On August 29, Gogol Bordello stepped off from their hometown of the East Village of NYC to celebrate their just-released Seekers and Finders album in Port Chester at The Capitol Theatre. Opening the show was Philadelphia-based punk artist Dave Hause and the Mermaids, with a similar sound to New Jersey’s Gaslight Anthem.
Gogol Bordello’s set lived up to, and even exceeded, the expectations of their typical shows. With the energy of a club show such as the basement of Webster Hall, their sound filled the large room of The Cap as an added bonus. Gogol Bordello’s setlist included a few new tracks off of Seekers and Finders along with several of their better known songs as well as some B-sides.
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The mainstay of their show, which is consistent from night to night, was a non-stop energy from the first song until the end of the encore with plenty of audience interaction. To open up the encore, frontman Eugene Hutz and Sergey Ryabtsev (violin) performed two songs from the soundboard with the audience sandwiched between them and the rest of the band playing from the stage.
To cap off the night a select bunch of friends and fans were treated to a late night afterparty DJ set next door at Garcia’s from Hutz and bandmate Pedro Erazo.
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Gogol Bordello returns to NYC for two pre-New Years Eve shows on Dec. 28 and 29 at Brooklyn Steel with some help from NYC brass band Lucky Chops.
The fundraiser held on the evening of September 30 at the Big Kahuna in Huntington, NY was filled with many talented acts joined together by an appreciation of music and support for fellow musicians. The event was organized by the headlining act, Carrie and The Cats, the winners of the 2018 International Blues Challenge and are representing Long Island this January at the national competition that will be held in Memphis. TN.
Carrie and The Cats are a ‘new-school’ blues band from Long Island, New York. They are led by the incredible talent of Carrie Lynn Wicks and feature Will “Wee Wee” Bart on guitar, Bill “Bad Bones” Hanley on tenor/alto Saxophone, Joe Conserva on bass, and Russ Benjamin on drums. The band had its start in early 2016. It channels the soul and passion of classic acts like the Allman Brothers, Grateful Dead, and Aretha Franklin, while adding a flair reminiscent of Amy Whinehouse and John Mayer Trio.
Throughout the evening there were contests held with gift baskets and raffles auctioned off, including two members of the band themselves. The money being raised is all going towards the many expenses accumulated to travel the five musicians and musical equipment over 1,000 miles from home to the Volunteer State.
In support of Carrie and The Cats, there were performances by: The Proletarians,Good Luck Lapis, The Chris Ruben Band,Necter, and MJT. The Cats covered such ambitious songs including ‘I Feel Good (I Got You)’ by James Brown, ‘Hit the Road Jack’ by Ray Charles, ‘Hound Dog’by Elvis Presley, and ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ by Bill Withers. The crowd danced and applauded vigorously upon hearing these tunes played. The group also had some fantastic originals mixed in that exemplified their synchronization to one another and rooted influences. The originals performed that night were titled ‘Bad Company,’ ‘All Over Town,’ ‘Groove It,’ ‘Trapped Under Ice,’ ‘Gotta’ Go,’ ‘Don’t Know How,’ ‘Cross Roads,’ ‘No Peace in Me,’ and ‘Sunny Day.’
One in particular, that really harnessed the group’s essence and musicianship was “Crossroads.” The song was a mid-tempo ’50s and 60’s inspired doo-wop and soul ballad with a rock edge. Guitar arpeggio, heavy sax and groovin’ beat filled the swells of the ballad. Carrie’s voice is very acrobatic, infusing controlled rasps with a beautiful high range. Her vocals resonated with the style of the king and queen of soul, as she belted and swayed to the music on stage. Bill and Will each shared the limelight with intricate and sustained power that came from their sax and guitar. Each of them soloed and improvised on numerous tracks and the audience held praise. Joe Conserva and Russ Benjamin delivered smooth backbone in rhythm support and a well mannered tempo, keeping the set running smoothly.
Here is a glimpse of their performance during the night.
Carrie and the Cat’s music and EP ‘All Over Town‘ can be found on all major music streaming services Spotify, Apple Music and SoundCloud.
The group is extremely excited and grateful for the awesome experience and if you wish to help them raise money in an effort to hit their goal, you can! Donate here. Any amount helps and donations over $15 include a signed copy of The Cat’s album, opportunities to hear them perform and a chance to book them to play a full length set at any event.
My husband and I were fortunate enough to be in attendance the last time the Farm Aid lineup rocked Burgettstown in 2002.
