks after the first year, I think I would take any of them over Caleb Williams.

[Cyrus]

I think you're wrong.

[Brian]

Jaden Daniels, Drake, May, Penix, mccarthy. I mean, mccarthy didn't even play, but still. And then Nicks. What do you think?

[Cyrus]

I think a lot of them were drafted into better situations than Caleb Williams. Yeah. The Bears are in a very unique situation similar to the Chicago Bulls, where they're owned by people that don't realize they live in the third largest media market and so they own their team and they, they, they spend money as though it's Milwaukee and not Chicago. And it is endlessly frustrating. And until these octogenarian morons sell the teams that are worth like four or five billion dollars, if you don't want to spend money to actually build winning teams in a giant media market, sell it. It's worth like $5 billion. It's like 6,000% more than you bought the team for. Like, what are we doing here? You don't want to spend the money. I think Caleb came into an absolutely. A boy who was his coach and an offensive line that is literally just like, hey, let's open the gates and let's see what happens. So with that, like, you're not going to see much success from a quarterback. They were in a lot of games. Caleb's got a great arm, he's got great, great legs. He can get out of the pocket, but he's just doomed if he has to come back to this.

[Brian]

You know, that is good analysis. Caleb Williams, of course, went to high school in D.C. at Gonzaga. And now we have the, the Washington commanders with the, with another number one draft pick coming to Philadelphia next week. On Sunday, it's gonna be two 30 degree games, Meg. I don't know if there's gonna be snow, but both games are gonna be like 30 degrees. So perfect.

[Megan]

I'm still amazed that they play in short sleeves even in that weather. Those guys are so tough. It's like 10 degrees. So tough. I mean, because football is a lot of just standing around. Like when I was a cheerleader in Michigan and we had a cheer for football games. We do wear pants. It sucked and it was cold. And if you were just standing there, like basketball was fun to cheer for because you'd be running around doing. There was things happening with football. Half the time you're standing there like waiting for stuff to happen, man. Cold.

[Cyrus]

Do you know what wasn't standing around?

[Megan]

What?

[Cyrus]

Fish. On January 3, 2015, they came out and they refused to stand around. They played like they were playing in the Miami semi Heat arena and not in the Orange Bowl. And like it was LeBron and Wade and Bosch and Miller and Spo on the sidelines, like with his arms going everywhere, calling everything out. I mean, some sick, sick stuff happened on January 3, 2015. You guys know what I'm talking about.

[Brian]

I do, I do. But before we get there, can we play a voicemail from one of our listeners?

[Cyrus]

Oh, yes, please.

[Brian]

Now that we've spent, you know, we didn't really even divert for that long. All right, let's go.

[Megan]

Felt long.

[RJ]

Hey, guys. And just wanted to say love the show. I've been listening for a couple years. It's a great way. It's usually for me a Friday or Saturday night. Just kind of relax into the weekend and just really love, you know, the friendship. You guys clearly have the easiness together and just really, you could tell there's an enjoyment. So thank you for that. I wanted to comment on the top 25.

[Cyrus]

I loved it.

[RJ]

It actually inspired me to do a live fish relief winter 94 tour, which has been awesome. So I'm doing, you know, Boone, Spartansburg. I'm actually on the virtual i95 up to Glenfall 33. But the piece that is most intriguing to me is I loved RJ's reflection on 2003. I feel definitely it's one or two. That whole year is just incredible. So I'm definitely here for you. Matt and Brian, I know both love that year. In my mind, like I said, it could be number one. I mean, you've got that Camden twist is amazing, but that sense and subtle sounds, which I probably listen to at least once a week, it's kind of a perfect encapsulation of that year. It's, you know, that dark, that mean, that angry, emotional. I love Trey's screamer tone. I think the big argument for it is just how exploratory that year. You know, I think this year more than any others, really deeply explores jamming. And, you know, that's the heart of this band as we know. It's got kind of this free and searching and kind of seeking nature to it that I love. And then the other thing too, which I'm sure you guys have picked up on, is I feel this is one of the few years where Gordon kind of locks into a lot of grooves on jams. You know that Charlotte bathtub, Miami Piper, which is insane. There's a really good sneak. And Sally from Noblesville. I love the Inglewood bathtub, you know, so I mean, there's so many good gems at Nassau, which I was actually at that show. Probably been to about 40 shows and not because of drugs, but I honestly can remember like four or five moments for some reason. But I vividly remember that tweezer, you know, looking over at my brother's friend and just being amazed. And still to this day, I don't remember if my first show was December of 95, shockingly or I know I went to Clifford Ball. So anyway, but I thought I'd share. I love the show, can't wait for next episodes and love that the 2003 sort of appreciation is building and growing. So thanks again guys. Really love it.

[Megan]

Bye.

[RJ]

Bye.

[Cyrus]

You know, it's Amazing that after 20 years of slander, we, two weeks in a row get the same praise for 2003. Fish word for word recorded the. It's amazing. The same caller called in back to back weeks and said, I just got to share with you how much I love 2003. So I'm here for it. I don't know about you guys.

[Megan]

Yeah, for sure. Also another chance to glaze rj, as my kids tell me. You know, build you up, praise you online. We did it.

[Brian]

Yeah, that was definitely the point. Yes. Thank you, caller. Thank you for again sharing that with us.

[Cyrus]

Is that just psyching you up for tonight's game?

[Brian]

Nope. No, it's just. Just maybe the wrong folder. But we appreciate that guy quite a lot. Okay, now here's a real one, a real new one.

[Cyrus]

Great.

[Brian]

Ready for the real real? The real new.

[Megan]

We'll see.

[Brian]

Maybe not. Hey guys, Maddie P. Here. Just wanted to say really appreciate what you guys do and I love the analysis and the hard work that you all do so that people like me don't have to do it. Really look forward to the shows every week and I like love the input and the chemistry you guys have. It's great. I've always thought that the studio albums were interesting little benchmarks and I was wondering if you guys, what your thoughts were on the studio albums as individual pieces and little sort of stepping stones along the way. And would it be fun to do an in depth analysis on the studio albums and sort of where the band were at that time, any guest players they may have had, equipment they were using at that time, et cetera. Thank you. Really appreciate the great work you guys do. Bye. So Matt And I did a series where we went through at least the first seven albums, I think.

[Megan]

I think we even did one when I was on, too.

[Brian]

Yeah, we did 20 in 2019. We went up through. I can't remember if we went up through Hoist or Billy Breathes, but we should. What do you guys think about albums? What do you have to say about that to that caller?

