NYS Music 20​17

Category: Pop

  • Hearing Aide: Crystal Fighters ‘Everything Is My Family’

    Everyone needs some feel good dance music in their life and mainstream pop doesn’t always tickle the fancy of listeners. Crystal Fighters found a way to create a cultured, unique and all around fun album to enjoy, with past albums like Cave Rave and Star of Love inspiring some good feelings. A majority of their songs were uplifting but some had a darker, more intense feeling to them. Their new album, Everything is My Family, is a bit contrary to their prior work. It has a more straightforward structure to it and many characteristics of today’s pop songs. But the groups Bosque roots and use of organic instruments from that area of Spain sets this apart from mainstream pop songs and it makes for an interesting and different take on the genre.

    The sound isn’t the only thing that’s interesting; The story behind the group’s beginnings is almost too good to be true. Group vocalist, Laure Stockley, found her deceased grandfather’s unfinished opera that he started in his last days when he was deemed insane, according to The Guardian. Earlier albums were created in an attempt to finish and recreate some parts of the unfinished play, but that vibe and character they have created has taken on a life of it’s own which now isn’t so dark and insane. It’s more uplifting and motivational and heavily based around partying and having a good time.

    Some people might think the lyrics a little corny, but deep lyrical content was never the focal point of pop/dance music. Looking past that,  listeners will find the group has a great story and inspiration behind it, along with a tasteful twist on a tired out genre.

    “Yellow Sun” is up first and it could be seen as background music for a Corona commercial, where “twentysomething’s” dance  around a makeshift bonfire under a moonlit sky. There’s a fair amount of acoustic instrumentation with hints of synthetic sounds and it makes for a good segue into the moral/ direction of the album. The following track “Good Girls” has the same feel but includes more of a synthetic sound. They’re both key tracks that prepare listeners for Crystal Fighters’ change of pace.

    “Live For You” is the only ballad on the album.  It’s a spacey and euphoric tune that’s synthetically driven but includes a plethora of unique but pleasant tones that make it intriguing and immersive. Vocalists whisper lyrics through a slightly auto-tuned tone but it’s sung over acoustic drums and acoustic guitar which gives a cool contrast.

    “Ways I Can’t Tell” is one of their less impressive songs. It was definitely created for the rave scene. It’s very predictable and has no other purpose but as a build of for a drop. The drop isn’t really that special either, but it’ll make a nice addition to a dance/ pop playlist for die hard fans of the genre.

    “All Night” is going to be hit or miss with listeners too. It’s very tribal with light touches of synthetic instrumentation but it’s very busy and polyrhythmic, meaning there’s a number of conflicting rhythms and percussion instruments. It’s what gives music that primitive or tribal sound. Fighters uses it a lot in this album but it’s very prominent in this track.

    “Fly East” is one of the most interesting songs on the album. It builds in the strangest way and at first listen is completely unpredictable. It’s the longest track on the album and it needs to be because it’s always changing direction and tone. It’s light and dark, excitable then settled and is over all just epic. The end of the song is unfortunately a let down. There’s so much time spent building up this feeling with different directions, and it lazily concludes with a fade out. At the same time, it’s hard to imagine what would be the perfect ending for the song would be.

    “Lay Low” caps off the album with a natural and uplifting tone. It consists of almost all acoustic instruments and holds a powerful message about living life to the fullest while it’s still good. The music isn’t very complex so listeners can focus on the meaningful lyrical content a little bit more. The music is still catchy and fun and it makes a perfect ending to an inspiring album.

    The album is available on multiple platforms and are coming to Brooklyn’s Music Hall of Williamsburg April 5 and 6.

    Key Tracks: Yellow Sun, Fly East, Lay Low

  • ‘David Bowie: The Last Five Years’ Documentary Coming to America via HBO

    HBO has acquired the television rights to air the BBC documentary David Bowie: The Last Five Years. The 90-minute landmark film is a snapshot of the grand finale of the iconic artist’s life.

    David Bowie: The Last Five Years is a follow-up to 2013’s David Bowie: Five Years. Documentarian Francis Whately returned to the subject after Bowie succumbed to a battle with cancer last year. Whately expertly weaves together  interviews and prime footage to present an in-depth look at the artist’s creative resurgence, including the making of Bowie’s last albums, The Next Day and Blackstar, and his play Lazarus.

