NYS Music 20​17

Category: Reviews

  • Photo Gallery: Aqueous Welcomes Joel Cummins and Jake Cinninger to Highline Ballroom

    After a 30 minute set at Summer Stage, Buffalo’s Aqueous headed to Chelsea for a post-Umphrey’s show at The Highline Ballroom. Aqueous was joined tonight by Jake Cinninger and Joel Cummins, who joined the band for a majority of their set. After “Uncle Phil’s Parachute,” Jake and Joel hit the stage during “Don’t Do It,” and joined on a debut of Umphrey’s “Booth Love,” Radiohead’s “National Anthem,” and Steely Dan’s “Kid Charlemagne.” To close the night, Aqueous performed ‘just one more song’ with a 40+ minute “Random Company” > “Numbers and Facts” > “Random Company” and an encore of “Origami.” Umphrey’s and Aqueous seem like a natural pairing, one that we hope to see again later this fall.

    Set: Skyway, Uncle Phil’s Parachute¹ > Don’t Do It¹ ² > Highline Jam², Booth Love² ³, National Anthem², Strange Times², Kid Charlemagne², Random Company > Numbers and Facts > Random Company
    Encore: Origami
    ¹ Unfinished
    ² Ft. Jake Cinninger and Joel Cummins of Umphrey’s McGee
    ³ Aqueous debut, Umphrey’s McGee cover

    Setlist via Aquiantances

  • Audience Gets Wet and Keeps Dancing at Umphrey’s McGee in Central Park

    Central Park’s Summer Stage has quite the lineup this summer, with the centerpiece being a double bill of prog/jam goodness in Aqueous and Umphrey’s McGee on July 7.

    Aqueous performed just two songs, “Second Sight” and “Kitty Chaser,” in their 30 minute, all-too-short set to start the night, but that would be remedied by their post-show later this evening. Umphrey’s opened up their set with some technical issues, doing a double take on “Bridgeless” as a result. After the second attempt, the band played “Miss Tinkle’s Overture,” hinting they were slightly pissed off but pressed on with “2×2” and “Dump City” which highlighted the rest of the set, and the final segment of “Bridgeless” finishing the first set.

    Much like their Midwest counterparts playing in the Bronx this evening, Umphrey’s began to heat up when the rain cleared. Jams blossomed through the encore with two huge sandwiches in their second set. “Plunger” opened, as did the skies during “Utopian Fir” which had a “Whole Lotta Love” tease, as well as “Driven 2 Tears” which segued back into “Fir.” If the crowd wasn’t already wet, “Mantis” > “The Triple Wide” > “Mantis” took care of that. An encore of “Rocker Part 2” capped the night and sent the fans streamed out of a moist Central Park and headed to the Highline Ballroom where Aqueous and Umphrey’s would join forces for the after show.

  • Hearing Aide: Intrepid Travelers ‘Everyday is Your Birthday’ EP

    One of New York State Music’s 87/90 bands, Intrepid Travelers, is set to release their EP Everyday Is Your Birthday on Thursday June 29th. The CD release event will be in their hometown of Buffalo at Buffalo Iron Works.

    Everyday is Your BirthdayBirthdays: those special “holidays” that allow individuals to celebrate another year of existence with family and friends. Birthdays carry a different connotation depending on which birthday it is, and perhaps when you reach a certain age, you start to dread that once ever so special day. But overall, birthdays are meant to be positive and enjoyed, and this collection of songs through artistic composition and improvisation shows that each day must be celebrated like a birthday.

    The band, who only formed in 2013, has had their fair share of touring experience, and this EP features “studio cut versions that have been in live rotation for over a year, [that] have been rearranged…to fit a studio sound.” Each of the recordings “were done live, except for vocals which were overdubbed.”

