Oregon State University has announced plans to host the first peer-reviewed academic conference devoted to the music and fan culture of Phish. The conference, dubbed “Phish Studies: An Interdisciplinary Conference On The Band, Its Music & Its Fans,” will take place from May 17th through 19th at the university’s campus in Corvallis, OR.

OSU hopes to bring scholars together from diverse academic disciplines while welcoming a wide range of methodological and theoretical approaches to the sonic, narrative, performative, visual, and cultural worlds of Phish, including but not limited to:

Music and Lyrics: compositional practice; improvisational strategies; band mythologies, including Gamehendge; questions of genre; historiography

Elements of Live Performance: cover songs; concert lighting; venues; fan space and place

Fan Culture: fan communities (virtual, face-to-face); fan art; parking lots; tape trading; issues of race, gender, religion, sexuality, disability; Activism; Subcultural identities; Fan mythologies

Business: business practices; place within music industry; tape trading; early adoption of the internet; media framing of Phish; influence on American music festival culture; influence on the jam band genre

Quantitative Analysis: analyses of setlists, fan show ratings, tour itineraries

Prospective participants of the upcoming conference are asked to submit abstracts of 200–500 words for either individual 20-minute papers or 90-minute panel proposals featuring a minimum of three presenters. Read OSU’s statement on the submission process below:

Please submit abstracts of 250-500 words for either (a) individual 20-minute papers or (b) 90-minute panel proposals (three presenters minimum). Complete panel proposals should include an abstract for each panelist’s contribution as well as a 250-word (max.) justification for the panel. We encourage proposals from scholars at any stage of their career, including graduate students as well as scholars outside of academia. Abstracts should specify the presenter’s methodological and theoretical approach, summarize conclusions, and specify the broader academic implications of the research. Abstracts are due no later than January 15, 2019.

For more information on Oregon State University’s upcoming Phish academic conference, head to the event page here.