NYS Music 20​16

Category: News Desk

  • HeadCount Talks Politics and Music with New Hampshire Voters

    HeadCount headed to New Hampshire prior to yesterday’s primary to discover young voters’ favorite candidates and musical preferences. The organization interviewed volunteers for the various campaigns, rally attendees and people still shopping for a candidate.

    Music and politics have a long history together. Woody Guthrie wrote songs promoting populism and socialist viewpoints, particularly with “This Land is Your Land.” The civil rights movement adopted “We Shall Overcome” as their chant. The ’60s saw war protest songs being written by popular rock and folk artists. Punk music took an anti-establishment swing.

    So, it’s no wonder that HeadCount, which has become pervasive at concerts helping attendees register to vote, would ask those they interviewed about their favorite music. The last question they asked was, “If you could pick any artist to rewrite the national anthem, who would it be?” (The final answer might surprise and/or delight some of our readers.) HeadCount also managed to catch Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz walking by and asked him about his favorite music. Sadly, he did not respond and simply kept walking.

    headcount

    The biggest takeaway from this video is that you cannot determine who a person might support based on their looks, occupation or musical preferences.

    The most glaring omission from the video is a lack of any Hillary Clinton supporters. HeadCount said that they reached out to the campaign and even visited their New Hampshire office, but the Democratic candidate’s campaign chose not to participate.

    The video (included below) was filmed prior to yesterday’s primary and catches the voters’ excitement for the process. Now that the primary has ended, we have the results. In the Republican primary, with 95 percent of precincts reporting, Donald Trump won with 35.3 percent of the vote. John Kasich came in second with 15.8 percent. Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush are in a virtual tie for third with 11.7 percent and 11 percent, respectively. In the Democratic primary, also with 95 percent of precincts reporting, Bernie Sanders won with 60 percent of the vote, while Hillary Clinton received 38.3 percent.

    Register to Vote

  • MSG Execs Caught in Ticket Scalping Scandal

    Several MSG employees have been terminated following an investigation that revealed scalping – taking tickets to events and reselling them for profit.

    Madisonsquaregarden

    According to the New York Post, about a half dozen sales executives were caught reselling tickets to Knicks games on the after-market ticket site StubHub. The internal investigation uncovered a scheme where the employees would buy the lowest priced tickets, often those the teams would reserve for group sales, and sell them at a higher price online. The purchase of tickets by MSG employees is restricted by company policy. Employees must have written permission to purchase tickets. However, because the sales team has direct access to the tickets, their process is different.

    This is not the first time MSG employees have been caught in a ticket scalping scam. In 1996, then-CEO Checketts terminated five ticket office employees for reselling tickets following a six-month investigation.

    PIX11 also reported that the New York Attorney General’s office has accused MSG sales executives and a senior executive of illegally assisting ticket brokers with acquiring tickets for popular events to sell at huge profits. The Attorney General has said that oftentimes the tickets are given to the online ticket brokers before they’re even made available for public purchase.

    This comes around the time the Attorney General released a report from a three-year investigation into the concert ticketing industry, as we previously reported.

    Thankfully, websites like cashortrade.org are building a community of people who are only willing to buy and sell tickets at face value, bucking the trend of screwing fans out of money to see their favorite musicians perform.

  • The Southern Belles Launch Cross-Country Tour

    Lock’n festival alum The Southern Belles are starting out the year with a new drummer, and a slew of touring dates that span the Northeast. Their new pick for drummer is Aaron Zarrow of Philadelphia’s The Royal Noise.

    “I think this is going to be the beginning of an exciting musical journey,” Zarrow said in a press release. “I’m really stoked to be given an opportunity like this, to play in a band whose music I already enjoy listening to. Now I get to contribute to a band’s sound that I feel is unique and powerful enough to go very far. I’m also walking into what seems to be such a tight knit, family-like fan base and support system, and that’s huge.”

    The Richmond, Virginia-based quartet will head up north to Rockwood Music Hall in New York City Feb. 19, and you can catch them at the Putnam Den in Saratoga on Feb. 25. They will wrap up their tour with dates in Montana and Colorado.

