I have never really been that into Phish. I have friends that are completely out of their minds for the band but I just did not understand. I appreciate the musicianship but there are hundreds of bands that have as much talent. I really enjoy the phanbase as I am a long-time DeadHead and can relate to the counter-culture aspect of it all. Well, I am as much of a DeadHead as you can be without ever having seen Jerry. I have seen every other incarnation of the Dead and their side projects many times from 1997 on. I also began trading tapes and now have an extensive collection of shows throughout the duration of The Grateful Dead. All of this being said, at no point could I obtain the feelings that others did about Phish. However, I did not give them the proper listen it turns out.
