With two nights in the books, and raised expectations thanks to the lore of the “30th” show, Phish dealt a musical hand that would be hard to beat last night. The first set played like an epic second set at points and saw an old favorite song get revamped. The second set featured the Vermont rock stars in peak jaw-dropping improvisational form and was bookended with two of the more legendary songs in Phish canon. And the encore was filled with thousands of fans singing the keyboardist’s favorite song before “Tweezer Reprise” ended the show in ragingly appropriate fashion. All this and it’s not even 2018 yet.
To the delight of many, Phish went back to its roots with a classic opening sequence of “Mike’s Song” > “I Am Hydrogen” > “Weekapaug Groove” that was once more than a regular sequence on set lists but seems to have petered out in recent years in favor of different permutations of “Mike’s Groove.” The iconic opening guitar lick was met with a resounding roar from the crowd and the band never looked back from there. “Hydrogen” gave Lighting Director Chris Kuroda a chance to show off his mood lighting as he added a perfect visual backdrop for the moody instrumental number. No sooner had the closing notes of “Weekapaug Groove” been played before guitarist Trey Anastasio ripped into another iconic opening guitar riff – this one belonging to “Tweezer,” a first set rarity to say the least. By this time, The Garden was in full “bouncy house” mode with the ground noticeably shaking and seemingly moving along in unison with everything else.
Following a soaring jam that touched on a myriad of themes, Anastasio huddled with Jon Fishman briefly before the drummer belted out the crowd favorite “Ass Handed.” Before long, the entire crowd, with nothing but the house lights on, was singing along in full unison, the first of two memorable sing-a-longs this evening. As if not to stem the energy too much, a blistering “Kill Devil Falls” followed that flowed ever so effortlessly into “Bathtub Gin” which had a majestic jam attached to it, further solidifying the second set feel to this first one. Soon after another energized reception from the crowd, bassist Mike Gordon began soloing in what turned out to be a new take on the old school number “Brother,” with this version taking a slower, more rhythmic approach. First set closer du jour “More” then capped off a first set that already felt like an entire show’s worth of music.
Topping a first set like that would normally be difficult, but Phish attempted to do so with another epic jam vehicle, this one being a more traditionally placed “Down with Disease” second set opener. The ensuing improv was Phish at their finest, with a jam that grew in scale and intensity before settling into “Steam.” This newer song evoked memories of New Years’ past when the band used it as part of their “gag” and played it while elevated on risers. “Light” kept the energy going in full force, highlighted by steady play and typical sound melodies from keyboardist Page McConnell. “Farmhouse” then delivered the second set “breather” song everyone had been waiting for before the set was bookended with another Phish staple, a breakneck speed, intense “Run Like an Antelope.” With no encore even necessary after a performance like that, it did offer the crowd one last chance to join together in song via “Sleeping Monkey” before the expected “Tweezer Reprise” closer blew the lid off the world’s most famous arena…again. Three special nights of music are now complete as Phish begins plans for its 17th show at Madison Square Garden in the year 2017. What they have left in the tank is anyone’s guess.
As we continue to look back on the year in music in 2017, no retrospective would be complete without recognizing the artists that we lost this year. Fortunately, even though they may no longer be with us, their music is eternal and will survive the test of time. The following musicians are huge musical losses, and each impacted audiences on a large scale and surely served as inspiration for some and will be missed by all.
Perhaps no celebrity death this year, musician or not, impacted as many people as Tom Petty’s did, serving as a testament to just how influential his music has been not only in America but worldwide. Petty succumbed to cardiac arrest just weeks shy of his 67th birthday in October, shortly after his last tour had finished. His music was and is pure Americana, often featuring simple, heart felt lyrics that had a personal touch to them combined with passionate guitar work and melodies. Starting with his first band Mudcrutch in Florida and ending with his long time backing band and friends The Heartbreakers, Tom Petty’s music spanned generations and served as inspiration to aspiring song writers everywhere. It’s hard not to even know a Petty tune as song like “Free Fallin,” “Running Down a Dream,” and “American Girl” have been thoroughly infused into popular culture, proving that his music not only spanned generations but tastes as well. Even if you weren’t a huge fan, odd’s are that there’s at least one Tom Petty song you know and like. Petty was fittingly inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and leaves us with an enormous musical catalog to remember him by.
Here’s a clip from Petty’s final show at the Hollywood Bowl in September, showing that he still had plenty of speed on his fastball and, in a way, went out on top.
Chuck Berry
In terms of influencing other artists and redefining an entire musical genre, no one we lost this year had more of an impact with that than Chuck Berry who literally forged a new era of music. Taking elements of rhythm and blues, Berry combined them with frenetic guitar work and pure showmanship in serving as one of the true fathers of rock and roll. When artists like Elvis Presley and The Beatles cite you directly as an influence, something must have been done right. Songs like “Maybellene” and “Roll Over Beethoven” were unheard of at the time in the late 1950s with their rousing guitar-driven sound and Berry’s on stage showmanship. But Berry helped bring this new form of musicianship into the light and served as inspiration to entire generations of musicians who took this and ran with it. Fittingly, Berry was one of the first ever members inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when it opened in 1986.
Charles Bradley
Self dubbed “the screaming eagle of soul,” Charles Bradley’s voice was synonymous with soul music and his death in September after a battle with stomach cancer was felt by many in the music industry. Bradley’s performances were known for his visual outpouring of emotion, connecting with his audience on a personal level and, of course, soul. Bradley started out his career as a James Brown impersonator and wound up as an acclaimed performer and one of the faces of the Daptone Records label. His delivery was known to evoke memories of Otis Redding and his influence has even spread to the world of hip hop where his unmistakable voice can be heard in samples.
As we continue our look at the best of and the brightest in music in 2017, we shift our focus to up and coming bands that are ready to burst on to the national stage. While our staff picks may mirror those of last year, NYS Music readers have voted for a new act that’s ready to join the ranks of other popular New York bands with bight futures.
And if you’ve missed any of our previous voting results from earlier this week, check out our winners for Best Venues, Best Albums and Best Festivals.
For the second year in a row, our staff has selected Aqueous as a band on the rise as the Buffalo, NY quartet continues their steady progression towards national relevancy. Playing bigger festivals, opening for acts like The Disco Biscuits, and collaborating with members of moe., fellow Upstate New Yorkers, in addition to a steady touring schedule have all contributed to this band’s surge in popularity. This should come as no surprise to Buffalo area music fans who have been singing the group’s praises for years now. They’ll get to enjoy Aqueous back in their hometown as they ring in the new year at Town Ballroom. Tickets are still available and can be purchased here.
At least the readers of NYS Music have offered up a new taste this year for their Band on the Rise selection as they’ve chosen The Other Brothers. Fresh off the heels of their recently released EP Jones, this band has seen a steady rise in prominence in 2017 thanks to increased exposure this summer at local festivals like Disc Jam and strong word of mouth. They hang their hat on being able to mix delicate ballad-like songs with focused and heavy jamming in the live setting.
