NYS Music 20​13

Tag: The Grateful Dead

  • The Garcia Project is Ringing in the New Year at The Oneonta Theater

    Come on out and celebrate the best Oneonta has to offer this New Year’s Eve at the Oneonta Theater, where The Garcia Project will be gracing the audience with their recreation of the music and vibe of The Jerry Garcia Band. Featuring Mik Bondy on guitar and vocals, Kat Walkerson on vocals, Greg Marshall on keyboards, Bob McKeon on drums, and Dan Crea on bass, The Garcia Project faithfully channels and projects the feelings, emotions, and music that propelled The Jerry Garcia Band and the fans through many years of musical bliss.

    Doors will be opening at 9 PM for this incredible evening of music, food, champagne, and New Year’s Eve revelry. The $25 ticket for this event includes an all-inclusive buffet featuring delicious foods for all tastes, a champagne toast at midnight (a cash bar will be open throughout the evening as well, serving up drink specials all night long), and, of course, the amazing feeling of nostalgia that will be felt when listening to the notes that were heard when one would go to see The Jerry Garcia Band. Pick your tickets up here!

    For those folks who can’t wait until New Year’s Eve to check out The Garcia Project, the band will be performing at Electric Haze in Worcester, MA, on December 28.

  • Review: Furthur at CMAC July 19

    Furthur has been enjoying a solid Summer tour with appearances at few music festivals and a larger concentration on playing their own shows, rather than filling up the festival scene this year compared to previous summers where we saw them at every major festival. With killer setlists in the previous shows leading up to Furthur’s July 19th performance at CMAC in Canandaigua, NY, fans were ready to shake their bones to the songs of the Grateful Dead. This was to be their last stop on this tour before they hit All Good Music Festival in Thornville, Ohio for the weekend. Anticipation was high and the scene was set for a good show. The lot scene was thriving with food vendors and heads selling wrapped silver as usual. The police presence was there but not as overwhelming as in past years.

    Furthur-CMAC 7-19-13 (25)

    Once the crowd began making their way towards the gates for the earlier than scheduled show, fans began to whisper about why the tickets said the show began at 8:00PM and they were being ushered in at 7:00PM. Apparently there was a misprint – if you weren’t one of the very few people who checked online that day for up to date show info on the venue’s FaceBook page, then you were most likely unaware of this last-minute change.

    Furthur-CMAC 7-19-13 (8)

    The show began with “Jack Straw” and the crowd received it well, and John Kadlecik took the lead on a fantastic “Dupree’s Diamond Blues”. With two songs in the first set about the rain – “Mission in the Rain” & “Box of Rain” – the scene was set with the first set ending in pouring rain.

    Furthur-CMAC 7-19-13 (11)

    Second set began strong, the dancing contagious and the rain pouring down on those in the lawn; “Playing in the Band > Any Road” got everyone’s blood pumpin’ and wanting more. During “Mountains of the Moon” the sound of concertgoers  belting out the lyrics, “Hey Tom Banjo” got the vibe heading in the right direction and then fans were treated with a dance-evoking, “Caution”, after which Bob Weir delivered the announcement that the show was being ended at that time due to severe weather storms heading towards the venue. He tried to explain that it wasn’t the band but the venue who had made the decision, he explained – “If we keep playing they’ll just unplug us anyway guys, we’re really sorry.”

    Furthur-CMAC 7-19-13 (36)

    The crowd reluctantly retreated to their cars and the many in attendance were heard expressing their distaste for the early ending and few agreed that it was a necessary measure. followed the crowd out to the lots and ended the night with heavy hearts.

    In an effort to compensate concert goers CMAC has announced they will exchange any Furthur ticket stub, at any other show during the 2013 concert series at CMAC (except Kenny Chesney) for access to the Headliner Lounge, one complimentary drink, and access to private restrooms and a private bar. Your ticket stub does not grant you entrance to the show, you must purchase a ticket to the show of your choice and redeem your stub then. If you have any questions regarding this opportunity you can contact CMAC by calling 1-800-745-3000

    07/19/13 (Fri)  Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands Performing Arts Center – Canandaigua, NY

    Set 1: Jack Straw, Dupree’s Diamond Blues, My Brother Esau, Mason’s Children, Mission in the Rain (1), Box of Rain
    Set 2: Playing in the Band > Any Road, Mountains of the Moon, Caution (2)

    (1) last time played by Furthur: 10/05/12, Los Angeles
    (2) show stopped short by the venue due to incoming lightning storm

  • Gather Yourself and Feel the Vibes: Gathering of the Vibes Festival is Coming!

    In less than 50 days, Bridgeport, Connecticut will host one of the biggest parties on the east coast, best known as Gathering of the Vibes four day festival, once again taking place at Seaside Park on July 25th-28th, for its 18th year of music, arts and camping. Vibes has already announced the first batch of headliners to include Phil Lesh and Friends featuring Jon Scofield, John Medeski, Joe Russo and John Kadlecik, Gov’t Mule, The Black Crowes, Tedeschi Trucks Band, The Roots, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Dark Star Orchestra, John Butler Trio, the funky METERS, Railroad Earth, John Scofield, Fishbone, Lukas Nelson and the Promise of the Real, Ryan Montbleau Band, Deep Banana Blackout, plus many more talented musicians and more artist announcements to be released in just a few short days on June 10th.

