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The Amfibious Tom Marshall
By Matt Iarrobino - miarrobino@foodtv.com

"Marshall's words balance Anastasio's bright compositional yang with dank verbal yin that often urges the music into darker and more emotionally complicated spaces"
-Richard Gehr, The Phish Book

As the full time lyricist for Phish, we have all to come to know Tom Marshall through his words. Think of your favorite Phish song and chances are that Tom wrote it, or had a hand in it. Tom's collaborations with Trey Anastasio began way back before Phish was even conceived. As far back as Golgi Apparatus and Wilson and as recent as Story of the Ghost and Birds of a Feather Tom's compositions have kept us, literally, on the "highway to the great divide".

We've all seen Tom on stage with Phish at one time or another. Most recently, at the Hampton, Virginia show on October 21, Tom joined the band for Chumbawamba's one hit wonder Tubthumping. If you attended the Madison Square Garden show on December 30, you heard Tom and Trey sing an original composition, Grind, which was slated to appear on "Billy Breathes". Now we can see Tom Marshall up-close and personal, in his new band, Amfibian.

Amfibian is Tom Marshall, Matt Kohut, Scott Metzger, Andrew Southern, Peter Cottone, and J.P. Wasicko. Tom and I have been e-mailing each other back and forth for the past couple of weeks, as I conducted my first "computer interview". Here's what we talked about. I mean, typed about.

MI: Tom, many people are excited to see your new band Amfibian. How did the idea for the band first come about?

TM: Actually it came from an aborted Trey/Tom project called Utalk. I'm not saying that Utalk is completely dead, but for the time being, Trey and I won't be in a touring band together. We have other potential plans on the back burner though*Trey is always cooking up something. We've been kicking the Trey/Tom tour idea around for a while. We've gotten close a couple of times. That would be fun, but we have no real idea how we'd do it, or with whom. I'm just glad to be involved in his thinking process now and then. Anyway -- we were going to do some of the Trey/Tom songs that we wrote for Phish, but in our own way - the way we first composed them, often with me on keyboards and singing a bit. Then, for various reasons that include my living in New Jersey and Trey living in Vermont, the band never fully developed. Meanwhile Matt and Pete and I were ready to jam, so Matt had his F-Hole boys join us and I asked my pal Andrew and we became Amfibian.

MI: Tom, I would guess that when most people think of Tom Marshall, they think of the lyricist, not musician. What should people expect when they go to see Amfibian? Or, should we "expect" nothing.

TM: Well, we still play a good number of those songs that Trey and I wrote, Twist, Velvet Sea, Brian & Robert, etc., but we've also been writing a bit as well as covering a wide variety of other bands. I'd say don't expect Phish what ever you do -- that's all.

MI: Will you be playing an instrument and singing? Also, what is the instrumentation of the rest of the band?

TM: I play keyboards and there is an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar a bass and a drummer and a percussionist. Last time I called him a percussionist I think he didn't like it -- but I'm not sure. Maybe he's a drummer too.

MI: I was talking with J.P. from Amfibian, and he told me that members of his other band, F-Hole, comprise Amfibian. Where are the other guys in Amfibian from?

TM: That's him, JP, whom I was talking about. He, Matt on bass and Scott on electric guitar comprise F-Hole. Pete plays drums -- he's a long time pal, and a grade-school classmate of mine and Trey's. Matt also went to Princeton Day School with us but was a year behind. Andrew is the acoustic guitar player -- he also went to PDS, but graduated about 15 years after us.

MI: I have heard the F-Hole CD, and I like it's approach to experimental rock. It reminds me of some of the songs Pink Floyd did in the "Live at Pompeii" video. There's lots of rolling crash cymbals with effect laden guitar, and sometimes, minimalist percussion. Will Amfibian sound similar, with the addition of your vocals? If not, what will the sound be like?

TM: We have that capability, which is nice, but we're also a tightly reigned-in band when need be and can sound folky even I think -- we do the Band's Long Black Veil for example, and I think Rick Danko wouldn't be too shocked with the treatment.

MI: Tom, I know that you are a fan of artists like Ween, The Beatles, and Tom Waits. Do you perform any covers by these folks, in addition to Amfibian originals? Do you cover any Phish tunes?

TM: All of the above. And more. Come check us out!

MI: What about the name Amfibian. Any significance behind it?

TM: Not really!

MI: How often do you and the guys in Amfibian practice?

TM: Once a week, although to get ready for the Middle East and Wetlands, we've managed to squeeze in a couple per week for the past few weeks.

MI: I was reading the entries on your website's guestbook (http://www.amfibian.com). There are entries from people all over the country including Texas, North Carolina, Colorado, and Atlanta, to name a few. Do you have any plans to travel out of the Northeast in the near future?

TM: I think so, although, our plan at the moment is to scale way back on the touring plans and actually record an album of some kind, so when we do tour, we have something to show for it, rather than a bunch of Trey/Tom songs...you know?