    BBC aired David Bowie: The Last Five Years in January. HBO has yet to announce when the documentary will be aired.

    https://youtu.be/C2bL6ARhkUw

  • Photo Gallery: LOCASH at Vapor Nightclub

    The Nashville-based Country/Pop duo LOCASH performed along with a full band on February 16 at Vapor Nightclub in Saratoga Springs, to a packed house.  The show was hosted by 100.9 The Cat.

    locashChris Lucas and Preston Brust, whose powers’ combined make up LOCASH, were in especially good spirits after receiving their first major Country Music Industry award nomination earlier in the day for New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year. Lucas and Brust, along with their band, were riding high throughout the show, taking the opportunity to celebrate this milestone in their careers with their fans who showed up for them in droves and packed the club out.

    The ACM Awards will air live from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 2nd.

  • Melissa Etheridge Bringing True Self to Troy

    Academy Award and Grammy winning musician Melissa Etheridge is bringing everything she’s got to the Troy with the Hodges Brothers this April.

    On April 23. at 7:30 PM, Etheridge will be performing at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall in Troy on her M.E. tour. With two Grammys and an Academy Award win behind her, Etheridge has continued for over two decades to be one of America’s beloved female singer-songwriters.

    Known for hit singles such as, “I’m the Only One”, “Ain’t It Heavy” and “I Want To Come Over,” Etheridge is bringing her signature smoky, raspy vocals to Troy alongside new content for her tour.

    On Oct. 7, Etheridge released, Memphis Rock & Soul, her first album since 2014’s critically acclaimed, This Is M.E. Receiving praise from renowned publications such as Rolling Stone and Entertainment Weekly, Etheridge will be sharing some of her newer works across the country for her M.E. tour.

    Etheridge is also known for inspiring people beyond her music. Beating her battle with breast cancer, Etheridge appeared at the 2005 Grammys to perform Janis Joplin’s, “Piece of My Heart,” bald from her chemotherapy. Doing so, Etheridge inspired women across the world with her powerful message.

    Tickets go on-sale for the M.E. tour this Friday, Feb. 17 at 10 AM.

  • Hearing Aide: Andy Suzuki and The Method ‘The Glass Hour’

    Andy Suzuki & The Method (Kozza Babumba) are on the verge of releasing something incredible. It’s called The Glass Hour and it’s going to get them the recognition they deserve. Their past work, unfortunately, blended in among other folk-rock/pop bands, but they have taken a new direction that will definitely make waves in the New York music scene and it’s only a matter of time before they reach national recognition. They’re slowly finding their niche, now focused around future-pop with heavy R&B and soul touches, garnished with rock undertones. There are a wide variety of tones and attitudes and one could imagine these songs fitting seamlessly in between today’s popular music radio stations.

    The Brooklyn based bunch have known each other for some time and have been producing music for about 10 years now. They first met in college and knew that they would fit together perfectly musically. Their unique backgrounds made them gravitate towards each other with Suzuki, being half Jewish and half Japanese, practicing music in both languages, and Kozza, being the son of Grammy-winning percussionist Babatunde Olatunji. They teamed up, created three albums and on February 3rd they will release their fourth one which  is arguably their best work.

    Their prior album, Born Out of Mischief,  is very heavy on the folk/country side and it slipped under the radar. It was creative, well thought out and well produced. It showed that they knew what they were doing and could work their way around a studio and recording process. It was great work but it just wasn’t special and wasn’t worthy of great recognition. Going above and beyond, trying new techniques and combining sounds that have not been fused together before is what gets the name out there. Mischief didn’t do the trick, but The Glass Hour sure will.

    The album starts off with “Run Away” and the attitude and tone is such an incredible change compared to Mischief. It’s a giant leap towards today’s pop music direction. The Method, who will be referred to as Babumba, has a keen ear for an addictive beat. That, paired to Suzuki’s sultry voice, is the perfect recipe for a not too distant future-pop sound that feels familiar but has enough flare to keep things interesting and unique. This track is a softer entry into the album but things get even more interesting as it goes along.

