NYS Music 20​17

Tag: Mike Gordon

  • Phish Break New Ground on December 29 in Push for 17 in 2017

    The members of Phish returned to Madison Square Garden for an unprecedented 15th time in 2017 on Friday, December 29, 2017, and while the first set showcased a few stumbles along the way, the band showed it’s still pushing brand new boundaries heading into its 35th year.

    With biting winds and the repetitiveness of yet another MSG jaunt, fans filled the sideways, bars and restaurants of midtown Manhattan, pre-show prepping for an unpredictably wild night. Off the bat, the band slid into the slinky intro of “Cavern,” typically a set closer. While Trey Anastasio mixed up a few lyrics, he set the tone for the evening. A lengthened “Blaze On” followed that fell into jazzy ambiance before bassist Mike Gordon leaped into his song, “555.”

    phish december 29 2017“I Always Wanted It This Way,” keyboardist Page McConnell’s tune, stretched out from 1980s-like quirkiness into a vast yet quite dark jam. “Martian Monster” and “Heavy Things” saw the band have a little fun, notably the interplay between Anastasio and McConnell in the latter. “Destiny Unbound,” somewhat of a rarity, injected a breath of life into the crowd. Stretching to nearly nine minutes, this version of “Destiny” is longer than all in recent memory, but it was clear the band hadn’t practiced it much prior.

    “Ocelot” slowly turned into a jam that featured Anastasio’s slinky fretwork, built up to a peak rife with tension. A little bit of his old school bravado from the mid-1990s was on display, dancing runs of notes up and down with little abandoned. While some fans are growing a bit weary of The Garden, Phish doesn’t appear to be among them. Launching into the set closing “Walls Of The Cave,” Phish was set to send us all to the restrooms and beer lines with a little extra pep in our steps. Anastasio had a little trouble with the intro, but he was pushed by excellent drum work by Jon Fishman, who was quietly the most important piece of the band in the set. With his extra effort rubbing off on Anastasio, Phish set “WotC” into orbit with a frenetic finish, capped off by incredible lighting from Chris Kuroda, who has incorporated seemingly every house light in the building with his rig to make for quite a stunning visual component.

    The tone was immediately set when the first strums of “Sand” echoed through the sold out Garden. Anastasio quickly made use of his new toys on his completely redesigned guitar rig. Designed by Custom Audio Electronics, the set features new cabinets and a wide array of new options for Anastasio to incorporate.

    With the “Chalk Dust Torture” that followed, the band unleashed a jam that quickly became the highlight of the night. After the typical song portion, Anastasio bullied his way into a quiet jam that really felt forced and out of place. It seemed as if they simply decided they’re going to launch a completely separate segment, which really should be titled “Chalk Dust Torture->Jam” on the official setlist. That was quickly forgotten, as the quiet melodies bled into an Allman Brothers-sounding jam. Gordon and McConnell continued forcing Anastasio to enter new territories before dissolving into what can only be described as a siren-sounding jam.

    The execution of the segue into “Ghost” was as smooth as it gets. Almost contrary to the jam before it, this “Ghost” was led in force by the rhythm section. Gordon and Fishman landed on a smooth groove, to which McConnell responded with wavy synth runs to give the jam a dreamy finish.

    “Backwards Down The Number Line” may not be everyone’s favorite song, but no one can argue that it’s about as fun of a Phish song as there is. The previous 41 minutes was Phish showing us that nothing gets stale with this band. The following eight minutes was them telling the crowd how it’s as important to the show as the band is. When Anastasio sang the closing “you decide what it contains” lyric, the people on the Chase Bridge went into pure bliss. A very quick “Simple” gave way to the drums of “Split Open And Melt.” This “Melt” was the perfect cap to a show that took a left at every right hand turn. The middle segment was eerie, haunting and quite strange. It was a dissolution into some ambient work by McConnell and Gordon, before Anastasio brought the song — and set — to a close. It was the most improv heavy “Melt” since the SPAC, 2013 version.

    For the encore, that bravado of Anastasio resurfaced. “Julius” may have been about the only predictable part of the show, but it gave Anastasio one more chance to show he’s most exciting and innovative guitarist in rock and roll today. The rocking finish was coupled with Kuroda lighting the Garden in some of the most impressive ways of his career, and that’s saying something.

