"Last Friday night, I got together with Mike, Page and Fish to talk openly about the strong feelings I've been having that Phish has run its course and that we should end it now while it's still on a high note," Anastasio said in his message. "Once we started talking, it quickly became apparent that the other guys' feelings, while not all the same as mine, were similar in many ways -- most importantly, that we all love and respect Phish and the Phish audience far too much to stand by and allow it to drag on beyond the point of vibrancy and health. We don't want to become caricatures of ourselves, or worse yet, a nostalgia act."

Anastasio openly discussed Phish's break during a special episode of the Charlie Rose Show on May 26.

Phish formed at the University of Vermont in the fall of 1983. Over the course of its two-decade career, the quartet grew to symbolize the modern jamband movement, growing from college bars to large-scale arenas without the aid of commercial radio and music videos. In October 2000, Phish embarked on a two-year hiatus, choosing to focus on a myriad of solo projects. The group returned to the stage on New Year's 2002, playing to a sold-out crowd at Madison Square Garden. Though its touring schedule slowed, Phish has performed over 40 shows since the end of its hiatus, most recently traveling to Las Vegas, NV for three nights in April.

Dean Budnick is author of The Phishing Manual , one of the first books to explore Phish culture. A longtime fan, Budnick also founded Jambands.com and is currently Senior Editor of Relix magazine.

"While there is certainly quite a bit of fan frustration, ultimately I hope people recognize that this decision also reflects a great respect both for Phish's audience and for its two decades of music," Budnick says. "Improvisational music is fueled by inspiration and if they're not all feeling it then maybe the right thing is to let it go."

"I wasn't shocked by it," says Andy Bernstein, a sports media reporter who founded fan bible The Pharmer's Almanac . "I think that for people who have been seeing the band for a long time, most of us went through a natural progression. Some of us are ready to let go and some of us aren't. But I think we can all agree, the magic we felt isn't always there anymore. I think all of us would be sad to see it continue when there wasn't magic. Still, whenever Phish steps on stage, there is magic. "

Phish's recent concerts have been greeted with mixed responses. Though the band's first post-hiatus performances were among the most coveted tickets in Phish history, few shows since the quartet's return have sold out before start time. Yet, last August, 80,000 fans traveled to the tiny town of Limestone, ME for the IT Festival. One of the band's most successful multi-day campouts, Phish ended its six-set performance with a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Good Times, Bad Times."

"You don't miss your water till your well runs dry, and Phish has been a gusher," says music journalist Richard Gehr, who also edited and arranged The Phish Book. "Never have so few delivered so much smart, funny, and utterly rocking music to so many, and so generously, for so long."

At each of its 2003 shows, Phish dipped into its back catalogue, playing decade-old songs alongside newer material. Undermined , the group's latest release on Elektra (their contract expires after this CD), is scheduled to hit stores on June 15. Phish plans to celebrate the release of the album with a two-night stand at Key Span Park in Brooklyn, NY.

"I can't wait to hear what each of them does next, but I'm especially impressed that they're signing off with the most accomplished album of their ridiculously prolific career," Gehr says. "Talk about leaving 'em wanting more."

Recent interviews seem to suggest that Phish's reunion was at least semi-permanent. In a recent issue of Relix , Anastasio told Anthony De Curtis, "I can't wait to go on tour with Phish now. I wish was it was tomorrow. We were focused on that thing that's bigger than we are. And as long as it stays like that, it will stay worth it."

In his recent message, Anastasio said "By the end of the meeting, we realized that after almost twenty-one years together we were faced with the opportunity to graciously step away in unison, as a group, united in our friendship and our feelings of gratitude. So Coventry will be the final Phish show. We are proud and thrilled that it will be in our home state of Vermont. We're also excited for the June and August shows, our last tour together. For the sake of clarity, I should say that this is not like the hiatus, which was our last attempt to revitalize ourselves. We're done. It's been an amazing and incredible journey. We thank you all for the love and support that you've shown us."

Though a surprise, Phish fans are used to unexpected news. This summer, Phish broke out lauded classics like "Harpua," "Brother," and "Camel Walk" on a quiet evening in Burgettstown, PA.

During Phish's absence, the jamband genre seemed to solidify. Unlike Phish, which inherited the Grateful Dead's road warrior crown, a laundry list of bands stepped up to the plate in October 2000. String Cheese Incident, moe., The Disco Biscuits, and Yonder Mountain String Band are some of the artists who grew during Phish's time off the road.

"I think a lot of bands will benefit from people looking to see music that takes them to a new place," says former Wetlands owner Peter Shapiro, who also serves as Executive Producer of the Jammys. "When Garcia passed in 1995, people had to find new bands to listen to, or new shows to go see. Come fall, people are still going to want to see live music. I think bands like String Cheese and moe. and younger bands like Raq will see a wave of new fans."

Lenny Bloch, program director for the Sirius Satellite radio station JamOn, agrees. "It's sad but it's not the end of them as musicians," Bloch says. "I have no doubt they'll probably jam together again at some point."

For the past twelve years, Phish’s growth has also mirrored the internet’s rapid expansion. Sprouting from a primitive newsgroup, Phish’s online presence is now a comprehensive web of information, covering all facets of the quartet’s fanbase. Since 1999, Paul Glace has seen his Phantasy Tour blossom into one of the web’s most highly trafficked jamband forums. Following Anastasio’s announcement, Phantasy Tour’s message board witnessed an unprecedented number of posts.

“The number of visitors to Phantasy Tour was double the average on May 25th,” Glace says. “I was truly shocked by the announcement, particularly its timing. Like many fans, I have mixed emotions about it.”

One of the first fan-launched web locals, Andy Gadiel’s Phish Page tracked the Vermont quartet’s growth for over a decade. Foreshadowing the waning dedication of many longtime fans, Gadiel ceased publication of his webpage a month before Phish announced their break.

“It was a symbol of my moving on from being a ‘hardcore’ fan that needed to keep up to date with all of the information about the band, as well as re-code it for others to digest,” Gadiel says. “It was just time for me to step away and let others fill my place. Unfortunately, now I guess they won’t really have a chance.”

"A Phish fan is someone who can honestly say their life was touched by the music--that is a truly enduring legacy," Bernstein says. "I always say, if you can create one friendship between two people you have done something great---Phish created millions."

Reporting by Mike Greenhaus