All posts by Pete Mason

New Heights Brewing in Nashville to host ‘Sample in a Bar’ before Phish at Bridgestone Arena

When Phish is in Nashville in early October, New Heights Brewing Company will have a great pre-show event – Sample in a Bar – on Saturday and Sunday, October 7-8, featuring live music, food trucks, craft beer and a Vendor Village, presented by PhanArt.

phish nashville

Nashville is a great town, but vending during Phish shows has proved difficult since 2015.

New Heights Brewing has a fantastic spot, a great team and they’re road tested, having held a similar event during Billy Strings’ run at Bridgestone earlier this year. PhanArt looks forward to working New Heights to bring fans a unique and complete pre-show event.

Interested artists and vendors, contact Phanart@gmail.com.

Phish Studies Conference Announced for 2024 at Oregon State University

Oregon State University will host the second ever Phish Studies Conference on May 17-19, 2024, in Corvallis, Oregon.

artwork by Ryan Kerrigan

First held in 2019, the #PhishStudies Conference is an in-depth look at the band, fans, culture, community, publications, and of course music, of Phish. The event was a huge success, with 100s attending daily to take part in panels, discussions, observe gallery displays and presentations of Ph.D dissertations and theses.

“I’ve just come back from one of the coolest, most stimulating and invigorating, and definitely one of the most “far out” (to quote Mr. Bill Kreutzman, via Mr. Benjy Eisen) experiences of my life. Late last Monday night, I got back home to San Luis Obispo, California from Corvallis, Oregon. I had to rise and shine the next day, no time at all to transition from Phishiness to so-called real life—a direct, rather abrupt segue (a rip cord if there ever was one!) into a full day of teaching in university classrooms. I was, and still am, kind of exhausted. But, I’ve had a secret smile the size of Mt. Icculus plastered across my face and tattooed on my heart ever since. This because I am back from Phish Studies, the first-ever academic conference dedicated to our favorite topic/subject/phenomenon.”

Jnan A. Blau, on the 2019 conference
phish studies conference

Also featured at the conference was an exhibit from the Phishsonian Institute, “Beyond The Moss Forgotten exhibit at the Phish Studies conference” which celebrated the art and history of Phish’s performances in the Pacific Northwest since the 1990s.

phish studies conference

Check out more photos from the 2019 Phish Studies Conference by Derek Finholt and visit Phish.net for an in depth recap of the conference by Jnan A. Blau.

The #PhishStudies Conference is also looking for sponsors to support the mission and event. For more information, contact Professor Stephanie Jenkins.

The only rule is it begins! More info, including sponsorship opportunities, at phishstudies.net.

Music and Art Collide in ECHO, a new book from Higher Ground and Solidarity of Unbridled Labour

Higher Ground has served, for more than a quarter centry, as Burlington’s premiere indoor music venue, a checkmark for bands looking to make their park in the Green Mountain State. Fans who have been able enough to catch a show there know to stay until the show is over, where concert posters are sometimes handed out to lucky fans.

ECHO: A Survey at 25 Years of Sound, Art, and Ink on Paper, a unique art book featuring a collection of concert posters spanning the history of Higher Ground, the legendary music venue located just outside Burlington, VT, was released on April 1st. ECHO is a site to behold for concert poster collectors across the country.

This meticulously designed coffee table book, appearing like a stack of bound silkscreened posters, features the concert posters that have been a staple of Higher Ground and their partnership with acclaimed design firm and nonprofit, Solidarity of Unbridled Labour and Iskra Print Collective.

The book’s intro, written by Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy, taps into the project quickly.

What coheres in these images is the work of the music and art communities intertwined and invested in each other…Concert posters are as close as one can get to the solid evidence that we all crave—proof that what happens when we create is beyond the scope of the individual work.

With more than 350 original concert posters, all taking place in Vermont – mostly at Higher Ground – the book is snapshot of music history in the Northeast, tracking bands as they progressed around the country, growing in size in many cases, with some moving from the smaller Showcase Lounge to the larger Ballroom space.

