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Hearing Aide: Coal Chamber ‘Rivals’

After being away for over a decade plus, Coal Chamber has rediscovered their furious chemistry and unleashed Rivals, released by Napalm Records and produced by Mark Lewis who has worked wonders with bands like Trivium and DevilDriver. This album delivers and lives up to the hype that was brought forth, however, does it enhance Coal Chamber’s legacy even further?

It starts off with a fast stylish track “I.O.U. Nothing” which appropriately opens with screeching guitars from Meegs with a fast nu metal beat from Mikey Cox, and Dez Farara’s brutal vocals hasn’t aged one bit. The second track “Bad Blood Between Us” has a slower tempo but everything gets dark and haunting with “Light In The Shadows” something you would expect from vintage Coal Chamber. I saw an interview with Dez Fafara a few weeks back where he stated that this album isn’t a “throwback album” but honestly to me, it is. I’m not saying it sounds like the previous three albums, but it certainly sounds like classic Coal Chamber and everything you would expect from this band, however, they tastefully made this album for 2015 because it is more mature sounding.

The track “Suffer In Silence” is a real behemoth track. Ministry’s Al Jourgensen makes a guest appearance on this track to make this one a real stand out. Another real stand out track is “Another Nail In The Coffin” because it’s a heavy and erratic. It speeds up, it slows down, it breaks down and Fafara’s vocal tracks are arranged all over the place. Kudos to producer Mark Lewis for being tactical on mixing this track. After the title track and single “Rivals,” the track “Wait” is a fun and catchy song with a real nice groove to it.

Towards the end of the record “Fade Away (Karma Never Forgets)” is really catchy then it ends hard and fast with “Empty Handed” thus marking an album that is candidate for one of the best albums of 2015. This album proves Coal Chamber is back with a vengeance, picks up where they left off and has us all wanting more. I would highly recommend picking this one up and catch Coal Chamber play these songs live.

Purchase Rivals here.

Key Tracks: “I.O.U. Nothing,” “Suffer In Silence,” “Another Nail In The Coffin”

May 30, 2015
Forever Young, Wild, and StrangeCreek

The 13th annual Strange Creek thrown by Wormtown Trading Co.,was one for the books. The weekend was like a fruit filled parfait layered with wild and wonderful people, beautiful works of art, dusty roads, lots of sunshine and of course music to inspire the span of ages that attend StrangeCreek. Majority of people steadily streamed in all day Friday. EZ ups popped up, strangers became neighbors and people all became pieces of the StrangeCreek woods.

Friday included notable performances by Banooba and Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds. Sister Sparrow played down bluesy tunes such as “Boom Boom,” “Too Much Ain’t No Good” and a Doors cover of “Roadhouse Blues” with a sit in by Patchen Montgomery of Strangefolk.

The crescent moon had been visible in the sky all day long and as the sun went down during a familiar Shakedown set the magic was undeniable. The wonderful Zach Deputy cleaned up the Main Stage that Friday night with his one of a kind style of comedic RnB. Unfortunately, a flip flop of set times between Pigeons Playing Ping Pong and Primate Fiasco lead to a lot of people missing Pigeons set.

It feels like a blessing that year after year everyone gets to keep reuniting on the banks of the river at Camp Keewanee. Its refreshing that some of the proceeds of the festival go back to Keewanee. It is uplifting to see the amount that members of Massachusetts music community gives back to one another.

On Saturday at high noon, The Kind Buds gave a beautiful acoustic set performance at the main stage. It did not take long in the day for a mystery to surface. Who in the world is Cuty Phazed? This unknown act began to spark some questions among festival goers. It soon became clear that no one actually knew who Cuty Phazed was. But because it was Strangecreek naturally, Sheriff Zach Deputy was hot on our radars and after some good detective work it became apparent that Cuty Phazed was Zach Deputy with the letters rearranged. This mid day acoustic set at Vernville stage was better than the night before. His setlist included “Chicken Pot Pie,” “Bikers in Diapers” and a cover of “Gold Digger” by Ray Charles.

