Category: Upcoming Shows

Alan Evans Trio play Syracuse, Buffalo and Albany, April 17th, 18th, 19th

Alan Evans Trio head to Upstate New York in mid-April for a trio of shows in Syracuse, Buffalo and Albany, April 17-19. The band, which features Alan Evans from the legendary soul jazz trio Soulive, brings their refined blend of rock, blues, R&B/soul and funk grooves that send the listener on a cosmic journey. Music fans of all types will be rewarded with an experience that embodies the record-producing, drum-playing Alan Evans’ personal musical vision.

Alan Evans Trio features Alan Evans on drums, Beau Sasser on organ and Danny Mayer on guitar. The tour continues to Buffalo, Albany and then head to North Carolina for four dates and closes with a date in Atlanta, GA.

Get tickets for the show here and visit The Westcott Theater’s website here for more information on upcoming shows in Syracuse! The Monk, a 5-piece band from Syracuse, NY will be opening the Westcott show, a dynamic group with a fusion of Funk, Rock, R&B/Soul, Latin, Hip-Hop and Dance music.

Tickets for the Buffalo and Albany shows can be picked up here.

Alan Evans Trio also performs at Rock n Roll Resort on April 13th in Kerhonksen, NY. You can check out more about the festival here.

March 26, 2013
Marco Benevento coming to the BSP Lounge in Kingston, March 30th

The BSP Lounge in Kingston has been stepping up their talent booking as of late and on March 30^th they bring a New York favorite to its stage, Marco Benevento. For those that have seen him before you know what to expect, but if you haven’t seen him before be prepared to be amazed. Known for his exploratory jamming and expertise on the piano, Marco is sure to leave you in awe. His latest album, Tigerface, has been getting rave reviews by many critics as has this tour in support. He has continuously grown as an artist over the years, adding in new elements to his shows and this tour is no different. This time, it isn’t new gadgets on top of his piano, but words to his songs. He has decided to open up his voice to expand his sound farther than he ever has before. This is one of his last scheduled dates in the area, happening after the snoe.down kick off on March 21^st and before his April 20^th show at the Brooklyn Bowl. Catch him while you can in these intimate settings and be prepared to get down and dance. Get tickets now at Eventbee or at The BSP Lounge box office.

March 25, 2013
Easter Weekend Funk-Warriors: Turkuaz

Brooklyn based Turkuaz has a funk-filled weekend coming up and will be on the scene at both shows. The band started in Boston in 2008 as a side project of Dave Brandwein (guitar/vocals) and Taylor Shell (bass). They spent about eight months in the Boston area before migrating as a whole to NYC. Their self-described “funk army” approach is well chosen, as the ten-piece could certainly take over several small countries with their explosive all-encompassing funk spectacle brand of performing.

First up is a show Friday, March 29th at The Water Street Music Hall with one of Rochester New York’s finest; Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad. Panda has collected quite the following for their jammed out form of roots reggae and will be in full throw down mode with this show being the last with long time keys-master Aaron Lipp.

Next the Turkuaz funk battalion moves north to jam mecca Nectar’s in Burlington Vermont to play with Buffalo, New York’s finest genre-shifting musical experience, Aqueous. Aqueous has been touring heavy this year in support of their new album Willy is 40 and gathering their own legion of “AQuaintances”.

hopes to see lots of smiling faces and dancing feet at these shows, and to let you in on a secret a little bird told us – the entire band will be decked out in their finest colored jumpsuits for the Rochester show so feel free to join the platoon and suit-up for your night of funk boot camp.

March 25, 2013
B.B. King to celebrate The Massry Center for the Arts’ 5th Anniversary on Sunday April 14th

The world’s greatest blues artist in the Capital Region’s most intimate concert venue. It doesn’t get any better that that. The College of Saint Rose will proudly celebrate the fifth anniversary of its acclaimed Massry Center for the Arts with an exclusive benefit performance by the legendary B.B. King. The sold-out black-tie gala will take place Sunday, April 14, in the Kathleen McManus Picotte Recital Hall, Massry Center for the Arts, on the Saint Rose campus. Co-chairing the gala planning committee are Julie Massry Knox and Murray C. Massry, with Tri-City Rentals the gala’s presenting sponsor.

