SM: Are there any plans to incorporate Mike Gordon shows into the Phish Live download series? So fans can download a show directly after it’s performed?
MG: We have been talking about the desire for it. I don’t know if we would get to the point of where we were providing every one but there has been some talk about making some available sooner. I don’t when or how we will do this, but we will.
SM: Are there any methods that you prefer to handle the social media access to fans for The Mike Gordon shows, as compared to Phish?
MG: That’s another thing too that’s sorta in the talking. Redoing my website so there’s a forum and so it links better with Facebook etc….
SM: Do you personally feel more involved and have more access with your fans while touring with Mike Gordon Band?
MG; I guess the reason I do is because I can talk to them a lot and we don’t bring a security staff with us. And my friends and fans know I want to hear a lot of feedback about how my stuff is going so I can have a kind of road map even though I know things that I want to change as the weeks go on. But I get some good feedback and a lot fans are critical, but with a lot of positive criticism too.
SM: A lot of both…constructive criticism is always welcome?
MG: Yes.
SM: Who decides your set lists? Is it something you do ahead of time? How do you work that out with the band?
MG: I spend some time thinking about it , well, not repeating from the last show or if we played there last year. And to keep it interesting for the band, and to dabble in a different set list, it has to have a flow. As a band leader there is a beginning and ending in mind and then you figure out what the flow would be and in the heat of the moment it comes from watching the people, the fans, whether they’re dancing, standing there or tired, maybe in your subconscious, you know if it’s time for a softer song and then we change the setlist.
SM: And you can do this off the cuff?
MG: Yeah, there were times back with Phish a little bit, when I would open with a song that I felt like playing, but now I leave it up to Trey because he’s become so good at it. But it pays off to think about playing a song on the fly or in advance but to think about what would create a flow, because if it’s too jarring, too many eclectic songs or the songs are too different, then they won’t build, or as soon as it builds it’ll go in a different direction. So you want some consistency but you also want some variety too which is finding a line.
SM: Speaking of Phish do you feel any sense of obligation to play a Phish song during a Mike Gordon show?
MG: Obligation? Um, I guess the feeling is I want everyone to have fun and I really feel like that music is about reaching out between the band members and the audience. I was just thinking about that, how during Phish Tour how there was a lot of reaching out, playing covers and songs that people would know. Not they might know everything, but reaching out in a way that they can participate or there is a melody that on several levels you can reach out. So why not, I figure, because you want to include people and clearly I’m not trying to imitate Phish but put in a couple songs that people know and we can all have fun with. If I did too much it would feel weird.
SM: The “Cities” for instance that you guys cover is a totally different type of “Cities” that Phish performs.
MG: I can say one thing about that, the reason why Phish started playing “Cities”, I think it was 1984 or 1985 when we had Dobbs [Marc Daubert] on percussion, was because I saw Max Creek play it and I liked the version that they had done. So normally I probably wouldn’t pick covers that Phish play but this was my original inspiration for “Cities” and it made sense. And Scott [Murawski] of Max Creek plays it much faster, maybe a little more like the original. But I kinda like it being faster because now I get to play two versions and definitely the tempo is the biggest difference. It’s danceable in a different way.
SM: Wrapping this up, curious did you direct the two Mike Gordon Tour Videos? The Fall Tour video and The Moss video?
MG: I did the train tracks one. The Moss video was Jared Slomoff, you could say I directed it, but there really wasn’t a director. He edited it, complied all the footage, put together a bunch of clips while I was on Phish Tour. It was really Jared, and we had talks about how to change it from earlier versions, originally it was twice as long as it turned out and it still turned out pretty long.
SM: From what I understand, you’ve made yourself pretty accessible on this tour, signing autographs after shows and meeting people. Will this be true tonight in Missoula?
MG: Yeah, yeah! It’s a chance for me to go out and meet people which I like to do. Gather some feedback and get to know some local people and promote the album. So yeah I’ll be available, as I’ve been doing every night pretty much.
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