Artists You Should Know
We’re always looking for new music, especially bands from New York State, and this year we stepped up our game and found bands from all corners of the state playing our local bars and clubs, just getting started.
We checked in with our readers, and they overwhelmingly suggested three New York artists: The Backseat Bullets (for fans of shoegaze and a 90s grunge influence), Aqueous (jam stalwarts of Buffalo), and Hartley’s Encore, the new funk powerhouse in Albany.
Meanwhile, we asked the staff who were some artists readers should know about, and we ended up with an impressive list of 21 different artists to check out. There’s no sense in sending you off to listen to three or four bands worth checking out when there is so much variety in store. So here’s the NYS Music Staff list of Best Artists You Should Know for 2017.
The beat goes on as NYS Music continues to count down the best, the brightest and the most impactful events surrounding music in the year 2017. If you’ve missed any of our previous entries, check out the Staff and Reader Picks for Best Venue and Best Album compiled earlier this week. Today, we tackle Best Music Festival in New York State as well as the country. And, somewhat unsurprisingly, there’s a striking simoe.larity between the Staff and Reader Picks for both.
STAFF PICKS – NY FESTIVALS
A sizzling Saurday night set from the Brooklyn rock/funk outfit known as Turkuaz was just one of the highlights of this year. This came after the highly anticipated and well received set from up and comers TAUK. Holly Bowling displayed her prowess on the piano all weekend with both an intimate late night set on Friday and by serving as the “Artist-at-large” all weekend, seemingly sitting in with everyone and everywhere. Saturday late night sets from Break Science Live Band and Consider the Source served as more than ample entertainment before Pink Talking Fish closed out the festival on Sunday night. NYS Music was on the scene, naturally. Check out our review here which features this awesome highlight video to give you a taste of 2017 and whet your appetite for next year.
In somewhat of a sleeper pick, our staff was also really high on this fairly new and quite atypical music festival. In fact, this festival is self-billed as a “multi-disciplinary visual and performing arts festival” with all of its events/performers spread out across the entire scenic city of Rochester.
Fringe organizers have boasted that the event brought in over 78,000 attendees this year, which is a 15% rise from 2016 and can only pay dividends for the local economy. And while most “traditional” music festivals take place over a long weekend or two with several stages in a fixed location, The Fringe couldn’t be more opposite as it spreads the fun out over 10 days and dozens of stages, with hundreds of shows from which to pick. In addition to spotlighting local talent such as Rochester’s own The Demos or Ithaca’s Big Mean Sound Machine, this year’s Rochester Fringe also featured the American debut of the renowned French street theater company Plasticiens Volants and comedy courtesy of headliner John Mulaney. With a truly diverse schedule in all aspects and rising attendance, it’s clear this festival is doing something right with next year’s rendition already scheduled for Sept 13-22, 2018.
For a more in depth look at this up and coming fest, check out our own Paula Cummings’ reviews of Day 2, Day 3, Day 4 and Day 8 of the festival with some accompanying photos courtesy of Staff Photographer Brian Ferguson.
This Lake George-based festival also has somewhat of a unique set up and ranked highly among our staff. Promising music from 2 pm to 3 am, ADK Music Fest delivers this by showcasing bands on two stages right in Charles R Wood Park by the southern tip of the lake during the day and then late night sets at nearby King Neptune’s Pub. With a very reasonably priced ticket (there were a limited amount of $60 weekend tickets available) and a slew of hotels nearby, this is one of the more accessible festivals in the state as well as one of the more scenic ones thanks to views Lake George has to offer.
ADK Music Fest offered some of the more nationally known acts during the daytime sessions with bands like Twiddle, Ryan Montbleau, Kung Fu and Twiddle gracing the stage while the late night sets were dominated by favorite “local” acts like Mister F and Formula 5. This was the third year of the festival, so it’s still in the nascent stages of development. But with a strong attendance this year, and the continued rise of some NY State bands, there’s no reason to think planning insn’t already underway for year four.
For a deeper dive on this festival, check out NYS Music’s review of the weekend. Here’s a clip from Twiddle’s set which closed things out on the main stage Sunday night and featured a special sit in from Lucid’s Lowell Wurster on washbord.
And the last of our Staff Picks just so happened to be the same as the definitive winner as chosen by our loyal readers…..
Not even the heavy rains and infinite mud that were both prominently featured at this year’s moe.down could keep our staff and readers from agreeing that this is truly one of the best festivals the state has to offer. Perhaps there was a sentimental vibe to this joint pick as well as moe.down returned after an excruciatingly long, near three year absence. Returned to its roots at Snow Ridge Ski Resort in Turin, this festival always does a tremendous job of creating an artist lineup that mixes both local “up and coming” acts with nationally known bands that may or may not be regularly associated with the jam scene. And seven sets of moe.in the span of three days doesn’t hurt either.
While, traditionally, moe.down has been a Labor Day Weekend festival, in 2017, it was moved up to the weekend preceding the 4th of July. This made for some warmer temperatures but, unfortunately, the rain that can be often found at this fest was plentiful. However, that didn’t deter campers from going out and enjoying acts like The Hip Abduction or Fishbone. New York was well represented with other sets from Mister D and Wild Adriatic that had to navigate some questionable weather at parts throughout the weekend. And in traditional moe.down style, the hosts were more than generous with the main stage. Ryan Montbleau and Haley Jane (sans Primates) came out for a rousing rendition of Fleetwod Mac’s “The Chain” on Friday night. That night also saw Kung Fu join moe. on stage for the second set for some powerhouse collaboration.
Saturday was no different with both Fishbone and guitarist Charlie Star of Blackberry Smoke both sitting in at points. And Sunday, percussionist Mike Dillon was the guest du jour with appearances on the moe. staples of “McBain” and “Okayalright.” Weather aside, the whole weekend was ‘alright’ enough for NYS Music readers to declare this the best festival in New York State. Let’s see if it gets a chance to defend its crown again next year.
Check out our team review here that goes a little more in depth about this memorable weekend. It also includes links to retrospectives on moe.downs of years’ past for those interested in seeing how this festival has blossomed from a relatively low key annual gathering of moe.rons to one of the “cant miss” festivals of the summer.
Of all the contemporary music festivals the Northeast has to offer, The Peach Music Festival seems to be gaining the most traction towards becoming a widespread or nationally known “must hit” event on the summer festival circuit. Throw an emotional 2017 with the deaths of founding Allman Brothers Band members Butch Trucks and Gregg Allman on top of that and it’s no wonder why The Peach ranked high on our national festival survey. Similar to moe.down, but on a slightly larger scale, this festival offers camping on a giant hillside that’s used for skiing as well. But it also doubles as a water park in the summer months, replete with water slides and a lazy river. This is all in addition to three different stages offering music for seemingly all tastes.
