If you want me or any other critic worth their salt to take you seriously, then you can’t rely on the same tired ad hominem tropes that have been trotted out for twenty years by folks who are attempting to justify their frustration over something being successful that they don’t like. I love vitriol, and when it is practiced by folks like The Onion, it can elevate our discourse. But you are quite literally copy-pasting an OJ Simpson “the glove doesn’t fit” joke twenty years after it was first made. How on Earth can you find that funny or clever?

Here’s the thing you don’t understand: there are plenty of valid and salient ways to criticize Phish or any other band. I could spend days poking fun at the sniveling hipsters you find at Wilco, Yo La Tengo or xx shows. Talk about low-hanging fruit. But why? Would it be funny, clever, or original? Or would it put me in line with 12-year-old Facebook bully working out self esteem issues on an effeminate classmate? If that’s what you want to do, if that’s the level you want to be on, then you are “entitled to your own opinion.” But I fail to see how someone who claims to enjoy music would want to communicate about music with all the substance of Sean Hannity.

READ ON

Early this morning we came across a press release with a headline that reeled us right in: “Allman Brothers Band to Release Two Vintage Recordings.” We’ve been waiting since 2007 for the band to put out a live recording featuring one of the hundreds of gigs they played between 1969 and 1976, so we couldn’t contain our excitement. Unfortunately, after reading the first few paragraphs it became clear that the Allmans were just re-releasing two shows they put out in 2004 and 2005 respectively – Macon, GA 2/11/72 and Nassau Coliseum 5/1/73.

Now, don’t get us wrong – these two performances are stellar and if you don’t own ‘em, you should grab ‘em when they come back out. But why re-release shows you’ve already released? And why doesn’t the press release mentioned they are re-releases?

There’s an interesting bit in the press release that contains some news that was new to us:

n 2011, the band joined forces with Entertainment One Music to market two signature band-owned labels: PEACH RECORDS for the sales of its previous Sanctuary label releases and new live recordings of the current band as well as the ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND RECORDING COMPANY for the release of archival recordings featuring the late DUANE ALLMAN and BERRY OAKLEY.

Two years ago the members of the band and the estates of Duane and Berry formed a company with the sole purpose of putting out archival recordings, yet all this time later ABB fans are still waiting. It can’t be easy to deal with family members of your late band mates and I’m sure getting Dickey Betts to sign off on Allmans’ music must be a pain, but there’s money to be made and fans to be pleased.

For the five years between 2002 and 2007, the Allmans put out six AMAZING live archival releases. Since that time there’s been nothing.  Let’s hope that changes sooner rather than later.