NYS Music 20​16

Author: Pete Mason

  • Vote in MarchSCampness from SummerCamp & Win Tickets and More!

    We are deep into March Madness and the counselors at Summer Camp have launched their own March SCampness.

    Fans of the Midwest festival on Memorial Day weekend are encouraged to vote for their favorite aspects of Summer Camp. Voting also enters fans in contests for VIPupgrades, Red Barn late night tickets, Thursday pre-party tickets, and more! Round 2 voting is now open through Wednesday, March 23!

    Counselor Carmel shed some light on the MarchSCampness:

    We really wanted to highlight the uniqueness of Summer Camp. There are a lot of festivals out there, but not many of them have survived as long as Summer Camp has. There are these deep seeded elements that add to our community and traditions that keep us all coming back every year. This will be my 12th. The idea came about from Brad and was an evolution of a Umphrey’s McGee bracket we did last year in our Summer Camp group. That was an idea of Alex, one of our Camp Counselors. We had such a good response that festival management wanted to take it one step further this year.

    Of the remaining rounds, the Sweet Sixteen ends tonight, Wednesday, March 23. The Elite Eight runs Thursday, March 24 until Saturday, March 26. Voting for the Final Four will be held Sunday, March 27 through Tuesday, March 29. And the Championship round will last two days: Wednesday, March 30 and Thursday, March 31.

    Prizes include SCamp Merch Packages (five winners), Thursday pre-party tickets (three winners), pair of Red Barn late night tickets of your choice (two winners), and VIP Upgrade with your choice of Red Barn late night tickets (two winners). Read more about the rules here.

  • Rock n Roll Resort Releases Schedule, Announces Artists at Large

    Rock n Roll Resort v6 “Low Key” has released their schedule for this weekend’s festivities and with hardly any overlapping sets, there’s no excuse to not get down with your friends this weekend in the Catskills!

    On Friday night, things get started in the Acoustic Lounge with some Phish via Uncle Ebenezer, along with Cousin Earth’s funky earth sounds, and Outer Style. The Empire Lounge heats up with Fat Bradley in the Empire Lounge and some funk shortly after via Formula 5. Hayley Jane and the Primates kick off the night in the Manhattan Theatre, followed by the first of three Max Creek sets this weekend. The music doesn’t stop until dawn with Roxy Roca, Teddy Midnight and Funkadelic Astronaut stretchin the night until day.

    Saturday has music starting at 11am for the early risers! Don’t miss Goose, Black Mountain Symphony and Mister F as they start your day off right. New England favorites The Kind Buds start their set promptly at 4:20, right before Master of Ceremonies Honeycomb demonstrates some of the best beatboxing in the Northeast. Two more sets of Max Creek and a pair from West End Blend span the night in the Theater, while Clevland’s Broccoli Samuari hits the Lounge at 10pm, followed by Chromatropic and Space Bacon. Don’t miss psychedelic duo The Balkun Brothers or The Other Brothers (no relation), the latter hailing from nearby New Paltz and ready to fill your ears with soul.

    Artists at Large include members of Beau Sasser’s Escape Plan, Danny “Soul Train” Meyer and Mary Corso.  Danny is a founding member of On The Spot Trio, and is currently with Beau Sasser’s Escape Plan & formerly of Alan Evans’ Playonbrother (2012-2015). Mary Corso, the lead vocalist for Beau Sasser’s Escape Plan & founding member of her own band Broca’s Area. Mary and Danny have recently worked together in a new project called Danny Mayer Trio featuring members of Turkuaz & Nth Power.

  • Strange Machines Announce Extensive Spring Tour

    Strange Machines are embarking on their biggest tour to date this spring, traveling to lots of new places and sharing the stage with great bands such as Dopapod, Consider the Source, Broccoli Samurai, Formula 5 and more!

    The guys are fresh off a successful winter tour which included headlining at some of the Northeast’s premiere venues and a show opening for Twiddle in New Haven, Connecticut. This band has been upping the ante with each and every performance and show no signs of slowing down. Check the dates below and come see what all the hype is about.