One of the best parts of any festival, or music in general for that matter, is the ability to use it to heal and bring people together. With ugly events transpiring in Charlottesville, VA that weekend, the 2017 Peach Fest served as testament to the good side of humanity and showed just how powerful it can be when large groups of people assemble for the right reasons. Sadly, those reasons this year were linked to the aforementioned deaths and an opportunity to really say good bye this time to one of the most influential American bands of all time in The Allman Brothers. Fittingly, the Peach pulled out all the stops this year with a tremendous tribute set spearheaded by keyboardist Chuck Leavell. When all was sang and done, he was joined on stage at various times by the likes of Warren Haynes, Scott Sharrard, Dave Schools, Oteil Burbridge and Jimmy Herring as well as other members of rock royalty.
Peach Fest also proved that while one chapter of music may have closed, the ones to come are very promising. Newcomers Spafford played to a packed house on The Grove stage, the smaller of the three. Hayley Jane and The Primates also played a set there while Rich Robinson took his new Black Crowes-esque offshoot The Magpie Salute out for a spin on the main stage. And in perhaps the clearest sign yet that there’s great promise for tomorrow in terms of musicianship, 14-year old guitarist Brandon “Taz” Niederauer left jaws agape after his sit in with Widespread Panic on Saturday night. For a more detailed look at what went down at this year’s Peach, check out Eli Stein’s review here with photos courtesy of Alex Buschiazzo of 215Music.net
And while some of the inspiration behind this festival may no longer be with us, the show will go on in 2018 and the festival has announced the new dates this year of July 19-22. Rumor has it that the festival’s typical mid-August weekend may be compromised by a certain other major festival thrown by a fairly famous foursome from Vermont. You heard it here first.
In perhaps our other sleeper pick this year, Rock on the Range, a hard rock festival in Columbus, OH, was another popular staff selection. Held at Mapfre Stadium, home to the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer, this festival compiles some of the biggest and mainstream hard rock. This year’s event saw revered bands like Metallica, Primus, Korn and The Offspring all grace the main stage with their presence and successfully turn a soccer stadium into a giant rock show.
Sadly, Rock on the Range was not immune to tragedy this year either. The untimely passing of Soundgarden front man Chris Cornell immediately preceded the festival and forced the Grunge era legends out of their headlining spot. Much like Peach Fest, this community seemed to dust itself off and use the three day festival to pay tribute to both Cornell and his band with various covers and tributes.
Even though NYS Music couldn’t be there to review the festival this year, here’s a clip of Metallica performing one of their classic hits to give you a taste of the harder energy that’s associated with this increasingly successful early summer tradition in the heartland of America.
This year marked the 11th consecutive year of Rock on the Range with attendance increasing each year. It’s gone from a relatively small one-day festival with an attendance of 35,000 to a gigantic three-day outing with total attendance this year nearing 135,000 people so it must be doing something right. 2018 shows no signs of slowing down as headliners Tool, Avenged Sevenfold and Alice In Chains have already been announced for this year’s rendition taking place May 18-20. For those looking to sprinkle in a little hard rock in their summer musical outings, this appears to be a necessary stop.
Once again, our final pick from the NYS Music staff is perfectly in tune with our readers…..
In a shocking development, moe. once again serves as the common thread between Staff and Readers as the Upstate NY rockers have co-hosted this annual rite of passage into summer with their Midwestern brethren Umphrey’s McGee since 2003. Summer Camp is held at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, IL every Memorial Day Weekend and is another true festival success story, growing from 1,000 attendees in its first year to more than 20,000 in recent years. It’s evolved from a regional music fest to near essential travel destination for fans throughout the country. Umphrey’s McGee and moe. have built a strong friendship over the years and this carries over into the relaxed, family reunion vibe this festival has developed over the years, allowing it to truly live up to its name which conjures up memories of adolescent summers and the annual get togethers with friends .
Unfortunately, in another common bond among early summer festivals, the rain made its presence early and often this year at Summer Camp, creating muddy terrain and slippery conditions everywhere. But it would take a whole lot more than rain to keep campers from seeing other performing acts like Trey Anastasio Band, Gov’t Mule, Pretty Lights Live and The Disco Biscuits throughout the weekend. Side projects were prominent at Summer Camp this year as well as Les Claypool not only played with Primus , but also with his Claypool Lennon Delirium project as well. Phish’s Mike Gordon took his band out here as well, joining bandmate Trey Anastatio and making for some popular sit-in rumors that never came to fruition. Aqueous, a clear band on the rise out of Buffalo, was also prominently involved this weekend with multiple sets.
The videos above and below give a fantastic sampling of everything this year’s Summer Camp offered festival goers, including the copious amounts of mud. For a photo retrospective and some additional video, check out our review of the proceedings. This festival shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon and while it may not be exactly local to New York, with moe. serving as co-host and a top notch artist lineup that seems to get better every year, this is one that’s clearly worth the travel.
That’s a wrap on Best Festivals of 2017 as voted by NYS Music and its readers. Stay tuned tomorrow and the rest of the week as we continue with our look back on 2017 and the best music it had to offer.
NYS Music is celebrating the end of 2017 by sharing our staff and reader picks in 10 categories, and today we are highlighting the winners of the Best Venue in New York State.
This new venue in the heart of the East Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn has been quite busy in its first year of existence. Playing host to such acts as Ween, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Turkuaz and Yo La Tengo, this 1,800 person capacity room prides itself on open sight lines and great acoustics thanks to a roof specially designed to keep in sound. The venue’s name is derived from the previous use for this building on the corner of Frost and Debevoise streets, steel fabrication, and patrons are constantly reminded of this with a minimalist decor furnished with scrap metal.
Owned by Bowery Presents, the similarities between Brooklyn Steel and Terminal 5, another Bowery Presents-owned NYC music venue, are unmistakable. Both rooms have an industrial feel to them, highlighted by the standing room only viewing areas that surround the stage on both sides. With fairly easy access thanks to the L line Subway stop nearby and featuring a room with good sound and sight lines, it’s a pretty easy prediction that Brooklyn Steel will be a staple of the city music scene before long.
Here’s an interesting time lapse video showing the remarkable transformation of an old steel factory into a first rate concert venue.
The Capitol Theatre
Located just a short drive outside the city is Port Chester, home to the historic Capitol Theatre which is constantly housing first rate bands and artists. It was originally designed and used as a theater for cinema and Vaudeville acts when it first opened way back in 1926, but it’s since been redeveloped as a music venue and has seen a wealth of musical royalty pass through its doors. Acts like Pink Floyd, Janis Joplin, Traffic and The Grateful Dead, who played 13 gigs there in a one year span from 1970-71, all drew large crowds there back in the day just as acts like moe., The Disco Biscuits, Twiddle and Joe Russo’s Almost Dead do now.
Affectionately known as “The Cap,” this building has all the looks and feels of a classic music hall with modern day amenities. An open floor area generally has more than enough space for concert goers, even for shows that are sold out, while the expansive mezzanine offers seats as well as additional bars upstairs. And if that’s not enough, the adjoining establishment to The Cap was bought out and turned into a bar as well, appropriately named Garcia’s. Peter Shapiro, who also owns Brooklyn Bowl, has done a nice job of refurbishing and putting the Capitol Theatre back on the map as a first rate home for live music in New York State.