A stroll over to the main stage after Cuty Phazed lead me to my first rendezvous with Vermont native band the Gang of Thieves. Michael Reit shred the lead melody of a Led Zeppelin son. They were generating a huge sound. It was hardcore to hear Violinist, Michael Reit shred the lead the melody of a Led Zeppelin song. At 4:20 Max Creek played their first set of the day on the Vernville stage in honor of their 44 years playing together. The whole day set was a tribute too all songs that came out in 1971 such as “Playing in the Band,” “Brown Sugar” and “Riders on the Storm.” Then later a second set on main stage that when combined with the day set total six hours of music. Saturday night continued to be amazing with William Thompson Funk Experiment. They got everyone very comfortable and loose and grooving by intertwining the art of funk with the art of poetry. One of the best acts of the StrangeCreek weekend.

The 50 year anniversary of the beloved Grateful Dead has lead to more tribute shows than usual. The Dead set on Sunday featured a “Jack Straw,” the second of the weekend, a “Ripple” and a long and beautifully jammed out “Terrapin Station.” Following The Dead Set was Consider the Source, a festival favorite, they packed the main stage at 6 p.m. with almost everyone at the festival. Their setlist included “I’ll Fight for the Imp,” “Put another rock in that bag PT. 1, IV” and VI and You Go Squish Now. CTS is a hard act to follow. Smushed in between the end of Source and Ryan Montbleau a band called Llama Lasagne imposed a jovial spectacle on the river worm stage. The stage held over 12 people, it is no wonder they call themselves a party ensemble.

The sun set around us as the Ryan Montbleau and Friends set took flight. They treaded lightly into a cover of “Take a Walk on the Wild Side” to open. conveniently enough, the band slid into the tune “Dead Set” which was well played and the feeling of love became contagious as the setlist featured a bunch of songs about women and love such as “Honeymoon Eyes” and “Back in Love again”. If we weren’t already standing it would have been a standing ovation.

A successful music festival can be weighted by all the musicians who jammed so lovely that their music finds its way into your future repertoire. The bands that made a lasting impression this year include William Thompson Funk Experiment, Mother Ton, Jeremiah Hazed and Banooba. A special thank you needs to be given to everyone who went into making this StrangeCreek, the strangest and most magical to date. That includes the late working vendors, the FireWormz, the volunteers, year after year,the owners and staff, as well as, the musicians and of course the Massachusetts community.

May 30, 2015
Stoops out, Sasser in as Kung Fu Keyboardist

In a shocking statement, funk group Kung Fu announced that the band and founding member/keyboardist Todd Stoops have parted ways, and that Beau Sasser, of the Alan Evans Trio and Beau Sasser’s Escape Plan, will be his replacement.

Stoops co-founded the band in 2009, and Kung Fu has been a staple of the festival circuit ever since, with a unique blend of psychedelic funk, high-energy rock and jazz.

Here is the band’s official statement:

Change is exciting, challenging, and a constant part of life. It is the process of evolution and growth. We do our best to embrace change in our lives and the music we play, and it is in this spirit that we announce that Kung Fu and Todd Stoops are parting ways.

Todd is our brother, a brilliant musician, and composer. This decision has been difficult for everyone involved. We wish Todd nothing but the very best for his family, his musical endeavors, and we are grateful for everything he has contributed as a founding member of Kung Fu.

We would like to give a gigantic welcome to Beau Sasser as our new keyboardist. Beau is most notable for his work with Alan Evans Trio, Melvin Sparks, Beau Sasser’s Escape Plan, The Z3, Uncle Sammy, Ryan Montbleau and more. He is a beast of a different flavor on keys, with incredible song writing skills, and we are very excited to have him on the Kung Fu team. With Beau on board, we know that Kung Fu will continue to be one of the best live bands on the scene.

We would like to thank you, our loyal and dedicated fans, for your continued support! We can’t wait to see you this summer!