This time was extra special as it was the first time our six-year-old son was able to attend a Farm Aid event with us. The life experience he has gained from attending the press conference, being up close to music greats like Farm Aid board members, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews, learning about vermicomposting in the HOMEGROWN Village and eating all the amazing food the local farmers and food vendors cooked up for the show; I can’t even begin to imagine the lasting impact that will have on him. Did I mention that all of the concessions sold at the show were sustainably produced by family farmers using ecological practices and any waste produced was recyclable or compostable? Awesome!
Although the day in many ways is about the music, I want to take a moment to focus on the heart of the cause…the family farmers. Farm Aid has raised more than $50 million to support family owned farms. The press conference held prior to the day long concert, focused on four stories of local farms. They varied from a produce farm that sold to local schools, a dairy farm that was able to stick it out and make things work even in tough times, one of the pioneers of organic farming in the region and an inner city urban farm that invites the community to have a safe haven to commune, work and get a bite to eat if they’re hungry. Pennsylvania was selected to play host to the 2017 Farm Aid concert because it is home to over 58,000 farms. However, those farms are declining at a growing rate. For more information about Pennsylvania farms please visit here. It is no surprise that the 2017 Farm Aid concert sold out the first day tickets went on sale. The lineup was incredible and featured some of the music industry’s best. Farm Aid 2017 featured Willie Nelson, Neil Young with the Promise of the Real, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Sheryl Crow, Jack Johnson, The Avett Brothers, Nathaniel Rateliff &The Night Sweats, Blackberry Smoke, Margo Price, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, Valerie June, Insects vs Robots and Blackwood Quartet. We met people who had traveled from Alaska and even Australia to see the show. The day opened with the smooth sounds of the Blackwood Quartet; followed by the experimental psych-rock band Insects vs Robots featuring Micah Nelson, son of Willie. Valerie June brought her beauty and talent to the stage. How many instruments can she play? Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real were on fire. It has been a few years since I have seen them and they have certainly progressed as a band. Lukas has a genuine, likeable stage presence and proved that he has natural talent like his father. In fact, this band is so amazing that they have the distinct honor of being the backing band for Neil Young. Jam-rock band Blackberry Smoke played a set reminiscent of the sound of the Allman Brothers. Farm Aid veteran Jamey Johnson took the stage next. The crowd was starting to fill in as he performed country favorites, “Up on Cripple Creek” and Woodie Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land.” I had heard great things about Margo Price, a newcomer to the alternative country music scene. She did not disappoint. She has a voice that will take her places and a personal reason for championing the Farm Aid cause; her family lost their farm in 1985. Things really started to heat up when Nathaniel Rateliff & the Nightsweats took the stage. It was my first time seeing the band and now I completely understand what my friends have been raving about. What an awesome sound that culminated with their performance of “S.O.B.” The Avett Brothers kept the momentum going. I am unsure of how to describe their sound. You really just need to check it out for yourself. They rocked “Laundry Room,” “True Sadness” and “Slight Figure of Speech.” Jack Johnson is one of the most laid back performers I have ever seen. He opened his set with a highly entertaining parody song aptly titled, “Willie Got Me High and Stole All My Money.” Jack invited Jamey Johnson, Sheryl Crow and Nathaniel Rateliff & the Nightsweats to join him onstage to cover Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released.” To keep the party going, Jack called for someone to find Lukas Nelson so that he could come up and perform with him. Lukas was located and joined him for “Breakdown” which included a snippet from Steve Miller Band’s “The Joker.” Jack Johnson was clearly in the mood to share the stage and the Avett Brothers joined him for the final two songs of his set, “Mudfootball” and “Better Together.” The sun was finally starting to go down and Sheryl Crow was up next. She took the stage and immediately lead with hit song “Every Day Is a Winding Road.” She followed Jack Johnson’s lead by inviting Margo Price to join her for “Strong Enough” and ended her set with The Allman Brothers Band cover “Midnight Rider” with Margo Price, Willie and Lukas Nelson and Jack Johnson onstage to help. The first of the Farm Aid board members, Dave Matthews along with his partner in crime, Tim Reynolds performed next. Matthews and Reynolds laid down some mean guitar tracks during set opener “Don’t Drink the Water.” They pleased their diehard followers by debuting a new song that may appear on an upcoming album release that fans have dubbed “Odds Are Against Us.” Their set felt short. Of course I am accustomed to their nearly three hour long performances. John Mellencamp always puts on a good show. I am convinced he can pull off anything from country, blues, jazz-funk to good ol’ rock n roll. He can sing it all and his band is on point. He played fan favorites “Small Town,” “Check it Out,” an acoustic version of “Jack and Diane” to which Mellencamp said, “I don’t know why I play this song anymore. I guess it’s cause I know you all want to hear it.” “Rain on the Scarecrow” was very moving given it summarizes the heart of the devastation of the loss of a family farm.
