NYS Music 20​13

Category: News

  • Rock n Roll Resort v3: Tiny Rager, Releases Initial Lineup

    Rock n Roll Resort v3 has announced their initial lineup for the April 12-14 weekend festival in Kerhonksen, NY. Included are two nights of jazz/funk greats Soulive, Kung Fu, Ryan Montbleau Band Band, Pimps of Joytime, Alan Evans Trio, Nigel Hall Band, Ghosts of Jupiter, Goosepimp Orchestra, lespecial, and Newton Crosby, plus Upstate New York bands including Higher Organix and Lucid. Tickets and rooms are on sale now at rocknrollresort.com.

    rock n roll resort v3Rock n Roll Resort v3 is an intimate destination event for music and arts. Held within the walls of a VIP resort, Rock n Roll Resort prides itself on its always evolving musical assemblage of the best and brightest in live entertainment, ranging from electronic, funk, bluegrass to progressive jam band performers. An aspect which is unique to Rock n Roll Resort is that fans get the opportunity to socialize with the artists off-stage, all weekend long.

    For more information visit Rock n Roll Resort’s website or on  Facebook

  • V for Vanderbuilts: Syracuse based Pop/Rock band release New Single “I Wish I Was A Saber Toothed Tiger”

    Amidst all the mushy releases that make single people want to stick a fork in their eye around Valentine’s Day, it is absurdly appropriate for The Vanderbuilts to release their single, “I Wish I Was A Saber Toothed Tiger” on February 14th. There is something dreamlike about their sound that you can’t quite place your finger upon. Whether it’s the soothing pizzicato of Yamamoto’s violin or the energy of lead singer Kogon’s elusive-yet-lingering vocals,  The Vanderbuilts take you to another world, far, far away from the Hallmark clichés.

    Inspired by Werner Herzog’s 2010 masterpiece, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, the band’s new album, What We Forget puts a fresh spin on ancient sounds and images. Their music video by Sessa Lund, uses a combination of claymation and stop motion to depict a clay figure transforming into various animals but never quite reaching the goal of becoming a saber toothed tiger. “I Wish I Was A Saber Toothed Tiger” wraps us in a strange yet familiar sound, waiting impatiently for what’s to come. Music & Lyrics by Sam Kogon; Engineered, Mixed and Produced by Jay Newland

    The Vanderbuilts are Sam Kogon, Dave Riddell, Max Newland, Aya Yamamoto and Grennan Milliken. “I Wish I Was a Saber Tooth Tiger” features Finnegan Shanahan on Violin; string arrangements by Aya Yamamoto and Finnegan Shanahan. Website Twitter Facebook Youtube

    Vanderbuilts

  • LAESTRYGONIA, BENEATH THE WORDS and more in Geneva on Feb 23rd

    The Headless Sullivan Theater in Geneva, NY Presents: Laestrygonia, Beneath the Words, Divinex, Plague Mask and They Exist on February 23rd for only 5 bucks for 5 bands.  Doors at 5, Show at 6.

    Laestrygonia Make sure to show up early to check out the ambitious triple-axis guitar threat of Laestrygonia. They power out a melodic and rhythmic intricacy that earns them the right to borrow their name from the Homerian epic The Odyssey.  While “Laestrygonia” may not easily roll off your tongue, you’ll perfect it soon enough, as you tell your friends about the up-and-coming band that you caught, and they missed. Or better yet, bring them with you. www.facebook.com/laestrygonia

    Beneath The Words At times smooth, at others raw and primal, but always engaged and unpredictable, Beneath The Words will deliver the full spectrum of auditory experience. Feed off the energy resonating between the dual guitars and the gut-clenching vocals. Let the driving bass and drums bombard your innards. They switch seamlessly from in-your-face assault into meticulous coiling lines. Be prepared for immersion; Beneath The Words is not a spectator sport. www.facebook.com/beneaththewords

    Divinex

    Serving up a full-bodied journey into the moody, ambient realms of metal, Divinex will serve as your capable tour-guide. Divinex spotlights the organic nature of the genre, letting it build and grow before your ears until it surrounds you in all of its lush textures. But don’t let the word “lush” fool you; they will still peel your face off when all of their forces converge. Buckle up and take a loud, heady trip with Divinex. https://www.facebook.com/divinexband

    Plague Mask

    Sinister, suspenseful, and hypnotic, Plague Mask will give you beautiful nightmares. It has been said that E minor is the saddest key; Plague Mask has discovered the eeriest key. Tapping into the most basic of musical emotion, the tension and expectancy of their music triggers your adrenaline release. Their steady, sobering thrum will stalk you relentlessly. Resistance is futile; Plague Mask will infect you.  https://www.facebook.com/PlagueMask315

    They Exist

    Some bands embrace several different styles and genres throughout a show. They Exist does it in the span of a song. Every song. Following in the tradition of other power trios, They Exist makes you forget that the wall of sound filling the room is coming from a band of three. Even for a full blown quintet, though, the dizzying musical gymnastics of They Exist is a display you will not want to miss. https://www.facebook.com/TheyExistTheBand

  • Interview with Burlington, Vermont based singer-songwriter, Justin Levinson, playing The Westcott Theater on February 24th

    The promising Burlington, Vermont-based singer-songwriter Justin Levinson chats with Gauraa and Morgan about his trajectory as a musician–from the good ol’ Berklee days spent playing gigs at the All Asia Cafe to his upcoming tour with Aaron Carter.

    Mary Morgan Craig: Your music is an interesting combination of country, pop, and rock. How would you best describe the influences that led to that?

