NYS Music 20​17

Category: Regions

  • Trypnotyx: An Interview with Victor Wooten

    As I sat in Anthology in Rochester, NY waiting for Victor Wooten to speak with me I had no idea what to expect. The crew setup the stage across the room to get everything ready for the upcoming soundcheck, but there was no sign of Victor. I sat and pondered how different the room would be in a few hours once it was filled up with enthused fans, and enjoyed the calm before the storm on the large, open dance floor. Victor walked in the front doors the same way I did, with a cup of coffee in his hand and a sigh of relief escaping the cold. Without hesitation he walked over to me, asked if I was conducting the interview, smiled and shook my hand as he introduced himself (as if I didn’t know who he was).

    victor wootenInterviewing Victor was less an “interview” and more a conversation. When he spoke, his big brown eyes locked in with mine, and it truly felt like we were the only two in the room. He is a genuinely caring individual who’s love for his craft and dedication to art was evident with every word he spoke. To him, music is about openness, letting go of your ego, and creating magic. He was ecstatic to speak about each project he was working on, and his passion for life and music is something he carries openly with him. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to spend a half hour sitting down one on one with a music legend of his stature. Below is our full conversation:

    Ryan Randazzo: You recently released a new album, Trypnotyx, what inspired you to assemble this particular group of musicians to record this album?

    Victor Wooten: I played with these two guys, together, with a jazz guitarist named Mike Stern. Immediately I knew I’d love to do some of my own music with them, so the germ of the idea started years ago. With everyone’s schedules, the time was now right to do it.

    RR: When you recorded this album what was the process like? Was it different from other projects you’ve worked on or recording with the Flecktones?

    VW: A little bit different from the Flecktones, but very similar to recording my own records. A lot of it is me in the studio by myself working on ideas, then sending them to the other guys to add things to or see what they think. Bob Franceschini, the saxophone player, was doing the same thing; he was coming up with ideas as well. With the Flecktones, we do a lot in the studio together, but because of Bob and Dennis Chamber’s schedules, a lot of it was separately done. Mostly the writing, then we would get together and get parts recorded.

    RR: It sounds like technology has made it a lot easier to get things done.

    VW: Absolutely. Technology is amazing these days. I would say even more than not, records are done separately. At least for me, it’s rare that I’m in the studio with the whole band.

    victor wootenRR: Do you prefer recording separately?

    VW: In many cases yes because then I can record on my own terms in my own studio. I can go up and have dinner with my kids then go back down to the studio. Also, I can take my time getting my parts together rather than having to work on someone else’s stuff, but I like both. There’s nothing like having other people in the studio to collaborate with.

    RR: Playing with the trio requires you to fill a lot more space. Do you prefer playing with the trio or a bigger band, and what are some of the differences you’ve noticed as a bass player?

    VW: I’m lucky to play in many different situations. I like them all. When the band is bigger I have to do less, which is nice. With a trio like this, and there’s no chordal instrument, I have to do more like playing chords and melodies, but the challenge here is to not feel like I have to fill up all the space. Space is beautiful and it’s easy to go “oh it’s a trio, I better play more.” Sometimes it’s playing less that allows the trio to sound its best, so it’s a challenge.

    RR: What do you typically prefer?

    VW: I just like choices. If I did one thing all the time I would long for the other. The fact that I get to do a lot of different things keeps me musically happy.

    RR: As a well-respected musician, who do you look up to at this point in your life?

    VW: I have lots of heroes. There are lots of guys I learned things from growing up. I could name the normal names like Stanley Clarke, Jaco Pastorius, before that even James Jamerson, Bootsy Collins, Larry Graham, Paul McCartney; I could just go on. Also, people that I grew up with, and they’re names you’ll never know, that taught me just as much because they helped me grow as a youngster.

    The biggest influences were my four older brothers. That’s the whole reason that I played. I was born into a band, literally. They all played different instruments. Regi plays guitar. Roy aka “Future Man” from Bela Fleck and the Flecktones is a drummer. Rudy, the lesser known of the brothers, passed away a few years ago and was our saxophone player, and Joseph is the keyboard player. Joseph has been touring with the Steve Miller Band since 1993. We played as a band the first half of my life.

    RR: Do you have any particular mentor or a go-to person you like to bounce ideas off of?

    VW: My brothers are still those mentors. I also have a few other friends. One guy names Steve Bailey. Steve is now the chair of the bass department at the Berkeley College of Music. Another close friend who lives in upstate New York, Dave Welsch, he’s another bassist and teacher. Anthony Wellington is another great bassist and teacher. Steve, Anthony, Dave and I have been teaching together at my own music camp since the year 2000. We always keep in touch with each other to bounce ideas and teach together. Then I’ve got my brothers, and it’s always good to have people like that close.

    RR: What is the biggest challenge you faced as a growing musician, and is it something you still encounter today?

    VW: Today, my biggest challenge is finding time at home with my kids and my wife. Because I’m successful at what I’m doing, it keeps me on the road a lot of the time. I miss my kids and my family, and they miss me. That’s really the biggest one.

