NYS Music 20​15

Tag: Ghost

  • Best of NYS Music 2015: Staff Picks for Best Shows by Region

    A lot of great shows and festivals took place around New York over the course of 2015, from big festivals to small club shows and everything in between. The team at NYS Music loves live music. You can always catch us out and about at live music happenings. Here are what we considered the best concerts of 2015, sorted by region of the state.

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    Best Show in Western New York: Aqueous Halloween
    When Aqueous announced they were going to pay tribute to “Dark Side of Oz,” the legendary mashup of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon and the cinematic classic The Wizard of Oz, their fans were pumped. However, this was a multi-night run, and it wouldn’t be fun without a theme for the first night. Back to the Future was chosen, and the band covered many of the hits off the soundtrack.

    Best Show in Central New York: moe. at Saranac Brewery and K-Rockathon 20
    Two anniversaries were celebrated in Central New York, and they brought the crowds and rave reviews. New York’s favorite jamband, moe., celebrated their 25 years in Utica at the FX Matt Brewery, home to Saranac beer. The multi-day celebration had a festival vibe with multiple bands performing each day. New York’s biggest rock radio station, K-Rock, celebrated their 20th annual K-Rockathon with headliners Breaking Benjamin and Shinedown.

    moe. Saranac Brewery

    Best Show in the Capital District: Dead & Company at Times Union Center
    2015 was a big year for the music of the Grateful Dead. The much anticipated Fare Thee Well shows in Santa Clara, California and Chicago celebrated the 50th anniversary of the originators of the jam scene. Following the shows, billed as the last shows the remaining four members would play together, Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann announced they would go on tour as Dead & Company with John Mayer, Oteil Burbridge and Jeff Chimenti. They kicked off their fall tour at Albany’s Times Union Center.

    Best Show in the North Country: The Waterhole’s final show with EMEFE
    The Waterhole, a mainstay in Saranac Lake, shut its doors after over 20 years of providing live music to the residents of the North Country. The venue will be missed by many. EMEFE played on the last night, dedicating the song “Good Future” to the Waterhole staff.

    Best Show in the Mid-Hudson: Twiddle at the Rock n Roll Resort
    The Rock n Roll Resort festival is always a favorite. It takes the best parts of a music festival and brings them to a chic resort hotel. Rising stars from Vermont, Twiddle, took the resort by storm with their headlining set.

    Twiddle - Rock N Roll Resort
    Twiddle – Rock N Roll Resort

    Best Show in the Finger Lakes: Phish’s Magnaball
    A lot can be written about Phish’s 10th festival. A lot has already been written about it. Tens of thousands of Phish fans returned to Watkins Glen International, the fabled NASCAR track that was home to 1973’s Summer Jam. Not one fan that attended Magnaball had negative comments. That should say it all.

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    Best Show in the Southern Tier: Rob Zombie at the Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena
    Rob Zombie brought in the Halloween season with his nightmarish heavy metal show. Fans arrived dressed in costume for the show that was opened by Zombie’s drummer, DJ Ginger Fish. Chris Besaw had the opportunity to sit down and speak with guitarist John 5 before the show about his inspiration and favorite horror films.John Armstrong Rob Zombie 12

    Best Show in New York City
    It’s difficult to pick just one or two shows in a city that has several amazing shows on a nightly basis. Here are some of what we thought were the best shows in New York City in 2015.

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    Ghost at Terminal 5
    L7 at The Warsaw
    Faith No More at Webster Hall
    Vulfpeck at Brooklyn Bowl
    Soulive’s Bowlive VI (and more here and here and here and here and here)

    Best Show on Long Island: Biohazard, Sworn Enemy and Zire’s War at Revolution Music Hall
    In a night of hardcore music that rocked Revolution Music Hall, Biohazard and Sworn Enemy co-headlined what was practically a homecoming for them. Life of Agony’s guitarist Joey Zampella started a new band, Zire’s War, that kicked things off.

