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  • Guitarist Andrew Chamberlaine to Leave Mister F

    Mister F guitarist Andrew Chamberlaine is leaving the band.

    Chamberlaine, also known as Mister A, announced the news on his Facebook page today. “Making music with my best friends Ben, Matt, Scott, and Mike while visiting at least 20 new states will always be one of the best memories I’ll ever have, however it is something I will not be continuing in 2016,” he wrote in the announcement.

    Jim Houle - Mister F - 10-31-15-22

    He notes that he will continue his involvement with music, writing songs and playing as much as possible while building his student base at Parkway Music in Clifton Park.

    The Albany-based jam band, which formed in 2013 with members of Timbre Coup (including Chamberlain) and Capital Zen, has two New Year’s shows lined up — Dec. 31 at the Monopole in Plattsburgh and a post-moe. show Jan. 1 at Albany’s The Hollow. They will be Chamberlain’s last two shows with the band. The band has an extensive tour schedule for January and February, but there is no news yet from the band as to whether Chamberlain will be replaced for those dates.

    The full announcement from Chamberlaine’s Facebook page:

    Dear Friends, Family, And Fans of Mister F, I’d like to start off by saying that this last 3 years has been one…

    Posted by Andrew Chamberlaine on Monday, December 28, 2015

    Here’s Mister F playing “Don’t Lose Your Watch”:

  • Aqueous Announces National Drummer Search

    Buffalo groove rock band Aqueous is once again on the search for a new drummer.

    Drummer Tom Vayo has left the band to work on local projects. He officially joined the band this past August. The band will begin its nationwide search for a new drummer immediately.

    aqueous drummer searchFormer Aqueous drummers Nick Sonricker and Ryan Nogle will cover all scheduled and future shows until a new drummer is selected. The two have remained part of the tight-knit Aqueous family and will assist in drumming duties. Aqueous’ New Year’s Eve show at the King’s Rook Club in Erie, Pennsylvania, and New Year’s Day show with Twiddle at Burlington’s Higher Ground will feature Sonricker.

    Aqueous is launching a nationwide search for their new drummer. In a statement released by the band, they are choosing to publicize their search in the hopes of finding the right fit.

    Full statement from Aqueous:

    In an unfortunate turn of events, Aqueous’ new drummer Tom Vayo has decided to step down from the position for personal reasons. In the meantime, we’re pleased to announce that previous AQ drummers Nick Sonricker and Ryan Nogle will come back into the fold temporarily to fill in while we search for a permanent member.

    It’s no secret that we’ve had some movement in the drummer department, and it’s getting harder to NOT think of it like the joke from Spinal Tap; but here’s the deal- The band has been through an awful lot in the past couple of years, and this is a truly stressful process to not only find what we hope to be the right player, but also the person that can truly fit in and join our brotherhood of friendship too.

    That being said, we’ve decided to go fully public with the search and lay down some parameters to help ensure that no one’s time is wasted and to help us get closer to finding that person- Although being in a touring rock band is truly fucking awesome, it also comes with A TON of hard work and much sacrifice in almost every facet of life; this fact is not something we wish to sugar coat; We are here to work, to put on the highest quality shows possible, and to take this thing as far as we can. Integrity and work ethic are cornerstones in the AQ world, and friendship is everything to us. On the other side of the token, it has been the most gratifying, exciting, and certainly fun journey of my life, and it’s taken us to places we definitely didn’t think were possible when we started ten years ago. So here’s some outlines we’re putting in place, and with that said, DO YOU KNOW OUR NEW DRUMMER? Is it you? Is it a friend? We KNOW somebody has to want this seat, and it’s currently up for grabs!

    Here’s what we’ll need from you, to be submitted to aqueousband@gmail.com-

    -Playing/Touring experience (This is a full time position, are you available and ready for the road?)

    -High Quality video of you playing drums, ideally creating a cover of an AQ song if possible!

    -Thorough list of your BIGGEST musical influences and why, and songs you would love to cover in an ideal world

    -A brief description of your approach to playing/style and why you think you’d fit in with AQ

    -Current line of work/location/availability (Is moving to or near Buffalo a possibility for you?)