    Another one is to try and sell a record. We’re in the record making business, but people don’t buy many records these days. The younger generation expects the music to be free, and that doesn’t make it easy for us. People aren’t buying as much music and they’re not going out to see as much music, but they still want music. As a music maker we face that challenge. For a lot people, if you come to town they have a choice to watch a video on YouTube or go see a show. They can say “I’ll watch it tomorrow” knowing that someone is going to record it. Back in our day, we didn’t have that choice. If someone was coming to town we were there. We didn’t know when or if we would see that person again, so it was a special event when someone came to town. It’s not as special for the young audience anymore.

    At the same time, I’ll add this: our generation was different from our parents. Every generation changes. I don’t want to be the old guy complaining about how good it used to be. I want to learn the new way and figure out how I fit into it rather than complain, but at the same time make changes and fix things where we can.

    RR: Do you have any daily or pre-show rituals that you do?

    VW: Nope, none at all, except to try to be open, calm, and in a good mindset. I have to not be worried or frustrated, and just be calm so the music can flow. I don’t have anything I normally do every time, because if for some reason one day I can’t do it I might get upset or worried. The way I look at it, I’ve been playing bass for about 51 years. I should be ready and warmed up by now.

    RR: You’re currently playing with your trio and you’ll be going on tour with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones over the summer, what’s the biggest difference you’ve noticed playing with the two bands?

    VW: The biggest difference doesn’t have a lot to do with playing. This band has my name on it, so I have way more responsibilities. With the Flecktones, even though Bela treats all the members equally, I’m still just the bass player. There is a lot less responsibility. That’s nice after coming off many months of being in charge, for lack of a better word. It goes back to me having choices. I like doing my own thing, and I like not having to do my own thing. That’s the biggest difference. The music is different, of course, but it’s fun. Each project is very fun musically, and I really enjoy both of them.

    RR: You’ve been really big on music education over the years. What inspired you get into that?

    VW: It kind of found me in the late 80’s and early 90’s when Bela Fleck and the Flecktones started becoming more popular. I started becoming more and more popular, and was featured in Bass Player magazine a lot. I found out that if you’re in there enough times people think you must be good, so I started getting asked to do workshops. I had to figure out how to teach what I did. I just learned to play organically, the same way you learn to speak. When you learned to speak you didn’t practice, and no one told you what words to learn first, you just jammed with people all the time. You jammed with people who were better at it then you, and it was the same way I grew up playing the bass with people who were better than me. That’s the fastest, most natural way to learn.

    When I started being asked to teach I had to learn how to do it. One of the things I did was start looking at other teachers, and what/how they were teaching. I saw things I liked, but I decided to go a different route. I decided to teach the things that weren’t being taught. Basically, it was anything other than the twelve notes that we use. Most people were teaching twelve notes, and we call that music theory. Music theory, for the most part, only deals with twelve notes and focuses on scales, chords, key signatures, harmony, ear training, and what not, but no one dances to notes. No one jumps up just because a song is in E flat. So what else is there besides notes? That’s what intrigued me, so I started focusing on mostly that. It resonated with a lot of people, and they were asking for more. That’s what resulted in my book called “The Music Lesson.” Many of the lessons I came up with were put into stories.

    victor wootenRR: You’ve played with many people over the years, but is there any particular jam or event that stands out in your mind?

    VW: There are a bunch, yeah. Last December, almost a year ago from now, getting to play with Chick Corea for a couple of weeks in a couple of different bands to celebrate his 75th birthday. I got to play in two of those bands, and it was amazing. In one of them I was playing the upright bass, which is not something I do much, but he called me in to do it, so I said okay.

    Opening for the Grateful Dead was amazing. I’m not the biggest fan of their music, but I am the biggest fan of them. To open for such a legendary show like that on New Year’s Eve was great. From that spawned me playing with bands like Dave Matthews Band, Phish, and getting to play with all of those kinds of bands. One of my favorites was getting to play with two of my bass heroes Stanley Clarke and Marcus Miller. We made an album together titled ‘SMV.’ A lot of times getting to play with my heroes is the biggest treat. But growing up playing with my brothers, and getting to play with Bela Fleck for almost 30 years now, those things are just as special.

    Honestly though, the most special gig is the one I’m doing next. All the past ones are just warm ups, training ground, for the one I’m about to do. I need to treat the one I’m about to do as the most special gig ever, or else I feel I’m not giving the audience the full experience they deserve. So really, the most important gig is the one I’m doing or about to do.

    RR: What advice do you have for young musicians?

    VW: Listen. The same way we learn to speak is by listening. Play more than you practice, find people to jam with, go to hear music, and learn as much as you can, but don’t let learning about music rob you of the enjoyment.

    RR: It sounds like this trio is something you’ve wanted to do for a while, are there any other projects you’ve been thinking about that you really want to do?

