The Friday after Valentine’s Day at Funk n Waffles Music Hall homemade hearts hung from the ceiling and decorated the stage. It was a night built for the love of the local music scene. The Moho Collective set the stage and Overhand Sam would close it down, but not before inviting a bunch of friends to help with the celebrating.
With a name like The Moho Collective, you might believe this band would bring a stageful of members. But as just a trio, the “collective” in their name might better describe their influence-rich sound. The trio, Kurt Johnson on guitar and pedal steel, Justin Rister on bass, and Ryan Barclay on drums and percussion, “collect” musical styles from across the globe, combining them in new and mystifying ways. Their hour-long set travelled to Australia, with Barclay laying down a low drone on the didgeridoo on “Bamal,” Mexico/Latin America with the fiery Satana-esque guitar shredder “Wenindee,” the Far East with the pedal steel plinking groove of “Chikyu Hakken,” before finishing up in Canada with their stirring instrumental rendition of Neil Young’s “Cowgirl in the Sand.”
Through it all they explored heavy rock, soulful funk, jazzy blues and tripped-out effects-laden spaciness. If you like music that shakes your hips, pumps your fist and makes your head spin, The Moho Collective is for you. They’re promising two new albums this year and probably already have more shows on the calendar than they played in all of 2017 so there should be ample opportunity to enjoy their worldly and otherworldly grooves this year.
Johnson’s guitar mate from Maybird, Sam Snyder, aka Overhand Sam, is even more enigmatic to first-time listeners. As is implied in the name, he plays guitar “overhand.” It looks odd at first and is met with many quizzical looks from first timers. Playing for friends, family and longtime fans, there weren’t any surprised faces Friday night. Snyder lends his hand to many bands in the Rochester area, gives lessons and records/produces local music. He used his set as a bit of a showcase for some of these projects.
Backed by bassist Benton Sillick and drummer Aaron Mika from Anamon, Snyder ran through tracks off his 2017 release Longer Legs. Songs ran the gamut from melodic punk to new wave to twang rock, with the trio format giving Snyder’s unique guitar stylings plenty of room to shine.
Midway through their set, Anamon front-woman Ana Emily Monaco was invited up to play a pair of new songs she’s been recording with Snyder’s help, who also plays in her band. Johnson joined on the pedal steel to lend a rich backwash of country twang to her lilting mid-tempo rock.
Next, Snyder invited his guitar student Matt Treadwell and drummer Joe Parker to premier a couple songs of their own, in a project tentatively named Penthorse. In a bit of a 180 from Anamon, these songs had a spastic herky-jerky energy, afro-beat inflected sound and near-spoken word vocals.
The set finished up back with the original trio playing more from Longer Legs, with a lively cover of the Kinks’ “Everbody’s Gonna Be Happy” thrown in for good measure. Yet more friends helped close out the night, with the McCarthy brothers from new-to-town August West joining on vocals, and Johnson back up to play some Omnichord. The band laid down yet another premier, ripping through the infectiously catchy “Lalalazy” to close out what was a lovely night showcasing the talent of Rochester.
I Set My Friends On Fire has come a long way in the past decade. The post-hardcore band that started with two teens and a laptop and has evolved into a full band with members from across the U.S. NYS Music caught up with guitarist Nate Blasdell and bassist Connor Mitchener as they were readying to take off for the tour to celebrate the 10th anniversary of ISMFOF’s debut album You Can’t Spell Slaughter Without Laughter.
photo: Daniel Finkelstein
Paula Cummings: How did you get your start in I Set My Friends On Fire?
Nate Blasdell: I played in a band called The Bunny The Bear. I was pretty young, 18 years old, just out of high school. I learned a lot from that band. It was everything I thought I wanted. We were signed to a label, doing well on tours. We had a booking agent. On the outside, that looks awesome. But there’s a lot of awful stuff that happened. We burned bridges, we made mistakes. We were kids. I was considering what I wanted to do with my life and how I wasn’t a free-spirited 18 year-old looking to run away anymore. I just wanted to play music with people I cared about. Matt Mehana and I started talking and one day I asked if he wanted to get ISMFOF rolling again. We went back and forth for eight months. One day, I was like, “Let’s make a deal, if I can book us a tour in Russia, you’ll start ISMFOF up again and we’ll start touring.” Twelve hours later we had a contract and the plane tickets were fully paid… You have to be crazy to be a musician.