    At the end of the day, while having “chops” is really important, the real thing we look for is feel, groove, and musical intuition; we improvise/jam a TON, so creativity and style are huge in this band, and we like drummers that play dynamically, but hit with purpose and authority; It’s all about seeing what we can create as a unit and listening as deeply as possible. And ROCKING of course!

    So, with all of that, DO YOU KNOW OUR NEW DRUMMER?? Help us get the word out by sharing this post! Much love from all of us over here at camp AQ, and thank you ALL for an amazing year, this is just the beginning!

    Aqueous is slated to hit the road in February with Papdosio. They are also inked to play the Paradise Music and Arts Festival in April as well as the Aura Music Festival in Live Oak, Florida in March.

  • Musical Happenings in NYC Pre- and Post-Phish Shows

    Phish will return to New York City’s Madison Square Garden for a four night New Year’s run. While Phish might be the main event, there are many shows happening around the city both before and after Phish that fans might interested in checking out. Here’s a rundown of those shows – both those being billed as Phish after-parties and those that are not.

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    Many New York bands are represented in those performing around the Phish shows, including some of the after-parties. On Wednesday night, Jersey City’s Lil Joe and the ill Picards will bring their funk to Leftfield on Ludlow Chromatropic will join forces with Sprocket to form ChromaSprocket. They will perform with special guests Natalie Cressman and Peter Apfelbaum of the Trey Anastasio Band at Lucille’s at B.B. King’s also on Wednesday night. Late night on New Year’s Eve, Snarky Puppy will play Irving Plaza.

    On Friday night, Nyack’s ShwizZ will join forces with FiKus to perform as ShwiKus and play tribute to P-Funk at Lucille’s. Saturday night brings Elise Testone and an all star lineup, including Todd Stoops, Natalie Cressman and Michael Ray, leading a James Brown Dance Party at B.B. Kings. ShwiKus will also be at Lucille’s again, this time playing an ’80s set. One ticket gets you into both of those shows. Dopapod will be at the Grammercy Theatre. Finally, Ha Ha the Moose, made up by members of moe., will bring their off-centered musical theatre to Irving Plaza. You can expect nothing but the unexpected from “The Moose.”

    james_brown_dance_party

    Wednesday, Dec. 30
    Post-Phish:
    Tower of Power @ B.B. King’s Blues Club – 10 p.m.
    Kevin Hedge and Louie Vega @ Cielo – 10 p.m.
    Joseph King @ Rockwood Music Hall Stage 3 – 10 p.m.
    The Bad Plus @ Village Vanguard – 10:30 p.m.
    *Start Making Sense @ Irving Plaza – 11 p.m.
    Disco Biscuits w/ Horizon Wireless @ PlayStation Theatre – 11 p.m.
    *Particle w/ New Riders of the Purple Sage @ The Cutting Room – 11:55 p.m.
    *ChromaSprocket (Chromatropic x Sprocket w/ Natalie Cressman and Peter Apfelbaum) @ Lucille’s at B.B. King’s – 11:55 p.m.
    *Rebirth Brass Band @ Highline Ballroom – 11:59 p.m.
    *Lil Joe and the ill Picards @ Leftfield on Ludlow – midnight

    New Year’s Eve, Thursday, Dec. 31
    Post-Phish:
    *Snarky Puppy @ Irving Plaza – 2 a.m. (technically on Jan. 1)

    Friday, Jan. 1
    Pre-Phish:
    *Holly Bowling @ The Cutting Room – 4 p.m to 6 p.m.
    Frank & Tony, Taimur Agha, Ray Zuniga, Nikola Baytala, Ted Krisko, Willie Graff, Alex Graham & More TBA @ The Panther Room – 8 a.m. to 4 a.m. (technically ends Jan. 2)

    Post-Phish:
    The Bad Plus @ Village Vanguard – 10:30 p.m.
    Disco Biscuits w/ Animal Rexx @ PlayStation Theatre – 11 p.m.
    *Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe @ Irving Plaza – 11:30 p.m.
    *Dead Sessions @ The Cutting Room – 11:55 p.m.
    *Pink Talking Phish @ Highline Ballroom – 11:55 p.m.
    *ShwiKus plays P-Funk (ShwizZ + FiKus = ShwiKus) @ Lucille’s at B.B. King’s – 11:55 p.m.
    The Motet @ B.B. King’s – 11:59 p.m.