    Justin Levinson: I think most of my music right now is in the power-pop genre but when I spent some time out in Nashville a couple years ago, I was really inspired by a lot of the music that was out there and one of my friends gave me an Elton John record called Tumbleweed Connection and it just turned out to be a really influential record for me. That’s one of Elton John’s records that had some country influence on it and it was piano driven as well.

    MMC: We can definitely hear that in your music.

    Gauraa Shekhar: Yes, for sure. We read that you went to Berklee College of Music. What did you major in while you were at Berklee?

    Justin Levinson: Well, I started out as Jazz Trumpet and then I changed over and did songwriting. It was more like School of Rock than normal college.

    GS: I’d imagine!

    MMC: Do you think the Boston music scene helped you grow as an artist? I’m from Boston, by the way.

    Justin Levinson: Yeah, definitely. Going to Berklee was great because I was around incredible, awesome peers who were great musicians and I got to learn a lot from them. I also played a lot of the local clubs like The Middle East. I actually started out playing at the All Asia Cafe, which is kind of the place to start when you’re in Boston and you know, all your friends have to buy a drink and everything. It was small and no one actually went there so it was mostly just students playing, ha. I kind of worked my way up from there to playing bigger venues like Great Scott. I feel like I  played every venue in the city until I worked my way up playing at The Paradise.

    MMC: Nice. The Paradise is such a gorgeous venue! I would have been so pumped to have played there.

    Justin Levinson: Yeah, it was a real privilege and now actually, when I’m not on tour with a bigger headliner, I go frequently back to the Lizard Lounge, which is in Cambridge. Ha, you probably know the spots. Where are you from in Boston?

    MMC: I’m from a little town right outside of Boston, actually, called Boxford.  I mean, there’s nothing going on there so we go to Boston all the time.

    Justin Levinson: Ah, nice. Yeah, Boston’s great!

    GS: It’s pretty interesting you say that because you went straight from Boston back to Burlington, Vermont, which you described as the “one horse town”. What inspired that?

    Justin Levinson: Well, originally, I had been interested in moving to Nashville. A lot of my friends were thinking about moving out there and I was pretty certain that I was going to move out there–not just because of music but also because this girl I was chasing was moving out there, and since that didn’t work out, I pulled an audible and said I’m gonna move to Los Angeles. Ha, and I ended up not moving to Los Angeles. Then, my final choice was New York City but New York City just wasn’t for me. I mean, I loved visiting but it moved a little too fast for me and I just really loved the people in Vermont as well as the quality of life and I was able to do enough touring to be able to make my confections in the music industry on the road and be able to not have to kind of live in the chaos in the big, urban music meccas.

    MMC: Ha, good! So you described your latest album, This Side of Me, as feel good heartache. How’d you come up with that?

    JL: Yeah. Basically, I was making a record that was filled with a lot of heartache but at the same time I wanted to keep it a little lighthearted for listeners and I didn’t wanna make kind of a woe-is-me record. Also, I was really aware that making a concept album about heartache is probably the most overdone topic so I realized that it was important for me to put a twist on it. I tried to have a little sense of humor–kind of heart-on-sleeve, using simple metaphors and silly euphemisms…just kind of playful stuff, ha.

    GS: Well you did a good job because we definitely liked it! People say musicians write music most when they’re either falling in love or falling out of love. Would you agree with that statement?

    JL: Yeah, definitely! Love alone is like the number one topic in most songs and I think when an artist is writing from the heart, its definitely one of the pretty intriguing concepts, I think.

    MMC: You have experimented with your sound quite a bit over the past years. How did you end up with The Valcours?

    JL: Well, I spent a lot of time playing with session musicians and there’s a big difference when you’re playing with session musicians as opposed to when you’re playing with a band. Session musicians have higher guns and technically you don’t let them into your world as far as writing and ideas are concerned. It’s kind of like you’re showing up to work for the artist, basically. I work that way a lot because I’ve been in bands in the past and it hadn’t really worked out for me. When I met the guys that are in my band now, we just really got along well and we would have dinner together before we would practice and we would totally talk about our troubles and there was this ‘bromance’ going on and I thought to myself maybe I won’t let the jaded past of the band thing haunt me and give this band a chance and let them in a little bit. It really made a big difference  because it let me listen to other people’s ideas for once instead of my own. If you don’t work with people who trust you enough, you end up writing the same song over and over and over again but if you listen to four people in the band, someone could be like, ‘Hey man, you’ve already done those four chord changes a few times. Why don’t we try this instead?’ It might be hurtful at first to listen to but it definitely makes you grow as a musician. I think anyone that thinks they can do everything on their own, all DIY and all, is at a setback. In the music industry, it’s always good to listen to other people.

    GS: Well said. As musicians, we are consistently trying to find “our sound”. Would you say you’ve find your sound with your new backing band?

    JL: Yeah, I think I’ve found a sound but one thing with me is that I get really bored playing one kind of sound so I don’t know if I can make that a final answer. I mean, look at The Beatles, they never made the same record twice. They had some similarities, yeah, but they went from “She Loves You” to “Let it Be”, you know. I’m hoping that I’ll achieve that kind of growth and maturity if I keep it up.

    MMC: Yeah, we’re excited to hear more.  Your song “City With Two Lights” sat tight on CMJ charts for quite a while, granting you nation-wide exposure. Would you recommend artists like yourself to leverage themselves at conferences like that?

    JL: Yeah, I think college radio is a great thing for independent artists. I learned a lot about the industry by doing that as I had to build relationships with people. One of the best piece of advice that I got was from a friend who worked for WERF, which is the Emerson College radio station, and he was actually a DJ there and he suggested putting in a personal note in with my press kit when I sent them out to colleges because college DJs get so many press kits so it needs to have something that separates you from the pack and makes you go, “alright, Justin Levinson is a human ‘being’.