    The first track “Destinesia” has a great groove that sits right in the pocket with almost a bossa nova bass line from David Neimanis throughout the song’s A section. The keyboard/organ sound is dense and adds a richness to the track. “Dark Disease” intersperses a beautiful instrumental ballad that works to elicit a state of peace by the listener. The melodic to and fro of the guitar is well-written and well-textured. The changes in this song are made known by a unison set of eighth notes that up the tempo and bring in the vocals. The last few minutes of the track features Brian Calisto on guitar with some tasteful improvisation, strongly supported by the keyboard. Everything comes full circle with a recapitulation of the ballad theme.

    “On Inside” has rhythmically unison instrumental lines that are quirky and pleasantly dissonant. The best part of the song is when the last quarter where it morphs into a full swing groove with a solid walking bass line. In “Funnel,” the song begins with a nice build up, starting with just piano on the off beats, layering drums, guitar, then bass. Drummer John Fohl does a great job setting up the hits in this song. There’s a wide gap here between the vocal harmonies featuring as much as an octave between parts. This could be a little tighter intonation wise, but overall it’s a good way to create a fuller sound. “Maddy & Anna” is the funkiest track on the EP, where you can hear the inspiration for the EP’s title with the line: “cuz every day is your birthday.”

    The writing throughout is quite impressive properly balancing the main themes and progressions with sections devoted to improvisation. The song sections are quite diverse within each track, but it’s easy to follow the musical layout with their repetition of certain sections. The band self-identifies their writing genres as funk, jazz, rock, and psychedelic which are all evident in this EP. The guitar and keys are really given a chance to show off their written and improvised material with full support from the bass and drums.

    Intrepid Travelers wrote the music and lyrics for Everyday is Your Birthday, and also created the album artwork- both front and back. The back of the album features bright colors, sprinkles, a slice of Birthday cake, and the track names in bubble letters. This perky design screams “joy” and “celebration” in terms of a birthday. The album’s front cover is a chocolate chip cookie cake, arguably one of the best kinds of cakes. The lighthearted artwork reinforces the EP’s title and brings some visual continuity to the aural contents inside.

    The EP was produced and engineered by Ryan Press and Packy Lunn in Buffalo, NY, and it was artistically mastered by John Arbuckle at Room 7 in Sea Cliff, NY.

    Key Tracks: Maddy & Anna, Dark Disease

  • Tedeschi Trucks Band Rocks SPAC with Hot Tuna and The Wood Brothers

    Tedeschi Trucks Band‘s Wheels of Soul tour rolled into Saratoga Springs on July 3 with rock legends of new and old, The Wood Brothers and Hot Tuna. Hot Tuna performed with their electric trio, featuring Justin Guip of Levon Helm Band on drums and two energized 70+ year old rock legends, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady, strutting through classics and bouncing around the stage. The Wood Brothers brought a stripped down sound that was full of gusto, including spirited renditions of “Luckiest Man” and a set closing “Ophelia.”

    tedeschi trucks hot tuna wood brothersTedeschi Trucks Band stole the show and brought the audience to their feet numerous times throughout the show, sparking the crowd on this 4th of July weekend as though they had bought tickets for spiritual renewal. In many ways, that is what the night provided. TTB opened the night with a cover of Derek and the Dominoes’ “Anyday” with Mike Mattison providing ample vocal support to Susan Tedeschi. (Coincidentally, on June 16, Bobby Whitlock of Derek and the Dominoes opened his show at The Egg with the same track off Layla and Assorted Love Songs.)

    tedeschi trucks hot tuna wood brothers“Don’t Know What It Means” was one of the numerous times Susan showed off her powerful vocals, as well as Kebbi Williams’ jazz chops, during a breakdown at the end with drummers Tyler Greenwell and J.J. Johnson. Susan didn’t let up by then belting out “Anyhow,” supercharging the venue with three big band numbers to kick the set off. Carey Frank, filling in for the recovering Kofi Burbridge, made his presence known on “Let Me Get By” and “Save Me,” adding to the big band sound as the show wound down. Rock goddess Susan and husband Derek put on a clinic of blues guitar, pounding out powerful chords and engaging the audience, eliciting cheers as peaks were reached, only to then be taken higher and higher. The final songs of the set bookended a monster rock ‘n’ roll show that had hardly a mellow moment.

