NYS Music 20​12

Author: Sophia Strange

  • Big Splash, Big Women: Natalie Merchant, Sandra Steingraber, and Judy Hyman to perform in Anti-Fracking concert in Binghamton

    Natalie Merchant is coming to Binghamton for an anti-Fracking concert. She is standing up in support of the anti-hydraulic fracturing movement in New York and she is not alone. Along with her comes one of Ithaca NY’s favorite musical talents The Horse Flies. The concert will also feature the author of Raising Elijah and speaker Sandra Steingraber, who is an outspoken opponent of hydrofracking.

    Natalie Merchant’s music is haunting, magical, when you listen to her music you can travel to a different place, a different time. You cannot put a label on her style and genre! Natalie stated about her latest album Leave you sleep, “I have always loved many different styles of music but had barely scratched the surface of those genres on my own recordings. This time in the studio I really wanted to experiment so I called on some of the most accomplished musicians in Cajun, bluegrass, reggae, chamber, and early music, jazz, and R&B, as well as Balkan, Chinese, and Celtic folk”.

    Natalie has deep roots in NY. She was born in 1963 in Jamestown, New York, where she spent her childhood. In 1981, while attending Jamestown Community College, she started singing for a band called Still Life, which would go on to become 10,000 Maniacs. Throughout her entire career, Merchant has also been dedicated to supporting a wide array of non-profit organizations lending both financial support and raising public awareness. Scenic Hudson, The Center for Constitutional Rights, Riverkeeper, Doctors without Borders, Greenpeace, and The Association to Benefit Children, and The Southern Center for Human Rights are among the groups to which she has been devoted. She was recently appointed by the governor of New York to serve a five-year term as a member of the New York State Council on the Arts. Merchant is donating her performance to help raise money for the anti-fracking effort.

    The Horse Flies with members Judy Hyman, Richie Stearns, Jeff Claus, Taki Masuko, Rick Hansen, and Jay Olsa, will open the show with a guaranteed astounding performance. The Horse Flies have had a long run, since 1981, perfecting their magical, mysterious, haunting, powerful, beautiful, fold rooted rock sound. Hyman and Stearns toured with Natalie Merchant and performed on Merchant’s The House Carpenter’s Daughter and Leave Your Sleep albums. The House Carpenter’s Daughter features Claus’s song, “Sally Ann”.

    Sandra Steingraber is an ecologist, author, and cancer survivor who recently won the Prestigious Heinz Award. Steingraber is donating her entire financial award to the fight against hydrofracking, including covering some of the costs of the concert. Steingraber has spoken at conferences on human health and the environment in the United States and Canada and has been invited to speak at lectures at Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Columbia University, and the Woods Hole Research Center.

    “Fracking is wrong. Fracking is unmitigatable. Sooner or later, steel and concrete disintegrates. Sooner or later, gas wells open portals of contamination between drinking water aquifers and the toxic materials held in the bedrock below. Doing fracking “right” simply means building time bombs with longer fuses. There are no places in New York and no children in New York that we are willing to sacrifice.” –Sandra Steingraber.

    After taking over 20,000 public comments, New York environmental officials are getting ready for the final phase of work on their proposal to allow hydrofracking of natural gas in the state. Major environmental groups hired their own technical experts to review the states proposal. One large problem, they say, is the lack of a plan to dispose of the millions of gallons of wastewater that the drilling will produce. Also missing is an assessment of potential health risks from fracking operations, and of the effects on both humans, especially children, and the environment.

    I recently sent an email to Judy Hyman asking her what you would like to say to the governor of NY. Here is her response.

    “Mr. Cuomo …

    I would like you to imagine the implications of having a high volume-horizontal-slick water-hydrofracturing gas pad 100 feet from your house (the setback indicated in the current version of the sGEIS). Your home. your family, your property, your lifetime of hard work. Please think about all the risks and implications. Is that really how you would want to live?

    I don’t want to live that way either. But if you allow permitting to proceed, my home and my health will become vulnerable.

    The process is not safe. There are accidents, spills, contaminations, both intentional and accidental, everywhere its happening.

    The economic argument doesn’t work either. Industrializing my area will harm our existing, sustainable economy of education, wineries, organic farming, and tourism.