    GS: We do get a lot of press kits, that’s true! A personal note can make all the difference.

    JL: Yeah, that was really a cool thing and I started writing notes to DJs and build authentic relationships with these people who I’m still in touch with today. I would say for artists coming up, that’s an important thing to do because people you meet as you’re rising are very important. Kids that were DJs at WERF are now working at Columbia Records.

    GS: Yeah, hopefully that’ll be us in a few years.

    JL: Ha, definitely!

    GS: Okay, so, how did you end up as an opening act for Aaron Carter?

    JL: Well, that’s actually a good question. I don’t really know all the details about how that came to be but in November I signed with new management and since then I’ve been working with artists like Aaron Carter. I also toured last fall with Tyler Hilton. He’s actually in the cast of One Tree Hill.

    GS: Oh, wow, that’s amazing. Tyler’s really good, I have his records and everything.

    JL: Yeah, his new record is really good and he’s possibly the nicest guy I’ve ever met, too. He’s totally an authentic dude and the first show I jumped on on tour, he introduced me to all his friends and you know, every time I’d play he’d mention my name three times to the crowd. It was a great experience, really. I think the new management is opening up a lot of doors for me. Hopefully, I’ll be doing a lot more stuff like this in the future!

    GS: Oh, sure.

    MMC: So when you’re writing, do you keep a certain demographic in mind?

    JL: I don’t really think I ever really thought about it but you know, recently, with the Tyler Hilton and Aaron Carter tours, I definitely think about it a little more. During the Tyler Hilton tour, it was like 300-500 screaming young girls every night, which was crazy and something I wasn’t used to but when I write, I want to have every age group and gender have some sort of experience where they can relate to the music. I think I have a pretty good perspective right now. I’m 27 so I’ve still got some sort of teenage angst in me but I’m also kind of an adult now  and been into college for a while so I think I can kind of balance out a lot of age groups. Well, I hope I can at least. I mean I’m wishful that a lot of different age groups would enjoy my music.

    GS: With the growing EDM scene, what do you see happening to the future of the power-pop/ singer-songwriter genre?

    JL: You know, I’m not really sure, I think with the power-pop stuff that I’m doing right now, there always seems to be a market for it, you know, I aspire to be as successful as bands like fun. Nate Reuss is kind of one of my heroes, he’s around my age right now and he’s been doing this power-pop thing for a long time and it seems like it all has worked out for him. I think if artists are able to be as creative as him and really combine a lot of really cool things like hip-hop, power-pop, and  even some of those marching band kind of rhythms that he kind of sampled, it would be a great feature for the indie, power pop market.

    MMC: Do you think that you will incorporate anything like that in your music?

    JL: I would love to keep experimenting, you know. My drummer right now has a sampler and we use a sampler for our drum beats and use real drums over them. I’m always up for doing different things. It would be really cool to try to fuse those things.

    GS: Very cool. Is there a specific songwriting process that is your default? Like, do you write the melody first or the lyrics? Or does it vary from time to time?

    JL: You’re asking really good questions! These are really thoughtful, I appreciate it.

    GS and MMC: Why, thank you!

    JL: Yeah, I mean, I’m kind of the dude that plays on the piano with the melody in his head. The lyrics kind of come after, I guess. Usually it comes after playing the piano and guitar. You got to kind of see what the mood is like if it’s a minor chord progression, then it might be a sadder topic. If it’s major, then it might be a happier topic. If it’s kind of transitioning between major and minor, it is likely that it’s going to be bittersweet. I guess that would be my process for the most part.

    MMC: Cool. So, in the video for “I Was So Wrong”, what inspired the ballerina in the video?

    JL: Well, one of the things I do besides playing music is a lot of social work. I work with people in development of disabilities and one of the things  we do is we volunteer at a lot of different places and I volunteer at the main society at Burlington, Vermont and one of the women that works there had told me that she was a dancer and I said, ‘Well, I kind of have this circusey idea for this song and it would be cool to have a ballerina dancing in the background as my muse.’

    MMC: Well, it looked good!

    JL: Yeah, I’d say it worked out fairly well.

    GS: Do you find yourself using social media at all to stay connected to fans?

    JL: Yeah, definitely. The whole DIY thing is great and I can’t speak for every songwriter but I have not  reached the pinnacle of my career yet but I think being all DIY is an impossible feat in music so it’s important for me to have a lot of help. Even though I’m not with a major label, I have a publicist, a booking agent, a college booking agent, a licensing company, that puts a lot of stuff together for me but I still spend endless time doing the whole social media thing. A lot of publicity these days is doing social media. PR campaigns are all about reaching out to bloggers and podcasts. It’s all about networking, really. It’s a big social networking game and I spend a lot of time doing that. Even though I have this team, I love talking to fans and friends and everything, but sometimes I’m like, “I really want to be writing a song right now” instead of sitting on my Twitter page and what not. It’s really all about balance. If I can do both, it makes me a happy camper.

    MMC: Awesome!

    GS: We loved having you on our show.

    JL: It was a pleasure, really. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me. Hopefully I’ll see you guys at the show!

    GS: Oh definitely, we have our tickets.

    JL: Nice! You should come in and introduce yourselves, it would be fun to chat a little bit.

    GS: We’d love to!

    MMC: Thanks and have a great night!

    JL: You, too!

    Make sure to catch Justin Levinson open for Aaron Carter at the Westcott Theater on the 24th of February!

