NYS Music 20​15

Author: Darren Kemp

  • Tool Planning Winter Tour

    Tool fans that have been waiting forever for good news can finally get pumped, as it appears the reclusive foursome will be planning a winter tour this January.

    The prog-metal group’s last studio album 10,000 Days dropped close to ten years ago and their last tour that even touched the Eastern side of the country was in 2012. Yesterday someone posted a cryptic message on their Facebook page indicating dates for a 2016 tour would be dropping soon:

    No dates or other info has been released. Tool most recently played The Monster Mash music festival in Tempe, AZ this past Halloween. The band played the entire show dressed as Led Zeppelin and busted out a rare cover of “No Quarter.” Fans of course are hoping this announcement will also come with news on the bands long awaited next album, with previous band statements indicating most of it is complete.

    Stay tuned as we gather more information on this developing story.

  • Borg Supergroup Poised to Assimilate Western New York this Christmas

    BORGChristmas just got a whole lot more interesting in Western New York. A brand-new supergroup of New York-based musicians coined Borg Party will be playing a two-night stint this December at Buffalo Iron Works (Dec. 22) and Flour City Station in Rochester (Dec. 23).

    Consisting of Rob Compa (guitar/Dopapod), Mike Gantzer (guitar/Aqueous), Mikey Carruba (drums/Turkuaz), James Searl (bass/Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad), and Wiley O’Riley (keys/The Niche), the Borg Party should attract a star cruiser full of assimilated dancing fans.

    With all of these musicians have collaborated multiple times in the past, attendees should expect far more than a simple night of improvisation and covers. In the past year alone, Compa’s Dopapod has played entire mash-up sets with Aqueous and Turkuaz.

    [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/211571756″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

    Tickets for either night are $15 pre-sale.

    Also don’t miss catching Dopapod Wed, Nov. 18, at Buffalo’s Tralf Music Hall.

  • Floodwood Announces Lineup Change

    Floodwood has announced via Facebook that Al Schnier and Zachary Fleitz have left the band.

    Floodwood, commonly known as a bluegrass side project for New York’s jam champions moe., will carry on without Schnier, with fellow moe.ron Vinnie Amico remaining in the band. They are currently seeking new members.

    Floodwood - Celtic Harp

    While not an audition (or is it?), Floodwood also announced they would be performing a Dec. 5 Holiday concert at the Kirkland Arts Center in Clinton NY with special guest bassist Tony Markellis (Trey Anastasio Band). Ticketing information has yet to be released.

    Check out the full announcement below:

    Hi Folks,

    We know things have been quiet for the last couple of months and there some big changes we want to share with you…

    Due to shifts in various life circumstances, both Al and Zach have made the decision to move on from Floodwood. This is a huge change and we will certainly miss their presence on and off stage. Our hope is that occasionally when they have time that one or both of them will be able to make appearances with us.

    That said, Vin, Jay and Nick have decided to carry on Floodwood in some fashion or another. You may be wondering what the new band will look like, who will be involved, what it will sound like, etc….. So do we. We have started the process/brainstorming but it may take a little time. What we do know is that we absolutely love to play, love to have fun and of course we love the interaction with our amazing fans. In the upcoming months, we will be making decisions about who we want to be in the band. We are going to be trying some different combinations of musicians/friends until we get that “fit” we are looking for. We hope that you all will come see some of these shows as we try out different things… Please get involved! Let us know what you think about what you hear; we want your input!

    To get it all going, we are going to start with a holiday concert at the Kirkland Arts Center in Clinton, NY. We’re excited to have special guest, Tony Markellis from Trey Anastasio Band on bass! Show is December 5, more details to follow!

    Thank you all for your incredible support of the band for these past 5 yrs. We’ve had so many great times with you all and look forward to many, many more.

    Thanks!
    Vin, Jay & Nick

  • Mastodon Coming to ROCKchester

    Mastodon recently announced their long-awaited return to Rockchester with a show at new venue Anthology on Nov. 13.

    Although technically from Atlanta, half of the ferocious foursome call the Flour City home. Both guitarist Bill Kelliher and drummer Brann Dailor have deep roots in the Rochester metal music community, having come from the local legendary mathcore group Lethargy, which disbanded in 1999, amongst several other projects.

    Anthology is a new music venue located in Rochester’s East End in the former Daisy Duke’s location. While not officially open yet, several upcoming shows have been announced with major talents such as the “post-hardcore” of Silverstein (Nov. 18) and the bluegrass grooves of Yonder Mountain String Band (Nov. 1). Keep an eye on NYSMusic for more information and a grand opening date for Anthology as it becomes available.

    Mastodon is touring behind the 2014 release Once More ‘Round the Sun. Tickets are $26.50 in advance, $30 at the door. It’s a near certainty that this show will sell out.

  • Rochester Kicks Off Inaugural ‘City Celebration’ Festival

    The city of Rochester will hold the first ever “Rochester City Celebrations” festival Friday, Aug. 14, at 6 p.m. in the East End district.

    Replacing the larger East End festival that was retired this year due to congestion problems surrounding the work on the inner loop, “City Celebrations” will be a free event featuring live music, food and drinks outdoors on East Avenue by Scio Street.

    Rochester City CelebrationOne stage will feature music from three local bands: the rootsy folk rock of The Barry Brothers, and two tribute acts — ZBTB, covering the music of the Zac Brown band, and Big Eyed Phish, a Dave Matthews tribute.

    Once the outdoor fun ends around 11 p.m., those wanting a late night experience can head to any of the local bars and keep it raging till 2 a.m. Flour City Station will feature an after-show with Personal Blend, a reggae/dub act. No other after-shows have been announced.