    Saturday, Jan. 2
    Pre-Phish:
    PhanArt Presents: Skyscraper is Grand @ Hotel Pennsylvania – 12-7 p.m.
    *New Mastersounds @ The Cutting Room – 4 p.m.
    Touchpants @ American Beauty NYC – 5 p.m.

    Post-Phish:
    *Ha Ha the Moose (Rob, Chuck and Jim from moe.) @ Irving Plaza – 10:30pm
    The Bad Plus @ Village Vanguard – 10:30pm
    *Dopapod @ Grammercy Theatre – 11 p.m.
    Disco Biscuits @ PlayStation Theatre – 11 p.m.
    BIGYUKI @ Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 – 11 p.m.
    Subset @ Webster Hall – 11 p.m.
    *The James Brown Dance Party (Michael Ray, Natalie Cressman, Chris Bullock, Todd Stoops, Fred Thomas & Moussey Thompson, Adam Chase & Matthew Chase, Elise Testone) @ B.B. King’s – 11:55 p.m.
    *ShwiKus plays The 80s @ Lucille’s at B.B. King’s – 11:55 p.m.
    *New Mastersounds @ The Cutting Room – midnight
    Walker Adams @ Rockwood Music Hall – midnight

    * billed as Phish after-party

    [embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBT1UgsWm-M[/embedyt]

  • Hearing Aide: Space Jesus ‘Close Encounters’

    November 20 marked the release date of the much anticipated album by EDM artist Space Jesus. The album Close Encounters is okay with a few redeeming songs on the album and as a whole it did not stand out as unique. “HydraBadMan” is one of the better songs on the compilation as Jasha Tull was able to manipulate bass that felt eerie and all encompassing. However dissecting the rest the “HydraBadMan” minus the bass, it felt unauthentic – a feeling reflected in the whole album. The song “The Sultan” felt easily calculated and lacking personal voice. The album does not stand up with the multitudes of other compellingly abstract music that tries to merge Middle Eastern influences into contemporary music of America. Consider the Source for example is a band that does a stunning job of that. Some characteristics of sounds were hinted at but not well represented.

    Space Jesus
    Space Jesus, Close Encounters

    The album does demonstrate that the artist has knowledge of this hip-hop style where the bass in smoothed out and slowed down to create what we know as dubstep. The frequencies in the track “Sycamore” are nice and I think that is one of the songs where the whole sound came together. Each entity in “Sycamore” relies on the other for strength and pivot point. This could be a fascinating album if you are looking into electronic music and wanted an album that features a variety of different sounds.  However what is lacking here in the Close Encounters album is connection from track to track. There is no story being told or any sort of desire to transcend the confines of four minutes. The concept of the album is using it as a means of birthing a beast, creating an entity or exploring flow. The experience of listening to a good album for the first, second and third time should be like bearing witness to an inspiration that the musician had a genuine interest in serving out.  Yet no relationship could be found between the music and the feelings that were supposed to be alluded by Space Jesus. 

    Key Tracks: HydraBadMan, Sycamore

  • Best of NYS Music 2015: Staff Pick for Best Music Town in New York State

    With an expansive state such as NY, there’s a multitude of large cities and small towns that are home to some widely diverse music venues and scenes abroad.  Teetering as the fourth most populated state in the country, New York houses just under 20 million people with the majority of the larger cities snuggled along interstate 90.  It’s a seamless route for bands to travel and schedule shows as they pass through the Empire State.  However, our team of merry music lovers here at NYS Music voted upon one town to be the best scene for live music.  I’m sure it’s no surprise to anyone that this 5-borough concrete jungle was the top pick for best music town in New York State.  That’s right, New York City indeed.  Coming in hot at #1 is the largest city in the United States and has been declared as the Best Music Town for many years now.   It’s probably not going to be topped anytime soon either.