I have seen Neil Young perform at Farm Aid several times but this year, he stole the show. Young along with Promise of the Real took the stage by storm with a thundering version of “F*ckin’ Up.” Young was ready to rock and ripped through stunning versions of “Cortez the Killer,” “Cinnamon Girl,” “Heart of Gold” and the crowd went crazy when the opening chords of “Rockin’ in the Free World” hit the air. He summed up the day by stating “Farmers are the American heroes today. They are living a real life.” It was time for the heart and soul of Farm Aid to take the stage… Mr. Willie Nelson. My son was overjoyed that he opened with his favorite Willie song, “Whiskey River.” Willie performed a Toby Keith cover “Beer for My Horses,” “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die,” “On the Road Again” and ended the night with some humor or perhaps satire with “It’s All Going to Pot.”
What can you do to help?
Shop at your local farmer’s market
Join a CSA
Grow your own garden or participate in a community garden
Talk to local farmers and learn about what they do and their farming practices
The Summit, a first time concert series presented by Wild Adriatic and Mean Max Brew Works made it’s way into The Queensbury Hotel in Glens Falls, N.Y. for a two night engagement on Friday, September 29 and 30.
Night one featured, Sun Satellites, Sad, The Lateshift, Girl Blue, Madaila, event hosts and organizers, Wild Adriatic and headliner, Aqueous. Night two brought on a full evening of music with Last Daze, Chestnut Grove, Paradox Saints, Ramblers Home, Angels On The Fourth, Let’s Be Leonard and Wild Adriatic to close out the event.
The Worcester Palladium will play host to a huge array of incredible musical acts in the coming years. September 28 was a night of livetronic legends at Worcester Palladium with STS9 and Denver-based Sunsquabi who opened the night with deep bass lines and a lot of heavy guitar shredding. The trio only played for a half hour, but the room was electrified quickly. Opiou had an incredible set, with Kevin Donohue from Sunsquabi sitting in on a couple tracks.
The “Enceladus tour” brought Sound Tribe Sector 9 to a packed and jam-hungry crowd. The quintet played two incredible sets that never seemed to slow down. With favorites like “Metameme” and “Shock Doctrine,” the fans were given a night of true Tribe greatness.
Set 1: Common Descent > Enceladus, Frequency > Out Of This World > Kamuy, Ad Explorata > Shock Doctrine, Surreality > EB
Set 2: Abcees 1, Rise Above Get Loud > Metameme > Aimlessly, F-Word > Modular, Click Land Echo > Inspire
Encore: You Don’t Say
Their tour continues south before they end in St. Augustine, FL. After Dominican Holidaze they have a three-night New Years Eve run at The Warfield in San Francisco, CA. Check out photos from this past Thursday night, courtesy of Zatchmo Lives Media.
Bencoolen has released their latest single, “The Crown,” recorded this past summer at Inner Ear Studios and produced by Don Zientara.
The song combines hard hitting songwriting, dynamic shifts, and tells the story of driving to a music festival to encounter someone struggling with addiction. The lyrics set the scene of the drive in, the sights and sounds of the festival, and an ironic throne on which he sits.
The Washington D.C. based group transitioned into a touring act in February 2016, bringing together founding members Teddy Scott (guitar) and Paul Gregg (vocals/guitar) with Jack Bentsen (Alto Sax), Ben Suarez (bass) and Will Lockery (drums) joining them. Together, Bencoolen has evolved into a ‘more is more’ rock group with soaring vocals, powerful guitar works and soulful saxophone. They’ve supported Big Something, Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band, Atlas Road Crew, the Mowgli’s, and Marcus King Band, among others, and has been hitting the road hard in the Mid-Atlantic area.
They’ll be in New York on November 17 for a performance at Arlene’s Grocery with Youth Yamada and supporting Maradeen.
Funk and jazz improvisation was served up at the Big Kahuna in Huntington, Long Island, when members of the Rich Bomzer Project took the stage to close the night with an electrifying performance!
The lineup on the night’s gig consisted of Rich Bomzer on tenor sax, Eric Frost and Christian Crawford (trumpet), Annie Mclean (vocals), Tj Adorno (guitar/rap), Colin Dooman (bass), Evan Sundquist (keyboard, vocals, computerized sound effects), Angel Lau (percussion) and Alex Aitken (drums).
The group truly showed their skills as both instrumentalists and vocalists. Some members demonstrated extreme versatility by switching from lead guitar and keyboard on one chart, to lead vocals and rapping in another. They touched on all corners of great classic genres from Motown to rock followed by jazz ballads and R&B. All songs were infused with heavy horn hits and ferocious tenor sax improvising.