    Tonight Phish goes for No. 16 at the Garden. If the first two nights are foreshadowing tonight, we are in for another gem.

    Setlist via phish.net

    Phish, December 29, 2017 Madison Square Garden, NY, NY

    Set 1: Cavern > Blaze On, 555, I Always Wanted It This Way > Martian Monster, Heavy Things, Destiny Unbound, Ocelot, Walls of the Cave

    Set 2: Sand > Chalk Dust Torture[1] > Ghost > Backwards Down the Number Line > Simple > Split Open and Melt

    Encore: Julius

    [1] Unfinished

    Phish, December 29, 2017 Madison Square Garden, NY, NY

  • Best of NYS Music 2017: Albums of the Year

    With a wide ranging variety of music across the state, New York has an intense amount of bands releasing music each year, much of it recorded in New York State. Whether it was recorded at in Syracuse at Subcat Studios, at Albany’s Overit Studios, New Paltz’s Castle Studios, or Dreamland Recording in Woodstock (among the numerous options around the state), these 2017 albums from homegrown artists reflect the diverse music being produced right at home in New York.

    Best Albums by a New York Artist

    Staff Picks

    Dopapod MEGAGEM

    Dopapod may be taking 2018 off, but they left a fantastic album for fans prior to their year long hiatus. After their Fall Tour closing show in Syracuse this past Saturday, the band gears up for two final shows – December 30 at Fete Music Hall in Providence, and December 31 at Paradise Rock Club in Boston. Catch em while you can, because these NYS Music faves won’t be back until 2019!

    Read what Alyssa Ladzinski had to say about Megagem: “With their most themed release to date, its apparent the quartet knew exactly where they wanted to go, as they take their listeners on a dream pop journey to the center of self fulfillment. The 5th studio album comes a a bittersweet symphony, the last creative piece relinquished by the jam rockers before the looming hiatus. While its bittersweet to know you wont witness the live, raw talent of a band so deserving of its praises for an entire year, at the very least, we’re left to see how the entire album translates on stage and if any of those strings just so happen to surface during fall tour.”

    Big Mean Sound Machine Runnin’ For The Ghost

    Ithaca’s Big Mean Sound Machine is no small touring band. Nine members have been storming the Northeast for the past few years, and their fan funded album Runnin’ for the Ghost served as a catalyst for the group to launch outward in 2018. “Known for throwing some of the sweatiest dance parties in the Northeast, Big Mean Sound Machine has been ambitiously touring and working hard to welcome new followers with no plans of slowing down.  The new fan-funded album, Runnin’ for the Ghost, is just one example of how relentless experimentation on the road can lead to something positive and fruitful in the studio.” Read more of Ben Boivin’s review.

    Formula 5 All Points North

    Eli Stein said of the jam happy foursome “On All Points North, the new album from Albany jam-rockers Formula 5, ‘North’ is not a physical direction, but a mental state. North is up, and up is good.” Read more and don’t miss Formula 5’s final show of the year at DROM following Phish on December 30.

    The Other Brothers Jones


    New Paltz is alive and kicking with The Other Brothers storming out of the gates with their Jones EP, released in September with a sold-out show at American Beauty to celebrate. Alyssa Ladzinski said of Jones “With eclectic and effortless transitions between a broad horizon of styles, The Other Brothers don’t allow themselves to be labeled as a one-genre group, if anything, they’re simply contagious. Instead, they master a collection of ballads and soul-soothing soundscapes leaving their exploration and further projects open to directions of all kinds.” Read more here

    Folkfaces How Long

    Folkfaces have had a great year – they were one of the founding bands of NYS Music 87/90, they had a relentless Summer Tour, and released How Long back in April. Buffablog said of the album “From the back-country banjo charm of “Institution Blues,” to the rowdy foot-stomping pandemonium of album opener “Arrows We Break,” right on down to the sultry jazz elements of “Indian Lake,” there is something for everyone on this record. No matter what your poison, it is served with a smile on How Long.

    Reader Picks

    The Other Brothers Jones

    Readers loved The Other Brothers Jones, and why not? Their dedicated fans sold out their album release show at American Beauty in September. Check out our recap.