For six decades, there has been only one King of the Blues: Riley B. King, affectionately known as B.B. King. Since King started recording in the late 1940s, he has released more than 60 albums, many of them considered blues classics. Over the years, King has developed one of the world’s most readily identified guitar styles. He borrowed from Lonnie Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, T-Bone Walker and others, integrating his precise vocal-like string bends and his left hand vibrato, both of which have become indispensable components of a rock guitarist’s vocabulary. His economy, his every-note-counts phrasing, has been a model for thousands of players such as Eric Clapton, Mike Bloomfield, Albert Collins, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, Jimi Hendrix, Otis Rush, Johnny Winter and Albert King.

King has mixed traditional blues, jazz, swing, mainstream pop and jump into a unique sound. His singing is richly melodic, both vocally and in the “singing” that comes from Lucille, the name he has given to each of his guitars since the mid-1950s. In King’s words, “When I sing, I play in my mind; the minute I stop singing orally, I start to sing by playing Lucille. I’m trying to get people to see that we are our brother’s keeper, I still work on it. Red, white, black, brown, yellow, rich, poor, we all have the blues.”

For more about B.B. King, visit www.bbking.com and www.bbkingfanclub.net.

The Massry Center for the Arts opened in 2008 and features the 400-seat Kathleen McManus Picotte Recital Hall, Esther Massry Art Gallery, choral and instrument rehearsal rooms, teaching studios, piano labs and classrooms, and played host to dozens of musical legends in it’s short lifespan. The $14 million, 46,000 square-foot gem is certified LEED Gold, ranking it among the Capital Region’s most energy-efficient and Earth-friendly buildings.

March 20, 2013
Preview: IN THIS MOMENT with LOVE AND DEATH, ALL HAIL THE YETI, and OWL

After their tour in the UK with Grammy-winning band, Halestorm, In This Moment is performing at the Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton Park, NY on March 30. This will be the band’s first time performing at the venue since before the release of their new record, Blood. Opening for them is Love and Death, All Hail the Yeti, and Owl. This promises to be a killer show filled with high energy, excitement, and the familiar soothing sound of metal screaming.

IN THIS MOMENT:

After the successful release of their fourth record, Blood, In This Moment began touring throughout the west coast as well as Australia with Adelitas Way. Known for her chilling death-metal scream, Maria Brink will most certainly give the onlookers the chills and excitement they’ve all been waiting for. Her voice will be haunting our dreams for the rest of the evening after giving a kick-ass performance. Band members consist of Chris Howorth (lead guitar), Travis Johnson (bass), Randy Weitzel (guitar), and Tom Hane (drums). This will be the main event that everyone will be buzzing about after ITM’s performance.

LOVE AND DEATH:

Korn’s ex-guitarist, Brian “Head” Welch, formed this hard rock band in February 2012 with a familiar metal twist. According to Welch, the band title “symbolizes everything we’ve been through as a band over the last few years. We love this band so much and we’ll go through hell to connect with our fans.” In 2009, Welch held band tryouts through YouTube, finally resulting with JR Bareis (lead guitar), Michael Valentine (bass), and Dan Johnson (drums). Love and Death signed with the label Tooth and Nails Record/EMI, and they are touring to support their debut record, Between Here & Lost, which was released January 22 of this year. This band is most definitely ready to share their new material with the ever-adoring fans.

ALL HAIL THE YETI:

This is the band that has forsaken their hometown to become something more, to revive metal. Lead vocalist Connor Garritty formed the band in 2006 with ex-guitarist K.J. Duval. After 2010, this band was no longer just a “local” band, they had transformed into something bigger. Garritty took action instead of waiting for the music industry to notice their success in music, and began recording their full-length debut record. Current band members, Nicholas Diltz (bass) and Craw NeQuent (guitar), joined the group in 2011. August 28, 2012, the band released their self-titled debut record. When asked to describe what AHTY’s sound was like, Connor described it as “capturing how it makes each individual feel…our songs touch on topics of death, life, love, love lost, the paranormal, crypto zoology, mythical creatures, partying, etc.” Fans look forward to what the band has in store for us.