    For the encore, a perfect tribute to the late Gregg Allman in “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More” preceded Susan’s calm rendition of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?,” one that made it feel like we were at a revival and ready to head out and preach her good word. To close the night, “Made Up Mind” allowed all vocalists, including Mattison, Mark Rivers and Alecia Chakour, to show off their vocal chops. Susan then asked the audience to offer birthday wishes to a member of the TTB crew, Bobby, by singing “Happy Birthday” to him, an exclamation point on a night of pure rock ‘n’ roll.

  • Hearing Aide: Escaper ‘Skeleton Key’

    Brooklyn-based band Escaper recently released their debut album, Skeleton Key. Escaper consists of Will Hanza on guitar and vocals, Johnny Butler on saxophone, Adam Ahuja on keys, Jay Giacomazzo on bass and Andrew Nesbitt on drums. This seven track album takes listeners on an unpredictable stroll through exploratory tones, multicolored rhythms and colorful melodies full of airy notes that leave songs wide open for improvised jams to be interjected during live performances. A unique element to this record is that the band laid down all the tracks in one day, with one take each, at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, NY. Each musician simultaneously played in separate rooms, beautifully capturing the raw essence of a live performance.

    The first track, “Skeleton Key, Pt. 1,” eases listeners into the album by playfully winding back and forth between light, jazzy beats and kaleidoscopic intonations. Picking up the energy, “Mutiny” lays out the vibes with heavy drums, deep bass and extended guitar notes that wrap around jazz infused keys and saxophone tones that linger on the edges of euphoric spaces, creating a relaxed mood for the listener.

    “Lighthouse” throws out crunchier funkadelic rhythms, begging the listener to sway back and forth to the beat. Punchy keys start out this refreshing track before flowing into a combination of jazzed out saxophone and trippy guitar. Once again, deep bass and tight drums keep the musicians in line throughout the melody. The fusion of so many genres puts Escaper into a unique category, blurring the lines between the jazz and jam scenes.

    A slow building “Night Crawler” is fully stocked with short bursts of brisk notes that tap dance their way through the tune, picking up varying musical elements that effortlessly move around the sweet-sounding melody. “Narwhal” glides around smooth jazz beats that flow on the edge of picturesque tones merged by the guitar, sax, and keyboard.

    The album wraps up with “Skeleton Key, Pt. 2” in a way that highlights breathy sax and a splashy guitar/key combo before an energetic “Castles” brings the music to a close. Overall, this debut album is filled with fluid compositions that will come alive during live performances due to the spacious range left open for improvisational play. A solid package of laid back, uncomplicated tunes that seamlessly run the gamut from jazz to jam with  touches of psychedelic grooves that will ease any listener into a relaxed mood.

    For more information regarding Escaper and their new album, along with tour dates, please visit their official web site.

  • Dead and Company Play Perfect Sets During Return to Citi Field in New York City

    Dead and Company’s third tour made its way to Citi Field on June 24 while the Mets were away in San Fransisco, defeating the Giants by a score of 5 – 2. The summer evening weather made for a spectacular night of music with a packed stadium.

    The long-standing game of guessing the show opener was on the tongues of many before the 7:30 downbeat and, regardless of incorrect guesses, “Dancing In The Streets” (which debuted earlier this tour) got the Queens crowd moving to the pace of the night. The relaxed but fun set continued on with the likes of “Jack Straw,” Tennesse Jed” and “Cold Rain and Snow” among others. Dead and Company jumped the gun by capping off the set with the party-rousing “One More Saturday Night,” more often seen in the second set of a Dead show.

