Author: Susan Rice

Twiddle & Fikus this Thursday the 20th at The Hollow in Albany

This Thursday the 20th, The Hollow in Albany will host two up and coming bands that are sure to get those dancing feet moving. Both bands were big hits at last year’s Catskill Chill Festival and Backwoods Pondfest, making the Capital District eager to welcome Twiddle and Fikus. The doors open at 8pm with a cover charge of $15 and Fikus set to kick off around 9pm. The Hollow in Albany offers happy hour specials plus a full, diverse menu to those seeking fuel before the show.

Fikus, the five-piece electro funk rock band from New Jersey has contagious melodies and rhythm, setting up an easy groove to get the night flowing. Fikus will be hitting Albany as their last stop in NY in the middle of their tour before heading onto the rest of the Northeast. Twiddle, a quartet from Vermont, covers a wide range of genres with heavy improvisation to keep each show fresh and fun. The band will be heading out to Colorado, with multiple stops on their return trip home to end the tour in April at Ithaca. They will be performing at this year’s Summer Camp, Domefest and Wakarusa. Get tickets to Twiddle and Fikus now.

February 18, 2014
Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar Slide Smoothly at The Egg

Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar, two legendary slide guitarists, played an intimate concert in The Lewis A. Swyer Theatre at The Egg in Albany on Friday January 31st.

The less than 450 person crowd was surprisingly loud as Sonny Landreth took the stage to perform the first few songs solo, just a man and his guitars. With such small venue, every seat had a perfect view of Landreth as he sat down and began the show with “Next of Kindred Spirit.” His fingers easily covered the frets as he slid all over the neck of guitar with a complex simplicity. He rocked the guitar in his arms with care and a laid back attitude that you’d find on a front porch on a warm summer day. “Broken Hearted Road” introduced lyrics full of sorrow with sharp chords that cut right through you. There was complete silence in the crowd as the theatre was filled with the mind blowing humid riffs.

Cindy Cashdollar was greeted by Landreth and the rest of the audience for the duration of the set, and thanked everyone especially Sonny for the thrill of performing together. Upstate’s own Cashdollar brought a raw and edgier sound to the southern blues rock of the evening, her own unique style of danger. Both musicians constantly exchanged smiles throughout the show, adding to the relaxed and friendly atmosphere of the round room. Landreth encouraged the audience to “let the spirit take you” as they went into “Cherry Ball Blues”, an upbeat blues funk song. “Key to the Highway” a cover song often performed by Eric Clapton, was described as Landreth’s own personal theme song complete with escalating rocking high notes. Cindy Cashdollar frequently smacked her guitar with graceful force and a toe tapping rhythm. Landreth seemed pleased with the show mentioning that they covered all the basics, happy blues, sad blues and everything in between before closing the set with Robert Johnson’s “Walkin Blues” with long drawn out chord attitude from Cashdollar.

This was the first show of The American Roots & Branches series being hosted at The Egg and it set the bar high for the rest of the year. Both Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar are extraordinary musicians who make an unstoppable duo, redefining the blues with southern charm.

Setlist:

Sonny Landreth Solo: Next of Kindred Spirit, 2 Shuffle, Here & After, Broken Hearted Road, South of 1 – 10
Sonny Landreth & Cindy Cashdollar: Blues Attack, Cherry Ball Blues, Key to the Highway, Hell at Home, World Away, All About You, It Hurts me too, Prodigal Son, Walking Blues
Encore: Bayou Teche

February 7, 2014
Eastbound Jesus: Two Night Live Album Recording at Red Square

Upstate New York has a strong and authentic sound when it comes to bluegrass music. It’s an old world rebellion mixed with a hopeful heartache for the future that was heard loud and clear in Albany last weekend. Red Square and Guthrie/Bell Productions hosted Eastbound Jesus for two nights for a live recording session album on Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1st. The Northern Rock group invited Upstate bands Driftwood and The Blind Spots to share the stage and showcase their folk bluegrass talents. Eastbound Jesus has a dedicated fan base that easily relates to their catchy lyrics, contagious melodies and a love for flannel.