Peace, Love and Music-

The Ninjas

Stoops took to Facebook to issue his own statement, seeming to tell a bit of a different story. It appears the band kicked him out via email, and that it may not have been a mutual decision:

Dearest Family, Friends, and Fans,

This is tough, but here goes…

It has been the utmost honor to have performed for all of you with Kung Fu for the past 5+ years. I have experienced some of the greatest highs of my life onstage with the band that I co-founded, and I consider myself one of the luckiest humans alive to have been able to share that energy with all of you.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you…

After an incredible run out to the midwest for sets at SummerCamp and Revival, I came home to an email Tuesday from the rest of the band informing me that I was being replaced. Effective immediately.

Needless to say, it was as shocking to me Tuesday afternoon as it must be to all of you reading this now…

I can only wish the best for the remaining members of Kung Fu as they continue their journey. They are good musicians. With only two original members remaining, I’m excited to hear the evolution of that collective.

Moving forward…..

I have always kept a commitment to myself to perform with as many different artists and projects as possible. Always with the intent of broadening my musical vocabulary, personal growth, and most importantly, learning from everyone I have had the opportunity of performing with.

I fully intend on continuing this mission.

Much love!!
Todd Stoops

‪#‎emailbreakupssuck‬ ‪#‎imwithstoops‬

NYSMusic.com has reached out to Stoops and the band’s management for comment.

May 29, 2015
Hearing Aide: Eastbound Jesus ‘Hollerin’

It was a long winter for all of us, especially with Eastbound Jesus in hibernation, dedicated to working on their third studio album, Hollerin, set to drop this weekend. Eastbound Jesus spent the cold days at Edie Road Studio in their hometown of Greenwich, NY with producer/engineer Marc Fuller to bring fans the best sounds of their northern rock music to date. The 10 track album captures the essence of an EBJ live rowdy performance as well as representing a more mature sound. Hollerin features special guests musicians Chris Carey (Sean Rowe, Rodeo Barons) and Lowell Wurster and Jaime Armstrong (Lucid) helping to elevate the jamgrass fusion.

The album begins with blaring guitar rifts, beloved banjo strumming and rebellious lyrics from “Keep on Hollerin” that Eastbound Jesus is known for. Showing a softer side is “Better Things” more of a romantic ballad with an upbeat melody and gracious harmonious with a steady rhythm. “Shoes” features fast string picking, splashing tempo and flowing vocals with a erupting brass solo that is sure to be a crowd favorite. “Cold and Snow” perfectly captures the winter season in Upstate New York with a howling harmonica, diesel rhythm and bitter lyrics such as, “There’s nothing like the cold and snow to make you feel at home.” Hollerin has themes of the simple life about working hard and playing hard, with tales of heartache, good friends and the weather always playing a key role. Their music feeds to your frustrations of the world, forcing you to clap, stomp and howl with grand joy and relief. Get ready to holler for more!

Eastbound Jesus will be throwing one heck of album release party this Saturday May 30 at Putnam Den in Saratoga Springs with special guests, Lucid. Tickets are available online (click here) for $12 and will be $15 at the door to the 18+ event with a showtime of 9:00pm. Be sure to catch Eastbound Jesus this summer as they will be touring all over Upstate NY to promote their new album.

Key Tracks: Keep on Hollerin, Shoes, Better Things

You can stream “Keep on Hollerin,” their first single off of Hollerin via soundcloud.

May 29, 2015
Hearing Aide: Tim Herron ‘Sentimental Blues’

Tim Herron, a noteworthy musician in the Upstate New York area, blends folk, blues and hints of country on his latest album Sentimental Blues. The album might suit the listener for both a porch rockin’, lazy afternoon or a night spent home alone pondering where life will take you next. The music can feel as easy as the summer breeze, though lyrically it challenges questions of self-worth, life’s moments of repetition, as well as finding solace at the bottom of a bottle.

