When .38 Special performed at Turning Stone’s Showroom on November 14, I remembered what made them great when their songs aired on the radio in the 1980’s. Their heartfelt lyrics powered by strong vocals on top of plain-old, good-quality Southern style rock is pretty much the definition of .38 Special. No surprises there – they lived up to expectations.
What was surprising was the energy that went into their performance. .38 Special was formed the same year I was born. So, when I see performers who were in their peak when I was an infant, I’m pretty impressed when they rock it out. These guys took very few breaks all night, and the music may have stopped two or three times at most during their set. The sound simply rolled, Southern style, from one song to another.
The other impressive thing was that these guys were happy on stage. More than once I saw a look of ecstasy on Don Barnes’ face during a particularly intense guitar riff. All the members of the band seemed to enjoy themselves; they offered genuine smiles to each other while performing and attempted sincere connections with the crowd. It was clear that the members of .38 Special were at home, at peace, and totally content on stage.
Although they are currently (and likely permanently) performing without founding member Donnie Van Zant, I still felt that their music was very much together: the band worked well off each other. True to Southern Rock, the lack of competing instruments and vocals makes everything just flow together.
As usual, the Showroom’s classy atmosphere allowed for great seating with a good view of the stage. This venue can handle a wide variety of performances, and while I love dramatic performances, what was refreshing about .38 Special was that their show was all about the music. I suppose that is what has kept this group together for 40 years.
Syracuse was the last stop on Pop Evil’s most recent tour, which ended on Sunday, November 24.
95X turned the band’s final show into an all-day event that began with a private acoustic performance and finished with Pop Evil’s grand finale after a four-band rock show.
Pop Evil’s lead, Leigh Kakaty, and guitarist, Nick Fuelling, arrived at Revolutions (Destiny USA) to meet, greet, and perform for a small group of lucky contest winners. 95X awarded 10 winners (plus their guests) the opportunity to watch Kakaty and Fuelling perform a couple acoustic songs. The quiet performance of “Torn to Pieces” and “Monster You Made” were enhanced by some light commentary. Leigh explained that he wrote “Torn to Pieces” after the death of his father. It was not intended to become a Pop Evil song, but according to Kakaty, the band was so supportive of it that they included it on their newest album, Onyx, and are now regularly performing it. Kakaty encouraged the small group to sing along to “Monster You Made”, from the 2010 album, War of Angels, sharing that it’s “amazing to see fans singing your songs back to you.”
Kakaty and Fuelling accepted some questions from the group before food was served — and, given that it was football Sunday — most of the talk turned to sports. Kakaty referred to Sundays at home as “Michigan blue-collar brutality” because Detroit Lions fans have had to repeatedly endure constant losses.
After Kakaty and Fuelling left the stage they socialized and had photos taken with the guests. The private affair culminated with a bowling match between the band members and the ultimate contest winner.
After bowling, we sat down with Joshua “Chachi Riot” Marunde, Pop Evil’s energetic drummer, he is reminiscent of the famous Muppet drummer, Animal. Marunde has contributed a lot to the band’s stage presence and attraction. It was Chachi’s “insane” drumming that kept my focus on the band at Rock on the Range back in May (2013). Unlike many other drummers, Chachi is not content sitting in the background. He is actively involved in the entire performance. He prefers to stand while drumming and only sits when he has to use his feet to work. He hammers his head as forcefully as he beats the drums, makes gestures, and (even though he doesn’t have a mic) sings along to every song. His madness is intoxicating and while all the members of Pop Evil are energetic performers, Chachi is a RIOT to watch. Needless to say, I was eager to meet him. In addition to being very down to earth, he is also very articulate and super motivated. He shared with us that the band is a very tight unit, working really hard to “make it” in the rock ‘n roll scene. Their hard work is paying off though; when “Trenches” hit #1 on the Rock Charts in June (2013) while they were touring in Nebraska, the band tour manager, Chris Iteen, suggested the band take an uncharacteristic break and celebrate with a night of karaoke. Upstate Metal asked about Pop Evil’s future and Chachi was about bursting at the seams because of their 2014 plans, but couldn’t share (yet). Instead, he encouraged us to keep a close eye out for an upcoming announcement.