    VW: Oh yeah, lots. One is an acoustic album featuring different acoustic instruments and an acoustic bass. I still have a plan for that. I also want to do a tour with students from my camps, which would be a lot of fun. I usually stay in touch with many of my students, and they make sure of it. They show up at my gigs, and find me on Facebook. Many of them are out doing major gigs themselves.

    I have a lot of projects and records I want to do. I still want to do a record with my three remaining brothers, and we’re actually recording something right now.

    RR: Is there anything else you’d like to say to our readers?

    VW: Just to let people know they can go to my website and sign up for my camps. We’re about to start our 19th year, and it’s easy to register. Either go to www.VictorWooten.com or you can go straight to the camp website, www.Vixcamps.com. You can just go on and sign up, no audition is required or anything like that.

    RR: You have a very large group of students with a very diverse span of knowledge, how do you handle that?

    VW: The same way you learn to talk with other kids. You learn much quicker when you talk to people who are older. We apply the same idea to our camp. It benefits both the beginner and more advanced players. For the more advanced players, it allows the people who are stuck to see beginners learning their craft and it inspires them. The most difficult part about that, for me, is finding teachers who are comfortable teaching a group whose ranges of knowledge are so different, and fortunately I’ve found those people.

    Our camps our different. I wouldn’t say they’re better, but they’re different. It’s located just outside of Nashville, TN and people can fly in and take a shuttle out there. It’s all inclusive and there is a chef onsite. I’m there 100% of the time, so the mystique of “oh there’s Victor” goes away after a couple of days, and we just become friends. We stay up late, jam by the fire, and get deep into music. It’s a good dream come true for me.

  • Writer Garret Woodward talks Bluegrass ahead of Book Readings Dec 27 & 28

    Author and New York native Garret Woodward will host two readings and discussions of his first book “If You Can’t Play, Get Off the Stage.” The bluegrass-centric book covers interviews with dozens of bluegrass, folk and Americana legends, and dives deep into the genre with the performers themselves.

    Garret WoodwardWoodward will be at Champlain Meeting House in Champlain on Wednesday, December 27 and at Nine Pin Cider in Albany on Thursday, December 28. Both events start at 6:30pm. Currently based in Asheville and serving as the Arts/Entertainment editor for The Smoky Mountain News, in addition to duties as music editor for Smoky Mountain Living magazine, Woodward published his debut book earlier this year to rave reviews. His weekly column in The Smoky Mountain News, “This must be the place,” is a must read.

    NYS Music spoke to Woodward about his book, bluegrass in New York and what kind of music scene can be found in Rouses Point.

    Pete Mason: Your book “If You Can’t Play, Get Off the Stage” features interviews with numerous bluegrass musicians from around the country. How did you select the interviews that made the book, and do you have any particular favorites?

    Garret Woodward: Well, the book itself came as a result of my 2016 nomination for “Print/Media Person of the Year” from the International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, which is the overseeing body of the entire bluegrass industry. Kind of like the Grammys of bluegrass, in a sense. Though I didn’t win the award, I realized those that had won it previously had been involved in book projects. And yet, it’s not about winning the award. In all honesty, it was about realizing I needed to take my music journalism to the next level, which is doing long-term projects. As an arts and entertainment editor in Western North Carolina, in the shadow of the Great Smoky Mountains, you really can’t throw a rock around these parts without hitting a talented bluegrass picker or singer. This is the birthplace of so many incredibly iconic bluegrass and mountain music performers. What’s interesting is, some of the finest, most intricate pickers I’ve ever come across never actually “left the porch,” where they looked at the picking after dinner or on the weekends as pure enjoyment, as if to say, “if you were lucky enough to hear it and witness it first-hand, you were lucky enough.”

    That said, in my five years at The Smoky Mountain News, I’ve had the pleasure of simply being around so many great bluegrass players, many of which live within an earshot of my home-base in Waynesville, North Carolina. Heck, one of the most successful and award-winning bluegrass groups nowadays, Balsam Range, all live in Waynesville. I run into them at the coffee shop, post office and local breweries. We’ve become great friends over the years, too, which I cherish. You also have folks like The Steep Canyon Rangers and Mountain Faith hailing from these parts. Beyond that, the more I immersed myself into the bluegrass scene, the more I kept discovering, the more questions I had, the more musicians I came across, all of which I had, and continue to have, a deep, unrelenting desire to interview and document.

    Truthfully, each of the interviews in the book hold a special place in my heart. First and foremost, my decade-long friendship with Peter Rowan, who also wrote the introduction to the book, stands out. He and I have sat down and interviewed more times than I can remember. A true cosmic cowboy. Alongside that, I would also have to add the time I headed up to Bill Monroe’s Bluegrass Hall of Fame in beautiful Bean Blossom, Indiana, and covered the Hall of Fame induction of my friend, Western North Carolina native and banjo great Raymond Fairchild. That was a tear-jerker standing there, watching him finally get the recognition he deserved after so many years of being either overlooked or forgotten. And then there was the time I drove all the way down to a bluegrass festival in Florida, and had planned on doing a backstage interview with David Grisman, only to have the “Dawg” bluntly say he wasn’t interested in talking to me. So, I went and sat sidestage and still watched his show, mesmerized. I swear, he kept looking over at me every-so-often and grinned, as if to acknowledge my pure love and interest in what he was doing. Following the show, he came up to me and said, “Ok, you can ask one question, but it better be good.” We ended up talking for the better part of an hour, walking away as friends.

