Albany’s Palace Theater is going to have a night of music and comedy for everyone to enjoy on June 20th. Steve Martin, along with Edie Brickell and The Steep Canyon Rangers are going to be playing a great night of bluegrass music at the venue. Steve Martin, best known for his comedy, has been an accomplished banjo player for most of his life and has focused on touring and playing in the last few years. Tickets are on sale now.
Despite their stylistic differences, Buffalo-based bands Well Worn Boot and Mr. Boneless are both independently known for their high-energy rock-and-roll shows. If you put the two on a bill together in their hometown, you’re lucky if the building is intact afterwards. Luckily, Central Park Grill survived the night on Friday, February 7th, when both Well Worn Boot and Mr. Boneless took the stage to a packed room for good-natured mayhem and truly original music. In addition to sharing Buffalo as their home turf, Boneless and Boot both started out in nearby Fredonia, New York, making the line-up a reunion of sorts. Before either band took stage the downstairs bar began to fill in, with new and old friends catching up over (numerous) drinks, waiting for the night of music to begin.
Mr. Boneless opened up the show at about 10:30 PM, with a quintessential up-tempo set that featured gritty vocals over steady rock licks played with a modern twinge. The retro/modern dichotomy is sort of a recurring theme for the band, both in terms of musicality and stage presence. Musically, Boneless has a very apparent blues influence, but their tempos often lend themselves more to straight rock or punk, with transitions that you would find in 90’s alternative. I often hear a influences of Modest Mouse, Maps & Atlases and some “X” factor that varies between songs. A major highlight of this band is their dynamics, alongside guitar tones that range nicely between a clean vintage sound and over-driven fuzz. Boneless definitely favors song structure over jamming, however, they are not afraid to let a guitar solo rip or pound out a deep riff for a few extra bars. By the end of the set Central Park Grill was hot – both figuratively and literally – and ready to go.
Well Worn Boot took the stage to a full room around midnight, opening with crashes of noise that gave stragglers at the bar one last heads-up before appropriately launching off with “Certified Party Girl”. According to flutist/vocalist/front man, The Plainsman, this was the only calculated move of the night, acknowledging proudly, “After that we were basically just picking out of a hat.” Known for their stage theatrics, Friday night was no different, with all characters engaging in wandering stories, audience participation and off-the-cuff antics. This appetite for providing undeniable entertainment, regardless of form (or intentional lack there of) is what makes Boot so endearing; they provide the same high-level of energy and passion whether they are playing a college town dive-bar or opening for GWAR at Buffalo’s Town Ballroom. This, paired with the fact that no two shows are the same makes for a concert experience like no other- – a responsibility that Plainsman does not take lightly. “Playing in Buffalo is no joke”, he explained, “You ever met a Bills fan? These people can take a hit, man. You have to notify them that they just lost, and they probably still won’t believe. That’s dedication. We have fans who have been to around fifty of our shows…We’re like Phish, but with less jamming.”
Favorites of the night included classics such as straight-up-rocking “Ballad of Billy Klubb” (imagine 13th Floor Elevators and Jethro Tull teamed up, with Tom Waits lyrics sung in Spin Doctors fashion); “Drunk on The Highway”, a steady psych-rock inspired tale featuring alien abductions and sex with space chicks, and fan-favorite rarity, “Chautauqua County” which is ultimately a punk rock ode to the region that pushed audience members to their peak unruliness. The set also included a number of new songs from Boot’s upcoming comic/EP Boot in Space, which is set to release on April 19th. And if that’s not enough, Boot is in the process of taking submissions for their “Wild Wild Fest” which will take pace at the end of August in Silver Creek. That said, Boot is first and foremost concerned with providing a quality live performance and throwing a solid party for fans old and new. As The Plainsman summarized Friday night, “We were just happy to have so many friends in attendance. Every show is huge for us. I’ve been acting like I’m the biggest dude in America for like four years now.”
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Mr. Boneless: misterboneless.bandcamp.com
Well Worn Boot: www.wellwornboot.com
Patrick DePuy, Photos: www.patrickdepuy.com
Bumrush Booking: www.bumrushbooking.com
Railroad Earth wasted no time plunging into a night full of new and old songs to a solid crowd at The Town Ballroom on Wednesday, February 12th. Fans talked of how great the last show was and expected the same and tonight’s show turned out to be just as good.