    The patriotic argument has also been disproven as the industry is making plans to ship gas oversees and significant investment dollars in drilling are coming from outside the U.S.

    I hope you’re listening to the people of New York. We’ve been working hard to reach you. The vast majority are opposed to this method of drilling. I’m pleased that New York State is still on moratorium. I hope New York will show the world a better way to grow our economy by investing in conservation and renewables. Please lead us in this direction.”

    Chris Tate of the Finger Lakes Clean Water Initiative says, “Bringing together both Sandra Steingraber and Natalie Merchant, both very powerful, strong women, both mothers wanting to protect their children. And that’s really what this is all about. It’s protecting our clean water, we have a lot of clean water in New York State and we want to keep it that way.”

    The event will take place at The Forum Theatre – 236 Washington Street, Binghamton on March 10th 2012. Showtime is 7 pm. Proceeds from this show will benefit the Finger Lakes Clean Waters Initiative! Tickets to the March 10th event can be purchased at the Forum Theater Box office or through Ticketmaster.

  • Fifth Headliner, Daryl Hall Announced for Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival

    Daryl Hall “Live from Daryl’s House” with Special Guest Keb ‘Mo will perform Thursday June 28 at Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre. Hall will join previously announced Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival headliners Norah Jones, Diana Krall, and Steve Martin, whose concerts have already sold out, and Zappa Dweezil Plays Zappa.  A second show for Steve Martin was added last week. The pre-festival show featuring Bonnie Raitt on May 27, has also sold out.  The “Club Pass” has also sold out, earlier than ever before in the Festival’s history. The 11th edition of the XRIJF is June 22-30.

    “Securing todays leading young artists and veteran headliners for our Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre series each year brings about a challenge of timing and serendipity. This year we’ve been extremely fortunate. We are ecstatic to announce another Kodak Hall show during the festival with perhaps one of the greatest selling artists of our generation in Daryl Hall,” says John Nugent, the festival Artistic Director.

    Tickets will go on sale Friday February 17 at 10 a.m. at http://rochesterjazz.com. Tickets will also be on sale at the at the Kodak Hall Oval Lobby Box Office, located at the corner of Gibbs and Main Streets in Rochester, for one day only on February 17 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. The fastest and easiest way to order tickets is online at http://rochesterjazz.com with the festival’s new e-ticketing system where festival patrons can pick their own seats. Customers who don’t have computer access may order by calling 585-454-2060.

  • An Inner View: Mikaela Davis

    An Inner View: Mikaela Davis

    Mikaela Davis is a great example of the diverse musical artistry that is electrifying the Flower City. She embodies originality, vision, and prolific virtuosity as a singer and player. Her songwriting abilities mixed with the mastery of the harp, have put her in a position to make highly creative music of a new and exciting ilk. I caught up with Mikaela recently to talk about her new record, a recently televised concert on WXXI, and all the things that the future holds.

    Mikaela DavisErik: How did you get started with your musical education, and when did you first start writing songs?

    Mikaela: Ever since I was little I knew I would be going to school for music. I decided to go to school for the harp, auditioned at schools, and ended up at the Crane School of Music in Potsdam for harp performance! I started writing songs when I was 12 for piano and voice. This was a way for me to let out stress, sadness, happiness, or whatever other emotions I felt! I put on two concerts of all original songs in 7th and 8th grade. I took a break from writing music, then started up again in late high school, deciding to start writing on the harp instead of the piano.

    Erik: What escalated the decision to take on the harp, an instrument that takes incredible patience to master?

    Mikaela: Actually, the harp is the instrument I started off with. In 3rd grade, I started up the harp and the piano at the same time. They offered harp in my school district (Penfield), so every school owns a harp or two. I wanted to learn how to play the harp so I could practice under the skylight in my living room and let my Oma (grandma) hear me. She passed away a year before I started taking harp lessons, and I was very close with her growing up.

    Erik: Who are your biggest influences overall, and what influences play out most in your approach to the writing process?

    Mikaela: My biggest influence is Sufjan Stevens, although I’m not sure if his writing style is reflected in mine. I’m also a big fan of Elliott Smith, The Beatles, The Remains, T.Rex, and so much more!!

    Erik: The Bug Jar seems to be your performance home in the Rochester market? Obviously, you do play other venues here, but what is most appealing about most of your shows taking place within that uniquely great venue?