    Aqueous Element Pt. 1, Element Pt. 2

    Aqueous has had a monster year, including signing with Nugs.net and releasing not one but two live releases in the form of their Element series. Stream these jam favorites below and pick up the album at their Bandcamp store.

    Best Albums – Nationwide

    Staff Picks

    Mike Gordon OGOGO

    The evolution of Mike Gordon’s side project has been a delight to watch over the past decade. The current incarnation of Mike Gordon Band straddles the line between Phish’s jammy goodness and Mike’s inherent weirdness. Tracks like “Marissa” and “Crazy Sometimes” have made their way into Phish’s rotation this year and OGOGO was well received on Mike’s recent fall tour.

    Body Count Blood Lust

    Ice-T’s heavy metal band returned with their first album since 2014’s Manslaughter received a Grammy nomination for the song “Black Hoodie.”

    Kendrick Lamar DAMN.

    When you are named the greatest living rapper, you expect greatness. That’s exactly what DAMN. delivers. It ended the year as the #1 album on Billboard, and was nominated for Best Rap Album and Album of the year, which is Lamar’s third consecutive album to be nominated for the honor.

    Queens of the Stone Age Villains

    Marc Ronson produced the seventh album from the heavy rocking QOTSA, led to longer than usual tracks (six of nine are over 5 minutes long), all based on hearing the Ronson produced “Uptown Funk.” Frontman Josh Homme told VICE earlier this year “I knew I wanted to make something that sounded very tight, and with the air sucked out of it and very clear. So he was just a great reminder just as an opening and then his desires are so beat-centric. And so are mine […] we had this tremendous amount of overlap.”

    lespecial Cheen

    Boston’s heavy jamband lespecial produced a winning album in Cheen, released this past Halloween. Read more in our review, that said ‘lespecial has spent several years cultivating a dedicated fanbase with a sound that cleverly interweaves psychedelia, technical math-rock, metal, electronica, and a tribal influence that feels like it comes from deep in the jungle. The entire album has the coherent flow of a concept album, with its many themes seeming to bleed effortlessly from one song to the next.

    Dopapod MEGAGEM

    No surprise here – Dopapod was a staff favorite, enough to be selected as album of the year nationwide.

    Reader Picks

    King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard Polygonawanaland

    Australian Psych rockers King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard produce a style of rock that is as unique as their name. They’ve produced 12 albums in the past five years, with Polygonawanaland their fifth of 2017 alone. Stream the full album below and discover the weirdness within.

    Dopapod MEGAGEM

    NYS Music’s readers were on the same page with us. There’s no denying how great Megagem is.

    Kendrick Lamar DAMN

    Kendrick’s conscious rap received rave reviews from media outlets around the country. It’ll be a surprise if he doesn’t win top honors at the Grammys in January.

  • Boston Dream Pie: Phish’s Baker’s Dozen hits Night 12

    With 11 nights down and only 4 sets left, Phish still had not repeated a song at their Baker’s Dozen run of 13 shows at Madison Square Garden. 198 songs in 11 nights is no small feat but Phish stepped up to the plate for the penultimate show of their residency.

    phish boston bakers dozen

    Saturday proved to be an even harder ticket than the night before. The last show with a weekend day following wasn’t going to be easy to get in if you didn’t secure tickets in advance and especially not for this end to the Baker’s run of shows

    “Soul Shakedown Party” got the night off to a groovy start, before “Uncle Pen” and “The Sloth” got the rowdy crowd even more fired up.

    “Gotta Jibboo” provided the first bout of improv of the night, stretching past 12 minutes of Trey-led bliss. Just when you thought the song would wind down, Trey began hitting new licks and taking the song, while within its typical structure, beyond the scope of its typical role.

    “Fuck Your Face” was standard, with Mike having a bit of a lyrical gaffe midway through, before Phish decided to mash up Boston and Cream songs for an epic medley. “Sunshine of Your Feeling” began with Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love,” before the band began dropped suddenly and seamlessly into Boston’s “More Than a Feeling” to which the crowd erupted in shock and awe. “Foreplay/Longtime,” “Tales of Brave Ulysses” and “The White Room” all were woven into the Boston/Cream mashup that the band admitted right after, that they had been waiting 20 years to play, and tongue-in-cheek, the genesis for the Baker’s Dozen concept. 

