In our 2014 Best of Upstate series, we have so far looked at the Best Albums and Best Festivals of 2014. Today we look at the music venues throughout Upstate NY. The region is blessed with incredible clubs, theatres and arena throughout the state, all bringing in a wide range of musical acts for the population living in Upstate New York, and drawing in music fans from outside our region.
Best Club
Honorable Mentions
Best Theatre
Honorable Mentions
Best Arena/Amphitheater
Honorable Mentions
With festivals all around the world slowly revealing 2015 dates, November 17 saw the announcement of 2015’s Mysteryland USA at the Bethel Woods Center For The Arts in Bethel, NY slated for May 22-24. This is the same venue of the original Woodstock. Line up has yet to be determined.
Mysteryland USA is the world’s longest electronic music and dance festival. This marks the second time in the festival’s 21 year history where it is being held in the United States. Here are more details via Mysteryland.us:
“After making a historic U.S. debut last year, the celebrated Mysteryland festival returns in 2015 for its second edition at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, New York, the site of the legendary 1969 Woodstock festival and just a two hour drive away from New York City. Mysteryland is the longest running electronic music, culture and arts festival in the world, active since 1993 with international editions in Chile, the Netherlands and the United States. Taking place over Memorial Day Weekend 2015, Mysteryland’s second installment will expand to present an even more immersive festival experience, starting with new and improved campgrounds with increased capacity and camping options, plus more musical programming to offer campground visitors a full three-day festival experience.”
They also announced several camping and VIP options:
Holy Ground Camping: To create an even better camping experience, Mysteryland 2015 adds a new outdoor camping stage dubbed “The Pineapple Paradise” in addition to the return of the Camping Circus and BangOn! bus, for a total of three Holy Ground stages. An exclusive pre-festival kick-off party for Holy Ground campers will take place on Friday, May 22, 2015 from 2PM – 2AM, for a total of 12 hours of music, art and revelry. Additionally, opening parties called “The Breakfast Club” will kick off each day of the festival starting at 11AM to lengthen the weekend festival experience for all Holy Ground campers.
Mysteryland 2015 will also feature expanded Holy Ground camping grounds with increased capacity and more visitor facilities such as showers and restrooms. Free water stations will be available, providing hydration to campers, and gravel roads will be put in place as part of the festival’s mud-prevention operations. A revamped Plaza Central, the beating heart of the camping grounds, will expand to feature additional food and beverage options, plus more markets and outdoor and indoor seating.
Mysteryland offers multiple packages for the ultimate camping experience, including the introduction of “Easy Tents,” featuring a Mysteryland-branded pre-set up tent with a two-person airbed along with two sleeping bags, located in the Easy Tent section of the Holy Ground. The Easy Tent package includes either two Nomad Weekend tickets or two Bohemium Premium Weekend tickets for access to the festival and camping grounds.
Also newly available are Bohemium Premium Lodges: fully furnished luxury tents located in the Lodge Village and equipped with beds, power outlets, and interior lighting, plus access to free lockers, restrooms and showers exclusive for Lodge guests, as well as VIP parking.”
If you’re a MasterCard holder, you can purchase the presale tickets as early as December 3 here. Otherwise, the rest of the presale begins December 4. Check out the various tickets and camping packages here.
MysteryLand USA was my first EDM festival but I doubt it will be my last. As a middle aged rocker that occasional enjoys the occasional jam band, I really didn’t know what to expect. However, when I got to the grounds of the original Woodstock at Bethel Woods, I could already feel the excitement in the air. My normal routine for festivals or concerts is to get there early and to scout the stages and setup. I start planning my shots and my day with no one else around, understanding the lay of the land. For Mysteryland this was at high noon on Saturday, and there wasn’t a single light, laser or LED to be seen. There were however, huge circus-style tents, a Spanish stage with sugar face designs, a vinyl area with old albums all over and an octagon building that was brought over from the Netherlands. There was even a large boat set-up as a stage. But the highlight was the main stage. It was a house of cards, no, it was a castle of cards. It looked amazing and in the middle was an area that the DJs and artists could practice their craft and entertain the 20,000 fans in attendance.
When the gates finally opened all the festival-goers were greeted by sheriffs and state troopers with their canine unit drug sniffing dogs. Festival organizers, ID&T, said they were going to run a clean festival and to the best of their ability they did a great job. After spending two days, it wasn’t the typical cloud of smoke, nor did I walk by underage drunks passed out at three in the afternoon. Did I mention that they enforced a 21 and over policy? Additional fences were added to increase security and there were 850 people working the festival besides the 250 performers. This wasn’t the normal festival; ID&T were planning for the future and wanted to prove to their hosts that they could offer up a quality, successful festival on the holy grounds of Woodstock and keep it safe and clean. The goal wasn’t as much about making money as it was getting an invitation back.
One of the aspects of the festival that I did look forward to were the costumes the ravers put together to express themselves. While some outfits were purchased, it seemed like most extravagant and therefore the best ones were handmade. I saw people dressed as animals, Dr. Seuss characters, the whole cast from Alice in Wonderland, aliens and more. There was even a parrot and a pirate combo with her on his shoulder, put that by the boat stage and it was the perfect scenario. As per any electronic music event, there were no shortages of hula hoops or fuzzy boots, and more than your fair share of glitter and body paint. A few of the outfits (or lack of) made me thankful that I have three sons, because if I had a daughter wearing a bra and panties out in public I wouldn’t be the happy-go-lucky guy that I am. Honestly in the proper setting it really does barely raise an eyebrow.
Some of the things that made Mysteryland unique compared to most festivals that I’ve been to were the amount of International visitors. Over 27 countries were represented and more than half the states also had a solid presence. The European touch on the festival was evident in the hospitality and organization, especially in the media area. Overall this festival was other worldly and I look forward to the next one.
Woodstock has gone through two major official reincarnations since the original fest changed the musical landscape forever. With the 45th anniversary this year, many have wondered whether the third installment of this epic music festival would be in the works. While this appears to not be happening, original promoter and co-creator Michael Lang appears to be in the early planning stages of the 50th anniversary of Woodstock, an event that launched so many careers into the stratosphere.
Details are minimal at this point: the site will likely be near the original Bethel site, and it’s anyone’s guess which bands will be present. Considering the past two were fraught with issues (Mud, fires, crime etc.), one would hope they go back to the original mindset: hippies, peace and love. NYS Music will be monitoring this story and keep you abreast of any changes. Who would you like to see at Woodstock’s 50th?
Crosby, Stills, and Nash have announced a July tour that will see New York get three shows. On July 3rd, the legendary trio will hit the original site of Woodstock at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.
They have played the venue a few times since it has been opened, but it is always a treat to see an original performer of the festival play on the hollowed grounds. A few days later on July 8th and 9th, they will be making a stop at The Beacon Theatre for the only two night stand of the tour. They will be playing songs from all of their entire discography as well as brand new music. They will be joined by a backing band consisting of Shane Fontayne (guitar), Steve DiStanislao (drums), Kevin McCormick (bass), James Raymond (keyboards), and Todd Caldwell (organ). Tickets will be going on sale soon.