NYS Music 20​13

Author: NYS Music Staff

  • Albany artists get together to Rock for Recovery in Newtown, raise over $4,000

    When Matt McWatters came up with the idea of doing a benefit concert  he did the right thing by enlisting the help of area promoter Greg Bell.  Within a week, the Who’s Who of the Capital Region music scene were signing up to donate their time and talents to the cause.  More bands wanted to play then there was stage time, so the list had to be narrowed down to twelve acts.  Those twelve were recognizable names, even to the casual local live music aficionado, for Rock for Recovery in Newtown.

    Friday night’s show included Way Down, Skunk Hostage, Funky Jukebox Brigade, Conehead Buddha, Dr. Jah & the Love Prophets and Timbre Coup.  Saturday night’s show was no less impressive with The Hearing Aides, Sean Rowe, Matt and the Bad Ideas, Super 400, Erin Harkes and Black Mountain Symphony w/special guests from the Ameros and 7th Squeeze.   was there Friday night to hear the amazing line up.

    Way Down, with a little help from Dirty Paris, had the hard job of going first, but their musical talents and jazz and rock influences shone through during there set that ended with a dynamic interpretation of Jimi Hendrix’s “Manic Depression” that had everyone moving.  Skunk Hostage played second and were met by a growing crowd that was eager for their fresh blend of progressive, punk and rock.  Tony Califano (bass/vocals) and Justin Fuld (vocals/guitar) mixed it up a bit and in addition to looking like brothers (according to at least one person) they played off each others musical strengths well.The next band, The Lucky Jukebox Brigade, took the stage with it’s eclectic blend of guitars, drums, trumpets, a tuba, a wash board, violin and then hidden away in the corner the multi-facated Kristoph DiMaria (with a broken nose) playing percussion, guitar, organ and offering entertaining backing vocals.  LJB does an incredible job of managing a really big sound with the help of their powerful vocalist, Deanna Deluke, and her ukulele.

    Longtime local favorites, Conehead Buddha, played to the peak crowd of around 200 people, filling the upstairs of Valentine’s with dance and good vibes.  The ska band that has been rocking the Capital District since the mid 1990’s didn’t miss a beat and got the crowd revved up for the final two bands of the night.

    Dr. Jah and the Love Prophets brilliantly fused together reggae and ska then rolled it in a jam band blunt.   Old favorites like “Come Down From the Mountain” and “Freedom Rising” had everyone singing along.  Dave even inducted everyone in attendance into the Jah Army.  When the lively set was done the “bright smiles” of the dancing “Jah Army” at Valentine’s was yearning for more.  And luckily the music lovers got more.

    The long evening of great music ended with the Prog Rock styling of  Timbre Coup who played to almost 2 am and still had time to squeeze in an encore.  Timbre Coup was able to stretch themselves out with the jam band crowd allowing everyone to get lost in the music.  They were sure to bring them back with an incredible solo from Andrew Chamberlaine’s seemingly magical 7-string guitar.

    When the dust settled after both nights of incredible music $4193.00 was raised for EverRibbon: My Sandy Hook Family Fund and Newtown Youth & Family Services.  Kudos to the promoters, the venue, the bands and especially the fans that came out to support a great event and the incredible home-grown music scene.

    To hear a few songs from Friday night’s show, visit the Soundcloud page.

    If you would like to donate to Newtown Youth and Family Services, you can visit their website, or donate by mail at: 15 Berkshire Road; Sandy Hook , CT 06482

    Check out more of Mike Wren‘s photos below

  • The Dickey Betts were on at Turning Stone Casino, January 9

    When Dickey Betts and Great Southern took the Turning Stone Casino Showroom stage Wednesday night, the sold out crowd roared.  When he played his first solo seconds into the show, the crowd roared.  For two solid hours the crowd roared.