    Gathering of the Vibes started with Ken Hays, a Grateful Deadhead and business man, who got a few friends together in 1996 on the SUNY Purchase campus to share in the memory of Jerry Garcia by hosting a small music filled weekend.  Each year since, the festival has continued to grow with gifted musicians and artists, with attendees coming from all over to share in the fun times and heady vibes. Past headliners have included moe., The Allman Brothers, James Brown, Primus, Les Claypool and all founding members of the Grateful Dead.

    Gathering of the Vibes offers single day tickets, VIP single day tickets, full Weekend Camping passes, VIP tickets, RV passes and Kids tickets, but children under 12 years old get in for free.  The single day tickets do not give include access to the campgrounds or the late night sets, so if you don’t want to miss DJ sets from James Murphy, Kung Fu and Thievery Corporation’s Rob Garza, as well as Silent Disco, you should consider just buying the Weekend Camping pass.  The gates open on Thursday, July 25th at 8am and the party is over once the last band performs on Sunday after 8pm. For those looking to get an early start, there is a $20 Early-Entry Parking Fee on Thursday anytime before midnight.

    Gathering of the Vibes has also launched a “Road to the Vibes” contest which gives fans the chance to vote for who they’d like to see play at the festival this year. Fans can vote once a day until June 14th to get their favorite band on the last remaining spot on the Green Vibes Stage. Upstate NY bands Positive Mental Trip, Blind Owl Band, Funktional Flow, Formula 5, Project Weather Machine, Sassafras Jenkins, Cosmic Dust Bunnies, The Assortment of Crayons, Aqueous, The Chronicles, Haewa and Digital Dharma are ALL in the running for this last spot, so show some love to your favorite Upstate band!

  • The Garcia Project brought Good Vibes to the Putnam Den on February 1st

    As soon as The Garcia Project took the stage at the Putnam Den on February 1st, you knew it was going to be a mystical evening.  The crowd was a mix of old hippies and new hipsters, from dreadlocks to backward hats, from women in long skirts twirling as they danced to men in jeans and suspenders, it was an eclectic mix. There were bikers, office workers, students and retirees.  It didn’t matter who was enjoying the groove – they were smiling and taking in the good vibes.  And who could blame them, the music of Jerry Garcia is timeless, and The Garcia Project has taken the time, energy, and their talents to master that sound.

    From the first notes of the night, “Sugaree”, the dance floor was full and people were singing along.  The set went on and songs went off to spectacular jams, only to be pulled back into the pleasing duo of Mik Brody and Kat Walkerson on vocals.  In math, there is a theory that the sum of two parts can not be greater than the whole.  Thankfully in music, that logic is thrown out – because while Mik and Kat are great singers on their own, they are better together.

    When you looked to the stage and you weren’t noticing Mik intently staring down at his guitar, much like Jerry used to do, or Kat’s exaggerated facial expressions as she sang her heart out, you noticed the light show.  The Garcia Project brought along a Macbook, a projector, and a light guy (Dutch Masterson)- a perfect combination to set the mood.  The psychedelic scenery covered the large stage and then some. Intricate designs and other visual effects graced the backdrop as the band played on.

    The Garcia Project is obviously a tribute band to Jerry Garcia Band.  A tribute band is quite different than a cover band because they don’t merely mimic the songs, but rather the whole sound and feel of the band.  That can mean using the same brand of instruments, similar amps and modifiers, and even looking like the original band.  As a fan of the original band, you go and enjoy the show knowing that this is the closest you are going to get to the real thing.  It transports you into the past and into an atmosphere that is reminiscent of an historic vibe.  Luckily that vibe is still alive in those like minded individuals around you at a show like this one at the Putnam Den.  In order for a tribute band to be successful, fans need to look at them as the authority on the artist they are emulating.  The Garcia Project pulls it off effortlessly.  Don’t believe it?  Go see them live and then go check out old YouTube footage of The Jerry Garcia Band.  Listen to how Jerry plays off Gloria Jones and Jackie LaBranch and compare that to Mik Brody and Kat Walkerson.  Listen to the jazz influenced bass of the legendary John Kahn and feel the similarities of The Garcia Project’s own Dan Crea.

    The Garcia Project is the whole package starting with the incredibly talented Scott Guberman on the Hammond B3 organ and Leslie speaker.  Aaron Martin sets the pace on drums.  The masterful guitar work of Mik Brody, himself, fills the role of Jerry on guitars and vocals.    The night was song after song of a delightful mix of Garcia classics and a few covers – some made famous by the Grateful Dead, and some lesser known but carrying that same Garcia vibe.  The dance floor stayed packed all night, especially during the livelier tunes and the long jams that took you to another time.

    The Putnam Den pulled out another great night of music and Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia fans, both young and old, had a great experience that took them into the night.

    Setlist:
    Set 1: Sugaree, Tore Up, They Love Each Other, He Ain’t Give You None, Tough Mama, Evangeline, Strugglin’ Man, Second That Emotion
    Set 2: Lonesome and a Long Way From Home, Mission In the Rain, Breadbox, Positively 4th Street, Don’t Let Go, Midnight Moonlight, Sisters and Brothers, Tangled Up in Blue, Deal
    Encore/Grateful Dead Set: Half Step, Shakedown Street, Eyes of the World, Cumberland Blues