Phish leader busted on drugs & driving raps
Phish singer-guitarist Trey Anastasio was arrested in upstate New York last week on drugs and driving charges. Anastasio was pulled over at about 3:30 a.m. ET on Friday (December 15th) after he was unable to keep his vehicle in its lane. He failed a sobriety test administered by a police officer on the scene in Whitehall, New York, and was found to be under the influence of a narcotic substance, according to the Times Union newspaper in Albany, New York.
Anastasio was driving with a suspended license, and a search of the vehicle turned up prescription medications including the heavy-duty painkillers hydrocodone and Percocet, and the anti-anxiety drug Xanax, all of which were made out to another person. He was arrested and charged under his given name -- Ernest Anastasio --with DWI-Drugs, third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, after which he was released from custody and given appearance tickets for a later date.
There's been no comment from Anastasio since his arrest. But just over a year ago, he told the Times Union that drugs were a major reason for Phish breaking up after their summer 2004 tour. He said, "I thought it went without saying how deep into our scene hard drugs had gone... We got through the '80s and '90s without encountering hard drugs, which is pretty miraculous considering what those eras were like, and it is a testament to the guys in the band, in how intent we were from keeping those type of drugs away. Once we let our guard down around 1998, the scene started to eat itself and there was a massive loss of perspective... we were getting unhealthy and tired." He added that things were even worse in 2002, when the group reformed after a two-year hiatus, though he declined to say who was doing what.
Anastasio is supposed to close out the year with a handful of dates beginning December 27th in Washington, D.C. The shows are in support of his newest release, a solo album titled Bar 17.
Anastasio was driving with a suspended license, and a search of the vehicle turned up prescription medications including the heavy-duty painkillers hydrocodone and Percocet, and the anti-anxiety drug Xanax, all of which were made out to another person. He was arrested and charged under his given name -- Ernest Anastasio --with DWI-Drugs, third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, after which he was released from custody and given appearance tickets for a later date.
There's been no comment from Anastasio since his arrest. But just over a year ago, he told the Times Union that drugs were a major reason for Phish breaking up after their summer 2004 tour. He said, "I thought it went without saying how deep into our scene hard drugs had gone... We got through the '80s and '90s without encountering hard drugs, which is pretty miraculous considering what those eras were like, and it is a testament to the guys in the band, in how intent we were from keeping those type of drugs away. Once we let our guard down around 1998, the scene started to eat itself and there was a massive loss of perspective... we were getting unhealthy and tired." He added that things were even worse in 2002, when the group reformed after a two-year hiatus, though he declined to say who was doing what.
Anastasio is supposed to close out the year with a handful of dates beginning December 27th in Washington, D.C. The shows are in support of his newest release, a solo album titled Bar 17.
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