Have Gun, Will Travel opened the show with a very Rock and roll feel which got the early crowd’s blood flowing. Have Gun, Will Travel is a band that is from Brandeton, Florida and their sound is very authentic with touches of Americana, folk, and rock. Their high energy clearly got everyone moving and was a perfect start to what was going to be an incredible evening.
Railroad Earth came out to thunderous applause that has welcomed them many times in the Buffalo area. The group from Stillwater, New Jersey belted into “Black Elk Speaks” getting the crowd’s energy level up. Todd Sheaffer (vocals, guitar) led them through the first set with “Chains” and closed out the set with “Just So”.The second set began with one of their newest singles of their brand new album Last Of The Outlaws, “Chasin A Rainbow” and is accompanied by some catchy fiddling by the very talented Tim Carbone, who sliced through the crowd and picked them up over and over throughout the song as well as other times throughout the night.
John Skehan (mandolin, bouzouki, piano) and Andy Goessling (banjo, guitar, dobro) traded several solos throughout the night with Carbone, with their progressive jams making every song interesting and fun. Goessling is truly talented, switching to a number of instruments throughout the night and making each instrument different and unique at the same time. Andrew Altman (bass) the newest member of the band added a lot of youth and creativity throughout the night playing both the stand up bass as well as the electric bass. Sheaffer didn’t say much and with his bass vocals and occasional guitar solo didn’t need to, it was displayed on his very humble smile as he would survey the crowd, he was living in the moment. Closing the set with fan favorites “The Jupiter & The 119 > Cuckoo Medley” reminded how good the group was playing with each other, as each member took on a progressive solo. The encore closed out the evening with “Monkey”, another catchy song off their newest album. RRE has been gaining a lot of speed over the last few years and is one of the tightest groups of well rounded musicians that can produce greatness at any point of the show; they did it several times in Buffalo and it won’t be the last time.
Set 1: Black Elk Speaks, Untitled #12, Walk Beside Me, Chains, Little Bit-o Me, Daddy-o, Just So You Know, Bread And Water
Set 2: Chasin A Rainbow, Dandelion Wine, Saddle Of The Sun, One The Sun Gets In Your Blood, Colorado, Walls Of Time, Hangtown Ball, Goat, Jupiter & The 119>Cuckoo Medley
Encore: Monkey
Have Gun, Will Travel
Railroad Earth
moe.down 15 has announced their initial lineup and some heavy hitters are in store for moe.rons! Joining moe. this year will be jamtronica gurus Lotus, Les Claypool’s Duo de Twang, Soulive, O.A.R., Vermont’s Twiddle and Buffalo’s Aqueous. Expect more bands to be announced over the next two months to round out an already stellar lineup.
Early bird general admission and VIP tickets are on sale now. Pick up tickets and RV passes here!
Rochester reggae stalwarts Mosaic Foundation have released their latest album, Signs of The Times and have announced a big CNY show with The Moho Collective on Saturday, March 8th at The Lost Horizon in Syracuse. This will be the first time both bands have appeared at the legendary club and a fantastic opportunity for folks to see these two spectacular Rochester-based bands together. Skip to the end for details, but let’s check out the album first.
Mosaic Foundation has been plying their trade around the Northeast for half a decade, always danceable and infectious, open and joyful, reflective of the vibe and groove of their loosely framed genre. The disc jumps out of the gate with “We Can Make It If We Try”, a signature sounding anthem, reflective and positive, upbeat and uplifting, as Cha Cha establishes his vocal command and a flat-out infectious groove. “Reggae Escape” stretches the authenticity of Cha Cha’s voice and the band’s message, “This music is used to settle disputes … used to teach the youth their roots … righteous truths brothers.” The variety of pacing used here keeps the listener anticipating the next, whether driven by JP’s drums or Ken’s funky scratches. “My Planet”, then “Helping Hands” express the joy and sorrow of existence balanced against the perspective of survival and giving, the basic inter-connective tissue between everyone.