    “I Can’t Live” is one of the singles they released and it’s one of which they seem to be particularly proud. They say it’s one of the tracks that sounds like a cross between Jack Garratt and Michael Jackson. That’s a bold statement, but it’s arguably true. The song is more impressive because of its properly balanced mix of pop and rock. Both clean and distorted guitar sounds ring throughout the entire song which gives the heavy pop beats and licks a nice flare.

    Andy Suzuki“Shelter” is definitely a notable track because of it’s heavy R&B and gospel  influences which makes for a very emotional song. It seems that it’s about trying to convince a girl that he will take care of and “shelter” her, which is very R&B-like lyrical content. One of the best phrases of the song is when it climaxes and they bring in a beautiful gospel/church-like chorus line and it can send chills up and down the spine of listeners.

    “Fire” is more typical pop, filled with tribal drum beats and plenty of vocalization. It brings to mind a movie montage of a group of friends on their way across country via a VW Microbus. It’s well made, but lacks direction. It’s very predictable and can be uneventful to those who don’t enjoy this type of sound.

    Once listeners hit “I Need You More” they’ll see that he group is still in experimental phase as they toy around with a very 90’s pop sound. The tone stems from the beat mainly with it’s peppy and upbeat grooves and recognizable synthetic snare hits. They again combine this sound with a gospel chorus line that adds a nice flavor to an old sound. And it works pretty well, but more than likely for a small demographic. But society is full of surprises and may eat this stuff up.

    “Come Forward” is very well done and has one of the most aggressive attitudes on the record. It carries a primarily minor tonality all the way through and it makes for a very unique track. Once again, Babumba creates a very cerebral and intriguing series of beats. It’s very busy and complicated but listeners can still feel the beat and that’s not something that’s easily accomplished.

    “Overtime” will definitely be a crowd pleaser. It was another one of the singles they released so it’s obvious they’re very confident about it. The chorus is so well done and it’s hard to explain why, but Suzuki hits a perfect series of notes over a super smooth, laid back and spacey beat. Again, a bluesy and distorted guitar solo makes a for a fantastic and addicting climax.

    If listeners weren’t perplexed by the album’s diversity by this point, then they will be by the time they hear “Digging My Way Out.” It almost sounds like a modern chain gang song. It’s march with a “four on the floor” beat with a jingling tambourine on the upbeat to give it an authentic chain gang song feel. Once again, their guitarist absolutely crushes the solos and adds a fantastic emotional flavor to the song that separates it from other genres and bands alike.

    The album is highly experimental, but it seems that there is one central theme among all the songs and that’s the intricacies of the music and how they propel the songs forward. Suzuki’s voice is immaculate, there’s no argument, but a lot of the focus is directed towards how addictive the song is musically. Hopefully, they will stay with their influences of R&B and rock because these flavors obviously work with so many different genres.

    Key Tracks:  Overtime, Shelter, I Can’t Live, Digging My Way Out

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_CH_FhCKb4

  • Bebe Rexha Announces ‘All Your Fault’ Tour

    Update 01/31/2017: Just announced, after her Irving Plaza show sold out in NYC, Bebe Rexha has added a second date inside The Big Apple on March 31, at the Warsaw, in Brooklyn.

    Original article follows:

    New York’s own, Bebe Rexha, has been one of the hottest, in demand rising stars over the last two years. The vocalist has not only been turning out her own hit tracks. Rexha, with her captivating unique voice, can be heard on many different chart topping tracks expanding multiple genres over the last couple of years.

    Bebe RexhaAfter opening for artists like Nick Jonas and Ellie Goulding, Rexha is ready to embark on her first headline tour. Rexha will have a busy month of March as the “I Got You” singer will hit 20 different cities across North America during the month in support of her first studio album titled All Your Fault: Pt1. The album, which the tour is named after, will be released on Feb. 17, courtesy of Warner Bros.

    The curtain will open March 1 at Trees in Dallas, Texas and take a final bow March 30 at the U Street Music Hall in Washington, D.C. Rexha will return home to New York and play NYC on March 29 at Irving Plaza.  Opening for Rexha on the first leg of the tour will be Daniel Skye.