The artwork is inviting for any music lover, those who appreciate the art of concert posters, and others who appreciate variety in graphic design.

There are dozens of artists you’ll find inside the pages of ECHO, among them Neil Young, Ice Cube, Norah Jones, My Morning Jacket, Wu Tang Clan, Ween, Sturgill Simpson, Phish, Willie Nelson, Anderson .Paak, and many more. There are also the obscure artists you’ll come across in the pages of the book, those who fit a niche, faded out or otherwise never crossed your radar; the artwork in Echo will have you discovering new music.

Iskra Print Collective, a community space in Burlington that is dedicated to the practice, understanding, and appreciation of the printmaking arts, has held the task of creating silkscreen posters for certain shows at Higher Ground, which are uniquely not available for purchase. These prints evoke the spirit of each artist and band are embodied with bold creativity, and the deep dive into screenprinting found in ECHO is remarkable.

Michael Jager, co-Founder and Creative Director of Solidarity of Unbridled Labour and Co-Founder of Iskra Print Collective, works to conceptualize and realize ideas that help guide and create culture and positive change from within. Working with Ezra Pound’s principle, “Make it new,” through his multi-disciplinary collaboration, Jager has created work for brands including Burton Snowboards, Microsoft’s Xbox, Nike, Levi’s,  Phish, MTV, Virgin, Lululemon, Yara, Tomra, Seventh Generation, MasterClass, and Patagonia.

Making the project even more special is all proceeds going directly to Iskra Print Collective.

Nestled inside the pages and pages of artwork inside ECHO are interviews with Alex Crothers, founder  and co-owner of Higher Ground.

Crothers shares his unique insight from the past 25 years in his interview, which is echoed in his initial correspondence with Jager, outlining his vision for a partnership between the two.

Crothers opened the venue in 1998 and has produced more than 10,000 events in that span of time. By attracting rising stars as well as legendary musicians, Crothers pushes Higher Ground with core values to create bigger and better things while embracing community, storytelling, and the creative process. Through working with Iskra Print Collective, Higher Ground meets this mission.

ECHO is a must own book for any music-lover or Vermonter, and a must for any concert poster collector. The incredible design of the coffee table book is also the perfect addition to your library. Purchase ECHO here.

The Hometown Flodown at Over Yonder Brewing in Golden, CO – October 6


Ahead of Night 2 of Goose at Red Rocks, Over Yonder Brewing Company will host the Hometown Flodown in Golden, Colorado, just north of Red Rocks, from 1-5pm.

Shuttle service to Red Rocks is provided by Over Yonder Brewing Company, making this a spot to park, eat, drink, shop, and get a ride down the road to Red Rocks, all in one!

The event will be held inside Over Yonder, as well as outside in the adjacent lot. Artists and vendors can sign up by reaching out to Phanart@gmail.com for more information.

With regular live music, art markets, and other events, Over Yonder is known for producing high quality, unique, & rotating craft beer that pleases all palates & delivers them in an inviting, refreshing, music-loving, good vibes atmosphere.

PhanArt Over Yonder to be held May 12 in Golden, Colorado

On Friday, May12 in Golden, Colorado, join artists from Colorado and beyond at PhanArt Over Yonder, held at Over Yonder Brewing Company. The show will be held on Day 2 of Billy Strings’ Red Rocks two-night stand.

phanart over yonder golden colorado

Over Yonder Brewing Company is located in Southwest Golden, Colorado, a location west of Denver tucked in the Rocky Mountain foothills near I-70, a major interstate that leads to an abundance of outdoor recreation all year round, and the world famous Red Rocks Amphitheater.

With regular live music, art markets, and other events, Over Yonder is known for producing a high quality, unique, & rotating craft beer lineup that pleases all palates & delivers them in an inviting, refreshing, music-loving, good vibes atmosphere.

Core beers include a variety of IPA’s, stouts, cream ale, pale ale, saison, pilsners, toasted coconut porter, & seasonal rotations featuring fruit beers, wheats, sours, barrel-aged, & other adventurous & delicious brews.

