NYS Music 20​13

Tag: albany

  • Albany Gets Ready to MOVE This Saturday April 27th

    Albany will be overrun with music this Saturday April 27th as the city hosts 100 bands at 10 venues for the annual MOVE Music Festival.  A fairly new event, MOVE aims to highlight the growing music scene in Albany by giving musician’s exposure as well as insight on conducting themselves in today’s independent music industry.

    Albany was recently ranked within the top 20 Metro Areas in the Nation in regards to musicians and music related business, making it the ideal location for the MOVE Music Festival. Concert goers can purchase wrist bands for $15 at any of the participating venues, which grants them all access to every show that day. The musical genres vary from Indie, Americana, Alternative, Rock, EDM and Fusion, catering to Albany’s widespread taste in music.

    moveflyer

    Besides the musical acts, the festival will host a merchandise trade show and interactive round table sessions with music professionals at the Hotel Albany lodging and convention complex in downtown Albany. Artists will be given the opportunity to meet with various companies that will offer guidelines, strategies and vital information about furthering their music careers.

    Some of the VIPs for the meet and greet  are Lou Plaia, (Co-Founder of ReverbNation), Benji Rogers (the Founder of Pledge Music), Craig Sala (Drummer for Paranoid Social Club), Veronica Grettonfrom (401K Music) and many more.

    Hotel Albany will be offering $5 parking all day in their garage and the city has free street parking on the weekends. Albany also had a solid public transportation system with CDTA offering multiple routes that make stops at the various locations.

    With the weather scheduled to be sunny and 60s, it’s not a bad idea to even bike or walk, giving folks time to take in the sights and sounds of Albany.

  • Valentine’s: The Beer is Cold and the Sound is Good

    Every music lover remembers certain nights of great music with great friends: the gems that you reminisce about years and years later.  For me, more than a few of those times were at Valentine’s in Albany, NY.  It’s one of those places that things can get down and funky.

    Valentine'sTo be honest, it’s a hole in the wall.  But it’s a magic hole I love to escape to.  Have you ever pissed in a trough style urinal the same night as shaking Derek Trucks’s hand and then smoked a joint with Jimmy Herring?  Neither have I, but only because I don’t usually use the men’s room.

    Howard Glassman has been the owner and bartender of Valentine’s since 1998.  Before that he was the booking manager at Bogie’s in Albany, back when Bogie’s had acts like Guster, The Spin Doctors, Rusted Root, God Street Wine and the Ominous Seapods. When Bogie’s went in the direction of dance party music, Howard started working for Valentine’s; a year later he bought the joint.  Mike McGrath, the manager and bartender at Valentine’s, has his own background in booking live music in Albany at the old Lionheart location on Lark Street.

    Valentine'sOriginally called Papa’s Place, Valentine’s was owned by Karen Seeburg and her family.  Back then it was just a locals bar.  Enter Jeff Guthrie and Greg Bell, local Albany music promoters extraordinaire.  They caught wind of the tragically underused upstairs floor and convinced Karen to let them bring in a sound system and lighting rigs for a show once a week. In six months’ time, Greg and Jeff were bringing Karen bands every Friday, Saturday, Sunday and convinced her to allow them to set up a stage and a real sound system.  If you are familiar with hippie jambands in Upstate NY, you probably know The Deadbeats, a staple Grateful Dead cover band that have a Wednesday night residency in Albany. Greg Bell met the band in Saugerties back in 1994 and hired them for the bar and the rest is history.  Wednesday nights downstairs at Valentine’s has been an Albany tradition ever since and the party keeps going til 4 am.

    Valentine'sIn general, Valentine’s has a plethora of live music on both floors.  The downstairs caters to a smaller crowd/bands and is open for business as the main floor.  It has a pool table, some arcade games and a dart board.  Upstairs the bigger acts can fit.  I’ve seen moe. multiple times upstairs at Valentine’s.  When moe. wanted to play a random low key show, they’d advertise under the pseudonym “Monkeys on Ecstasy.” The first big show Greg brought to Valentine’s was The Weasels with Soul Asylum.  The first sold out show was Ominous Seapods with Moonboot Lover and Dr. Jah & the Love Prophets.