<Since the interview last week we found out the big news is an upcoming tour with Stone Sour.>
After leaving Chachi and the rest of Pop Evil to get ready for their show, we went to The Westcott Theater near Syracuse University. Built in 1919 as a cinema, The Westcott was retrofitted into a live music venue in 2008. The small venue hosted four bands, starting with local band, Pacinello , followed by The Letter Black, then Eve To Adam and finally Black Oxygen before Pop Evil took the stage around 10:30.
Despite the “late” hour on a snowy Sunday, the crowd was pumped up and ready to take in the Pop Evil experience. The fans who had been spread throughout the venue crunched in to the stage to get a closer look when PopEvil opened with “Deal with the Devil”, currently playing on Sirius’s Octane and local rock stations like 95X. I loved their clean and simple stage set, which allowed us to focus on the performers (I especially loved that that drum kit was elevated to get a better view of Chachi Riot’s raving performance). Next up on the set list was the song that sold me in Ohio, “Hero”, then 12 more songs before they rejuvenated the group with a partial cover of Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger”.
You might have expected after a long tour for the band to drag a little. Not Pop Evil. They gave the same energy and quality to the couple hundred at the Westcott in late November as they did to tens of thousands at Rock on the Range in May. The band has often said that their songs are meant to send a message to their fans; one of inspiration. Many of their songs deal with loss, failure and (here’s the message) working hard to overcome adversity. Their final song, “Trenches”, speaks to just that, and Pop Evil gave it everything they had. The band left the stage expressing gratitude to 95X for supporting them, and to the fans for being a part of the tour’s last show.
After their short 10 day break, Pop Evil will pick up the pace once again with at least 11 shows scheduled in the Midwest in December.
Set List: Deal with the Devil, Hero, Flawed, Somebody Like You, 100 in a 55, Torn to Pieces, Goodbye My Friend, Sick Sense, Boss’s Daughter, Divide, Behind Closed Doors, Monster You Made, Last Man Standing, partial cover of Eye of the Tiger, and Trenches
When Turning Stone announced that Pat Benatar was going to be in the Showroom in November, it was a guaranteed sold-out show. The nearly yearly run through Upstate New York brought out droves of short-haired pixie cut women reliving their rebellious younger years through the musician that gave them the power to tell the world that collectively, “We Belong”.
Pat Benatar and her husband (and business partner) for nearly 35 years, Neil “Spider” Giraldo, rocked the showroom despite being very sick. Pat took short breaks to head toward the back of the stage to get a drink or clear her throat. In the spotlight though you could barely tell that the legend was under the weather. She gave it her all and the crowd was more than pleased.
When Neil and Pat invited the crowd to ask questions, it gave Pat an opportunity to rest her voice as Spider answered most of the questions. From there she belted out some of her biggest hits, “We Belong” and the anti-child abuse anthem “Hell is for Children”. With being sick, the crowd seemed surprised and so pleased that Pat did the whole set and didn’t cut anything short. Amazing energy and a promise to return next year for a special 35th Anniversary tour – who could ask for anything more?
Setlist: All Fired Up, Invincible, So Sincere, If You Think You Know How to Love Me (Smokie cover), River of Love, Promises in the Dark, Q&A, We Belong, Hell Is for Children, You Better Run, Hit Me with Your Best Shot, Love Is a Battlefield, Everybody Lay Down, Let’s Stay Together, Heartbreaker / Ring of Fire
Listening to Lucky33 is like a day at the California beach. Sun shining, the salty sea breeze hitting you in the face, bombing down the concrete half-pipe and your hair whipping behind you. Lucky33 is a four-piece punk band that hails from central New York, calling both Syracuse and Oswego home. They advertise a blend of old-school punk with an indie feel to create “our distinct sound.” Upstate Metal’s own Steve Strader recently had the honor of chatting with the band’s bassist, Jared “Red”.
So how long have you cats been around?
“After a few line up changes, L33 as it is today has been together since April of 2011.”
Any side projects or past projects?
