Fish Ratings – Burlington, Vermont – 13 January 2020:
Fish Ratings has taken various conforming rating actions on bands with fish or types of fish in their names (BWFITNs) corresponding to recent performances, record releases, touring activity and the underlying musical oeuvre.
Long-term ratings on BWFITNs may be higher than those of their pharmacological enhancement providers as discussed in Fish Ratings’ ‘Psychedelic-Supported Cultural Enterprises and Commercial Entertainment Rating Criteria,’ dated Feb. 15, 2019.
Short-term ratings on alcoholically enhanced bands may be lower than those of their liquidity providers, as discussed in Fish Ratings’ ‘Variable Booze Demand Obligations and Commercial Musicians Issued with External Liquidity Support Rating Criteria,’ dated Jan. 13, 2019.
Ratings have been affirmed on several bands, such as Phish (‘BBB+’; Outlook Stable), whose four-date New Year’s run at Madison Square Garden, culminating in their thirteenth New Year’s Eve concert at the arena, reflected stable performance and healthy coverage levels. Phish benefits from a diverse pool of genres and a stable lineup that has been touring consistently since the band’s reunion in 2009.
Eels has been upgraded to ‘BB+’ from ‘BB’ and their Outlook has been revised to Positive from Stable following the successful integration of Little Joe into the lineup on drums since he replaced Knuckles in 2018.
Fish Ratings has downgraded Reel Big Fish to ‘B’ from ‘B+’. The Outlook is Negative. The downgrade follows a review that was initiated when trombonist and organist Billy Kottage announced on his Instagram account that he had quit the band. The band’s output is characterized by high homogeneity, with a concentration of reperforming songs dating from the mid-1990s that carry substantial risk of being forgotten, in Fish Ratings’ view. Reel Big Fish has less than 1 million monthly listeners on Spotify, a key metric, compared with more than 3 million for Blue Öyster Cult (Unrated).
SELECTED RATING ACTIONS
| Band | Action | Old Rating | New Rating | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phish | Affirmed | ‘BBB+’ | ‘BBB+’ | Stable |
| Eels | Upgraded | ‘BB’ | ‘BB+’ | Positive |
| Reel Big Fish | Downgraded | ‘B+’ | ‘B’ | Negative |
| Great White | Affirmed | ‘CCC’ | ‘CCC’ | Stable |
| Hootie & the Blowfish | Upgraded | ‘CCC+’ | ‘B-‘ | Positive |
| Hot Tuna | Affirmed | ‘BB+’ | ‘BB+’ | Stable |
| Les Claypool and the Holy Mackerel | Ratings Withdrawn | ‘BB-‘ | Unrated | N/A |
Photo by by Christoph Holger CC BY-SA 3.0
Fish Ratings 