    As the second set rolled onward from the beautiful “Scarlet Begonias” opener, they let Oteil sing, as some t-shirts have said. Burbridge has been making more of a vocal appearance on this tour and took the lead on singing “Comes a Time,” making for a spectacular performance of the song coupled with Mayer’s atmospheric noodling on Dead and Company’s debut of that song. Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzman put on a unique rhythmic soundscape for the drums/space break which was integrative of acoustic and electronic sounds and instruments including Hart’s multi-string, one-note Beam.

    The encore was truly something special for the New York crowd. The familiar opening riff of “Touch of Grey” rang through the crowd noise as the projection faded to the b-roll live footage of the synchronized light show atop the Empire State Building across the East River in Manhattan. Without much of a skip the happy feels were capped off in a rock-and-roll fashion with “Johnny B. Goode.”

    Dead and Company’s two night run at Citi Field last June was a good showcase of the chops of a Grateful Dead family lineup who had only been on tour for about one and a half years at that point. In this year’s single show at Citi Field, Dead and Company showed an ever-flourishing presence of musicianship on stage miles ahead of the band’s debut shows in Albany and NYC in the fall of 2015, which even then were noteworthy.

    Setlist:

    Set 1: Dancing In The Streets > Jack Straw, Here Comes Sunshine, Tennessee Jed, Cold Rain and Snow, Bird Song > One More Saturday Night

    Set 2: Scarlet Begonias > Viola Lee Blues, Estimated Prophet > Comes A Time > Eyes Of The World > Drums/Space > The Other One > Morning Dew

    Encore: Touch Of Grey > Johnny B. Goode

  • Intrepid Travelers EP Release Party At Buffalo Iron Works

    Thursday June 29 was a busy night across Buffalo, musically speaking. The real celebration went down that night at Buffalo Iron Works. Intrepid Travelers released their latest EP Everyday Is Your Birthday to a packed crowd. Witty Tarbox opened up the festivities. They describe themselves as indie riffs over a rhythmic funk foundation fond of improvisation. Being relatively new to the scene as a band they lit up the stage setting the tone for the evening. They ended their set with Vulfpeck cover “Cory Wong” with help from Donny Frauenhofer from Intrepid Travelers. Almost hard to believe they have been playing together for under six months. Be sure to check these guys out during their set at Cobblestone Live on Saturday July 15.

    With their tour speeding up, Intrepid Travelers had enough time to release their latest EP to a delighted hometown crowd in the 716. They hit the stage close to 10:30 and it was ON from there.  The first four songs of their set were off of their latest EP Everyday Is Your Birthday. From there they traveled to a funky but unfinished “Electric Avenue.” A few more covers as well as a few more off their latest release were sprinkled in throughout the rest of the set. Ellen Pieroni was featured on alto sax for the Lettuce cover of “Madison Square.”

    There aint no rest for the wicked. Intrepid Travelers are already back on the road with five shows in the first week of July spread across the Midwest. Halfway through July they will be traveling home with shows on July 15 at Three Heads Brewing in Rochester and July 16 in Buffalo at Cobblestone Live.

    Intrepid Travelers Setlist:

    Soundcheck: Get IT to you

    Set 1: On Inside > Destinesia, Dark Disease > Funnel > Jam > Electric Avenue(1) > Jam > Maddy & Anna, Captain Jon > Final Voyage, Madison Square(2)$, 1999(3), Stand The Heat > Get IT To You

    (1)Eddy Grant cover

    (2)Lettuce Cover

    (3)Prince Cover

    $ Featured Ellen Pieroni (Folkfaces) on alto saxophone

    Witty Tarbox SetList:

    Pyramid, Pabst Blue Rhythm, Surfslut, Trevor, Bitch Has Got An Attitude, Scmitty n Bags, Prepare To Launch ^, Moving Pictures, Cory Wong*#

    *Vulfpeck Cover

    # w/ Donny Frauenhofer (Intrepid Travelers)  on Keys

    ^debut

  • Mountain Jam 2017 Keeps Pumping out Great Jams

    Mountain Jam Music Festival in Hunter, NY celebrated their 13th anniversary with a tremendous lineup of legendary, famous and diverse musicians. Passes to Mountain Jam were an unforgettable gift for Fathers Day!