The title track picks up the theme and puts a bounce under it, letting the positive outweigh the negative, giving it breath to keep up the fight. Allowing space for reflection and vision while following a true path set before them. “Stand Firm” feels like a homage to those who’ve gone before them and a rallying cry to those they stand shoulder to shoulder with. It’s defiant, it’s firm, but the heartfelt joy comes out on top. “Abundance Of Water” is a call to arms of sorts, asking for vision from those living merely in the present. Then “San Kofa” spins forward the guitars and the band feels the up-shift in pacing, and depth of message, intensifying their passion for both.
“Praises” shows the true authenticity of Mosaic Foundation, each member’s musical instinct understands spacing, pacing and breathing. Reggae must be felt, perhaps more than any other genre, there’s a natural motion implied and if it doesn’t move you, it falls flat. There’s none of that here. “Harder The Battle” remains expressive of the struggle and what will overcome it, unity, love, strength, honesty and joy. “Harder the battle, sweeter the victory” indeed. “Jellyfish”, the closer, let’s the boys cut it loose and jam a little, the mix of the keys is deep and layered, evoking layers of feeling like an oceanic trip. The piano is exemplary, the guitar tasty and the rhythm solid, the idea of closing with an instrumental is unique and confident. Very cool stuff, well played and much respect!
Be sure to hit the big upcoming show on March 8th at The Lost Horizon with The Moho Collective! Check out The Moho Collective’s website. Advance tickets are available from Mosaic Foundation members. More details are available on the facebook event page here.
Mosaic Foundation is:
Ken Luk – guitars/ Melodica/ Minimoog/ piano/ vocals
Ekwem Itot Bogmis – piano/ Rhodes/ Hammond Organ/ vocals
Michael Corey – guitars
John-Paul Nawn – drums/ vocals
“Bongo” Brian Davis – percussion
“Cha Cha” Yao Foli Augustine – lead vocals/ percussion
Aaron Sprague – bass
Zach Dumrese – Sound Captain
Guests on this recording:
Angelo Peters – clavinet/ Farfisa and Hammond organ/ guitar
Lee Hamilton – sax
Ryan Zawel – trombone
On February 8th at Bridgewater’s Club Aqua, SLUG took the stage for all those brave enough to weather the cold. It didn’t take long though to warm up the crowd with their groovy, bluesy sound. Reminiscent of a mix of Grateful Dead, The Allman Brothers, Willie Nelson, and Bob Dylan, SLUG has taken these inspirational sounds and created a sound uniquely their own. This feel good, easy going music features Stephen “Fletch” Fletcher on lead vocal and rhythm, Irwin Winkler on lead guitar and back up vocals; Chris “The Kraken” Dunn on bass and back up vocals; Mike Finley on keyboards and back up vocals, and Adam Morgan on drums.
This year the band will spend a good deal of time touring festivals all over the country. Check them out locally at the Strawberry Jam on May 15th in Fort Plain, NY or at Shake the Mountain on May 16th in Northville, NY. For further details on these and upcoming events please check their website.
On a wintry Saturday night in February, the blowing snow made the trip down to Hudson, NY that much more thrilling, and made the audience that much more thankful that Steve Earle decided to make the trip up to Hudson to perform in the intimate concert space at Club Helsinki. The club has a very Greenwich Village sort of feel to it, with funky decorations including a red lamp with a stuffed crow sitting on top. Starting off the evening early with a delightful meal of southern cooking, which included deep-fried cauliflower, cheesy grits, and sweet potato pie to top it all off, the crowd had their stomachs filled as the show officially began.
If you weren’t paying attention, you wouldn’t know the show had begun! Steve Earle nonchalantly strolled onto the stage and started right in with the title track off one of his more recent albums, The Low Highway. This song had a pure twangy sound to it, as did his next several tunes, which included “My Old Friend the Blues” off one of his earlier albums. After about his fourth song, he started in with his famous and much enjoyed storytelling, his first story being a timely Valentine’s Day story about how he had just gotten out of jail in February of 1995, and didn’t have a license, so since he couldn’t drive into town to buy flowers, he wrote his significant other a song as a gift instead. Judging by the lyrics of the song following that story, “Valentine’s Day”, he had a lot to apologize for, but it’s nothing having someone write a song for you can’t fix! The harmonica came out at this point in the show, and Steve folked-out to “Taneytown”, which had a very Patti Smith-like sound to it. His next several tunes sounded very heavily influenced by Bob Dylan, with a hint of Simon and Garfunkel mixed in for good measure.