    Full tour dates: 

    2/9- Blue Water, Jacksonville, FL
    2/10- Guanabana’s, Jupiter, FL
    2/11- Little Econ Love Fest, Jupiter, FL
    2/12- Dunedin Brewery, Dunedin, FL
    2/13- The Jam, Gainesville, FL #
    2/19- Rockwood Music Hall, New York, NY
    2/21- Stella Blues, New Haven, CT
    2/24- Nectar’s, Burlington, VT
    2/25- Putnam Den, Saratoga Springs, NY
    2/26- Thunder Road, Somerville, MA %
    2/27- Stone Church, Newmarket, NH %
    3/4- The Camel, Richmond, VA **
    3/5- Preservation Pun, Knoxville, TN
    3/8- Gabe’s, Iowa City, IA
    3/9- The Bridge, Columbia, MO
    3/11- Bohemian Biergarten, Boulder, CO
    3/12- The Whisk(e)y, Fort Collins, CO
    3/13- Lola, Denver, CO
    3/14- Sancho’s, Denver, CO
    3/15- Little Nell, Aspen, CO
    3/16- Little Nell, Aspen, CO
    3/17- Black Nugget, Carbondale, CO
    3/18- Bonfire Brewing, Eagle, CO
    3/19- Zio Romolo’s, Denver, CO

    *w/ Lord Nelson and Kendall Street Company
    ^w/ Soul Mechanic
    #w/ Loccochino
    %w/ The Jauntee
    **w/ Groove Fetish

  • Anthology Will Host the Rochester Revival

    In early March, the new venue in the East End of Rochester, Anthology, will host a two-day celebration of roots and Americana music called Rochester Revival 2016.

    Pennsylvania’s emergent jam-grass heroes Cabinet will return to Rochester to headline the first evening of music on Friday, March 4. Also on the bill that night are fellow ‘grass and dust-kickers The Blind Owl Band from Saranac Lake and The Prickers from Naples.

    The party continues early Saturday afternoon for a full day and night of ear-pleasing, foot-stomping fun. Oyster Bay’s electro-prog instrumental powerhouse TAUK will provide a massive sonic cleanse when they close out the mini-festival late Saturday night.

    Leading up to the grand finale will include the introduction of two new Rochester groups and one of the oldest and most beloved bands of Rochester. Aaron Lipp, who has played keys for Robert Randolph, Giant Panda Guerrilla Dub Squad and the Campbell Brothers, has assembled a new band which will play their premiere performance at this event. Another Dub Squad player, guitarist Dylan Savage, will also introduce a new band with Wil McKenna of RootsCollider called the Medicinals. Rochester’s very own gospel legends The Campbell Brothers are slated to bring their classic sacred steel style that is tried, true and always a great time. Other announced bands include Josh Rollins, Personal Blend and the Honey Smugglers, with more to be announced soon.

    Mark March 4 and 5 down in your calendars. It’s a weekend that will showcase music from all across New York state including a dip into our neighbor Pennsylvania, so make plans now to come and show your support. Tickets are on sale now at the Anthology website. Admission is $12 for Friday and $24 for Saturday, or $32 gets you in for the whole weekend. A great deal for a great deal of music!

  • The Blind Owl Band Coming to The Westcott Theater February 6

    The Blind Owl Band, hailing from Saranac Lake, a small town nestled in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains, are coming to The Westcott Theater on February 6, with local musicians Chris James, Mama G and the Spittin’ Sirens from Syracuse, NY.

    The Blind Owl Band will be bringing their four stringed freight train to Central NY as they kick off their 2016 tour taking them all over the East Coast. With Arthur Buezo (guitar, vocals), Christian Cardiello (double bass/fretless bass), Eric Munley (mandolin, vocals) and James Ford (banjo, vocals).

    Opening artists Chris James and Mama G shared the spotlight with The Blind Owl Band at Sterling Stage Kampitheater, in Sterling NY at the String Fling Festival 2015. The Spittin’ Sirens are sure bring a new energy to the stage and get the crowd dancing with Chris James (aka Davey Jonesin’, guitar/vocals), Mama G (aka Silva Tooth, mandolin/vocals), Foxy Rutkowski (aka Shipwreck, percussion/vocals) and Heidi Jane Kessel (aka The Kraken, one string bass banjo).

