NYS Music 20​13

Tag: jam

  • 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.

  • 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]