    PM: Why bluegrass? What is the appeal of the genre to you to compile a book of this nature?

    GW: The beauty of bluegrass comes from the mere fact you can’t hide behind anything. It’s a human being with an instrument and a voice, standing amongst others doing the same. What you see is what you get, what you hear on an album is exactly what you will hear onstage, and amid layers of intricate jamming and soloing. There are no gimmicks or stage tricks with bluegrass. It’s honest music about honest people trying to make an honest living in a sometimes cruel and confusing world. It’s also the music of the history of America. At its core, bluegrass is the intersection of British Isles ballad traditions and African/African-American culture, in terms of slavery coming to this country. Most folks don’t realize that the banjo is actually an African instrument. So, you take those two backgrounds colliding, add in centuries of mountain isolation and a crucial tradition of oral storytelling in these mountains, and you have bluegrass.

    PM: You grew up in Rouses Point, one of the northernmost towns in all of New York. I may only be able to get an answer once in a lifetime – what’s the music scene like up there?

    GW: The music of Rouses Point was, and I would surmise remains, similar to many other towns of the Northern Tier and Route 11 corridor. It’s a ton of tribute bands onstage in just as many dive bars, many of which playing a heavy mixture of The Tragically Hip, Grateful Dead, April Wine, Phish, an oddly large amount of southern rock, and so on. So many tribute bands, but all of which filled with familiar faces that had, and still have, a deep love for music and musicianship. Aside from that, there is a large segment, and also appreciation, for string music and bluegrass. You have to remember, a big portion of that British Isles culture didn’t come through Ellis Island in New York City, but rather through the St. Lawrence Seaway into Quebec and Ontario, onward into Upstate New York and Vermont. As a kid, I remember plenty of bluegrass festivals, in Plattsburgh, Jericho, Mooers Forks, or wherever there was an open field on a day that wasn’t freezing. Rouses Point is pretty far away from any type of scene, unless you wandered down to Burlington, Vermont, or over the border to Montreal. So, we’d all get a bonfire together and a group of folks, grab a few cases of Labatt Blue, and rock out. There were always instruments around, but more so it’d be somebody blasting the new Phish or Strangefolk bootleg in their rusty truck with a stereo and speakers worth more than the whole vehicle.

    PM: The North Country has a music culture all its own. What do you see as a standout feature to the music coming from this region of the state?

    GW: A big component of the North Country music scene kind of pertains to what I had just mentioned, which is this huge appreciation for music, and also a keen aptitude for sound and rhythm. In terms of the music itself, it’s sonic signature would reside in that every band is unique, and also a sponge that soaks up whatever everybody else is doing. Running around covering shows in the North Country, and also managing one of the area’s biggest bands for a spell, I will say the camaraderie between groups is incredibly unique for a scene. Everybody who is onstage playing one show will, like clockwork, all go and see the late-night band next door following their set, the same late-night band that was rocking out in the crowd at the initial show. I also have to point out that though the North Country may seem, and is, geographically isolated, it’s that same isolation that attracts interesting and talented folks from all over the world. You see and hear so many musicians up there where many of them came from somewhere else, and with that, brought along all their musical influences and skills, only to contribute to the ever-evolving and growing pile of creativity in the North Country.

    Beyond that, with never-ending, merciless winters and just the sheer nature of isolation from urban areas, folks up there have a lot of free time when they’re not hard at work trying to live and trying to survive. So, with that precious free time, they either practice their instruments or spend endless hours listening to music.

    What I’ve also always liked about my fellow North Country folks is their sincere gratitude for the experience of a live show. They’ll, and myself included, go to any band that’s playing anywhere in their town, just to get down and sweat out the lingering winter and perhaps stagnant nature of life itself in that small town. And the live show is a congregation of small towns in the North Country, maybe the one time of the week you run into most of the people you know where you live. Those same folks will also throw down on a big show, too. I can’t tell you how many friends and family members of mine truly save up throughout the year to do a Phish New Year’s Eve run or follow moe. around the East Coast. We love our music, especially when performed live.

    PM: How have you seen the brand of bluegrass found in New York compare to that of other areas of the country?

    GW: With New York bluegrass, the obvious ambassadors would be The Gibson Brothers. They’re from a couple towns over from where I grew up, in Ellenburg Depot, the epitome of a “cow town,” where there are more cows than people when it comes to the population. They have made quite a name for themselves locally, regionally, and nationally, as one of the premier bluegrass acts anywhere today. And their story of how they came across bluegrass, and what it means to be from the North Country and such, is very similar to mine, which is why we’re become good friends over the years of crossing paths at shows and events. With the Gibsons holding strong to that traditional sound, you also see a lot of scrappier, what we would call “mountain music” bands in New York, where it’s not technically bluegrass, in terms of a traditional or mechanical sense, but the attitude and sincerity of the stage show resonates just as deeply and passionately. That scrappier New York style of, well, I guess bluegrass, seems to be played much faster than the traditional style, and with more urgency, where it’s more about getting the crowd going than actually trying to impress the audience, as if to say, “there’s no time to show off, let’s get this party started.”