Here’s a clip of moe.’s performance from last year that gives you a little idea of the views and the usage of the walls to double as projection screen of sorts at The Cap.
The Egg
The last of our staff picks for best music venue in NYS is that oddly shaped building you might have seen at Empire State Plaza in Albany. Completed in 1978, this circular shaped performance venue actually holds two different theaters inside with the 982 seat Hart Theatre being the one mainly used for concerts. Although the smaller, 450 seat Swyer Theatre that resembles more of a lecture hall than a music hall recently played host to an acoustic evening of Keller Williams tunes.
As you would expect from observing it from the outside, The Egg has no sharp angles or straight lines inside with almost everything having a gentle curve to it, even the walls as they meet a gently concave ceiling above them. This results in not only a relaxed atmosphere for a show, but impeccable acoustics as well. Phish’s Mike Gordon even put out a live release that was recorded here simply called The Egg. It may not host the large, national touring acts that can fill an arena, but for a pure musical experience with pristine sound in a sit down environment, it doesn’t get much better than The Egg.
Here’s a clip of the aforementioned Keller Williams playing piano in the smaller Swyer Theatre that gives you a taste of the sound and intimate feel of the room.
Readers’ Pick
Bearsville Theater
The NYSMusic.com readers have spoken and, in a bit of a surprise, the Bearsville Theater located in Woodstock came out on top when the polls closed. This iconic, yet quaint, music hall is located on the outskirts of town and a perfect location for an intimate evening. Stop next door at Bear Cafe for fine New American dining options before the show, then saunter next door and enjoy the warm ambiance of the lounge and bar inside, before entering the venue and enjoying the incredible acoustics of a popular venue in one of New York’s most iconic towns for arts and music.
Stay tuned all week for more of our series of the Best of NYS Music.
The 2017 Halloween season got off to a frighteningly good start last weekend courtesy of a small and intimate party in The Berkshires that featured some of the region’s burgeoning musical acts. Bands from Upstate NY and Western MA, along with an intimate collection of 200 some-odd live music lovers, assembled at the rustic H.A. Moses Scout Reservation in Russell, MA for a brief, yet utterly enjoyable, festival of nostalgic music and musical costumes and the third rendition of its Halloween Horror Camp. With each band playing a predesignated set of covers from other artists, the opportunities to “dress up” both in costume and musically ran rampant this cool October evening.
Normally used for Boy Scout camping purposes, the main lodge was transformed into a dance hall of sorts and nearby cabins were available for additional purchase as well for those that preferred bunk beds instead of roughing it outdoors. In fact, in a really unique twist, “campers” weren’t even informed of the event’s location until about 48 hours beforehand when an e-mail was sent to ticket holders. All that was known was that it would be somewhere in the 413 area code of MA. Those that were willing to put their faith in a party with no address were rewarded with a night of music that spanned multiple eras and genres.
One of the earlier acts of the day of Halloween Horror Camp 3 was Creamery Station who performed a “Watkins Glen” themed set of Dead and Allman Brothers tunes. With band members feeding into the holiday spirit and adorned in full body cow costumes, classic tunes like “Deal” and “Statesboro Blues” greeted still arriving guests and those still setting up tents and camps. A cover of The Band’s signature hit “The Weight” was also included in this engaging early set of music.
Shifting courses a bit, a set of Daft Punk covers followed, delivered by Northampton’s own Mammal Dap with assistance from Mary Corson on vocals. Together, they did justice to Daft Punk’s seminal album Discovery in a performance that covered nearly the entire recording. Songs like “One More Time,” “Voyager” and “Too Long” seemed to get the dance floor moving a little steadier and served as a great precursor for things to come.
Albany’s own Formula 5 then delivered one of the more anticipated sets of the evening with a blistering set of Phish covers. Beginning with a well jammed “AC/DC Bag” that fed directly into “Story of the Ghost,” the Upstate NY jam outfit did not disappoint with its cover set of one of their inspirations. A crisp “2001” kept the rave vibe alive and well in the main lodge but one of the true gems of the set was “Reba” and a corresponding jam that was melodious and powerful all at once. The same could be said for the rousing rendition of “Harry Hood” that followed later in the set before a customary “Cavern” set closer.
Cosmic Dust Bunnies then turned back the clock and took everyone on a musical romp through the 80s with a long set of covers from the era of hair spray and cassette tapes. Songs like “Superfreak” and “Word Up” gave the start of their set a retro dance vibe before the New Haven rockers settled into more pop hits like “Everybody Wants To Rule the World” and the ever present Rick Astley classic “Never Gonna Give You Up.” The Bunnies continued to impress and up the ante with standout takes of “Dirty Diana,” “Love Is a Battlefield” and “Panama.” The selection and variety of artists that were covered in this set was really impressive and a fun take of Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long” helped bring a close to it.
Strange Machines, a Boston-based rock fusion act, then threw it back even further with a standout set of songs by The Doors. A full throttle version of “L.A. Woman” kicked things off and a fun “Love Me Two Times” > “Higher Ground” > “Love Me Two Times” sequence showcased the band’s ability to stylistically bob and weave. The “Riders on the Storm” and “Strange Days” that came towards the end of the set offered a true psychedelic tone to the evening that proved not all the music tonight had to be upbeat and poppy in order to be enjoyed.
The party kept going well into the hours of Sunday morning courtesy of a Bassnectar themed DJ set from Uncle Bob and a stellar set from lespecial chock full of Primus covers, a sound the band has really honed of late. The final set from Roots of Creation featured Grateful Dead and Rage Against the Machine songs intertwined and throwing the crowd into a final frenzy of the night, while Kerry Quirk gave the fans what everyone wants late at night, a healthy dose of Madonna. Those that stayed and camped overnight were welcomed with a community breakfast in the morning to help recharge before leaving the wilderness and returning to civilization. Halloween Horror Camp has all the feel of a remote festival with a powerhouse music lineup combined with a backwoods campfire among friends.
With the last of the supposed “dark horse” weekday shows taking place on Wednesday, Phish has now completed 10 of its historic 13 show residency at Madison Square Garden. As the last mid-week show, Wednesday escalated the general malaise associated with the relatively mellow Tuesday show from the night before and served as a valid reminder why every show these days falls into “can’t miss” territory when it comes to the legendary Vermont jam outfit. In keeping up with the daily tradition of The Baker’s Dozen, Wednesday’s assigned donut theme was “Holes,” which came in the form of Munchkin-like peanut butter coated donuts handed out before the show and classic, spellbinding Phish tunes during it.
If recent history has been any indication, Phish has not waited long to tip its collective cap towards the daily donut theme and tonight was no different as yet another debut song surfaced as the opener with a cover of Tom Waits’ “Way Down In The Hole,” known to many as the theme song from the popular TV show The Wire. As if it was even possible, an MSG bust out of sorts occurred next with the first “Buried Alive” ever performed by Phish at MSG. A more traditional show opener, this song served its purpose and seemed to finally get everyone up and moving in celebrating a unique “first” at The Garden, regardless of the semi-comical false start necessitated by drummer Jon Fishman. Slotting perfectly into its traditional early first set slot, “Kill Devil Falls” confirmed all in attendance were actively engaged as the entire arena lent its collective vocal support to the wailing lyrics before a long awaited and seemingly forgotten “Guyute” made an appearance for the first time in 50 shows.