“Conversations” is an immediate attention grabber, with an easy-listening aesthetic perfect for a day spent driving around town. “Building An Army” takes a political stance towards the military functioning and possibly interfering in children’s educational systems—something that Herron is clearly not a fan of. It’s a stance towards freedom of choice and accepting that children usually might not know what they want to do when they grow up at such a young age—making it easier for the high military powers of the country to suck them in to something they really might not want to do.

In the second track “Hate To See Them Go” Herron copes with a bad day and notes how all the shuffling around can get him down, while having to say goodbye to those he hates to see go. It’s a heartfelt expression of loss and confusion of place, which propels the listener to question their own troubles, while finding comfort in the breaks of lead guitar that smoothly soar with the rhythm guitar in a clash of melodies.

Later on in the second half of the album, Herron explores the darker aspects of life with “Wanting Isn’t Needing” and “As You Were Young.” “Wanting Isn’t Needing” acknowledges that everyone suffers and that although life isn’t always easy, there’s a difference between truly needing something versus simply wanting. The song has beautiful string melodies in between verses of vocals that echo vast country land.

“As You Were Young” tells of a young death coming on a cold fog night. The song tries to accept that everything we love will eventually leave us, and those left standing must find ways to deal with past love and lovely times that can haunt through your present nostalgia. It seems that Herron has found his cure, and that for him is through the relatable and limitless expression that maybe only music can offer.

Key Tracks: Conversations, Sentimental Blues, Hate To See Them Go

Listen Here: Tim Herron Website

May 28, 2015
Brit Floyd Drops the Hammer on Syracuse

There may come a time when your favorite bands become older and stop performing live or for whatever reasons. In order to hear those special songs in a concert setting again, you may need to go see a tribute band to get that nostalgic feeling back.

You know, the music that you can just close your eyes, listen, and fall in love with all over again. Most tribute bands do a great job at replicating the signature sounds and production of the original act they promote, and one band in particular that is at the top of the list is Brit Floyd. This group is named as the ‘World’s Greatest Pink Floyd Tribute Show’ and now, I can see why.

On May 20, Brit Floyd brought their 2015 Space & Time World Tour to the Crouse Hinds Theater in Syracuse and hammered the walls down, figuratively speaking. This world tour commemorates the 50^th anniversary of Pink Floyd and features music from their catalog along with tunes from the Syd Barrett era. The production of this show was nothing short of spectacular, featuring the arc lighting rig with the infamous circle rig in the middle, inflatables, smoke, projection screens, lasers, and much more.

There aren’t really enough words to describe how incredible this performance was. Tho, the highlights of the night, in my opinion, are as follows. The evening’s performance started off with a silent, dark audience paying full attention to a “Speak to Me” video compilation similar to that used by Pink Floyd in the mid 1990s.

The band covertly walked on stage, strapped in and slid into “Breathe,” segueing with “On the Run” into the ever popular ‘Time,” featuring Damien Darlington on vocals. For the next song, Angela Cervantes who is one of the backup singers, performed an intense, emotional version of ‘The Great Gig in the Sky” with Damian on Lap Steel guitar and Tom Ashbrook on Piano. Bringing “See Emily Play” from Floyds’ early days was a great treat for the crowd, as well. Closing out the first set was a polished version of Sheep, from the album Animals.

After a brief intermission, Brit Floyd hustled back to stage, eager to give us their all, and started with “One of These Days,” before playing “Louder Than Words” from the 2014 album The Endless River. Ian Catell on bass, locally from Syracuse, brought back some “Money” featuring some sexy Saxophone solos by Marcus Sholar, for his hometown. Soon came “Wish You Were Here” with Bobby Harrison leading the way on acoustic guitar. Warming the hearts of everyone present, the passionate crowd sang along to the words as if each person had written the words themselves. The band then gave introductions, including an intimate speech by Ian to his close friends and family in attendance. To end the set, came an enormous “Comfortably Numb” sang by the bass player.