    Mikaela: I really love playing at The Bug Jar. Mostly because I get to play with other amazing bands! I just recently played a show with My Brightest Diamond and it was such a great experience. There is a different crowd every time I perform, which means new fans!

    Erik: How is it juggling the performance and writing schedule with the demands of musical curriculum at a school like Crane?

    Mikaela: During school, I usually hang low with gigs and writing. I have a lot of work to do during the semester, as well as arranging one harp ensemble piece every semester! It’s a lot of fun, and can be tiring at times, but driving home for a weekend gig or recording session is always worth it.

    Erik: How is the whole recording process going over at Red Booth? Do you have a release date planned for the album, and what can we expect from the piece in general.

    Mikaela: Alex Patrick (keys and guitar), Alex Cote (drums and percussion) and I recorded most everything over the summer. We’ve been adding things here and there, and recorded a newer song, I’m Just Tryin’ To Be Your Friend, over Thanksgiving break. Red Booth Studios is great, such a warm environment. I always looked forward to going in and getting to hang out with Brian Moore (the engineer and owner). He’s a great guy and really knows what he is doing; I trust him 100%!

    Erik: I was wondering if you could tell me a little about your backing musicians, and their backgrounds?

    Mikaela: Alex Patrick plays the keyboard and guitar in my band. He is a jazz guitar performance major at the Eastman School of Music. Alex Cote plays the drums and percussion and attends SUNY Purchase for jazz drumset performance. We all went to high school together and graduated the same year. The band actually came together by accident. I used to play by myself. Alex Cote wrote some bell parts to my songs, and slowly started adding drums to more performances. The three of us hang out all the time, so eventually Alex Patrick started writing guitar and keyboard parts to each song. They add so much to the sound!

    Erik: How exciting was it, getting the opportunity to do OnStage for WXXI? Great performance by the way. How has the response been from friends and fans?

    Mikaela: Such a great experience! It was so different being filmed by such large cameras, rolling around as we were playing… kind of scary! The response has been great! My family is always so supportive of me which I am so grateful for. I definitely have some new fans from the experience too which is great.

    Erik: Do you have any plans to take the show on the road when things settle down in your life? Any touring plans imminent?

    Mikaela: I want to go on tour this summer after the CD is released to get the word out, and travel to some cool cities. I’m honestly not sure what I want to do in the future, but if I could live off of touring and writing music for a little while, that would be the dream.

    Erik: I ask this of many! Rochester is a highly diverse musical scene that is starting to get the attention it deserves on a national level. What do you think of your “home city,” and the great things that are taking place at this time.

    Mikaela: I have always loved Rochester. I can think of so many amazing people and bands that come from this city. I feel that Rochester will become more alive. There is definitely a lot of music cooking up in here; it just needs to get out into the world.

    Stay tuned for more Mikaela news in the near future. We intend to announce more information on the release of her record as it becomes available. Also, catch her when she plays shows in Upstate. You will be mesmerized by what Mikaela and her band are bringing to the table.

  • Get Down at The Uptown Theatre in Utica!

    Get Down at The Uptown Theatre in Utica!

    Utica NY has a new live music venue! The Uptown Theatre, located at 2014 Genesee Street, will be hosting live music events in 2012.

    The Uptown Theatre Utica

    After a sellout crowd witnessed Rusted Root perform on Oct 24, 2011, the groundwork was laid, and the result is more national and regional live music will be coming through Utica all year long!

    Spearheaded by Tonic Productions (Joe Sweet of Utica Music Fest, Tom Morreale of Capt. Trips fame), the Uptown has scheduled some great shows for 2012.

    Sat Feb 4th : Donna The Buffalo (Cajun, Roots, Folk, Reggae, and Country

    Sat Feb 11th : Childhood’s End (Pink Floyd tribute)

    Sat March 17th : Enter The Haggis (Roots Rock/Indie/Folk

    more shows to be announced – including a return trip by Rusted Root!

    stay tuned —> http://tonic-productions.com/

  • An Inner View with Wil McKenna of RootsCollider

    RootsCollider is the embodiment of a band that refuses to rest on it’s laurels. With the release of their recent EP, Supernova, the band is taking strides towards pushing their wares to the next level of the game! In a recent chat with Wil McKenna, I was able to delve deeper into all things Collider, and see what the band has in store for the immediate future.