MI: Do you have enough material to go into the studio at this time?

TM: No -- we're about halfway there I'd say. We've got several songs that are almost there -- that just need work.

MI: Have you looked at any studios for when you get around to recording?

TM: We have several places that we want to check out -- some people I know through Phish, some Matt knows through his recent F-Hole sessions, etc.

MI: Speaking of recording, did you ever go up and spend time with Phish while they recorded at Bearsville? If so, what was the process like? What was the feeling around the studio and control room?

TM: Yes -- I went there three separate weekends. It was a really laid-back kind of feel. Everyone seemed to be having a great time. Steve Lillywhite was a cool person to meet and hang with, and to watch work. I'd never really been to a serious session like this before, and I thought it would be much more formal in a way I guess -- I was pleasantly surprised.

MI: If you decided to travel with Amfibian, would you consider taking time off of your computer career? Have you thought about the fact that if the band really takes off, you may have to leave the computer job? Or, that you may have three things going at once?

TM: I am always thinking about that!

MI: Tom, someone signed your website's guestbook and commented, "I am excitingly awaiting a chance to see what Tom can do with his own songs after I have been raised on Phish's interpretations." Will this happen? Will you present your words with new music, that you and the rest of Amfibian have created, that is different from the music that Trey has written for those songs?

TM: Although that's a bit sacrilegious, we've done that with one song already. It's a song that I don't think has been played as a Phish song, but I know Trey presented it to them -- I'm not sure if it was played once or twice. I don't want to draw attention to it so I'll just whisper it to you now... For the most part, my feeling is once a song is a song, it's done -- time to move on. Rarely do I look back and say, let's change that. This one just didn't work because of a whole section of lyrics that were cut-and-pasted into the song and crushed the feel.

MI: You mention in The Phish Book that when Trey wrote the music for Sparkle and Horn, it was completely different from what you had envisioned. I can see that happening, but has Trey ever added music to your words that you disapproved of? Or, do you let him make those decisions on his own without question?

TM: I don't think I've ever disapproved -- in fact, I think that's part of why we work well together -- no preconceived notions. They can spoil the spirit of collaboration which, at its best, is unbridled and free.

MI: I understand that in addition to being a songwriter, you are a computer programmer. Does it feel as though you are living two lives having two completely different careers?

TM: Yes -- I often consider one life to be my Phish-life, and everything else is part of my other life -- the unnamed "life" part of my life. The Phish life is a rare treat I try to find myself in as much as I can -- but when I pop back into my other reality, I'm glad I'm not totally immersed in the Phish side. The touring aspect is fun if you can do it on your own terms.

MI: If you had to choose one or the other, which would it be and why?

TM: I'm pleased at the way things have turned out -- of course the draw is to leave everything else behind, and it puts pressure on me and those around me, but I've lived this way for a long time now and for the most part it's working. I'm pulled in several directions by my desires, by practicality, and sometimes I feel like maybe I'm missing an obvious signal to change because I'm distracted -- like the "walk sign" has been blinking and I'm just standing on the curb. It will all work out -- now I'm adding Amfibian to the mix -- what changes will that bring? Will it create waves or cancel them?

MI: Have you ever considered being a lyricist as your "full time" career?

TM: In many ways I feel I'm close to wrapping up my computer career, but like I said, I'm hesitant to just jump for many reasons -- perhaps I could alter the computer side of my life slightly -- to doing something more involved with music for example. I'd entertain a solution like that.

MI: What kind of ideas do you have?

TM: Not really any specific ones. I wouldn't mind learning how to use some of the amazing software like some of the add-ons to Pro Tools, as well as Pro-Tools itself. I've seen some of it in use and I thought -- "cool, now that's a fun way to use a computer!". I would love to work with someone who's doing that kind of stuff just to learn it myself.

MI: Would you consider getting into running music websites. For example, ones that offer streaming music?

TM: I like some websites, and I like the way that stereos and TV are merging into the PC, but I think working on that kind of stuff would be too dry for me - I want to be using the tool on the computer, rather than writing the tool for someone else to use.

MI: Tom, In The Phish Book, you say that you "get a lot of songwriting done when you should be working". Having a day job, how do you find time to write?

TM: Part of that was true -- at my job at AT&T for instance, our whole group of 60 people didn't have any work for several months. I wrote a lot of poetry -- using the term loosely.

MI: At the Phish show on Dec. 30, Trey mentioned that you wrote Grind on the Cayman Island trip. Do you guys always go somewhere remote to write, whether it is the Caymans, or the Vermont woods?

TM: Yes -- our new writing method is to go to a secluded place and just do nothing but write. It started at the Cayman Islands, but that was also a diving trip -- we got more serious as we went along and just rented farmhouses in Vermont which Paul and Pete from Phish would turn into a studio for us. They vanish and Trey and I then just hang out and record. It's pretty productive.

