Category: Capital Region

A Packed Upstate Concert Hall Welcomes Back Umphrey’s McGee
Upstate New York only gets a few doses of Umphrey’s McGee in the cold of winter, but they sure heat things up at every stop. Kicking off their three nights in Upstate was a stand-out performance at Upstate Concert Hall in Clifton Park. The venue was packed, more so than it was last time the Chicago prog-rockers came to town, as the word has gotten out and Umphrey’s is becoming a draw who may have outgrown their usual Capital District stomping grounds.

A “Catshot” intro built up the crowd as the six members took the stage. These instrumental intros are unique to Umphrey’s and serve as an excellent way to give the show a rolling start. Picking up a pair of Headphones (more on that in a bit) just as “Phil’s Farm” got going, the solid 15 minute rocker built off “Catshot”, with Bayliss and Cinninger hitting great peaks with start/stops that gave a jolt to the crowd as they began a night of dancing. “Miami Virtue” had Jeff Waful’s lights come alive in a dark jam before bleeding seamlessly into “Professor Wormbog”, which had some Boyz II Men acapella vocals thrown in for a curveball before returning to heavy prog funk.

Warm lights accompanied “Morning Song” alongside Bayliss’ full flex vocals amid soaring guitar peaks. And if “Phil’s Farm” was the first blow of the night, “Mantis” held the knockout punch of the first set, clocking in at a shade under 20 minutes, with a “Jimmy Stewart” section, complete with lyrics.

During the show, I had the unique experience to test out the new “Headphones and Snowcones” feature that is available all Umphrey’s shows this tour. Comfortable and easy to manage, these were quite frankly a welcome accessory to the show. Not only do you get to experience quality, soundboard sound, but the pristine audio environment that creates a 3-D experience for your ears. The sound is crystal clear, and if you have Tinnitus like I do, you can adjust the volume and prevent further damage, while keeping out that hiss that ultimately takes away from the music. The only drawback I can think of is the cost: at $40, plus refundable deposit, it might be out of budget for some, but you do get a UMLive download of the show, so it depends on your personal preferences for how you want to hear the show. Given an opportunity to try this again, I would certainly pay to hear the band sound the way it should be heard.

Opening the second set with “Miss Tinkles Overture”, Umphrey’s brought back a “Jimmy Stewart” jam with additional lyrics. The hard metal rock of Jake Cinninger and Kris Myers tore up “Tinkles”, which can serve equally well anywhere in a set, but stood out perfectly to welcome the crowd back. “Push the Pig” had a dark bass groove from Ryan Stasik, eventually leading into “Roseanna” by Toto. With Umphrey’s, you are virtually assured an 80’s cover and the rarer, the better. Looking around the venue, only the older fans seemed to know the song, mouthing some of the lyrics while the younger fans sang along only with ‘Rose-an-na!’

Although it wasn’t jammed out, “Roseanna” did melt into a full band jam that pushed into the shred-metal of “Go to Hell” and then “Der Bluten Kat”. The last time Umphrey’s was in town, “DBK” clocked in at 30 minutes. This version ended up at only 27 minutes, not including “The Fuzz” that was sandwiched in between. There is no bigger jam vehicle for Umphrey’s than a solid “DBK” and it was great to hear another fantastic version.

A second installment of ‘Hey, Remember the 80s?’ came in the second half of the encore with Kris Myers introduced as Glen Danzig (and Jake Cinninger heading behind the drum kit), as we were about to get the classic metal group’s “Mother”. Myers knows his metal and you haven’t heard a cover done with such accuracy, let alone a cover of Danzig, until you’ve heard Umphrey’s “Mother”. A hot show with electricity teeming throughout the crowd as they dispersed, fans began making plans for the weekend shows in Syracuse and Rochester, part of the luxury of Upstate New York’s proximity to great music towns.

Setlist
Set 1: Catshot > Phil’s Farm, Miami Virtue > Professor Wormbog, Morning Song, Crucial Taunt, Mantis
Set 2: Miss Tinkle’s Overture, Push The Pig > Rosanna > Go To Hell, Der Bluten Kat > The Fuzz > Der Bluten Kat
Encore: The Weight Around, Mother

Download Ed Guidry’s recording of the show from Archive.org
February 12, 2014
Local Limelight: The Garcia Project – Creating The Jerry Garcia Band Experience

The Garcia Project, based in Saratoga Springs, is a faithful conduit for the music of Jerry Garcia Band, conveying emotional resonance through the music that Jerry Garcia fans have known for decades. The Garcia Project includes Mik Bondy on guitar and vocals, and Kat Walkerson on vocals. A cavalcade of musicians join them in various lineups,including Greg Marshall, Jordan Giangreco (The Breakfast, Viral Sound) and Scott Guberman rotating in on keys, Dan Crea, David Alderman and Fred Wilkes on bass and Bob McKeon, Aaron Martin and Brian Sayers on drums on any given night. While the lineup can change from show to show, it’s always The Garcia Project!