    To listen to this interview with Justin Levinson, tune into The Laura and Meg Show via iTunes Radio on Wednesday, February 20th at 11pm! Just click on “Radio” on the menu bar at the top of your iTunes Library. From there click College Radio> Syracuse University>WERW. Or simply head over to SoundCloud

  • An Interview with Jeremy Salken of Big Gigantic

    The first time I saw Big Gigantic, I was floored by the amount of energy exuding from the stage to the crowd. They have all the aspects of any amazing electronic show: the mind blowing light show, the high energy and the improv jams, but also the jazz stylings that you would only find in a classically trained saxophonist. Dominic Lalli (sax and production) and Jeremy Salken (drums) have pioneered their own genre of music fusing together electronic, bass-centered music with smooth jazz and acoustic drums.  Their sound is truly one of a kind and they have made their presence well known in the electronic scene. I had the pleasure of chatting on the phone with Jeremy just days before their show in Clifton Park at Upstate Concert Hall.

    Jenni Wilson: Alright, we’ll start off with a little history behind Big G. When and how did you two meet?

    Jeremy Salken: We met through the Boulder, Colorado music scene. We both were playing in funk and jazz bands, any gig we could get and we kind of met through that and ended up moving in together. Dom found a computer and started making some beats and it all kind of progressed from there.

    JW: Who would you say are some of your biggest influences?

    JS: Everything. Herbie Hancock, John Coltrane, all jazz music. Radiohead, a bunch of new stuff like Skrillex and Bassnectar. We get influences from everywhere. We are always looking to push ourselves. Dom’s always trying to push the way we make music and the angles its coming from.

    JW: You have clearly forged your own path in the electronic music scene, but being that what you play is still so different from other acts, how would you go about defining your music  to someone who has no connection to the electronic music scene?

    JS: It’s really hard to explain, honestly. It’s one of those things were still kind of trying to figure out. Its really not jazz and electronic. We call it electronic dance music or live electronic music. We take so many different styles from drum and bass, hip hop, dubstep, sometimes moombahton.

    JW: What exactly inspired you to blend live sax and live drums with electronic?

    JS: Dom has been playing sax for  a while he has his masters in jazz performance. I’ve been playing drums since I was a little kid, self-taught. Naturally we wanted to bring different instruments together and we wanted to find a way to fuse electronic beats. We wanted to be able to throw a party and keep everyone dancing but still get to play our instruments and improvise and build and drop.

    JW: Your tour schedule looks jam packed. Is this busiest you guys have ever been?

    JS: It’s pretty normal, we’ve stay relatively busy since we started so it feels very natural. We have more time coming up than we ever have. Things are kind of chillin out. We have a nine-week tour in the fall, so this five-week tour is  a short one compared to that.

    JW: The last time I saw you guys was main stage at Camp Bisco and I know you guys ended up playing some of the top U.S. festivals last year. What festivals do you think you’ll be leaning towards this summer?

    JS: We’re on Summercamp and Snowball in March, but we played so many last year this year will be more mellow and we try not to repeat festivals. A lot of festivals don’t like to repeat. We’re working on our new album and doing a big tour in the fall. We’re also working on a Red Rocks gig. There are also a couple of other festivals that I can’t really announce yet.

    JW: What is your favorite part about playing a festival, and how does that compare to playing a headlining tour?

    JS: It’s definitely different. We love playing festivals because Dom and I have been going to festivals before we were in this band. We’re huge fans of the festival vibe. It’s awesome playing in front of so many people with a huge crowd and massive energy. But we also love getting indoors and containing all of that energy and playing with a more intimate crowd.

    JW: You guys have put out an album almost every year since 2009, is there any new material planned for 2013?

    JS: We’re working on an album for the fall now hopefully before our tour. And hopefully we’ll have that and ya know, that’s been kind of the main focus.

    JW: Will your show at the Upstate Concert Hall be your first trip to the Albany area, aside from Camp Bisco? What can we expect from you guys at this show?

    JS: No we’ve been to Albany a bunch, probably our third show. We played The Big Up Festival, and we’ve also played in Rochester. We played a sports bar (Jillian’s) about a year and a half ago in Albany. We try and hit that area (Buffalo, Rochester, Albany)  because we love coming to the Northeast. It’s gonna be a party. I wouldn’t miss it if I were you guys. We have a new light rig that we dropped on New Years and we’re bringing that out. We’re playing a bunch of new music, Dom’s been working on some new stuff so it’s gonna be a non-stop party.

    JW: Alright last question. There have been rumors floating around that you and Jennie Garth recently started dating. Is this true?

    JS: True. I haven’t been asked that on an interview but I’ve been asked it more and more since Jam Cruise. Our story broke in the National Enquirer with a bunch of false information. It said I was 41, which I wouldn’t mind if it was true but it’s not. It was funny being in the National Enquirer because obviously they don’t have reputable news. They called every member of my family and Dom trying to get all of this information and obviously nobody gave them anything so they ended up making everything up.  They said we met at Coachella and have been dating for a really long time. That isn’t true. We didn’t meet at Coachella, we met in October so it’s impossible. It’s pretty nuts what kind of information they’ll print. Even with no information they will print whatever they want.

    You can catch Big Gigantic at Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton Park on February 12th  and at Water Street Music Hall in Rochester on February 17th.

  • Solid Sound Music and Arts Festival returns to MASS MoCA June 21-23

    After a one-year hiatus, Grammy Award-winning Chicago-based rockers Wilco return to North Adams, Massachusetts, this summer to host their Solid Sound Music and Arts Festival at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass Moca) over June 21-23, 2013.

    Now in its third year, Solid Sound is a three-day celebration of music, comedy, and art located on the MASS MoCA campus. Although the musical lineup and interactive exhibits have not yet been announced, but we’re guaranteed a couple nights of Wilco and a handful of Wilco-related side projects of individual members.