Paying tribute to the late great Pete Seeger, Steve told an endearing story about a festival he had the pleasure of performing at with Pete, then slipped into a tune he had written years ago honoring Pete called “Steve’s Hammer (for Pete)”, a lovely sing-along which had everyone in the audience singing out, many of them singing through their tears. Changing the mood drastically, he then went into “Angel is the Devil”, which although melodically it sounds upbeat and light, the lyrics are much darker than one would expect from purely listening to the melody.
At this point in the show, Steve switched over to his current favorite instrument, a mandolin designed by Australian luthier Steve Gilchrist, who was granted the esteemed title of “best mandolin maker in the world” by none other than Steve Earle himself! It did produce a pretty amazing sound, which was showcased in one of Earle’s more famous tunes “Galway Girl”, a song with a tricky rhythm that lends itself well to the mandolin. Before putting that mandolin back into its case, Steve gave it a kiss! He then brought out an octave mandolin, or a “bouzouki”. (He jokingly advised that whenever traveling with a bouzouki, you should refer to it as an octave mandolin while going through airport security, since “bouzouki” sounds kind of suspicious…) Throwing in another quick story highlighting his love of New York City, namely that he loves being able to fully experience neighborhood delis/bodegas, he dedicated his next song “City of Immigrants” to Mr. Kim, who runs his local deli.
Steve got serious with a story about his 3 ½-year old son who was diagnosed with autism, and urged everyone to pressure the powers-that-be to figure out how to cure autism, rather than focusing on how to extract “black stuff from the ground”. That definitely hit a nerve with the crowd at this show, as hydrofracking is a contentious issue in our neck of the woods here in Upstate New York. His next song “Remember Me” was incredibly moving, and once again brought tears to some people’s eyes.
Continuing with songs and stories covering issues from the Third Crusade/the Israel-Palestine conflict (“Jerusalem”), to gun control (“Devil’s Right Hand”), Earle ended his two-hour set with “Copperhead Road”, employing an interesting mix of up- and down-strokes, jamming out on a typically simple rhythm. Stepping off-stage for just a moment, Earle came out to sing a song off his upcoming blues album, and ended with an older, better known tune, “Guitar Town”. After finishing up his second encore, Earle took a brief break to eat some dinner backstage, but promised to come out when he finished so he could chat with the audience and sign CDs. All in all, Steve Earle’s unique performance style encompassing a mix of singing and storytelling, in combination with the intimate setting of Club Helsinki, the evening turned out to be a very musically and politically inspirational. Steve Earle is definitely worth checking out if he comes to your town.
Bonnaroo has finally announced their eclectic 2014 lineup. In what could be seen as one of the most diverse festivals of the year, Bonnaroo has outdone themselves once again. For many years now Bonnaroo has made sure that their lineup has a little bit of everything for any music fan out there and has brought rock, hip hop, EDM, blues, country, and jam down to the farm. The headliners this year are made up of Elton John, Kanye West, Jack White, and Lionel Richie. Other major names playing in Tennessee this year are Vampire Weekend, The Avett Brothers, Phoenix, Skrillex, Arctic Monkeys, Frank Ocean, The Flaming Lips, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Ms. Lauryn Hill.
In the past couple of years the festival has shied away from its jam band roots, but this year boasts many bands that could fall under that category with The Tedeschi Trucks Band, Umphrey’s McGee, Yonder Mountain String Band, and The John Butler Trio all slated to perform. Other jam bands on the schedule include The Wood Brothers, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Greensky Bluegrass, and Break Science. There are also three Superjams occurring this year with one remaining unannounced at the moment, Skrillex and friends holding down an EDM one, and Ed Helms hosting The Bluegrass Situation.
Some other noteworthy acts include Janelle Monae, Cake, Ice Cube, Fitz and the Tantrums, Cage the Elephant, Dr. Dog, Mastodon, White Denim, Polica, and Damon Albarn. Over on Relix there is a great interview with Rick Farman about how they put the festival together this year. He talks about everything from getting Elton John at his first US festival ever to acts that continuously come back and grow with Bonnaroo to why they booked Kanye West again after the debacle of 2008.