Additionally, Mik and Kat perform the songs of the Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia Band tunes in their our own arrangements, as Acoustically Speaking.

Kat Walkerson has a truly soulful voice, displaying great energy with her passion pouring out from her vocals. A kind soul that brings a warmth to any room she performs in, her voice is a perfect compliment to Mik’s, who is The Garcia Project’s “Jerry”, a part he plays with humility and focus on the music to channel the spirit of the Fat Man. In paying tribute to Jerry, Mik has made two guitars and replica speakers and equipment to bring about the true Garcia sound. Previously, Mik was in the band Tapestry for over 20 years. Recently, Mik and Kat have performed with Melvin Seals and the guys from JGB Band.

Pete Mason: How does The Garcia Project channel the sound and spirit of Jerry Garcia Band?

Mik Bondy: Everyone in The Garcia Project loves the music that the Jerry Garcia Band created. We are all huge fans of Jerry. And much like us, the folks that come out to share in the experience are huge Jerry fans too. This makes the synergy between the musicians and the audience very strong, right from the start. Couple that synergy with professional, seasoned musicians that really want to provide and recreate a Jerry Garcia Band experience and really care about the music and the performance of it – and you have the recipe. We also study the music and the various eras, we build instruments and rigs that mimic the sound and styles. We always do a group huddle before we perform a show and thank Jerry for the music and ask his blessing on what we are about to create with the people. We fell very blessed and are thrilled that folks keep coming out and enjoy it as much as we do. Its really all about the love of the music.

PM: What sets The Garcia Project apart from the other well know Jerry Garcia Band act, Melvin Seals and JGB?

MB: Melvin Seals and JGB are great friends of ours. Kat performed with Melvin and JGB a few times back in 2010-2011. Both Kat and I recently performed with Melvin and members of JGB up in Saranac Lake, NY and Melvin Seals performed as keyboard player for The Garcia Project last year (and will again this year) at Jerry Jam, the best Jerry festival in the Northeast. We really love and respect Melvin and the JGB band.

Melvin Seals has his own new arrangements of songs and writes his own custom set lists. The Garcia Project has been recreating classic Jerry Garcia Band shows and sets and attempts to perform in the same style and tempo as each show and era. Each era has it’s own flavor. We recently did a 77 show at Mexicali Live that there was no recording of the original JGB show, so we pieced together the show from other recordings from the year for reference and then performed it in that style. Both bands have very unique sound and we love what we both add to the scene.

Listen to the whole Mexicali Blues show where we recreated JGB Nov 16, 1977

PM: Why the music of Jerry Garcia Band? Why not Grateful Dead songs?

Kat Walkerson: Our love for the Grateful Dead is equal to our love of Jerry Garcia Band. If not for attending Grateful Dead shows, we wouldn’t have known about Jerry Band. Even back when Jerry was around, JGB was much lesser known and attended. It was something special that you were lucky to stumble upon. We feel that the Jerry Garcia Band catalog is an extraordinary collection of wonderful songs. Many of them are songs not original to the Jerry Garcia Band. They were songs that Jerry picked out because they were special. Adding to that, he mixed them all up, rearranging them and making them the style of music that is Jerry Band. We all agreed and loved them too. And we loved what happened to us as a community when we gathered for this music. This music creates a special space, a fertile ground where positive things grow. Love, friendship, community, healing, forgiveness, progress in general. Jerry Band is a love and connection fest of the purest nature. We always say “The Grateful Dead is like Saturday night, and Jerry Garcia Band is like Sunday morning”. What is created and experienced when we all gather and enjoy this music together is something that should continue. So, as we love the grateful dead, and play some whenever we can fit it in, we focus on the Jerry Band catalog. Like the Grateful Dead, there is also decades worth of this music, so many great musicians rolled through the band in (30?+) years. There is so much to hear and enjoy. We want to do our part to make sure this music gets and stays out there.