    Jim Houle - NYC - New York City - Manhattan

    To a surprising degree, Albany and Buffalo were not so distant behind the Big Apple in the standings.  The Capital District has much to offer with many venues of all capacities spread throughout the city. A brief list starts with The Hollow Bar & Kitchen, The Palace Theatre, The EGG, The Fuze Box, and The Times Union Center.  Buffalo also has an impressive list of stages and events such as the Town Ballroom, The Tralf, The Waiting Room, Buffalo Iron Works, Nietzsche’s, and the First Niagara Center.

    albany-plaza

    Oh, but the city that never sleeps has far more venues than anyone can imagine.  Clubs, bars, city parks, warehouses, basements, rooftops, to numerous theatres and stadiums are abundant in the melting pot.  It’s glorious!  The most regarded venue in NYC would have to be Madison Square Garden.  It’s beautiful, accommodating, spacious, acoustically dynamic, and it is just historically pleasing to be in and around.  MSG holds only the world’s largest acts and will be home to Phish for four consecutive nights at the end of 2015.

    The Barclays Center is home to the Brooklyn Nets, seats about 19,000 people, and opened in 2012 with a major list of performers, including Jay-Z and Pearl Jam.  Its rivals in size would be MSG, Nassau Coliseum, Nikon at Jones Beach Amphitheater, and the IZOD Center (located in NJ).

    Radio City Music Hall is the queen of all theaters in NYC with its 5,933 seat capacity, historical Art Deco interior, prestigious location, and Grand Stage.  The elevator system in the theater is so advanced, that the U.S. Navy had incorporated identical hydraulics into WWII aircraft carriers and had security personnel guarding the theater during wartime.  The Hall is sprinkled with depression-era artwork in the lobby, hallways, and the mezzanine.  It’s deserving of the nickname, Showplace of the Nation.

    Though, just because NYC is ample in size, poses home to the largest/most popular arenas and theaters in the country, doesn’t mean that’s where the real glory is.  People tend to have more fun in the intimate venue, smaller capacity rooms where you can practically reach out and touch the artists from any angle of the room.  The venues that sell tickets at reasonable prices, have great selection of beverages, are decorated with passion, and cater to the individual concert go-er rather than consumers in bulk, are what makes the experience favorable.  The Empire City has all of that and more.   Some other venues that hold NYC so high are: The Beacon Theatre, The  Hammerstein Ballroom, Carnegie Hall, Playstation Theater, City Winery, Terminal 5, Brooklyn Bowl, Governors Island, Central Park, Bowery Ballroom, Village Vanguard, Cake Shop, and Saint Vitus are just a sliver of the pie.

    New Years Eve in New York City, well really, the whole week around New Years, is chock full of music. Just check out this list put together by Catskill Chill Music Festival!

    NYENYC2016chill

    Aside from being the music mecca of the world, it’s almost in a class of its own.  Until that changes, go visit the Big Apple and enjoy some live music!

  • Funktional Flow Release Studio Video for “Back Door”

    Buffalo funk/rock/reggae fusion outfit Funktional Flow are giving fans a sneak peek at their upcoming album Time Will Tell. The band released an official studio video for the album’s first single, “Back Door.”

    The band’s third studio effort, which will feature 12 tracks, is slated for release in March 2016. The official date and venue location for the band’s CD release party will be announced at the band’s New Year’s Eve show at Buffalo Iron Works.

    Time Will Tell was recorded over three weeks at Sonic Farm Studios in Colden with producers Dan Brace and Scott Nadolinski. Although it’s Funktional Flow’s third studio release, it’s the first with Funktional Flow’s new lineup. In April 2015, the band took on a new life with the addition of Joey Lewis (guitar) and Matt Lester (keys).

    Bassist Ben Whelan told NYS Music that the lineup change has been a positive step for the band’s growth. “The type of music we play really calls for the lineup we have now, and it has helped us grow exponentially,” said Whelan. “With the addition of Joey and Matt, we truly feel as though we gained brothers, not just band mates. It really has been a great time growing with them and having them add their flavor to the mix. It doesn’t always go that way with new additions, so we are really blessed in that aspect!”

    funktional flow back doorGuitarist and lead vocalist Jeffrey Kuebler told NYS Music that the history of “Back Door” began prior to the song’s life with Funktional Flow. “Back Door started as essentially a riff that I had come up with in 2008 when Joey and I were in a band called Lake View Effect,” he said. “With me and Joey each contributing to the composition, it all came together and we played it a couple of times with LVE. After years of being on the shelf that was one song we decided to add to the Flow repertoire when Joey joined the band!”