    Music Schedule

    6 p.m. Barry Brothers
    7:15 p.m. ZBTB
    9 p.m. Big Eyed Fish

    Facebook Event

  • Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival: Photo Review – Beth Hart

    Beth Hart and band opened for Gary Clark Jr. for day six of Xerox Rochester’s International Jazz Festival.

    Rochester Jazzfest Beth Hart dkemp (7)

    Hart took the stage before a sold out audience at Kodak Hall and promptly ripped into a set filled with emotion driven rock and roll. Showcasing stunning vocals reminiscent of Joplin and a “for real” backing band, Hart flipped back and forth between exploring the stage and sitting at a piano. Also a storyteller at heart, she shared the backgrounds of her songs — many of which were stories of her family and a life filled with challenges — the ultimate recipe for some top notch blues.

    https://youtu.be/kM_jtJZR-Cw

    Rochester Beth Hart is touring in support of her latest release Better Than Home. 

    Facebook Twitter

  • Photo Review: The Sultry Jennifer Hudson at Rochester’s Jazzfest Day 6

    Award-winning actress and American Idol champ alumni Jennifer Hudson wowed a sold out house at Kodak Hall for Day 6 of Xerox’s Rochester International Jazz Festival.

    Armed with a litany of impressive backup singers and musicians, Hudson took the stage with much aplomb and more shrieks, catcalls and “woos” than the orchestral feeling building had ever heard. And they were well deserved, as the lovely Hudson showed off her vocal acrobatics, scrumptious menu of hits, and more than enough witty banter to mesmerize any crowd. Heck, even Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren came down to dance.

    Hudson currently has no upcoming tour dates planned. Rochester Xerox International Jazzfest ran from June 19-27 2015.

  • Riverlink 2015 Summer Concert Series in Amsterdam

    The City of Amsterdam and Amsterdam Waterfront Foundation will present their annual Riverlink Concert Series starting July 4, 2015 and running through the end of August.

    Shows start at 7 p.m. rain or shine and are free for all ages.

    Riverlink Concert Series

    July 4 – Christine Ohlman and Rebel Montez – Rock and soul from SNL’s beehive queen
    July 11 – Hot Club of Saratoga — Gypsy swing quartet
    July 18 – Tony’s Polka Band – High octane polka
    July 25 – Jocelyn Arndt – Blues, indie, rock, jazz
    Aug. 1 – Triskele – Celtic music
    Aug. 8 – Roosevelt Dime – Blues and dixieland
    Aug. 15 – Matuto – Bluegrass meets Brazil
    Aug. 22 – Toby Walker – Fingerstyle guitar wizard
    Aug. 29 – The Twangbusters – Boogie, blues and bop with plenty of twang

    Go to Riverlinkconcerts.com for more info and directions.

  • Holly Bowling Adds New York Dates This August

    Holly Bowling, best known for her jam transcriptions of Phish songs, announced a summer tour featuring shows on both coasts in support of her upcoming release “Distillation of a Dream.”

    space

    Kicking off with a show the night before Phish’s two-night stand in Bend, Oregon where Bowling will play alongside David Forrest for “Phish in Black and White.” Bowling will then perform four East coast shows, including two shows in Philadelphia, one the night before Phish’s performance at The Mann and the second during the PhanArt show “A World Café Live One” during the day of August 12. A performance at New York City’s The Cutting Room and Syracuse’s Funk ‘n Waffles Downtown serve as a lead up to the Magnaball festival starting that weekend.

    Holly Bowling Summer Tour

    July 20 Pine Mountain Sports, Bend, OR

    August 10 Howl At The Moon, Philadelphia, PA

    August 12 PhanArt Presents: ‘A World Cafe Live One’, Philadelphia, PA

    August 18 The Cutting Room, New York, NY

    August 19 Funk ‘n Waffles Downtown, Syracuse, NY

    Holly will also be a featured guest on Jam Cruise 14, sailing out of Miami, Florida January 6-11, 2016. Cabins are available now.

    “Distillation of a Dream” includes two discs, the first highlighting Phish’s intricate songwriting and the second a tribute to the spontaneous improvisation Phish creates during their live performances.  The second “jam transcription” disc consists entirely of three piano reinterpretations of standout live performances, including the “Tahoe Tweezer.”  All tracks will be released as a double album on CD and the “Tahoe Tweezer” will also be released on 180 gram vinyl.  Pre-order “Distillation of a Dream.”

    Holly Bowling on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

  • 2015 Rockin’ on the River Lineup Announced

    North Tonawanda’s annual Rockin on the River series lineup has been announced for 2015.

    Kicking things off this year is Toronto’s USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) – a two man alternative dance music/EDM group on July 10. July 17 will feature the dub/reggae beats of SOJA along with Rochester’s Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, North Tonawanda’s hottest groove rock export Aqueous, and Buffao’s Skyepilot. Rochester native and jukebox hero Lou Gramm will bring a slew of Foreigner hits and solo material to town July 31.  The series will end in a totally epic manner as Gov’t Mule’s Warren Haynes stops into town with friends and collaborators Railroad Earth.

    All shows are free, all ages and held at Gratwick Park. Those that want a closeup experience with some extra amenities can opt for VIP passes that go on sale June 20. Nearby parking is available for $5. Check out the full schedule below.

    North Tonawanda Rockin’ on the River 2015 

    July 10 – USS w/ special guests to be announced
    July 17 – SOJA w/ Aqueous, Giant Panda, and Skyepilot
    July 31 – Lou Gramm w/ Radio9, Magone, and Famous Fred and the Creatures Unknown
    Aug 7 – Warren Haynes w/ Railroad Earth and The Jeremy Hoyle Band