[Cyrus]

I think it's a really interesting series that we could do, especially the later stuff. I mean, I think he's right. I think that there's a fascinating stepping stone, because it is. You listen to Fish shows and they're always kind of in motion. We talked about that a lot during our series that, like, you'd hear kind of a peak of a sound, and then by the end of a tour, they're on to whatever comes next. And with the albums, it is so much of, like, a stamp in time. I mean, for me, Rift and Round Room always speak to me as records that showcase a few things. I love that the band was trying at the time from a songwriting standpoint, from a live recording standpoint, from a thematic building, like a world standpoint, from a middle age NIST standpoint. So I'd love to talk more about those in depth. I think a lot of the stories you read about Billy Breeze and, like, Prince Caspian, the solo being recorded at dawn, and the Blob recordings, and then, like, you know, what they were doing a year later in Bearsville, like, it's clear that their approach to the studio has been, in a lot of cases, as experimental as their approach to the stage. The interesting thing about them is where most bands, you would reach for a studio album first and then a live show with Fish, you do the reverse. So you end up hearing, like, kind of an overview of a sound all kind of encapsulated in 45 minutes.

[Megan]

For me, that's how I discovered Fish was actually through Rift. So for me, it kind of was that way. But I would love to go deep again on Rift and Billy Breeds. Those are my two favorites. And I also think it'd be interesting to think about the change that happened with the band with recording. I mean, once they got the barn. And I think they have a totally different way that they record live or their albums now compared to back then. And it'd be fun to kind of go through that and watch how it evolved and changed.

[Brian]

All right, we're going to add it to the list.

[Megan]

Okay. The ever growing list.

[Brian]

Megan, are we going to talk about 2015 or the end of 2014? Are we doing any context, history, stage setting?

[Megan]

I don't really think we need to. I think we need to just go into it. Because if, if you want to know more about 2014, 2015, we have some really great episodes that have just come out about them. You can look at our 40 for 40 on both of those years and dive into those. And then you can also look at. We covered the 2015 Tour as well. So I think there's. There's enough to look into, I think. Unless you guys disagree.

[Cyrus]

No, kind of like a big picture. I have like a big picture question to ask.

[Megan]

Let's do that.

[Cyrus]

I'm not requiring you to pull up your notes and stuff. Can I ask a question? Yeah, yeah, just. I'm on podcast. Like I'm just asking questions here. We're back in that era, you know, what are your guys thoughts? Because this, this show feels to me like. Like a, like a full demarcation line. But the band leading up to this point and the band after this point are in a lot of ways different. And we're going to get into that. But like what are your thoughts on pre2015 3.0 fish, you know, for so 09 to 2015 or late 2014 as we sit here a decade later.

[Megan]

To me, I've always felt like there were moments of greatness. Certain tours are moments that stood out. But I think this is when the band really starts to make a turn toward like consistency. I think 2016 is a bit of a dip. I think 15 and 17 are so strong. 2016's always kind of reminded me of 1996 in that way that it's like this kind of peak between two valleys, but, excuse me, valley between two peaks. But I think that, you know, to me, I don't go back to 09 to pre, like 9 to 15 very often. And it's interesting, when I was looking at. I was actually looking at the number of jams like over 20 minutes in that period. It is so small. And I think that that's why, especially how I like to listen to Fish now. And what I'm listening for is I'm listening for, you know, big exploratory jams. And so there's weren't that many then. And to me it just felt like they, you know, didn't connect consistently back then.

[Brian]

I mean, I think the 2013 fall tour was. Was the. The first turning point. I also think that this past, before this, the 2014 Halloween was a real big also just, just in terms of making new original music that people actually wanted to hear, which I think was different from their Halloween experience the year before. Not, not any fault of theirs, but like, you know, that like, really I think pushed them into a new, new space, like with that, that thrilling, chilling set. This was also like a couple days after, like probably the least memorable New Year's show of the last, like 20 years. Just in terms of like the gag and the. It was just sort of like, like small gag. Yeah, we gotta do something. So I don't know. I mean, I always think about this as it, you know, fairly well, of course, is like the biggest thing, I think, that happens in 2015 then. So we're like just before this. But you start to hear some of the. Some of the progression in music in, in shows like these, which I think is. Is one of the most interesting reasons to kind of like look back at. At this run. But I don't know, I feel like the. I feel like fall 2013 into summer 2014, like with Fuego, you know, in 2014, started to like push these, these sonic spaces, like pretty heavily in a way that hadn't been done before. So I feel like fall 2013 pushed. Pushed them off the cliff in early.

[Cyrus]

Yeah, I felt pretty much where you guys are at in the sense that I don't think any of us expected when they came back in 2009. And I think it took a little while for people to get used to the idea that it was gonna be a lot harder for them to be the Fish that we remembered. And I think by 2015 we had gotten used to this idea that you will have these peaks like Dick's 2012, Fall 2013, Halloween 2014. But a lot of what Fish is now is they were older. They were, it seemed at this point less interested in like full blown experimentation. There was a bit more of a structure to the shows. It seemed like they were all really trying to develop, especially Mike and Trey, their side projects. So Fish was a part of their lives, it wasn't their lives. And it's so wild to go back and listen to a show like this now, knowing how we felt then because we were six years into 3.0, we felt like this was the norm. The band would, yeah, have like two or three really, really good shows, a tour, but a lot of shows would be some songs up front, maybe a jam in the second set, but some weird flow. And what you were hoping for was tight playing and maybe like a good 15 minute jam. And now 10 years later, it's totally different. Like the, the. The Things I think people were like dreaming about on fish Twitter in late 2014 and early 2015 seemed preposterous. It seemed ridiculous. It seemed out of the realm of possibility. If you had told someone that you would get things like the Baker's dozen or like 30 plus minute long jams on a relatively regular basis, or four song second sets or deep jams in set one. And that's all now a reality. And it's wild to go back and listen to this, to a show like this, and listen to a time like this. Because the Miami New Year's Eve run I really like from a tightness and playing standpoint, like 1, 1, the New Year's Eve or the New Year's Day show is kind of derided. There's no real jams. But if you listen to it just as like a song performance standpoint, it sounds really good. But you're going back and listening to a time where they were much more in the box and yet they're still trying to figure out a way out of it. And it's so wild to listen now 10 years later and think they figured out a way out of it unexpectedly so deep into the 3.0 experience. And it's essentially rewritten the back half of their career.

[Megan]

It's so fascinating too because this year is a really light year, probably due to fairly well, but you know, there's only 30 shows this year and then you have fairly well this summer and then it's just, it's interesting that they spent so much time, like you were saying, on side projects to, you know, Mike was touring a lot, Tab was touring a lot. And it almost reinvigorated the band in a way that I think is, is really important to where they went next.

[Cyrus]

Agree.

