The Long Island Music Hall of Fame, a non-profit organization, honors, in its own words, “a diverse array of performers, groups, and music industry leaders that have made significant contributions to Long Island’s rich music history,” and earlier this month the Hall witnessed its seventh annual induction ceremony, on Thursday, November 7 at popular music venue The Space at Westbury.
The LIMHOF Awards Ceremony inducted eleven new members and groups this year, and they included the likes of more recently important artists, like sensational pop-punk group Taking Back Sunday and formative hip hop artists E.P.M.D, as well as more early icons of the music business, like Woodstock Music Festival promoters Michael Lang and Artie Kornfield (inducted separately), and music composer Jimmy Webb (who wrote “Wichita Lineman” for country music superstar Glen Campbell).
The first segment of the night allowed patrons and press alike to get up close and personal with the award winners as they walked the red carpet into the lobby of The Space at Westbury and posed for both photo ops and field questions. Surely, the highlight of this portion of the evening for most present was the unexpected arrival upon the scene of the one and only Billy Joel. No doubt most thought the presenter at the entrance to the red carpet was kidding when he announced the name of the 69-year-old musical icon, but in the man strutted only moments later.
For its ceremony portion, held in the gracious and acoustically impressive performance area of The Space, The LIMHOF Ceremony saw speeches from both award winners and their close acquaintances—Joel, it turned out, had come to speak and not just surprise the venue with his presence—as well as gave the stage to some of the inductees for special and touching performances. Videos of award winners, showing their heydays that had helped earn them the night’s recognition, played behind them as they addressed the crowd. A particularly poignant example include singer-songwriter inductee Melanie, whom performed her seminal hit “Candles in the Rain” with a large choir group while an old video showed her doing the same all the way back in the early 1970s. The recreation of that musically historic moment that had touched lives back then was certainly a treat for both her longtime fan base and the rest of the attendees.
The press room at the Long Island Music Hall of Fame induction allowed award winners retreated after their showing on stage was a unique experience all in its own. To an intimate greeting of only a dozen or so reporters, these prolific artists and entrepreneurs of the music business answered questions up close and personal, while also delving into welcomed anecdotes of their life. Cousin Brucie, for example, shared stories of his storied career as a radio personality, such as the time that he introduced The Beatles at their legendary performance at Shea Stadium in 1966. What the award winners offered with these stories were bits of insight and truth into their musical worlds. Brucie, for example, said to reporters of The Fab Four: “At the time, none of us believed that The Beatles would be as big as they were.”
The String Cheese Incident are finishing up an eastern stint of shows, with last night and tonight seeing them play at Worcester, MA’s Palladium Night Club. Earlier this week, the band spent Halloween in Philadelphia, performing two back to back shows at the city of brotherly love’s The Fillmore.
After a monumental weekend at Hulaween, in which three headlining nights from the band included plenty of guest sit-ins and lots of musical surprises, the hype for String Cheese’s Fillmore run was pricked with anticipation. Many were wondering if they had steam left after delivering such a jam-packed weekend, and others had no doubt at all.
Fillmore Night One
That these were going to be some strong shows was definitely clear soon enough into night one’s firs set. A “Song in My Head” > Can’t Stop Now brought the first smiles of the run, and the band was at least in tight form, if not risk-taking right away.” Way That it Goes” through “Believe” saw incredibly heavy Cheese. The intensity, not to mention the sheer decibel level, on even an old school jazzier number like “Pirates,” was pretty staggering. A first set “Sympathy For The Devil,” sung by Keith Mosely, was our Halloween nugget for the night, and it certainly seemed appreciated given the enthusiasm emanating from the crowd all the way through.
Set two invited the most electronic side of Cheese to party, with a “Tinderbox” to start that saw the band enter full-on dubstep style. The crowd appeared to dig on it, though, and so the band followed it soon after with a similarly crystallized version of “Bumpin’ Reel.” Kang broke out the fiddle here, and buttoned up this wildly looped jam with some choice intermittent soloing.There were a few big gems of this two-night run, and arguably the first came in night one’s final, towering segment that kicked off with a “Miss Brown’s Teahouse.” While this was a straightforward version, it rolled on in mystical fashion towards a highly received “Land’s End,” perhaps one of the most appreciated songs in the Cheese catalogue. The band took their time gracefully here, treading thoughtfully through a section of space, comprising a “Glory Chords” jam, but soon enough took off running into a “Just One Story” to close out—another one of Cheese’s most appreciated numbers.
This magical combo worked with the encore to leave The Fillmore fully satisfied for night one. The encore which might have actually stood out in the context of the whole run. A very fun “Born On The Wrong Planet” segued with ease into an “I Know You Rider” that saw the latter of those two tunes fleshed put nicely, complete with a slowly cascading reggae jam, to be a standout version.