Tickets go on sale over at Bonnaroo’s site on Saturday at Noon. Get your tickets and get ready to head down to the farm.
Valentine’s Day in Woodstock seemed like a perfect romantic weekend getaway, but what to do while in town besides eat, shop and enjoy the picturesque Catskill setting? Robert Randolph and the Family Band answered that question with a performance at Bearsville Theater to a vibrant, coupled crowd. The Compact warmed the crowd up with power trio guitar rock, highlighted by a some Herbie Hancock and a “Cissy Strut” jam appetizer.
This was the first of many trips to Bearsville Theater and the location is ideal, only a little over an hour drive from Albany and right off the main road with ample parking, even with an excess of snow taking up spots, but understandably so after this eternal winter. The venue has a cabin in the woods architecture but inside its far more than that. A sunken bar so as not to block the view of the view of the stage, which was unfettered via glass windows, making for optimal sightlines to the crowd in the bar. Limited reserved seating upstairs provided a great view but downstairs among the crowd, dancing on the floor were the majority of the crowd. Randolph’s howling, and screaming pedal steel guitar squealed as he and his band took the stage for an all too short 90 minute set.
Following a warm up instrumental, The Family Band tore into “Amped Up”, one of the many highlights off of 2013’s Lickety Split, and gave the crowd an electric charge to begin the night. Seated at first, then standing up for some of the songs that took a more aggressive touch, Randolph was mellower but still gave off an energy that fed into the crowd. This was the breakout Bonnaroo star of 2002, but with more restraint and focus. The result: a honed sound and showcase of the beauty of the pedal steel as well as what you can do when you possess a great deal of talent in the instrument. Randolph’s cousin, Danyel Morgan, held grooves down on bass and quickly escalated the beat as Robert sped up the lead. A variation on the Wetlands classic “The March” brought the quartet into sync in one of the few composed parts of the evening.
It wasn’t “La Grange” but it was damn close. Pouring ZZ Top into “Shake Your Hips” included Robert inviting the ladies in the audience to dance on stage, an ever-welcome staple of a Randolph show. Deep instrumentals and a sit-in with an unknown guitarist preceded the closing “I Don’t Know What You’ve Come to Do”, with Danyel’s high-range vocals setting the crowd a foot. Between the pedal steel’s shrieks of joy and Danyel’s passion, you couldn’t find a better closing song for the sweat-inducing set.
An encore of a slow Randolph-led jam deferred to Ted’s Jam, wrapping up the show just after midnight. Altogether, it was a perfect Valentine’s Day with The Family Band. The only thing that seemed amiss – one of their biggest hits is “I Need More Love” but it wasn’t played on Valentine’s Day? The show had no complaints, but it felt like a missed opportunity on second glance. Nevertheless, Robert Randolph and the Family Band have a unique and rounded sound that is second to none. You can catch them in Syracuse on March 20th at The Westcott Theater.
What’s more fun then a parade of frozen leprechauns, fire breathing dragons and ladies doing synchronized dancing with lawn chairs? Add in sideshows of frying pan tosses, frigid golf, Frisbee flings, fireworks and free music and you have the annual Saranac Lake Winter Carnival, and our photo gallery below from Laura Carbone.
This 10 day event is set in the “coolest” town in the US, Saranac Lake, located in the Northern Adirondacks. Initially started in 1897, it is complete with crowned royalty, an ice palace and a theme which changes yearly.
This year’s theme was deemed “The Celtic Carnival”, and having been crowned the second best Winter Carnival in the world by National Geographic Traveler, it’s a hidden gem in our own backyard. Buttons that celebrate the carnival theme are designed by Gary Trudeau, the creator of “Doonesbury” and a Saranac Lake native. For the duration of the festival, live music spills out of the small bars and venues performed by local favorites and touring regional bands. Notable acts include Sophistafunk, Conehead Buddha, Tim Herron Corporation and local favorites, The Blind Owl Band and Lucid highlight the musical festivities. Break the chill and come up to Saranac Lake.
Photos by Kara Zesky, review by Laura Carbone