    The Trey ballad “Frost” then gave way to a super fun and danceable “Scent of a Mule,” which saw Mike and Page extend the Mule Duel portion longer than usual but without Trey taking to the Marimba Lumina. Jimi Hendrix’s “Fire,” “Alaska” and Trey Anastasio Band tune “Plasma” rounded out the first set, with the closer featuring a slowed down funk jam that built to a nice peak.

    “Ghost” opened the second set, and will undeniably go down as a must hear jam from the Baker’s Dozen. After a bliss jam, the band turned the keys to Trey, who brought the song to a soaring peak, complete with one of the more creative light shows Chris Kuroda has put on this run. The feeling was all happiness and smiles.

    “Petrichor,” the song Phish rang in 2017 with at MSG, took over, for a straightforward and well executed version. “Light” featured a nice, relaxing jam, before the band started the opening notes of “The Lizards.” Every fan in attendance turned their attention to the stage as Phish ran through one of their most beloved songs, singing in unison.

    trey anastasio

    “The Horse”>”Silent in the Morning” had a fun segue into “Quinn the Eskimo,” before the set closed with the ever energetic “Rocky Top.”

    After all that energy, Phish came on and played “Joy” for the encore, which elicited a few groans, but as the band delved deeper, it became apparent that they were thanking the fans for being a part of this unique and intimate part of Phish history.

    Let’s see what tonight brings!

    Setlist via Phish.net

    Set 1: Soul Shakedown Party, Uncle Pen, The Sloth, Gotta Jibboo, Fuck Your Face, Sunshine of Your Feeling[1], Frost, Scent of a Mule, Fire,Alaska, Plasma

    Set 2: Ghost, Petrichor, Light > The Lizards, The Horse > Silent in the Morning > Quinn the Eskimo > Rocky Top

    Encore: Joy

    [1] Debut

  • Mountain Jamming: 2017 Peach Music Festival Preview

    It is not unusual in this day and age for a band to have it’s own festival. It is however, unusual, for a band’s festival to outlast the band itself. The Peach Music Festival, running August 10-13, 2017 was started by the Allman Brothers Band back in 2012. The band broke up for good a little more than two years later, but the festival lived on, featuring various off-shoots and solo projects of the band each year. 2017 has seen the untimely deaths of founding members Gregg Allman and Butch Trucks.

    But the festival lives on. It will again host performances from Allman-related bands, including Gov’t Mule (joined by guitarist John Scofield and other unnamed guests), Jaimoe’s Jasssz Band, and the final performance of Les Brers. More importantly, will be the special, not-to-be-missed Peach Tribute to Gregg Allman and Butch Trucks, which will feature Chuck Leavell, Jaimoe, Oteil Burbridge Marc Quiñones, Duane Trucks, Devon Allman and many more family and friends.

    “Caterpillar sheds his skin to find a butterfly within…”

    Gregg and Butch, Berry Oakley and Duane Allman, and the Allman Brothers Band, will live on in the spirit of the Peach Music Festival. The bands invited this year will surely keep it very much alive. A who’s who of the world of jam, it is a lineup that is tough to top in a summer crowded full with festival goodness. The headliners Thursday through Sunday read like a 2017 jam band All-Star team: Joe Russo’s Almost Dead reinvigorate the music from the king of jam bands on Thursday night, My Morning Jacket will set the mountain ablaze with their rock torches Friday night, and southern jam titans Widespread Panic sneak their limited tour north of the Mason-Dixon line for shows on both Saturday and Sunday nights.

    Slip just below the top line and the names don’t get much smaller, with Mike Gordon fresh off Phish’s Baker’s Dozen run at the Garden, blues-guitar phenom Joe Bonamassa, and progressive jammers Umphrey’s McGee joining the ranks of the aforementioned Allman-related artists.

    The rest of the lineup is buoyed by smaller but well-established bands like Galactic, Steve Kimock, Greensky Bluegrass, Lettuce, The New Mastersounds, Keller Williams, as well as new rising stars like Aqueous, Cabinet, Spafford, The Record Company and Pigeons Playing Ping Pong. At no point does this lineup’s bottom fall out however, it remains solid to the last dot.