Connor Mitchener: You have to be a masochist.
NB: You have to make a lot of sacrifices. It’s hard to maintain relationships. We sleep in a van, from sleeping in hotels. We went from having plane tickets paid for you to having to front for plane tickets. So we started to lose money and we went through member changes before things fell into place. We had this strand of two months of touring that were horrendous. Not just financially but emotionally. We were in Russia and we all got sick.
CM: I missed a show.
NB: Our drummer got robbed of his camera. My Uber driver ran someone over.
CM: I almost got detained.
NB: He almost got kicked out of the country because his visa expired. We saw money lost from our hotel room.
CM: Literally all the money gone.
NB: All the money we made from tour we lost on our last day in Russia.
CM: That was the kick in the gut.
NB: The biggest thing about that is we flew from Russia to New York and had to play a show in New Jersey that night. We ended that tour with a smile on our faces. Everyone was still laughing, still making the best of it. That’s when we knew we had the right lineup. I think we’ve finally got it right. We’ve all been through the struggle. Instead of being jaded, it makes us that much more hungry and more appreciative of whatever comes our way.
PC: How many countries and continents have you played?
NB: It was thirty last year. Then we did Estonia, Latvia and Sweden. So thirty three. We did Asia, Europe, North America and Australia. Russia was awesome. We didn’t expect to be treated so well there. People were waiting at the train station. We couldn’t walk outside the show. They were really appreciative. We can have that experience, then we can come home and be completely normal people. I think it’s cool because you can experience it, but it’s not your full life.
PC: What was the feedback from your teachers and school counselors when you wanted to pursue a career in music?
NB: I grew up in a suburban area. I came from a good family too. There were expectations. I went through a lot in high school. I used to be all about sports. As I fell out of love with sports, I fell in love with music. Teachers and counselors I had thought I was crazy. Not only teachers and counselors, but some friends of parents and some extended family. I got lucky that I have the most supportive family every. My father has a good job. He saw that money doesn’t buy happiness, and he wanted me to be happy. I went to college when I turned 21. I’m glad I went back. I think that anyone who had a tough time in high school shouldn’t rule out college. It’s crazy. I work as a substitute teacher now alongside of some of the teachers who told me to give up. I had an orchestra teacher tell me I was a failure at music when I was in 6th grade and that I should give up violin. When you tell a kid something like that…
CM: At the most vulnerable age.
NB: It’s funny how that stuff comes around. I had some caring teachers who wanted what was best for me, but I had some who were like, “You have no idea what you’re doing.” We went out and found ourselves.
CM: We learned a lot more than we ever would in school.
NB: It took a couple years to find ourselves. We learned a lot from touring. Every kid has a different plan. I highly advise finishing high school. I know it’s a battle for some people, but once you get that piece of paper, it’s like your life is about to get a thousand times better.
CM: Like Dobby getting a sock.
NB: It will make your life that much better. You can hang it on the wall and no one can take that away. I went on tour thinking I was going to tour for the rest of my life, and I came back as a teacher. That’s one of the reasons I became a teacher is to push kids in the direction of their own greatness instead of society’s standards of greatness, and find themselves. College is always there. It isn’t for everyone, but I encourage people to try it. But there’s no time frame on it.
PC: Connor, did you have similar experiences with teachers and counselors in high school?
CM: Oh, yeah. I come from a way smaller place than Nate did. It’s pretty country. I remember getting called to the counselor’s office to do financial aid. I’m like, “I’m not going to school right away, so I don’t need to do this.” They were like, “Yes you do, because you’re dumb not to.” It sucked. High school sucked. That place just didn’t get it. People in my town never leave. There were teachers who were like “I had your parents when they were in school.”
PC: How supportive was your family?
CM: So my mom was stoked. When Nate called me, he was like, “Buy a bass, learn to play bass and come join me.” We were homies. I was like, “cool.” I go home and tell my mom and she was ok. I was a cross country and track runner. I had scholarships. I go to my dad and say, “I’m going to play music,” and he told me I was pissing away my future. They saw where this led and my dad comes to out of state shows now. They were concerned. It was random. It wasn’t a plan I ever had because I never thought I could do it. Honestly, at face value, our story is kind-of ridiculous.
