Category: Beyond NYS

Festy News: Disc Jam 2015 Lineup is Loaded

Disc Jam 2015 announced a funk heavy lineup today that’s perhaps the best ever for the central Massachusetts located festival.

“I feel this year’s line up is by far our best yet. We pride ourselves on the quality of music we put out each year which has gained Disc Jam the reputation of being one of the more sought after festivals to play in the Northeast.”

The 2015 edition – June 12-14 in Barre, Ma – will feature headliners Lettuce, The Heavy Pets, two sets of Twiddle, Kung Fu, Pink Talking Fish, Dopapod, and Consider the Source. Coming along for the ride are the red hot Tauk, Cabinet, Soul De Monde, Albany’s Mister F and Formula 5, and many more.

This atypical festival also includes a lot more than music for attendees – 2 Disc Golf tournaments, a silent disco, flow and hula hoop workshops, and lots of vending. Music runs continuously on two side by side stages allowing fans to catch every band if they so choose.

The Camp Coldbrook location is also loaded with amenities such as hot indoor showers, two swimming pools, an arcade, and a fully stocked bar that will no doubt get a lot of traffic over the three day festival.

Check out our review of last years Jam here.

March 4, 2015
StrangeCreek Campout 2015 Lineup Announced

Wormtown Trading has announced the lineup for the 3-day StrangeCreek Campout Music Festival May 22-25 2015 at Camp Kee-Wanee in Greenfield, Ma.

Get Strange with Max Creek, Zach Deputy, Consider The Source, and Central NY’s own Donna The Buffalo among many others across three stages this coming Memorial Day weekend.

Leading up to the festival, 36 bands will go head-to-head in three weeks of battle at four venues before heading to a week of semifinals and a final showdown on March 28. The winner of the 2015 StrangeCreek Battle of the Bands secures a spot in the festival’s lineup.

Tickets are going for $120 through May 10 (kids 12 and under are free).

Check out NYS Music’s recap of the 2014 StrangeCreek Campout here.

February 18, 2015
Jon Fishman to Play Nectar’s 40th Celebration

Jam mecca Nectar’s in Burlington VT will be celebrating their 40th anniversary starting this Saturday and running through the end of March with Phish drummer Jon Fishman appropriately be part of the celebration

There will be a bluegrass show Mar. 26 with his previous Jazz Mandolin Project collaborator Jame Masefield along with guitarist Doug Perkins and bassist Tyler Bolles. As this show is sure to sell out you should grab tickets now. (h/t jambands.com)

The 40th extravaganza kicks off Feb 21 with a show featuring local musician Josh Panda and friends playing influential tunes from the year of Nectar’s birth – 1975.

Other notable shows happening during the month+ long celebration:

Feb. 28 Mardi Gras Celebration w/ Schwizz, Conehead Buddha & more

Mar. 7 ‘s 2014 March Madness winner Lucid

Mar. 20 Sophistafunk

Mar. 26 Aqueous

February 18, 2015
Aqueous Spring Tour Includes Upstate Dates and Colorado Debut

Upstate favorites Aqueous have announced an extensive spring tour taking them all through the north east and mid west including a debut string of dates in Colorado.

The tour will kick off at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn Feb. 25. Other New York dates include Mar. 26 at Ithaca’s The Haunt, Syracuses’s Funk n Waffles Apr. 16, Saratoga Springs Apr 17, and a hometown show Apr. 18 in Buffalo at the Iron Works.

March will feature a five date string in Colorado including two trips to Denver. May and June launch festival season with stops at two Ohio festivals – May Daze in Franklin and Color Dance in Athens – concluding with a Memorial Day weekend for the third straight year at Summer Camp Music Festival.

Check out the whole tour below and don’t miss seeing this excellent band.