    Dickey Betts is a living legend who has a reputation for being  a little mean, a whole lot of tough, and in a love-hate relationship with the bottle.  The gloom of the Allman Brothers breakup lingers around his name.  Last year when the Allman Brothers received the Grammy for Lifetime Achievement, Dickey Betts didn’t show.  He said he wanted to be there but couldn’t.  But after departing ways with the Allman Brothers in 2000 under an unsavory situation, it is often Dickey’s name that got tossed around as the problem.  While Greg Allman and ABB continued the way of being a jam band; Dickey went back to his roots and approached his music from a Southern Rock perspective.

    The majority of Dickey Betts and Great Southern’s show is without vocals.   In fact, the only break from mind-blowing guitar was when James Varnado & Frank Lombardi took turns offering up funky drum solos.  On keyboards and  offering vocals was Mike Kach.  Mike has played with numerous acts including touring with Molly Hatchet.  Pedro Arevalo was on electric bass and offered the deep, pulsating rhythm that Dickey set his numerous solos to.  On the other side of the stage was Andy Aledort.  Andy played second lead guitar and worked in the slide often in a style reflective of Duane Allman.  Andy is recognized as one of the top guitarists around and is a Senior Editor at Guitar World.

    Then there was the prodigal son, Duane Betts, on lead guitar.  Imagine living up to having your father be Dickey Betts, and knowing that you were named after Duane Allman.  Duane Betts seems to be handling it just fine, and filling those big shoes given to him at birth.  In fact, while Dickey was notorious for playing the Les Paul Goldtop, that legendary guitar seems to have passed from father to son.  Dickey was playing his Gibson SG and sharing lead with his son.  Most solos were definitely Dickey’s, but when Duane got a lick or two in, they stuck.

    The setlist was a good mix of popular Allman Brother songs: “Blue Sky”, “Jessica”, “Liz Reed”; and well-known guitar covers such as “Statesboro Blues” and “Hoochie Coochie Man”.   The pace throughout the concert was good and you can tell the band has been holding strong with this grouping since 2006 when Andy and James joined Frankie (2000), Mike (2003) and Pedro (2004).  The transitions were smooth and all eyes were on Dickey as he was the obvious band leader and in complete control of the stage.

    When the night ended and Dickey Betts and Great Southern played the encore of the Allman Brothers’ most famous song, penned by Betts, “Ramblin’ Man” the crowd roared it’s loudest.

    Look for Dickey Betts and Great Southern throughout the year.   Instead of their typical single four-show run each month, the band is hoping for two four-show runs a month.  That’s twice as much DB & GS for the Dick Heads in 2013.

    Also look for more legends performing at Turning Stone in the upcoming months.  The Wailers will be at the casino on January 23rd, George Thorogood in March, and BB King in April.

    SETLIST: High Falls, Nothin You Can Do, Statesboro Blues, Change My Way of Living, Blue Sky, One Way Out, You Don’t Love Me, Southbound, Jessica, Back Where It All Begins, 7-Turns, Hoochie Coochie Man, Having a Hard Time, My Get Away, Long Time Gone, Nobody Knows, Liz Reed, No One Left to Run With

    ENCORE: Ramblin’ Man

  • Big D and the Kids Table at Putnam Den, January 5th

    Going backstage to hang out with a band is always interesting.  You are never quite sure what you are going to get.  With Big D and the Kids Table it was a bunch of guys on couches and chairs around a table of fried chicken and Jameson Irish Whiskey.  That part was actually pretty normal.  What was strange was the conversation involving a viral video of Sonseed’s “Jesus is a Friend of Mine.”  Between watching the video on the iPad that was being passed around, to plans on redoing it as a ska or punk number, or finding a remake that another band did to mock the original.  Now the mystery of what happens back in the green room is gone forever.

    On the stage was completely different from a laid back, tongue in cheek conversation about a cheesy song.  What happened on stage was energetic, chasmatic, enthusiantic, and down-right fantastic.  The doors opened to the Putnam Den at 8pm and by 9pm the first of two opening bands, Sugar Eater, was met by over 100 fans. Sugar Eater is a Saratoga-based punk trio that have been playing together for 10 years.  They sounded great and to see an opening band surrounded by dozens of dancing, frantic lunatics by the stage as early as 9pm was an encouraging sign of what was ahead.  The most refreshing thing about Sugar Eater is that they have no sub-genre. They are PUNK. Simple, kick ass, grind it out, explosive, PUNK.  They will unfortunately be losing their bassist to the west coast, but I am hoping that they come back later this year with the same attitude and sound.  It will be a show that should not be missed.