    Erik: Tell me about the recording process with your recent release, Supernova?

    Wil: Well Erik, this time around was like greeting an old friend and picking up the conversation where you last left it. It literally felt like we were all coming back home to the Bunker Studios in Williamsburg/Brooklyn, NY. We recorded everything again on reel to reel analogue tape and then transferred the recordings to the programs within the computer afterwards.

    Erik: How did things differ with the recording of this album, when compared to the first time around?

    Wil: This was our second recording experience at Bunker with John Davis (of Jojo Mayer’s Nerve) at the helm. The main difference from our first recording “EP” was that we knew each other by now, the four of us and John. This connection made for a quicker more efficient process within pre and post production. Basically it was like going to work. Our collaborative ideas mesh completely in regards to the aesthetics of song structure, and John has a wide sonic palette to choose from in regards to approaches on what effects should be on certain layers of melodic phrasing and passages. It should be noted that the wide range of analogue effects pedals at Bunker is nothing short of champion status.

    Erik: How was the overall experience?

    Wil: How was the overall experience? We love Nerve and John so much. Getting to record in your favorite international touring band’s studio is quite an honor for us. We’ll be headed back there in February 2012 to record our next record. We’re also very fortunate to have a relative of the band (Dexter’s cousin Desmond) with a house in Queens to stay at during our sessions down there, so everything is quite comfortable. Plus we also have multiple friends stopping by the studio while we’re recording offering there critiques of the music too which is insightful when your ears have been listening to the same songs over and over again for hours on end. Inside Bunker itself there’s a great “smokers” lounge, a shower, a kitchen, couches to crash on and the internet, so we really are coming home in a sense with all the creature comforts. We will also be debuting at Desmond’s Tavern in NYC after our first day/night of recording, as to capitalize on our new and old friends down there, and actualizing the experience to its fullest capacity.

    Erik: I understand the band has been in contact with a couple of different management firms?

    Wil: We have one very popular booking agency on the West Coast that is slightly interested in us right now, and another strong jam band booking agency from the South that may sign us in March of 2012. We just received word from a smaller less-known agency in Chicago, IL as well. All three have expressed slight to moderate interest. Only time will tell. As for now, RootsCollider remains completely In-House in all endeavors of Booking, Promotions, and Management. I realized a long time ago that no one would care about us more than us.

    Erik: What do you have coming up with shows in new markets?

    Wil: 2012 will see us branching out to Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Chicago and Asheville primarily. We look forward to returning to all of our favorite cities and venues in NY state as well. And we are eager to entertain at new festivals and return to previous ones for the summer.

    Erik: Tell me about the many successes within the year that have been of major significance?

    Wil: In 2011 we were able to get a van and a trailer, which is super huge in regards to getting your product out to different markets in an economical fashion. We also received small acknowledgement from Relix Magazine which was exciting. One of our greatest achievements as a band though was getting on the same page artistically and musically. The music has to be paramount to everything else, for it’s the very thing that brings you everywhere in regards to it’s exposure. Although we are primarily instrumental, we continue to pack out venues in cities where we are popular. Our music is appearing to take on life of it’s own at certain shows via The Grateful Dead and Phish philosophy. Where we are popular, in cities like Rochester and Buffalo NY, a shakedown is starting to develop outside the venue. A community is starting to form. Our fans have become known as “Colliders.” We owe a great deal of our hometown success to our friends Chris Collins and Patrick Gaffney of RIPROC who have supported, nurtured, and helped us become what we are today in Rochester. We are forever indebted.

    Erik: Things seem to be going well in the “gearing up” department. I was wondering if you could elaborate on the new direction in approach?

    Wil: We spent so long making sure our songs were air tight in the hard rock fashion for performance that we negated some of our improvisational talent and roots. Now that we have a powerful launch pad and landing pad for these creative structures, we are starting to improvise again!!! Which is bringing the sound to a whole new level!!!

    Erik: You have played some really good shows this year, with some highly recognized bands. Tell me about the experiences, and which ones were your favorites?