    March 20 Brooklyn, NY | Brooklyn Bowl *~
    March 24 Syracuse, NY | Funk ‘n Waffles *
    March 25 Buffalo, NY | Buffalo Iron Works *
    April 15 Northampton, MA | Bishop’s Lounge
    April 16 Bridgeport, CT | The Acoustic #
    April 23 Plymouth, NH | PSU Earth Jam
    April 28 Albany, NY | Parish Public House +
    April 29 Ithaca, NY | The Haunt *^
    April 30 Boston, MA | The Sinclair %
    May 6 Newmarket, NH | The Stone Church $
    May 7 Burlington, VT | Nectar’s +
    May 18 Washington, D.C. | Gypsy Sally’s ^
    May 19 Virginia Beach, VA | Doc Taylor’s
    May 20 TBA
    May 21 Bedford, PA | Domefest
    May 28 Great Barrington, MA | MASSGathering (2 sets)
    June 9 Stephentown, NY | Disc Jam Music Festival
    July 30 Croydon, NH | Wild Woods Music Festival

    % w/ Dopapod
    # w/ Consider the Source
    * w/ Broccoli Samurai
    ^ w/ Mister F
    ~ w/ Flux Capacitor
    + w/ Hayley Jane & The Primates
    $ w/ Formula 5

  • The Slam Allen Band Featured in PB&J Series in Plattsburgh

    Plattsburgh Blues and Jazz (PB&J) is bringing yet another award-winning blues performer to the North Country. On Saturday, March 19, PB&J will feature The Slam Allen Band, a 2016 Blues Music Awards Nominee for Best New CD by a New Artist. Slam has spent nine years as a bandleader, lead vocalist and lead guitarist with blues legend James Cotton and is also a New York State Blues Hall of Fame Master Musician Inductee.

    All proceeds from PB&J shows go to the 30 City Foundation to fund artists and bring new performers to Plattsburgh. Tickets can be purchased online at Plattsburghbluesandjazz.com and in person at the Champlain Wine Company located at 30 City Hall Place. Tickets are $12 in advance, $15 at the door. Doors open at 8 pm. Show starts at 9 pm.

  • Palace Theatre Looking to Expand?

    Albany’s Palace Theatre recently spent $600,000 to buy properties that reside on North Pearl Street and along Wilson Street near the downtown venue, as reported in Biz Journals.

    Palace Theatre ExpandAccording to a statement, “The Palace Theatre” acquired property behind the building up to Wilson Street in anticipation of future projects. Palace management felt the timing was right to buy as there is development beginning to happen around the theatre. No specific plans for the lots has been announced at this time.

    Will we see an expansion, outdoor events, or more parking downtown? There are many options for the Palace with this purchase. Stay tuned…

  • Annie in the Water and Hayley Jane Collaborate for Overnight Recording

    On Sunday, March 6, Brad of Annie in the Water along with Hayley Jane asked via Facebook for suggestions on what to write a song about. Within an hour, they had more than 50 suggestions and proceeded to write a song throughout the evening and recorded the final take around 6:30am as the sun was coming up. The song, “Dr. Ashlee Little the Narwhal and Other Earthly Creatures (This Will be a Long Song),” has a silly storyline with a real message of love and optimism, inspired by their frends. The track was recorded in Clifton Park, NY. Enjoy!

  • NYS Music 2016 March Madness, Round 2

    We are into Round 2 of NYS Music March Madness and our field is down to 32 bands from across New York State! This friendly tournament style competition throughout the month of March, bringing new bands you should know about to your attention.

    These are bands you might not know about, but should know about. Recommended for inclusion in our field of 64 by the NYS Music staff, we hit every corner of New York State, from Long Island to Buffalo, The Catskills to the North Country and all points in between, NYS Music March Madness is a great way to discover a new and upcoming band and show your support and love for bands you see often. Established bands who have gained a massive audience are not included in this year’s competition, instead the bands who are on the cusp of greatness are the stars of this year’s March Madness. There was only room for 64 but we made some great choices and picked a wide array of genres to bring to you this year.

    We’d like to thank The Hollow Bar and Kitchen, Buffalo Iron Works, Funk n Waffles and The Waterhole for sponsoring a regional bracket this year. These venues represent the best of what New York State has to offer and celebrate music while inviting local and touring bands to perform for growing local scenes across the state.

    Second round matchups in the Iron Works region include:

    Stellar Young (Indie) vs Funktional Flow (funk n jam)
    Blind Owl Band (jamgrass) vs King Buffalo (stoner/psych rock)
    Sophistafunk (funk hip/hop) vs Lucky Jukebox Brigade (Indie pop punk)
    Sly Fox and the Hustlers (blues funk rock) vs North and South Dakotas (bluegrass/folk/y’allternative)

    Funk n Waffles second round matchups are:

    Waydown Wailers (roots rock) vs Last Daze (alt)
    Castle Creek (blues rock) vs Subsoil (psychedelic hip hop)
    Folk Faces (folk jazz) vs Dirty Smile (rock)
    Bump (rock) vs Annie In the Water (acoustic rock)