Fillmore Night Two
While Halloween have default regard as special shows, it stands that String Cheese’s second night in Philadelphia came as the better of two nights—nothing damnable about making the next show better than the last! Again, the band made fast moves to show their chameleon-like ability to divert musical styles and moods. After a welcomed “Don’t It Make You Wanna Dance” opened it up, the engine for the evening really starting revving with a funky, murky jam coming out of ‘Eye Know Why.” The band was in sync, and they were making improvisational choices with confidence.
The “Shine” to end the first set was fine and feel good as any other, but the “Outside and Inside” coming before it was the real ticket: a type two version that flung itself into the first set ender with pure adrenaline. But, if you were to listen to just one song from this entire two night run, make it the “Lonesome Fiddle Blues” that blew out the doors of The Fillmore on night two, set two. The crowd was caught off guard with the insanity of this one, and when Hollingsworth helped catapult this eruptive version, with an organ solo that still has this writer shaking his head, nearly everybody in that room went from chill to berserk in seconds flat.
The set only evolved from there, with the band venturing into some of the most improvisational territory yet with a fantastic “Best Feeling.” After some cosmic interplay led to a tension-tinged climax, “Feeling” dropped succinctly into “Illegal,” a song that has been a big hit with Cheese fans this year. Over the last week, the band has been cycling through the new material penned by each member of the band, and this one, composed by drummer Michael Travis, is a doozy. It’s neat, coastal-vibe like chorus gives way, in back and forth style, to a wicked prog-rock like instrumental section, which the band nailed here at The Fillmore with a real tenacity.
Coming back for the encore, Hollingsworth recounted warmly he grew up down the street from The Fillmore, and that all six of his siblings were in attendance. Nershi commented: “Seeing family come to all the shows makes us feel like we’re doing this thing right. And you all of course are our family too.” The band played a textbook “Restless Wind” to finish out, highlighted with a great few minutes of solo trading between Kang and Nershi, and brought a terrific two-night stand down for a soft landing.
String Cheese Incident’s next scheduled concert appearance is their highly anticipated three-night New Years Eve run at 1st Bank Center in Denver, Colorado. For more information visit their site at http://www.stringcheeseincident.com.
In a legendary place like The Capitol Theatre, the most memorable acts performing there today channel the ghosts of its musical past, like Frank Zappa, Janis Joplin and The Grateful Dead. Acts that will be remembered, years from now, alongside giant names like those are the ones that manage to echo those nearly unfathomable experiences from the earlier years of this concert palace. When the five-piece Americana jam sensation Greensky Bluegrass kicked off their show last weekend with their aptly-named original song “Bring Out Your Dead,” they did exactly this. For this reviewer, the vibrant myth of Pink Floyd performances here in this theatre glowed within the Cap’s interior, vibrating invisibly at the tips of this epic and harrowing modern song. This Capitol Theatre show might have served as a great benchmark showing just how far Greensky Bluegrass has evolved, from a new string band outfit several years ago into the epic rock concert performers they are today.
But the band then showed their range fast, as the next several tunes were some of their much more feel good stuff. “Wings for Wheels” and then “Handle With Care” carried the room from the shadows of that cool opening to a sunny bluegrass beach in paradise. Complimenting this portion of the evening was a roving solo picking, with members trading off in typically swift style. The Lil’ Smokies, the dynamic newcomer five member string band that had opened up for the night with their own highly received set, are set to tour with Greensky for much of the latter’s upcoming tour. So, it should be no surprise that many nights will feature either members of The Smokies, or the entire group, up to collaborate. At The Cap, Greensky invited the Smokies dobro player Andy Dunnigan and fiddle player Jake Simpson up for some fun.
First up was “Second That Emotion,” and not the most epic version you’ve ever heard but still no doubt a much-appreciated nod to one of The Cap’s late musical presiders, Jerry Garcia. But it was the “Worried About The Weather” that closed out set one that was the real kicker, perhaps the standout performance of the entire night. Dunnigan and Simpson never lagged behind or shied away, but instead showed their confidence beside the members of Greensky and made the dramatic tune into an explosive performance.
Set two brought the deeper cuts, with miles of space and focused improvisation, which seemed to see the band toying around with all the funky effects tech at their disposal. After starting out with some more smile-makers in “Fixing to Ruin” and Steam Powered Aeroplane,” Greensky laid down a huge “Ground Hog” and “Wheel Hoss” pairing, and the musical territory traversed here was as mystifying as it was funky and rhythm-inducing. The improv-loaded segue helped to reinforce the claim that Greensky Bluegrass is the headiest of all progressive grass groups out there right now.