Art by Dave Vertino

Aqueous Spring Tour 2015

2/25/15 – Knitting Factory | Brooklyn, NY
2/26/15 – Spot Underground | Providence, RI *
2/27/15 – Stone Church | Newmarket, NH *
2/28/15 – Main Pub | Manchester, CT #
3/6/15 – Tonic Room | Chicago, IL
3/7/15 – Mousetrap | Indianapolis, IN
3/10/15 – Quixotes | Denver, CO
3/11/15 – TBD | Colorado
3/12/15 – Fly Me to The Moon Saloon | Telluride, CO *
3/13/15 – Quixotes | Denver, CO
3/14/15 – Samana | Vail, CO **
3/26/15 – The Haunt | Ithaca, NY
3/27/15 – Penuches | Manchester, NH
3/28/15 – Nectar’s | Burlington, VT
4/1/15 – TBD
4/2/15 – TBD
4/3/15 – Ardmore Music Hall | Philadelphia, PA ^
4/4/15 – Pacific Standard | New Haven, CT
4/10/15 – Corktown Pub | Hamilton, ON
4/11/15 – Kings Rook | Erie, PA
4/16/15 – Funk n Waffles | Syracuse, NY +
4/17/15 – Putnam Den | Saratoga Springs, NY
4/18/15 – Buffalo Iron Works | Buffalo, NY
4/23/15 – Hinge | Northampton, MA
4/24/15 – Church of Boston | Boston, MA
4/25/15 – Arch Street Tavern | Hartford, CT
5/2/15 – May Daze Music Festival | Franklin, OH
5/16/15 – Color Dance Music Festival | Athens, OH
5/21/15-5/24/15 – Summer Camp Music Festival | Chillicothe, IL
5/30/15 – Domefest | Terra Alta, VA
6/12/15 – Illumination Music Festival | Durham, ON
6/19 – 6/20 – Mad Tea Party Jam | Hedgeville, WV
7/23 – 7/25 – Paradise Music Festival | Hustonville, KY

*w/ Pigeons Playing Ping Pong #w/Mister F **w/Yamn +w/Superhuman Happiness ^w/Box of Rain

February 17, 2015
Jeff Austin Band at the Fox Theatre
Like the in-lawsâ hungry cat gnawing on the end of an electric cord of the family Christmas tree lights, Jeff Austin ravenously rips into the shiny surfaces of his bluegrass melodies till he and his audience are zapped with a thousand volts of raw music. Nearly one year has passed since Austin parted ways with Yonder Mountain String Band, and when he took the stage at the Fox Theatre in Boulder last week, he seemed anxious to throw some sparks.

Fronting his new band, Austin assembled a small collection of talented, seasoned musicians, including Eric Thorin on the stand-up bass, Ross Martin on guitar, and Danny Barnes on banjo. Barnes traded licks with Austin with the pan-seared sizzle of a fire department fish fry. Lead-in performer, Sarah Siskind opened with a bluesy, easygoing set before the Jeff Austin band joined to close her set.
February 12, 2015
AC/DC Announce North American Tour Dates

Rock legends AC/DC have announced a slew of North American dates for their first tour in five years.

The tour will support their new album Rock or Bust – released in November 2014. The North American dates in August and September add to a European run from May through July.

Upstate fans who want to see the band will have a little driving to do. The band won’t touch down in New York, but they kick off the North American leg with a show at Foxborough Stadium in Massachusetts Aug 22. Then they head to East Rutherford, N.J.

Several Canadian dates will come close to Upstate, including Quebec City on Aug. 28, Montreal on Aug. 31, Ottawa on Sep. 3 and Toronto on Sep. 10.

Guitarist Malcolm Young, a founding member of the band, has retired due to dementia, and his nephew, Stevie Young, replaced him for Rock or Bust and will continue to do so on the tour. Drummer Phil Rudd is in the midst of legal troubles and will be replaced — at least on this tour — by Chris Slade, a previous drummer who has rejoined the band.

Tickets for most shows go on sale Monday, Feb. 16 – except for the San Francisco date – which goes on sale Sunday, Feb. 15. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.

Full North American tour schedule:

August 22 – Foxborough, MA Gillette Stadium

August 26 – E. Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium

August 28 – Quebec City, QC Plains Of Abraham

August 31 – Montreal, QC Olympic Stadium

September 3 – Ottawa, ON TD Place

September 5 – Moncton, NB Magnetic Hill

September 8 – Detroit, MI Ford Field

September 10 – Toronto, ON Downsview Park

September 15 – Chicago, IL Wrigley Field

September 20 – Edmonton, AL Commonwealth Stadium

September 22 – Vancouver, BC BC Place

September 25 – San Francisco, CA AT&T Park

September 28 – Los Angeles, CA Dodger Stadium

February 12, 2015
Hearing Aide: Tyler Smilo ‘Dust In a Grave’

Singing the songs of a true wanderer, traveling throughout the country before settling in Erie, PA, Tyler Smilo has numerous stories to share that are more than worthy of a listen. On top of his deep lyrics, Smilo’s shockingly powerful voice featuring incredible vibrato definitely hits a nerve right from the start of his second and latest album Dust in a Grave.