PM:Is there a certain year or era of Jerry Garcia Band that you particularity enjoy the most? Why?

MB: I really love all of the eras, really. But the 1977-78 Jerry Garcia Band shows have been firing me up recently. I love the tempos and the arrangements.

KW: All equally

Bob McKeon: Late 1970s and late 1980s.

Dan Crea: 1978 with Donna and Maria.1977 counts too but there was no Maria, and I’m a big fan of hers. I like the open space that Keith left between his notes and how his sound kept the mix nice and open. Great “Lonesome’s” in this era!

PM: Where do you think you’ll be in five years?

MB: We would love to travel and take the music of Jerry Garcia to many more people around the world. With the right team, I could see us touring and playing venues all around the world.

The Garcia Project Tour Dates:
February 15 – Garcia’s at The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY
February 22 – WSG String Band and Blessed and Gifted, Spaceland Ballroom, Hamden CT
March 22 – The Cannery Music Hall, Southbridge, MA
April 5 – Arch Street Tavern, Hartford, CT
April 19 – 420 Celebration at The Oneonta Theatre, Oneonta, NY
July 25 – Jerry Jam Music Festival, Bath, NH, with Melvin Seals on Keys. The festival runs July 25-27.

Acoustically Speaking Tour Dates:
February 1 and 22 – Opening for The Garcia Project
February 21 – Franklin’s Tower, Albany, NY
February 28 – West Mountain Ski Resort, Queensbury, NY
March 28 – Franklin’s Tower, Albany, NY

Keep up on everything The Garcia Project on their Website, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages.

February 11, 2014
The Boss Coming to The Albany Times Union Center – May 13th

Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band will be bringing their legendary show to Albany’s Times Union Center on May 13. This is part of the first leg of United States dates for Bruce since 2012. Bruce is known for pushing the envelope at concerts, with not only playing his own numbers, but covering great old rock numbers as well as taking requests from audience members.

The last time he came to Albany in 2007, it was Danny Federici’s second to last show as a full member of The E Street Band before passing away in 2008. There have been plenty of changes in the band since that stop in Albany. Clarence Clemons has also passed away, a four-part horn section and a chorus have been added, and on some occasions Tom Morello plays in the band too.

They will be supporting his latest record, High Hopes, which came out last month. Tickets will be going on sale this Friday, February 14 at 10AM. Tickets are going to go quick for these as this is the only New York show of the tour at the moment. Don’t sleep in on Friday and make sure you get tickets to what is going to be one of the hottest shows of the Spring.

February 11, 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
James Taylor Coming to Upstate in July

James Taylor has announced an extensive North American tour that will go from May 30th – August 5th right in the middle of the tour, Taylor will be playing back to back nights in Upstate, NY – July 19th he will be playing at Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) and the next evening July 20th, he will be at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.

This tour is going to see James Taylor backed by an “all-star band” more information will be available in the future. Stay right here to see who is in this band as we will be giving that information to you as we hear more about it.

Tickets will be on sale soon and are sure to go quickly as James Taylor is always a popular act to see. Don’t miss out on what is sure to be one of the better tours of the summer.

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February 5, 2014
The Chronicles End Their January Red Square Residency

With three weeks under their belts, The Chronicles finished up their residency at Red Square on January 30^th with a great set of music honoring the late J Dilla as well as some of their own music. Starting the evening off was Ithaca’s Big Mean Sound Machine.

The band stays true to their name, with everyone barely fitting on Red Square’s stage and blowing the audience away with music power that is seen so rarely. The funky numbers they played showcased each member’s talents flawlessly. The three person horn section was strong throughout the performance, leading most tunes along with the drums, bass, and congas. Both the guitars and the keyboards are used more as filler than as leads like they are in most bands. It gives the band a unique sound that should be enjoyable to everyone, and with a new album coming out in June, it is looking like a big year is coming for Big Mean Sound Machine.

The Chronicles came out after a short break and tore through a set that included guest JB for the J Dilla portion of the set. J Dilla is of course best known for the producing he did on many amazing hip hop tunes throughout the 90s until his death in 2006. JB flawlessly rapped over the music and clearly enjoyed helping The Chronicles out with this special show. “E=MC2”, “Stakes is High”, and “Fall in Love” were great highlights of the set. Jeff Nania, who mainly plays various saxophones, even took a turn at the mic during the evening. The Chronicles closed the night, and ran out in style with a one two punch of “Village Livin’” and “Mr. Clean.” This run let the band stretch their musical chops out to all regions of the music landscape and it suited the band well. Hopefully Albany will see another residency down the line.