    Always entertaining, the comedy stage will make a return and will be curated by John Hodgman (The Daily Show and celebrated podcasts are among his funny exploits.) The stage will feature Jen Kirkman (Chelsea Lately, Funny or Die), Reggie Watts (Conan, Fallon, College Humor) and Al Madrigal (The Daily Show).

    Previous years have included multiple nights of Wilco, along with The Levon Helm Band, Thurston Moore, Mavis Staples, and Avi Buffalo. Also performing were Wilco-related side projects The Autumn Defense, Pronto, On Fillmore and The Nels Cline Singers.

    The $99 Early Worm tickets have already sold out, but a limited number of $124 Early Bird passes are still available, after which a three-day pass will set you back $149. Ticket prices include access to the exhibits at MASS MoCA, so if you haven’t yet made the trip, this is an excellent opportunity to catch what is arguably the most eclectic collection of modern art in the Northeast. And, it’s only a 90-minute scenic drive from Albany!

    Below are scenes from the first-annual Solid Sound Festival in 2010.

  • Willy Moon playing Dinosaur Bar-B-Que in Troy on Friday, February 15th

    Every so often, a random musician plays in Upstate New York that scratches heads. One might ask, “Isn’t this guy bigger than playing a small venue for free?” or “How did they get these guys here?” – this can be said for The Lumineers playing a free show at Upstate Concert Hall in December, or Spanish DJ Danny Avila, who will be headlining Coachella and Ultra Music Festivals, playing The Westcott Theater on February 4th. Upstate New York being so accessible to New York City, it’s easy for acts to stretch out and get to the smaller locales and venues, and for that, Upstate New York is truly blessed.

    willy moonFor your consideration, another ‘Wow, HE’S playing up here?!’ is heading to the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que in Troy pm on Friday, February 15th. New Zealand-born and London-based singer Willy Moon. This is a free show that is part of the WEQX Miller Lite Concert Series. The show will start at 10pm. Get there early and eat some GREAT Bar-B-Que!

    Now, you may be wondering, “Who the hell is Willy Moon?” Well, you have probably heard one of his songs from a recent iPod ‘Bounce’ commercial. With just a few songs under his belt, his first album comes out later this year, aptly titled Here’s Willy Moon. He has a couple other tunes, particularly his debut “I Wanna be Your Man” and “Yeah, Yeah”. Willy sounds like he has a little Buddy Holly and Jerry Lee Lewis influences in his music, plus some slick footwork based on his moves in the videos below. Check them out below and don’t miss this treat at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que on February 15th

    One of those ‘stick in your head all day tunes, in a good way’ – “Yeah Yeah”

  • Lotus Interview and Review: January 30th at the Westcott Theater

    Lotus, the notorious EDM act-turned-jamband played a solid sold-out show at The Westcott Theater on a Wednesday, January 30th, making quite the comeback with their tenth album, The Build. The band continues to enchant listeners as they genre-bend their way into an idiosyncratic combination of funk and EDM, proving to be more relevant now than ever.

     

    Before the show, I got the chance to talk to Jesse Miller, the bassist and sampler for the band.

    Gauraa Shekhar: Your new record The Build is recorded live to analog. How did that come along considering the wide range of instrumentation?

    Jesse Miller: We have been following the process over the last few years. It is a classic 70s thing, you know—with basic tracks and everything.

    GS: That’s really cool. In The Build the rich texture really comes through, especially in songs like “Middle Road”. How do you guys produce music within a budget without compromising the quality?

    Jesse Miller: Most of it was done by myself and Luke. We rehearsed the process before we went into the studio and relied on a lot of software to help us. So we didn’t waste time and money on extra studio hours.

    GS: That’s very practical. What kind of a demographic are you catering to with such genre-bending music? Is it easier to find the venue that matches your sound or do you have to pay special attention to it?

    JM: I don’t think there is a specific demographic that we cater to but venues are definitely important. We aim for high-energy shows. Sometimes, we play for a younger crowd but there really is no specific age.

    GS: Performing live is obviously a great aspect of your music. How do you mix it up on stage to keep the audience entranced . . . I mean, besides the lights of course.

    JM: Improvisation, for sure. We try to mix it up by changing the instruments and arranging the songs a little differently.

    GS: Since you guys incorporate a lot of computer generated digital sounds in your music, how do you put a different spin on it whilst performing live?

    JM: There are certain things that are important to pull out of line…sometimes, we play around with the melody and sometimes we change up the instruments. We also trigger samples on stage.

    GS: Oh, wow! Well, what is it like having a 47 days tour?

    JM: 47 days in a tour can be hectic. But it allows us to develop a sound and a rapport.

    GS: I’m sure. Bands have issues but you guys seem to stuck together as a band through all these years. What are some of the main things that glue you guys together?

    JM: Well, it’s mostly the work ethic and the drive. We’ve been at this for such a long time and we’re really passionate about the music.

    GS: As are we! Looking forward to seeing you in ’Cuse on the 30th, Jesse!

    JM: Looking forward to the show!

    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mg8giAkXJjA]

    As promised, Lotus gave those looking to get a high-energy head start to their weekend more than what they had bargained for. As I walked straight off the campus to their venue, I couldn’t help but wonder if I had walked straight into a Tim Burton set with all its entailing paraphernalia. I watched inebriated girls in princess costumes flail their way to the front row and men leaping out of crumbling bathroom doors with glowing light sabers. The night was fecund with possibilities  as if anything could happen. Excited fans drove in all the way from Rochester and Watertown, yelling out to anybody willing to listen: “This is the fourth time I’m seeing them perform”, “I just watched their show in New York last week” and “They just keep getting better each time”.  It was more than evident that Lotus’ electronica sound sustained their fan base over a span of fourteen years. And let me tell you, the infamous interplay of stage lights was only the beginning. Only a band like Lotus could turn a dance party into a religious experience. Lotus fueled the room with time-transcending energy and a motley crowd checked their baggage at the door, walked in, simply wrapped their heads around the music— and let their hair down.