It’s hard not to get sucked right in to the intense emotions of this tremendously talented singer-songwriter. Spouting lyrics about love – and love lost – on “These Will Be the Days” memories of the good old days before technology took over on “Rescue the Radio” and death of a loved one on “Dust in a Grave.” This musician seems to have experienced a great deal of trials and tribulations for someone so young. Let’s hope he continues to have many more adventures that he is willing to sing about for years to come, as after listening to this album, I was left wanting more.

Because his thoughtful and thought-provoking lyrics are so compelling, it is easy to overlook the fact that this musician has mad guitar talent too. Able to change rhythms on a dime, and switch between minor and major chords several times within just one measure, it is certainly worth honing in on his guitar licks while listening through his album.

In advance of his album, Smilo put out a series Rooftop Session videos recorded on the roof of the Renaissance Centre in his hometown of Erie, PA. Once you watch these videos, you’re going to find it hard not to delve deeper into Smilo’s music by checking out an upcoming show or purchasing one of his albums.

Key Tracks: Blood In the Water, Dust In a Grave, These Will Be the Days

February 11, 2015
Hearing Aide: Dethlehem ‘Destroyers of the Realm’

Do you like melodic death metal? Do you like role playing games along the lines of Dungeons & Dragons? If you answered yes to both of these questions, Dethlehem is a band you need to know about, if you don’t already.

Simply put, the music of Dethlehem serves as a portal to a wondrous realm of knights, maidens, dragons, wizards, witches, and ghastly nocturnal creatures. Hailing from Pittsburgh, PA these five heroes have spent the last seven years treating their audiences to a true fantasy RPG experience, through both their live shows and studio recordings.

Their latest album, Destroyers of the Realm, is no exception. From start to finish, this 11 track adventure uses crushing war drums, superb guitar riffs and solos, beautifully layered and diverse vocals, and a tasteful low end, to cut through the fabric of space and time. It transports the listener to a metal nerd’s utopia, where the only rules stem from the limits of your XP and your luck with the dice.

Presentation is very important to this band. Not only do they grace the stage covered in medieval battle armor, they also made sure to put just as much effort into the physical copies of their latest album. Visiting their bandcamp page and downloading a digital copy scores you an issue of their digital comic book, but buying a deluxe hard copy from the same site ensures a separate lyric sheet. It comes off as a medieval scroll with burnt edges, and encapsulating the entire package, is a custom sleeve with the band’s royal seal stamped on it with red candle wax.

The album kicks off with an 8 minute battle called Knightmare. This tune goes off in several directions throughout, but the diversity of the song never takes away from its flow. This band is very good with song structure in that regard. Each song is a well conceived part of an overall story and never fails to hit its mark. The guitar riffs are catchy and spot on with their genre, reminiscent of the guitar work on The Jester Race, Whoracle or Colony by In Flames. The solos are very driving, but also just as catchy as the riffing. If you’re a fan of hooky leads with a slight power metal feel, then these licks are for you.

Oathbound follows Knightmare and serves as an ideal single and perfect representation of this band’s sound. It’s hard-hitting, with no regrets and leaves you wanting more. Simply scroll down for the video and allow it to speak for itself.

The record also never loses its RPG feel. Several guest performances were included on this record to make certain of that. Haunting narrations make their way on and off certain tracks. The album also contains three interludes, during which the listener is transported back to a D & D setting, where only the dungeon master’s words can dictate the next chain of events.

Enchanting female vocals, courtesy of Clarissa Badini appear on the track, Shadow Remnants of the Guardian Shield, and the URIZEN boys’ choir also appears on the same track, taking on the roles of a group of dwarfs. This is also the longest track on the album, at 9:08. It’s a true testament to the band’s level of admirable musicianship as a whole.

The shortest actual song on the album is Oathbound, clocking in at 3:52. However, the majority of the full songs, not counting the interludes, hover in between 6 and 9 minutes. Fans of this genre shouldn’t be disappointed by the longer tracks. These are very multi-dimensional songs, with great dynamics and skilled layering across the board. Simply put, they remain interesting for their duration.

Dethlehem will be in Clarence NY on June 13 for an outdoor folk metal festival. Fans of the band and their new album Destroyers of the Realm are urged to come out and hear these tracks played live, along with some of the best talent the WNY metal scene has to offer!