    PM: What is it about music that inspires you to write?

    GW: Music is the one thing that makes sense to me. Whenever I’m frustrated with life, whether my own or the world-at-large, going to a live show or throwing on a favorite album brings an immediate calmness to my heart, and also a much-needed spark to the fire within my soul. I started writing about music purely by accident. It really kind of happened out-of-nowhere. And it felt good, so I kept doing it. Now? It’s my “Zen zone,” almost like a meditative state, where I have my headphones on and I dive into the depths of my thoughts, emotions and interpretations of what I see and hear, and why it’s important to, and for, the greater good. I aim to share my love for music with others, because, as we music lovers and freaks are well-aware of, there’s nothing like a live show and making a connection with those onstage and around you.

  • The Goon Squad: Ripe Make Their Debut at The Capitol Theatre

    They played moe.down this past summer, they opened for J.J Grey and Mofro at NYC’s PlayStation Theatre, they released an EP—Ripe, a relatively still new six-piece pop-funk outfit from the Boston Berkley scene, has had a year of accomplishments. This weekend was another notch, when they made a terrific debut at The Capitol Theatre on Saturday, December 16. With a couple of guest bands joining, it revealed itself over its course of the evening as a really special kind of show.

    One of these guests were Juice, a fellow Boston group of a similar musical flavor. The pairing of these two bands was perfect, as it made for a full night of uniformly bright personality and musical zest.

    Juice channeled the finessed pizazz of a Broadway production. But their material was a  mix of R&B and pop rock, that also radiated an extremely positive mood from the start. Among other strengths, like their charismatic electric violinist Christian Rose, Juice have a real vocal power going for them—something becoming less of a rarity for jam scene acts than it’s been in the past. Most of the material of their set featured at least a couple members either harmonizing or rapping improvised bars.

    If you can believe it,  the band’s banger for the night, and a topper for the entire evening, was a take on Kanye’s “Gold Digger.” It didn’t sound like such at first, but the band put a Little Feat-inspired, piano-touched funky groove behind the song that made it surprisingly heady and listenable. They finished out very strongly, with a song that they announced would be on an upcoming album: a tune that revolves around a great, gospel-inspired chorus of “Mercy, mercy.” It actually echoed the sound and feel of the more soaring section of Tedeschi Trucks Band number.

    As they started out, Ripe introduced a similar yet also unique brand of this positive-funk  Now it was something like a modern, more revamp of 80s dance pop. It also got slightly groovier in tandem with its building—as Ripe would reveal over the course of the night, they were good at taking things up from an already good level to an even higher one. By the third song into their set—which now was delivering a sound that fused The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Stevie Wonder, they’d tapped into a huge momentum already.

    Robbie Wulfsohn, Ripe’s almost dizzingly enthusiastic lead singer, had enough personality for everybody in the theatre, but there was the “it” kind of talent to back it up. To his band’s suave yet hard-pushing grooves, he stood out still as a strong point, with a far-reaching, soulful, youthful voice that didn’t let up as the night went on.

    “This is crazy,” he was panting to the crowd halfway through the set. He was no doubt addressing the surreality of the night, the fact that his still very much up and coming Boston band of friends was getting this golden opportunity to do their thing in the big, majestic space of The Capitol Theatre.

    For that golden opportunity, they were really doing it up right all night. Track after track, the components from Ripe, from the two-man horn section, to the two-man guitar team, to the dramatic builds, was combustible with energy, and radiating a concoction of confidence and gratitude. The amount of hype the entire band was clearly feeling thankfully fueled a set of more than solid playing, with strong solos from all around, and even some squaring-off-style improv sprinkled throughout.

    For the crowd that they managed to bring into the Capitol Theatre, they rocked them. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the Cap’s audience absolutely ate this show up. People jumped around, they danced like they were drunk, they screamed in the middle of songs, many sang along for the entirety of the show.

    The fun boiled over at some point. Ripe’s guitarist, Jon Becker, at one point snuck away from the stage, only to reappear in amusing fashion in the presidential box above everybody’s heads. Right after this, the band invited up Christian Rose from Juice to add a few short but shiny violin rips to one of their jams.

    At the tail end of what Wolfsohn called the “final stretch” of the night, Ripe laid down a pretty remarkable, multi-segmented version of The Lion King’s “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King.” Taken through a few different waves of funk, a couple builds, and even a quick section of jazzy space that preluded a big return to the chorus, if was a keen choice for rounding off a big night of music.

    Ripe and Juice might be some names to listen for in the coming times. For all the fun and musical radiance this Capitol Theatre show brought, it certainly also came across as a rock concert equivalent to stepping up to a big plate, and knocking it out of the park.