Driftwood, the all string quartet from Binghamton, showed no mercy to their instruments or the audience as they opened the show on Friday night. They are a fierce and savage bunch of sophisticated folks who bring out the best in each other. Their lyrics and melodies follow each other in rounds that create a beautiful chaos of Americana. Driftwood’s music grows, it expands and the acoustics stretch the length of the room and outside the venue. They started with a soft lullaby of “High School Paycheck” to start the evening and the crowd was mesmerized with the mighty stand-up bass notes of Joey Arcuri. Claire Byrne won over many hearts that night as she ignited her fiddle with a burning passion that caught newcomers off guard. “Buffalo Street” was the biggest hit of the set, as the audience quickly picked up on the rhythm from the tambourine, clapping in unison and adoring the harmonies with whistling. Driftwood’s newest self-titled album is available for a free streaming on their website or Soundcloud and be sure to catch them on their tour across the East Coast this spring.

Setlist: High School Paycheck, Words, Lost Indian, Dusty, Buffalo Street, 2 Kill Ya, Brother, Before I Rust, Carby, Outerspace, Sun’s Going Down

Friday night proved to be another fun filled Eastbound Jesus show with lots of flannel, foot stomping and group sing-alongs. The weekend kicked off with “Easy Now” and with the lyrics, “It feels like forever since I’ve known that I’ve been home” there was a great cheer of appreciation and excitement. Jerry Reed’s “East Bound and Down” was a surprise for fans as it brought out the southern hillbilly in everyone. “North Country Girl” brought out a romantic flair with rolling guitar chords and charming vocals from each member. EBJ welcomed Driftwood’s fiddler Claire Byrne for a few songs, demonstrating that she can hold her own with the boys and brought a graceful yet rowdy style to the set. One of the perks of Red Square is the intimate space giving you the ability to get up close to musicians so that when they each member gets that same crazy look in their eyes; you can feel the music really kick in. EBJ saved some of their most climactic songs for the end such as “Where The Winter Goes” and “Waitin’ On The Sun” with each song building up unlimited possibilities for hard strumming and thunderous rhythm. The night ended with a three-song encore, much to the crowd’s delight who were already thirsty for Saturday’s show.

Setlist: Easy Now, I Wouldn’t Know, Pickin It, East Bound and Down*, Here’s to You, North Country Girl, Sittin by the River, Roll in my sweet Baby’s Arms, Talking to John, Ghost Town, Southbound Train, Corn Whiskey, Doors Open, Tennessee, Maggie’s Farm, Where The Winter Goes, Waitin’ On The Sun, Beat The Breaks

Encore: Out Yonder, Mouthful of Diamonds, Hold On Me Now
*Cover by Jerry Reed

Keep scrolling and Check out Tabitha Clancy’s review and photos from Saturday night below!

The live album party continued in a “Small Town, Saturday Night” fashion, much like Hal Ketchum would say. Eastbound Jesus brought the grit and the grind to Red Square in Albany for a second night of recording. These Greenwich swashbucklers are music machines just pumping out song after song after song but not in a boring factory line kind of way. Their high-energy arrangements are supported by well written lyrical stories. The PBR imbibers are a synchronous target audience of these blue-collar tunes turning the night into a merrymaking group participation event.

Eastbound knows their audience well and seemingly walked the crowd through a warm-up first. “Beat the Breaks,” new to the amassed catalog of tunes, was the only song played both nights. “Without You” is a slow, sweet melodic piece with just the right touch of sadness. Creating a build up, Eastbound kicked it up a notch with “Holy Smokes!” A special treat was in store for the room when Bryan Brundige (trombonist from The Chronicles) and Tony Meier (keys) were called up to “Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine,” in a collaborative jamband and calypso groove rendition of The Grateful Dead’s “Turn on Your Lovelight.”

Eastbound Jesus crafted a set of crowd favorites from their discography, new tunes and threw in a few covers for what will soon be a playlist on a live disc. Their punchy personalities, stage camaraderie and homogeneous blend of instrumentation can only mean, “Someday, it’s gonna go down.”