NB: We both grew up in good families where there was a lot of trust. It’s cool because they’ve been supportive. There was a point where they were worried, but now there are instances like my dad will be at work and say, “My son is in a band.” They’ll ask what band, and he’ll say I Set My Friends On Fire, and they’ll be like, “No way!” Our dads brag about us.
CM: It started like, “My kid plays in a band. He doesn’t really do anything,” and now it’s prideful to say.
PC: What advice would you give to 18 year-old you?
NB: Look at the bigger picture. Don’t be blindsided by the initial look of something. And don’t let hate affect you so much. People are going to hate. I don’t let it affect me at a personal level. Don’t get caught up in what everyone else is doing. Everyone has a different plan. You can’t compare your success to others. Try not to get attached to your idols on an emotional level.
CM: Heroes become human.
NB: Who they portray themselves as and who they are is way different.
Photo: Andrew Parker-West
PC: What is your favorite lyric on You Can’t Spell Slaughter Without Laughter?
NB: Matt’s lyrics are insane. “Don’t drink and park, accidents in cars cause population” from Beauty Is In The Eyes Of The Beerholder.
CB: The end of WTFWJD, “Let me get a sip of what you want me to say, I am so thirsty.” I love the end of that.
NB: IMFOF lyrics are more meaningful than they appear. You can’t deny that we’re a sexual and violent band with content.
CB: It’s more wacky than violent.
NB: The thing that Matt does that’s really cool is that he has lyrics that appear sexual or violent but they are part of a way bigger meaning. It’s not like he’s writing it to be edgy.
As I was thanking them for the interview, they mentioned that they will be doing an interview called ‘How Well Do You Know Your Bandmate?’ while on tour. I threw a few practice questions at them. Having known each other for seven years and spent so much time together, they nailed the answers. In case you were wondering… their favorite restaurants on tour are In-N-Out Burger, Chipotle, Cook Out and Chic-Fil-A. Connor’s favorite beverages are Code Red Mountain Dew and Dr. Pepper. And Nate doesn’t eat candy often, but when he does, his favorite is Lemonheads.
Tickets are on sale now for the I Set My Friends On Fire on their 10 Years of Slaughter Tour. They still maintain their MySpace page, as well as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Find music by I Set My Friends on Fire, from their debut You Can’t Spell Slaughter Without Laughter to their latest single “My Uzi Holds A Hundred Round Conscience” on iTunes and Spotify.
The Hollow Bar and Kitchen was in a New York state of mind on Friday night. Albany progressive rock quartet Ampevene, celebrating the release of its new album Ephemagoria and Brooklyn-bred Cousin Earth threw down the perfect blend of Led Zeppelin-esque energy and a quirkiness in the Frank Zappa vein at Albany’s leading rock club.
Kicking things off with “Rometheu,” Ampevene put on display its prowess for technical proficiency, led by guitarist Gabe Stallman and bassist Mack Hogan trading runs. Hogan’s thumping rhythm was a constant throughout the group’s set. “Tracalysis” was followed up with an all out rock ‘n roll drum solo from Brian Fahey.
Pulling from one of their main influences, Ampevene launched into the chunky opening chords of the Nirvana mega hit “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Stallman added a unique spin to his short solo, making the song take a psychedelic spin. “Goliath” preceded “Tumultous,” the latter of which morphed into a crowd pleasing segment featuring Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused.” The jam saw the crowd grow a little rowdy and the band responded with the highlight of their set. “New Song” and “Valencia” closed out the set to a roaring applause from the band’s friends and family in attendance.
Up next was Cousin Earth, playing their first headlining show at the venue. The five-piece group melds together a wide array of musical variety, proved right out of the gate with a searing take on the “Zelda” theme song. Joey Calfa, on his trusted electric ukulele, showed his prowess on the unconventional rock instrument by transforming each note into a blend of guitar and ukulele.
“Zelda Sarias Song” > “Think of all the Things” > “Tale Spin Theme Song” was next, as Calfa and bassist Corey Feldman, who plays on a Kala U Bass the size of a ukulele, continued to feed of each other’s energy. Tara Lawton, who also plays the melodica, and Terry Brennan held down the vocals with the confidence of a seasoned opera singer, giving the band a sometimes Vaudeville-like feel.