    Doors open at 8:00 pm, show starts at 9:00 pm. Get tickets here.

  • Artwork for David Bowie’s ‘Blackstar’ Released for Fan Use

    Blackstar has come to be regarded as a parting gift from David Bowie gift after it became widely known that he wrote the album in full knowledge of his own mortality.

    bowie blackstarAs a perpetuation of Bowie’s gift, the artwork for Blackstar has been released for non-commercial use. Artist Jonathan Barnbrook has worked closely with Bowie on designing the artwork on several of his albums.

    David Bowie’s Facebook page share the news with this post:

    Barnbrook loved working with David Bowie, he was simply one of the most inspirational, kind people we have met. So in the spirit of openness and in remembrance of David we are releasing the artwork elements of his last album ★ (Blackstar) to download here free under a Creative Commons NonCommercial-ShareAlike licence. That means you can make t-shirts for yourself, use them for tattoos, put them up in your house to remember David by and adapt them too, but we would ask that you do not in any way create or sell commercial products with them or based on them. Any questions or commercial licence usage please contact us.

    Eleven different elements from the album’s artwork are can be downloaded from bowieblackstar.net. Remember that the content is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-ShareAlike (a copy of the details of that license are included with each download from the site). Inquiries for commercial use can be directed to the Barnbrook design agency.

    Check out an interview with Jonathan Barnbrook regarding the meaning behind the art of Blackstar here.

  • RIAA Now Awards Albums For Streaming Count

    For the first time in 58 years, the Recording Industry Association of America has altered its award system. As of Feb. 1, 2016, RIAA will count the number of streams received toward gold and platinum album certifications.

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    Photo from Facebook

    The industry’s premier award program for artistic achievement in the music recording market, RIAA’s benchmarks for success include 500,000 albums sold (gold), 1,000,000 (platinum) and 2,000,000 plus (multi-platinum) and will now recognize both sales and audio, video streams for single and album certifications. RIAA Chairman and CEO Cary Sherman stated in a press release that this change was the next logical step “to fully reward the success of artists’ albums today.” The association first modernized its method in 2013 by counting on-demand streams for digital single certifications; this will now be updated as well to reflect the growing trend of streaming.

    And with the announcement came a roster of artists being noticed by the association for the newly expanded certification, including Alt-J’s “An Awesome Wave” (Atlantic Records) Gold, Halsey’s “Badlands” (Astralwerks) Gold, Hozier’s “Hozier” (Columbia) Platinum, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” (Epic/Legacy) 32X Multi-Platinum, Miranda Lambert’s “Platinum” (RCA Nashville) Platinum, The Weeknd’s “Beauty Behind the Madness” (XO/Republic Records) 2X Multi-Platinum and Vance Joy’s “Dream Your life Away” (Atlantic Records) Gold.

    RIAA debuted the list with a social media video post seen below:

    RIAA Debuts Album Awards with StreamsThe new #RIAAAlbumAward counts sales and streams, and that’s pretty exciting. Congratulations to all 17 artists now recognized.

    RIAA created its gold and platinum program in 1958, and nearly 30,000 certifications have been awarded to date. Fans can access a complete database of recognized artists and albums here.

  • Maurice White, Founder of Earth, Wind and Fire, Dead at 74

    Yet another Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has passed. Maurice White, founding member of soul legends Earth, Wind and Fire passed away in his sleep last night, according to a post by his brother and bandmate Verdine White on the band’s Facebook page. White was 74:

    My brother, hero and best friend Maurice White passed away peacefully last night in his sleep. While the world has lost…

    Posted by Earth, Wind & Fire on Thursday, February 4, 2016

    TMZ reports that White was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 1992, and the effects of the disease took him off the road with the band in 1994. He was still active in band decisions.

    Maurice was born Dec. 19, 1941 in Memphis, and he was a childhood friend of Booker T Jones. He later moved to Chicago and became a session drummer at Chess Studios. He played drums on the Fontella Bass classic “Rescue Me.”