    The Hollow Bar and Kitchen region has:

    Sprocket (jam) vs Second Trip (rock)
    After Earth (metal) vs Let’s Be Leonard (jam)
    Mister F (prog jam rock) vs Funknut (funk/soul)
    Northern Faces (indie) vs Linear North (garage rock)

    The Waterhole region brings together these matchups:

    Root Shock (roots reggae) vs Super Killer Robots (rock)
    Chris James & Mama G (Ameribeat) vs Unknown Woodsman (funklove)
    Space Carnival (slippery disco) vs Big Mean Sound Machine (Afrobeat/dance)
    The Lawn Sausages (garagepunkschlockglam) vs Formula 5 (funk jam)

    Second Round voting begins at 12 noon EST on Friday, March 11, and closes at midnight on Sunday, March 13. The Third Round begins at 12 noon on Tuesday, March 15 with the remaining 16 teams. Vote now for your favorites and discover some of the great up and coming music that New York State has to offer!

  • NYS Music March Madness 2016, Round 1

    It’s March and that means March Madness at NYS Music! We bring together 64 bands from across New York State for a friendly tournament style competition throughout the month of March, bringing new bands to our audience’s attention.

    These are bands you might not know about, but should know about. Recommended for inclusion in our field of 64 by the NYS Music staff, we hit every corner of New York State, from Long Island to Buffalo, The Catskills to the North Country and all points in between, NYS Music March Madness is a great way to discover a new and upcoming band and show your support and love for bands you see often. Established bands who have gained a massive audience are not included in this year’s competition, instead the bands who are on the cusp of greatness are the stars of this year’s March Madness. There was only room for 64 but we made some great choices and picked a wide array of genres to bring to you this year.

    We’d like to thank The Hollow Bar and Kitchen, Buffalo Iron Works, Funk n Waffles and The Waterhole for sponsoring a regional bracket this year. These venues represent the best of what New York State has to offer and celebrate music while inviting local and touring bands to perform for growing local scenes across the state.

    First round matchups in the Iron Works region include:

    Stellar Young (Indie) vs Melia (alt rock)
    Funktional Flow (funk n jam) vs Candy Ambulance (alt grunge rock)
    Pizza Party (‘Cuse rock) vs Blind Owl Band (jamgrass)
    King Buffalo (stoner/psych rock) vs Dragnfly (rock)
    Sophistafunk (funk hip/hop) vs Honey Smugglers (bluegrass/folk)
    Lucky Jukebox Brigade (Indie pop punk) vs Los Blancos (American roots)
    Teddy Midnight (electro dance funk) vs Sly Fox and the Hustlers (blues funk rock)
    Glen Street (alt hard rock) vs North and South Dakotas (bluegrass/folk/y’allternative)

    Funk n Waffles first round matchups are:

    Waydown Wailers (roots rock) vs I’m From the Gov’t and I’m Here to Help (metal)
    Last Daze (alt) vs Twin Lions (modern rock)
    Castle Creek (blues rock) vs Let Go Daylight stoner rock)
    The Other Brothers (soul funk) vs Subsoil (psychedelic hip hop)
    Pale Green Stars (rock/blues/alt-country) vs Folk Faces (folk jazz)
    Phineas and the Lonely Leaves (indie) vs Dirty Smile (rock)
    Bump (rock) vs Ire Clad (heavy metal)
    Annie In the Water (acoustic rock) vs Oogee Wawa (alt/reggae)

    The Hollow Bar and Kitchen region has:

    Sprocket (jam) vs Tim Britt (acoustic blues/disco)
    The Sea The Sea (indie folk pop) vs Second Trip (rock)
    After Earth (metal) vs Ampevene (prog rock)
    Let’s Be Leonard (jam) vs The Alaskan (heavy)
    Breaking Solace (hard rock) vs Mister F (prog jam rock)
    Spectacular Average Boys (folk) vs Funknut (funk/soul)
    AjamajA (prog jam) vs Northern Faces (indie)
    Linear North (garage rock) vs Murder In Rue Morgue (indie metal)

    And The Waterhole region brings together these matchups:

    Root Shock (roots reggae) vs Lord Electro (electro/house)
    Jeremiah’s Razor (metal) vs Super Killer Robots (rock)
    Chris James & Mama G (Ameribeat) vs Gowanus (experiemental rock)
    Unknown Woodsman (funklove) vs Animal (metalcore)
    Imperial Brown (jam rock) vs Space Carnival (slippery disco)
    Danielle Ronder & Tomorrow People (soul) vs Big Mean Sound Machine (Afrobeat/dance)
    The Lawn Sausages (garagepunkschlockglam) vs Crows Cage (hard rock)
    Formula 5 (funk jam) vs Crackin’ Foxy (swing)

    First Round voting begins at 12 noon EST on Tuesday, March 8, and closes at midnight on Thursday, March 10. Second Round begins at 12 noon on Friday, March 11 with the remaining 32 teams. Vote now for your favorites and discover some of the great up and coming music that New York State has to offer!