This was followed up by another cool pairing in “Tarpology” and, perhaps another Garcia nod, “Ain’t No Bread In The “Breadbox,” with this latter tune being a real stand out on its own. While it hit the usual rolling groove Greensky puts into it, on this night the band pushed even harder to truly dig on it for several minutes. This one must have been an extra-special version in all the versions played.
Governors Ball Music Festival returned to Randall’s Island Park last weekend for its eighth year in a row, bringing a mainstream savvy lineup that spanned an array of genres as well as several decades in music. Nearly 150,000 people trekked to the scenic Manhattan locale, to rock and dance it out to the newest in electronic pop, the hippest in indie folk, some of the best in hop hop, and much more.
FRIDAY
Friday kicked off by bringing both some newer, big solo artist names and a few modern rock legends. Something interesting to note about Gov Ball’s lineup this year was the high percentage of non-US-based artists. On the Bacardi Stage, British foursome Wolf Alice tore through a ferocious set of their brand of garage rock, whipping up the first day audience into a frenzy right away and holding them there for the duration of their performance. Meanwhile, Canadian breakout artists Alvvays, whom took to the Gov Ball Main Stage, and Australian four piece Pond, whom rocked the Honda Stage, brought in their sets shades of dreamy shoegaze and psychedelic pop.
Maggie Rogers, later on, was beaming from the Gov Ball stage in a fluorescent stormy weather dress, channeling a hipster, young version of Ms. Frizzle. She, like many of the other breakout artists lighting up GovBall 2018, expressed her humility at getting to perform the event. She quipped at the end of her set:, “Can you believe that mother****ing Karen O is about to be standing on this stage in just a bit??” Karen O did indeed take the stage just a bit later, with her defining alternative rock group Yeah Yeah Yeahs, for one of the first hugely anticipated rock sets of the weekend.
Governors Ball did well to line up their Honda Stage with some very fresh names in the music world. Shawn Mendes was announced closer to the event as a special set and, as he explained to GovBall’s Friday crowd, it was personally special to him. He told the audience that the Governors Ball was one of the first music festivals he had ever attended. Rapper Post Malone was certainly another highly anticipated act of the first day, and he delivered the goods on many of the songs that have accompanied his fast recent rise, like “Candy Paint” and “Paranoid,” and a set closer of “Congratulations.” Damian Marley, meanwhile, brought his reggae-inspired hip-hop to the lineup for a very fun performance that even included a story about telling Bruno Mars to smoke pot. Eventually, towards the end, he offered great, danceable covers of his father’s “Exodus” and “Could You Be Loved?”
Jack White returned to Governors Ball for his first appearance at the event since 2014. After an early surprise of “Lazaretto,” the guitarist offered much from the White Stripes’ catalogue, including “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” “Hotel Yorba,” and “Black Math.” White is a guitar player of a strict artistic sense—it may not pull the ripcord quite like other heavy hitters, but every time the solo is sure to be unique in both tone and melody. He split up of some of the sonic madness with a brief acoustic portion featuring tunes like “The Same Boy You’ve Always Known” and “We’re Going to Be Friends.”
Opposite him, James Blake delivered quite a different kind of closing show—deep, mellow, at times almost downright sullen in his surreal kind of new age soul. While Jack White basked in a backdrop of bizarro blue light, Blake’s set was a cool, minimalist light show that silhouetted himself and his two bandmates. The effect complimented the soft intensity of his songs and kept the focus on the singing and the playing.
SATURDAY
Saturday morning started big and bright with a few up and coming singers. New Nashville crooner Mikky Ekko shined with “Stay,” his hit song which features guest singer Rihanna, while Cuco and his backing band kicked off the American Eagle stage. Early on the Honda stage, GovBall spanned the US, first bringing Los Angeles’ The Regrettes—punk in a clean package—followed by NYC’s own VHS Collection. As the name might suggest, VHS Collection throw fresh digs on an old school sound, and the result encompasses, in a way, a lot of the musical aesthetic running through GovBall’s lienup—a love note to the past that’s written in shiny, forward-looking letters.
Galantis, for instance, are about as fresh as live electronic music gets. Their jam is club music made for a sunny day in a New York City park, so they were right at home Saturday mid day at GovBall. Galantis grooves are mechanical yet often feel good at times, all while keeping a sense of nuance and experimentation in their work—as if to say, we’re serious about our craft here but not without having some fun. And some big fun at that: for their set’s end, the electronic duo were leaping among exploding columns of smoke and glitter.