    Wil: We’ve been blessed to share the stage with some of our personally favorite musicians and bands. In 2011, we supported internationally known bands such as: Dub Trio (Matisyahu’s band), Conspirator (members of the Disco Biscuits, Raq, New Deal, and Lotus), BioDiesel (Johnny Rabb’s band w/ Clay Parnell of Brother’s Past), Telepath (members of Archnemesis), Rubblebucket, and Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad to name a few. We’ve also supported internationally known DJ’s such as: Kill the Noise (featured on Korn’s new record with Skrillex), DieselBoy, and 12th Planet.

    Erik: Tell me a little about this all star record you are going to be showing up on here?

    Wil: My old friend and bandmate Jon Petronzio (Keyboardist) from John Brown’s Body is currently recording an ALL STAR super reggae/funk record in Ithaca, NY and Boston, MA. that will include some of your readers favorite musicians from: Soulive, Lettuce, John Brown’s Body, Sim Redmond Band, RootsCollider, Mosaic Foundation, the Big Mean Sound Machine, and etc…the list goes on. It’s an honor to be a part of this record. I only hope we can get one show together where we perform the record in its entirety. It would be great at the State Theater or something like that in Ithaca. Hopefully, we can get everyone on the record, on stage, to kill it for the crowd like a giant musical rotating cast of auditory devastation. A melodic octopus of friends if you will.

    Erik: You have any more recording plans for the next year?

    Wil: February 2012 is the new 4 track punisher entitled: “Phoenix”.

    Erik: What are your other plans?

    Wil: As a band we will continue writing, recording, and touring, in our pursuit to change the face of rock music for the better. Personally, I maintain the belief that original music is relevant to all social environments by the implementation of a new direction for an untapped source of vibration. I continue to work on sonic innovations with the guitar and bass, having customized my Fender Stratocaster into a lethal dub weapon. I currently teach at the Music Education Centers in Webster, NY and the Rochester Academy of Music in Brighton, NY and I am attending Nazareth College in Rochester, NY to finish my Bachelor’s Degree in Classical Guitar Performance.

    Erik: Tell me about the band lineage of your past, and about the scene you have evolved from?

    Wil: My first musical memories are of my Mother singing Elvis, the Beatles, and the Beach Boys to me. I can remember wanting a saxophone really really bad in the 3rd grade, but unfortunately my family couldn’t afford it. I did, however have my voice, which luckily for me was free. I sang in chorus all throughout elementary, junior, and high school. In junior high I started playing instruments when I was about 13 years old. I come from the age old tradition of having friends pass down the knowledge of music by playing together. I started on electric bass and gravitated to guitar shortly thereafter. After learning the fundamentals from my friends, I sought out guitar teachers in the Rochester, NY area. In 2004 I graduated from the Monroe Community College Music Program with an Associates Degree in Music Performance with Guitar as my Major. I was First Chair in the program’s Guitar Ensemble for three out of the four semesters that I was there. From 2000 until 2006, I founded and was part of a successful touring original act called; “Mountain Mojo Authority”. It is during this period of my life that I was introduced to reggae music. Throughout the 6 years I was in this band, I learned to move people in the here and now by combining the humble roots and analogue sounds of the past, with the intensity of contemporary drum and bass. After “Mountain Mojo Authority” disbanded some of the members involved joined John Browns Body: (Matt Goodwin, Alex Toth, Kal Traver) while others joined the Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad: (Aaron Lipp, James Searl, Buddy Honeycutt) RubbleBucket (Alex Toth, Kal Traver), ThunderBody (Jerimiah Pacheco) and J-san and the Analogue Sons (Wil McKenna). During the time span from 2006 until 2007, I took a musical sabbatical in which I learned how to play Piano and Drums as secondary instruments to my primaries being Guitar and Bass. In the late summer of 2007 I started venturing to Ithaca, NY and found more like minded musicians such as: David “Solid” Gould, Lee Hamilton, Jsan Spaker, and Kevin Kinsella, all former JBB alumni. At this point I joined the “Millionaires of Love,” which was a 10 piece reggae/ska orchestra masterminded by David “Solid” Gould. I also played guitar for a time in David Gould’s current re-vitalized original group: Adonai and I, now called DSG & the Temple Rockers. In the fall of 2007 I was invited to join the national reggae/soul act called J-san and the Analogue Sons. I remained with the group until 2009. Upon returning to Rochester, NY from my extensive Ithacan projects I formed RootsCollider with Jim Grillo. RootsCollider is a project that started on an Abelton program and was a culmination of ideas that I’ve played with for awhile, combining reggae, funk and jungle beats with soul music at first. But since September of 2010 the band has evolved into thee definitive 21st Century “Dry & Heavy Livetronica DubCore” act that continues to push the sonic envelope toward enlightenment. The future fab four of Wil McKenna, Bill Smith, Jimmy Grillo, and Dexter Redic are dedicated to bringing the listener only the freshest cuts of live original punishing Drum & Bass, crushing Dubstep, destructive Electro-Rock, and fresh Future-Funk, with the destructive elements of crucial Dub Reggae. The band’s sole purpose is to collide these roots genres into a single unstoppable aesthetic force, and we are known as one of the last definitive almost completely analogue defenses against the digital 21st Century. RootsCollider has been described as a powerful visceral artistic experience for the mind, body, and soul. The band has quickly become regional favorites for so many and has gained wide recognition by sweeping upstate NY off of its feet as one of the fastest growing live original acts from Rochester, NY.