    I sat down with Howard to talk about the history of the venue, what makes Valentine’s such a special place and an Albany Live Music institution.

    Amy Fischer:  What are the pros of running a live music venue?

    Howard Glassman:  Live music!  I get to see live music.  I probably see more live music than anybody.  I’ve seen more music than reviewers, promoters…

    AF:  The good, the bad, and the ugly?

    HG:  Exactly!  That’s the great thing.  Oh and I get free beer.

    AF:  Do you feel like you are part of a community being a bar owner?

    HG:  I feel like this place is part of a community.  I think I am only a part of a community because I play in a band (Grainbelt), I book and I deejay, I do it all.

    AF:  What about the cons of running a live music venue?

    HG:  Dealing with bureaucracy, from all directions.  The city, radio stations, booking agents, record companies. Some people would think it’s the drunks but it’s not.  It’s not the customer.  The people that come here, they come for a reason – they come for the music.  The assholes are the ones that got dragged here by their friends and this ain’t their scene, so they’ll complain about anything, like the bathrooms that we’re all used to, they just don’t understand what we do here.  They’ll go online and rate us as being terrible because they think everything should be nice and clean.  (smirks) We’re a dive bar rock club, and our sound system is really good. The beer is cold and the sound is good.  That’s a priority for us.

    AF: (nods and smiles) “The beer is cold and the sound is good.  It’s a rock club dive bar.”

    Promoters lose money on shows all the time.  Are you better off because you are a bar owner? At least you make money on the drinks.  There are all types of music that comes here.  Do you wish that you didn’t have to bring music in that you think sucks?  If you know there will be a good crowd, you must feel you have to accommodate, knowing that people would come?

    HG:  Yeah, I learned a long time ago that you can’t book with your heart, you have to book with your head.  (pauses)  But sometimes I book with my heart, because I want to see a band and it’s cheaper for me to get them to come here to play, rather than go to NYC and pay gas and tolls. If I lose a couple hundred bucks, it will be worth it for me and for the 30 people who may come out and get their minds blown off.

    In this past year Albany has had a late night hurdle to jump over.  A “Cabaret License” has been trying to pass through the law books, requiring those under 21 to leave the establishment by 11 pm and amplified music to end by 2 am.  (Bars can legally serve until 4 am in Albany!!)  Many feared that this would further diminish the seemingly depleting visits of national acts to the area in recent years.  Albany has been a stop for Max Creek, Rufus Wainwright, Derek Trucks Band, John Scofield, Jorma Kaukonen, The Disco Biscuits, Robert Fripp with Trey Gunn and Adrian Belew, Roger McGuinn, Jeff Buckley, the Last Poets… but what tour manager would want to bring his band to a place where half their fans would be forced to leave halfway through their first set?  Luckily, Howard hasn’t been told to change anything since the bar’s hearing months ago and business continues as usual.

    The more inevitable fear seems to be the ever expanding Albany Medical Center.  The hospital has been making major renovations for a few years now and the construction workers are getting closer and closer.  And closer.  The run down housing in the neighborhood has slowly been bought out and bulldozed.

    AF:  Do you ever fear that you’ll have to shut down?

    HG:  You mean because Albany Med is eventually gonna buy the area here?  No, we’ll just buy another building.  What else am I gonna do?  (laughs)  I’m not qualified to do anything else.  This is it.

    AF:  Any last tips you’d like me to print?  How to get good service or anything?

    HG:  Don’t piss off the bartenders.  Have your money ready and if it’s packed don’t try to order a bunch of fruity shots or complicated drinks.

    AF:  (laughs) Anything else?

    HG:  Yeah, in the men’s room don’t stand too close to the trough when you take a piss –  stay six inches away or in the summer you’ll feel the splash on your shorts.

    I hope he remembered to tell Derek Trucks.

