Written by: Rosemary A.W. Roberts

The latest and highly anticipated studio album by Phish was released June 24, 2014, available in CD, digital, and vinyl formats. With Fuego, the band achieves one of their most collaborative albums ever produced, with five out of the ten tracks being credited to all four band members. The vinyl presentation is quite inviting, with fire-themed artwork, two orange LPs, and an insert with the song lyrics in an easy-to-read font.

Side A opens with the title track “Fuego”, a rocker that attacks with wild abandon, driven by Jon Fishman’s tightness and ferocity on drums. It’s a great song if you know and love Phish adventures, or if you enjoy the unpredictability of progressive rock; but its strengths may be lost on a novice, easily preventing Phish from suddenly going full-on mainstream. “The Line”, on the other hand, could probably recruit listeners of all kinds, with its comfortable and thoughtfully crafted chord movements; this song makes me smile every time I hear it. “Devotion to a Dream” continues the joyful exuberance, features some expert guitar work from Trey Anastasio, and shows promise as a high spirited jam rocker.

With a flip of the record, Side B begins with “Halfway To The Moon”, a beautiful tune in which Page McConnell continues to prove he is still ‘Chairman of the Boards’. “Winterqueen” is pretty and wistful, and the horns provide a lovely accent to the melody. In “Sing Monica” the bouncing jubilant sounds contrast with the pointed lyrics in triumph, perhaps as if sounding good is the best revenge. “555” finds Mike Gordon and his bass in fine funk form: this song slinks into your soul and feels really good.

Switching to the single-sided second record, Side C starts with the dreamlike ballad “Waiting All Night” and induces a state of blissful longing with its gorgeous harmonies. Then “Wombat” flies in from outer space, filled with quirky and silly danceable grooves, served with a side of Phish’s unique brand of humor. The album closes with “Wingsuit”, a multi-plexed composition whose first half is a heavenly musical flight containing beauty I’d place on par with “Fast Enough For You” (Rift). Then unexpectedly, the major chords change to minors, and a thrust of force ignites, pauses, and then explodes, with Anastasio’s layered guitar parts bringing to mind what Jimmy Page often did on Led Zeppelin albums.

Overall, this album comes across as attentively composed, passionately performed, and expertly produced. The sound is fully fleshed out, and Phish succeeds in firing on all cylinders. There is certainly plenty of fire on Fuego, resulting in an excellent studio album, and providing great new songs to fuel the upcoming summer tour!