  • Hearing Aide: Chris Eves and The New Normal ‘Find Your Way’

    Chris Eves and The New Normal debut their album Find Your Way this Friday night, December 22 at Funk n Waffles in downtown Syracuse, and on a busy night of Christmas parties and shows, its a must-see show given the prowess shown on this release. Recorded, produced and mastered at More Sound Studios in Syracuse by The New Normal and Andrew Greacen, this homegrown album and band sound ready to deliver in a live setting.

    chris eves Find Your Way
    Chris Eves Band

    Opening tracks “Remember to Forget” and “Green and Blue” show off the guitar work of Jay Lock, with the latter a stand out track on the album, truly soaring to height after height. “Walking on a Wire” is light and poppy in a Dave Matthews/Dispatch way, down to the built in crowd sing along. “Find Your Way” – all eight minutes of it – is a journey of a song, with peaks and valleys with an Assembly of Dust vibe throughout, down to Mike D’Ambrosio’s keys, which shine even more on “On Rainy Days.”

    The album doesn’t have a lull or soft spot, and halfway through there’s a steady rock groove that gets harder with “The Chains You Wear,” with an early Soundgarden vibe.  “Fall” is the hardest rocking track, bringing to mind moe.’s “McBain” and “George” amid an accelerated raging first half and a mellow reflective second one that turns up with Bayliss/Cinninger-esque guitar licks. Eves’ vocals are a treat throughout the album – like a diamond in the rough of jam band vocalists – notably, on the soul-extending “New Normal” and song of longing that closes the album, “Flown Away.”

    Most tracks clock in between 4-6 minutes, giving a sign that these songs will stretch out much further in a live setting. After a few listens to the album, two things are apparent: Find Your Way is a debut album with shine and depth, and The New Normal might be the best new band out of Syracuse.

    Key Tracks: Green and Blue, When the Stars Start Falling, Fall

  • Best of NYS Music 2017: Bands on the Rise and Artists You Should Know

    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.

    Bands on the Rise

    Staff Pick

    Aqueous

    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.

    Readers Pick

    The Other Brothers

    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.

    The Backseat Bullets

    Aqueous

    Hartley’s Encore

    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.

    St. Phillip’s Escalator

    Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats

    Sydney Worthley

    Big Mean Sound Machine
    King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

    The Honey Smugglers

    lespecial

    Pigeons Playing Ping Pong

    Vulfpeck

    Turkuaz

    oh wonder

    The Seratones

    Sofus

    Anderson .Paak & the Free Nationals

    Portugal. The Man

    The Wood Brothers

    Root Shock

    Parquet Courts

    Mary’s Blood (Japan)

    Highly Suspect

    Royal Jelly Jive

  • Save the Date: The Disco Biscuits Announce Camp Bisco 2018

    It’s no secret that the Disco Biscuits are touring, improvisational machines. The trance-fusion foursome offers their die-hard fan base countless opportunities to catch them on the road throughout the year, even if they tend to favor the East Coast, their home base in Philadelphia, PA and the renowned Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado. What remains annually constant, is their long-running Montage Mountain mania. Camp Bisco is now boasting a ‘save the date’ and offering alumni pre sale tickets to bring your ass to the party, taking place from July 12-14, 2018.

    After being held in a total of four different locations and taking a break in 2014, Magner, Barber, Brownie and Allen will bring their flair to Montage Mountain, with Scranton acting as the festival’s residence for the fourth consecutive year. While freshly crafted festivals are popping up each year, Camp Bisco managed to hold its own, on and off since ‘99. With its 16th festival and year in operation, the recurring party provides six Biscuits sets, mesmerizing laser shows, abundant art and camping, cool downs in the pool, 5k marathons, zany color wars and other activities over the course of three jam-packed days. Although hosted and heavily based around the Biscuits, fans favoring a multitude of genres, specifically electronic dance music, find their way to the mountain. In the past, favorable acts have included STS9, Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, Gramatik, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Lotus and more.

    Partying isn’t the only thing taking precedence over the weekend, the quartet makes sure they give back to the community by promoting fundraising and food drives, having raised money for hurricane relief and even gathering young fans to register to vote.

    An alumni pre-sale begins this Thursday, Dec. 21 at noon at the Camp Bisco website with the password: ALUMNI. You can catch The Disco Biscuits for the last time in 2017 at NYC’s Playstation Theater from Dec. 28-31.

    The Camp Bisco 2018 lineup is still TBA but check out the official 2017 aftermovie and NYS Music’s coverage of last year’s fest here to hold you over:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULVS34FlHus

  • New York State to Aid 2019 Woodstock Anniversary in Event Funding

    Music Festivals are constantly curated and in recent times, unfold in abundance as live music lovers today are spoiled to have their preferred picks of summertime get downs. However, there’s only one original festival that can be credited with truly sparking an endless movement–Woodstock. We’re lucky enough to see footage, listen to wild tales of the 1969 live music renaissance and visit the stomping grounds where the magic of Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin and so many more were unleashed. Now, New York State has big plans to step in with financial funding to commemorate the fest with a 2019 50th Woodstock anniversary event.