Rivaling Post Malone and Shawn Mendes and James Blake for big time single name performer was the Grammy Award-nominated Halsey. Thousands of fans flocked to catch her flawless presentation of pop magic. In her path towards super stardom, Halsey has remained a down-to-earth artist for the people. She sung her heart out on songs about tackling the patriarchy, dealing with drug issues, LBGT rights, and more.
Of course, many, many GovBall attendees were waiting to see the hyped-up debut performance of Silk City—the combined talents of electronic superstar Diplo and mega music producer Mark Ronson. The result was a nicely dressed combo of beats and remixes that mixed in touches of coastal-groove, hip hop and more. Many acts helped to dazzle out Governors Ball weekend with visually striking and ambitious set pieces, and Silk City were not in the least in that department. A mini cityscape towered behind, boasting all kinds of street sigs, while Ronson and Diplo did their thing above a bright blue, emblazoned signature of their name.
With the hard-hitting “Stay Vicious” revving things off, The Gaslight Anthem took to the Gov Ball main stage Saturday night and charged their way through a tremendous twenty-five songs—twelve of which comprised the entirety of the band’s groundbreaking album The 59 Sound. Quite the big to-do, but the band certainly delivered all the favorite bits of the record: like the heavy “Even Cowgirls Get The Blues,” and the extra tender “Here’s Looking At You, Kid.” As Anthem furrowed through a third block of songs for their GovBall set, the rain started and would soon enough be a “true test of will” kind of downpour. But the show raged on, especially also for Travis Scott, taking the Honda Stage opposite Anthem. Scott gave live versions of tracks he’s collaborated on with some of the biggest in the game—”4 AM” with 2 Chainz, “Through the Late Night” with Kid Cudi, “Goosebumps” with Kendrick Lamar.
SUNDAY
An early highlight of the festival’s third morning were Middle Kids—another breakout foursome from Australia that, like many other artists on this year’s lineup, have been successful in taking the indie world by storm, and after debuting their brand of folky garage rock only a couple of years ago. While other artists on the list ride high on the rock charts, Margo Price might be considered the newest queen of country. In addition to her own material, she offered covers of Willie Nelson’s “Whiskey River” and Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance.” Even after laying down a full set of her pop Americana, she enthralled the crowd all the more by jumping on a second drum set for a crazy breakdown ending.
Across the way, Khalid delivered a soulful, emotional set of his many beautiful songs. Kicking off with favorites like “8TEEN,” “American Teen” and “Coaster,” Khalid had one of the most massive daytime crowds of the weekend. One of the most thankful offerings was “Silence,” the song that Khalid introduced as having written with his good friend, EDM producer Marshmello. At the same time, Third Eye Blind amassed a surrounding of their own sort, perhaps more nostalgic but no less enthusiastic. After they had cranked out a few rocking early numbers, a grateful Stephen Jenkins said to TEB’s ecstatic audience, “Thank you for keeping our music alive.”
Shortly after them, one the most bombastic sets thrown down the whole weekend came from N.E.R.D, the hip-hop hard rock group centering around Pharrell Williams, Chad Hugo, and Shay Haley. In a curious surprise opening bit, N.E.R.D had a young kid address the Honda Stage crowd with a moving speech about working hard for your dreams and overcoming adversity. Once done, Pharrell and company rushed the stage and alighted the scene fast. The performers never once stopped moving, circumventing the stage with a raucous energy matched also by their jubilant dance troupe. Pharrell, in between bringing hits from both N.E.R.D’s early days from over a decade ago and newer favorites, called out the crowd to help bring about all the vintage gems of intimate rock concert—crowd surfing, mosh pits, and getting everybody to get off the ground simultaneously.
Sylvan Esso delivered a black and white set of sorts, showing the range of their appeal. The first half of their hour on the Bacardi Stage stayed to a very mellow side of their electronic pop. But by the time the duo had to take their leave, they had found their way into a zone and were syncing up beats and vocals brilliantly, and the energy was overflowing through the finish. “The only way I can describe this feeling of playing Governors Ball,” a wide-eyed, out-of-breath Amelia Meath said, “is that I hope, one day, you also get to perform in front of thousands of people in the finest ice skating leotard imaginable!”
At the conclusion of Governors Ball 2018, Randall’s Island fought a second battle with some vicious rain, but that didn’t stop a dynamic, larger-than-life set from the lineup’s musical crown jewel for the weekend, Eminem. Droves of people, groups of friends, aged from mid teens to mid forties, were screaming along with the modern hip-hop phenom. Halfway through, for a huge surprise, the performer invited up another legend in 50 Cent, who stayed for versions of “Patiently Waiting,” “In Da Club,” “I Get Money” and “Crack a Bottle.” Eminem steered the end of his tenacious, spot-on performance with a slew of the classics, including “My Name Is” followed by “The Real Slim Shady.” People who had retreated to dodge the increasing rainfall were sprinting back through the mud once “Lose Yourself” was dropping as the big encore.