    A move to Los Angeles in 1969 prompted a name change for his band The Salty Peppers. This was the beginning of Earth, Wind and Fire and a hall of fame career that included such hits as “Shining Star,” “September” and “That’s the Way of the World.”

    Earth, Wind and Fire will be honored with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys later this month.

    White leaves behind a wife and two children.

  • Celtic Women Make Their Way Through New York on Destiny Tour

    It is not often that artists can say that their albums debut at number one, but it’s no surprise to learn that Celtic Women’s Destiny did just this; it was the ninth album to do so.

    Celtic Women 2015FallPublicityPhoto

    As the Destiny tour begins this March in Nashville, Máiréad Nesbitt, Mairéad Carlin, Susan McFadden and Éabha McMahon, also known as the women of Celtic Women, will grace the stage at more than 79 cities as they make their way across the United States.

    The multi-platinum, all female ensemble made its debut on PBS in 2005 and has achieved massive success encompassing 10 chart-topping albums, nine PBS specials, more than 8 million albums sold, and platinum sales in nine countries.

    Celtic Woman 2015_creditDavidConger

    They sing like angels and float like the wind across stage, as they bring to you a bit of Celtic history in their musical stories. Destiny will feature a fresh fusion of traditional Irish music and modern songcraft, including the Waterboys’ classic “The Whole of the Moon,” Ed Sheeran’s “I See Fire” from The Hobbit film, and Mutt Lange’s “Walk Beside Me.” Traditional Irish highlights include “Bean Pháidín,” “Siúil A Run” and “Óró sé do bheatha ‘bhaile,” an anthem closely connected with the 1916 uprising that led to Ireland’s independence.

    DestinyLogoLockupTHE DESTINY TOUR – 2016 ITINERARY

    3/4-5 Nashville, TN Tennessee Performing Arts Center
    3/6 Memphis, TN Orpheum
    3/8 Owensboro, KY RiverPark Center
    3/9 Louisville, KY The Palace
    3/11 Paducah, KY Carson Center
    3/12 Peoria, IL Peoria Civic Center Theater
    3/13 Rockford, IL Cornado PAC
    3/15 Rosemont, IL Rosemont Theatre
    3/17 Detroit, MI Fox Theatre
    3/18 Fort Wayne, IN Embassy Theatre
    3/19 Wabash, IN Honeywell Center (2 shows)
    3/20 South Bend, IN Morris Performing Arts Center
    3/22 Indianapolis, IN Murat Theatre at Old National Centre
    3/23 Bowling Green, KY Sky PAC
    3/24 Cincinnati, OH Aronoff Center
    3/25 Dayton, OH Schuster Performing Arts Center
    3/26 Columbus, OH Palace Theatre
    3/29 Cleveland, OH PlayhouseSquare
    3/31 Williamsport, PA Community Arts Center
    4/1, 2, 3, Lancaster, PA American Music Theater
    4/5 Richmond, VA Altria Theater
    4/6 Norfolk, VA Chrysler Hall at SevenVenues
    4/8 Wheeling, WV Capitol Theatre
    4/9 Baltimore, MD Hippodrome Theatre
    4/10 Salem, VA Salem Civic Center
    4/12 Asheville, NC Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
    4/14 Spartanburg, SC Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium
    4/15 Winston-Salem, NC LJVM Coliseum Complex
    4/16 Durham, NC Durham Performing Arts Center
    4/17 Charlotte, NC Ovens Auditorium
    4/19 Columbia, SC Koger Center for the Arts
    4/21 Athens, GA The Classic Center
    4/23 Atlanta, GA Fox Theatre
    4/24 Gainesville, FL Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts
    4/27 Daytona Beach, FL Peabody Auditorium
    4/28 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Broward Center for the Performing Arts
    4/29 St. Petersburg, FL The Mahaffey Theater
    4/30 Sarasota, FL Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
    5/1 Niceville, FL Mattie Kelly Arts Center

    photo credit: Jason Clark (L-R) Susan McFadden, Lynn Hilary, Mairead Carlin (back right), Mairead Nesbitt
    photo credit: Jason Clark
    (L-R) Susan McFadden, Lynn Hilary, Mairead Carlin (back right), Mairead Nesbitt