Over Yonder is a dog friendly brewery. Dogs must be well-behaved and kept on leash at their human’s table & supervised at all times.

Shuttle service to Red Rocks is provided by Over Yonder Brewing Company, making this a spot to park, eat, drink, shop and get a ride down the road to Red Rocks, all in one!

The event will be held inside Over Yonder, as well as outside in the adjacent lot. Artists and vendors can sign up by reaching out to Phanart@gmail.com for more information.

Check out photos by Zach Culver from the first ever Artbeat of America: A Bluegrass Bazaar, held on February 4, 2023 in Broomfield, Colorado.

Woodstock Rock Art and Poster Show planned for May 6-7 in Bearsville Center, NY

WRAPS – the Woodstock Rock Art and Poster Show – will return to Bearsville Center over May 6-7, 2023. The two-day event will feature a wide selection of art for sale ranging from vintage psychedelia and silkscreen prints, to modern digital artwork and photography.

wraps

Exhibitors include well-known artists as well as newcomers making a splash on the scene. In addition to a formidable artist line-up, there will be multi-media productions, talks, and seminars/workshops throughout the event.

This is a new East Coast art show modeled on, and with the support of, the famous The Rock Poster Show (T.R.P.S.) held annually in San Francisco, WRAPS is poised to become a premier event for poster collectors on the East Coast.

The inaugural WRAPS was a huge success last May. Over 40 exhibitors ranging from painters to printers, body artists to serious art collectors gathered to share their love for and knowledge of the art form known simply as “rock poster.” In the event’s second year, they’re planning to make it even bigger and better.

Held in the world-famous town of Woodstock, WRAPS is produced by artist Mike DuBois of Happylife Productions, Kenny Scneidman of Arrowhead Ranch and Retreat and Lizzie Vann the owner of the newly renovated Bearsville Center, The event will take place at the Historic Bearsville Theater and Utopia sound stage the first weekend of May 2023.

Bearsville Center is located just a few miles down the road from Woodstock, NY, a popular tourist destination, approximately 2 hours north of New York City and 1 hour south of Albany. It is easily accessible by both car and public transportation out of NYC.

Bearsville Center features a spacious bar and lounge in the theater, and an expansive lawn area for networking and socializing. The property also boasts two restaurants, an ice cream shop, a full bar, and patio with fire pit. There will be live music in the theater’s lounge in the evening. The town of Woodstock and surrounding Catskill Mountains and Hudson Valley offer a multitude of recreational and cultural activities, entertainment, hotels and dining in a beautiful natural environment.

WRAPS takes place Saturday, May 6- 10 A.M. – 6 P.M. Sunday, May 7 – 10 A.M- 5 P.M.

Artists interested in taking part in the 2023 Woodstock Rock Art & Poster Show, sign up here.

Artists for WRAPS 2023 include Jeff Wood, Johnny Thief, William Giese, Mikio Kennedy, David Byrd, Brad Kelly, Mike DuBois, Jay Blakesburg Studio, John Warner, Kenny Schneidman, JT Luccesi, Kory McGeehan, Una Toibin, Helen Kennedy ( Zazz Corp.), PhanArt, Rennie Cantine, Brian Woodruff, Phil Brown, Nadina Simon, Nick Clemente (Mark Goff Photos) and many more to be announced.

Lineup Announced for Artbeat of America: A Bluegrass Bazaar

We are under a month from Artbeat of America: A Bluegrass Bazaar, the first Billy Strings-centric PhanArt Show. So let’s take a look at the vendors and artists who are taking part in this inaugural event!

The BMFS creative community is one that is notable and making a great deal of music-inspired art, with new artists popping up as a result of the surging Billy Strings fanbase. These are small businesses that deserve greater attention as they draw inspiration from the next generation of bluegrass.

Don’t miss Artbeat of America: A Bluegrass Bazaar, held in Broomfield, CO at Aloft on Saturday, Feb 4 from 1-6pm. Admission is FREE!

More details and vendors will be announced soon! Interested vendors should contact phanart@gmail.com for more information.