OWL:

A band that strives to find the answer to an intriguing question: “Are we doing the right thing?” Through the music, the band has nothing to worry about because of their beneficial amount of experimentation and instrumental obscurity, as well as remarkable hooks and exciting delivery. Band members consist of Chris Wyse (lead vocals and bass), Jason Achilles Mezilis (guitar and vocals), and Dan Dinsmore (drums). After the 2009 release of their self-titled debut record, Wyse promises that the second one will be “more engaging and exhilarating on various levels.” Fans may either be haters or lovers of this band; it will be up to them to decide once Saturday night arrives.

With the diversity of sounds that will surround the venue, this concert has just what we need: the energy to rock out!

March 15, 2013
An Interview with Ralph Castelli of RAIN – A Tribute to the Beatles

RAIN – A Tribute to the Beatles will be playing at the Palace Theater on March 18th. I recently spoke with Ralph Castelli, who has played Ringo Starr for nearly 30 years in the Broadway production. Tickets are available at The Palace box office.

Tom Miller: Hi Ralph. Can you tell our readers what they can expect to see next week at the RAIN – A Tribute to the Beatles show?

Ralph Castelli: Sure. The show is obviously a show about the Beatles. It’s a live concert with a theatrical element to it. What I mean by that is it’s a multimedia extravaganza which is a time capsule that takes the viewer all the way back to the early 60’s. As the curtain opens, the viewer will see the complete set of the Ed Sullivan stage where the Beatles performed on that famous evening in February 1964. Then we move forward chronologically, showing more videos of events going on at the time, many costume changes, different stage sets which resemble Beatles album covers, and of course more Beatles music. We continue forward through the Sgt Pepper’s era, which of course is very colorful with the whole “flower power” movement, and our hair is getting longer (laughing) and our sideburns are getting bushier. Then we get into Abbey Road which takes us to the end of the show.

TM: That really sounds amazing! Do you have a favorite era or part of the show?

RC: Well, every two years or so we re-vamp the show so this is a new show for us. There’s a lot of new videos and a lot of new songs. Nearly 40% of the songs in this show are new for us. I think my favorite part of this show is the Sgt. Pepper’s era and I actually like everything from Sgt. Pepper’s to the end of the show. I really love it all. It’s hard to pick a section of their career that I like the most.

TM: How about playing it? Is any era more difficult than another?

RC: Yeah, definitely. When we get into the Sgt. Pepper’s album and All You Need is Love, there’s a fifth band member that comes out and plays with us. The only way we could perform these songs live was to have a fifth member. There’s a lot of intricate parts and over dubs that the Beatles used. “Strawberry Fields Forever”, for example, is very tricky ’cause of all the over dubs. You know, trying to get it all in the context of the song is tricky, but at the same time, it’s really fun. But the only way we can do it live is to have a fifth member.

TM: How long have you been with the production?

RC: I’ve been with RAIN for almost 30 years.

TM: Being with RAIN for so long, you must have a ton of interesting stories and experiences. Can you share a few that stand out?

RC: Oh, yeah! There’s a lot of great stories and interesting places and a lot of great people. Nothing really stands out right now but I do meet a lot of interesting people. That’s what stands out the most. A lot of those people share their stories with us, about when they saw the Beatles or even stories about meeting them. Those are the stories I enjoy hearing. Another great thing I enjoy is, sometimes when the curtain is raised, we can see two or even three generations of Beatles fans watching the show together. You know what I mean? You see the grandparents, and then the parents and their kids. It’s really something special when you think about it. There’s always a lot of kids, both teenagers and younger kids. And they all know the words to the songs!

TM: That actually brings me to my next question. Do you guys, the band, feel an obligation or responsibility to bridge the past to the present as far as keeping the Beatles experience and Beatles music alive? Especially to the younger generations?

RC: You know Tom, it just seems to happen that way. It just transcends that way. It’s a natural progression for our show. Touring the country or being on Broadway like we are now, it’s just natural that the experience and the music is introduced to younger generations. It’s not something we have to go out of our way to do. It just happens naturally. The kids are loving it as much as their parents and grandparents!