    Erik: What are your overall thoughts on the Rochester scene, and what makes it so great?

    Wil: Rochester, NY is the next musical renaissance the world has been waiting for. We saw the first movement in the 1960’s in San Francisco. The next movement came in the 1990’s in Seattle. And now again we see it in Rochester, NY in the 2010’s. All three cities had amazing original bands touring outside of it’s own barriers, and all the bands were friends and collaborated on each others art. There is no other city in America that has this thing going on like what we do in ROC. We are ambassadors to the world of our city. We proudly display our hometown bands T-shirts while we rock on stages in other cities. All the stickers on my guitar case are that of all the other touring bands from Rochester. We owe this cross collaboration now to Chris “Hollywood” English from AudioInflux. He is the reason why Rochester, NY’s music scene is blossoming right now. He hosts the Pro Jam every other Monday at Abiline’s. Chris represents no ego, no bullshit, no “I’m too cool for you to jam with me vibe.” Believe me, there are some that still do exhibit this. Chris plays with all players, within all genres, and with all skill levels. It is this kind of integrity, compassion, and love for the art that humbles the rest of the flock and levels the playing field in a non-competitive way. Chris unknowingly made a city of original bands that only cared about what they were doing 4 years ago, into a community based on healing people with creating music together today. He made us into a real family.

    http://rootscollidermusic.com/
    http://www.myspace.com/RootsCollider
    http://www.sonicbids.com/RootsCollider
    http://www.youtube.com/user/RootsCollider
    http://www.reverbnation.com/RootsCollider

  • Thunder Body raises the bar with their new release “Wind Blows Harder”

    Thunder Body is holding nothing back folks! Their first full length album is not only good, it has become my album of the year. All of this transpired in the last month of the year! Like in most year end polls, this tends to happen. Never fails after you have already written your list.

    Wind Blows Harder was released on the band’s own Medicine Hi Fi label, and is one of the most ambitious sound scape oriented records that I heard in the last few years. The thing that makes it such an essential piece of music is the fact that it merges the live show experimentalism of the band with the highest capabilities possible within a studio. The effect is a successful attempt to inject the slow dubbed out and floating impact that the live show brings to the table. I am not sure if this was the plan. In either case, it is a picture perfect representation of what Thunder Body is right now! It is a portrait of a band that is at a creative level that most of their peers will find to be elite!

    The opening track of Wind Blows Harder, “Come What May,” is so catchy and bouncy that it truly makes me want to break dance. It is easily one of my favorite tracks on this record, and possibly of the year. Thunder Body gets locked into such transcendent grooves, that the only way for the music to go is out. It is a formula of intuitiveness that seems to be the signature purpose on this track and many other greats here. Another example of this exuberance is captured on a song like Buffalo, where the band gets tight, locked in, and drifting in each passing second. It is an expansion of a sound you may know, but it’s originality is undeniable. Sonically, it is calming and yet trippy at the same time.