    Valentine’s is located at 17 New Scotland Avenue, Albany, NY

    Hours are 5 pm – close Tuesday thru Saturday; Sunday & Monday closed unless live music scheduled

    FYI – Valentine’s is a CASH ONLY BAR – no tabs, no credit cards accepted. There is an ATM on-site. Entry is 18 & over for most shows, otherwise 21+. Visit valentinesalbany.com for more info and their show calendar.

    Special thanks to Howard for this interview and profile on a great music venue.

  • The Bayou Cafe in Albany changes its name to The Hollow Bar + Kitchen

    The Bayou Cafe in Albany, NY recently announced on their FaceBook fan page that they were under new ownership and now open under the new name, The Hollow Bar + Kitchen. The post explained that the new owners were grateful for all that the previous owner had done for the local music scene, but that they were ready to take the business in a new direction.

    In addition to the name change the Hollow boasts of bringing well known local Chef Henry Ciccone on board to help develop the new menu. Patrons can also expect a room-by-room remodel of the space with a promise to the ladies for a much more pleasant Woman’s Bathroom!

    Don’t worry live music lovers the new vision most definitely will include delivering the sweet tunes of some of the best original and cover bands in the region that the Albany Bayou was known for. The new owners want everyone to know that although the name and menu are changing they want to build on what the Bayou was to so many in the Albany music scene.

    We look forward to bringing the space back to what it has been known for over the past 10 years. Great food, great beer and great music. ~ The Hollow Bar + Kitchen

    The Hollow Bar + Kitchen
    79 North Pearl Street
    Albany, New York 12207

    Hours
    Mon: 5:00 pm – 12:00 am
    Tue – Thu: 11:30 am – 12:00 am
    Fri: 11:30 am – 4:00 am
    Sat: 4:00 pm – 4:00 am

    Twitter: @thehollowalbany | FaceBook | http://bayoucafe.com | Ph: (518) 426-8550

  • The Big Up 2013 – August 8th-10th at a new home in Claverack, NY

    There was an immense amount of disappointment voiced when Shireworks Productions announced the one year hiatus of The Big Up festival in 2012. The mass letdown only fueled the excitement when they announced that they would be back Summer 2013. This year, however, the festival will be held in Claverack, NY which is just a quick 45 minutes from Albany.

    The time has come to start planning your summer festival schedule and it seems like The Big Up is at the top of many festie-goers list this year. The dates are Thursday August 8th – Saturday August 10th

    “Wow! Tickets are flying out the door!”, they posted just hours after tickets went on sale. The first string of artists released for the lineup include  Holy Fuck, Escort, the world premiere of Abakus live band, a DJ set from Chris Keating of Yeasayer, Jojo Mayer & Nerve, the host band Higher Organix, Kung Fu, Dopapod, Brothers Past, Normal Instruments and Party Supplies.  Their second announcement included Beats Antique,  GAUDI, The Egg , Kung Fu,  DrFameus, The Indobox , Consider The Source, Timbre Coup , lespecial, SOUNDUO, Greenhouse Lounge, Cosmic Dust Bunnies, Business Casual Disco,  Former Champions, Jeff Bujak, Blacklight Rukus,  Ian Stewart, The Edd, FiKus, King Holiday, Horizon Wireless, Speakerbot, Richard James & The Name Changers, Formula 5, Color Channel, ConnetICON, Interlopers, Galaxy Dynamite, Laser Sex, Hot Jambalaya, Mister F, Rizzo’s Dilemma, Stokeswood, The Blue Goddess, Aqueous, Spundose, Arpetrio, DJ Adam Amrod, Narkatta, ShwizZ , Sojourner, and SOLARiS..
    Phase three of the lineup announcement  unveiled a huge add on to the list of artists including AN-TEN-NAE, Orchard Lounge

    Kung Fu Prince Tribute set ft. The Motet’s Jans Ingber, Space Jesus Live, IMANGELES, Elephant Wrecking Ball, Jahman Brahman, Dynamo and Badnutbeats, Izahead, I Yahn I Arkestra, Operation Dankstar, Lost Optical, Beat Machine, Baam Bada, People’s Blues of Richmond and Jammin Toast
    Judging by the huge response from social media, if you are planning on getting tickets; buy them soon.