TM: That’s great news for everyone! And that leads me to my final question. With the “Beatles Generation” getting older and ultimately fewer and fewer, where do you see the future of RAIN?

RC: Well, we just had that discussion with the production agency and management not too long ago. We see the show going on for another 10, 15, or even 20 years. Especially on Broadway. There’s tons of Broadway shows that run for decades. I still think this show has a lot of life left in it. And we do it right, you know? We’re like Kentucky Fried Chicken (laughing), “we do Beatles right!”

TM: Ralph, it’s been great talking to you. I’m really looking forward to seeing you and seeing the show. Thank you.

March 13, 2013
Railroad Earth plays The Town Ballroom on March 14th

Railroad Earth heads to Buffalo on Thursday, March 14th to The Town Ballroom. The New Jersey based band brings a dance-inspiring combination of Acoustic rock and Americana wherever they go and the result has been a large following that finds the band at home nearly anyplace they play.

Railroad Earth is Todd Sheaffer on guitar, Tim Carbone on violin, John Skehan on mandolin, Andy Goessling on banjo, dobro and a variety of instruments, Carey Harmon on drums and Andrew Altman on upright bass. They continue their tour to Pittsburgh and Philadelphia after Buffalo, then move out to San Francisco for three nights at The Fillmore.

Get tickets for tomorrow nights show here and visit The Town Ballroom’s website for more great shows in Buffalo!

March 13, 2013
Phish Announces Summer 2013 Tour Dates Just in the Nick of Time, will play SPAC July 5-7

Well ladies and gentlemen, your prayers have been answered. The long waited Phish Summer Tour 2013 dates have been released just before we all lost our minds, and just in their phashion, in the most creative way possible.

Much like our dearest Phish, most of us had begin to feel that these dates would never be released and our Summer tour schedules would be seriously lacking. As usual, message boards and Facebook feeds began filling up instantaneously with the rejoice over the long anticipated dates. The tour will start off in Maine on July 3rd, stop at Saratoga Performing Arts Center from July 5th-7th and end in Colorado with another three-night run at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, August 30-September 1 . More dates for the fall will most likely be announced soon.

The ticketing window for requesting tickets to the first leg of tour is already open. Make sure you put your requests in before Monday, March 12th at 11:59 AM.

7/3 Darling’s Waterfront Pavilion, Bangor, ME
7/5 Saratoga Springs Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
7/6 Saratoga Springs Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
7/7 Saratoga Springs Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY
7/9 Molson Amphitheatre, Toronto, ONT
7/10 P.N.C. Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
7/12 Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach, Wantaugh, NY
7/13 Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD
7/14 Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD
7/16 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Alphraretta, GA
7/17 Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, Alphraretta, GA
7/19 Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, IL
7/20 Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, IL
7/21 Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island, Chicago, IL
7/26 The Gorge Amphitheatre, George, WA
7/27 The Gorge Amphitheatre, George, WA
7/30 Harvey’s Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena, Stateline, NV
7/31 Harvey’s Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena, Stateline, NV
8/2 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/3 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/4 Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco, CA
8/5 Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, CA
8/30 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO
8/31 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO
9/1 Dick’s Sporting Goods Park, Commerce City, CO

See you on tour! Check out our coverage from last year’s three-night run at SPAC.

March 12, 2013
Kung Fu head to The Chance in Poughkeepsie on March 15th

Coming to The Chance on March 15 is a great lineup of music for those who like to keep dancing all night long. Kung Fu, coming off an impressive winter tour that saw high praise from many people, lead the way with their unique style of funk.

They are no stranger to The North East and those who come should be looking forward to their long jams that are going to make you want to keep moving all night once they hit the stage. Opening for them are The McLovins, another band who is no stranger to the North East. Be ready to watch all of their impressive segues that will keep you guessing what is coming up next. Supporting both bands are MAZMYTH and Steve Broderick.

Tickets are available now at The Chance’s box office or through Ticket Fly. The doors open at 7:30 P.M. and the show starts at 8:30 P.M.

