Oysterhead’s music style impresses large audience

By Ayall Sagi
Staff Writer

Darkness filled the room as the audience cheered. Les Claypool took the stage wearing a NASA jumpsuit, Trey Anastasio and Stewart Copeland took the stage wearing street clothes, but all three musicians were ready to rock.

Shayna Wolf, a sophomore in the School of Liberal Arts, was impressed with the rock show and the audience.

"It was really amazing to see all those different people at Elliott who came from all over the U.S. to our little town to see this band," she said.

Jon Szalai, a sophomore in the Schools of Engineering, had never been to a show at Elliott Hall of Music and was delighted to see the audience so involved.

"The atmosphere had a good feeling and a nice smell in the air," said Szalai.

The show was dark and deep, as the three musicians worked beautifully with each other and the audience praised their opus.

Claypool and Anastasio traded solos in every song, and Copeland kept the beat alive drumming with a strong, steady and classic pulsation.

In the middle of songs, Claypool ran around the stage, exciting the audience.

"I think he is so psyched about the music that he translates that into his action, and makes the concert so much more fun for the audience," said William Ploehn, a freshman in the Schools of Engineering. "We get to see some terrific music and some craziness as well."

Although the crowd's opinion of Anastasio's performance was split evenly for and against his omission of Phish songs, he seemed to be enjoying himself, smiling constantly, without concern over the loyalist debate.

Zach White, a sophomore in the Schools of Engineering, enjoyed the show, but was displeased with Anastasio's participation because he felt the show was too dominated by Primus-influenced songs.

"I'm disappointed that Trey isn't taking control of the group and is taking the backseat because he is an amazing musician. The audience didn't really get a chance to hear the type of music that Trey is famous for making."

However, some fans were glad Anastasio decided to take it slow. Ploehn feels that Anastasio's minimized role allowed his music to be deeper and evolve.

"Trey was with Phish for so long and because of this, he made his name with Phish, but his music isn't about Phish," he said. "It's about the music, and that’s probably why he joined Oysterhead."

In the song "Birthday Boys," Anastasio pulled up a chair and started playing an acoustic guitar.

Wolf, who has seen Anastasio before, said this was the first time she'd seen him do this.

"I think it was a nice interlude in the middle of the concert."

Ploehn, who loved the show, said, "Trey and Les and Stewart were all communicating and each played an integral part to making the music. Oysterhead isn't Les, and it isn't Trey, and it isn't Stewart; it’s all of them together."

FEATURES DESK PHONE:
(765) 743-1111 ext. 256

Features editor:
Megan Finnerty

To send a letter to the editor, please email opinions@purdueexponent.org