On Friday June 1, guitarist Tom Hamilton and pianist Holly Bowling will bring their acoustic duo project to The Capitol Theatre for what is sure to be a magnificent set of Grateful Dead material. The show is billed as ‘Acoustic Exploration of The Grateful Dead.’
Currently, Hamilton and Bowling are touring together with Steve Lyons, Raina Mullen and Scotty Zwang as the highly received jam outfit Ghost Light. Given that but also given both Hamilton and Bowling’s extensive backgrounds in bringing new life to The Grateful Dead songbook, this Capitol Theatre show should be one of those shows to get out and see at all costs. For more info, visit The Capitol Theatre’s website.
In our excitement for the show, NYS Music sat down with Tom Hamilton and discussed in depth the nature of improvisation in today’s modern music climate.
Miles Hurley: So I understand that you’ve been playing with Holly Bowling since her many sit-ins with American Babies. And then of course there’s Ghost Light, and now this duo project. What draws the two of you together musically?
Tom Hamilton: I’d say we both respect the idea of improvising, and of really trying to go places. And seeing how far away from an origin we can take things out. And we listen. The whole thing for me, and for a lot of people I think, when it comes to improvising, is listening to what each other is saying, and giving each other the time and space to say what they have to say, and then reacting accordingly.
MH: What do find is different about improvising in a two-person setting as opposed to with a full band?
TH: Well the principle is always the same, and…well with the acoustic thing, there are just different variables, you know? The acoustic thing is interesting because, not only is it just two of us, but it’s an acoustic guitar instead of an electric guitar, and the pallet that I get to choose from is different. Different than what there normally would be with a band. So I guess it’s kind of doubly-different then. And I think for Holly, you could pretty much say the same thing, because in the band she’s using the keyboards, and not an actual grand piano. And there’s an enormous difference between the way she plays those two.
It’s like having any kind of conversation. The best kind of conversations a person will have, it’s not just the other person waiting to say what they want to say, it’s: “okay, I have heard what you’ve said, and I will retort.” A real back and forth. So with Holly and I, there’s a lot of respect, and a lot of listening.
MH: I got to catch Ghost Light’s show at The Acoustic in Bridgeport, and I could see what you’re explaining going on. Seeing the way you guys interact when building jams was almost as good as hearing it.
TH: Yeah, the thing I always try to stress is, let’s try to write a song right here on the spot. Let’s try to write a Radiohead tune right now. And see what happens, and if it goes somewhere it goes somewhere, if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. It’s about making choices. I think that’s the difference between bands that can get around, and bands that kind of just noodle. It’s a thing of saying things with a period on the end, rather than a question mark. “You said this, so this is what I say.” You keep making things happen. And sometimes it’s complete dogshit, and that’s totally fine. That’s the point of it, that it can go either way, and I think people respond to that. I think that’s why people come, because it could be the greatest thing ever, or the worst thing ever, and they think, “I want to see which way it goes today.” As long as everybody’s making choices, it’s always going to be a good outcome.
MH: One thing I think is interesting is that Holly started out doing the tribute thing, and I remember asking her about writing her own music, which Ghost Light has now given her the opportunity to do. But this acoustic project and now The Capitol Theatre Show will almost kind of bring both of you guys back full circle.
TH: Yeah, you know The Capitol and the Dead are both that common thread between us two. When we were asked about doing this, we just said absolutely. For me, the thing that makes it super not a problem is that…as long as we’re still chasing original music. And I mean original music, not like, “oh I’m going to take music that’s pretty been written a thousand times and put different words over it,” or something. No, like original songs and doing original things. As long as we’re using our other time to doing that, and contributing to the lexicon, I think it’s great. It’s great that we get to have the best of both worlds.
MH: This will be another one of several different Dead related projects you’ve been involved with. I think there’s something to be said for the fact of people coming to see you tribute The Grateful Dead in not just one but multiple different projects.
TH: I mean it’s certainly flattering, I will say that. It’s an honor that people care. And we’re lucky enough that with that songbook, you can keep it fresh, as has been proven over the last fifty years. Those songs are living documents that are always going to be growing, and as long as you’re helping that, and keeping it moving in a forward direction, it’s a wonderful thing, and I’m glad to be doing it.
MH: Thinking outside the Dead, were there any particular music artists that you and the other members of Ghost Light have bonded over?