[Brian]

This just happens to be the trip that I went on the last time that Ohio State won the national championship. It's completely coincidental that we're talking, wow.

[Megan]

Those are good vibes going into tonight. I like that. I like that for you.

[Brian]

I went down, I guess, I guess we went down on the first because we went to. I went to the. The first and second by myself or. No, I went to the first by myself with some friends. And apparently according to fish net, the first has a 2.9 rating, which has to be one of the lowest ratings of any show I've ever seen. The Winter Queen in the second set is the thing I remember the most, which is jam charted. But maybe that says something about the show. But I saw this the second and the third, and this was the Last. Last night of the run and going back.

[Cyrus]

It was.

[Brian]

I mean, it's fun to listen to, but Miami's weird, you know, like, it's just. It's just kind of a strange place. Especially like coming from the East Coast.

[Cyrus]

It is. And it's interesting that we've gotten four Florida based New Year's Eve runs, including three in this venue. That really has nothing to do with Fish history in any sort of way. And whereas, like Vegas has almost been reclaimed after 2004, like, they're now. They play Vegas regularly, especially with Sphere. I don't really see any sort of urge on the band side to like make Miami a destination. I guess that's what Mexico is now. Like, why would you go to Miami when you have Mexico?

[Megan]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. I think.

[Brian]

I don't know. I don't know why they didn't. Why they just. There's like people in the chat asking, like, why did they. I don't know.

[Megan]

They seem to remember nice weather.

[Cyrus]

I seem to remember that there was some like the. The Knicks scheduled an NBA game there in advance and they. Or they were in the middle of like, contract renegotiations with msg. So it was like, we'll do one year off and then we'll come back.

[Brian]

This is like before Jim Dolan and Trey were like exchanging text messages every day.

[Megan]

Announcing a New Year's in Miami is like my biggest nightmare. I'm always like, no, don't do it, don't do it.

[Brian]

No offense to our Florida listeners. Thank you so much for supporting us. It's just like a. I think we stayed in like a condo building. You know, there's like 7,000 condo buildings within like three miles of downtown Miami. It just, It's a. It's a strange place. But anyway.

[Megan]

Okay, so you went down there for the football game?

[Brian]

No, no, no, no. I went down just for these for three shows. And the first night, on the first, after that show, I ran over to a bar which was across the street from the venue to watch the end of the Ohio State. Alabama game when Ohio State beat Alabama and to go to the national championship. And there were like, you know, 30 people that we were all together and we all went to this bar after. And they thought I was like, completely. It was just like, not, what is wrong with you? Because I was just screaming and it was just so great. And you know, sorry, we don't have to go through this.

[Cyrus]

But anyway, no, that was the College Football Playoff. And. And I remember, yeah, the expectation was just like, Alba, this is Alabama's to win. They're going to beat Ohio State. Same old story. And it really kind of kicked off the lore of this tournament.

[Brian]

Exactly. And we beat him by a touchdown. And it was like no one expected us to beat Alabama beating an SEC team back then. All right, we don't have to go into this. It's too much. Megan, what was your first thought going back to this show? What? Like what. What did you. What do you think about this show going back?

[Megan]

Well, I haven't listened to this show a lot. I've probably listened to the show twice before.

[Brian]

Yeah.

[Megan]

And so it was kind of fun to go back to it. And this is a year that's kind of a little bit of a blind spot for me. I. I didn't see any fish in 2015. I saw one. I moved back to the States in 14, and I saw the Randalls island show, a Randall's island show. And then. But I didn't see any show in 2015. Maybe my only year that I haven't seen a fish show since they came back in 09. And so it was kind of just away then. And so it's fun for me to go back and think about where they were, the band was, and also just think about how different they are. I think what you were saying earlier, Brian, is really something I was thinking about a lot and just thinking about how great it is to play a show like this, too, at the end of a run. You know, I think a lot of the times we talk about this is something that we talked about a lot, like during the fall tour, not this year, but the year before, when you play a few nights in a venue, you really want to build up and have that last night be like the exclamation point. I think they do that so well here. The whole second set of this show, which we're going to talk about, obviously, is just. It's so perfect. And then there's such an exclamation point at the end of the show. And I think that being able to play a New Year's run, it's just so weird to start a run on New Year's Eve, I think, too, and then play into it. I saw, like, a New Year's Day show at MSG before. Great show. Actually, I was overserved. But this show, I think to play this good of a show like four days after New Year's Eve, I think is fantastic, and it's fun to go Back to.

[Brian]

The 1216 show is still one of my favorites. I've ever seen. Yeah, that was like such a great thing to just like see a show like a couple days after the big day.

[Megan]

The big day.

[Cyrus]

That show reminds me of this show. Like, they feel like weird twins. It's a very classic. Not a lot of like. Like there are segues, but there's not like a crazy sandwich. There's not like crazy bus stats. It's just like very solid rotational songs being played very well in a fluid manner. Like, if Fish were the type of band that would just release like a live album, this strikes me as like a live album release. It's just. There's not. There's not a ton of messing around. And 1216 is the same way. Like, that show is anchored by a very, very solid, uplifting 20 plus minute tweezer. And around it just great song choices that are played really well. Like, that type of structure was the goal in early 3.0 fish. Like, it's hard to remember when you go back that there were a lot of shows that straight up did not work at all. Or you got like 30 minutes of really good music scattered throughout. And the rest of it, you're like, why are they playing this song right now? Like, what the hell's going on? Like, the two nights prior? The reason why that show has a 2.0 or 2.9 rating is they open the second set with like Twist, Piper, Prince Caspian, 20 years later, none of them. Then Winter Queen, none of them jam. They're just played really well. So in context, you're like. Like in the moment, you're like, what the. What are we doing here? And that happened a lot.

[Megan]

My first show that I saw and when they came back in 09 was the June 4, 2009 at Jones Beach. This is a 3.0 rating. Just looked it up. I mean, Time Turns Elastic in like the prime spot in the second set, it was preceded by Meat Stick. I mean, followed by Waist. Like, it was just like. This show was like. It was also pouring rain. It was freezing. It was horrible. But this is such. This show. I just was like, wow. Okay. Like, I have to get my head right. Like, the last show I'd seen before then was like, in 99. And I was like, okay, I really need to, like, understand what Fish is now. It's different. It's totally different.

[Cyrus]

Yeah.

[Brian]

I just want to say that the Time Turns Elastic is maybe the only instance ever of Trey being like, okay, fine, I'll stop playing a song every. Think about how many shows, how many songs he's played over the Years where it's just like, you. I'm gonna play what I want. That was like the one where he's like, all right.

[Cyrus]

I mean, it does take. Does take a long time. You guys are right, like a lot.