    After rumors have circulated among fake bills, rock music fans can rest knowing that a dream will soon be reality. According to LocalSyr, “The Regional Economic Development Council announced earlier this week includes nearly $690,000 for the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts — that’s located on the site of the original Woodstock Music Festival.”

    Promoter Michael Lang put together two previous anniversary versions of the iconic festival; the first in nearby Saugerties at Winston Farm in 1994. The event featured a raucous mud-throwing performance from Green Day, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Primus and Bob Dylan. The 1999 edition, held on a deactivated air force base in Rome, is most remembered for its tumultuous ending. Attendees rioted, starting fires and looting vendors as the final bands performed. Allegations of rape throughout the weekend also tainted the festival, putting any further incarnations of it in doubt.

    Having showcased three days of peace, music and love to over 400,000 attendees, the 2019 event will offer the same three-day setup at the 11-year old venue. Bethel Woods oozes history from its amphitheater to its Woodstock Museum that often showcases clothing and special effects from its generation’s biggest stars, offering you a way to get lost in time and get on the bus for a bit.

    We won’t get to see Hendrix shred the “Star-Spangled Banner,” hear Jerry Garcia sing songs to fill the air or listen in awe as Joplin unleashes her raspy vocals to an endless crowd but we can only expect the biggest names to make their way out to the late 1960s and 1970s resurgence. No one who was there will ever be the same, and we’re hoping this statement at least holds up half way for its 50th anniversary bash.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKAwPA14Ni4

  • NYC Venues Collaborate with Live Nation to Create New Booking & Promotions Company

    This week, the owner of Bowery Ballroom and Live Nation Entertainment announced the creation of a new booking and promotions venture called Mercury East Presents. The strategic move will allow for pooling of resources. The partnership aims to improve the delivery of high-quality entertainment to music lovers in NYC.

    This venture brings clubs and theaters owned by Swier and Live Nation together under one marketing umbrella, including Mercury Lounge and Bowery Ballroom, Irving Plaza, Gramercy Theatre, Warsaw and Ford Amphitheater at Coney Island Boardwalk. Mercury East Presents plans to continue to expand the network over time and capitalize on partnerships which strengthen the city’s live entertainment industry.

    The foundation of Mercury East reaffirms our commitment to quality and streamlines production by officially uniting the venues we own and operate with our key partners,” says Michael Swier, co-founder of Mercury East, the Bowery Ballroom, the Mercury Lounge, and other venues. “The team behind Mercury East remains focused on cultivating bands throughout all stages of their success, as well ensuring audiences have a premium experience, from ticket purchase to show’s end.”

    Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge have long been cornerstones of the New York music scene. They’ve attracted the best in local, national and international talent to perform for intimate audiences at their historic locales.

    Swier and his team are the total package, delivering industry expertise, relationships, and landmark venues that
    complement the greater Live Nation portfolio,” said Michael Rapino, President and CEO, Live Nation Entertainment.
    “Mercury East is the ideal partnership, and will allow Live Nation to bring New York’s residents and visitors more
    music and events than ever before.”

    Visit the Mercury East Presents website for upcoming events at all five venues. Follow on the newly created Mercury East Presents social media sites for updates: Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

  • NYS Music’s Guide to 2017 New Years Eve shows around New York State

    NYS Music combed the state, across I-90 and I-87, up into the North Country and down into the Southern Tier, and has compiled a comprehensive list of all events coming up this New Year’s Eve. Make your plans for New Years Eve 2017 and say hello to a brighter 2018! (If we missed a show, email details to editors@nysmusic.com)

    Buffalo and WNY

    Join Intrepid Travelers and Folkfaces in their Buffalo hometown at Nietzsche’s. Event Link

    2017 new years eveRing in the New Year at Buffalo Iron Works with Moon Hooch, Gnomedad & Honeycomb. Get your tickets in advance – this show is sure to sell out! Event Link

    Aqueous has a Gorillaz-themed set planned for their bash at Town Ballroom. Event Link 

    Renown Pink Floyd Tribute band The Machine will be performing at Rapids Theatre in Niagara Falls. Event Link 

    North Tonawanda’s Strand Theatre has Miller & The Other Sinners with special guest Cinnamon Jones. Event Link

    Celebrate The New Year in Jamestown at Jamestown Eagles Club with the Kates Brothers Band. Event Link

    Ithaca

    Big Mean Sound Machine’s Big Mean New Year’s Eve will mean of night of getting down at Lot 10. Event Link

    Get a double dose of folk rock at The Haunt with Driftwood. Event Link

    Rochester and Finger Lakes

    Rochester’s hottest new venue, Radio Social, has a hot show planned featuring harp-playing singer/songwriter Mikaela Davis. Event Link 

    Mosh your way into 2018. Floated Magazine is hosting a hardcore show a show at Bug Jar with REPS, The Weight We Carry, Kodivk, and Bone Mask. Event Link

    Funk n Waffles Rochester: Dirty Blanket & Root Shock. Event Link 

    Anthology has two nights of fun planned. Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad plays both nights. On December 30 they’re joined by John Brown’s Body and Thunder Body. And on New Year’s Eve, they share the stage with Easy Star All-Stars (performing Dub Side of the Moon) Event Link

    Syracuse and CNY

    In Syracuse, Sophistafunk and Skunk City will rock out at Funk N Waffles Downtown. Event Link

    Or catch The Ripcords at the Fireside Inn in Baldwinsville.