    You know you’re on a ski resort when you see ski lifts overhead and snow machines beside you.  RV’s and tents were discretely and comfortably located making for exceptional accommodations.  Only a bit of cool light rain cast a shadow, but it’s cooling was welcome.

    The Thursday night pre-party crowd packed The Healy Brothers Automotive stage in Hunter Lodge for Marco Bennevento Band, who  warmed up the audience with their rendition of Sunday’s Headliner Steve Miller Band’s “Fly Like an Eagle.” Most of the hits they played were from their newly released album Live from Woodstock. Closing out the pre-party and reappearing on Friday night was adopted Brooklyn son Sinkane. He’s an English man via Sudan who blends kraut-rock, progressive-rock, electronica, free rock, funk and Sudanese pop, creating one big late night dance party.

    The endurance award goes to the energetic Andy Frasco and the UN. The joyous smiling Frasco with his giant wavy afro played five different times during Mountain Jam. Twice he performed impromptu because he’s so much fun to dance to. Andy’s energy is so contagious the audience just needs to let loose.

    The star of Friday and perennial crowd favorite was Colorado’s own The String Cheese Incident. For their debut to Mountain Jam the band played a distinct blend of rock and jam grass for about three hours. They played twenty songs spanning their 23-year career. They encored with their song “Nothing but Flowers.”

    Seattle’s own The Head and The Heart also performed earlier on Friday playing energetic folk rock blended with beautiful harmonies. Their catchy tunes made for a fun sing-along. Also from Colorado was Elephant Revival who delighted Hunter Mountain with a mix of folk and bluegrass exporting the Rockies to create a Colorado high that was thoroughly delightful

    Toronto’s own highly anticipated Glassnote recording artists The Strumbellas brought an exciting mix of pop folk rock. Their performance of “Spirit” lived up to The Mountain Jam video preview with the whole crowd singing along almost knowing all the words.

    Warner Brothers recording artist Gary Clark Jr, a recent guest on the CBS show NCIS New Orleans brought soulful blues which rocked the mountain. He sure did not disappoint the ladies. His shredding on the guitar echoed legendary blues musicians in a Louisiana blues tradition. He’s scheduled to open for Eric Clapton in Los Angeles in September. (Did I tell you the line up was fabulous? Let me say it again).

    Shovels and Rope project a big booming sound for a Southern rock duo. Hailing from South Carolina the couple delighted the crowd featured their 2013 song of the year “Birmingham.”

    Saturday’s headliner Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers would have been great alone but bringing out Marty Stuart was a bonus guest playing on a classic hit. He also played plenty of hits including “Mary Jane’s Last Dance,” “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Falling” and “Refugee” which turned Mountain Jam into one big sing-along. The crowd knew every word of all his songs including songs from the 90’s album Wildflower.

    The handsome 6’4″ Matisyahu, a Jewish American reggae vocalist and beat boxer played hits like “King without a Crown” and “One Day.” Best of all Matisyahu introduced his new album Undercurrent. Performing with his band, we were truly wowed by his control of the audience

    Michael Franti, a Bay area native led the crowd in the Sunday morning yoga session. Later he and his band Spearhead played a really fun afternoon love-dance set. Encouraging the crowd to dance together and mingle was just more joy to compliment the beautiful sun shining day. His special guests were Lucas Nelson and his percussionist to magnify his great party atmosphere on this beautiful bright sun shining day, playing his hits “Say Hey” and “Sound of Sunshine.” His spouse, an ER nurse inspired their foundation Do it for the Love, supporting the terminally ill. Please go to their website and nominate a deserving hero today. It’s free for all to do.