[Megan]

It's undeniable.

[Brian]

Better for like an orchestra or something.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Brian]

This. So this first set is like kind of fine. Is there any highlights for you guys?

[Megan]

Yeah, I mean, I think it's a really solid first set. It's really like some interesting set list calls, but they don't like completely ruin it at all. Like, it doesn't have bad flow. You've got the second show opener in 3.0 of Maze. The first one at Dick's really like punchy ACDC bag. Next. I think that everything's played really well. Like, plasma has like its third time out. Um, and even like Devotion to a Dream kind of works here. I think it's good. The melt is a little sloppy, but overall I think it's like a good, solid first set of fish.

[Cyrus]

Yeah, you get the tenth melt opener ever. Like, like you said first since 9, 4, 11. Those are the only two since 1.0.

[Brian]

Maze May.

[Cyrus]

Excuse me. Cavern in the four slot is kind of a rare spot. Rare spot. Like there's something about that song not closing a set that feels a little bit more plasma. It's kind of wild. Like, I feel like I really like this song, but I feel almost like they haven't totally ever figured out where to place this song in a show in 10 years. There's some really great versions. Like we got an awesome one at Deer Creek this last year coming out of that shocked us. We got a great one opening the last night at Sphere. It's interesting to hear it in kind of like it's. It's early setting. It's only been played 37 times. Like it's still kind of figuring its way out. Devotion to a Dream we haven't heard since 10, 15, 16. This is like the peak period for Devotion to a Dream being played. And then you're right about the Melt. Like it really hammers home that before they had synthesizers on these jams. Like before Paige got his 2017 rig split by Melt was a lot of just like noise and like it really showcases how much technology impacts this band in a really powerful way. Because now Melt is one of the show stopping moments of pretty much any show. It's played here. It's cool, but it doesn't really. Like, it never really comes around and clicks well.

[Megan]

It has to be perfect when it's played old school like that.

[Cyrus]

Yes.

[Megan]

Like, without the synths. You have to nail every change and he doesn't. So it stands out more.

[Cyrus]

Yeah. What do you guys think of Son of a Mule?

[Megan]

No, thank you.

[Cyrus]

Just in general.

[Megan]

Just. No, Never want it. Never want it Awful. Never want it.

[Cyrus]

Tell me.

[Megan]

It's just like a long song that's just like, Like, I don't want that. I just, I have no interest in that. It takes up a ton of real estate. I just, I don't like it.

[Brian]

No, it has no, has no upside. Really.

[Megan]

No upside.

[Cyrus]

I liked it at this point when they were doing Marimba Lumina jams in the middle of it. I thought that was kind of cool. But it also, like, showed the ceiling of marimba Lumina inserts into, like, moment.

[Megan]

And, like, there's a low ceiling for that.

[Cyrus]

I remember when he got that, people were like, oh, this is gonna change their sound. And like, he uses it during Mercury Petrichor and Son of a Mule. And, like, I don't really know any other specific moments where the Marima Lumina has changed a jam? Maybe, like when Trey was playing it in summer 2016.

[Brian]

I feel, I feel very lucky having only seen it eight times ever, including my first show, because in those 95, 96, 97, 98, like, you could, you could run into it.

[Megan]

94. Yeah, they played it, like.

[Brian]

Yeah, maybe I skipped the.

[Megan]

That's probably why.

[Brian]

But, like, I think I'm pretty sure that the. Well, actually, you know, the. The lowest ranked show I've ever seen definitely, is where they played the Son of a Mule. Girls, Girls, Girls. Back in the scent of a mule. 41504 in Vegas.

[Cyrus]

That is.

[Megan]

That's amazing.

[Cyrus]

That is the worst fish performance I've ever seen.

[Brian]

Live 1.9 on fishnet. That's pretty bad.

[Megan]

That's amazing.

[Cyrus]

I'm trying to see times and.

[Brian]

Oh, you have. So you've seen it almost as many times as I have.

[Megan]

I've seen it eight, so. Yeah.

[Brian]

Okay.

[Megan]

Yeah. Yeah. It's not that often anymore. Thank God.

[Brian]

Actually, you know what? If they played it now, it's probably better now than it, Than it was before. They play it once every, what, two or three years?

[Cyrus]

Yeah. I mean, if you're looking at since 2016, it's been played 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 times. So you're not, you're not really getting a ton of seven meals out there.

[Megan]

Yeah, I don't know.

[Cyrus]

I, I. Maybe it's this bias that it's the second song played during the first tape that I heard 11:17, 94. And I really liked that they went into, like, the German dance breakdown in the middle of it.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

I was like, wow, this is cool. Like, no band's ever done this. I've always, like, been okay with, while also accepting that the entire fan base hates it in the same manner I feel about my soul.

[Brian]

We got a. We got a comment here on YouTube from Ed or Edd. I don't know if that's Ed or just.

[Cyrus]

That's a great call. Those are great versions.

[Brian]

Will you read them, Brian?

[Cyrus]

Yeah. The Mule with Bailiff, which I believe is from 94. Yeah, I think from Nashville. 94. The Went Mule is great in the third set, although people would argue against its placement. I think it's a good version. And then they won with Magia in. I think that's Stuttgart 97, 2-2-97. Really, really great version.

[Megan]

Of every song. Doesn't mean that it's a good song. I mean, mostly except maybe.

[Brian]

Let's go. Okay, you know what? We're just talking about one show today. Let's talk about a song that there aren't any good versions of. Go ahead. You go first, Brian.

[Cyrus]

There's probably not a great version of Devotion to a Dream. Like, it's just kind of there. 20 versions, none since 10, 15, 16. I think that that is an example of Trey being like, okay, I heard you on Wingsuit. I'm gonna keep fuego. I'll trade you all Devotion to a.

[Megan]

Dream I heard I saw in Fish Net. Someone compare devotion to a Dream to going down the road feeling bad, which I felt like was sacrilegious. I was like, how dare you? That just. It didn't make sense to me, and I feel like it's. No.

[Brian]

Disagree with that. Megan, do you have a song that you don't think there's a good version of?

[Megan]

I mean, I think my soul always sucks, and maybe, like, yeah, time turns elastic. I don't ever want to hear that at a Fish show. I could probably think of others. I'll think of them, and I'll let you know.

[Brian]

I just. You know, one thing we forgot to mention or did or didn't mention last week is that my soul, obviously, is a cover. And it ended up in the vocal jam of that 41194 show, which you talked about last week we had Scott on.

[Megan]

That was.

[Brian]

I wonder if that was the first time that my soul showed up.

[Megan]

It was.

[Brian]

I mean, it doesn't count as being played, though.