Phish then rattled off a stream of typical first set selections with “I Didn’t Know,” which featured the first vacuum performance from Fishman this tour, a straightforward yet lively “NICU” and a nicely jammed out, hearty version of “Meat” that saw some serious extended improv on the back end. Sensing a peak of sorts in the opening set, the band kept the pedal down and then launched into “Maze” complete with its signature standout solos from guitarist Trey Anastasio and keyboardist Page McConnell.
After the two impressive “M” songs and the intensity brought by each, a breather of sorts was instituted in the form of a traditional bluegrass cover of “Ginseng Sullivan” and a mellow, laid back take on “Waiting All Night,” a newer song from the band’s recent album Fuego. “Heavy Things,” replete with its “two holes in my face” lyric then began to pick things back up a little before a raging “Run Like An Antelope,” a much anticipated song that had yet to be played at The Garden this year, closed things out in extremely enjoyable, traditional fashion. For those keeping count, 19 sets of music at MSG were now in the books without a single repeat in sight.
Phish has made its mark this tour with a patient approach to some of its storied jam vehicles and this second set would prove no different, starting with a monstrous “Mike’s Song” that featured the once common but now rare “second jam.” Another popular pre-show guess by fans, this “Mike’s” went above and beyond and thrilled show goers from the 400 level all the way down to the floor.
A spellbinding jam soon made its way into a spacey, ambient section that gave the band a chance to remind everyone of tonight’s theme again, courtesy of a completely unexpected vocal take while ensconced in smoke on the traditional Christmas tune “O Holy Night.” Before everyone could fully comprehend this, McConnell’s signature piano intro to “Taste” began and off the band went again on another improvisational journey that stretched to almost 20 minutes – a staple of Phish in 2017 it seems. This segued almost perfectly into “Wingsuit” which gave the crowd somewhat of a chance to rest and gear up for the high powered closing section of “Sneaking Sally Through the Alley” with its accompanying funk jam and the expected “Weekapaug Groove” set closer that had MSG, once again, bouncing and gyrating in euphoric unison.
The ever clever jam legends then encored with The Beatles’ classic “A Day in the Life,” with a little emphasis on the “4,000 holes in Blackburn Lancashire” line given. Night 10 was now in the books and kept in line with The Baker’s Dozen tradition of mixing long, extended jam sections with well thought out and intelligent song selections. With three nights to go before the residency’s end, it’s clear anything and everything is on the table going into the home stretch. Unless it involves a repeated song.
August 2, 2017 Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Set 1: Way Down in the Hole*, Buried Alive, Kill Devil Falls, Guyute, I Didn’t Know, NICU, Meat, Maze, Ginseng Sullivan, Waiting All Night, Heavy Things, Run Like an Antelope
Set 2: Mike’s Song > O Holy Night* > Taste > Wingsuit > Sneakin’ Sally Through the Alley > Weekapaug Groove
As the first weekend of Phish’s Madison Square Garden Baker’s Dozen residency rolls on, and with a memorable Friday night show already in the books, Saturday delivered another rousing two sets of music set to the tune of the next donut flavor of choice: Strawberry milkshake glaze. Once announced, speculation ran rampant as to what the band could pull out of its hat in order to comply with tonight’s theme. Perhaps a rare Strawberry Alarm Clock cover? An extended “Halley’s Comet” with strawberry jam? As usual, The Phish from Vermont did not disappoint.
The show began with all four band members at the front of the stage in barbershop quartet formation as they debuted an a cappella version of one of the more popular cover song guesses of the evening, The Beatles’ “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Those in the “Halley’s Comet” for an opener crowd were then quickly rewarded next with the standout version that followed, replete with thousands of delighted fans singing in unison about the preferred method of their strawberry goo intake.
Things escalated quickly from there courtesy of a sterling rendition of “The Moma Dance” that was delightfully stretched out, showcasing the steady and patient jamming style the band has featured of late. The “Breath and Burning” that followed was in the same vein and the normally straightforward reggae infused number took on an entirely different feel this evening with a complex and, at times, dark jam attached to it. Bassist Mike Gordon took over on lead vocals for the next two songs, a typically energetic and rocking cover of “Funky Bitch” and the old school staple “Mound.” To the delight of many, the first set continued with another Phish staple of yore, the rarely played “Foam” which is featured on the band’s first major release, Junta. “Roggae,” always a popular first set selection followed before “The Squirming Coil” with Page McConnell’s signature piano solo capped things off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0bdLdTJdKI
Saturday’s second set kicked off with “Down with Disease” and its typical massive, psychedelic infused jam that seems to get deeper and more epic each time it’s played. Only true musical nerds could have possibly guessed what was next as Phish brought out their second debut of the night, “Strawberry Letter 23,” a song first written by Shuggie Otis, popularized by a cover from The Brothers Johnson in 1977 and sampled endlessly in popular music ever since. Before the shock of seeing this out of nowhere cover could wear off, Trey Anastasio’s opening guitar riff to “Birds of a Feather” rang through the Garden and sent the crowd into a frenzy, birds of a feather all singing and dancing in unison.
Another somewhat unexpected song selection followed with McConnell once again taking lead on the synthesizer fueled “I Always Wanted It This Way” which is found on the band’s most recent album, Big Boat. As the ensuing jam slowly winded down, a true bust out emerged with the first “All of These Dreams” played in over 250 shows which served as a true “breather” song. The last segment of the second set was classic Phish in a nutshell. The rhythm section of Gordon and drummer Jon Fishman initiated a “Split Open and Melt” that featured its typical dark, heavy improv section before eventually morphing back into the main riffs of “Down with Disease,” bringing the set opener full circle and leaving fans with mouths agape.
To close out the set, Phish played a popular encore-like selection with another cover, this time The Rolling Stones’ sing along “Shine A Light.” The actual encore was one for the books with “Peaches en Regalia” making an appearance there for the first time since the late 80s. A fitting high energy but brief cover of The Talking Heads’ “Cities” followed before “My Sweet One” closed out the evening. One of the highlights of the night was the extended pause at the end of the song that had everyone in attendance roaring in approval with a force so strong that it seemed to bring up the house lights – a fitting end to a most epic Baker’s Dozen ‘Strawberry’ show.
Setlist via Phish.net
Baker’s Dozen Night 2 – Strawberry
Set 1: Strawberry Fields Forever[1], Halley’s Comet > The Moma Dance[2] > Breath and Burning > Funky Bitch, Mound, Foam, Roggae, The Squirming Coil
Set 2: Down with Disease, Strawberry Letter 23[3] > Birds of a Feather, I Always Wanted It This Way[4] > All of These Dreams, Split Open and Melt > Down with Disease > Shine a Light
Encore: Peaches en Regalia > Cities, My Sweet One
[1] Phish debut; a cappella. [2] Unfinished. [3] Phish debut. [4] With Trey on Marimba Lumina.