Stay up to date with on Facebook and Twitter for news when Eastbound Jesus’ live album will be released this coming winter/early spring.

February 6, 2014
Prepare Yourself: Spiritual Rez Returns to Red Square on Saturday February 8th

This weekend, Albany, NY is going to get hit with a massive storm and there will be no snow involved. The tropical reggae sensation, Spiritual Rez, from Boston, will be unleashing their unrelenting dance party at Red Square on Saturday February 8th. The seven-piece ska funk band is the best thing to come out of Boston since baseball and chowder. They have played some of ’s top festivals last year such as The Catskill Chill and Backwoods Pondfest. Spiritual Rez’s music is unpredictable as they segue from a chill reggae groove into a heavy metal scream fest and then a full on ska free for all. As explosive as their instrumental music is, they have lyrics that everyone can relate to about everything from falling in love to fighting for their right to party.

Lead singer Toft Willingham is a pro at revving up the crowd as he thrashes all over the stage and loves to compete with the audience on who can be louder. This is a band that you want to party with, from beginning to end and still want to hang out with the morning after. Spiritual Rez has a new album being released on Saturday February 15th, Apocalypse Whenever. The album has already been voted as one of the Top 30 on the radio chart on Jambands.com. They are hitting the road hard this spring and its only part one, as they travel all over the Northeast and make their way down the coast. Check their website for a list of their tour dates. Below is their official music video for “Don’t Be Afraid” off of Apocalypse Whenever and if you like what you hear, you can pre-purchase their new album on iTunes.

Tickets are $7 online and $10 at the door to this 21+ event at 8pm with Suitable Groove starting the night at 9pm. Albany’s own, Suitable Groove, is a four-piece hard hitting funk rock band that you won’t want to miss as this band is sure to be no stranger to the growing music scene in the Capital District. This Saturday night will be the best way to shake the snow from your soul and breathe in the summer sound of Spiritual Rez.

February 5, 2014
Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar at The Egg this Friday

Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar, two masters of the slide guitar, will perform together at The Egg this Friday, January 31st starting at 8 pm.

The duo will kick off the American Roots & Branches concert series with Sony Landreth on the electric guitar and Cindy Cashdollar on Dobro and lap-steel. Landreth hails from Louisiana and is a known as “the King of Slydeco”, for his strong Cajun musical styling. He has appeared on albums with Eric Clapton, Gov’t Mule, Little Feat and Jimmy Buffett. Cashdollar is one of our own, calling Woodstock, NY home, where she learned to play from such bluegrass legends as John Herald, Paul Butterfield, Levon Helm and Rick Danko of The Band. She is a five-time Grammy award winner and was the first female to be inducted into the Texas Steel Guitar Hall of Fame.

Tickets for Sonny Landreth and Cindy Cashdollar are $28 and are still available at The Egg Box Office at the Empire State Plaza, by telephone 518-473-1845 or online. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience blues music like you have never heard it before.

January 31, 2014
Red Square to host Eastbound Jesus Live Album Recording Sessions this weekend

Northern Rock band, Eastbound Jesus will be taking over Red Square in Albany this weekend, where they will be recording their first ever live album. Eastbound Jesus most recently opened up for moe. for their New Year’s Run at The Palace Theater and this will be their first time playing in their home of the Capital Region in 2014. The six-piece band gains fans all over the Upstate NY region singing about cold weather, whiskey and women with fast picking strings and a hot foot stomping rhythm. Be on the lookout for their live album release, set to drop in late winter or early spring.

Each night, the doors open at 8pm with first acts on at 9pm. Driftwood will be kicking off Friday night and fiddler Claire Byrne will be sitting in for some tunes with EBJ. Binghamton’s Driftwood is an all string quartet with a burning passion for folk rock that is contagious almost instantly. The Blind Spots will open up Saturday night and keyboardist Tony Meier will join EBJ for some music later in the night. The female led vocalist, Maddy Walsh has been compared to every great female vocalist you can think of and is sure to catch you by surprise. This Rock Indie band from Ithaca has a bold sound that grows with every show.