[Megan]

No, but we didn't Talk about it. But I looked it up. It is. That's the first time they ever played it. And then it didn't come out for like two more years. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Cyrus]

Let's imagine if they'd been like, cool. That was a one time fun thing. We probably won't play that song.

[Megan]

It's not bad in the vocal jam. It's kind of a cool thing, but it's. Yeah. So maybe that's the best version of my soul.

[Cyrus]

Far be it for me to try to convince you guys that vocal jams can be cool.

[Brian]

Yeah, yeah. No, it's. It's impossible.

[Cyrus]

It's cool when my soul is in the vocal jam. Yeah. That's great rationale. Meg, Tell me more, please.

[Megan]

Come on, you. What's cool is when they play a really short vocal jam that goes into ghost. That is cool.

[Cyrus]

Yeah, yeah. That had to be sick in the room.

[Megan]

Yeah, it must have been.

[Cyrus]

I want to just like. I don't know totally how to convey this, but, like, the vibe of this first set was that it was really good in the moment. Like, I vividly remember being on Fish Twitter, this first set ending and people being like, wow, that was great. Total change from the last couple of night nights. And I. It just brings me back to my thought of like 10 years ago. The expectations around this band were very different than they are today. It just like it was a completely different era. We had really accepted that Fish was like, it's a really good vibe with sometimes some cool things happening now. Some of those moments sound really, really good. In. In Hindsight, RJ is absolutely right and I will. I will defend along with you to the death that fall 13 is one of the greatest tours that the band has ever played. I'm a huge fan of certain jams that happen in two in 2014, like the chalk Dust from Randall's Island. There's just really, really great moments. But the expectation was not that this band was going to come out and just like melt faces on command. I think everyone had accepted they're in a new era. It's a little bit older, it's a little bit less adventurous. And so like a set like this, it wasn't like, this is the greatest first set since Blank, but it was really warmly received in a way that I think today if they played this, people would be like, what the hell's wrong with the band?

[Brian]

I think that's true.

[Megan]

Yeah. For sure. This flow is super fucked up and we would have issues with it if it was played today. But what was Your experience being there?

[Brian]

Yeah, I mean, it was fish, you know, it was fun. It was just like a fish show in 2015. No one knew that, like, fish was going to come back and play for six years and do interesting stuff like that. Halloween 2014.

[Megan]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Brian]

It was all.

[Cyrus]

It's.

[Brian]

It was all like playing with house money at this point. And it is crazy to think about that. That was 10 years ago and we've had so much innovation since then. Okay, before we get into set two, let's take a break for our people.

[Cyrus]

This episode is brought to you by Amazon. Sometimes the most painful part of getting sick is the getting better part. Waiting on hold for an appointment. Appointment. Sitting in crowded waiting rooms, standing in line at the pharmacy. That's painful. Amazon One Medical and Amazon Pharmacy remove those painful parts of getting better with things like 247 virtual visits and prescriptions delivered to your door. Thanks to Amazon Pharmacy and Amazon One Medical Healthcare just got less painful. One Hit Thunder is a podcast where we both celebrate and have a good laugh about bands and artists that had just one hit that we all know. Each week we're joined by a guest from the world of music or comedy to learn more than you ever thought you would about some songs that you can't forget. And we decide if they brought the One Hit Thunder or we're nothing more than a one hit blunder. Look, if you listen to the show, you're probably gonna laugh and I guarantee you're gonna crush next time the bar has music trivia. Tag Team Jane Child, Meredith Brooks, Looking glass, Sean Mullins, Eiffel 65 EMF, Crash Test Dummies, Crazy Town Chumb. We have hundreds of episodes in our back catalog and a new episode each week. So pass the dutchy, make sure you're connected and subscribe to One Hit Thunder wherever you get your pods.

[Brian]

All right, Brian, in our text chain, you said that something about this Down With Disease jam in the second set in brinkmanian fashion, that it was a. It was a something. What did you say? You said. You said it was. It was important symbolically. But now I can't remember exactly what you said.

[Cyrus]

Well, I think this. So you get a couple things in this jam that were just very rare instances. Like the Randall's chalk test was six months prior and it's really hard to find more than three jams in between the Randall's Chalk Dust and this that stretch into the 25 minute mark. It just wasn't really a big theme of the era. This strikes me as a band well, another interesting thing is, like, there's. There's almost no effects that Trey plays and there's no synthesizers that you get, Page. So what you get is this band that is really just kind of plain, almost as close to unplugged as you could imagine Fish playing. And it's all about chordal connection. It's all about riff connection. It's all about, like, do we have the proper groove to build things up? And there's a very patient building groove that you get within this jam where for a good three or four minutes, the band is kind of not interested in peaking. They're just kind of playing around in this musical space. And it sounds pretty basic to what we expect from this band nowadays because of the added layers and effects and weird ideas and dystopian sounds. But it is really, to my ears, a band once again, slowly figuring out how do we recreate the thing that separates us from just a great rock show? And then to tap it off, there's a solid peak again, not as ferocious of a peak as you would expect today, but then about two to three minutes on the back end of Kind of Weird. Trey plays kind of a minor chord. Paige plays something weird on his clav. Fishman's kind of experimenting with kind of off rhythm. Mike has a few effects on and creates some kind of sonic vibes. Like, you really start to hear this. That post peak experimentation that's going to take over about three years later, that is going to lead us to some of the greater jams that we've gotten in the breakdown in structure that we experience. So to my ears, you hear like the. The brightness of fall 2013 and summer 2015. That really was the defining sound of Fish at their best during this period in time, but also starting to mess around with structure and form in a way that is going to be essential to what happens at the Baker's Dozen. What happens in fall 18, what happens for, like, the MSG tweezer from 1230, 19, all the stuff we've heard from 4.0, like, you're just hearing that base level experimentation there. So I'm curious if you guys heard the same thing and what your thoughts are.

[Megan]

Yeah, it's really interesting thinking about that. It was more about kind of structure and form and also this idea of them being sort of unplugged that really is resonating with me. I was thinking a lot about what you were talking about with the fact that there just haven't been this many 25 minute jams. Like, I looked for over 20 minute jams in 3.0 up until this point. And this was the sixth one. And I have a little list. Can I read them for you?

[Cyrus]

Oh, I'm here for lists, man.

[Brian]

Wow, look at you coming prepared, Megan with extra credit.

[Megan]

Okay. Okay, so it's the. The first over 20 minute jam of 3.0 is the 526 bethel waves. The second one is the 731, the Tahoe Tweezer from 2013. Then the 7814 the Man Fuego, the 71314 Randalls Island Chalk Dust. Then the 11214 Vegas Yam. And then this Miami down with disease on 15. That is six years.