    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2r7NY_Ra3s]

  • Review and Interview: The Brew at The Westcott Theater, January 26th

    Over the past year I’ve often heard people voice concern about Rock N’ Roll as a genre, seemingly worried  that it is dying out these days due to all of the EDM and Indie music that is over saturating the mainstream. If you are one of these people, fret not. I assure you that Boston based band The Brew is keeping Rock alive and kickin’.

    Before they completely brought the house down at The Westcott Theater this past Saturday night, lead singer Chris Plante of expressed his love for Upstate New York and the ‘Cuse. “We’re so happy to be back in Syracuse! We love playing The Westcott,” he yelled into the mic from his spot at his double-decker keyboard. The Boston based quartet consists of brothers Chris Plante (lead vocals, keyboards), Joe Plante (Bass, vocals) and friends Dave Drouin (Guitar, vocals) and Aaron Zaroulis (Drums/vocals).Together they are like the Fantastic Four of Rock. There isn’t a single weak link in the group on instrumentals and their song writing skills are something to envy.

    Following Chris’s warm shout out the band opened with one of their new songs titled “Aftermath”. From the sounds of the track we can look forward to enjoying a killer new release. As soon as the powerful instrumentals of this track filled the room I was reminded of why I fell in love with Rock N’ Roll in the first place. Aaron has driving in-your-face drum beats that make it virtually impossible for anyone with a soul to stand still. Chris sings the band’s insightful and relatable lyrics with an honest raspy voice while his piano parts cascade over the tracks. Dave plays epic guitar solo’s on his edgy Gibson explorer with seemingly no effort and Joe coolly holds the entire sound together seamlessly on bass.  Their sheer musical awesomeness evoked multiple and loud shouts of “I love you!” from the audience on multiple occasions throughout the show.

    When they vocally harmonized for the intro of radio hit “When Darkness Comes” off the album  A Garden In The Snow, I doubt if there was a single person in the room that didn’t have the chills. Later in the show they played their hard rocking version of Led Zeppelin’s Going To California which I might actually like even more than the original because of its absolute head banging break down. They also included tracks such as “Into The Remembering Sun”, “Sharks In The Pool” and “Garden In The Snow”. As soon as they left the stage the crowd cheered for an encore and they all came to play “What I Want” (the ladies love this one) and a few others as the crowd begged them not to go.

    After the show, I got a chance to sit down with The Brew and ask them a few questions.

    Mary Morgan Craig: So first of all who are your biggest Musical influences individually?

    Joe Plante: My biggest influences at the moment are Little Feat, Radiohead and Beck has a really big influence on me.

    Aaron Zaroulis: I like Guns and Roses and I like the Allman Brothers .. a lot.

    Chris Plante: I’m doin’ a lot of Bruce Hornsby, a lot of Chick Corea and a lot of classical.

    Dave Drouin: I listen to Iron Maiden a lot and MJ. (MJ’s Dirty Diana plays in the background)

    MMC: I know Chris and Joe are brothers. How did the two of you meet Dave and Aaron?

    AZ: Well the band was around for nine or ten years with another drummer and then I joined about a year ago and I met all these dudes through the power of music.

    CP: Yeah but the real story behind that one is like six or seven years ago we were playing a show with our other drummer Kelly. It was a show in Newburyport, Massachusetts, that we put on ourselves. We didn’t have like a green room or a bathroom for ourselves. During set break Kelly like really had to pee, so he went outside because there was a big line for the bathroom inside. It was  a packed show with a lot of kids. A lot of younger kids, and he got arrested outside for peeing in a public place. So we didn’t have a drummer! We frantically tried to bail him out. We reluctantly went back onstage when we, you know, had to. We basically made an announcement to the crowd. We were like “Does anybody know how to play drums?” “Put your hands in the air because our drummer is arrested”, and a bunch of young girls in the crowd were pointing to Aaron who was like 13.

    AZ: Yeah I was 13.

    CP: And then he got up on stage and already knew a bunch of our tunes.  So we’re like oh good job, cool, thanks for sitting in. Then like eight years later or whatever it was…

    DD: No six years later.

    CP: When it came down to audition for the band when we were moving on from a different drummer he showed up and already knew all of our songs and he was like “Yeah, I’m that kid” and we were like “Sweet!”

    AZ: Yeah I’m that Kid. (all laugh)

    MMC: What was the first CD you ever bought?

    JP: Green Day’s Dookie. I remember that. I really remember that day.

    CP: Didn’t you get it from your 5th grade girlfriend?

    JP: No. Oh Yeah ! I did. I did get it from my 5th grade girlfriend.

    AZ: That was the worst Valentine’s day ever huh?

    (All laugh)

    JP: I love that CD.

    AZ: No. Its not that bad. I don’t remember my first CD. I think it was like Tom Petty or Paul Simon something like that. Something that my parents passed down to me kinda thing.

    CP: I don’t know. I’m in the same boat. Me and Joe started finding music around the same time and I remember doing was it Toadie?

    JP: Yeah Toadie.

    CP: Toadie was awesome. Yeah I remember doing the Toadies.

    JP: The Toadies!

    CP: Yeah The Toadies were awesome.

    DD: I had tapes way before CD’s.

    CP: Ya. Ya no we were all actually into tapes.

    JP: I bought an Oasis tape and a Blues Traveler tape.

    DD: Yeah, I had the Blues Traveler tape with the cat on it. I traded my Aerosmith Pump when it was like the new thing.

    AZ: Bad move.

    DD: Bad move.