    The band chose “Back Door” as its first single due to the overwhelming response the song has gotten from fans at their live shows. The band is currently working on a spring tour to support Time Will Tell that they hope to announce after the New Year. Funktional Flow is slated to open for Twiddle at the Town Ballroom in Buffalo on Feb. 25.

  • Christmas Releases from Radiohead, LCD Soundsystem and more!

    The holidays are full of surprises, and between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, a bevy of new music was released from some big names.

    First up is a new track from LCD Soundsystem with “Christmas Will Break Your Heart,” a song front man James Murphy depressingly sings to himself each year around this time has been recorded and adds fuel to the fire that LCD Soundsystem may reunite in 2016, possibly at the new Panorama Festival in Queens.

    Future Islands released a cover of the WHAM! classic “Last Christmas,” a fitting tune for the synthpop group.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bf03W5l3eMM

    Radiohead surprised fans with a rejected theme to the James Bond film “Spectre,” and while it was ultimately not used (Sam Smith’s “Writing’s on the Wall” took the honors), fans were treated with a Christmas gift in the release of the song.

    Keeping things upbeat this holiday season, Miley Cyrus and The Flaming Lips shared “My Sad Christmas Song.” With her collaborators on Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz, Miley has some depressingly great lyrics:

    This is my sad Christmas song
    So I rip another bong
    I never been good at making plans
    Next year, I’m gonna be with my man
    My little sister says I’m the Grinch
    But my mom thinks I’m just a bitch

    Speculation leans to the song being related to her ex-fiancee, Liam Hemsworth.

  • Elise Testone and Brian LaPoint and the Joints at The Hollow

    Elise Testone has a voice to be reckoned with and she showed it off beautifully at The Hollow in Albany on the 17th of December. Her all-star band consisting of Todd Stoops, Eric Kalb, Jed Lingat, and Brad Williams played great funk, soul, and rock and roll behind her booming voice.

    Unlike other recent shows they have done, Elise Testone stuck to playing mostly all original material. The songs were great and show that she has the “it” factor that is needed to succeed in the music industry. Only bigger and better things can be coming for her as we roll into 2016.Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 2

    Opening the evening was Brian LaPoint & the Joints with set that mixed covers and originals. The Joints are always a rotating cast of Albany musicians and on this night included members of School Bus Yellow, and MONK. Brian is a great band leader and made sure each member got their moment to shine brightly in the various jams that occurred throughout the set.

    Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 1
    Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 3 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 4 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 5 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 6 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 7 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 8 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 9 Bryan Lasky - Brian LaPoint & The Joints 10 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 1 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 2 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 3 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 4 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 6 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 5 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 7 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 9 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 8 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 10 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 11 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 12 Bryan Lasky - Elise Testone 13

  • Best of NYS Music 2015: Staff Picks for New York State Festivals

    Nothing compares to experiencing live music. But when it comes to packing up and leaving the world behind to immerse in a weekend of musical debauchery with a community of like-minded souls, well, that’s the stuff that dreams are made of for music festival fans.

    From one-band to multi-artist events and crowd sizes from 2,000 to 50,000, New York State hosts a bevy of festivals annually in some of the most beautiful settings imaginable, and let’s face it, our state knows how to throw a proper fest, as it is ingrained in New York’s rich musical history having put on one of the biggest rock festivals of all time, Woodstock. Here we’ve rounded up our favorites from NYS Music 2015, so sit back, relax and relive some of the festival magic that happened throughout the Empire State this year, because we all know what it’s like to experience those post-fest blues.