[Brian]

And that takes into account all you enjoy myself also.

[Megan]

Yeah. Wow.

[Cyrus]

Yeah, because most of Those were like 18, 19.

[Megan]

They were under 20. And what's crazy is that this is six years. Like this is a really long time if you think about that, how long people were kind of not getting those really big jams. And it's true. I think you really did set your mind to like a different fish experience. And I think when it went outside of that box and when you got one of these monster jams, it felt super special, but it did not feel like it would ever become the regular thing again. And I. I do really think that this jam, especially to play this in the beginning of the year, in a new Year's run, you know, in a light where they're heading into a light year, like it had to be something that they held onto, I think. And I think the jam, I think you described it really well, Brian. It's really easy listening in a way, and I don't mean that as an insult. It's very effortless and it has a sense of flow and danceability that's really nice. And it's all super interesting and engaging, but it's nothing agitated or anxious at all. And I think that that works really well here. And to me it's interesting looking at this list of what did go beyond and why. And those jams are all, I think, really different. And it's so cool to think about. But I was really thinking about historically, like where this band was and where they were in terms of jamming big jams, especially because that's so much how we determine if officials are good now, which is so interesting.

[Cyrus]

Right?

[Brian]

Yeah. That was some real brinkmanship you brought to the pod, Meg.

[Megan]

I'm trying. I am a brink maniac. Let's be real.

[Brian]

You are. I am, yeah. It's cool like that. It's a cool like last four Minutes of that town's disease jam before they go into Light. It is. It has a little like almost reggae ish. Breakdown, Plinko. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Which is cool. And that there. It's a good. It's a good set. I mean, the, the. The light and the sneak and Sally and the sand are all, you know, it flows really well. You know, the ceiling time opener is like fine. Yeah. The flow. The flow is really good.

[Megan]

Yeah. I mean. Go ahead, Brian.

[Cyrus]

Well, I was gonna say, I think that that's. That's it. You don't. It's not just the disease. It's then afterwards, Light, Sally, Sand, Hood, Susie Greenberg. Like, nobody is going to argue with those songs. There's no. Let's pause and play some ballad that Trey really wants to play right now. And some people are going to be into, other people are going to tolerate, other people are going to hate. Like, it's just.

[Megan]

This is looking at you. Life beyond the dream.

[Cyrus]

This is, you know, like greatest hits.

[Brian]

Second set, Fish material, Life in slow motion.

[Megan]

I'm going nowhere.

[Cyrus]

The last calendar year before More was written. It's interesting.

[Megan]

There's a moment in history.

[Cyrus]

There is no. I, I like more. I know you guys do too, especially, but you guys know what I mean. We're like, they're coming. There's no, like, they're coming out of Sally and then fade out and. Okay, we'll just do the, you know, mid tempo adult contemporary ballad and then we'll do sand and Hood. It's like, no, Sally goes into San. And then sand continues the kind of vibe of it. And then sand goes into hood, which is. I know, rj, you're going to talk about here shortly, but like, the flow is really important here because again, I mean, harp on this. But that was not happening. That was not. Like, there's a lot of second sets that started out with a cool 18 minute long jam and then we're just like, who was making the calls? These songs? Like, what was the intentionality here? And this set does not have that. It's not really outside the box. But at this time we were more looking for what this was versus expecting the band to come out and just like blow the building apart type of thing.

[Megan]

Yeah, we were looking for a good box. We didn't expect the box to explode. We were just like, just give us a good box. And I think that this does like the light. It's only 10 minutes, but it has some really intriguing moments. There's some nice juicy jamming from Paige and Mike and the last minute's super cool. It has reverb and agitated washes of sound. It sounds like it could go somewhere but then there's a, a pretty cool segue into Sneak and Sally which has like a gorgeous effortless peak. It gets like swampy and then it segues into sand. And like you were saying, I mean it's just even sand is like Type 1, but it has some really good stuff in it. And so this, it comes as a whole piece of like really good jamming. I think Down With Disease through sand is like fantastic Fish.

[Brian]

Yeah, I mean I think it's worth worth re reiterating that like at this point in Fish, if, you know, if you weren't seeing shows in 2014, like really there was no expectation of this is the last night of a four night run, right? So. So you know, at this point it's like you go to a let the last night and you know, if you're Megan, you're expecting Ikyulys or something, you know, or you're expecting something totally. Something huge and magical at this point it's just like, yeah, cool. Fish is still playing and they're still like fun to go see and you still get to go hang out with your friends and see music. There. There wasn't really any exactly what it was like of like anything. It was just like cool, good show, had fun.

[Cyrus]

It's also like this is before like Mexico becomes routine. So like we're expecting Fish in between New Year's and summer tour or you know, random eight night runs through the spring on the side in this, you know, on the west coast. And then like the only real tradition we had was New Year's and Dicks and summer tour. And some years you'd get really lucky and there'd be a fall tour. And so you knew going into this show this is literally the last time we're going to hear this band until whenever summer tour happens. And. And there were all these rumors at the time of GD50. I don't think it had been announced at this point in time. But like, you know, you mentioned rj, how much work Trey is going to do between now and the summer, which is going to have a big impact on the way that they sound over the summer. But this is almost like an end of an era for this band because you know, you won't get a ton of shows in 2017, but you will start to get this like, let's break out and try new things. Let's. The Mexico thing becomes an ingrained Thing I think a lot of people thought the first time that was announced, that's the only time it's going to happen. The Bakers doesn't allows them to rethink what a summer tour could be. Even in 2019. They're playing, you know, like this small little fall tour at a time of year then that they hadn't really toured in the 3.0 era. I don't know, like, the. It seems weird to look back on this and think, like, how much of the year we did not have new fish, whereas today it feels just kind of sprinkled throughout the year in a way that I think probably adds to the experimentation.

[Megan]

Definitely. Yeah. It's true. Even, like. Because even in the. In 1.0, you would go six months without having live fish regularly or the end of it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Brian]

And I also think, like, you know, Megan, you said this a while ago. I can't remember if it was about fall 24 or before that. But, like, there the expectations are because they keep raising the bar, you know, And I think at this point in early 2015, there wasn't really, like a high bar. It was just sort of like, they're still playing. We're gonna hear interesting stuff. It's still fun. It's still interesting enough that you're gonna, like, travel and spend money to go see them. But you were not. Your expectations weren't the way they are now, which is like, you're expecting something amazing.

[Cyrus]

Yeah.

[Megan]

And I think. And I think that maybe this is wrong to say, and maybe people will judge me for this, but when I was seeing Fish at this point, 2014, 16, it was a nostalgia act for me. Like, I was seeing them because it was nostalgic, not because they were performing like that, but I was doing it to remember what it was like when I was a teenager. Now it's a totally different experience. After the Baker's Dozen, it became completely different for me. But definitely before then, it was something I was doing because it reminded me of a time when it was really important to me.