    “First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is…”

    The Peach Music Festival will once again be held on Montage Mountain in Scranton, PA. Not only is it a naturally beautiful location, but it also includes a full and accessible water park with rides, slides and a lazy river. This is no ordinary waterpark, it comes equipped with a custom live music soundtrack running throughout the entire day of course! The mountain also includes a full restaurant, bar, and bathrooms, in addition to the usual festival fare.

    Once you bite into this Peach, the sweet juices will be flowing all weekend, but that large Allman Brother pit from which it grew, will continue to hold it all together. For daily or weekend passes, and all the information you’ll need to prepare for your time at the fest, visit the official festival site at thepeachmusicfestival.com. See you on the mountain, jamming!

  • Phish Layers the Garden with Jimmies                     

    On the second Sunday of the outstanding Baker’s Dozen run at Madison Square Garden, Phish once again left its mark in the building and reminded us why we should never miss a Sunday show.  When they opened with the classic, “The Curtain With,” the audience knew that they were in for an extra tasty treat.  On Night 8, the band showed patience, confidence, and, of course – a sense of humor.  Launching into a short but sweet first set “Runaway Jim” the band brought smiles to faces as the first donut reference of the night was revealed. Phish has magically decorated all their sets with delicious toppings during the Baker’s Dozen, and they continue to please the crowd with the lyrics we know and love.

    phish jimmies bakers dozen

    Unlike the outrageously raging Saturday night, the quartet took the “slow and steady wins the race” approach on Sunday.  The unexpected Junta jam “Esther” poked its head out for the first time since 2015.  A hush filled the chapel and the people looked happy as the boys eased into two more slower tunes in “Home” and “Brian and Robert.”  After a straight forward “Nellie Kane” Trey Anastasio led into an unforgettable “Colonel Forbin’s Ascent> Fly Famous Mockingbird” while Chris Kuroda took the lights on a legendary adventure in “the World’s Most Famous Arena.”

    A spine tingling “David Bowie” finished off the set highlighted by Trey’s exceptionally tight guitar playing.  The first set may have been slow, but it certainly wasn’t dull as several bust outs and sought after trophies were obtained by the ravenous audience.  During the set-break, it was clear that fans had made the right choice in buying tickets to the Garden rather than staying home to catch up on Game of Thrones.

    While there was no mention of “Jimmies” in the set two opener, “Drowned,” there was certainly enough improvisation to write home about.  Clearly the MSG residency has done something to the Vermonters as they are playing with a Nectar’s-esque level of commitment.  The ambient and mind-altering “Song I Heard The Ocean Sing” that swam its way out of the “Drowned” jam was the perfect addition to an already stellar second set.  Dialed in, Page anchored the jam with some incredible synth play and Gordon acted as the lift-guard and threw in a floating bass line to build the jam up.

    phish bakers dozen

    After two songs and almost 40 minutes, the crowd was left speechless, but thankfully Phish did all the talking during what will be known as the “Baker’s Harpua.”  The never-ending tale of Jimmy and his cat’s unfortunate fate has not been narrated since 1997 at the Garden, but this time around Trey, Mike, Page, and Jon sat down to tell us a story about the universe.  Donuts have covered mid-town Manhattan as fans anxiously await the details of the next flavor each night.  During the historic version of “Harpua,” Phish let us in on a little secret by informing us all that the entire Universe is just a donut!  In the expansive narration of Jimmy and his comrades, Trey consistently made the connection between current events and what is happening in Jimmy’s world.  The insanely entertaining story that was told on Sunday night will not just go down as one of the greatest things to happen during the 13-show run, but possibly one of the best renditions in Phishtory.

    The band made it clear that they were not ready to head back down to planet Earth as they remained in outer-space for a cosmic “Also Sprach Zarathustra.”  The crowd seemed perplexed and were still trying to wrap their minds around the “Harpua” story when the spacey and instrumental jam morphed into a familiar and grounding “Golgi Apparatus.”  While I am not at liberty to assume how Trey writes his set lists, I imagine there was some thinking behind the second set on Sunday night.  The band went from a water and ocean theme to explaining the massive and mysterious universe before looking into a microscope and focusing in on one of the smallest elements of a cell, the Golgi body.