  • Ghost Performs a Ritual for a Sold Out Terminal 5

    As the darkness rolled across Hell’s Kitchen, thousands of fans poured into Terminal 5 to see Ghost on Sunday, September 27. Touring behind their latest release Meliora, Ghost set out on their ‘Black To The Future’ North American tour last week. Since night 1 in Washington, D.C., Ghost has been packing venues and bringing their live ritual to the masses.

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    Papa Emeritus III of Ghost

    Sunday’s show started off with the doors opening early to get some fans upstairs on the rooftop bar so security could clear space on the crowded New York City streets. Once doors opened to let fans inside the actual venue, space quickly filled up. Before opening band Purson even took the stage, the floor and both balcony levels were jammed packed. Unfortunately for fans who didn’t secure a spot along the rail on the top levels, it would be a tough night for them to see Ghost. Although the line of sight for many fans on the balcony was obstructed, it didn’t stop those fans from dancing and singing along with the bands all night.

    After a quick set by opening band Purson, the house lights went dark and the smell of incense filled the air. The show started with “Spirit” as the Nameless Ghouls took the stage one by one before Papa Emeritus III appeared out of the center. Following the track list off of Meliora, Ghost then went straight into “From The Pinnacle To The Pit”. It was no surprise to see Ghost basically play their entire new album due to the high praise and success it’s had since coming out on August, 21st. Even though the band played most of Meliora, they still played a total of 6 songs of Infestissumam and 4 songs off Opus Eponymous. Fans of Ghost seemed to get everything they could have wished for on Sunday. The Nameless Ghouls who are the backing instrumentalists of Ghost are all fantastic musicians. Without being able to show facial expressions and interact with the crowd verbally, the Nameless Ghouls do a great job of expressing themselves behind the masks. The two guitar players mix perfectly with one another and get filled in with the percussion, bass and keys. Papa Emeritus III took the time to speak to the crowd between almost every song. Papa joked about “Frankie” (Pope Francis) being in town the same time Ghost was there but not coming to the show. Papa also shared with the crowd that his mother was at the show, although she wasn’t seen from the crowd.

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    Papa Emeritus III of Ghost

    Towards the end of the night, the band went acoustic for a version of “Jigolo Har Megiddo” that didn’t slow the night’s performance down one bit. Even with an acoustic song, the wild New York City crowd was still moshing. Ghost may not seem like the band to create mosh pits but Sunday night there was something in the air. From the first song to the very last, giant circles in the crowd could be seen from above as fans threw down in the pit. During some songs a second smaller pit would develop in another area of the floor. Before ending the night with an encore performance, Ghost played their cover of “If You Have Ghosts” which was very fitting. To cap the night off, Papa Emeritus III took a poll of who in the crowd had seen Ghost before. As the majority of the sold-out Terminal 5 crowd raised their hand, Papa responded with, “Okay, everyone here besides you,” talking to a young lady in the crowd. He then told the girl to just mime the words like he does sometimes, which made the crowd laugh. Everyone at that point knew Ghost was ending the show with “Monstrance Clock.” The crowd dominated the song by singing along word by word with Papa. At the end of the song, Ghost left the stage and the night was over. Ghost said their goodbyes and thank yous prior to the encore and the crowd let them know they put on an unforgettable performance with a loud applause.

    The ‘Black To The Future Tour’ just started and there’s plenty more dates around the U.S. to catch. For all the dates and other band information, fans can visit Ghost’s Website. Fans can also check the official Facebook and Instagram pages for exclusive content from Papa Emeritus and the Nameless Ghouls.

    Ghost Setlist: Spirit, From The Pinnacle To The Pit, Ritual, Con Clavi Con Dio, Per Aspera Ad Inferi, Majesty, Stand By Him, Prime Mover, Body And Blood, Devil Church, Cirice, Year Zero, He Is, Absolution, Mummy Dust, Jigolo Har Megiddo, Ghuleh/Zombie Queen, If You Have Ghosts, Monstrance Clock

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