Key Tracks: Knightmare, Oathbound, Shadow Remnants of the Guardian Shield

www.dethlehem.com

www.facebook.com/dethlehem

www.dethlehem.bandcamp.com

February 3, 2015
Photo Gallery: March Fourth Marching Band at the Fox Theater
“Holy Shit! Holy Shit!” That’s what the crowd at Boulder’s sold-out Fox Theater began chanting as the March Fourth Marching Band closed out their foot-stomping set of percussive funk and jazz tunes. Holy Shit, indeed. The Portland, Oregon band could blow the lid off an Iowa grain silo buried in construction-grade concrete if given the chance. So, the roof of the recently renovated Fox proved no match for the raucous members of March Fourth. As one concert-goer exclaimed following the show, “That was a carnival with a concert!” With stilt performers and acrobats tossed in with a dizzying array of horns, snares, and bass drums, the members of March Fourth beat its way into the hearts of enthusiastic crowd long before the band stampeded the floor and railings for their rousing finale.
January 27, 2015
Hearing Aide: ‘American Beauty/American Psycho’ Ushers In New Fall Out Boy Sound

American Beauty/American Psycho marks the sixth studio album for Fall Out Boy and with it comes a major style change to a band that has constantly changed their sound. Long gone are the pop-punk songs of Take This To Your Grave and From Under The Cork Tree. Fall Out Boy have now become as pop as any other artist on the top 40 chart. Beginning with Infinity on High the band started transitioning away from their roots and experimenting with elements taken from big bands and arena rock bands off the past. This culminated in 2008’s Folie a Deux, an album that was their most divisive with both critics, fans, and the band itself.

Following the release of Folie a Deux the band took an extending hiatus before returning with 2013’s Save Rock and Roll and with it brought in a new direction. The album had a hard pop edge with big hooks in every song but also with it came guest heavy songs that gave it the feeling of being a “Fall Out Boy and Friends” album. And now with American Beauty/American Psycho the guest spots have been replaced with samples.

The album is absolutely drenched in samples which makes it sound less like a band playing and instead a Patrick Stump solo effort. It’s very weird to not hear much music actually being played. Guitar riffs are sparsely heard and Andy Hurley’s drums have been processed to the point I’m not actually sure he ever actually laid down acoustic drum tracks in the studio. Most of the drumming sounds like your standard club track beats.

The effects put on Patrick Stumps vocals are mind boggling because the man has one of the best voices in the industry. The whole mix of the album is very flat and becomes incredibly distorted the louder you play it (think the controversy around how Metallica’s Death Magnetic was mixed). I can only wonder why someone thought it would be a good idea to overwork both the vocals and instrument mix to this extent.

The songs still have the big bombastic hooks that the band is known for but they lack the heart that their albums used to have. The lyrics aren’t as clever as they used to be and some songs re-use lyrical themes of songs past. The emotion of the lyrics was always a huge draw for the band. From songs about loneliness and regret to break up songs, everyone could find something to relate to with a Fall Out Boy track. But now while still inventive, they just don’t have that emotional heft.

Despite all this, the album does produce a few tracks that will (at least should) become live staples. “Uma Thurman” is the best song on the record hands down. It’s got an infectious chorus that begs you to sing along with it. “Novocain” has some really nice vocal patterns that gives more credit to Stump being a genius when it comes to vocal cadences and timbre shifts. The two lead singles “Centuries” and “Immortals” are strong songs but are also largely the key evidence of a band that has completely changed their sound. For longtime fans these will be the two throwaway songs on the album. If you compare those songs to anything from Take This To Your Grave or even Folie a Deux, they sound like a different band entirely minus the vocals.

I need to be honest here. Fall Out Boy is my favorite band. It’s been really tough to listen to them change so much. Every time a new song was released from this album I had a sense of dread that the next song was going to be the one that makes the band jump the shark for me. As much as I dislike the change in ideals behind their songwriting process I can’t admit to disliking any of the songs on this record which wasn’t the case with their last record. I so badly want them to return to their old sound but I think that’s the feeling shared by a lot of fans that love a band that has been around for 10-15 years. Bands do change. Sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. But take it or leave it, this is what Fall Out Boy is now.

But just remember, at least they still play the old stuff live.

Key Tracks – Uma Thurman, Novocain, The Kids Aren’t Alright

January 22, 2015