    Verona – Mick Adams and The Stones at Turning Stone Casino. Event Link

    Capital District

    Throughout Albany, Schenectady and Troy this New Year’s Eve, celebrate responsibly. Call for a free cab in the Capital Region during New Year’s Eve, courtesy of Martin, Harding, & Mazzotti LLP.

    Twiddle will ring in the New Year, with a second performance at the Palace Theatre in Albany with special guest Giant Country Horns. Event Link.

    Join in on the mystique of Albany, at the Hollow Bar + Kitchens NYE Masquerade party with live music by The Late Shift, and Mirk. Event Link

    The Albany Hilton will host a NYE ’80s theme party, with music by The Refrigerators. Event Link

    A Pirate, and mermaid themed Shipwrecked party will take over The Desmond Hotel in Albany, with live music by The Audiostars, Skeeter Creek, and DeeJay Element. Event Link

    Playing With Fire Band, along with many others, will perform at Bethlehem’s First Night, in Delmar. Event Link

    Ring in the New Year at the annual First Night, in downtown Saratoga, where there will be a wide range of activities and live music. Event Link

    Vapor Nightclub at the Saratoga Casino and Hotel, with feature the biggest balloon drop in the Capital Region along with music by The New York Players. Event Link

    Motown will take over the Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, as R&B and Funk legends, The Commodores, are set to ring in the New Year in the Electric City. Event Link

    Proctors Theater in Schenectady will hold their own Motown NYE bash with music by The Chronicles. Event Link

    Soul Provider will rock in the New Year at the Rustic Barn Pub in Troy. Event Link

    The Shop in Troy, along with other neighboring spaces, will host a Masquerade party with Burlesque performers and live jazz bands. Event Link

    Hudson Valley

    Kingston’s BSP Lounge will host Rubblebucket and local organist Marco Benevento. Event Link 

    Bearsville Theater will welcome Gratefully Yours on New Year’s Eve for a night of Grateful Dead music. Event Link

    In Woodstock, check out The Big Takeover at Colony Cafe. Event Link 

    North Country

    In Plattsburgh, The Monopole will host Groovestick for all night party with some Grateful Dead added in! Music starts at 10pm and goes until 6am. Event Link

    Saranac Lake at The Waterhole will feature Annie in the Water and Nina’s Brew. Event Link

    Westchester

    Portchester’s Capitol Theatre brings in Colorado’s String Cheese Incident for 3 sets! Event Link

    New York City

    Brooklyn

    They Might Be Giants at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Event Link


    Brooklyn Bowl will host the legendary funk troupe Lettuce along with rising dance artists Jaw Gems. Event Link 

    Rich Medina presents HOME at C’mon Everybody  in Brooklyn, performing house, rare groove and garage classics. Event Link

    Soul Clap will keep the Crew Love real this New Year’s Eve with special live performances from rhythmic house duo No Regular Play and Afro-Futuristic pilots The Illustrious Blacks. Event Link

    Budos Band will hit The Knitting Factory with Evolfo and Electric Citizen. Event Link

    Bell House hosts The Rub NYE featuring DJ Ayres, DJ Eleven, Makossa Brooklyn Cookout and Prince Klassen. Event Link

    Manhattan

    Holly Bowling will perform her annual pre-show at The Cutting Room at 4pm on NYE. Event Link

    Electric Love Machine hosts a FREE pre-party at American Beauty before Phish. Event Link

    Gov’t Mule will host ‘The Rockin Mule Revue’ at The Beacon Theater, with special guests including Jackie Greene, Shawn Pelton, The Chronic Horns and The Better Half Singers. Event Link

    Gramatik throws a dance party like no other at Terminal 5 on NYE. Event Link

    Prefer Jazz to kick 2018 off? Try The Birdland Big Band at Birdland. Event Link


    Three sets of Disco Biscuits await their loyal fans at The Playstation Theater in Times Square. Event Link


    Macy Gray’s soulful voice will be singing the crowd into 2018 at Iridium Jazz Club. Event Link


    John Digweed and Tara Brooks headline a bevy of DJs at Output. Event Link

    and of course, Phish at Madison Square Garden. Event Link

    Followed by and one final Phish After-party, this one with Kung Fu, Wyllys, Jerry Lounge Experience and more at American Beauty. Event Link

  • Best of NYS Music 2017: Staff and Reader Picks for Best Venue

    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.

    Staff Picks

    Brooklyn Steel

    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.