    Also follow The Big Up for more updates on Twitter and Facebook.

  • Camp Bisco 12: Back with a Vengeance

    It’s about that time of year again when the social media feeds fill with people’s excitement and let downs about their up coming festival season. Every year I find myself in a mad dash to acquire the funds to support my undying love for live music. It seems everyone is in agreement over this past week’s Camp Bisco 12 lineup release. The best thing about Camp Bisco is you never know what to expect. Within the past six or seven years of my own attendance I’ve been able to see such a wide spectrum of music acts all so close to home.

    The past years have included major acts such as Shpongle live, (including Simon Posford, Raja Ramm and the rest of their psychedelic entourage) LCD Soundystem, The Disco Biscuits (of course), Cut Copy, Thievery Corporation, Snoop Dogg (when he wasn’t quite a lion yet), Pretty Lights,  Sound Tribe Sector 9, The New Deal, Girl Talk, and many, many more. Over the past years we have seen Camp Bisco grow from the one stage local festival into a national phenomena attracting individuals from all across America for the longest weekend of their lives. It has been amazing to watch the growth of such an amazing festival over the past few years. This will be the twelfth Camp Bisco and the seventh of which will be hosted at the Indian Lookout Country Club in Mariaville, New York.

    Two weeks ago when the lineup was released the excitement slowly began to build, and will continue to do so until the day we all wait in line in the hot July sun to enter the world of Bisco. “126 days until Camp Bisco”- the banner reads, ticking down every second on CampBisco.net. This years lineup so far includes The Disco Biscuits, Bassnectar, Passion Pit, STS9, Animal Collective, Umphrey’s McGee, Flux Pavillion, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Lotus, Boys Noize, Wolfgang Gartner, Tommy Trash, Dillion Francis, UZ, Aeroplane, Alvin Risk, Audrey Napoleon, Baauer, Bear Mountain, Boombox, Break Science, Cherub, Chris Malinchak, Clockwork, Com Truise, Congorock, Cosby Sweater, Crizzly, Dan Deacon, Designer Drugs, Dirtyphonics (Live), El-P, Eskmo, Flosstradamus, Free Energy, Gigamesh, Govinda, Gramatik, Grandtheft, Green Lantern, HeRobust, Heroes x Villians, Indobox, Killer Mike, Koan Sound, Manic Focus, M | O | D, Nadis Warriors, Nick Thayer, Paper Diamond, Party Supplies, Popeska, Project 46, RL Grime, Rubblebucket, Ryan Hemsworth, The Werks, Toro y Moi, Twiddle, Vacationer, VHS or Beta, Wick-It the Instigator, and Zoogma.

    Second leg announcement includes Destroid (Feat. Excision, Downlink and KJ Sawka), Madeon, Danny Brown, Seven Lions, Digital Tape Machine, Bondax, Strip Steve, Moon boots, Perseus, Alpha Data, Autobody and The Manhattan Project. PLUS: Curated tents by Owsla Vs. BoyzNoise Records, French Express and ThisSongIsSick.Com

    Last years lineup included artists such as Bassnectar, Crystal Castles, Amon Tobin, Big Boi and Atmosphere. Just when you think that Camp Bisco cannot out do themselves, they do.

    If you would like to listen to some of the scheduled artists check out Baxstar’s playlist on soundcloud:
    https://soundcloud.com/soulryder-princess/sets/get-pumped-for-bisco-carla-d

    The latest announcements are centered around the highly speculated and exciting performance by Zeds Dead. The festival also welcomed LTJ Bukem, Destructo, Samo Sound Boy and Gravity A for the upcoming festival. The announcement also included the famous Camp Bisco ferris wheel, a Bisco Air Bag, yoga and hooping workshops, greening initiatives and a brand new Hammock Lounge by the Lake. This year there will be increased water stations, new showers and refresh stations with power outlets for all you folks who need to charge up those cellphones. New and exciting things are heading our way for this upcoming festival which is just a few short weeks away.