(Side note: I first saw Cousin Earth a little more than three years ago, just as they were transitioning into their new name from Ukulelian. They opened up a small festival and the crowd was sparse to say the least. I was unsure what this band was going to be like given the irreverent instrumental selections, but the band blew me away that afternoon. Since then, Cousin Earth has been on a steady upward climb, and their headlining slot at the Hollow was proof of their professional work ethic.)
“Dancing Fool,” “Keep it Greasy,” “Super Fun Laser Beams” and “Alive” allowed each member to stand out at times, while also showcasing their incredible improvisational skills. Drummer Nate Searing held it all together throughout the night, while at the same time providing a loose and fun atmosphere.
The funniest part of the night is when they burst into a cover of actress Natalie Portman’s rap from Saturday Night Live. Attendees sang along and the band had some trouble containing laughter on stage.
The closing segment of “Blisters,” “Keep On”>”Scuttle Buttin’”>”Little Wing”>”Capricorn on the Cob” saw Calfa switch between his ukulele and his cherry red Fender Stratocaster to do his best Jimi Hendrix impression.
All told, this show was great in every aspect. As both Ampevene and Cousin Earth continue to ascend and grow, both groups still put all of their effort into a pleasing live experience.
Ampevene setlist
Rometheu, Tracalysis, Drum jam, Smells like Teen Spirit, Goliath, Tumultuous*, New Song, Valencia
*with Dazed and Confused jam
Cousin Earth setlist
Zelda Main Theme> Zelda Sarias song > Think of all the things > Tale Spin Theme, Dancing Fool > Keep it Greasy, Super Fun Laser Beams, Alive, Womp > Natalie Portman Rap (SNL) > Womp > Space Worms (future folk) > Tarantella Napolitana, Spiritual Spun, Blisters, Keep On ( show me the numbers, Ian), Scuttle Buttin’ > Little Wing > Capricorn on the Cob
On January 15, dace-pop trio YACHT took the stage in front of an uncharacteristically enthusiastic crowd of Monday-nighters at The Great Scott in Boston, MA. The show began with an ominous tome from a synthesizer and a short recorded monologue before lead singer Claire L. Evans shot across the stage and smashed any early expectations of a quiet evening to pieces.
However, before YACHT got down with everybody, local R&B man Ed Balloon and his band got the small bar up to speed with a buoyant and athletic performance. Before his final number, Ed taught the audience some crowd harmonies, “she’ll be poppin’ it, poppin’ it,” that got most everyone moving and singing along.
YACHT’s opening number of the evening, “Night Crawler,” was a distinctive and undulating track that seemed to also be a crowd favorite. The track had danceability, but it had clear punk roots, especially sung in Claire’s sassy and dramatic vocals. With the second track, “Trap Karaoke,” Claire took a step down from the stage to join the crowd on their level and even offered the microphone to some of the hardcore fans who were singing along with every word.
The rest of YACHT’s performance bounded up and down with strong synth leads, consistent four to the floor beats and a powerful vocal performance from Claire. Jona Becholt, the groups founder, spent most of his time behind the synthesizer and trigger pads with Rob Kieswetter, but he made the occasional dive to the front with a microphone in hand to back up Claire. At times the songs blended together, but overall, there was a a consistent ebb and flow to the performance.
What the music lacked in variability, Claire made up for with her wild performance, theatrics with the band, and her powerful comments including calls of, “Femininity is a a prison and we all know it!” and “The apocalypse is coming, it’s not a question of if at this point, it’s only a question of when!” to which the crowd shouted back their approval. The show proved to be a point of true levity for the fans to begin their weeks with.
Nada Surf has announced the March 2 release of Standing at the Gates: The Songs of Nada Surf’s Let Go, a tribute album that honors the 15th anniversary of the band’s 2002 release. The album features a diverse list of artists covering Let Go, with proceeds benefiting the ACLU and The Pablove Foundation.