    Under the light, they couldn’t get anything wrong on this particular night as they settled on yet another a cappella song, “In The Good Old Summer Time” to finish off the amazing set.  Phish acted as our genie and granted us the third wish of the night by debuting the Jimi Hendrix classic “The Wind Cried Mary.”  While die-hard fans were hoping to hear the recognizable “Izabella” by Jimi, we got a slow and fitting “best-of Hendrix” tune instead.  The Garden screamed Mary as smoke billowed and couples embraced during the well-executed cover.  The “Jimmies” night of the Baker’s Dozen run was a huge success and solidified the second Sunday as another classic Garden performance for the band that knows it best.

    Setlist courtesy of Phish.net

    Set 1: The Curtain With > Runaway Jim, Waking Up Dead, Esther, Home, Brian and Robert, Nellie Kane, Colonel Forbin’s Ascent > Fly Famous Mockingbird > David Bowie

    Set 2: Drowned, A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing, Harpua > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Golgi Apparatus, In The Good Old Summer Time

    Encore: The Wind Cries Mary[1]

    [1] Phish debut.

  • Mike Gordon Announces ‘OGOGO’ and Fall Tour with Stop in Syracuse

    Mike Gordon is putting the final touches on his newest studio album, OGOGO, set to be released in September. He will head out on a fall tour with the current lineup of his solo band. The 17 night tour kicks off on Sept. 22 in Athens, Georgia and includes a stop at Syracuse’s Westcott Theater.

    mike gordon ogogo tourPhish bassist, Mike Gordon, has been keeping busy with the new lineup of his solo band. His fifth studio album, OGOGO, will be released on Sept. 15. The first track, “Steps,” is available for streaming now and can be heard in the video below.

    Gordon will also take his current solo band out on a 17 night tour that kicks off on Friday, Sept. 22 at the Georgia Theatre in Athens, Georgia. The tour makes a stop on Friday, Sept. 29 at the Westcott Theater in Syracuse. The only other stop in the Northeast is at New Haven, Connecticut’s College Street Music Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 27. The tour closes out with a two-night stand at the Boulder Theater in Boulder, Colorado on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 13 and 14. Gordon’s band includes Scott Murawski on guitar, Robert Walter on keyboards, John Kimock on drums, and Craig Myers on percussion.

    Tickets for the tour are available now via a real-time pre-sale, which ends Thursday, July 13 at 5 p.m ET. The general on sale date for the tour is this Friday, July 14 at 10 a.m. ET.

    Mike Gordon Fall 2017 Tour Dates
    Sept. 22 – Georgia Theatre, Athens, GA
    Sept. 23 – Neighborhood Theatre, Charlotte, NC
    Sept. 24 – Lincoln Theatre, Raleigh, NC
    Sept. 26 – The National, Richmond, VA
    Sept. 27 – College Street Music Hall, New Haven, CT
    Sept. 29 – The Westcott Theater, Syracuse, NY
    Sept. 30 – Phoenix Concert Theatre, Toronto, ON
    Oct. 1 – St. Andrews Hall, Detroit, MI
    Oct. 3 – Bells Eccentric Cafe, Kalamazoo, MI
    Oct. 4 – 20th Century Theater, Cincinnati, OH
    Oct. 5 – The Vogue, Indianapolis, IN
    Oct. 6 – The Metro, Chicago, IL
    Oct. 8 – Pabst Theatre, Milwaukee, WI
    Oct. 10 – Slow Down, Omaha, NE
    Oct. 11 – Madrid Theatre, Kansas City, MO
    Oct. 13-14 – Boulder Theater, Boulder, CO

  • Granddaddy of the Jam Scene, Col. Bruce Hampton, Dies While Passing the Torch in Atlanta

    Col. Bruce Hampton (born Gustav Valentine Berglund III) collapsed onstage at a celebration of his 70th birthday at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta May 1. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported his death hours after Hampton was rushed to the hospital by ambulance.

    col. bruce hampton
    Photo: Melissa Ruggieri/Atlanta Journal-Constitution

    Hampton turned 70 on April 30 and was taking part in an all-star salute to him at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre on May 1. He collapsed during an encore performance of “Turn on Your Love Light.” Hampton sang while encouraging 14 year-old guitarist Brandon Niederauer to take a solo. It was during this solo that Hampton collapsed onto an amplifier. Many witnesses to the scene thought it was a ruse. Those thoughts changed to concern as he was rushed off the stage to a waiting ambulance.