    Tickets are still on sale at Campbisco.net, stay tuned for more updates

  • Cinnamon Chasers, Digital Dharma and more energized Red Square in Albany on March 1st

    Red Square began filling up the moment the doors opened, with people from all over the Northeast eager to see the legend that is Russ Davies (Cinnamon Chasers). The night began with a bang as DJ duo PartyHorn took the front stage at Red Square spinning some classic disco remixes. The vocal samples were perfectly entwined with the light and whimsical beats these guys pumped out. Halfway through their set they busted out a fun rendition of Tina Turner’s “What’s Love Got to Do With It?” and the crowd couldn’t get enough. Partyhorn played in between every band to keep the energy high throughout the night.

    Organik Time Machine took the stage back with a funky blend of jamtronic beats with the accompaniment of a female singer. It is very rare to see a female singer heading a band, especially for more that just a few vocal samples. It was definitely refreshing to see something different done so well. Each song created its own energy and permeated throughout the Red Square. The light show these guys brought with them was absolutely phenomenal and only further bettered their already amazing set. From the front of the bar I heard the opening chords to the Sound Tribe Sector 9 song, “Ramone and Emiglio.” I can honestly say this is the first time in my life I have ever seen a band cover a STS9 song and I was pleasantly surprised to see them do it so well. Then it was Digital Dharma’s time to shine. I was greatly impressed by how far these guys have come since the last time I had seen them live. The amount of energy and passion these boys pour into their music is evident the moment they take stage. Steve Mink tore up the heavy bass lines while Jess Radosti threw out some guitar riffs that were reminiscent to that of Jon Barber from The Disco Biscuits. Elliot Kershner used the synth as a vehicle to carry each song and jam to further and further depths. It was seriously flooring to see how far these boys have come since they first took stage two years ago.

    At this point in the night Red Square was packed wall to wall and the excitement was eminent as Cinnamon Chasers got ready to take stage. Cinnamon Chasers is a side project of Abakus’ Russ Davies (son of legendary Dave Davies of The Kinks) infusing electronic and disco to make a master mix for a serious dance party. Cinnamon Chasers played well into the early hours of the morning with the high energy crowd doing their best to keep up. Some of the samples and remixes included Bill Withers’ “A Lovely Day” and The Clash’s “Rock the Casbah.” He also pulled out many song from his album Dreams and Machines, including “Flash gun,” “Hyper waves” and “Have I Said Something” . The entire set was filled with an outrageous amount of energy from both Davies and the crowd. For the encore he played “Night Walker” and “Diametric.” I left Red Square almost delusional from the exhaustion of dancing for five hours straight but needless to say, completely content. Truly an amazing show by all artists involved.

  • A new music venue for Albany? Yes please.

    Albany is a great town for great live music, and we have our share of venues all over the city and Capital District. But we are missing one venue – the one that fits in between the clubs of Red Square, Bayou and Putnam Den, and one that houses the larger acts like The Egg and The Palace. That gap leaves out the bands that can fill 400-900 fans into a venue, such as Railroad Earth, Umphrey’s McGee, and countless other acts that are missing their perfect sized room in the capital of New York.

    new music venue albany
    the front of the venue, for now

    Finally, someone has stepped up to the plate with a potential location for a new venue. Chris Pratt and Alessio Depoli, owners of both Pearl Street Pub and The Barrel Saloon on Broadway in North Albany are in the process of gaining a zoning variance for a warehouse at 28 Thatcher Street, just off Broadway near The Barrel, into a music venue.

    From the looks of it, the venue needs some work, but fear not, this venue is slated to hold local and national acts, country, rock, bluegrass and more styles. And since the club will only be open for shows, the hours wont stretch far beyond when the doors open and the end of the show, much like Revolution Hall was. (RIP) Even though the venue closes early, you’ll have Wolff’s Biergarten, Stout, The Barrel and Sciortino’s Pizzeria for post-show food and drinks. Capacity will be between 700-800 and have a full service bar inside.

    One word of caution – Sneaky Pete’s, the infamous club, was denied an application for this same property in 2010. That could be a sign of things to come, or lead to two proven business owners in Albany bringing the city what it truly needs, that music venue to fill the gaps and keep the great music coming to Albany.