[Cyrus]

And I almost wonder how much of this was that for them too. People are going to show up.

[Megan]

Right? Right.

[Cyrus]

But, like, we don't necessarily have to push the envelope. It's. It's not as stressful as it got in the late 90s. And in 2.0, the system kind of worked from a managerial standpoint. Like, you kind of are starting to hear at this point in time, them get a little bored with, you know, like, the. The system that they have in Place and figure out ways out of it, which is part. Probably part of what leads to such a renaissance that we've been living with. With fish for the last 10 years.

[Brian]

Yeah. Yeah, it's a good point. I mean, you have these. These moments, you know, like the. I kept mentioning Halloween 14, but, you know, there are these moments that are really cool, but they hadn't done a festival in a few years at this point. It's interesting that these shows. I don't think any of these four shows, the New Year's Eve run, had any of the thrilling, chilling. Oh, no, they did the Dogs on New Year's Eve. But that's it, though.

[Cyrus]

Yeah. Because that second set is. Is actually pretty solid and ends with Martian Monster and the place just like.

[Brian]

Yeah. At least they didn't, like, bring that back. They didn't, like, bring that back for any of the other shows, the next three, which, like, they could have. You know, I think they were still trying to figure out how to work some of that stuff into the repertoire.

[Cyrus]

Yeah. And you get, like, an interesting moment, though. We could. Paw groove turns into a percussion. Marima Lumina bass jam. That has some, like, weird. I'm just looking at the notes here. It has a. The birds quote within it. So, like, that kind of initially caught on as like a little jokey moment. And you would hear that throughout 2015 and 2016 all the time. That was a really, really fun moment in an otherwise kind of like ho hum kind of low key show.

[Megan]

That Mike song, that whole mic's groove is pretty cool. It is, yeah.

[Cyrus]

Grade 46 days. And then the week of POG is like. I think it's like 17 or 18 minutes, which was so long at the time. And it's a little abstract and a little weird. Like they were starting to figure out what can we push against.

[Brian]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

Because it seemed like they really wanted a structure rock show that people wanted to come to and come back to and was a really good vibe. And we're a little afraid to break the mold there. And these type of moments help them do that.

[Brian]

Yep.

[Cyrus]

Like Wrigley 2016 is still in the future. You know, like, we're still gonna have high profile bad shows, don't get me wrong.

[Brian]

But let's go through all them.

[Cyrus]

It's Cracks in the Glass ceiling. That would be a great series. It'd be so controversial.

[Brian]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

Our march through the worst Fish, the worst shows.

[Brian]

Oh, man.

[Cyrus]

Next up. Oh, my bad. That was my 50th show. It's the best time of my life. My boys.

[Brian]

My boys. Hey, don't knock it till you try it, Brian. So I had, I, I've mentioned this. Do you guys both know this?

[Cyrus]

I've never gone to a concert with my boys. Come on.

[Brian]

No, not in the way you were just describing. You're just describing with that kind of boy's energy. Excited for you. Oh, man.

[Cyrus]

2016, that's definitely on there. I played hooky from that day and I, I saw you and I was like, I just, I just drove 2 1/2 hours for this.

[Brian]

Yeah, I saw both those shows. I was okay. Have I told you guys both the story about, about the hood in the show?

[Cyrus]

For me, you, you have hinted to the story. I think you might have told it to me once, but please share.

[Megan]

I've only heard it be a text layout.

[Brian]

No, no.

[Megan]

Which is not the same.

[Brian]

Please.

[Megan]

Tell it to us.

[Brian]

I've never had a, like, I don't know, I've seen a lot of shows. I'm just, you know, I don't know, maybe we're all like this, but I'm not really like a, you know, music change. This concert changed my life, man. Sort of person. But I know people are. And that's great. But I'm just, it just doesn't happen to me. I haven't had any life changing moments at concerts starts. I've had some like, realizations and you know, all that stuff mostly smoke some weed. You get some space to think, you know, you're like, oh, I've been thinking about this thing. This show was about a month after my dad died, which, and, and we went down to do this, this few shows just like to get out of the, you know, just to like go down and, and have a weekend away.

[Cyrus]

Yeah.

[Brian]

And I found my friend Scott who has been on the show a bunch. I was with Rachel and we found our friend Scott and we knew that hood was gonna be played. And Scott and I try to try to find each other when we're both at shows. Like, we knew like anyone who was there knew that they were gonna play Hood because it was the last night and they hadn't played it in four shows, et cetera. So anyway, I wasn't really like prepared for anything, but I, but I. During the jam, at some point there was like this moment where I looked up and one of the lights that was. I was kind of on Mike's side of the stage. Like I was just looking into the light for some reason, which I never look at individual lights because it's just like you're Sometimes your eyes are closed or whatever. Anyway, that. And I got this feeling, this, like, over overwhelming feeling of, like, my dad communicating with me. Like, this is like, it's all. It's all gonna be fine. Like, you can. You can just, like, you can move on. Like, everything's gonna be fine. Which was, like, really crazy. And I'll never forget it. And that's the only time it's ever happened to me. I never expect it to happen again. I don't know what it was. It was just me, like, mentally reflecting on the. The moment, but not in a way where I was just in my head. It was, like, in. In the process with the music. Then it was. It was crazy. It was wild. I was, like, pretty freaked out by the whole thing.

[Megan]

I think that's so beautiful.

[Cyrus]

You're so rational that you're just like, I know. Can't have this type of moment happening here. But also, like. Like, holy crap. Yeah.

[Brian]

Yeah, it was crazy. It was crazy.

[Megan]

I mean, I think that, like, those experiences are so rare, especially for people who aren't looking for them. But I think, you know, sometimes music opens up, like, a neural pathway that maybe you was closed before and allowed you to, you know, receive something that was there for you. And I think that's fucking amazing.

[Brian]

And that's a good way to put it. It's like sound therapy or something. It's like, any. Yeah, yeah. Music can open that. That's a good point.

[Megan]

Yeah. I think that there's. Yeah. That art does that, right. It allows you to think of things in a new way or allow things that you thought were impossible to happen. And that's a perfect example of you needing something. And, you know, whether it came from outside or whether it came from inside, it still came, and you were there to hear it. And that's just awesome.

[Brian]

Yeah, it's pretty intense.

[Cyrus]

It speaks to Trey, Talks about being a conduit.

[Brian]

It.