    Nashville and Hollywood Walk of fame recipient Peter Frampton sparkled as ever with phenomenal musical energy playing all his hits including “Show Me the Way” and “Do You Feel Like I Do.” He played “Black Hole Sun,” a tribute to acknowledge the recent loss of former tour mate Chris Cornell. His use of the talk box made it one of the coolest cover renditions I have ever heard.

    Top headliner Steve Miller Band closed out the fabulous Jam. Recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee The Steve Miller Band played an energetic sing along set including their most popular hits “Abracadabra,” “The Joker” and “Fly Like an Eagle.” The hi-light of the set was when he brought out Peter Frampton to play a rocking blues hit that awed the audience with all their skills.

    With so many great bands playing with such beautiful weather, Mountain Jam 2017 was one great festival, so if there are some bands on the lineup you love, buy some early bird tickets and go jam on the mountain because you will have a blast!!!

  • Celtic Woman Voices of Angels Tour Lifts Central New York To a New High

    Voices of Angels was a fitting title for the Celtic Woman tour that recently stopped in Syracuse at the Oncenter on June 21.

    The three angelic vocalists on the tour were Susan McFadden, Mairéad Carlin, and Eabha McMahon, and together with the multi talented newcomer Tara McNeill on violin and harp, they melodically painted a picture of their homeland. This production once again outdid themselves putting together a show that highlighted the amazing harmonies of Celtic Woman and the phenomenal musicianship of the band and choir.  Playing many crowd favorites, their mix of traditional and popular music brought the crowd to their feet.

    They now are winding down and heading home from their North American tour which included 90 cities and 94 performances.  I would like to leave you with one of my favorite numbers from the show, a sean dos song, “Sadhbh ní Bhruinneallaigh.”  Eabha McMahon’s performance of the this traditional tune brings you to the musical experience of the Irish culture in its truest form, the trad session.

    Setlist: Mo Ghile Mear, My Heart Will Go On, Dúlman, Isle of Hope, Amazing Grace, Across the World, As She Moved Through the Fair, The Kesh Inn, Danny Boy, Nil Sén La, Téir Abhaile Riú, Orinoco Flow, For the Love of a Princess, Ave Maria, Walk Beside Me, Óro Sé Do Bheatha ‘Bhaile, Percussion Solo, The Voice, Sean Nos Song, Westering Home, Time to Say Goodbye, You Raise me Up and Parting Glass

    [ngg_images source=”galleries” container_ids=”741″ display_type=”photocrati-nextgen_pro_slideshow” image_crop=”0″ image_pan=”1″ show_playback_controls=”1″ show_captions=”0″ caption_class=”caption_overlay_bottom” caption_height=”70″ aspect_ratio=”1.5″ width=”100″ width_unit=”%” transition=”fade” transition_speed=”1″ slideshow_speed=”5″ border_size=”0″ border_color=”#ffffff” ngg_triggers_display=”always” order_by=”pid” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]

  • Blackberry Smoke Unite Eclectic Crowd at F.M. Kirby Center

     On Friday, June 23, 2017 the American chart topping Southern rock/Country rock group Blackberry Smoke rolled into Wilkes-Barre, PA to perform in front of a stoked up crowd at the F.M. Kirby Center in the heart of downtown Wilkes-Barre. Having toured extensively most of last summer on tour with Gov’t Mule, they released their fifth studio album Like an Arrow on October 14, 2016.

    With five studio albums under their belt, including Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime (2004), Little Piece of Dixie (2009), The Whippoorwill (2012), Holding All the Roses (2015) and most current Like an Arrow, Blackberry Smoke has an enormous catalog of songs to choose from. Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, these Southern boys are no stranger to the road, touring and performing throughout the United States. Formed in 2001, Blackberry Smoke have headlined as well as opened for major artists such as Zac Brown Band, ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eric Church and more. For the past sixteen years they continue to tear up the charts and road with mega hits and touring, playing on average, 250 shows a year. They have developed quite the eclectic fan base as well ranging from the classic Southern rock, country, rock and roll, grassroots and jam band fans. They have been know to frequently break into long jams, throwing covers into the mix of their music and play all night long.