“Duff (lead guitarist) does all kinds of acoustic covers and posts them on YouTube and Facebook. One of his most popular ones is a Drake song. (Laughs). I’ve played in a bunch of bands. I’m much older than the other guys in the band. I started out in the ska/punk band Ill Nature, then the funkcore band Lost Soul Division in the ’90s and early 2000s. After that, I played in the metal band Adiel and most recently – before L33 – Damaged In Transit. While I was in DIT, I met Dustin while playing a show together at the Lost Horizon. He was in The Black Lockets. I eventually joined TBL while still in DIT, while they looked for a full time bass player. Shortly after that, Dustin left the Lockets and I left DIT. Dustin, Duff and Kyle all went to school together. They had started Lucky33 and I joined shortly after that.
So what band is your favorite?
“By far mine is L33, and I know the other guys agree! I’ve never been in a band with guys like this! We have great chemistry and energy. We get along great and we’re best buds outside of the band. The song writing is very easy and comes quick. Usually Duff writes something on the acoustic and brings it to us and we go from there. That kid can write a catchy song! After playing for over 15 years, I’m enjoying playing more than I ever have.”
How’s the pro-bono new logo coming along?
“(Laughs.) We got a few people making some. I was only half serious, [I did it} more to get people conversing with us.”
How’s the Guitar Center “Get Out of the Garage” contest coming along?
“It ended a while back, did it to get more exposure basically.”
If L33 were to be sponsored by a guitar company who would it be?
“Gibson, hands down.”
Anything coming out of the L33 compound we should be looking forward to?
“We’re going to start recording a full length [album] this winter, so keep a look out for that! Hopefully some merch, once the logo is done. We’re gonna hit up the guys in SRT to do the shirts. Tons of shows for the New Year, I’d like to do a split EP with our bro’s in High Dive Horse.”
Any last words?
“You rock Stevo! Thanks for the interview and the support. See you in January for the Entropy show.”
For more information on the band, go visit their Facebook account.
The lights gracefully brighten the stage and the audience finds themselves looking at colorful scarves draped across the microphone. It was only last fall that this Brooklyn based band played a sold-out show here in Syracuse and tonight, the Westcott Theatre is packed with a returning jubilant crowd gathered to see one of their favorite jam bands play. To the right is a middle-aged woman in a wheelchair, circling around in anticipation as singer Kalmia Traver aligns her saxophone carefully next to the mic. To the left are a red plastic cup holding college students chanting, “Rubblebucket” repeatedly. It is evident this band appeals to more than just one social scene. Armed with their wide pallet of instruments, the eight-member band takes on the stage like a stirring of galloping ponies, ready to show the town how to have a good time.
The band opens with “Bikes”, which brings back the tootsie-rolling, toe tinkling feeling of the early Free Design records. Traver showers the crowd with glitter and pulls out crowd pleaser after crowd pleaser from her setlist. In the middle of the band’s performance of “L’homme”, she casually pulls off the bright yellow scarf from around her painted face, to reveal a clean-shaven head, with a heart shaped buzz cut in the center that she dyed red. One can leave it up to Traver to even turn her recovery from ovarian cancer into a fashion statement. Traver, who had to cancel her summer shows because of her sickness, seems to have emerged even better than before. Her humming-to-the-flowers melody in “Silly Fathers” makes that apparent.
By the end of the night, everyone left the show a little worn out from all the “silly” dancing encouraged by the band, but the huge smiles plastered on their faces said that the experience was worthwhile, even if that meant showing up to work a little hung-over the next morning.
Buffalo’s groove rock champions Aqueous announced their winter dates today as the tour will kick off with two Upstate shows in Rochester (Dub Land Underground) and Buffalo (Nietzsche’s) before heading west for the band’s first headlining event in Chicago. New Years will be celebrated at Erie, PA’s top music venue the crooked i and, according to the buzz on the street, will be an affair you won’t want to miss. Upstate gets a few more visits in January on the 3rd in Syracuse (The Lost Horizon) and the 24th at Balloons in Ellicottville.
February features the bands first ever residency at their home base venue Nietzsche’s. Every Wednesday Aqueous will perform with a special top tier guest band which will, no doubt, have plenty of surprises given this is one of the bands favorite places to play.
For the full tour list and info on openers, starting times and ticket prices, check the bands tour page.