NYS Music continues its review of the history of moe.down, one of the most established and successful summer festivals the state has to offer. We looked at the first 5 moe.downs last week, and here’s a look back at some of the more memorable moments in years 6 through 10, as moe.down set roots down in Turin, NY and became a Labor Day Weekend tradition.
moe.down VI
After five increasingly successful years in Turin, moe.down had established itself as one of the premier summer festivals in the Northeast. It was now not only a “must go” destination for moe.rons but for music fans alike thanks to increasingly diverse lineups that featured more and more nationally prominent acts. The sixth rendition featured Keller Williams, who was everywhere at that time, The Violent Femmes, Matisyahu and Medeski, Martin & Wood as the lineups continued to be made with a blend of popular acts and those that were favorites of the band.
Night one of the festival only calls for one moe. set, and while this year would be no different, it was definitely cover heavy with versions of “Stairway to Heaven,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and “All Along the Watchtower,” the latter of which featured Keller Williams sitting in. Setlists courtesy of Phantasy Tour.
9/2/05 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Jazz Wank> Rebubula*> Cornflake Girl> Recreational Chemistry, Wind it up, Salt Creek, Stairway To Heaven Jam^> All along the Watchtower^, Faker> Moth> The Pit> Brent Black> Moth
Encore: The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
* unfinished ^ with Keller Williams
The following day’s opening sat saw guitarist Al Schnier’s children get involved and ended appropriately enough with a rousing rendition of “Kids.” Other highlights included a “Timmy Tucker” that was stretched across two sets and a full on instrument switch with Japanese band Big Frog. The band switch continued a recent tradition of sorts as the same thing had been done in years past with other headliners like The Disco Biscuits and Galactic, showing just how gracious the festival hosts are in sharing the spotlight at their festival.
9/3/05 • Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Spine Of A Dog> Buster, Shanna Robe*, Ayla Schnier solo^, She, Crab Eyes, Hi and Lo> Timmy Tucker&> Kids
Set 2: New York City, Head> Timmy Tucker&+, Happy Hour Hero%> Rise> Karma Police> Head
Set 3: Not Coming Down> Wormwood> St. Augustine> 32 Things$, The Road> Kyle’s Song, Akimbo
Encore: Time, Sensory Deprivation Bank
* with Ben Schnier
^ Ayla Schnier solo on piano
& unfinished
&+ finished
% with complete band switch with Big Frog
$ with members of Dread Clampett
moe.down VI was closed out in style with a show that featured the band’s first ever take on The Grateful Dead classic “Terrapin Station” before steering back into a “Rebubula” that was left unfinished from the day before. As if that weren’t enough, the encore ended with a superb version of “Meat” that gave way to a brilliant fireworks display that left everyone gazing at the sky as the band completed another stellar chapter in the book of moe.down.
9/4/2005 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY Set 1: The Ghost Of Ralph’s Mom, She Sends Me, Tailspin> Californ IA> Bullet> Big World
Set 2: Y.O.Y.> Down Boy, McBain, Four> Dr. Graffenberg> Terrapin Station*> Rebubula^ Encore: Tijuana Donkey Show, Meat&
* first time played ^ completed from friday night & with fireworks
Here’s a clip of the aforementioned “Meat” which closed things out.
moe.down VII
The seventh rendition of moe.down had a Phish-y vibe to it with three of the four members appearing on the bill. Bassist Mike Gordon played with his side project Ramble Dove while Page McConnell and Jon Fishman also lent their talents on keys and drums, respectively, to the festivities. Naturally, rumors of guitarist Trey Anastasio appearing as well swirled about as 2006 was right in the middle of the band’s near five year hiatus – an event that undoubtedly fostered some of the festival and band’s growth. This year also featured a band skyrocketing in national popularity in Umphrey’s McGee, an up and coming act in Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Ziggy Marley and Yolk, a legendary NY band with roots in Binghamton.
moe. opened up their portion of the weekend with a ripping cover of Blue Oyster Cult’s “Godzilla” and later brought out McConnell to assist on two of the band’s more classic numbers in “Buster” and “Mexico” as well as “Blue Jeans Pizza,” a fairly new one at the time.
9/1/06 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Godzilla> Spine Of A Dog> Plane Crash> Buster*, Mexico*, Blue Jeans Pizza*, Good Trip> Wind it up
Encore: Meat
* with Page McConnell
The hosts enlisted some more help the following day with two separate Umphrey’s McGee sit ins. First, Jake Cinninger (guitar) and Kris Meyers (drums) came out and assisted on “Faker” which cooled things down after a monster 2nd set “George” that was accentuated by some brilliant disco ball lighting effects. Later in the set, guitarist Brendan Bayliss came out for the staple “Rebubula,” just as he had done a few summers earlier at the first Bonnaroo during moe.’s epic late night set – an event that, arguably, entrenched both of these bands on the national stage.
9/2/06 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Not Coming Down> Wormwood> The Ghost Of Ralph’s Mom, Akimbo, Lazarus*, 32 Things, Tailspin> Timmy Tucker
Set 2: Head> George, Faker^> Water> Rebubula&
Set 3: Crab Eyes, Bullet> Big World, The Road> Don’t Fuck With Flo$> The Pit> Godzilla
Encore: Karma Police> Head
* with Stephen Perkins
^ with Jake Cinninger, Steven Perkins, and Kris Meyers
& with Brendan Bayliss
$ with Andrew Bellivia and Willie Waldman
Sunday saw two more moe. classics get the special guest treatment as pedal steel guitar virtuoso Gordon Stone joined in for “New York City” and “Waiting for the Punchline” in a first set that was a highlighted by a “Moth” that nearly bookended the whole thing.
The Rolling Stones classic “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” served as a more than tasty treat in the 2nd set and the weekend was capped off with a rip roaring “Recreational Chemistry” that closed the book on the 7th moe.down.
9/3/06 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Moth> New York City*, Down Boy, Waiting For The Punchline*, Y.O.Y.> Moth> Brent Black
Set 2: Jazz Wank> Dr. Graffenberg^> Can’t You Hear Me Knocking> Plane Crash, Brittle End, Seat Of My Pants
Encore: Recreational Chemistry
* with Gordon Stone
^ with Willie Waldman
Check out this 2006 promo for moe.down. It gives a great view as to the surroundings and communal vibe that this festival cultivates so well. And if that’s not enough, it also contains a baby faced Al Schnier and a tasty outro jam from a live version of “The Road.”
moe.down VIII
By 2007, the festival had become a well oiled machine and was not only producing a string of memorable Labor Day Weekends one after the other, but also showing the ability to adapt on the fly. Ryan Adams was scheduled to be one of the headliners at moe.down 8 but had to cancel. Instead of replacing him with a local or unknown artist, the festival was able to score Perry Farrell of Jane’s Addiction fame and his side project Satellite Party. This continued the precedent set last year when Stephen Perkins, drummer for Jane’s Addiction, appeared with his band Banyan in addition to sitting in with moe. on a take of “Lazarus.”