    After being disrespected by some in the music business, Rexha made a name for herself against all odds on the heavily rock genre favored Vans Warped Tour in 2015. Since then, Rexha has dyed her hair blonde and has never looked back. Rexha lent her many talents to various artists in her young career either performing, writing or both on tracks for artists like Eminem, Selena Gomez, Bella Thorne, Nick Jonas and Iggy Azalea. Rexha has performed on many hit singles including “Take Me Home” (Cash Cash), “Hey Mama” (David Guetta), “Me, Myself & I” (G-Eazy) and “In The Name Of Love” (Martin Garrix).

    Tickets cost $18. VIP packages are available.

    Full Tour Dates Listed Below:

    Bebe Rexha

  • Hearing Aide: Left Hand Shake ‘8-Track Mind’

    Left Hand Shake 8-Track MindOne day, I was given the task of reviewing this album, a debut, no less, from a band I had no idea what to expect from. All I got was a set of audio files from the album 8-Track Mind, and a brief description of Left Hand Shake’s members, David Decker and Blaze Sepowski, and the previous projects they’ve been involved with, featuring names like Bang Zoom!, Picture This, and Bottle of the Dog. Initially, I thought this would just be something I could sit through and move on.

    Even the album cover itself led me to think anything could be inside. It’s of a suit with an old speaker where the head should be with an 8-track of the album loaded inside. Upon further research, I saw it was named album of the year by WVCR, the radio station for Siena College. Okay, I thought. College-age people like this. I finally got around to listening to the album, which started off with the various synth noises of “F.S.B.” until 45 seconds in when the slow drumbeat and guitars finally kicked in. And from there, I was hooked.

    The album comes across as a breath of fresh air because it delves into a particular genre I don’t think gets enough credit: dream pop. There are definitely artists nowadays influenced by this particular underground scene, M83 comes to mind, but it’s rare to see an act fully embrace the mindset. The mid-tempos that put listeners in a state of bliss. The sweeping, soaring guitar lines. The echo-y vocals less concerned with singing clear lyrics and more with being another texture of the song.

    In terms of extent of what Left Hand Shake is willing to do, it’s on the second song, “Being There (Django).” Along with the ethereal 80’s dream pop guitar work happening, there are also hints of violin and a mandolin underneath. Of it’s eight and a half minute runtime, the last five are purely instrumental. And it’s not only more guitar work that gets to shine, there are harmonica, saxophone, and trumpet solos dispersed in that time. And oddly enough, though it sometimes feels it goes on for too long, it all works in making the dreamy atmosphere stick.

    There are also songs that tone down the dream atmosphere considerably. “Right Hand Shake” reminds me of “She Bangs the Drums,” by the Stone Roses, with the similar guitar tones and echo-y vocal work. “Fly” is pretty much a condensed version of the longer songs, but notably more down to earth.

    In terms of shortcomings, I’d say Decker and Sepowski get a bit too experimental with their instrumentation. The songs that are 7 to 8 minutes long have a good chunk made up of solos that serve only to continue the state of euphoria. “People Like,” starts off sounding like a dated 90’s industrial act before it really gets going. “Fabreeze” has a muted trumpet solo while “Path Less Taken” essentially ends with a violin solo taking up the last third. The lyrics, when you can make them out, at times come across like they’re trying too hard. Lines like “Life is a garden, I’m sowing all the seeds, when something starts to grow, it comes out as weeds” (“Fly”). And “People like you, people like me, we can change the world” (“People Like”) Then again, lyrics were never the emphasis of this genre.

    So, if you’re a fan of the works of The Cocteau Twins, Slowdive, and Lush, give Left Hand Shake and 8-Track Mind a chance. We should look forward to whatever efforts these guys have planned in the future, if they continue this direction or move on to something else.

    Key Tracks: Being There (Django), Because/Second Hand Shake, Fly, Iced & Alone

    Listen to Left Hand Shake 8-Track Mind below.

  • Rubblebucket Brings a Bit of Brooklyn Bounce to The Hollow

    Funky art-pop ensemble Rubblebucket brought a bit of Brooklyn to a jam-packed Albany crowd Friday, January 26 at The Hollow Bar & Kitchen. From the get-go, each song was performed with high energy and power jumps with one goal in mind: to let loose and be present in the now.