[Cyrus]

And.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

Like, allowing the music to just come through him. And the fact that, you know, there are moments that affect individual people at the show that they'll never be aware of, you know, but you have that all the same. It's just. It's really special. That's really cool. Thank you for sharing.

[Brian]

Yeah, thanks for letting me share. I. You know, I think, like, it's just funny. Like, a lot of shows, it's like you. You hear someone at every show say, like, well, they played that song for me, you know, and you're like, yeah. My initial reaction is like, definitely not. But, like. But also, why Not.

[Megan]

Yeah. Why not? Exactly? They want to think it's for them. Like, that's great. Yeah, absolutely.

[Brian]

We should be, like, more opening to. More open to those, you know, experiences and less cynical, probably all of us. Especially on a day like today, you know?

[Cyrus]

Especially on a day like today. Yeah. I think we should start a new series of moments when I thought that the band played a song just for me. We'll go through all of our shows and talk through.

[Megan]

It can be a good. A good thing or a bad thing. And. And R.J. beehive forever.

[Brian]

Oh, my God. I'll tell you what. We'll start with every possum.

[Megan]

As a fuck you. As a personal fuck you from. From Trey.

[Cyrus]

Every time Trey ripcorded a jam and you were like, you did that because you knew I wanted it to go live longer.

[Megan]

Exactly.

[Brian]

Thank you. All the things traded to piss me off on purpose. All right, what else? Any other takeaways from, like, this show or this, you know, era? End of an era, Brian said.

[Cyrus]

I mean, I feel like it was tough to tell in the moment. And like, obviously, like we said, there's a lot of still ups and downs, but I. I've always liked, like, like 20. Summer 2015 has always felt very different to me from the years prior with, yeah, fall 13 kind of being the only outlier. But, like, things just seem to move in a very different direction. And it's cool to go back to a show like this. I think you guys are right. It. It peaks a run, which was another kind of thing from this era of Fish fandom, was like the Sunday show phenomenon. And the idea that this is on a Saturday, but, like, the idea that the final night of a run has to be magical. And so you can. Friday night can be kind of a hang. Saturday night can be a little bit more for, like, the, you know, overflow fans that showed up at the. At the venue. Sunday night is just us and it's the band kind of, you know, opening kind of the doors to their past and, like, giving you a little bit more fish mythology. And you get that in a show like this. It really has that sort of Sunday show, end of a run type of feel to it in a really cool way.

[Megan]

I think it's kind of fun to think about what's ahead of them. You know, there are. They're going to go fish. Trey is going to do fairly well. They're going to have play their 13th greatest tour of all time this summer, which is pretty exciting, deemed by us, you know, and then they've got Magna Ball. I mean what a moment. And yeah, there's a lot ahead of them this year and it's a, it's a, it's an important year for them in 3.0 in moving forward. I think you had to have years like this. They had to have years like this to. To want to continue to stretch out. And like you were saying, Brian, take risks and push against the edge. You know, I think they had to have years like this to do that.

[Brian]

Megan, you ready for a good segue?

[Megan]

I can't wait. Yeah.

[Brian]

You know who's got a big year ahead of them?

[Megan]

Who?

[Brian]

HF pod. Because we got, we got new episodes coming and we have a new series. We're going to kick off in March. March.

[Megan]

April, I think so maybe March.

[Cyrus]

We, there are no rules. We can do it whenever we want to do it.

[Brian]

We can do whatever we want first.

[Cyrus]

Quarter of the year to kind of have fun and just explore random shows. But we're ready.

[Brian]

We got Mexico. And then we'll figure it out. But, but this is gonna, this is a great, this is gonna be a great series. It's gonna involve and require audience participation.

[Megan]

Yep.

[Brian]

We're gonna need. We're gonna need you. Which I guess we'll talk about when we're ready. Ready. We're gonna just like just keep it, just keep it secret.

[Megan]

We gotta keep it for a little bit longer. Right.

[Cyrus]

We have the series. We know what we're gonna do. It is. The only thing I would give away is that it is not going to be limited to 2025.

[Megan]

Yeah.

[Cyrus]

That the structure of this series allows us to explore a lot and with a little bit less like we have to do these five tours in the next five episodes or else we don't make our self imposed deadline less mania. Like we'll have certain episodes like this. We're like, hey, we just want to talk about this show because it's having an anniversary or this run's having an anniversary. We want to have this guest on. But we, we have this series that we will be returning to with some significant regularity. Plus a couple special episodes, plus some drafts for Megan to win. You know, lots of good stuff in 2025.

[Brian]

We don't want to go too long without Megan winning another draft. So we gotta, we gotta.

[Megan]

God knows I can't win the 2.0 draft that's coming up. Brian would have a fucking heart attack if I want.

[Brian]

Great. I'm gonna set it up. I'm actually gonna throw the draft so Megan wins. Just to see what happens.

[Cyrus]

You can't win the.

[Brian]

You've.

[Cyrus]

You've won every draft that.

[Megan]

You've only won two, which is the same number as rj. So let's just be clear.

[Brian]

We are gonna be back next week with another show that I think Megan or I am going to choose. I mean, we're kind of choosing them as a group, but we'll. We'll narrow it down and choose something for next week, I think. I think doing these are fun because. Because we're not just talking about this show. We're talking about a lot of other stuff, including sports and history and context and metaphysical experiences and. And a lot more. It's pretty fun. Brian. Megan. Brian. Any last words?

[Cyrus]

Go back and listen to 2015 fish. Just take a gander. There's some great stuff in there. It's 10 years old. Really fun vibes. Good Fish. Do it. These truths. Read these Truths by Jill Lepore. Okay. Just do it.

[Megan]

I've already been assigned that. Yeah, yeah. And join us on Monday for library card.

[Brian]

Yeah, that's gonna be fun. Northwoods. Northwoods is a. Is a awesome book. Top, top book of the year for all of us. I think, of 2024. It's gonna be fun to talk about. I'm excited. All right, we'll see you all next week. Thank you.

[Megan]

Bye, everyone.

[Cyrus]

See you guys. Osiris.

[Brian]

Bowie, Dylan, Marley. You've heard the names and maybe you've heard their songs. But what about the stories behind the records that made titans of music like these so universally loved and important? Join me, Josh Adam Myers, host of the 500. As each week I go through a different album from rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums list from 2012, with an incredible lineup of comedians, actors, and musicians talking about how the music has impacted their lives. New episodes of the 500 come out every Wednesday. Listen now, wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's up? My name's Lurk, and I'm the host of Lambgoat's Van Flip podcast. Every week I have in depth conversations with bands from all over the scene, big and small. We also like to keep our finger on the pulse and showcase upand cominging.

[Cyrus]

Bands on the show as well. So come check out Lamb Goats Van Flip podcast.