    MMC: So are your parents as musically talented as you or are you guys the first in the family?

    JP: My dad happens to be extremely talented musically. He started playing when he was about our age professionally out in California. He met my mom out there and then moved back to Massachusetts and had us children and surrounded us with music our entire lives.

    CP: He was sitting in with us at a show recently.  We were doing like a more acoustic broken down sort of show. We were telling the stories behind certain songs and stuff like that. And he comes up and he plays an original song of his with us and its like the last song of the show cause it kicked so much ass.

    MMC: That must be so cool.

    CP: Yeah, its pretty nice.

    MMC: So is that why you guys chose to do that cover of “Going to California”? Which I love by the way.

    CP: Thanks! That’s an interesting connection but no we just did that cover because we were doing a gig opening for moe. at The House Of Blues and we really wanted to do something special, you know? Dave came to practice and he was like “I just Heard Going to California and was picturing it with a more driving groove under it” and we just started doing it.

    MMC: Well it came out great. I love that one. When did each of you start playing your instruments and what made you gravitate to the specific ones?

    JP: I went to a show when I was 17. I ate some mushrooms and I heard bass for the first time. I was tripping and I was like “I am gonna be doing that for the rest of my life.” That’s pretty much how I decided. And I had a bass so I decided just to start playing it. I picked it up that night and started playing it.

    CP: That was my bass.

    JP: Yeah. I stole his bass.

    CP: I had a black Guild bass.

    JP: It was awful to play. It was terrible, but then i actually started jamming with Dave literally four days after.

    AZ: I started playing drums in the fourth grade. It wasn’t cause I started eating mushrooms though. And I got serious around my freshman year of high school and I just haven’t really stopped since.

    CP: I started playing piano when I was like 3 because of my dad and then took classical lessons when I was like five. So, I did that and then jazz and a lot of stuff so I’ve just been playing my entire life. I remember when I was like 14, I really realized I could play piano. Because I never made the conscious decision to actually do it. So its been a long time. I should be better than I am.

    DD: I started playing guitar at like age 14. It was mainly because I couldn’t have a drumset. I had drumsticks. I really wanted to play drums. But they were like “too loud” or something. So I got a guitar.

    (all laugh)

    MMC: Good thing you did

    DD: Ruined my life

    (All laugh)

    MMC: OK so who is your biggest Rock-Chick crush?

    CP: Rock Chick Crush?

    MMC: Yeah, well it doesn’t have to be rock. Musical artist crush.

    DD: The lead singer of Heart.

    AZ: Aw this is rough man.

    CP: There’s not as many hot rock lead singers as there are like pretty sexy pop stars.

    MMC: Well what about Gwen Stefani?

    All: Yeah

    AZ: True. She’s hot

    DD: I don’t know.

    CP: But she’s a little too muscle-y for me.

    JP: I’m a ‘Sineado’ fan. Just, you know, because… (gestures to his bald head).

    DD: Did you just call her ‘Sineado’? Sinead. O’Connor.

    JP: ‘Sineado’. That’s what I call her. She likes it.

    (all laugh)

    AZ: I’d like to take Mila Kunis out to like a nice dinner at like The Ninety Nine or like The Olive Garden.

    CP: Salisbury Steaks?

    AZ: Yeah yeah! I would definitely buy her a nice Salisbury steak.

    CP: I like Rachel McAdams. I think she’s the hottest. I like her.

    AZ: Yeah, shes pretty dreamy.

    DD: I like Taylor Swift.

    MMC: I knew that was going to come up.

    CP: She looks like a deer. Not in like a bad way.

    JP: In the headlights.

    DD: That’s why I like her.

    CP: I think shes beautiful but she resembles a deer slightly.

    MMC: A majestic deer.

    (all laugh)

    CP: A majestic blonde deer.

    MMC: Have you played any festivals recently? Are you planning on playing any this year?

    CP: Yes. A lot. We played Mountain Jam last year.

    JP: Absolutely

    AZ: We played a lot of festivals last year.

    DD: Its mid-winter now so..

    CP: Yeah we’re actually starting to think about next year and any festival, you know. We’re having our agent and our management work with all the promoters of festivals to hopefully get the right situation worked out.

    MMC: How would you describe your own music?

    JP: Um, not butt rock. Rock.

    (all laugh)

    CP: I mean, its really just like rock n’ roll but we try to be versatile with how we deliver our songs. We get into different production techniques the same way The Beatles or anybody else would.

    MMC: What was the thought process behind the Triptych project? Who did your album artwork?

    JP: Well actually we decided to make the Triptych just based on the fact that we had a really large catalog of songs and certain songs fit into different groups. Like for instance, the first album was really driven by acoustic singer-songwriter songs that kinda fit into a certain category. We felt like they all really fit on the album. Then the second album we really stretched out live.  We wanted to take that same energy in the studio and do some improvisational stuff. The third record basically is really more pop oriented the way The Beatles used to like look at all their parts and really kind of like figured out how they wanted everything to fit.

    CP: As far as the album artwork goes, that’s a tapestry that was meant for King Louis the 7th. It was a tapestry that was meant to commemorate like his wedding with somebody. It was back in 1495. Its called The Hunt of The Unicorn. You can see the unicorn on the second record. When you put them all together it makes one large image that kind of gives you the whole scope of the artwork.

    MMC: Very Cool. What has been your best tour experience ever or just one that sticks in your mind?

    CP: We were rolling through from New Mexico to Austin, Texas and we pulled over at this  like really sketchy looking Subway. We were like ‘Fuck we have to get Subway today. This is gonna suck.’ But there was a burger joint right next door that was kind of like home made burgers but you could tell it was like real like southern cooking.