    5/3 Mobile, AL CC Theatre
    5/5 Birmingham, AL BJCC
    5/6 Jackson, MS Thalia Mara Hall
    5/7 New Orleans, LA Saenger Theatre
    5/8 Houston, TX Revention Music Center
    5/10 San Antonio, TX Majestic Theatre
    5/11 Grand Prairie, TX Verizon Theatre
    5/13 El Paso, TX The Plaza Theatre
    5/14 Tucson, AZ Tucson Music Hall
    5/15 Tempe, AZ ASU Gammage Auditorium
    5/17 Bakersfield, CA Rabobank Arena
    5/20 Eugene, OR Hult Center for the Performing Arts
    5/21 Yakima, WA Yakima Valley SunDome
    5/22 Portland, OR Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
    5/24 Boise, ID Morrison Center
    5/25 Salt Lake City, UT Maverik Center
    5/26 Casper, WY Casper Events Center
    5/27 Greeley, CO Monfort Concert Hall
    5/28 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak Center
    5/31-6/1Denver, CO Buell Theatre at Denver Performing Arts Complex
    6/3 Rapid City, SD Rushmore Plaza Civic Center
    6/4 Bismarck, ND Bismarck Event Center
    6/5 Grand Forks, ND Chester Fritz Auditorium
    6/7 Bemidji, MN Sanford Center
    6/9 La Crosse, WI La Crosse Center
    6/10 Prior Lake MN Mystic Lake Casino
    6/12 Grand Rapids, MI DeVos Performance Hall
    6/14 Kalamazoo, MI Miller Auditorium
    6/16 Warren, OH W.D. Packard Music Hall
    6/17 University Park, PA Eisenhower Auditorium
    6/19 Schenectady, NY Proctors
    6/21 Rochester, NY Auditorium Theatre
    6/22 Brooklyn, NY Kings Theatre
    6/24-6/25Orillia, Ontario Casino Rama
    6/26 Erie, PA Warner Theatre
    6/28 Lowell, MA Lowell Memorial Auditorium
    6/29 Providence, RI Providence Performing Arts Center
    6/30 Newark, NJ NJPAC
    7/1 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie Theatre
    7/2 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie Theatre

  • Jefferson Airplane’s Signe Anderson Ettlin Dies at 74

    Jefferson Airplane‘s first female vocalist, Signe Anderson Ettlin, passed away a week ago at her home in Beaverton, Oregon.

    Signe Anderson EttlinEttlin had been suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and was recently entered into hospice care. In a strange coincidence, co-founder of Jefferson Airplane Paul Kantner also passed away the same day. Both Ettlin and Kantner were 74.

    Former Airplane band member Marty Balin remarked on the coincidence on his Facebook page:

    “I imagine that she and Paul woke up in heaven and said, ‘Hey what are you doing here? Lets start a band.’”

    Born Sept. 15, 1941 in Seattle, Ettlin was raised in Portland but eventually moved to San Francisco. She joined Jefferson Airplane in 1965. The band’s debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, would be the only album Ettlin was a part of. She is remembered most for her vocals on “Chauffeur Blues” from the debut album.

    Ettlin had her first child in 1966 and decided against a life on the road for her new family. Her final show was Oct. 15, 1966. She was replaced by Grace Slick, who helped bring Jefferson Airplane to mainstream success with the band’s next album, Surrealistic Pillow. Although her time was short with Jefferson Airplane, Ettlin is remembered fondly by former bandmates, being described as the den mother and the voice of reason by Jorma Kaukonen.

    Ettlin moved back to Portland after leaving Jefferson Airplane. She continued to sing with a local band, Carl Smith and the Natural Gas Company. In a radio interview in 2011, she remembered her decision to leave Jefferson Airplane:

    “You have to look at the priorities in your life, the reality in your life. I don’t regret having left.”

    Signe Anderson Ettlin went on to raise two daughters, Lilith and Onateska. In 1977 she married her second husband Micheal Ettlin, who passed away in 2011.