    The Colonel’s guest list for the four hour long show exhibited the true multi-generational impact he had on the Atlanta music scene. Joining him onstage for the tribute event were: Warren Haynes, Phish’s Jon Fishman, Drivin’ n Cryin’s Kevn Kinney, R.E.M.’s Peter Buck, John Bell, Dave Schools, Duane Trucks and Jimmy Herring of Widespread Panic, Blues Traveler’s John Popper, Derek Trucks, Susan Tedeschi, Oliver Wood, Karl Denson, Chuck Leavell, Billy Bob Thornton and major league pitcher Jake Peavy.

    col. bruce hamptonBorn in Knoxville, TN in 1947, Hampton founded the avant-jazz Hampton Grease Band in Atlanta, recording the 1971 album Music to Eat for Columbia Records. This album garnered the title, “Second worst selling record in Columbia history” upon its release, but in a retrospective review of the reissue, The Vinyl District describes the album as:

    The fertile zone where the Mothers of Invention and Captain Beefheart’s Magic Band intersected with the outbound psychedelia of The Grateful Dead and the sturdy blues-rock of The Allman Brothers, as a huge dollop of surrealist humor was slathered over the entire mess. Simply put, Music to Eat is an amazing document.

    Hampton went on to form what would become his most well known band, the Aquarium Rescue Unit, featuring Oteil Burbridge, Jimmy Herring, Rev. Jeff Mosier, Matt Mundy and Jeff Sipe, all prominent members of the early jam community. From there, he joined forces with Bell, Popper, Eric Schenkman of the Spin Doctors and all four members of Phish to put together the H.O.R.D.E. Tour in 1992. Inspired by Perry Farrell’s alternative traveling festival Lollapalooza, H.O.R.D.E. outlasted Lollapalooza and in its wake, inspired the second wave of improvisational jambands.

    Aside from his musical hi-jinks, Col. Bruce Hampton also had a role alongside Billy Bob Thornton in the 1996 movie Sling Blade, was the subject of the 2012 documentary Basically Frightened: The Musical Madness of Col. Bruce Hampton, Ret. and also appeared in the 2014 Run the Jewels video for “Blockbuster Night, Pt. 1.” He also starred in Mike Gordon of Phish’s first feature length film Outside Out in 2001 as a guitar “out”-structor and as the voice of Space Ghost’s mentor, a potted shrub, in a 1998 episode of Space Ghost Coast to Coast entitled “Warren.”

    Hampton lived his life outside the lines, influencing generations of musicians. He went out exactly the way he should have, performing an encore of “Turn on Your Love Light” among several generations of those he influenced, passing the torch to a young guitarist who will always have Hampton in his life.

  • Catskill Chill Takes Hiatus in 2017

    Catskill Chill festival lovers received a disappointing announcement that the fest is going on hiatus for 2017. Fans have been waiting for an announcement on 2017’s Catskill Chill Festival since the stage lights extinguished on 2016’s festival Sept. 25. Hoping for a lineup and date announcement for 2017, fans received the opposite news instead. Festival lovers can only hope the festival returns in 2018.

    After seven years, Catskill Chill will take a hiatus in 2017. In a post to fans on social media, the Chillfam team reflected on how the festival brought people together and the one of a kind atmosphere that the festival created. The Chillfam team also thanked everyone from fans, vendors, bands/artist, volunteers, venues, promoters and media, who have supported the festival since its inception in September 2010.

    One thing the festival promoters did not state in the post was why the festival would not take place, just stating that they needed to take a step back and that they will be be announcing Chillfam parties throughout the northeast real soon.

    Many jamband favorites have played the festival throughout the years including Mike Gordon, George Clinton & Parliamant/Funkadelic, Greensky Bluegrass, Lettuce, moe., Twiddle, Dopapod, Kung Fu, Nth Power, Papadosio, and Pink Talking Fish to name a few.

    Below is the festival’s statement issued through Facebook regarding the hiatus:

    https://www.facebook.com/CatskillChill/posts/1592016847493442