  • WEQX Presents: The Moth and The Flame with Hard Soul, March 9 at The Hollow

    The Moth and The Flame will join local rockers Hard Soul at The Hollow this Wednesday, March 9, presented by 102.7 WEQX.

    Their latest release Young & Unafriad brings 8 new songs and features atmospheric strings from Rob Moose (Bon Iver, Sufjan Stevens) and has been streamed over 2.8 million streams on Spotify. The Provo, Utah group currently based out of Los Angeles features Andrew Tolman, formerly of Imagine Dragons (drums), Brandon Robbins (guitar/vocals) and Mark Garbett (keys/vocals).

    Hard Soul will debut new material during this WEQX-sponsored concert. Frontman Johnny Salka shared, “We’ve been relatively quiet the last few months, diligently working on new material for our next record, so before we hit the studio later this year, we’re going to take the opportunity to test out some new tunes for the first time live in front of some hungry music fans at The Hollow!” The night plans to be a great one for bands from both coasts. Advance tickets for March 9 are available

  • Saturday Nights in March at Funk n Waffles Presented by NYS Music

    Spring has sprung, and the funk is deep at Funk n Waffles in Syracuse. NYS Music is proud to present these great shows on Saturday nights throughout March at the popular downtown Syracuse venue.

    March 5 – Gigantosaurus Rex with Baked Potatoes

    Gigantosaurus Rex is angular, obtuse, and dynamic and while they are not a jamband, they bring a crushing sound created by three musicians.

    Baked Potatoes is a 7 piece reggae band from Oneonta who love to put smiles on people’s faces. The Potatoes have been mastering their live performance with countless Upstate NY concerts playing with Sammy Adams, HR, The Sheds, The Fat Piece & many more. Having just released their debut EP, Waiting For The Weekend, Baked Potatoes is a band that will keep you dancing & wanting more.

    March 12 – Our Friends Band with Folk Faces and Primo Ganso

    Grooverockers Our Friend Band brings blues and funk and push musical boundaries through live improvisation and fresh takes on pre-existing material.

    Folkfaces out of Buffalo play a rowdy blend of rootsy folk, jazz, and blues, fusing classic forms with contemporary feelings and irresistibly danceable energy. Their inspiration comes from the mountains of Appalachia to the deltas of Mississippi, the swamps of Louisiana to the Concrete Jungle of the Rustbelt. Specializing in merriment and sticking it to the system, Folkfaces make the crowd dance and the hierarchy shatter.

    March 19 – Root SHOCK with Mosaic Foundation

    Root SHOCK blends roots reggae, dancehall, heavy drum & bass, and soulful vocals with conscious lyrics into positive dance music will make you want to move. The band has been surprising and delighting crowds across the Central New York region and beyond, bringing their unique high-energy style spearheaded by the stunning vocals of Jessica Brown to a wide range of settings. The band’s dedication to spreading music with a positive message has paid off in entertaining, elevating, and energizing music lovers of all walks of life! 2016 promises to be an explosive year for Root Shock, as they’ve finally made time to record their first studio album, are anchoring a monthly Syracuse reggae night designed to bring the best and most diverse acts that modern reggae has to offer to the area. They’re not stopping there though; the band is set to hit the road to spread their uplifting message and vibes and take their renowned live performances to the masses!

    With a style as unique as its members are diverse, Mosaic Foundation is forward thinking reggae that stays true to the roots. Formed in 2009 and based in the Finger Lakes region of New York, the band has grown a loyal following, thanks to electric live performances and three studio releases. Blending roots, ska, dub, dance-hall and beyond, Mosaic is an exploration in reggae that is pushed to the limits and sometimes spills over. With lyrics that inspire dancing in the moment, and activate the mind in reflection, the songs encourage positivity, sustainable living and community.

    March 26 – Big Mean Sound Machine

    A thunderous dance party that fuses Afrobeat, Jazz, Funk,and Psychedelia, Big Mean Sound Machine is charting new musical territory with it’s latest release Contraband, recorded live in summer and winter of 2013. Big Mean continually re-defines the boundaries of dance music; meditation meets party time.

    All shows start at 8pm each night. Visit Funk n Waffles for more info.