    The album is also great from a lyrical standpoint. Some of these songs are fun, and some deliver a message that is spiritual in some way. Thunder Body is great in the examination of universal themes. On “Ancestors,” Matt O’Brien delivers the soulful homage to family lineage with the delivery of, “and we all want to be remembered some day.” Of course, it is about giving respect as he carries on with “ This one’s for ancestor’s spirits. We’re gonna build it up strong so they can hear it.” A lot of the record includes very intelligent observations on life and the human condition. The message is contagious, infectious, and inspirational in one positive swoop.

    Thunder Body has IT! They offer a glowing orb of joy for you, and yet, it is hard to fully explain how they get you to that place. I try my best to put it into words, but it is truly difficult to give it the total justice that it deserves. So I will leave it at this, Wind Blows Harder, is a pivotal moment of time within the Rochester music scene. It essentially sets the bar for how high a band should aim to make themselves the best that they can be. Thunder Body has released a classic, and it I feel it will be recognized as such.

    website: http://thunderbody.com
    facebook: http://www.facebook.com/thunderbody
    available on I-Tunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/wind-blows-harder/id491596820 

  • Three Heads Brewing and Lovin’ Cup Bistro and Brews to co-host Rochester Homegrown

    When Three Heads Brewing (3HB) does anything new, they always throw a huge party for their fans: last year’s Lovin’ cup 3HB Launch Party was an absolute blowout! This year, Three Heads Brewing and Lovin’ cup have decided to go much, much bigger.

    On Saturday, January 14th, 3HB will eagerly launch The Loopy, an Oatmeal Red Ale brewed in celebration of 3HB’s 1 year anniversary. In honor of The Loopy’s release, they recruited their fellow Rochester brewers to throw a bash of monumental proportions – encompassing and celebrating all the things that make Rochester a premier city, thus calling the event Rochester Homegrown!

    Homegrown will be held at Lovin’ Cup, a premier destination for people to enjoy great food, outstanding music and, of course, the finest craft beer. This one time event will feature ALL of Rochester’s “homegrown” Breweries, alongside many of Rochester’s “homegrown” original live bands, eateries, boutiques, social groups, artists, and much, much more!

    Homegrown offers fans the opportunity to try brews from every Rochester Area brewery, including: Three Heads Brewing, Custom Brewcrafters, Rohrbachs, Naked Dove, Roc Brewing, Rogers Beer and Genesee. Each brewery will offer a personalized tasting in between music sets throughout the day. Meet the brewery, try their brew, and experience what makes the Rochester beer scene so amazing.

    Of course, it’s not a Three Heads Brewing beer launch without great live music, and Homegrown is no exception. The event will showcase some of the finest local music acts: Extended Family, The Goods, Friday in America, The Moho Collective , The Filthy McNastys, AudioInflux and RootsCollider! It’s like a beer festival and a music fest, all-in-one.

    And because Homegrown truly celebrates Rochester, we asked some of your favorite local pubs, wineries and eateries to join us! Come enjoy samplings from Fox Run Vineyards, The Owl House, Tap and Mallet, JB Quimby’s, and many more! We will also be showcasing various Rochester artisans and organizations! Homegrown truly highlights the greatest that Rochester has to offer.

    A ticket will give you access to Homegrown: The Loopy Release, beer and food samplings, live musical performances, and access to the restaurant and V.I.P. tent. In addition, each person will receive a 3HB Pint Glass to commemorate the event! Admission is $10.00 at the door or in advance; while they last. You can purchase them at www.ticketweb.com or at Lovin’cup Bistro and Brews. For more information call 585-292-9940 or visit lovincup.com. Lovin’cup will be open for normal food service during the entire event.

    Three Heads opened in December 2010, first distributing to bars and stores from Buffalo to Albany with a primary focus on their hometown of Rochester. They now currently distribute throughout New York State and Massachusetts. Three Heads currently offers 7 beers: The Kind IPA, The Skunk Black IPA, The Blimey English Style Pale Ale, Java Sutra Coffee Porter, Ontario Coast Belgian Pale Ale, Bromigo Smoked Maple Amber, and now The Loopy Oatmeal Red Ale!

    Lovin’ Cup is located on 300 Park Point Drive at the corner of John Street and Jefferson Road in Park Point near Rochester Institute of Technology in Henrietta, N.Y. Lovin’ Cup is a full-service café and music bistro that offers a diverse selection of food, gourmet coffee drinks, micro-brewed beers and fine wines.