Just picked up from LiveMusicBlog.com and Phish.net:

Trey Anastasio was arrested this morning for “DWI - Drugs,” “Third-Degree Aggravated Unlicensed Operation,” and “Seventh-Degree Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance.” [Phish.net]

Picture from SmokingGun.com.

I’m not sure what to say. I mean it was apparent that the guy had a prescription drug problem just from reading interviews that last few years, listening to recordings of the final 2004 tour, or a number or rumour-mills like PhantasyTour.org’s forums.

After listening to recordings and hearing reviews of the Fall 2006 tour he just finished though, and reading the most recent interviews, it sounded like the guy had his stuff together for the first time in awhile. He had set up a respectable band that the fans approved of for once, was playing great, and overall just seemed a lot happier at 10,000 Lakes Festival 2006 this last July than he did during the Fall 2005 Tour.

The full text from Phish.net:

Trey Anastasio was arrested at 3:30 this morning in Whitehall, NY, for “third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and DWI - drugs” (Burlington Free Press), mugshot and all.

He “was observed to be under the influence of a narcotic substance … had a suspended driver’s license in New York and allegedly was found with an assortment of prescription medications including hydrocodone, Percocet and Xanax, which were prescribed for another person” (Times Union).

Trey was driving a black 2004 Audi sedan when Whitehall Police Patrolman Andrew Mija observed him crossing into an opposing lane. Trey failed several field sobriety tests, but passed a breath test for alcohol. He reportedly told Mija that he’d smoked hash and consumed some prescription pills. His license had been suspended for not responding to an August 1998 ticket for driving 84 mph in a 65mph zone in Chester. (PostStar).

He was released to a friend, picked up his car from a towing company this morning (and drove off in it, despite the license suspension, according to the PostStar), and is scheduled to re-appeare on January 10th. (See also, WNYT.com.)

Several accounts quote his November 2005 interview discussing how the band let their guard down in 1998 about keeping “hard drugs” away. By that account, things not only degenerated to the point of a two-year (10/7/00 - 12/31/02) hiatus, but became worse afterwards, resulting in the band’s 2004 breakup.

Further Coverage:

TheSmokingGun.com
Phish.net
LiveMusicBlog.com
Burlington Free Press
The Post-Star
Times Union
WNYT

Today just got a lot more depressing.

If you really want to know what I listened to this year, you’d be better off checking out my Last.FM. But as far as this year’s newbies go, here’s my picks. For the smaller artists you may not know, I’ve included online links to purchase their tunes. For the rest, go support a local independent music retailer.

Highlights of the Year (Ones I’ll Enjoy For A Long Time):

Josh Rouse - Subtítulo

A great album start to finish in a style that I liken to a less-playful Jack Johnson. My first reaction was that Subtítulo was perfect for light-hearted summer tunes, but the album has too much substance to just write it off as that. I guess in a phrase it’s a good album for a rainy day. “It Looks Like Love” has the best energy of any track on the album, so that’s my pick to share with you.

MP3: Josh Rouse - It Looks Like Love.

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The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

I’ve never been a big Decemberists fan and I’m just settling into this album, but I can already tell it’s going to be a personal favorite. My personal favorite thus far is the epic keyboard-rocked triptych “The Island,” however I still love the album start to finish as a whole. It’s so cohesive and full of depth of sound and lyrics that it would do the album injustice to listen to it another way. I’d share “The Island” but it’s a long tune and I think you’d be better off checking that out elsewhere, so here’s the slower “Shankhill Butchers,” which I’d guess is one of the less shared songs off of the album.

MP3: The Decemberists - Shankhill Butchers.

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Aaron Schroeder - Southern Heart In Western Skin (CDBaby)

This is the one on my list that most of you won’t recognize. Sadly I’ve failed to write enough about Schroeder’s tunes on here since I received a copy of his album in the mail. The currently-Washington-based 22-year-old has a signature sound that I’ve grown to love, and everyone I’ve shared the album with has agreed. And - if you end up getting any of the albums on this list, get this one - it’s only $7.99 on CDBaby. If you’ve never ordered a CD from CDBaby before, I highly recommend it, they’re the best at customer service of any music retailer online. Anyways, here’s “Rollin’ Tennessee,” I promise you’ll dig it

MP3: Aaron Schroeder - Rollin Tennessee.

