The Elektron

SPAC tix!

If the four night run at Red Rocks is an indication of things to come, you're going to want to get yours too!

Free from Marvin’s Mountain

I thought I'd make a compilation of direct links to download music from Marvin's Mountain 2009.  Check back often as more stuff should be popping up in the next few days and I'll try to keep the post updated.

Thursday, July 9

9:00 Seepeoples

10:30 Boombox

12:00 Keller Williams

2:00 Lotus

Friday, July 10

2:00 Hill Country Revue

6:00 Robert Randolph and the Family Band

9:15 The New Mastersounds

10:oo Bob Weir & Ratdog

12:45 Moe.

Saturday, July 11

1:00 Cornmeal

2:30 The Bridge

3:30 Steve Kimock Crazy Engine

6:00 Assembly of Dust

6:30 Yonder Mountain String Band

8:30 Sound Tribe Sector 9

10:00 Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk

1:00 Umphrey's McGee

Sunday, July 12

10:00 The Recipe

1:15 Donna the Buffalo

2:15 Rex Jam w/ The Bridge

2:40 Tea Leaf Green

4:55 Dark Star Orchestra

There is also a good number of FLAC torrents of the shows on bt.etree.org, I saw a bunch of acts including Buckethead's up there.  I'll assume if you know how to deal w/ FLAC and torrents, you are saavy enough to use their search and find what you are looking for.

downloads via archive.org

Don’t Cancel Those Reservations Yet

By now we have all seen California get carried away by multiple balloons. But where did it go? Hmm... Head over to phish.com, after the animation plays through hit 'ctrl +' a a few times and maybe you will see something hanging around...

Update: the flash animation changed so you can't see what I was talking about. Basically the hot air balloons carried Cali off screen but if you increased the viewing area you could see Cali still hovering safe and sound over the states. Probably just a programmer's artifact but interesting nonetheless.

Top Five Characters to Avoid While at a Summer Festival

It is that time of year when you might be inclined to enjoy a nice summer festival.  What's not to like, music?  friends?  relaxing?  It's all good in my opinion.  These events typically draw people of all lifestyles from many locations around the world; so I can safely say there is definitely a 'diverse crowd' .  Many of these individuals are pleasant to be around, pleasant to ALL the senses in some cases.  Others are not.  So I wrote this  cheat sheet to quickly identify those of an unpleasant nature.  Just a note, I use the term 'guy' but keep in mind that 'Girls' are just as unpleasant.

So in no particular order: The Top Five Characters to Avoid While at a Summer Festival

'Sweaty' Guy - Nothing wrong with a little perspiration, I mean it IS a summer festival, we are all a little sweaty.  But the Sweaty Guy goes beyond perspiration, its like he rubbed primordial ooze all over his body and smells as such.  Unfortunately, a common attribute of the Sweaty Guy is he's also a 'Hugger', which is a terrible combination.

What to look out for:

• A glistening sheen of unknown origin covering the body
• Typically shirtless, but if wearing a shirt: armpit sweat stains that meet in the middle

'Oblivious Dancing' Guy - Once again nothing wrong w/ getting your groove thing on.  But to earn the title 'Oblivious Dancing' Guy, you have gone way past Cabbage Patching territory.  Should you get anywhere within a six foot radius of this guy, you will get elbowed in the face, followed quickly by a glare that that implies you you rudely punched his elbow with your face.

What to look out for:

• Spastic, irregular movements
• Dancing with eyes closed
• A cloud of dust and limbs

'About To Spew' Guy - This guy can be any one of us, a toxic brew plus summer heat has turned even the best of us into 'About To Spew' Guy.  The worst part about 'About To Spew' Guy is that he inevitably becomes 'The Guy Who Just Puked On Me Or Something I Liked' Guy.  Luckily this person is relatively easy to spot and a timely deflection can avoid any uncomfortableness that this person brings to the party.  Unless of course he blindsides you...

What to look out for:

• Skin color that is not a color you would use to describe skin
• Hand over mouth with chipmunk cheeks

'Wild Animal' Guy - Some people I have found are not content with the typical house pet: Cat, Dog, Hamster.  Some people just need to have something a little more exotic and some of those people just need to bring it to a summer festival.  Anaconda, Hyena, an f'ing Lion, I've seen some crazy things out there.  These animals may very well be safe, but if you get mauled by a Baboon because you wanted to pet it, then that's on you...

What to look out for:

• an f'ing Lion

'There's Gotta Be Something Wrong w/ That' Guy - This guy is an enigma.  He can manifest himself in many different forms.  But once you start talking to him, you know you have met 'There's Gotta Be Something Wrong w/ That' Guy.  Maybe he will pick you out from across the lot, your glances meet and he makes a bee line to you.  Maybe you simply ask someone why they are eating Mac'n'cheese out of a baseball cap.  Maybe he comes up and wants to trade you a rock he found in the woods for your shoes.  However you meet this person, you know right off the bat that this encounter will inevitably go down hill as the interaction continues, so best to avoid this completely or bow out politely as soon as possible.

Things to look out for:

• Weird head gear (i.e. Flight Cap, Ski Goggles)
• An unmatched or missing shoe
• Crazy Eyes

Well, I sure hope this field guide will serve you well and make your Summer Festival a more pleasant one.  If you have your own suggestions, please leave a comment.  If you will be attending a summer festival, have fun and be safe be sure to say hi if you see me.  I'll be the one in the flight cap and ski goggles.

Secret Location of Phish Halloween Fest Tweeted?

Weeza was quick to notice that a hotel in the Indio, CA area tweeted:

'Word is the band Phish is coming to the desert in late October. Rooms are going fast. The Indian Wells Resort Hotel is 10min from the venue!'

Hrmmmm... is the 'Word' trustworthy?  All I know is that the bird is equal to or greater than the word.  Wait, you mean you haven't heard?

An Open Letter To Phish

Ok, Phish, we get it.  You guys built a career off tension and release.  The staple jams that define Phish music are built upon taking the listener out to 'tension land' and eventually resolving back into 'release land'.  We all love it, yes, yes.

But this 'Save the Date' campaign has to stop.  Are you really going to put us through maybe a month or more, releasing states, that the festival is NOT in, one at a time.  ARrrgggh, this is brutal.  I can only imagine the shit-eating grins on your faces as you all sit on your marble thrones in ivory towers while stroking the exotic cats on your laps.  Watching down upon us as the phan community furiously tries to find clues and hypothesize where the mysterious Halloween festival will be.  How many times do you think people have poured over that flash animation on your website, viewed the source of the page for clues, scoured the internet for leaks, ran thru a list of available venues that could support a late in the year three day performance?  I mean, I did all that PERSONALLY.

It's irresponsible, it's diabolical, it's conniving, it's... perfect.