    The five-piece, consisting of Kalmia Traver, Alex Toth, Dandy McDowell, Maddie Rice and Adam Dotson, hit the road for a string of Northeast dates across CT, RI, MA, NY and PA in support of their latest EP, If U C My Enemies, which dropped just a few days ago on January 23. Rubblebucket didn’t fail to deliver their newest tunes with enormous pep. Before they took the stage, Hollow dwellers were hovering over one another, squeezing through layered bodies and backpacks, risking getting long strands of hair and strangers’ sweat in their double IPAs and mixed vodka crans just to make way to the front of the room–or try to, at least.

    Equipped with a talented horns section, Traver initially addressed the crowd with praises of a wonderful turnout and immediately dove into displaying her raw vocal talents and magic on the baritone saxophone. Describing the Albany crowd as vibrant– attendees were just that, swaying side-to-side, dropping low to the floor and swirling along with the pulsing afro-beat stomps, pop-centric choruses and colorful toots of the trumpet and trombone.

    Traver and company offered fans tracks from their latest EP as well as their most recent full-length release, Survival Sounds, performing fan favorite hits both new and old from “Donna” and “If U C My Enemies,” the opening and closing tracks of the EP, as well as “Sound of Erasing” and “On the Ground.”

    A television propped up on the wall across from the bar was muted, yet still running, leading Traver to request to kill the power. Making valid points, she explained concertgoers were there for the show, not to receive a dose of endless commercials or politics banter and that the screen was simply distracting her from performing in the moment. The TV was nixed within seconds and from then on, intensity grew and the grooves never stopped.

    Once the energy reached its highest momentum, Rubblebucket ran with it. Traver became one with the fans, crowd surfing to the back of the venue where she decided to pull a move from King Kong’s book by scaling the side of the balcony just above the bar. With bartenders shouting to her in hopes of it not crumbling down to its foundation, she conquered the excursion and made it atop the venue while Toth manned the mic for the song’s vocals. Later, Dotson, trombone and all, paved way through the crowd inciting a full on dance party and optimal engagement, leading many to make hard ducks in each direction with hopes of avoiding decapitation. Something tells me, however, if it happened, that wouldn’t be the worst way for a fan to go out.

    While the masses were in command, Traver used it to her advantage for ultimate interaction, getting everyone in the room to drop low to the floor, jump up and down and bounce side-to-side before gearing up for a triple header encore of “Shake reprise,” “Triangular Daisies” and “Save Charlie.”

    A cozy Albany venue where locals stop in for quick bites to eat, drinks and live music on the weekends was completely morphed into a tight-quartered, hip, Brooklynite bounce house- if only for one night.

    Set List:

    On The Ground, Donna, Forlornification , Sound of Erasing, My Life, If U C My Enemies , Not Cut Out For This, Silly Fathers, Pain From Love , Lemonade (unreleased new song), Carousel Ride, Came Out of Lady, Shake Me Around
    Encore: Shake reprise, Triangular Daisies, Save Charlie

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BPxeqTwj-B6/

  • Interview with Lord Electro: Turning up the Electricity in The Capital Region and Beyond

    Albany’s very own Lord Electro is a jamtronica power trio bringing a new sound to the Upstate region. Since forming in 2015, Lord Electro has been making large strides to show the music scene they mean business. With a stream of festival slots, shows with bands such as The New Deal and a library of recordings further proves that these guys are playing their cards correctly and have a drive to succeed. From the start of their show to completion Lord Electro likes to keep the dance party alive, with Dan Gerken (synth) Steve Mink (bass/synth) and Jordan LeFleur (drums).

    NYS Music interviewed Lord Electro and learned more about them as a band and individually. Knowing them from previous bands and performing with them in the past meant a lot to me in regards to learning their approach and what’s driving them to do what they are doing. Keep your radar on for Lord Electro, they are a personal favorite and keep your eyes open for what’s to come this year, including their album Business, due out in March.

    lord electroJared Raphel: How did LE come to be?

    Steve Mink: After Dan’s group, Timbre Coup and my group, Digital Dharma, split, Dan and Steve spoke about putting together a trio highly influenced by The New Deal. We needed a drummer to round off the trio.

    Jordan LeFleur: For me, it all started when Dan would come over and hang at my apartment. He knew I played drums but didn’t really know what kind of a drummer I was. I played some jam music in the past and dance beats always felt very natural to me. So, Dan would come over and jam on my Micro Korg and I would just play over his riffs. After that Dan and I decided to take things into full swing and he mentioned that he had been jamming with a bass player. And that’s when I met Steve.

