It's time to play the music. It's time to light the lights.

Colors can trigger emotions, and can also have a significant effect on developing minds.

I still remember my first experience of watching a Pink Floyd laser light show at Hayden Planetarium in Boston all the way back in November 1991.  Reclining in the chair, sitting amongst my friends (Robby, Greg and Hammer) and listening to the songs that I had previous only heard on the stereo in Jason's house.  Combining the audio with the visual, the songs began to take on a different meaning, particularly when I started to think about the lyrics of the ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ song ‘Breathe’: “Long you live and high you fly / And smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry / And all you touch and all you see  / Is all your life will ever be”. 

I can also recall a God Street Wine show at the Bayou in Washington DC in May 1995.  This show took place to support the release of their first major record label album (“$1.99 Romances”).  Signing with Geffen Records seemed to officially mark that the band was “big time”.  However, the only reason I knew something was up is that the lights showering down on stage started to change during their set.  It was so noticeable that the band even commented mid-set that must have “made it” since they could all confirm seeing different colors of wash lights.  At a time in which I was first starting to put my toes in the water of working professionally in the music industry, this sequence initiated the thought in my mind of the different levels of success in the world of touring bands.

Or there is the story my friend Pete recently retold to me about attending the band Lettuce’s show at Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, CO in October 2017.  There could have (most likely) been other things involved, but he will argue with all due respect to Grammy Award winning guitarist Eric Krasno, that he was more fascinated with the light show than the set list.  This is not a knock on the musicians band, but a testament to the thought that venues and artists put into live concerts.  It also speaks to the multiple facets in which people choose to enjoy a concert – again combining the audio and the visual.  And in the same jamband circles that Lettuce earned its reputation, a lot of the same fans will tell you that Chris Kuroda (aka Topher) is the fifth member of Phish. . . .His instrument is the light board.

Thanks for reading.