The set list included hits from Earth Wind and Fire, Stevie Wonder, and Rolling Stones. Amongst those hits were original compositions written by Rich Bomzer himself. Some songs by Bomzer performed that night were filled with such expression and memorable phrasing, namely: “Everything Is Gunna Be Alright,” “Never Felt Like This Before,” “The Dank” and “Feel You.”
While watching the band’s performance, their strong stage presence and synchronization could all be felt. This major attribute is rooted in their tight sound and mutual melodic style. Rich Bomzer Project is full of energy and expression; they do what they love with ease. The band’s unique sound and flair emulates their musical influences.
For music by the Rich Bomzer Project, listen to their recently released EP titled Last Night that can be found on apple music, iTunes, Spotify, and Soundcloud.
Most people might not know this, but The Pixies got their hometown start at UMass Amherst back in 1986, when two of the founding members were neighbors. Over 30 years later, they still play like the 90’s never ended. On September 20, their alt-punk-rock filled the John M. Greene Hall in Northampton, MA. With no set list, the band came out to a packed crowd and played hit after hit. After each song, the lights would dim while Black Francis would choose where the band would go next, feeding off the energy of the crowd. They have a few more shows in the northeast and Canada before moving westward. Do not miss these guys. Check out photos below from Zatchmo Lives Media.
New York City ensemble Shouthouse debuted their single “ANTS” last week on NYS Music, and today, they debut an elaborately choreographed music video for the tune. Watch below.
Composed by pianist Will Healy, shot and edited by Jack Frerer and colorized by Bobby Wagnerman at Haym Pictures, the music video traverses the city and combines various elements of New York City with “ANTS,” bringing two complex components together for one multi-dimensional video. Healy spoke with NYS Music about the video:
“Living in New York can become oddly isolating, even though there are so many people living there together. As you move through the streets and subways, it’s easy to feel alone in a crowd. There is an impersonal atmosphere in New York, and any amount of self expression can be seen as bizarre, shocking, or dangerous.
“For this video, I wanted each rapper and dancer to slowly transform from a normal face into the crowd into artists. As the music plays, they are shown walking or standing, and over time they separate from those around them, transitioning into movements and verses that express their inner dialogue.
“I wanted the viewer to get a sense of the different sides and heights of urban living, progressing from underground in the subways to ground level in Times Square, and finally on a roof overlooking East Harlem.
“We had a blast shooting this video. Any excuse to interrupt the routine among commuters gets great reactions (especially the shots on the escalator!). There are also so many interesting spots to shoot, the city was our playground for the day. There are three dancers in the video–Taylor LaBruzzo and Zach Gonder from Juilliard, and Quilan Arnold, who is a Brooklyn-based hip hop dancer. It was great to see their different styles interact, and they did a great job visually representing our unique style of music-making through their different genres of dance.”
Patchogue Village, The setting of incredible nightlife teeming with live entertainment! Walk down Mainstreet Friday and Saturday nights and you’ll find yourself immersed by one of Long Island‘s greatest music scenes.
Surrounded by avid clubs and music venues dawning bright lights, all host such enthusiastic musicians and performers. One in particular performs to achieve one simple objective: Give em’ what they want! This is the essence of the solo act that is Rob (the guitar guy) Baione.
Step into Patchogue’s neighborhood restaurant and bar The Tap Room located at 114 W Mains St, and you’ll immediately feel a warm environment and feel-good vibes creating the mood for the place where Rob entertains his local audience.
When becoming a solo act, songs began to take on a new life when stripped down to an acoustic guitar and a vocal. Selections range from classical to country, rock to rap, folk to metal, etc. There’s a song for everybody. Audiences are always entertained by his charisma and ability to include them in the show!
One way Rob the Guitar Guy does this, is by allowing the audience to choose the songs. “It’s like having your own personal jukebox. No one wants to leave when they hear ‘their song’ played.”
Each show is unique and you never know what to expect! But one thing is for sure, you’ll always leave feeling good, and that was definitely the case last week at The Tap Room.
You can find Rob performing there the 3rd Friday of every month, with a musical repertoire growing larger and larger each return!
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The lineup on the night’s gig consisted of Rich Bomzer on tenor sax, Eric Frost and Christian Crawford (trumpet), Annie Mclean (vocals), Tj Adorno (guitar/rap), Colin Dooman (bass), Evan Sundquist (keyboard, vocals, computerized sound effects), Angel Lau (percussion) and Alex Aitken (drums).
“For this video, I wanted each rapper and dancer to slowly transform from a normal face into the crowd into artists. As the music plays, they are shown walking or standing, and over time they separate from those around them, transitioning into movements and verses that express their inner dialogue.
Surrounded by avid clubs and music venues dawning bright lights, all host such enthusiastic musicians and performers. One in particular performs to achieve one simple objective: Give em’ what they want! This is the essence of the solo act that is