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Tom Marshall: The Amfibian Comes Up For Air
interview Page 3
Page 1 of interview
Page 2 of interview
mt: One of the strongest aspects prevalent in the Phish/jam band phenomenon is the sense of community that exists. That community blurs the line between artist and fan, keeping the lines of communication and interaction open between the two groups. The Internet has played a great role in helping that connection. What are your feelings on the Internet and its involvement in helping erase the corporate middleman that had so often gotten in between artist and fan communities?
TM: I do think the Internet is a great tool, because it can eliminate the middleman. Especially in this day and age of computer studios, [a situation] where you can create a CD and get it on the Internet to an infinite amount of people is a fantastic thing. That just means you don't have to get signed any more. I think that is the great promise in the minds of every musician. I also feel like there are so many people putting stuff on the net that the problem now is wading through it all and getting noticed. It still comes down to having a product and somehow getting yourself out there. The old way of getting yourself out there was to get signed, get on the radio, or do like the Dead or Phish and tour constantly, until enough people find out about you. I think it is tough for people to give their music to an indie music Web page and hope that there is a chance that they can become successful just sitting in the basement recording. No one is going to find you still.
mt: In your case, you can be thankful because you are already part of a community that stands out on the Web. With sites like Jambands.com and Gadiel.com already looking in your direction, you are a step ahead.
TM: There, again, I am grateful to my Phish connections and contacts. There have been some people that say that I am just doing this because of Phish and that I couldn't do it without my Phish connections. I have heard that. To me, that isn't a reason not to try.
mt: It isn't like you haven't been there from Day One anyway.
TM: Yeah, I have put in some time.
mt: You have paid your dues.
TM: If they like it, they like it.
mt: So you have this label that you started, Furry Thugs, which you started as an avenue for Amfibian and the group The Saras. You have been a ghostwriter, a manager for bands, a frontman, and now you are a player and collaborator. How do those things fall in line with each other, and how does knowledge from one aspect of music influence how you react in another?
TM: Starting with being a ghostwriter, I realized that I wasn't really comfortable being on stage. I really liked being in the shadows. That was a big realization that I had about my personality and myself. I was happy being out in the audience watching; watching my words, watching people sing my words, and being part of the audience instead of being the performer. Gradually, I would take the stage for a guest appearance here and there. The high from doing something like that was electric; it would last for a week. I mean, when I went on the first time, it was Madison Square Garden, New Year's of 1995, in front 18,000 people, and they were all cheering and shrieking. I started thinking that maybe the limelight is what I am looking for. I think that realization that I can do stage stuff was one stage in my evolution that contributed to Amfibian. I had played in other bands whose names only made it to the covers of cassette tapes, never a marquee or onto a stage. Amfibian was the first band to get to that point, but the mistake I made at first is that I was the front man. I learned that that was one of the reasons that I wasn't happy with the direction of early Amfibian. Then, I was the main dude. I did all the singing, writing, and so forth, but this time around, I have Chris Harford. He allows me to be in the shadows. He takes 60 percent of the singing duties away from me. He is definitely a singer and a performer, where I am not a pro like he is. Musically, he is the bandleader, and that took pressure off of me. I like that much better. As a manager, I am still new at it. But my friend Andy manages Amfibian, and he has taken the role of managing other acts on our label. I am fine with that.
mt: Do you have a family?
TM: Yes, a wife and two kids.
mt: I only have a girlfriend, and when I go do band things, she is very supportive because she understands that I am working toward a goal. In your case, do you find time balancing home life, Phish life, Amfibian life, and, on top of that, your job programming for an insurance company?
TM: When I was just writing for Phish, I could do that in my free time and that took no time away from my family. But, going on tour with Phish was always like an "uh-oh" thing to explain, because it could technically be viewed as not being work. Working with Phish has eclipsed the salary for my job for the past six years, but it has still never been viewed as work by my wife, because it is so fun. I have always made the distinction that I am going away but I am still working. Yes, it is fun, but that is just because I enjoy my job. Now that I have a band, that is a whole different thing in terms of time. We have to rehearse, and go on tours. It's tough.
mt: I read somewhere in a previous interview that you revise a great deal when you write. When you get to the finished product, how satisfied are you with it?
TM: That was another learning process for me. Remember I told you about how, when Phish would get reviewed initially, that they received a lot of criticism for their lyrics. That was kind of a result of not editing and not refining the lyrics. I would just spew out stuff and hand Trey a handful of things, where maybe one out of ten would be strong. That was just in my naïve manner that we worked in back then, because we weren't together doing the songs. That was for the first two albums. It was my naïve assumption that Trey would pick the best ones, but he often times liked the more off-kilter ones, for sound mainly rather than concepts. The reviewers really shredded that s**t.
mt: So, you took that to heart?
TM: Kind of. It really made me realize that, if I knew deep down inside only one out of ten was okay, then why not just give him that one strong one. That is all I have really done different. Because I am on the computer, if I think of a change, it is really easy to go back and make it. In general, I just spew out one thought on paper, then I go back and twist it and tweak it to make it a little better. For the most part, I have a solid one or two lines that I know are going to be the foundation for a song.
mt: Lastly, for people striving to make a living in this shady music business, what are some words of wisdom that you may personally go by that get you through the hard times where you may face criticism, doubt, or frustration? What keeps you doing what you do?
TM: The sheer joy of creating a song keeps me going, and the act of collaboration (not to get too mushy)—to go back to your theory of falling in love—is what keeps it alive. Aside from very few other activities, this [making music] is one of the coolest things you can do with another person [laughing]. If I went back to the times of my life when I actually laughed, I would say that ninety percent of it came during song writing. It has given me an incredible happiness in my life. So, I keep trying time and again to find and live that happiness which comes from pulling a song from nowhere and creating it.
Interview and article by Damani
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