TH: The fun thing about Ghost Light, I think, is it’s five pretty different points of view. I mean, yes, there’s bands that we all agree on. Like Radiohead is fucking Radiohead. They’re the Beatles of our time, and The Beatles are The Beatles of everybody’s time. There’s certain truths you can’t escape.
But there is like…we do a couple of Rolling Stones tunes, and it’s not that I don’t like The Stones, but I wouldn’t have brought that it, and Holly did, and that’s awesome. I brought in a Derek and The Dominoes tune that we do, that probably nobody else in the band would’ve brought that in. Raina brought in this song called “Wild One” that’s just this awesome punk tune, that none of us would’ve thought of. Scotty brought in “Head over Heels” from Tears for Fears.
We all have our own place we’re coming from. That’s the thing that turns me on about the band, and about people in general. It’s a weird time we’re in that most people, through either social media or in social situations, they surround themselves with sicophants. Surrounding yourself with people that are just going to say yes, or agree with what you’re saying, or have the exact same tastes as you. Where it’s like, “well if you don’t listen to what I listen to or believe what I believe, then I can’t hang out with you.” And I get it, but it’s also bullshit, and you’re not going to bring anything new to the world, by a bunch of people just agreeing with each other. And this is bigger than just music I guess, but differing opinions need to touch each other to create a new opinion, to bring understanding and to broaden horizons.
Like, everybody in the band, we all got together because we all love Neil Diamond, okay? And, more than likely, we’re going to end up making a shitty version of Neil Diamond. Which, A) nobody needs, because nobody needs a shitty version of Neil Diamond, and B) Neil Diamond already exists, you know what I mean? I think, putting together this group of people, the fact that everybody is coming from five pretty different places, that’s what’s making this band good, and that’s why people are reacting to it. It’s not something that just like what already exists.
MH: I feel that we’ve reached a bit of an influx, in the sense that there’s so many bands out there today, doing the jam thing, but it’s getting harder to do that jam thing without sounding unoriginal.
TH: Well I think it is easy to do that, if you just work at it. That’s the thing. It’s harder, obviously. But who the fuck said it was supposed to be easy? If it’s easy then you get a lot of what’s going on, which is just a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy. If you look at JRAD, that’s five super different folks, trying to sound original every time they walk on stage. You know, for being a band that covers the Grateful Dead, I feel like we’re more original than a lot of bands going, because we openly say, “listen, the songs aren’t ours, but the jams are.” You have some of these jambands that claim to have original music, but it’s a Phish song with different words, or executed poorly.
And it’s hard, it’s not easy. When we were writing this Ghost Light record, I was banging my head against the wall for months and months. That’s the nature of the gig, you have to try and navigate through an ocean of stuff that’s already happened. This Ghost Light record, there’s a lot of tracks where I just think, this sounds like us. I’m really proud of it.
Premier northeast music festival The Governors Ball returns to Randall’s Island in New York City in just a few weeks, taking place from Friday, June 1 through Sunday, June 3, 2018. GA weekend and single day tickets for each day are still available, but maybe not for long as various ticket packages, such as Sunday and Saturday GA tickets, are very close to being sold out. In just seven years running, Governors Ball has made a fast ascension to becoming one of New York City’s most anticipated annual music events, featuring a more savory lineup of artists with each passing summer. NYS Music will be there to bring you coverage of the 2018 festival.
The biggest news surrounds the festival’s heavy headliners. Rock virtuoso Jack White will be making a return to the event, having not played there since 2014. Last time White graced the Gov Ball stage, they matched his set with a same time performance from Skrillex. This year the tossup is with James Blake, the pianist, producer and soul singer who’s won the hearts of everybody, from Beyonce to Rick Rubin. If you haven’t heard, Blake just released a collaboration with Andre3000. Get on it.
Saturday night, in turn, will be capped off by a real rock gem. As a celebration of the ten-year anniversary of their second studio release, The 59 Sound, The Gaslight Anthem will be performing the record in its entirety. Full performances of albums are a live music treat that fans should experience if the opportunity presents itself.
Then there’s the act we’re all probably buzzing about, Silk City. Diplo, reigning favorite of the electronic dance music world, and Mark Ronson, the producer that can do no wrong, have teamed up to make a new collaborative disco album. Governors Ball is your chance to see the duo make their first ever live performance. Travis Scott, who has collaborated with Diplo’s project Major Lazer and also shared the stage with Ronson at last year’s Gov Ball, will be dropping his set immediately after Silk City—so this is keying up to be a weekend for Governor’s fans to remember.
But if there’s anyone that’s truly taking over the festival spotlight, it’s Eminem. Boston Calling, Bonnaroo, Firefly, and of course Gov Ball — the famed rapper is headlining them all. The last occurring slot time on Sunday night is reserved solely for him, so you can bet pretty much all eyes at the Ball will be on Slim.