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Other Albums I Enjoyed (No Particular Order):

Animal Liberation Orchestra - Fly Between Falls

Umphrey’s McGee - Safety In Numbers

Tally Hall - Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum

Chris Berry & Panjea - Dancemakers

Belle And Sebastian - The Life Pursuit

Family Groove Company - The Charmer

Pepper - No Shame

Trey Anastasio - Bar 17

The Derailers - Soldiers of Love

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Albums I Should Have Checked Out But Haven’t Yet:

Josh Ritter - Animal Years
Medeski Scofield Martin and Wood - Out Louder
Willie Nelson - Songbird
Tortoise and Bonnie “Prince” Billy - The Brave And The Bold
Jenny Lewis and The Watson Twins - Rabbit Fur Coat
Yonder Mountain String Band - Yonder Mountain String Band
Cornmeal - Feet First (CDBaby)
Elsinore - Nothing For Design (CDBaby)
Elton John - The Captain and The Kid
Neil Young - Living With War
Tom Petty - Highway Companion
Islands - Return To The Sea
Gomez - How We Operate
J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton - The Road To Escondido
The Roots - Game Theory
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Stadium Arcadium
Bonnie “Prince Billy” - The Letting Go
Scissor Sisters - Ta-Dah
The Mountain Goats - Get Lonely
Beck - The Information
The Flaming Lips - At War With The Mystics
Bob Dylan - Modern Times
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
John Mayer - Continuum
Justin Timberlake - FutureSex / LoveSounds
Oh No! Oh My! - Oh No! Oh My!
Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris - All The Roadrunning

…Can you still have fun?

Just ran across a good article written by David Steinberg (of ZZYZX Stat Fame) for jambands.com back in August of this year. Here’s the link to the full article, and a segment that I liked most:

“One of the great things about the jambands scene has always been the lack of judgment. As long as you’re not hurting anyone or affecting their ability to enjoy the show, what does it matter how they are dressed or what they’re doing. One of my favorite tour activities was always to take someone to their first show and have them see a gathering of people who were trying to have as much fun as possible.

Go on. Dress up in weird clothes. Find a spot with no people around and perform cool hula hoop tricks. Create little skits to perform in the parking lot or during the set break. Throw confetti at appropriately timed spots. While the main focus will always be on the music, a creative crowd can help turn a mediocre show into a great time and a great show into a life changing experience. If someone else has a problem with that, that’s their issue. If they mess with you, they’ll have to answer to me!”

If I happen to be working on New Year’s Eve, this may be a good alternative to get my fix for the holidays… some awesome live music *and* snowboarding, it’s a dream come true.

Ski Jam 2007 - Steamboat Springs, CO - Jan 9-14, 2007

Lineup Includes:

Zilla -:- New Monsoon -:- South Austin Jug Band -:- Rose Hill Drive

Kyle Hollingsworth -:- Vince Herman & Great American Taxi -:-Hot Buttered Rum

Honkytonk Homeslice & Bill Nershi of The String Cheese Incident –

Sidehill Gougers-:-The Gourds

After seeing Vince Herman twice this summer, both at Summer Camp and 10,000 Lakes Festival, I think I’d go just about anywhere in the country to see that man jam. Great American Taxi better stick around as his jam vehicle for awhile, I simply loved their 10KLF show. Also I’ve never had a chance to focus on Hot Buttered Rum, Honkytonk Homeslice, Zilla, or Kyle Hollingsworth’s solo material, and Kyle in particular happens to be my favorite String Cheeser. Plus, the whole festival is relatively cheap.

Anyone been to past Ski Jam’s?  How is it compared to similar snow/jam festivals like Snoe.Down? Who’s comin’ with me?

For some reason lyrics have popped up a lot in the last day or two of my life. The elbo.ws/vanilla forum has a lyrics thread now, I used one of my favorite lyrics to open a speech today, and a friend of mine had “what’s you favorite song lyric?” for her away message. Put it all together and I think it’s a good day to share a few of my favorites. Many are from The Grateful Dead, since I’m a huge fan of Robert Hunter’s writing, and I love Tom Marshall’s writing for Phish but don’t have many favorite lyrics picked out from him. Anyways, here they are, make sure you all leave some additions in the comments.

“Control for smiler’s can’t be bought”
-Phish, “Stash,” lyrics by Tom Marshall.

“Oh well a Touch Of Grey, kind of suits you anyway”
-The Grateful Dead, “Touch Of Grey,” lyrics by Robert Hunter.

“If you get confused, listen to the music play”
-The Grateful Dead, “Franklin’s Tower,” lyrics by Robert Hunter.

“I may be going to hell in a bucket, babe, but at least I’m enjoying the ride”
-The Grateful Dead, “Hell In A Bucket,” lyrics by John Perry Barlow.

“Brown eyed women and red grenadine, the bottle was dusty but the liquor was clean”
-The Grateful Dead, “Brown-Eyed Woman,” lyrics by Robert Hunter.

“A day without a buzz is a day that never was”
-Keller Williams, “A Day Without A Buzz,” lyrics to my knowledge are just a saying, but Keller is the only one I know to have used them as lyrics.

Any favorites anyone? They don’t have to be jam bands, naturally, these are just the ones I keep earmarked so to say