    Dan Gerken: We always had Steve sit in with Timbre Coup and he knows his tones well so he’d be a perfect fit for a project. Jordan and I came together through a random Groovestick show and started jamming. Soon after, all three of us were together for a jam session and the rest was history.

    JR: Is there a symbolic meaning behind LE’s name, who came up with it and what were some other choices?

    SM: I wanted the name to play off our genres in some way. Because we play Electronic music, “Electro” seemed fitting. For some reason, I always thought “NORD” when hearing electro. Nord is a very popular award winning keyboard. So then I thought about it, and “Lord” popped in. With the DJ scene huge these days, Lord sounds like one person. So when someone hears the name, they think maybe we’re a DJ. But then come to find out that Lord Electro is actually three guys playing instruments, LIVE, as ONE, Lord Electro.

    JR: You have a system of non verbal communications, utilizing hand signals. Explain this to me and how did you come about this procedure?

    DG: I brought in some signals we had used for Timbre Coup and a couple other groups in improv sections that we were building. Each signal has it’s own key or structural meaning and Steve has been known to throw a couple sometimes too. At times I’ll point to a member and they’ll know to start a phrase where we all drop out and they hold it down/build another riff. It’s a great way to insure some semblance of layering and order with also limitless possibilities in an off the cuff setting, which we love.

    JR: What is your goal while playing in a band?

    SM: I want to be successful playing music, it would be a dream to be able to perform doing what I love and support a family while living that dream. At the same time, I want to make bodies dance, and see smiles from ear to ear. I want to feel a connection with the crowd. And that is just as fulfilling.

    DG: This is a great question. There are many things this band satisfies for me. I get to improv, I get to form a sound with these guys that I feel is unique and different. I will always play music for enjoyment and i feel I’ve found a special group of guys to write with and share our music!

    JL: I’ve always wanted to tour the country seeing new cities and meeting new people. For me music is an escape and a stress reliever. When I perform live nothing else matters. Especially when I see people getting down to LE, it completely enhances my performance. I would love nothing more than to see this band take off and become nationally known in the jamtronica scene.

    lord electroJR: LE follows the theme of electronic/jamtronica, though you guys magically create it all with organic performance. Has the idea of implementing automated technology been discussed, thoughts?

    SM: There has been some light talk of using some loops. But at the moment we’re not focused on it. We’re trying to keep the group as organic as possible.

    JL: Eventually the time will come where we use some samples in our music but at the moment it’s 100% organic.

    DG: You know its interesting you bring that up because we just played with our friends Teddy Midnight and I mentioned to Jordan getting into some of the Abelton programming they were doing. It created such well produced layers I was impressed. At the moment we are all mechanical and there’s a certain pride in that. But I wouldn’t be opposed to expanding into the automated world eventually!

    JR: How has/does performing in a band effect your personal life?

    SM: We all work full-time jobs aside from music. So we keep busy juggling. But we do make time for family. I’m lucky enough to have a girlfriend who actively supports our music, from promoting, to attending all the shows, and making custom clothing. She’s amazing and I’m happy I found someone who digs the music I create and the music we both enjoy.

    JL: It can sometimes be tough juggling jobs, girlfriends, and a music schedule all at once, but we make it work.

    DG: I have a wonderful five year old son and that’s a big part of my life. Each of us work. Music is a part of life and everything must be balanced. We are running a business and don’t want to burn out, rather we want to provide a good mixture of shows, recording, hanging together that lends itself to being a part of life not all of it. And in the end our girlfriends and families don’t hate us as much for being never present and the dynamic between band mates is always top notch because we share in those goals together.

    JR: So what’s in store for Lord Electro this year?

    SM: We’re starting off the year with a bunch of shows this winter including three nights with The G-Nome Project in MA,WNY and NYC. We’re releasing our full length studio album “Business” in march. we’re really stoked on how it’s turning out and we’re looking forward to releasing that to everyone including YOU at NYS Music! Our CD release party will be at The Hollow Bar and Kitchen in Albany along with Normal Instruments and the return of SOLARiS. We’re hoping for a great festival season this year. There’s so many great festivals we would love to play for.