    AZ: They had like Boston stuff in the windows so we were like ‘Fuck it lets go in here.’

    DD: Yeah it was weird. It was all like Red Sox stuff and Patriots stuff.

    CP: Yeah we felt good about going there and so we walked in and just like everywhere we show up, they’re all like are you in a band or something? It was this older guy and his wife. Very old like 85 or 87. With this other lady and we were like yeah we’re in a band and hes like have you ever heard of Roy Orbison and we’re like ‘Yeah of course.’ and then he’s like ‘Have you ever heard of Buddy Holly?’ We’re like ‘Obviously.’ and he’s like ‘I used to sing with them.’ So we met a member of Buddy Holly’s band, the only guys to like background sing. They were called The Roses.

    JP: And then hes like ‘Do you want to go see Buddy Holly’s studio? I’ve got a key. I live there.’ And so all Buddy Holly’s original stuff is set up there, untouched, and we sat in the same chair that Buddy Holly was (once) sitting in.

    AZ: I got to play on the drumset. It was rad. It was awesome. We got it all on video too.

    MMC: That’s crazy!I’m so jealous. So last year when I saw you play at Brewfest Chris was playing with a broken arm at Brewfest in Lincoln, NH, which was so impressive. I actually remember I  Instagrammed about it and I captioned it like ‘my hero’ or something. I read somewhere that you just recovered from broken ribs. What happened there ? Are you always this accident prone?

    (all laugh)

    CP: I wouldn’t say i’m accident prone. I play indoor soccer so I just smashed into a dude that was way bigger than me and it was like this really awkward point in my side where my fist got like  jammed right into my rib. But I didn’t know it was broken for like the first four days. I thought it was just really badly bruised.

    MMC: Glad you’re better now! Do you have any advice for other bands who are just starting out?

    DD: Don’t do it.

    (all laugh)

    MMC: I think that they should just focus on the songs and then really work on the business aspect even though that’s the last thing you want to do as a musician. That’s what it takes to actually succeed. Cause you know its a small business and it sucks to look at it that way but you can’t go on forever running out of money. So just get good content, believe in your music, and then like just be doing your work. What has been your weirdest fan experience?

    CP: Oh man there’s like too many twisted stories to get into that.

    DD: There’s like naked dudes getting tied up. Well we were at a festival and there’s this guy running around naked like going ‘Get off my island! Get off my island!’

    CP: And then they hogtied him and had to like put him in the back of the truck.

    MMC: Well why were you on his island?

    JP: Well we weren’t on mushrooms and he was, so we were on his island.

    AZ: Dude he was on his own island.

    (all laugh)

    CP: He was being aggressive toward everybody.

    JP: The last straw that they wouldn’t put up with at this festival was when he went up to an old woman that was pushing a baby in a carriage and walking a dog at the same time and he like tried grabbing the dog leash from her and then they tackled him and hogtied him.

    DD: I think they like duckttaped him up.

    CP: It was a duct tape hogtie job. They did really well

    AZ: Hogtied!

    (all laugh)

    To listen to this interview with The Brew, tune into The Laura and Meg Show via iTunes Radio next Thursday night (Feb 7th)at 11pm! Just click on “Radio” on the menu bar at the top of your Itunes Library. From there click College Radio> Syracuse University>WERW.

    Check out the stations blog and The Meg and Laura Show

    Check out The Brew’s Website, Facebook, Myspace, Soundcloud, and the official video for When Darkness Comes
    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3lkwFjHvw0]

  • Late night in Albany: Hot Day at the Zoo with The Blind Owl Band, The Bayou Café, January 26th

    Last Saturday was a big music night in Albany: many downtown venues offered a genre of music complimentary to the sold out Trey Anastasio Band (TAB) show at The Palace Theatre.  Hot Day at the Zoo and The Blind Owl Band were scheduled for a foot stomping, hoedown of a good time.  Bluegrass at the Bayou stood on it’s own as if it were competing with TAB.  Each of these bands performing at The Bayou Café have a dedicated following which filled the venue.

    The hungry-for-more music aficionados left the Trey show and filed into the already bursting-at-the-seams café where Hot Day at the Zoo kicked off sometime around midnight. The deluge of music fans brought with them the carnival like atmosphere where they would boogie with their drunken hearts, ready for more.  While Hot Day at the Zoo is focused on traditional bluegrass, there are subtle change ups relatable in the progression of this genre.

    Throughout the set, each musician gave the others fair opportunity to take a solo, and yet, partake in a conversation through instrumentation.  Musically, the roots string band captured an underlying jazz progression.  Vocal harmonization with genuine lyrics could tug on the heartstrings.  Hot Day often add agreeable little nuances for a finishing touch to their showcased songs.  Those newly introduced to Hot Day were pleasantly surprised to hear “Ripple,” a widely known Grateful Dead tune.

    Opening for Hot Day at the Zoo was The Blind Owl Band. The four piece outfit is new to the scene, but not new to eclectic sounds, traditional instrumentation and influences of some more obscure bands in the business.  Geographically in the music world, location can often define a band.  Hailing from Saranac Lake, these bearded boys have characterized their sound as if they stood on top of their mountain reaching out their beat up instruments grabbing various concepts of music, holding it captive ultimately for a presentation unique to the scene.  On stage, they knocked the nit and grit right out of their strings.  Added vocal harmonies invite us to the darker realm, where we were lead through a journey of traditional roots, dirty jams and down right scary turns along the way.  Be brave and bold, these North Country boys can lighten it up a bit with Irish pub tunes as well.

    Surely, those meandering out on the street missed two great acts.  The energy inside was so alive you could reach out and hold on.  As was the rest of South Pearl Street, which was rather magical as if some music fairy sprinkled her dust and said, “enjoy.”