‘The Show Must Go On’ kicked off the multi-song encore, paving the way for an incredible “In the Flesh” and “Run Like Hell.” To top off their performance in Syracuse, Brit Floyd gave an invaluable rendition of ‘Waiting for the Worms,’ ‘Stop,’ and “The Trial.” But before bidding adieu, the group assembled together in a row for a soft “Outside the Wall.”

In a nutshell, Brit Floyd is the next best thing to Pink Floyd themselves. The production and overall show they bring to fans is simply amazing and worth far more than what their tickets cost. They’re currently in the beginning of their world tour and hopefully we can catch them back around Syracuse in the next few years. If you haven’t seen them before nor made it to this show, you can order a copy of their Live at Red Rocks DVD from 2013, filmed in front of a sold out venue.

Set 1: Speak to Me, Breathe, On the Run, Time, The Great Gig in the Sky, Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V), See Emily Play, The Happiest Days of Our Lives, Another Brick in the Wall (Part II), Keep Talking, On the Turning Away, Sheep

Set 2: One of These Days, Louder Than Words, Money, Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun, Have a Cigar, Wish You Were Here, The Final Cut, Band Introductions, Comfortably Numb

Encore: The Show Must Go On, In the Flesh, Run Like Hell, Waiting for the Worms, Stop, The Trial, Outside the Wall

May 28, 2015
Steely Dan To Play Eight Shows at NYC’s Beacon Theatre

Steely Dan has announced their latest Beacon Theatre residency which will take place for eight nights. The shows start on Oct. 6 and ends on the 17.

These nights will include Steely Dan performing their whole 1977 album Aja and 1980 album Gaucho with a few select hits. There will also be two nights focusing on their greatest hits such as “Do it Again”, “Reelin In The Years”, “Rikki Don’t Lose That Number.” Fans will be able to help pick the set list on October 16.

An AMEX pre-sale runs May 28 – June 4 before tickets go on sale to the general public June 5. Multi-night ticket packages will be available.

Steely Dan Beacon Residency 2015

10/6 – Aja – Plus Selected Hits
10/7 – Greatest Hits
10/9 – Gaucho – Plus Selected Hits
10/10 – Royal Scam – Plus Selected Hits
10/13 – Aja – Plus Selected Hits
10/14 – Greatest Hits
10/16 – By Popular Demand
10/17 – “The Most Unforgettable Night of Whatever – Featuring Spectacular Musical Guests, Glorious Tunes and Riffage, and Whatever the Party Calls for! Parking Validated for First Dozen Diehard Fans”

May 27, 2015
Adam Ezra to Make Syracuse Debut at RUNapalooza

I can’t think of a better way to end this short week than with a short run filled with music along the way, and welcoming The Adam Ezra Group to Syracuse in true rock and run style. Making their debut performance here in Central NY, The Adam Ezra Group will welcome all runners at the finish line of the Fleet Feet Sport Runapalooza this Friday May 29 at 7:00pm at the Onondaga Community College.

Adam Ezra Group

The Fleet Feet Sports ‘s 2015 Runapalooza 5k Run/Walk will begin at 7:00pm and runners will enjoy four local bands along the 3.1 mile course with New England Music Awards Band of the 2013 Year, The Adam Ezra Group at the finish line waiting to celebrate this event around 7:45pm.

RUNapalooza 2015

Register for 5k Race and Post Race Party for only $30-which includes: 5k Race, Runapalooza Rock Shirt, concert, pizza, beer, etc. online through Wednesday afternoon or in person Friday. For those that just want to enjoy the finish line? Register for Party Only for $10 which includes concert, pizza, beer, etc. through Wednesday Afternoon online or in person on Friday.

Playing along the course we are excited to see locals Urban Knight Punks, Hold The Air, The Causeway Giants, and some of Syracuse’s finest drummers in The Drum Runners.

Where else can you possibly get your exercise, awesome music without an iPod, free t-shirt, good eats, and some amazing Adam Ezra Group? See you all there Friday, May 29.

May 27, 2015
Rochester’s 2015 Lilac Festival, Best Ever?