    Guitarist and lead singer Charlie Starr shares, “There’s so many elements to what people call rock. There’s gospel and country and swing and blues. We’re just trying to write songs that include all those different types of elements. It keeps it interesting for musicians and songwriters.” And what great musicians and songwriters these guys are. If most of the sold out crowd at the Kirby Center didn’t appreciate the classic and vintage gear these guys used live which lended to their unmistakable sound, they certainly appreciated and knew the music as they sung along, clapped and foot stomped from the beginning to the end of their epic twenty-song set. Some songs on the set were definitely epic jams such as “Sleeping Dogs” which featured a very cool rendition of the Beatles “Come Together” tossed in the mix.

    You can view a clip from the show here:

    Blackberry Smoke’s original lineup of Charlie Starr (lead vocals, guitar), Richard Turner (bass, vocals), Brit Turner (drums), Paul Jackson (guitar, vocals), and Brandon Still (keyboards) have been together since the beginning and are as tight knit and in the groove as any band could be. Yet they don’t stand still and settle in the pocket, musically that is. They always seem to be pushing the boundaries and digging into new territory with their music. Their diversity and growth can definitely be heard throughout their albums and setlist. Their set at the Kirby Center had a multitude and mix of great songs from their recordings.

    At 8 p.m. Brooklyn, NY based Indie/Alt-country blues band The National Reserve got things started with a forty-minute set that surely set the tone for the headliners. The National Reserve were a fun, musically diverse quintet. A fun and talented bunch of guys who could be your friend, hanging out, drinking whiskey in any local pub or starting up an impromptu jam in your mom’s living room. A great group of talented musicians led by guitarist/frontman Sean Walsh.

    Blackberry Smoke hit the stage at 9:15 pm and played a twenty-song set which lasted til after 11 p.m. The crowd was on their feet for the entire two hours, some even waiting for the after show VIP meet and greet. Blackberry Smoke started off the set with “Let Me Help You (Find The Door)” from 2015 Holding All the Roses, followed by “Testify” from their 2003 album Bad Luck Ain’t No Crime, and “Six Ways To Sunday” from the 2012 release The Whippoorwill. Blackberry Smoke continued throughout the night playing many hits, foot stomping tunes, acoustic tunes, jam tunes, along with a few covers including “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do” by Led Zeppelin as their first of three encores. Blackberry Smoke hit Wilkes-Barre, PA like “a freight train runnin’” and had their fans captivated “starin’ at them like a deer in the headlights” like they didn’t see this one coming. They put on a hell of a show for their fans and I am certain they made many more fans that night as well that just went along for the ride and left amazed.

    Blackberry Smoke Setlist: Let Me Help You (Find The Door), Testify, Six Ways To Sunday, Good One Comin’ On, Wish In One Hand, Waiting For The Thunder, Rock And Roll Again, Let It Burn, Sleeping Dogs/Come Together, Shakin’ Hands With The, Holy Ghost, Whippoorwill, Up In Smoke, Lay It All On Me, Ain’t Got The Blues, Running Through Time, One Horse Town, Like An Arrow

    Encore: Hey, Hey, What Can I do, Who Invented The Wheel, Ain’t Much Left Of Me

    [ngg_images source=”galleries” container_ids=”745″ display_type=”photocrati-nextgen_pro_slideshow” image_crop=”0″ image_pan=”1″ show_playback_controls=”1″ show_captions=”0″ caption_class=”caption_overlay_bottom” caption_height=”70″ aspect_ratio=”1.5″ width=”100″ width_unit=”%” transition=”fade” transition_speed=”1″ slideshow_speed=”5″ border_size=”0″ border_color=”#ffffff” ngg_triggers_display=”always” order_by=”pid” order_direction=”ASC” returns=”included” maximum_entity_count=”500″]

Built in Breakdance