Sphere Recap #5: Guarded & Regarded w/ Craig Deutsch

In this encore Vegas recap, we sit down with Craig “Crew Captain” Deutsch for a wide‑ranging, funny, and heartfelt debrief of our Sphere night and the surrounding Phish/Bitcoin overlap. From setlist construction and the Sloth/Sally debate to kaleidoscopic visuals, car‑wash haptics, and that cinematic Squirming Coil sendoff, we parse what worked, what didn’t, and why context across a nine‑show run matters. We also trade first‑show rites of passage, crew dynamics, “meetup magic,” and the art of shepherding newbies through their inaugural Phish experience—all while keeping the energy high and the phones away.

Beyond the music, we get honest about the politics of being an open Phish fan at work, how conference optics bleed into Bitcoin perceptions, and why creativity (and free markets) should be allowed to experiment—from NFTs to ordinals to merch ethics. We muse on Mexico vs. Sphere, outdoor vs. arena, the purity tests that actually helped the scene (bootlegs) and those that don’t (fiat absolutism), plus which band member is likeliest to be a Bitcoiner. We close by plotting a future reunion—maybe MSG, maybe Mexico—and celebrating Craig’s evolution from “guarded” to thoroughly “re‑guarded.”