MI: How elaborate do they make these farmhouse studios? Is it 24 track digital or few DAT or cassette machines?

TM: No -- eight or sixteen track at the most. One or two DA-88s. We liked keeping it easy, and similar to the multitracking that we've done our whole lives. Back then it was a simple arrangement because that's all we could afford -- now it's simple so we can focus on the music.

MI: Where else have you traveled with Trey, or alone, to write.

TM: The Caymans, Vermont and New Jersey so far.

MI: Do you consider your musical relationship with Trey as a "team", like Elton John and Bernie Taupin or Robert Hunter and Jerry Garcia?

TM: I guess so -- although I don't think that was the intent. The captain and the kid -- I guess I'm the kid, huh?

MI: What songwriters do you respect?

TM: Oh boy...I grew up on early Genesis, so I'd say Peter Gabriel and that whole flock: Eno, Fripp, etc. My favorite songwriting teams of course would include Page/Plant, Lennon/McCartney, Jagger/Richards, Hunter/Garcia. New stuff...I like Pavement right now. I could go on...

MI: Where do many of your ideas come from? Do they ever come from dreams?

TM: Yes! Although I wish I was disciplined enough to actually write my first thoughts down in the morning. There's probably a gold mine of ideas in that method. I usually hear or read something that sticks in my head and eventually becomes one or two lines of a poem. Then I write it down and compose the rest around it. I have learned my lesson there though -- I force myself out of bed when I have something good looping in my head. I too have lost a lot of cool ideas by simply going to sleep on them.

MI: Have you ever experienced lucid dreaming? Do you try?

TM: I think I had a lucid wet dream once and decided it wasn't for me.

MI: Tom, what about basketball. Can you fake the funk on a nasty dunk?

TM: Not close...although I'm all right at volleyball and tennis...but I can't dunk in those sports either unfortunately.

MI: Tom, two words: Chumbawamba - Tubthumping!!

TM: Ah...it's all coming back to me...

MI: Do you get nervous walking on stage in places like Hampton Coliseum and Madison Square Garden?

TM: Very! Although, the wait is the worst. Once I step up to the mic, I'm feeling good. Then the rush starts and it becomes addictive -- I don't want to leave. The cheering and the smiles from the audience are intense! The buzz lasts for a long time afterwards...

MI: What has been your favorite time on stage with Phish?

TM: Probably Tubthumping -- I finally felt "at home" up there. It was really fun -- the experience keeps getting better for me.

MI: Weren't those Hampton shows amazing! I went both nights and it was one of my best Phish show experiences. It's right up there with the Lake Placid run in 1995. What is it about Hampton Coliseum that makes for such epic Phish shows?

TM: I'm not good at analyzing arenas or anything like that, but you're right -- Hampton and the Garden just ooze rock somehow.

MI: What other hobbies do you have?

TM: Amfibian is my hobby right now. It's funny -- can something you pursue as a career be considered a hobby? Writing used to be a hobby... Now I need a hobby I guess.

MI: What has been the most rewarding thing about songwriting for you?

TM: The money! No...let me think... I'd do it for free so it can't be the money, can it? I guess now that Phish has gotten huge, there are certain things that come along with that which are just so enjoyable, cool tours, trips to Europe, etc. But I think your question addresses songwriting in general...well, in my experience, it's really the collaboration that I've enjoyed my whole life. Rarely have I written a song by myself. It's just such a cool way of sharing energy and creating something.

MI: Well, how does it feel when a Phish album is released, and you hear one of your tunes being played through a stereo, and even sometimes, the radio?

TM: First I write something. Then it's turned into a song. Then sometimes it makes it onto a Phish disc. Then, rarely, it may be played on the radio. It's funny how many tests it has to pass before I hear it on the radio - so when I do hear it I kind of marvel at that -- plus the probability of my listening at the right time, etc.

MI: For the record, what was the first song you ever wrote for Phish?

TM: Makisupa Policeman I think. Then McGrupp. Then Wilson. Then the Antelope words...I think it goes like that.

MI: What songs are you most proud of?

TM: It's always the most recent thing I wrote I guess -- it's fun being excited about what I'm currently doing rather than writing a song and then thinking, "hmmm...not really as good as Chalk Dust, huh?" I really love this new song Amfibian is doing called Wouldn't Miss, even though I only had a tiny part in writing it.

MI: When was it that you first discovered your talent for songwriting?

TM: I'm still hoping to discover it.

Check out the Amfibian website at http://www.amfibian.com. In the near future, catch Amfibian at......

1/15 - Middle East, Cambridge, MA
1/16 - Wetlands, New York, NY
1/30 - Higher Ground, Winooski, VT

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Matt Iarrobino lives in New York and works in the tv/film industry and at The Wetlands Preserve.