    Next up was Rhodeachusetts-based Brunt of It, to say they were a traditional ska band would do them a great disservice.  Brunt of It could have been the headliner of any show in the capital region Saturday night and the cover charge would have been justified.  They are a big sounding ska band with an in-your-face punk attitude.  When the promoter thought of the line-up of how to get from Sugar Eater to Big D – Brunt of It was the perfect connecting piece.  Brunt of It’s vocals were what every band wants but few have – fast, furious and concise.  The horns section was outrageous and the bass and drums did not give you the choice -if you had a pulse you were dancing.  As to the dozens of people at the stage for Sugar Eater, add a couple more dozen lunatics to the bunch to imagine the dance floor at the Den.

    Big D and the Kids Table have been around for 17 years playing live nearly 200 times a year and supporting bands such as as Less Than Jake, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Dropkick Murphys, Mustard Plug, Rancid, Reel Big Fish, and Anti-Flag.  They had a headlining national tour in 2007.  They know their way around a stage and Saturday night at the Putnam Den was absolutely no different.  David McWane’s Boston bad boy charm combined with Ryan O’Connor’s deadly sax invaded Saratoga Springs.  While I was suspected the ska/punk feel that Big D has been known for overly the past decade and a half I was not entirely disappointed to find it replaced with a new twist to Dub Step.  The kids in the audience stomped and strutted and twirled with delight at the never-ending barrage of upbeat tempo with enough brass to tie the songs together. The show had seemingly everything.  There was even a break in the middle of the long set for a young concert goer to ask his girlfriend to marry him.  According to the band this is the third time that someone proposed at the Big D show.

    For the first weekend of the year, Putnam Den started out with a bang.  Would there have been more people there when Skidmore was in session? Or a little more after the New Year recovery?  We will never know.  We do know that live music is alive and well in Saratoga Springs and can be found every Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  No matter what your taste, keep an eye out for upcoming shows on the NYS Music site.

    Big D and the Kids Table – http://bigdandthekidstable.com/
    Brunt of It –      http://www.facebook.com/bruntofit
    Sugar Eater –     http://www.facebook.com/Sugar-Eater
    Putnam Den –     http://putnamden.com/

  • Quick Glance: Blank Flank

    Quick Glance: Blank Flank

    Blank Flank

    Genre: Cybercore

    I don’t have much experience critiquing electronic music, so I’m going to give this a shot… For those of you interested in local cybercore acts, Blank Flank is worth checking out. A one-man act, Trevor Anderson’s Blank Flank is in its early stages, but shows promise. With only 45 likes on its Facebook page as of now, this is the least-known artist I’ve ever reviewed. Between that and the fact that the music is fuzzy in production, you can tell this brainchild is still very young. The best way to explain the music is probably this: imagine hardcore music played on a very early Nintendo game, with “My Little Pony” references for lyrics. This is the style Anderson is going for, and although I don’t understand it, I certainly respect it. Electronic music requires a lot of adaptation and spice, of which he throws into his 8-bit music fairly well. It’s easy for a lot of it to sound the same at times, but I think that’s because of the production. He does show some variety by coming up with different sound effects, intros, and patterns that would sound fantastic with a live hardcore band. It’s actually very fascinating to hear the hardcore patterns and style that we all know and love in a different format, and I applaud the ingenuity it takes to try something so obscure but interesting. For a side project, I think it has some promise to be a good primary project, but requires a lot of work. With some better production and more variety in sound and style, it could be an excellent electronic project. I honestly don’t know what else to say, because I’ve never heard anything quite like this before, so I’m not sure how to critique it, and it is definitely too early to see where it’ll go from here. What I can say is this: Blank Flank does not sound like anything else I’ve heard before, and with time and work, could become an act that cybercore and electronic fans all over the area will come to know and love.