https://soundcloud.com/nadasurf/08-the-way-you-wear-your-head Standing At The Gates: The Songs of Nada Surf’s Let Go track list:
1. Blizzard of ’77 (Manchester Orchestra)
2. Happy Kid (Ron Gallo)
3. Inside of Love (The Texas Gentlemen)
4. Fruit Fly (Ed Harcourt)
5. Blonde on Blonde (Rogue Wave)
6. Hi-Speed Soul (The Long Winters)
7. Killian’s Red (Holly Miranda)
8. The Way You Wear Your Head (Charly Bliss)
9. Neither Heaven Nor Space (William Tyler)
10. La Pour Ca (Adia Victoria)
11. Treading Water (Eyelids)
12. Paper Boats (Aimee Mann)
13. No Quick Fix (Victoria Bergsman)
NadaSurf kicks off a 15 show tour celebrating Let Go‘s 15th anniversary. The shows are billed as ‘An Evening with NadaSurf, Celebrating the 15th Anniversary of Let Go.’ Each night, the band will perform Let Go, take a break, and return for a second set. Tour dates can be found below. For more info visit Nadasurf.com
3.07.2018 – Black Cat – Washington, DC
3.08.2018 – Brooklyn Steel – Brooklyn, NY
3.09.2018 – World Cafe Live – Philadelphia, PA
3.10.2018 – Brighton Music Hall – Boston, MA
3.11.2018 – Horseshoe Tavern – Toronto, ON
3.13.2018 – Metro – Chicago, IL
3.14.2018 – Fine Line Music Cafe – Minneapolis, MN
5.9.2018 – Neptune Theatre – Seattle, WA 5.10.2018 – Wonder Ballroom – Portland, OR 5.11.2018 – Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA 5.12.2018 – Teragram Ballroom – Los Angeles, CA 5.14.2018 – Belly Up – San Diego, CA 5.17.2018 – Granada Theater – Dallas, TX 5.18.2018 – 3Ten at ACL – Austin, TX 5.21.2018 – Terminal West – Atlanta, GA
alt-J will be criss-crossing the globe all year, hitting the U.S. in April and June. The first leg of the North American Tour takes place in April on the West Coast and includes Coachella.
They come back to hit up the East Coast in June, playing Forest Hills Stadium in Queens on June 15 and headlining Mountain Jam, which takes place that same weekend. Of note, Forest Hills will be the largest US venue alt-J has headlined, and will be piped out through an immersive sound system which envelops the audience in the audio experience. Tickets are on sale now for some shows on the North American Tour, including Mountain Jam and Forest Hills Stadium.
alt-J are Joe Newman, Gus Unger-Hamilton and Thom Green. With three successful albums to date, alt-J’s current project involves collaborating with other artists to reprise and re-imagine 2017’s Relaxer. No word yet on what the concept entails or when it will be available. Follow alt-J for updates.
TOUR DATES: April 7 – Denver, CO – Fillmore Auditorium April 10 – Magna, UT – The Great Saltair
April 12 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren
April 14 – Indio, CA – Coachella
April 16 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl April 18 – San Francisco, CA – Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
April 20 – Las Vegas, NV – The Chelsea Theatre – The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas April 21 – Indio, CA – Coachella
April 23 – Davis, CA – UC Davis – Pavilion at ARC
April 24 – Eugene, OR – Cuthbert Amphitheater
April 25 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
June 6 – St. Louis, MO – Peabody Opera House
June 7 – Chicago, IL – Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
June 8 – Louisville, KY – Iroquois Amphitheater
June 7-10 – Manchester, TN – Bonnaroo
June 11 – Charlotte, NC – Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre
June 12 – Pittsburgh, PA – Stage AE
June 14 – Dover, DE – Firefly
June 15 – Hunter, NY – Mountain Jam June 15-17 – Forest Hills, NY – Forest Hills Stadium
June 18 – Portland, ME – Thompson’s Point
June 20 – Toronto, ON – Echo Beach
June 24 – Monterrey, MEX – Teatro Banamex
Syracuse’s The Black River, led by singer-songwriter Mike Powell, has released its first album, entitled Classic Universe. The soulful quintet, who take their name from the North Country river that passes by Powell’s childhood home, came together just over one year ago and have been quickly making their name known throughout New York.
The album was produced by Jeff Aderman at Utica’s Big Blue North Studio and exhibits The Black River putting an impressive foot forward in its debut. In the year since the band debuted, they have opened for such artists as The Sadies, Shooter Jennings, The Trews, Mondo Cozmo and Eric Tessmer. A powerful afternoon set at last year’s moe.down also won the band new fans.
“One of the things we always talk about when we are sculpting these songs is to be sure to listen to one another. That may sound like a very simple concept but when you’re creating a collective sound it’s important that no player be on a sonic island. We aim to be one connected land mass of sound,” Powell said when asked about the goal of his new band. “I have surrounded myself and my songs with monster players that could easily step out and flex their muscles at anytime but all of us understand the importance of doing what is best for the song first.”
