The Story...When Phish called it quits in 2004--in front of 80,000 people in Northern Vermont--all that was great about them seemed to be buried forever on a muddy hill in the middle of nowhere. Since then, bands have come and gone, all trying to recreate the music that inspired so many to pack up and follow Phish around the country for twenty years. But these bands have all forgotten that for Phish it was not just about the music, it was about the quest for the unexpected, the thrill of a surprise at show, about taking chances and creating a creative forum not only for the band, but for the fans as well. Four young friends who came together and became musicians through a shared passion for what was Phish, look to change that, to recreate that forum, that will as the band says, “get the fans to be involved creatively. We want it to be for them the Phans, because we are Phans as well.” Adam Chase (drums), his brother Matt Chase (guitar), Aaron Levy (keys), and Ben Markowitz (bass), all with diverse musical backgrounds have come together as Strange Design to recreate the Live Phish Experience. Strange Design will bring the sense of community that permeated Phish shows to every stage and venue they play as they dip deep into the expansive Phish show catalog and reinterpret a different show each night. From well known classics to long forgotten favorites, Strange Design will recreate not only the music, stage set-up and lights from each show, but also the excitement, anticipation, and unspeakable good vibe that surrounded every live Phish Experience. For Strange Design they recognize that the music is what originally drew people in, “This is about Phish and the music they wrote.” While the music drew them in it was the unknown element at live shows, the level of unpredictability that kept people coming back. The band is quick to point this out, “Phish was a strange design with their approach to music.” Strange Design the band is bringing back that level of unpredictability. They are following much of the same approach, “We want people to know that we are looking deeply into why we like Phish. We are doing our own forms of improvising, we are bringing our own energy that comes from genuine improvisation, but we are doing it on the path they blazed.” Phish believed that there was more to live music than a couple of chords and a drumbeat, they believed that it was an experience, a full-on attack of the senses. Since 2004 this belief has been left buried in a muddy field in Vermont. Strange Design is bringing this belief back to life. ~ Tim Newby

Info via myspace.com/thestrangedesign. Photo courtesy of Kaitlyn Iserman.