Few bands can maintain the longevity that Chicago has over the last 44 years and can still pack the house as they did November 5th at The Stanley Center for the Performing Arts in Utica along with the Utica Symphony Orchestra. It’s amazing how this band has stood the test of time and persevered in the beginning through tumultuous times that revolved around war, peace, equal rights, and continued throughout the next few decades evolving as artists and still connecting with audiences through generations to come. It is their innate ability to transcend us to a specific time and place the moment we hear them. Few bands have the ability to say they accomplished this throughout several generations.
This comes as no surprise though as their background outlines how cutting edge and unique that have always been. In 1969 a group of talented young men had a vision for music to combine rock and roll, swing, and jazz in a way that showcased these genres in a new edgy way. Radio did not know how to market them as their sound was so unique and different, It didn’t fit into any one genre; so airtime was limited. Still this didn’t hinder the group in continuing to write, record, and perform and soon an underground college scene had embraced them as the next best thing on the music scene. Even more unique was their first album debuted as a double album, due to the abundance of music they had to share. Even the graphics on each album indicate their continuance for quality and uniqueness, featuring their logo in new and different ways.
For Chicago is was always the music that was the focus. In the years following, Chicago continued to tour and record more than 34 award willing albums. Their sound as distinct as it is, evolved with the times and their flexibility and ability to remain creative has endured like few other bands have. Even through difficult times and loss of bandmates, this band continues forward, and to this date records and performs like no other. It is the individual talent that each member brings to the table, that makes this band work. They are truly great as a “whole” because of the sum of their talented parts.
James Pankow
It is under this umbrella that Munson Williams Proctor qualifies Chicago as “Great Artists”. For over 70 years, Proctor has brought the Central New York region the most talented artists in their Great Artist Series. Chicago exemplifies this designation. Founding band members Robert Lamm, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow,, and Ray Hermann still see the vision of what they began, and new members Tris Imboden, Lou Pardini, Keith Howland, and Walfredo Reyes, Jr. continue to follow suit and bring audiences to their feet with favorites such “Saturday In the Park”, “25 or 6 to 4”, “Beginnings”, and/or “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is”. The magic however is their ability to reach audiences of multi-generations with both favorites and new music. In the studio recording, even while touring is not out of the norm for these talented musicians. However, pairing them with the Utica Symphony Orchestra definitely put an already amazing performance over the top and raised the bar for all over venues to follow during their 2013 tour.
Lee Loughnane, Walt Parazaider, James Pankow
Forty Four years is a long time to continue in any field of work. However, you can tell while experiencing their live show that to them this is not work. Their energy and love of what they do is apparent and infectious. Audiences worldwide thank you for sharing this love and your uniqueness for generations past and future. Central New York thanks you for joining forces with our very own Utica Symphony Orchestra to provide the most memorable performance ever.
The Fourth Annual Glamour Kills Tour with headliner Mayday Parade, along with Cartel, Man Overboard, and Stages and Stereo played to a sold out crowd this Thursday in Syracuse.
The night kicked off with Florida rockers, Stages and Stereo. After reading their story, I was eagerly anticipating their performance, and to say I was not disappointed is an understatement. Lead vocalist, Daniel Lancaster’s boundless energy and incredible stage presence easily won the audience over. Singing their hit “Small Town Favorites”, these guys make you feel like they could be your neighbors, people you have known all your life. Stages and Stereo was the perfect band to begin an exciting night of music. I have a feeling we willl be hearing a lot more from them.
Next up was Georgia natives Cartel, touring in support of their new album, Collider. The band kept the show energetic, playing songs like their hit “Honestly”. These guys have been together for ten years with four full lengths and two EPs. Cartel delivered a tight performance; they are a band who has truly found their groove.
Next was Man Overboard from New Jersey. They performed with a lot of passion. Although, it seemed that it took them a few songs to find their groove. By the end of their set they had pulled together and had the crowd rocking.
Finally comes the moment we had been waiting for. The crowd comes alive and begins to chant. Mayday Parade takes the stage and makes it their own. They begin their set with the first single, “Ghosts” of their latest album, Monsters in the Closet. The performance continues with a mixture of old and new songs, keeping the crowd engaged the entire time. Lead vocalist Derek Sanders is not only incredibly talented, but also inspiring, as he stops for a brief moment to talk to his fans about life and love.