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    Best Small Festival: Buffalove and Disc Jam

    The third installment of Buffalove Music Festival saw a venue change from Cole Farm, Panama, NY, to North Fork Music Park, Warsaw, NY, with the new location offering four stages, a private beach, disc golf and wooded-area camping, and a record attendance that doubled previous years. With an impressive lineup including Kung Fu, Pink Talking Fish, Funktional Flow, Particle, Formula 5, Mister F, Space Junk, Dopapod, Aqueous and Aquapod, the three-day June 2015 festival created to celebrate Western New York’s emerging music scene was one for the books, according to Jen Foster and Thomas Sgroi:

    Buffalove came through. Co-founder of Buffalive Productions and Founder of Buffalove Cody Conway clearly had one goal in mind: keep the energy as high as possible. Every single band had heads turning and jaws on the ground. There was never a lull, never a band that just played to fill space. Every minute was dance-worthy. If you missed out this year, we can highly recommend you don’t make that mistake next year. Without any problems or unruly attendees, this festival made its mark at North Fork Music Park in Warsaw, NY. The amount of talent coming out of Upstate New York is only paving the road for more incredible shows. Buffalove, you certainly were lovely.”

    Another summer fest that saw a venue change was the fifth annual Disc Jam Music Festival, which moved from Massachusetts to New York State—and promoters recently announced that the event will return to Gardner’s Farm in Stephentown for its sixth year in June. Throughout four days of music, camping, disc golf and Flow Tribe, festivalgoers experienced live performances from more than 50 acts, including Lettuce, Electron, Dopapod, Aqueous, Brightside, Kung Fu, Consider the Source, Cabinet, Soule Monde, Roots of Creation, Formula 5, The Hornitz, Soul Rebel Project, Broccoli Samurai, Krewe de Groove and Relative Souls. According to Dave DeCrescente, the festival’s last day culminated with a “healthy dose of guest sit-ins” with jamband Twiddle, noting that:

    One of the highlights of the set was the massive guest sit in with DJ Honeycomb, James Woods, and Joe Davis from Formula 5, Scott Hannay of Mister F and Todd Stoops for the ultimate mega jam on “Apples.” The Disc Jam Flow Tribe was out in full force with fire spinners and hooping entertainers that were almost as mesmerizing as the music. The weekend ended just as it started, with mind blowing music and a close knit community who continue to make the Disc Jam Festival special. Tony Scavone and crew did a suburb job of organizing the 5th annual Disc Jam with a new location but still the same friendly, loving festival experience that keeps fans coming back each year.”

    Best Mid-Size Festival: Catskill Chill

    While Catskill Chill is speculated to make a move to Lake George in 2016, the festival’s last waltz at bucolic Camp Minglewood in Hancock, NY, this September was a success, selling 5,000 tickets, according to Chill promoter Dave Marzollo. Headlined by moe. who kicked off their fall tour at the festival and including other bands like Lotus, Zappa Plays Zappa, Lettuce, Twiddle, Turkuaz, Dopakuaz plays Studio 54 and The Motet, the sixth annual installment of Catskill Chill featured on-site cabin rentals, daily yoga, live art, a farmer’s market, craft and food vendors, a communal bonfire nightly and an open mic. The three-day event was packed with guest sit-ins and collaborations like Dopapod and Turkuaz joining forces to play as Dopakuaz, which Chill organizer Josh Cohen noted is the type of community mindset that sets this festival apart from others its size or larger by creating an environment where rising bands can experiment and grow in a unique setting:

    Point is that when comparing us to larger festivals, we’re at this cool stage attendance-wise where in many band’s cases we have the best ‘music’ out there in our prime slots. I love tons of bands who’ve been around since the ’90s or earlier but there’s nothing like seeing musicians in their youthful stages, when creativity is just exploding and you can feel it dripping off the stage as opposed to later-in-their career bands who are playing mostly songs they first wrote and fell in love with decades earlier.”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R6Uk03HW9k&feature=youtu.be

    Best Large Festival: Magnaball

    It’s no surprise that Magnaball takes the cake for this category. During late August more than 30,000 phans invaded Watkins Glen International race track for Phish Festival 10. And while the three-day event took place at the site of their 2011 Superball IX festival, this time around the setup featured many upgrades, including local and regional food vendors, the five-course restaurant Festival Ate, MagnaWater Program, speciality Phish-themed cocktails and coveted craft beer from Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Hill Farmstead. (And let’s not forget to mention the interactive Glurt Institute, Drive-In movie theater, JEMP Record Store and cornhole tournament.) The Vermont quartet majorly delivered throughout the weekend’s eight sets busting out rare tunes like “Mock Song” and jamming out typical breather ballads such as “Prince Caspian” to uncharted territory, but perhaps one of the highlights was the Saturday festival tradition of performing a late-night set, which according to Pete Mason raised expectations for future secret sets:

    Magnaball’s foray into the history of Phish’s special festival sets was the Drive-In Jam and it raised the bar while putting forth a performance on par with the ‘Storage Jam,’ if not exceeded this established upper echelon of improvisation. On a 183-foot movie screen, a wide array of visual treats combined with a progressively growing ambient jam that eclipsed the Lemonwheel by a longshot and morphed into a full on jam for 50 minutes. The Drive-In Set raised the bar for surprise performances and gave fans a treat after the music on the main stage ended an hour prior.”

  • Squeeze Dazzle in Classic Two-Man Show

    Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford, the masterminded songwriters behind the new wave rock band, Squeeze, rolled out of two makeshift beds in pajamas and instantly pulled in the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall crowd on December 16, as part of the “At Odds Couple” tour.  The duo proceeded to rip through two hours of classics mixed in with a few new tunes and works from each singer’s solo careers.

    E.COKER-SQUEEZE01

    After a brief visit to a set up kitchen table to have a beverage, the dynamic duo kicked off the first set with  “Take Me I’m Yours” from their 1978 self-titled release “Squeeze.” Tilbrook briefly exited the stage afterward, to change out of his wrinkled jammies while Difford tackled “Cool For Cats,” one of only two occasions in Squeeze’s grand career where Difford provided lead vocals. Exit Difford, enter Tilbrook for “Black Coffee In Bed,” the only release from 1982’s “Sweets From a Stranger” to chart. The classic tune also featured Elvis Costello and Paul Young on vocal backups. The two ventured back together onstage for six more songs before Difford getting the opportunity to play three solo songs: “Fit As A Fiddle,” “Wrecked” followed by Tilbrook backing on “Cowboys Are My Weakness” providing one of the night’s more memorable moments. “Cowboys,” a tune said to be written for and soon rejected by K.D. Lang, was perfectly accompanied by a video montage of homo-erotic, silly string ejaculate spraying toy cowboys.

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    The second set featured three solo performances from Tilbrook including “Still,” a beautiful track from his time with The Fluffers and off the release Pandemonium Ensues in 2009. Beside the obvious highlighted classic tracks like “Annie Get Your Gun” and “Tempted, ” the duo lit up the hall with a brand new track, “Cradle To The Grave” from the band’s 2015 album of the same title. “Cradle” featured an official video on the big screen behind the musicians synced perfectly with Difford and Tilbrook. There was an obvious passion in Tilbrook’s voice during “Cradle” that proves the duo still has what it takes to write a catchy, melody driven pop-rock song. It’s hard to believe that the work on the “Cradle” album features  a new batch of songwriting that we have not seen since 1998. The night was finished off with the 1978 single, “Goodbye Girl.” A fitting tune for two stellar songwriters who were saying goodbye the Music Hall crowd but will not soon be forgotten.

    E.COKER-SQUEEZE02

    Setlist: Take Me I’m Yours, Cool For Cats (Difford only), Black Coffee in Bed (Tilbrook only), Nirvana, Electric Trains, Some Fantastic Place, Beautiful Game, Love’s Crashing Waves, Slap and Tickle, Fit As A Fiddle (Difford solo), Wrecked (Difford solo), Cowboys Are My Weakness (Difford solo), Up The Junction.  Second set: Still (Tilbrook solo), Ice Cream (Tilbrook solo), The Elephant Ride (Tilbrook solo), Annie Get Your Gun, Truth, Happy Days, Cradle To The Grave, Pulling Mussels, Is That Love, Tempted, Another Nail In My Heart, If I Didn’t Love You, Goodbye Girl.

    E.COKER-SQUEEZE04 E.COKER-SQUEEZE05  E.COKER-SQUEEZE11  E.COKER-SQUEEZE10 E.COKER-SQUEEZE07 E.COKER-SQUEEZE08  E.COKER-SQUEEZE06 E.COKER-SQUEEZE14 E.COKER-SQUEEZE03E.COKER-SQUEEZE13