As in past years, Gov Ball will be showcasing some of the most buzz-worthy, up-and-coming bands currently making noise across the indie, pop, rock and hip hop circuits. Across each of these mainstream genres, artists can go from fresh on the scene to topping the charts in no time. And on the way there, many of them seem to pass through Randall’s Island with dynamite festival sets. At this year’s Gov Ball, artists rocking this category are the likes of alt rockers Wolf Alice, country sensation Margo Price, breakout singer Billie Ellish and more. Special mention here: Belly. If you want to talk about a comeback, the Rhode Island-based alt punk band reunited in 2016 and, this month, just released their first album in twenty years, Dove, and it rocks.
That doesn’t even cover all of the musical goodness flooding Randall’s Island in three weeks. Hip hop supergroup N.E.R.D and NYC’s own Yeah Yeah Yeah’s are two other highly anticipated sets, given that they both have made huge reunions in the past year, while most others might be excited for the recently announced special set by Shawn Mendes.
The party will keep going for some after-hours concerts as part of The Governors Ball After Dark. Comprised mostly of the acts performing at the festival, this series of shows kicks off Thursday, May 30 and goes through the weekend at venues throughout the boroughs. While a handful of the shows are sold out, some tickets are still available. Check out the full lineup for After Dark here.
Aside from the music, Gov Ball is once again featuring close to 60 NYC-area food vendors with plenty of delicious tastes for everybody, including gluten-free and vegan options. More “deats” on the eats can be found here.
Tickets are nearly sold out for Saturday and Sunday, with some available for Friday here (it will sell out). Plenty of info on how to get to the festival and FAQs on how to have the best Gov Ball experience can be found on their website.
This past weekend, Amy Helm kicked off her second annual Woodshed Residency Tour, a revolving run of shows that is split between three venues across New York State and Massachusetts. Night one was held at Albany NY’s The Hollow Bar, a return venue for Helm, and the ebullient and groovy kickoff show set the bar for the whole trip at a lofty height.
Each stop on the Woodshed Tour will feature guests that Helm has procured from her ever expanding roster of musical friends and colleagues. Rocking night one at The Hollow Bar was The London Souls guitarist Tash Neal, Chris Robinson Brotherhood bassist Jeff Hill, Woodstock-based guitarist and keyboardist Connor Kennedy, and Brooklyn-based Yuval Lion on drums. Just like the late Levon, her old man, Amy Helm seems to have an affinity for not only surrounding herself with incredible artists, but for getting the most out of them on stage. Together, the four-piece made for a seriously airtight jam session that on the one side played Helm’s originals very professionally, but on the other hand had a lot of daring and creative fun with a slew of cover tunes.
But Helm first dove into the former, offering confident and well received versions of songs from her first and latest album, Didn’t It Rain. “Odetta” and “Didn’t it Rain” opened the evening with a grand, almost spiritual feel. Later on, “Rescue Me” from this same album hit off with The Hollow crowd as much if not more than any other tune of the evening.
The show also included a whole mess of other covers, which as Helm has described is another element naturally built into the essence of the Woodshed Tour—Helm’s background has given her an affinity for tributing the rich and expansive americana songbook that makes up her musical universe. Every cover at the Hollow was appreciated in full, as Helm and her jam session put a shine on all of them. One of the first was a Mary Goshen cover upon which the band flexed out a breezy little jam, that eventually cascaded into an “I Know You Rider.” The apex of the evening clearly revealed itself after this in the uptempo version of “Will The Circle Be Unbroken,” for which Helm and crew gathered around one microphone. It imbued a stripped-down feel to the buzz of the night until Neal put a cool, Dick-Dale-style guitar solo on it.
One of the strongest delivered covers was a rousing take on “Michigan” by The Milk Carton Kids—a terrific songwriting duo of brothers out of California. The end of this one featured a frenetic and trilling guitar solo from Kennedy. Other gems included a Ronnie Hawkins tune, sung by, in Helm’s words, “one of the greatest singers of all time” (Richard Manuel), and a bubbly take on The Pointer Sister’s “Yes We Can Can,” which Helm clearly was hip-hop style verses.
For sure, Helm has implied challenges of stage fright throughout her past, but today it seems that on stage any supposed nervousness washes away pretty quickly. Every single time the music revved back up, almost uncontrollably Helm was persuaded by the energy of the band and the responsive crowd, and repeatedly took command of it all. She became the center of her little musical melting pot, and shined as a lead singer, as a troubadour, as a stage performer.