  • Mike Powell and the Black River Create Joyful Noise at Funk ‘n Waffles

    Mike Powell rolled into Downtown Syracuse Saturday night at Funk n Waffles with his new band, the Black River (John Hanus – guitar, Joe Bell – bass, Dom Scicchitano – drums, Shane Kelsen – keyboards). The packed crowd was treated to a night of originals from Powell’s solo releases, including his latest, Tied to the Rail, as well as songs from the forthcoming Black River debut, due in March.

    The evening was originally billed as Powell opening the show with his solo material followed by the full band. Instead, the band took the stage straight away, ramping up with a slow bluesy groove punctuated by soulful breaks from guitarist Hanus. This flowed into the first performance of a Powell solo piece with the whole band.

    Powell’s songs tell stories and sometimes these stories need an introduction. The song, “Moonlight, Sunshine and Rain” is the result of an encounter Powell had at a farmer’s market. He prefaced the song describing a near perfect zucchini he found. He asked the farmer how he is able to cultivate such beauty. The farmer simply replied, “Moonlight, sunshine and rain.” The band, particularly Shane Kelsen’s keys, compliments Powell’s blue-eyed soul perfectly on this piece.

    Continuing with the stories, Powell introduced the next song, “Tell Me Why,” as one about witnessing a friend spiral into the depths of addiction. His first-person account of an old college friend captivated those in the front of the house. Unfortunately, crowd chatter from the back of the room took away from some of the intimacy the song commands.

    Hanus and Powell drew the audience in with a new song, “Alchemy” featuring a Hanus solo reminiscent of Warren Haynes. Powell had his well-worn Gretsch and effects pedal creating haunting sounds as the crowd began to take notice of the talent on stage.

    While this band is relatively new, it’s clear that they are all seasoned. They’ve been holed up in the Big Blue North Recording Studio in Utica, putting the finishing touches on their debut album. It is clear that a true chemistry has developed among the members and they are truly a band, not Mike Powell and Friends.

    That said, Powell was front and center all night. As the band exited, one of the audience members asked jokingly, “Were they that bad?” eliciting a smile from the front man. Powell’s short solo set was next. All throughout, he demonstrated his versatility as a vocalist and instrumentalist, vacillating among the doo-wop sounds of “Go Back” to the heartfelt, soulful delivery of his Jeff Buckley-styled cover of the late Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.”

    A Mike Powell performance is an exhibit in honest talent. He’s humble to a fault, often admitting in interviews that he’s uncomfortable hearing his own voice, yet he’s unafraid to put that to the test in front of an audience. This came to light in Powell’s final song of his solo set, “21 Rounds.” This song was his contribution to the Acoustic Guitar Project. According to the website, the project is a global one with a mission of inspiring creativity. Several cities are chosen and one guitar is passed among five musicians in that city. They have one week to come up with an original song using that guitar and record it live. Each musician signs the guitar and takes a picture with it to upload to the site. Once all five musicians in the given city complete their project, a concert is held.  Powell came up with this heart-wrenching song about fallen soldiers on the final night of his turn in the Acoustic Guitar Project.

    Hanus and Kelsen rejoined Powell onstage for a roll through of “Empire Line,” a song about taking the train from Syracuse to New York City and were joined by the rhythm section of Bell and Scicchitano to finish up the night. “Gone Too Far” was the finale of the set. Beginning with a jazzy piano intro from Kelsen, the song slowly gained steam with Powell and Bell harmonizing on the chorus and Hanus providing understated yet solid leads. Kelsen’s keys are the highlight on this one.

    As Powell gave his salutations, several in the crowd chanted for an encore. Unfortunately, another band was due to perform later in the night, preventing that from happening. Those wishing to catch more of the Black River, can do so at a hometown gig in Watertown on Feb. 10 at the Savory Downtown. Tickets for that all-ages show are $12 and available through Ticketfly.

    Powell has been working his way through the bar and art center scene since making the decision to concentrate on music after a highly successful lacrosse career at Syracuse University. His balance of honest and raw songwriting have helped him to gain a strong following among the Central New York faithful and the addition of this powerful and talented band will only serve to catapult all of them to the next level. See them in the small venues while you can. They won’t be playing them much longer.