Powell’s assessment of this band is certainly true. All come from different musical backgrounds to forge a sound that isn’t easy to categorize. Longtime Powell collaborator, guitarist John Hanus’ metal chops and experimental solos add an unexpected yet welcome edge to Powell’s personal songwriting and the soulful force created by keyboardist Shane Kelsen and the rhythm section of Joe Bell and Dom Scicchitano. The band’s frequent live performances have helped hone its unique sound over the past year and the band is gelling as a unit at the perfect time.
To celebrate the release of the new album, the Black River recently performed the inaugural live session for Syracuse radio show Soundcheck at SubCat Studios. You can view that peformance below. The show, hosted by long time Syracuse radio personality and SAMMYS Hall of Famer, Dave Frisina, has been on the air since 1979. It showcases local and regional musicians each Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. on 105.9 The Rebel.
Frisina’s new series is called Live @ SubCat Studios and will feature a different local act performing live in front of a studio audience each month.
The Black River’s Classic Universe is available now on all streaming platforms. Recent performances have included stops at the del Lago Resort and Casino in Waterloo and Three Heads Brewing Company in Rochester. They’re also scheduled to perform at Al’s Wine and Whiskey Lounge in Syracuse in March and Funk ‘N Waffles Syracuse in April. Follow The Black River on Facebook or at their website for information on upcoming performances.
Rhiannon Payne knew she wanted to be a music superstar since the very beginning of her life.
“I was 3 years old when someone told me ‘Hey kid you can sing,’” said the Syracuse native. “So that was kind of it for me.”
She’s ready to take her career to the next level with a new album and tour planned this summer. The album, which she hasn’t titled yet, will include 10 tracks, and she hopes to have it released by early June with a two-month tour to coincide.
Payne will share her talents at Funk ‘N Waffles on Clinton Street in Syracuse at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 9.
EARLY EXPERIENCE
Payne explored her musical talent often growing up and she worked hard pursuing her career. She took music classes and participated in chorus, but it was a band that guided her.
“I was in a band for three years, and that really helped me realize what I wanted to do,” she said.
From age 13-16 Payne sang for the pop-punk/alternative band Nextake. She familiarized herself with the stage through singing and playing local venues.
“I love performing in front of people,” she said.
Nextake performed at local venues around Syracuse, and one big feat Payne was proud of was opening for The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus at the Westcott Theater in April 2012.
“That was an amazing experience,” she said.
In high school she started buckling down to prepare for the journey ahead.
“I took every opportunity I could to put myself here,” she said. “It was kind of like my accumulation of taking all of the tools and people I had to help me out — I took advantage of everything I had.”
“I met wonderful people there who really knew how to tie and relate what I learned in school to my actual career.”
Payne didn’t want to go to college because she thought it wouldn’t help her career. But she found classes she could apply to singing and help her voice for the long-term. So she pursued a degree from Onondaga Community College and graduated with an associate’s degree in applied science.
NEXT STEPS
Now that Payne honed in on her talents, she is focused on her album and the next steps for her path of success. She hired a manager at the end of last year, she has a producer working on her album, and she also hired a promoter as well.
“My music was beginning to falter because I couldn’t spend time to practice or write,” she said. “It got super overwhelming. I understand why musicians need large teams of people to do what they do.”
She said she wrapped up recording for mostly everything on the album and is going back and forth with the editing process. Shane Patterson is working as the producer out of Hobin Studios in Phoenix, NY.
The album includes eight new songs and two she has already released. “Bedtime Stories” was published in October with a music video. “Through Me” was a song she had produced and released in May 2015.
Payne is shooting for early June to release her album. She is planning to have a huge party and then have a two-month tour lined up around New York and New York City.
She said her ultimate goal is to move to Nashville, to continue developing as an artist.
“I want to get experience writing and collaborating with more musicians,” she said. “I want to learn as much as I can from a large music capital.”
PLAYING STYLE
When it comes to her music, Payne said she likes to play all types of genres.
“No one can really ‘genre-tize’ my music,” she said. “One song will sound jazzy, one will sound like Irish folk.”
While she can play many different instruments, she is often seen with a guitar. At her shows, fans can expect to hear her original songs with some covers added to the setlist.