This year showcased a really impressive array of musical selections. There was the classic hip-hop/R&B stylings of The Roots, 90s jam band Strangefolk, alternative legends The Meat Puppets, a young electronica influenced band called Lotus and Medeski Martin Scofield & Wood all on the same bill. As moe.down continued to grow in popularity, it seemed to produce festival lineups with more and more depth each year.
Set 1: Stranger Than Fiction, Bearsong, Bullet> Tailspin, Kyle’s Song, Opium> lyleloveit., She> 32 Things
Encore: Don’t Do It*, She Sends Me
* First time played.
Saturday’s sets at moe.down 8 exemplified everything the festival had become, beginning with a “Buster” opener that saw a parade of kids marching on and around the stage. Just as it had grown in popularity and musical talent, each year there seemed to be more designated areas and activities scheduled for children, showing that the festival could also cater to families as well. And in keeping with other moe.down traditions, Saturday also had a full band switch with the Meat Puppets in the middle of “Big World” and a captivating sit in from Perry Farrell on a cover of the Jane’s Addiction tune “Ocean Size.”
9/1/07 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Buster*, The Road, Shoot First^, Down Boy, The Ghost Of Ralph’s Mom, So Long&, Mexico%
Set 2: Lazarus> Skrunk, Ocean Size$, Okayalright> Wind it up, Plane Crash
Set 3: Big World> Meat Puppets Jam#> Big World, McBain> George, Faker> Timmy Tucker
Encore: Spine Of A Dog@> Spaz Medicine
* with The Kid Zone Buster parade lining the front of the stage.
^ with Rob on upright bass, Al on acoustic guitar
& with Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun (Pink Floyd), Al on acoustic guitar.
% with Curt Kirkwood (Meat Puppets) on guitar
$ First time played. w/ Perry Farrell on vocals
# moe. / meat puppets band switch
@ with Al solo intro
Closing out the festival this year featured more of the same with a beautiful ending to the opening set with a cover of “The Weight” that saw various members of Uncle Earl and The Brakes give this classic number an acoustic feel. Later in the evening, another band member switch of sorts took place as moe.’s crew members each took over an instrument on a cover of “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” before yet another spectacular fireworks display set from atop the hill sent everybody home.
9/2/07 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Crab Eyes, Hi and Lo> Kids, The Pit> Meat, The Weight*
Set 2: Blue Jeans Pizza> Recreational Chemistry^, Not Coming Down> Wormwood> St. Augustine> Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere%$> Rebubula
Encore: Akimbo, Letter Home#
* with KC Groves, Kristin Andreassen, Abigail Washburn, Bryn Davies of Uncle Earl on backing vocals, Rayna Gellert of Uncle Earl on fiddle, and Zach Djanikian of The Brakes on vocals.
^ with Chuck on bass guitar and Rob on guitar for part
% with Jeff Waful on Chuck’s guitar and vocals, Frank Robbins on Al’s guitar, Hector Jimenez on bass and vocals, Steve Young on keyboards, Cass Libbers on drums, and Ken “Skip” Richman on percussion
$ first time played (Neil Young & Crazy Horse)
# Fireworks followed “Letter Home” with Rainboe. singing “The Star Spangled Banner” and “God Bless America”
moe.down IX
With moe.down now firmly entrenched as a summer festival staple, the 2008 version offered a lineup chock full of easy listening with acts like The Levon Helm Band that, naturally, did a bunch of popular The Band covers, The Sparrow Quartet featuring Abigail Washburn (back from last year) and Bela Fleck, Cornmeal and Yonder Mountain String Band. For the non-acoustic fans, groups like U-Melt, American Babies and The Benevento Russo Duo offered their various takes on improvisational rock. And Presidents of the United States of America seemed to fit the early 90s/alternative band slot this year and wowed the crowd with a fun Sunday afternoon set under a blazing hot sun.
8/29/08 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Spaz Medicine, Blue Jeans Pizza, Funky Reuben*, Letter Home> Okayalright, Darkness> Shoot First^> The Road> Rebubula
Encore: Sensory Deprivation Bank
* Last time played 02/15/92 (1552 shows)
^ with Bela Fleck
The guest appearances this weekend fell right in line with the country feel to this year’s bill with Bela Fleck lending his talents to “Shoot First” and Jeff Austin from YMSB fitting in perfectly on “Bring You Down.” One of the weekend’s other memorable sets was delivered by Cornmeal who played an engaging set of bluegrass and uptempo folk tunes with Allie Kral, now of YMSB, on fiddle.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQ9I5-_s7gI
8/30/08 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Bring It Back Home, Bearsong, All Roads Lead to Home*, Captain America^> Waiting For The Punchline, Brent Black#
Set 2: Defrost@> Crab Eyes, Sticks and Stones*, Deep This Time*, The Pit, Bullet> Bring You Down$
Set 3: Buster> Second Cousins&> Runaway Overlude> She*%, Voodoo Child> Seat Of My Pants
Encore: Spine Of A Dog> Yankee Doodle+
* with Nadine LaFond on vocals
^ with Kids tent parade coming on stage
# with Marco Benevento on keyboards and Joe Russo on drums
@ last time played 01/22/97 (1228 shows)
$ with Jeff Austin on mandolin
& First time played and on stage setlist as “ShitLy”
% band segue with Fishbone
+ last time played 03/18/99 (947 shows)
For the hardcore moe. fans, there were bust outs galore at moe.down 9. Songs like “Funky Reuben” and “Defrost” that hadn’t been played since the 90s made appearances. It seemed as if the entire moe.playbook was an option this weekend. While plenty of songs from the recently released Sticks and Stones album also got some play, standout versions of old school hits like “Sensory Deprivation Bank,” “Recreational Chemistry” and a rollicking third set opener of “Buster” from Saturday night really made their mark this year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeHrYNV1PwI
Sunday was not lacking in special moe.ments either as Cornmeal made another appearance and helped close out the first set set with their version of ‘jamgrass’ on a blistering “32 Things” that closed out the first set. And the second set saw Shannon and Terry Lynch of Conehead Buddha lend some brass support on “Happy Hour Hero.” Not to be outdone by the previous days’ offerings of bustouts, the second set also contained a “Roll >Armageddon Jig>Strychnine Waltz” sequence that hadn’t been seen in more than 7 years. But, by far, the most unexpected performance of the weekend may have been the last one as the entire band played around one mic and sent moe.down 9 attendees away for another year with their heads up thanks to the Monty Python sing-a-long classic, “Always Look on the Bright of Life,” replete with responsive whistling from another year’s worth of tired yet satiated fans.
8/31/08 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Tailspin> Timmy Tucker> Understand, Queen of Everything, Down Boy, Macintyre Range*^> 32 Things^
Set 2: George> Happy Hour Hero$> Recreational Chemistry, New York City> George> Roll#> Armageddon Jig#> Strychnine Waltz#> Plane Crash
Encore: Wind it up, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life@&
* without Rob
^ with members of Cornmeal
$ with Shannon Lynch on saxophone and Terry Lynch on trumpet
# last time played 4/22/01 (710 shows)
@ first time played (Monty Python). Chuck on guitar and Jim on tambourine. Entire band around one mic, Rob singing lead.
