ThePhanastasio

When many people think of Phish, the connotation is a negative one. The image evoked is often one of drugged-out hippies, tie-dye, Birkenstocks, and four equally drugged-out men playing mindless drivel for hours on end. One reviewer in the nineties went so far as to say that the band could piss in their fans' ears, and they'd still eat it up.

What Phish is in actuality is the union of four talented musicians into one cohesive unit, a group equally as skilled in improvisation as they are in complex song structures and musicianship. While not for everyone, their collective talent really is undeniable.

With this, I have decided to post reviews of the band's studio discography, one album at a time. Ideally, I will be able to complete this by the end of the year, making this a solid guide to the studio recordings of the band in a relatively short period of time.

Phish, as a band, have recorded a total of 15 studio albums from 1986 to the present...well, one of these was actually the senior thesis of guitarist / vocalist Anastasio, but I will include it as well: Many of the band's most well-known live songs appear only on this recording.

In Chronological Order, Phish's Studio Discography is as follows:

• Phish (The White Tape) - 1986 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• The Man Who Stepped Into Yesterday (Trey's Senior Thesis) - 1988 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• Junta - 1989 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• Lawn Boy - 1990 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• A Picture Of Nectar - 1992 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• Rift - 1993 (REVIEW POSTED!)
• Hoist - 1994
• Billy Breathes - 1996
• The Story Of the Ghost - 1998
• The Siket Disc - 1999
• Farmhouse - 2000
• Round Room - 2002
• Undermind - 2004
• Joy - 2009
• BONUS: Party Time - 2009

I may ultimately choose to also review their traditional live recordings, in addition to possible later reviews of the Live Phish series. For the time being, however, the studio discography is my focus.