Phish, Aura, and beyond...

Bear Creek is long in the past, and it is time to fill you in what I've been up to. Since pre-christmas break is a bit of a blur right now, I will choose a nice easy starting point from which to begin....

On the 27th of December, I embarked on a journey that will never be forgotten. After a successful reunion tour, I took the time to spend a 4 night New Years Eve run

with the boys of Phish. Just short of 40 hours of driving time, and God only knows the size of the dent on my checking account produced one of the best experiences of my life. Although I have not spent much time roaming the hotels of Miami prior to this, I am pretty sure the staff in these hotels were shocked by the number of concert goers ready to have a good time! Personally staying about 10 min away from American Airlines Arena where the even took place, I quickly became

good friends with my new neighbors and others staying in the Miami Red Roof Inn. After a few quick drinks, our group loaded a cab and headed to the venue.

Upon arriving, it was easy to see that Night 1 of the 4 night run was going to set the mood for the entire week. The lot located directly across from AAA had quickly become a haven for vendors cashing in on the crowds selling anything from hats and T-Shirts to grilled

cheese and homemade french bread pizza's. After a bit of tailgating, and a bite to eat (those homemade french bread pizzas were dannnkkkkk), we wandered into the show. Missing the first 2 songs, the first night was clearly setting the mood. The evening got into full swing with a first set performance of "Stash." After a fairly slow paced second set, the boys threw down in the encore with a extended "First Tube" to close out the night, successfully amplifying the crowds expectations for the next couple of nights.

Night Two highlights included some of my personal favorite songs. Hearing "Tweezer" in person was quite the experience as well as catching the reprise of the song played in the encore just blew the crowds minds. Fishman, provided a nice change of pace when he came to the front of the stage and entertained the crowd with an infamous solo on the vacuum. After the show, I found myself wandering over to enjoy a late night party with Break Science. The White

Room in downtown Miami was a much smaller venue that allowed for a more intimate experience then the masses of crowds at AAA, a nice change after 2 nights of crowds of multiple thousands of people. Day 3 was likely the best evening of the weekend musically. Opening with a cover of Bob Marley's "Soul Shakedown" the evening was off to an extremely energetic start. With a Keytar expose by Page, as well as a guest appearance by "Rich," who had been selected by Fishman from the crowd to join the band onstage and play the vacuum in place of Fishman. On top of the antics of the evening, the guys got the crowd going WILD when they played "Tela" for the first time in over 200 shows, generating the hype and excitement required to get ready for the festivities planned for the New Years Eve show.

New Years Eve brought about the antics that many Phish fans seem have become used to over the years. With an additional post-ball drop set included, the boys lit the stage up through the course of the evening. With a first set "Bathtub Gin" as well as closing the second set out with "Suzy Greenburg," the guys set the stage for what would be a stunt that confused the masses. After the ball successfully dropped without the world coming to an end, Fishman geared up for a ride in the giant disco new years eve ball. After wondering what the structure covered in a large black sheet the majority of the evening, the crowd was soon cheering when a giant cannon was exposed. After boarding the disco ball, Gordo, and Trey continued to loa

d the Fishman Disco Ball into the cannon as a large "X" marks the spot was exposed on a net in the upper rafters of the arena. After what seemed to be a drastic misfire, a "helicopter," was spotted searching for the lost cannon ball. Without any success, the band found themselves without a drummer, and in keeping with the mood from the previous evening invited "Sarah" a fan from Pittsburgh onto the stage to play drums in place of Fishman. The two (Sarah and Fishman) were quickly swapped in order to play "Fluffhead," however Fishman returned to stage disguised as "Sarah from Pittsburgh." The show ended with "Sarah" returning to the stage to take a bow with the band, successfully confusing many of the people in the crowd as to whether or not she had finished the set along with the band. The night concluded with a Particle show that did not end till just short of daylight, wrapping up what may have been one of the most exciting 4 days of my life.

After returning to Tampa after another week in the D.C area doing nothing, it was time to get back into action. A early Zach Deputy show locally at Skippers Smokehouse, was a good way to catch up with the friends I had not seen in almost a month due to my absence from the Sunshine State. Shortly

after, RJD2 came to town and put on what ended up being a mediocre show at a personal favorite venue, the Crowbar. These shows were a good way to pass the time in Tampa before embarking on a small instate journey.

Aura, a first annual festival, with plans on making a larger impact on the Florida scene, took place on the weekend on January 15-17. Located at the Sertoma Youth Ranch in Brooksville, Fl the event went off with a bang. A small grassroots festival with no large headliners, the event included local acts such as

Cope, as well as nationally toured jam bands such as The Malah. The event went extremely successfully, and plans on returning to the same location for a 2nd time in the Winter of 2011.

February proved to be a fairly exciting month considering the lack of a major, or even a small camping festival. Although unable to make it to what was expected to be a great experience at a Furthur show in Orlando, the boys from Yonder Mountain String Band provided an extremely intimate evening on my first visit to The Ritz, in Ybor City, Fl. This was followed by another visit to The Ritz only a week later to catch up with the boys from Arlington, VA, SOJA (Soldiers of Jah Army). After re-introducing myself to the guys, they quickly invited myself and a few friends back stage for a post-show party, a well known action of the guys in SOJA. Only a few days later, I returned to Skippers for a night of some deep south New Orleans funk spending an evening with the Ivan Neville and Dumpstaphunk, which proved to be a well worth ticket considering the energy the band brought to the stage.

Now mid-way through March, festival season is beginning, and will soon be in full swing. The summer of 2010 is expected to be a fun filled, and high mileage period. Keep an eye out for more detailed recaps of whats going on with the jams in south Florida, and an occasional DC show!