    Update 3/7 – Support is needed on March 13th at 5:30 pm at City Hall in Albany for the Zoning Committee meeting that will determine the future of this potential venue. Come out and support live music in Albany and a couple of great businessmen looking to improve the downtown/warehouse area.

  • 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.

  • Trey Anastasio Band closes out Winter Tour at The Palace, January 26, 2013

    Trey Anastasio loves Albany – for evidence, take a look at his opening words to the sold out house at The Palace Theater in Albany on a frigid January 26, 2013. “Thank you guys, this is the … I just want to say how much it means to me whenever I come here … I have so many friends here tonight from this part of the country … Thank you so much. This is also the last show our tour, so lets celebrate … Thank you for sharing it with us.”

    trey palace january 26And with that, Trey led his band into the song that the original trio of Trey, drummer Russ Lawton and Saratoga Springs resident Tony Markellis wrote back in 1998, “First Tube”. A Grammy nominated rock instrumental that usually closes down these TAB shows, “First Tube” got the crowd moving early on. “Cayman Review” followed, now a classic first set staple for many years now that features Ray Paczkowski on clavinet to drive the funk into the song. With the crowd settling in, they were treated to “Alaska”, one of the handful of crossover songs that Phish and Trey Band both play.

    Rather than drop this tune in the middle of set two, per usual on Phish tour, Trey brought it out early and let the song shine in its proper venue – with TAB and with horns. The placement wasn’t just great – the version of the song was impressive as well, with some extra licks from Trey while Jennifer Hartswick, Natalie Cressman and James Casey (Lettuce) continued to pepper the tune with just the right dose of horn. “Tube Top Flop” (ne, Wobble), surprisingly showed up net, as this is one of the earliest songs from TAB, debuting in 2001 on his first big band tour. Although it fell out of rotation, its appearance tonight elicited great cheers from the older TAB fans who followed the bob and rhythm of the horn-driven piece.

    “Pigtail”, possibly the most poppy Trey song to date, and written by longtime writing partner and friend Tom Marshall, has become a staple of Trey shows in the past two years, its flirty lyrics and confusion-inducing refrain, “I’m conscious again, unconscious again, I’m conscious again, unconscious again”, is the kind of tune that sticks in your head, pleasantly, and accented by Trey’s guitar bursts at the end of each refrain. What was once a 20-minute song in 2001, “Last Tube” is now half that but compressed into an equally stellar song. This high energy, spastic tune with a dash of Caribbean Island music gets the band firing on all cylinders at once, blowing up the song before crashing it down with a big band finish that peters out. “Last Tube”, welcome back to TAB! The Bob Marley classic “Small Axe” followed, as did two new songs, “Dark and Down” and “Scabbard”, off the new album Traveler.

    “Dark and Down” was more somber than anything else up until this point of the show, while “Scabbard”, a Zappa-esque single, captures the best of Trey’s songwriting skills and multi-instrumentalism of this band. “Greyhound Rising” provided the other piece of somber bread for this relatively new music sandwich. “Shine”, Trey’s breakout single from 2005 has proven to grow as a crowd favorite and continues to take shape in the regular rotation. Set closer “Money, Love and Change” was another oldie and goodie that can still find the nasty notes to cap off a set.

    trey palace january 26 2013During setbreak, it was easy to observe that the crowd for a Trey Anastasio Band show is different that a Phish crowd. At SPAC in the summer, the crowd is typically 80/20 guys/gals, but at TAB it is closer 60/40, plus some older fans who come out in larger numbers to the Palace. The band attracts more couples to shows, either as a segue to seeing Phish, or replacement value for Phish shows not seen/enjoyed as a couple. The ornate building’s interior continually looks sparkling and new (The Palace is nearly twice as big as the past week’s show at the Landmark Theater in Syracuse) and the broad interior walls gave the light show room to make an incredible visual spectacle throughout the show as the lights danced all over.