The 117th annual edition of Rochester’s Lilac Festival was nothing short of a resounding success. Blessed by near perfect weather, a killer musical lineup, and actual flowers in bloom for once – it was a far cry from the past few years that were plagued by rain and unseasonably cold temperatures.

The Lilac Festival always has all the typical amenities one would expect in a festival atmosphere – beer tents, kid activities, face painting, fake tatts, deep fried freaking everything, and of course, the ubiquitous barricaded off 100 person deep line for kettle corn. Seriously, do they sprinkle crack on that stuff or what?

However, what makes Lilac Fest truly special are the little extras. The giant food tent filled with local vendors offering everything from “Bacon Bomb” sandwiches to Rochester’s own heartburn special – The Garbage Plate. The brand new “big top” tent that offered a string of activities throughout the week including a wine and chocolate tasting and a brew fest. The weekend based arts and crafts exhibit that moved a block over to Reservoir Drive this year – a great idea that truly helped the traffic patterns. And of course, lots of lilacs!

This years music lineup, brought to you by the Springut Group, had a little bit of everything from country to reggae to bluegrass to good old shreddy rock and roll. Monday brought in a (too) rare appearance from Pennsylvania’s Dr Dog. Wednesday’s headliner, Blues Traveler, seemingly had the biggest crowd in Lilac Fest history with a virtual sea of people watching harmonica master Jon Popper giving them the “Run Around.”

Friday brought Austin’s Mingo Fishtrap back to town for their third visit in the past year. The last day featured one of Rochester’s hottest up and coming bands – Danielle Ponder & The Tomorrow People. Like a musical super hero, Danielle is a lawyer by day and a stunning soul singer by night. Surrounding herself with some of the areas best musicians, The Tomorrow People are started to grab some huge crowds and will continue to grow.

Sunday’s festival closer, Ana Popavic, seemed to be unknown to most I spoke to that day, but will now be implanted in their brains as the sexy lady in the red dress who also happens to be a female master of the blues. This girl simply melted every face on the lawn ending a close to perfect week with mouths agape.

Props to this years organizers and all who put together such an amazing free time for the good people of Rochester. NYSMusic will be back next year – check out several photo galleries from the week below.

Adam Ezra, Dr Dog and Lilacs

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Davina and the Vagabonds, Blues Traveler

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Mingo Fishtrap

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Danielle Ponder & The Tomorrow People, Ana Popavic

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May 27, 2015
Michael Arnone Brings NOLA to NJ Crawfish Fest for a 26th Time

This weekend New Jersey will put on its party beads and partake in some New Orleans themed eats while dancing to some of the southern music capitol’s greatest sounds. Michael Arnone alongside his Crawfish Krewe has been putting on the Crawfish Fest in New Jersey for a soon-to-be 26 years. Sussex County’s fairgrounds span 130 acres and will play host to four stages of funk, RnB, brass, rock and zydeco music.

The lineup is topped with legends like Dr. John, George Porter Jr. and Kermit Ruffins, but also has newer artists like Marc Broussard, Anders Osborne, and Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds that keeps a variety of sounds churning out of this yearly melting pot. Local boys From Good Homes will play the festival for the second time since reuniting in 2009 after a 10-year hiatus and will be sure to pack some heat with their hick-pop sound. Campers will get private Friday performances from the Stooges Brass Band, The Lost Bayou Ramblers and the New Orleans suspects, while on Saturday they will enjoy late-night performances from Samantha Fish, John Papa Gros Band and The Heard.

Aside from the mouth-watering lineup, the food at Crawfish Fest is just as important. Every meal is under $10, and spans choices of boiled crawfish, (oyster, shrimp, catfish and hot roast beef Po-Boys), crawfish bread, jambalaya, crawfish etouffee and red beans and rice. When you’re inside the gates, you’ll be busy filling your stomach with food and ears with music you may or may not have encountered before. If you’re looking for an authentic New Orleans music and food experience in the North, there’s no competition.

Visit http://www.crawfishfest.com/ for more information

May 27, 2015