Since she likes to play all genres, she said she covers anything — giving classic rock, Ariana Grande and Paramore as examples of the variety she includes.
The show at Funk ‘N Waffles will include a set by former Nextake bandmember Dylan Aird. Payne said she is excited for the show and they will perform together for a song during each other’s set.
One last thing about Payne’s name in case it sounded familiar: She was named after the Fleetwood Mac song. And Stevie Nicks did inspire Payne at a young age.
“I saw her rocking on stage and I would say ‘Yup, that’s gonna be me.’”
SEE RHIANNON PAYNE LIVE
WHAT: Rhiannon Payne with Dylan Aird
WHERE: Funk ‘N Waffles 307 Clinton St., Syracuse, NY 13202
The nine-piece funk group Turkuaz played the Cohoes Music Hall in Cohoes, NY Wednesday January 31. This was the group’s first time playing in Cohoes and managed to leave a great impression. No matter if it was your first or tenth time seeing Turkuaz, there was a song for everyone. Just a couple songs into their set, the group played “Mountain,” one of their signatures songs with a long dramatic pause keeping the crowd on their toes.
Throughout the whole show the energy stayed consistantly high. Turkuaz ended the set with “Monkey Fingers.” Lead guitarist Craig Brodhead and Sax player Josh Schwartz traded off solos pushing the song to its limits.
Setlist: Typa-Lika, Mountain, M’Lady, Nightswimming, Snap, Crypto, Fall Asleep, Famous, Holy Ghost, On the Run, 20 Dollar, Slippery People, Habitat, noise, Percy, The Rules, Coast, Don’t Do It, Monkey Fingers
Ponder, a three piece Indie band that started out at SUNY Geneseo, will perform on Saturday, February 3 at Nietzsche’s in Buffalo with The Good Neighbors and Max Muscato & Outer Harbor. This is the first show for Ponder since changing their name (from Ponder the Giraffe) and restructuring their lineup.
After winning a battle of the bands in 2015, Ponder the Giraffe earned the opportunity to open for New Politics in April 2016. When the band graduated in May 2017, Gabriel Birkby (guitar, vocals), Andy Hogan (bass, vocals) and Aaron Murphy (drums) relocated to Buffalo to continue writing, recording, and performing.
While the freedom of college allowed the band to focus almost solely on music, the band came to an understanding that perhaps it was time to move on from the college mentality, and entertained the notion that a re-structuring and re-vamping of the current sound and platform could be advantageous to pursuit of a life of music. Thus, “Ponder” was born. While the band has lost its giraffe, with Aaron Murphy seeking to pursue higher education and moving on as a full-time member, Gabe and Andy plan to soldier on.
The trio performed at Rochester Fringe, with four sets over the last two years at Java’s Cafe, a cozy and eclectic coffee house tucked away on Gibbs Street off of East Avenue, right in the heart of Fringe. Ponder also performed alongside Buffalo’s Aqueous, as well as Jimkata and Space Carnival. The group recorded a four track EP, From The Porch to The Curb and a full length studio album (recorded at Quiet Country Audio), These Words, both of which are available on Spotify and iTunes.
Ponder will be bringing new sounds, instrumentation, and members to the group, including a new (and yet to be officially determined) drummer to the mix, along with friend Paul Sottnik from Buffalo’s “The Everythingness,” on keys. More featured sit-ins from local musicians are planned for shows in the future, and ponder will always be looking for more musicians to share the stage with. Big things are on the way for the newly re-formed Ponder, with show and festival announcements soon to follow.
On Sunday, February 11 at Mohawk Place in Buffalo, Ponder will open up for the eclectic rockers from North Carolina, BIG Something.
https://soundcloud.com/nadasurf/08-the-way-you-wear-your-head
The album was produced by Jeff Aderman at Utica’s 
Throughout the whole show the energy stayed consistantly high. Turkuaz ended the set with “Monkey Fingers.” Lead guitarist Craig Brodhead and Sax player Josh Schwartz traded off solos pushing the song to its limits.
Setlist: Typa-Lika, Mountain, M’Lady, Nightswimming, Snap, Crypto, Fall Asleep, Famous, Holy Ghost, On the Run, 20 Dollar, Slippery People, Habitat, noise, Percy, The Rules, Coast, Don’t Do It, Monkey Fingers
After winning a battle of the bands in 2015, 