    Set two began with the Afrobeaty “Curlews Call”, building the band’s sound up, particularly with the percussion supplied by returning TAB member Cyro Baptista, whose inventive percussion instruments (gong and flippers, anyone?) make him not just a band member to watch, but one to listen for on show recordings. “Gotta Jibboo” is never a disappointment and having horns once again adds an extra layer to the upbeat tune. A standard “Alive Again” came next, then a trio of songs from Traveler: “Land of Nod” is incredibly horn driven, especially Natalie Cressman’s trombone, while “Valentine” was played much like the album version, although that’s hardly a bad thing. The reworking of “Valentine” for Traveler includes more vocals from Cressman and Hartswick, and although when performed live, the song could have been stretched out a bit by Big Red, the true highlight in this song is the visual interpretation that one can gather from the lyrics:

    “Jagged beams of light, explode and dance in the darkness around me. And I can reach out and touch the beams and the light turns sold and wraps around my wrist. One makes a loop, a thousand more follow, a thousand more follow till my arms are surrounded by a conical web of light. My arms in the eyes of a web of light, a tornado of light beams and I feel the pull and start to rise, and every beam is there to guide.” 

    In a recent interview with NPR, Trey mentioned how this song reflected his time getting sober period while living in Saratoga Springs, a Valentine letter to God. Listen around the 7:40 mark of the interview to hear Trey talk about the genesis of the song.

    Speaking of great lyrics, “Architect”, while a bit mellower, still carried the themes from “Valentine” that are marks of Trey’s life from 2006-2008. Fan favorite, “Sand”, recently destroyed by Phish the past few years at 18 minute clips, is a staple from the original trio. But with horns, again, it’s just sublime. Although Phish fans are getting spoiled with these extended versions on Phish tour, the reserved Sand on TAB tour not only suffices, it gives a new spin to a classic. The strong anthem of “Tuesday” stepped in, where the vocals of Hartswick and Cressman continued to dominate, but not overpower the song. Then there’s “Clint Eastwood”, the Gorillaz original that debuted as a cover last year at The Palace. Jennifer Hartswick’s powerful vocals are not to be missed – you’ll still be amazed that she did the lyrics for the album version in just one take.

    trey palace january 26 2013With the show winding down, “Traveler” appeared, and while it started out slow, grew into one of the more impressive tunes of the night, generating swaying motions from the crowd amid the lyrics “Maybe if you stand still, you are traveling too, making it easy for someone to choose you”. Trey took a moment to introduce the band as the song’s chorus was repeated, then delved into “Push on Til the Day”, one of the most popular and well known TAB tunes, where it is always fun to watch Trey spin around with his guitar leading up to the triumphant big band ending. An encore of The Five Steps’ “O-o-h Child” was very apropos for the evening for this reviewer and capped off a whirlwind tour for Trey Anastasio Band.

    Even though he didn’t play some tunes that have been staples of his shows – “Drifting”, “Sultans of Swing”, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”, “At the Gazebo”, “The Way I Feel”, or “Burlap Sack and Pumps”, – it became clearer during this short tour that Trey’s catalog for TAB has grown so much that you can start to expect the unexpected and never get the same show twice. Trey has grown as a band leader with TAB and expanded his catalog with both bands. It is impressive enough to see him with Phish, but with TAB, it’s a completely different experience, and one that is continually changing and improving.

    Out into the cold night we went…

    Setlist

    Set 1: First Tube, Cayman Review, Alaska, Tube Top Flop, Pigtail, Last Tube, Small Axe, Dark And Down, Scabbard, Greyhound Rising, Shine, Money Love And Change
    Set 2: Curlew’s Call, Gotta Jibboo, Alive Again, Land Of Nod, Valentine, Architect, Sand, Tuesday, Clint Eastwood, Traveler, Push On Til The Day
    Encore: Ooh Child

    Download bvaz’s recording of the show

    Download andyjah’s recording of the show

    • Trey Palace January 26 2013
    • Trey Palace January 26 2013
    • Trey Palace January 26 2013
    • Trey Palace January 26 2013
    • Trey Palace January 26 2013

  • 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.”