Helm and her bandmates hung out afterwards around The Hollow’s bar, trading stories with fans and taking photos. It encompassed the spirit that seems to be at the center of this Woodshed Tour, and The Hollow seems to be a no-brainer, choice spot for a tour of this musically rare nature.
The tour continues this Sunday night with another set at The Hollow, among dates at other venues such as Marlboro’s The Falcon, Northampton’s Parlor Room, and NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall.
Primus and Mastodon are hitting the road together this year for a huge summer tour. Stretching non-step from the beginning of May to early July, the tour will circumvent virtually the entire country.
And talk about a great first show to kick things off! On May 6, the two bands will rage Red Rocks Amphitheater for what should be an especially memorable night. The majority of May will take them through the south, to venues in cities like Dallas, Nashville, Alabama and Georgia, before late May and early June starts their northeast leg. Along with dates in Portland, Asbury Park, Providence and others, they will play three New York venues: Artpark Amphitheater in Lewiston, Cool Insuring Arena in Glen Falls, and Ford Amphitheater at Coney Island Boardwalk.
The rest of June will take them back out towards the midwest and west, from Columbus to Chicago, to Indianapolis and then farther out to spots like Bonner, Montana, Seattle Washington, and Bend, Oregon. Primus and Mastodon wrap it all up on July 7 at Comerica Theatre in Phoenix, AZ.
The pairing of these two hard rock titans should be a dream matchup for fans of either band. Primus will be supporting their 2017 release, the storybook concept album The Desaturating Seven. Mastodon is also coming off its own 2017 release, Emperor in Sand. Both albums have received ample praise across the major music news sources, and have certainly resulted in some tremendous recent shows from each artist.
Tickets are now available for all summer shows, and you can get them by visiting either Primus or Mastodon’s websites.
Primus and Mastodon 2018 Summer Tour Schedule:
May 6 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheater
May 8 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion
May 10 – Dallas, TX – Southside Ballroom
May 11 – Austin, TX – Austin 360 Amphitheater
May 12 – Rogers, AR – Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion
May 14 – Birmingham, AL – BJCC Concert Hall
May 15 – Nashville, TN – Nashville Municipal Auditorium
May 16 – Atlanta, GA – Fox Theater
May 18 – Portsmouth, VA – Portsmouth Pavilion
May 19 – Charlotte, NC – Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre
May 20 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater
May 22 – Reading, PA – Diamond Credit Union Theater @ Santander May 23 – Lewiston, NY – Artpark Amphitheater May 25 – Glen Falls, NY – Cool Insuring Arena
May 26 – Providence, RI – Bold Point Park
May 27 – Portland, ME – TBA
May 29 – Boston, MA – Blue Hills Bank Pavilion
May 30 – Philadelphia, PA – Penn’s Landing – Festival Pier
June 1 – Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony Summerstage
June 2 – Baltimore, MD – Pier 6 Pavilion June 3 – Brooklyn, NY – Ford Amphitheater @ Coney Island Boardwalk
June 5 – Columbus, OH – Express Live! Outdoor Amphitheatre
June 6 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
June 8 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE
June 9 – Sterling Heights, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheater at Freedom Hill
June 10 – Indianapolis, IN – Farmer’s Bureau Insurance Lawn at White River State Park
June 12 – Cincinnati, OH – PNC Pavilion at Riverbend Music Center
June 14 – Minneapolis, MN – MYTH LIVE
June 15 – Bonner Springs, KS – Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
June 16 – Camdenton, MO – Ozarks Amphitheater
June 18 – Lincoln, NE – Pinewood Bowl Theater
June 21 – Bonner, MT – Kettlehouse Amphitheater
June 22 – Seattle, WA – Marymoor Park
June 23 – Bend, OR – Les Schwab Amphitheater
June 25 – Troutdale, OR – Edgefield
June 28 – Avila Beach, CA – Avila Beach Resort Amphitheater
June 29 – Berkeley, CA – The Greek Theatre
June 30 – Lincoln, CA – Thunder Valley Resort Casino
July 2 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Great Salt Air – Outdoors
July 3 – Las Vegas, NV – Downtown Event Center
July 5 – Los Angeles, CA The Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley
July 6 – San Diego, CA – Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theater
July 7 – Phoenix, AZ – Comerica Theatre
And talk about a great first show to kick things off! On May 6, the two bands will rage Red Rocks Amphitheater for what should be an especially memorable night. The majority of May will take them through the south, to venues in cities like Dallas, Nashville, Alabama and Georgia, before late May and early June starts their northeast leg. Along with dates in Portland, Asbury Park, Providence and others, they will play three New York venues: Artpark Amphitheater in Lewiston, Cool Insuring Arena in Glen Falls, and Ford Amphitheater at Coney Island Boardwalk.