Then the best part of the entire night comes when Mayday slows things down. The lights dim and Derek Sanders and drummer, Jake Bundrick, sit down and begin singing their hit “Miserable at Best”. Immediately the crowd begins to sing along, creating an intimate and memorable moment between the band and their adoring fans. They close their set with, “Three Cheers for Five Years” from their first album.
These guys put on an amazing show. I would recommend that anyone who gets the chance, to catch the Glamour Kills Tour before it ends this year. It was definitely a night to remember.
All That Remainsis set to bring their heavy melodic metal-core sound back to the Capital Region on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013 at the Westcott Theater in Syracuse, N.Y., and Sunday, Dec. 15, 2013 at Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton Park, N.Y.
Opening for the show at both venues will be hard alternative post grunge rockers Soil.
All That Remains:
From Springfield, Massachusetts, Philip Labonte (vocals), Mike Martin (guitar), Oli Herbert (Guitar), Jeanne Sagen (bass), Jason Costa (drums). Formed in 1998, ATR has recorded 6 studio albums and 1 live album, in their 15 year history including Behind Silence and Solitude (2002), This Darkened Heart (2004), The Fall of Ideals ( 2006), Overcome (2008), For We Are Many (2010) and current album A War YouCannotWin (2012).
Soil:
From Chicago, Illinois, Ryan McCombs (vocals), Tim King (bass), Adam Zadel (guitar). Formed in 1997, Soil has recorded 6 studio albums in their 16 year history including Throttle Junkies (1999), Scars (2001), Redefine (2004), True Self (2006), Picture Perfect ( 2009) and current album Whole (2013).
Original vocalist Ryan McCombs is back with Soil to make the original line-up complete. McCombs left the band in 2004 to be with his family and resurfaced in 2005 as lead vocalist for Drowning Pool.
New York City’s Tauk and Buffalo’s Aqueous (TAUQ?) have a problem. The bands had teamed up for the second time of their seven appearances together this fall only to discover, that not one, but BOTH band’s vans are under duress. Luckily, after some quick warranty work, the Tauk-mobile was back in action, and in true musical brotherhood form, they escorted the Aqueous boys on time to Ithaca for their dual show at Lot 10 on October 25th.
The venue is new to the Ithaca scene and sits conveniently off the downtown Commons area on South Cayuga Street. Composed of a lower lounge area that features DJs and couches and an upper area with a bar and stage, it’s certainly a welcome addition to a city that has struggled to find a central place for musical gathering since the 2012 closing of Castaways.
Tauk kicked things off around 10:30 with their self described brand of rock fusion. Sounding like a prog-ified MMW with shades of Zappa and King Crimson thrown in, the bands buzz is well deserved. Virtual soundscapes abound between shifting rock-based tension and smooth jazzy ambiance throughout the set. The mostly instrumental songs enveloped the amassing crowd of Gorge-us Ithacans who appreciatively hollered for more. And more they were given in the form of a top notch outro cover of, in this reporters opinion anyway, the BEST Beatles song ever, “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”.
Buffalo’s groove rock powerhouse Aqueous was up next, taking the stage shortly after midnight to a relatively packed house given the cold Southern Tier evening. Having hit the area heavily over the past few years, the band has gathered a local fan base who danced their asses off for seemingly every note of the set. Amongst the set of excellent original material the band still found time for a quick jam on P Diddy’s “Bad Boy’s For Life” with Tauk’s drummer Isaac Teel happily offering up some vocal offerings. After a quick and delicious encore of Radiohead’s “Just”, both bands disappeared into the cool Finger Lakes night.
Fear not if you missed this excellent band duo, as Upstate NY has two more chances to see Tauk and Aqueous team up. This Friday, Rochester gets the love at The DubLand Underground. (18+ 7$ 10pm). Saturday they are off to the legendary Nietzsche’s in Buffalo. (21+ 7$ 9:30PM)
Check out Tauk’s newest single “Sunshine Harry” here.