Do not miss the Eastbound Jesus live album recording or these Guthrie Bell Productions shows that are proof that Upstate NY has the best home grown talent. Tickets are $10 online or $12 at the door.

January 31, 2014
Third Time’s the Charm as The Chronicles Continue Their Red Square Residency

The Chronicles continued their winter residency at Red Square on Thursday, January 23rd and paid tribute to musical legends Earth Wind and Fire with special guest Michael Wooten.

The Cedric Burnside Project opened up the event with longtime friends Cedric Burnside on drums and guitarist Trenton Ayers, who together make a Mississippi funk party parade. It’s no mistake that Cedric was born into music as his grandfather is North Mississippi blues legend, R.L. Burnside and started touring with him when he was 13 years old. The duo brought Mardi Gras to Upstate NY with soulful singing, swampy guitar riffs and fast paced tempo, a foot stomping good time. One of the highlights was when the duo brought up members from the Chronicles to sit in on “White Lightening”, bringing the flair of jazz and pure rock and roll. Burnside and Ayers had permanent smiles on their faces and so did everyone in the crowd, here’s hoping they come back soon.

The Chronicles welcomed Michael Wooten on lead vocals and guitar to join in their tribute to the mighty Earth, Wind and Fire. The set exploded with a funky “Getaway” followed by the popular hit and crowd pleaser, “September.” Wooten added a strong, mature tone to the group with his voice, hitting those ever famous high and low notes. It was fantastic to hear the classic brass melody from, Jeff Nania on Saxophone and Bryan Brundige on Trombone played with soulful execution. “Shining Star” got the most cheers the moment, guitarist Justin Henricks and Wooten strummed those strings and everyone began to sing and get down.

After the Earth Wind and Fire set, the crowd seemed a bit restless and not ready to call it quits just as the night and music was getting started. “We are just about to rage now,” Henricks assured the fans as they boys started their set with a smooth “Mr.Magic” with light yet complex key solo from Paulie Philippone. Andrae Surgick showed great control as he effortlessly slammed on the cymbals and drums. Closing out the set was “Village Living” extra heavy on the bass bombs thanks to Daniel Lawson. A break in between songs during the show gave the Chronicles’ sound guy a chance to mention to the audience that at 5 am, pretty much right after this set, the band was flying out to California for the weekend to play a gig before the Grammys and recording an album. The Chronicles have a supportive fan base in the Upstate NY area and it’s thrilling to watch them stretch their sound to new places across the country.

Don’t miss The Chronicle’s last show of their residency this Thursday, January 30th at Red Square when they pay tribute to J Dilla, with The Big Mean Sound Machine opening the show at 9pm.

Setlist: Getaway, September, Jupiter, Fantasy, Let’s Groove, Can’t Let Go, Shining Star, Way of this World, Can’t Hide Love , Mr. Magic, Purple Diesel, Mr. Clean, Scrasbourg, No War, Village Livin

January 29, 2014
Hearing Aide: The Motet’s Self-Titled Album

Fans have been patiently waiting for the new Motet album since last September when they expressed their excitement for it at The Catskill Chill Music Festival.

The wait is over and it was well worth it. The nine-piece funk band hailing from Boulder, Colorado has released their 7th album, The Motet, combining different layers of funk with disco, jazz and electronica making for an entertaining listen to get any party started. An album by any other name would still be as freaking sweet. Dave Watts, drummer and founder of The Motet said in an interview with The Marquee, “We decided just to call it The Motet. It’s kind of like a new beginning – like our debut CD,” citing lineup stability as the determining factor in the the title. The album is just under an hour long, with 55 glorious minutes of Motet music that showcases their growth as individuals and as an unstoppable funk machine in the span of nine tracks.

“Like We Own It” has electrifying keys from Joey Porter that gets you pumped up and ready to groove hard on that dance floor like it’s the 1980s. “123” has a standout bass rhythm that brings the funk with the horn section of Gabe Mervine on Trumpet and Matt Pitts on Tenor Sax kicking it to high gear and lyrics about the beauty of partying in their home state of CO. “Rynodub” is an all instrumental song with reggae flair and an eerie intergalactic vibe throughout the song with constant brass buildups and echoing percussion from Motet founder and leader, Dave Watts. “Closed Mouth Don’t get Fed” an upbeat melody with a strong and simple message that if you keep your mouth, ears and mind closed, you will not grow. Music is nourishing. Feed yourself right with The Motet.