    Check out Blank Flank’s music here:

    https://soundcloud.com/#blank-flank

    Like it? Like him on Facebook!

    https://www.facebook.com/BlankFlankMusic

    Rock on 315!

    -Steve, 315MR (Upstate Metal) BTLYAP

  • Quick Glance: Fear of None

    Quick Glance: Fear of None

    Fear of None

    Genre: Metalcore/Heavy Metal

    Reaching out a bit to the Long Island area, Fear of None roars mightily from all the way out there (I realize this is UPSTATE Metal and 315 Music Reviews, but I enjoy reaching out to artists all over the world). With a sound that combines “core” brutality and melodic sensibility, these guys prove that they aren’t messing around. They have a full-length album up on their page and on iTunes, and it is definitely worth a listen. The band seems to be a mix of styles that combine to form a unique, fun, blood-pumping brand of metal. I’d say that the best part of this band is their guitar work, which is full of heavy riffs, excellent patterns, and occasional variety in sounds (even ACOUSTIC, if you can believe that). The drums and bass are also an excellent rhythm section. The drums particularly show variety with some heart-pounding beats and technicalities, as well as some patterns that aren’t too common for modern metalcore. The lyrics are moving and powerfully delivered with alternating brutal and softer vocals, yet sound a little fuzzy at times. The vocals, among other slight things, show a little lack in production value, but it is made up for completely with the muci itself. This is a band that doesn’t need perfect production, because it’s supposed to be raw, gritty, and in your face, and the best way to do that is to worry about the music first and production second. They are able to accomplish the mission of showing off who they are without flawless production, and what they have far from takes away from the quality of the sound, as it’s still something to be proud of. In essence, this is a band that shows its determination and heart through its music, and could probably sound good on a tape recorder. In conclusion, I’d say that Fear of None is an excellent band with the perfect name, because they display no fear of anyone’s opinions or remarks; they just do what they want, when they want, and how they want, and it’s something I definitely appreciate about them and find makes them believable.

    Go check out Fear of None’s music here

    https://www.facebook.com/fearofnone

    Then go buy it here!

    http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/fear-of-none/id334436976

    Rock on 315!

    -Steve Sbiroli, 315MR (Upstate Metal)

    https://www.facebook.com/315MusicReviews

  • EP Review: HATE MACHINE “The Movement”

    405972_444534805577938_1470472091_nRochester New York’s very own “Original Metal Thugs” Hate Machine are back with this 5 song explosion- The Movement.  After dominating the Upstate NY metal scene in the late 90’s, the band has made a comeback and once again found themselves back at the top.

         The first track, Chainsaw Philosophy opens fast and furious.  The most refreshing element of this track is that after all these years, Hate Machine is sticking to their guns and not conforming to some of the terrible styles of “Metal” that make me wish I was deaf at times.  With lines like,”..Now, I’ve got a message for you. My knuckles pay the postage…”, the point of the song is clear.  Join the brotherhood or stay the fuck out of the way.
         While some might say that Track 3- Strings, steers off course a little bit.  This is the most catchy song on the EP and my personal favorite.  Vocalist, Jed Seaver demonstrates great ability to both sing and scream, while delivering passionate lyrics.  For any musician with a life outside of music, you can relate to the “Strings” that pull you in several directions and the sacrifice involved in following your heart.
         The overall sound is amazing.  There are crushing guitar riffs, tastefully done, and the overall mix is very clear. When a band goes away for while, the first thing that comes to my mind is whether or not the vocalist can still deliver.  Well, erase that thought from your head.  The cross over style of singing and aggression filled anger that made Hate Machine who they are is still in full effect.
         The only disappointing thing about this EP is that it is an EP.  I am eager to see Hate Machine put out a full length album.  If The Movement doesn’t get your head moving, you lack a pulse… and that’s another issue.
    For more information on Hate Machine –

    -Jason Acevedo