March 11, 2013
Snoe.down releases schedule for music and sports festival for March 22nd-24th

Snoe.down has released their weekend schedule for the all ages Music and Sports Festival being held in Killington Resort in Killington, and Spartan Arena in neighboring Rutland, Vermont on March 22^nd – 24^th.

Concert goers will have the opportunity to choose between two different lodges on Friday the 22^nd, all while enjoying great music and the scenery. Located at the bottom of Killington, the snoe.shed lodge will host progressive string band Floodwood and electro-rock band Jimkata, whereas further up the mountain, the K1 lodge will host, Brooklyn-based jazz/funk/pop quartet, Tauk and Brasstronica quintet, The Primate Fiasco. From my first snoe.down experience, it was surreal to be inside the lodge, dancing to music while watching snowboarders and skiers hurl down the mountain side.

Saturday afternoon guests get a treat of a show from Upstate bluegrass rockers Eastbound Jesus and moe. on the Bear Mountain outdoor stage, located on the other side of Killington. It’s remarkable to hear the music echo off the mountains and to have more than enough space to groove in. Another perk of the performances outside is for the winter sports fans, who after a great run down are rewarded with music at the bottom of the hill.

For Friday and Saturday evening, the venue is located at the Spartan Arena in Rutland, Vermont, a 30 minute drive down the road from Killington. This venue reminds me much of the Washington Armory in Albany, NY, given its wide open space, wooden floors and surrounding bench seating. There will be a private viewing section for VIPs as well as an under 21 viewing area behind the sound board and the right side bleachers. Doors open both nights at 6pm with New Orleans funk band Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk performing on Friday and the reunion of Vermont’s Strangefolk on Saturday. Both evenings will feature moe. scheduled to start at 9pm.

Sunday concludes the winter fun weekend for VIP ticket holders at the Wobbly barn for a brunch with an acoustic performance by moe. Plus a special performance by Sonic birds contest winners, The Mallet Brothers Band, at 1:30pm at the K1 Lodge.

FRIDAY

K1 Lodge: Tauk (12:30-2:00pm)

K1 Lodge: The Primate Fiasco (3:30-5:00pm)

Snoe.Shed Lodge: Floodwood (12:30-2:00pm)

Snoe.Shed Lodge: Jimkata (3:30-5:00pm)

Spartan Arena: 6pm doors, Dumpstaphunk (7:00pm), moe. (9pm)

SATURDAY

Bear Mtn outdoor stage: Eastbound Jesus (Noon-12:45pm), moe. (1pm)

Spartan Arena: 6pm doors, Strangefolk (7:00pm), moe. (9pm)

SUNDAY

Wobbly Barn: VIP Brunch

K1 Lodge: Sonicbids Contest Winner – The Mallett Brothers Band (1:30pm-3:30pm)

Currently heading into its fifth season, snoe.down is one of the top winter music festivals to catch on the east coast. Taking place at Vermont’s most popular ski and snowboard resort, Killington offers festival goers a special Snoe.down Learn to Ski/Ride program. Fans can purchase reduced price lift tickets to Killington Resort with their Snoe.down ticket plus a variety of discounted lodging options. Weekend tickets are available as well as single day or for the serious concert goer, VIP. All tickets are on sale and available at FlynnTix box office in Burlington, VT or by phone at 802.863.5966. A portion of all ticket purchases are being donated to Vermont Adaptive, the only year round sports and recreation organization in the state empowering individuals with disabilities.

The Snoe.down VIP tickets include an official Snoe.down 2013 festival poster, private entrance and fast lane to both Spartan Arena shows on Friday and Saturday, admission to the Thursday night kickoff shows and more.

The weekend starts early on Thursday evening, March 24^th in Killington for the special, separately ticketed kick-off parties. The Wobbly Barn will host Marco Benevento with special guest Mike Pederson and the jam-heavy, Dead Sessions at the Pickle Barrel. Free admission is included in the VIP package for both shows.

It doesn’t hurt to have a copy of the Killington Trail Guide handy so that fans can easily locate all their favorite bands without missing a musical beat.

March 8, 2013