“Extraordinary High” has a light dash of disco with a swirling groove of the soulful Kim Dawson on vocals. “Rich In People” is a sing along anthem with the in sync harmonies of rebellion lead by Jans Ingber, bizarre key loops and rocking guitar riffs from Ryan Jalbert and Dan Schwindt. “The Fountain” has a dirty bass groove from Garrett Sayers that flows throughout the all instrumental track with the help of a solid rhythm with haunting electronic twists. The feel good jam of “Knock It Down” takes a turn into a dark funk jam with thrilling and fading echoes. The album ends with “Keep On Don’t Stoppin” a back and forth game of tag between every instrument, where each musician has outbursts that take it up a notch with great timing resulting in a groovy climactic combo along with the fun loving vocoder/talkbox.

Key Tracks: Like We Own It, Rynodub, Keep on Don’t Stoppin

The album is available for free stream on Soundcloud and you can download some of their live performances for free on their website. Stay up to date with The Motet on Facebook and Twitter. Don’t miss The Motet when they head to Brooklyn Bowl in NYC on April 4th.

January 28, 2014
Lockn’ Festival 2014 Announces Initial Lineup

Lockn’ has announced their initial lineup for this year’s music festival on September 4th-7th, 2014, taking place again at The Oak Ridge Farm in Arrington, VA. The lineup includes 2 nights each of Phil Lesh and Friends, Bob Weir and Ratdog, Widespread Panic and The String Cheese Incident. The Allman Brothers Band is also set to headline and with longtime guitarists Warren Haynes and Derek Trucks having recently announced their departure from the band at the of the year, only adds to the excitement to the lineup for this up and coming festival. Last year’s venue set up had both main stages located next to each other, with little or no performance overlap, guaranteeing more music and encouraging more musician’s sit-ins. Let’s hope this set up is here to stay.

Lockn’ was founded by Dave Frey who also founded the HORDE festival and Peter Shapiro who owned New York City’s historic rock club, Wetlands Preserved. Frey and Shapiro created the festival combining all their experiences of continuous music and intertwined artists to create a unique festival, playing true to their theme, “when something ends, another begins.” After last year’s successful start, fans are eager to see what they dynamic duo has planned for this year. Another passion besides music, Frey and Shapiro are both involved with environmentally conscious organizations. Lockn’ will offer locally sourced foods, recycling programs and carbon offsetting to help benefit the beautiful grounds of the farm.

Tickets are now on sale ranging from $180 – $699, not including the Camping Pass – options that range from $69 to $199. They have tent-only, car camping, forest and preferred tent-only camping passes as well as RV passes. All campgrounds have close access to bathrooms, fresh drinking water and showers for a small fee. Since the venue is spread over a 4800 acre farm, the festival encourages guests to bring bicycles and will offer transportation at regular frequent intervals.

Check out Upstate’s review from Lockn’ 2013 with photos from Phrazz.

Follow Lockn’

Facebook | Twitter | @locknfestival

January 23, 2014
Dave Matthews Band Announces 2014 Summer Tour Dates in Upstate

Dave Matthews Band will be back in the summer of 2014, on tour across the country and bringing a new twist to their shows to fans everywhere. “A Very Special Evening with Dave Matthews Band” will showcase the band performing two sets at each one show with electric and acoustic arrangements, unlike the traditional one long set.

DMB will be returning to the Upstate area, making stops at Darien Lake and of course, SPAC for two nights. Click here for a list of all the tour dates. Tickets go on sale to the public beginning Friday, February 7th but Warehouse fan members can order tickets as early as this Thursday, Jan 16th. Warehouse fans have ticket upgrade opportunities, possible meet and greets and premium ticket packages. Either way, make sure you get tickets to these sure-fire, sell out shows this summer.

Follow Dave Matthews Band

@davematthewsband | Facebook | Warehouse

January 16, 2014