Setlist: Time, Gobstopper, E=MC2, Move, Won’t Do, Stakes is High, Fall in Love>Think Twice>Fall in Love, Interzone, Just Knew, Strasbourg/St. Denis, Village Livin, Mr. Clean

February 5, 2014
Donna The Buffalo Stampedes Across New York State

Donna The Buffalo will be taking their herd across New York state with their winter tour with stops in Saratoga Springs at Putnam Den on Thursday February 6th, Beacon at The Towne Crier on Friday, February 7th and Buffalo at The Tralf Music Hall on Saturday, February 8th. Donna The Buffalo, coming off their latest album release, Tonight, Tomorrow and Yesterday will be bringing their jamboree-styled bluegrass party to a venue close to you and surely will not be one to miss as they never fail to produce a great night out. Donna The Buffalo, founded in Trumansburg, NY consists of Tara Nevins (Vocals, Guitar) with her bag full of instruments, Jeb Puryear (vocal, guitar), Kyle Spark (bass), Mark Raudabaugh (drums) and David Mccracken (keys).

Tickets for Donna The Buffalo across New York can be purchased on each venues respective websites or at the door day of show, so head out and enjoy what will be a great show.

February 6th- Putnam Den– Saratoga Springs, NY $17/ Day of Show $20

February 7th- The Towne Crier– Beacon, NY $25/Day of Show $30

February 8th- The Tralf Music Hall– Buffalo, NY $18/Day of Show $20

February 5, 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
Help Mister F Become Mister A-OK

Albany’s newest Prog-Funk rockers Mister F need your help and have begun a campaign on indiegogo.com to raise funds for their forthcoming debut studio album. Formed in early 2013 from members of Upstate New York-based bands Timbre Coup and Capital Zen, Mister F is an eclectic, high-energy four-piece band that takes a no-holds-barred approach to blending genres while keeping your feet moving. Having performed at festivals such as Mountain Jam, moe.down, Summer Camp, Camp Bisco, and snoe.down with their previous bands, members of Mister F are no strangers to the live music community.

Some music lovers can be hesitant to engage in these sorts of fundraisers, and for those people I’d like you to lend me your ear for a minute. Consider the facts of a small band on the rise trying to make it to a level of success that simply pays the bills. Let’s consider the costs and rewards of one show, say it’s 200 miles away and pays a guarantee of $500 for a band of four. Immediately we have to subtract gas expenses. At roughly the 15 miles per gallon a tour van would get (if one is lucky) that brings the grand total down to $400. Of course most bands, whether they have a sound guy or not will have to pay one roughly $80-120. Now we are down to $320. A smart group will also have street teamers which need promotional material to spread for the show. Subtract another $30 and we are at $290. No one has eaten anything yet so let’s chop another $40 in miscellaneous expenses leaving us at $250 for four people for roughly 10 hours of work and travel. Roughly $60 a piece or $6 per hour. Band’s MUST consider this sort of campaign to stay fed and working. On top of that, you aren’t just handing over money as any amount of donation from $10 and up comes with a reward, at the least you get an excellent brand new album from a hungry band determined to succeed.

Mister F’s debut album pre-sale fundraising campaign starts with the basic level of perk packages – a digital download of the album upon release, or a hard copy of the album on compact disc. Scott Hannay, vocalist/keyboardist/guitarist/bassist for the band and creator of Umphrey’s McNES – a series of 8-bit ‘chiptune’ remakes of Umphrey’s McGee songs – has offered a package where he will create your likeness as an 8-bit Nintendo character and write an original 30-second 8-bit video game theme song for your character. Matt Pickering, drummer/vocalist, is offering a package where he will draw you a personalized picture. You can also get show-used drumsticks, guitar strings and bass strings used during the recording of the album, receive a private lesson from any member in the band – such as a guitar lesson from lead guitarist Andrew Chamberlaine – or have bassist/guitarist/vocalist/band chef Ben Pickering cook a meal for you. There are many other packages available, and more may be added as the campaign progresses. Check out the full list of perks and a pretty damn hilarious video on the indiegogo site here.

We’re all looking forward to autographed hard copies of albums and poster packages to come in the mail very soon. We hope you all will join in supporting one of our favorite bands.

February 3, 2014