& second encore (after fireworks)
moe.down X
As a testament to the tireless work put in by moe.’s management team and the bond created with Snow Ridge over the years, 2009 marked the 10th year of the festival, all at the same location. And perhaps no previous lineup offered such a diverse selection of musical artists. Not too many other festivals could promote a bill that had acts like Ani DiFranco alongside ones like Method Man and Redman. And in a rare treat for any East Coast show, the festival was able to lure out California-based rock outfit CAKE who delighted the Saturday night crowd with a set of classic hits. Fledgling bands at the time like The Heavy Pets and The New Mastersounds both increased their exposure thanks to sets at the smaller stage on site. And like any other moe.down, the hosts were everywhere and playing with everyone.
moe. brought out something of a new trick this year as well. Each day, their performances began with one member on stage beginning a song before slowly being joined by everyone else one by one. Vinnie Amico got things started on night one with an opening drum solo before being joined by the rest of the band in a set that delivered such staples as “New York City,” “Hi and Lo” and “Four.”
9/4/09 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Buster*> New York City, Big World> Hi and Lo> Tubing The River Styx> The Pit, The Seed^, Spine Of A Dog$> Waiting For The Punchline$, Four$> Buster$
Encore: McBain
* Vinny drum solo > Jim > Rob > Al > Chuck to start Buster
^ first time played (new moe. song)
$ with Kirk Juhaus
MVP honors for the weekend could have easily been given to Sam Bush who not only played an afternoon set with his band, but lent his violin prowess and infectious energy on sit ins with moe. on songs like “Tambourine” and a rocking “Meat” that closed out Saturday’s second set. Perhaps no song befits moe.down’s rapid ascension into the top tier of the summer music festival hierarchy better than “Where Does the Time Go?” from the final set of night two.
9/5/09 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Mexico*, Crab Eyes, Tambourine^, 32 Things%, Deep This Time> Brent Black
Set 2: Zed Nought Z&> Skrunk> Akimbo, Queen of Everything, Lazarus> George, Meat#
Set 3: Dr. Graffenberg, Understand> Okayalright, Where Does the Time Go?> Plane Crash, Captain America> Recreational Chemistry@
Encore: Wind it up
* Al solo > Chuck > Vinny > Jim > Rob > jam (kids parade) prior to the start
^ with Sam Bush on vilolin w/ bow
% with Sam Bush on minature gutiar
& Jim malletkat solo > Vinny > Rob > Chuck > Al prior to the start
# with Sam Bush on violin
@ with Suke Cerulo
As the sun set on yet another year of magic in Turin, NY, expectations were that the festival would continue to motor along on its current pace and continue the tradition it had firmly established at Snow Ridge Ski Resort. As we’ll see in the upcoming part 3 of NYS Music’s moe.down review, this would not necessarily be the case. However, even though the venue may change, it’s clear that the spirit and the elements that make this festival special never will.
9/6/09 Snow Ridge Ski Area, Turin, NY
Set 1: Shoot First*> Bearsong, Borderline^, Bullet> Hector’s Pillow> Ricky Marten> Second Cousins> Runaway Overlude, She$
Set 2: Timmy Tucker, Seat Of My Pants> Sensory Deprivation Bank@, Happy Hour Hero@, Not Coming Down@> Wormwood@> St. Augustine@, The Road@
Encore: Rebubula@
*Chuck solo > Vinny > Jim > Rob > Al prior to the start
Brooklyn Bowl, the iconic music haven in the heart of Williamsburg, served up some delicious sounds last weekend, courtesy of a mashup of two giants in the jamtronica world. Breaking Biscuits is the name of this super group which is comprised of Aron Magner (keys) and Marc Brownstein (bass) of Disco Biscuits fame alongside renowned drummer Adam Deitch and Borahm Lee (keys) who together form Break Science, an emerging force all their own. As a sparse crowd of people took their hacks on the bowling lines on the other side of the room, the dance floor was full of attentive listeners and dancers enjoying everything this uber talented side project had to offer.
The show featured two opening acts in Upright Man, a relatively new act formed in the halls of NYU’s music school, and Space Bacon. The latter of which was an ideal choice for an opener as the Disco Biscuits influence was palpable in some impressive jamming that saw virtual hat tips to Bisco staples like “Morph Dusseldorf” and “Basis for a Day” with a noticeable “Funkytown” tease thrown in for good measure at some point. But the main course was served via two sets of precise and enthralling electronica orchestrated by some of the best in the business.
With Deitch and Brownstein setting much of the rhythmic foundation, Lee and Magner seemed to go back and forth, trading incendiary leads and emptying out all the tricks their respective keyboard rigs carried. While it didn’t quite have the raging intensity of a Bisco show, both sets featured constant downtempo grooves that were more than easy to move along to as well as selective covers of some of the genre’s finest like Air’s “La Femme D’Argent” and RJD2’s “The Horror.” This was only the second night of a short three show tour, after playing only once before that, but it seems as if these artists have formed a collective that yields a unique sound that also pays respect to its forefathers in the electronica scene.
To the delight of many, Phish went back to its roots with a classic opening sequence of “Mike’s Song” > “I Am Hydrogen” > “Weekapaug Groove” that was once more than a regular sequence on set lists but seems to have petered out in recent years in favor of different permutations of “Mike’s Groove.” The iconic opening guitar lick was met with a resounding roar from the crowd and the band never looked back from there. “Hydrogen” gave Lighting Director Chris Kuroda a chance to show off his mood lighting as he added a perfect visual backdrop for the moody instrumental number. No sooner had the closing notes of “Weekapaug Groove” been played before guitarist Trey Anastasio ripped into another iconic opening guitar riff – this one belonging to “Tweezer,” a first set rarity to say the least. By this time, The Garden was in full “bouncy house” mode with the ground noticeably shaking and seemingly moving along in unison with everything else.
Normally used for Boy Scout camping purposes, the main lodge was transformed into a dance hall of sorts and nearby cabins were available for additional purchase as well for those that preferred bunk beds instead of roughing it outdoors. In fact, in a really unique twist, “campers” weren’t even informed of the event’s location until about 48 hours beforehand when an e-mail was sent to ticket holders. All that was known was that it would be somewhere in the 413 area code of MA. Those that were willing to put their faith in a party with no address were rewarded with a night of music that spanned multiple eras and genres.
The show featured two opening acts in Upright Man, a relatively new act formed in the halls of NYU’s music school, and Space Bacon. The latter of which was an ideal choice for an opener as the Disco Biscuits influence was palpable in some impressive jamming that saw virtual hat tips to Bisco staples like “Morph Dusseldorf” and “Basis for a Day” with a noticeable “Funkytown” tease thrown in for good measure at some point. But the main course was served via two sets of precise and enthralling electronica orchestrated by some of the best in the business.