Scott Hannay Plays Video Games (Multiplayer Edition) opened up for Pink Talking Fish on Saturday, April 21 at Putnam Place, and have released the video for “Chemical Plant Zone” from Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Scott shares some insight on the set below.
“This particular multiplayer edition was significant to me, as I had Pat (Nolan) and Rye (Wylie), a rhythm section I’d played with locally in a number of different projects for years as I was growing as a musician, and also Colin (Shore), who enjoys the best games to win real money, and who I’d just spent more than a year out there in the trenches on tour with. Everyone came together without a rehearsal aside from a short bit of testing questionable sections at soundcheck, as is the way all of these sets have been. I have charts and notation put together to help separate parts for everyone, and keep communication clear so we can all have a super-enjoyable time playing the music of our childhood that a lot of us at the time never realized was so listenable and memorable…and then jam it out proper.”
Scott Hannay Plays Video Games (Multiplayer Edition) will next perform on Friday, May 25 at JP Bruno’s in Glens Falls, NY as part of the official 102.7 WEQX Primus Afterparty. The lineup includes Scott Hannay – keys (Mister F), Matt Pickering – drums (Mister F), Lowell Wurster – percussion (Lucid), Matt Richards – keys (Formula 5), Bill Comstock – bass (Brickdrop) and Matt Dempsey – guitar (Cosmic Dust Bunnies) More info can be found here. Read our January interview Scott and get a behind the scenes look at from where his unique project developed.
For comparison, here’s a gameplay video of the Chemical Plant Zone on Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
The Disco Biscuits played night two of a three-night run at The Fillmore in Philadelphia last weekend on April 20.
The show featured two seamless sets of Biscuits who dusted off both “Commercial Amen” and “Boom Shanker,” both of which hadn’t been played since 2010. The Disco Biscuits next head to Asheville and Colorado at the end of May, along with hosting their annual Camp Bisco in July.
April 20, 2018 Setlist
Set 1: Helicopters > Little Betty Boop > Commercial Amen > Helicopters, Save The Robots
Aqueous concluded a brief headlining run with a stop at The Haunt in Ithaca on Saturday, April 21. With nary a repeat for these four shows, the jams were plentiful and on this springlike evening (finally) the improv took a darker, more sinister vibe for much of the show which enthralled the enthusiastic crowd.
While April 20 tends to be a day known for celebrating greener lifestyles and festivities, for Big Something, it will notch the release and celebration of their latest studio album, The Otherside.
Tucking away their fifth studio effort, the North Carolina 6-piece offers Big Something fanatics a piggy-back off of last year’s Tumbleweed. Thumbing listeners through an encyclopedia of genres, the 2018 release continues the haunting narrative of wandering through the depths of a post-apocalyptic desert while undergoing some serious soul searching, hoping to come out of the clutches of a bad peyote trip. Unable to place the album’s pulse on one particular sound, the sonic exploration allows focus to be placed on the group’s unfolding concept instead.
The first few notes of “Sundown Nomad” welcome Big Something fans to their familiar, glitchy EWI sounds before diving into a land of spoken word trip-hop. As the eight-track album continues, “Wildfire” follows as a feel-good tune paired with less than hopeful lyrics, repeatedly exclaiming “woe is me.” The tight-knit ensemble of Nick MacDaniels (guitar, vocals), Doug Marshall (bass), Josh Kagel (keys, trumpet), Casey Cranford (sax, EWI), Jesse Hensley (lead guitar), and Ben Vinograd (drums) play with poetic juxtaposition on this track, while the uplifting riffs seem blissful, the lyrics divergently describe one thousand acres burning to the ground and the world going up in a wildfire.
“We wanted to pay homage to the original concept of ‘an album’ with this release where sitting down and listening to the whole thing is an experience – 20 minutes per side with a break between. Side A complements Side B. This is the first time we’ve setup an album to fit perfectly on a vinyl record like that,” vocalist Nick MacDaniels shared.
“The Cave” offers a more emotional outlet through Daniels’ heart-rendering vocals and slower time signatures while the album’s title track, “The Otherside,” takes shape of a fleeting 1:47 ambient break in the midst of the album. “Smoke Signal,” a track specifically written for the album and yet to receive the live debut treatment, holds it’s own as a silky smooth jazz track, with a combination of velvety vocals and saxophone. Most tracks are given a new life through Big Something live performances. It’s a wonder what they’ll do with “Smoke Signal” for its first time in front of a live audience.
Cranford’s EWI majesty helps “Cosmic Dust” tap into 80s synth- Stranger Things theme song elements before the last two tracks showcase the groups funk and hard rock in its finest form. With the help of groovy trumpets and top-notch shredding on guitar, the album finds its fastest and strongest notes at a pinnacle of high-energy upon its conclusion.
The powerhouse rockers found their voices through storytelling and fusing unique elements together to wrap up the story they’ve been telling since their 2017 predecessor album. Creating another layer of emotion folded into the album, it’s dedicated to the memory of Paul Interdonato, the band’s late lyricist and friend who tragically passed away on December 3, 2017 – the same exact day the band was gearing up to record in studio.
The Otherside takes on thematics of musical journeys in more ways than one– the story of the album’s troubled, vagabond protagonist as well as a touching tribute of inspiration from a lifelong friend.
Will Hanza, guitarist of Escaper has been enjoying the success of the group’s sophomore release Edge Detection and still buzzing about meeting Jon Fishman. Hanza spoke to NYS Music about the songwriting style that encompasses their new album, Escaper’s summer plans and jazz influences that create a monolithic jam fusion sound.
Pete Mason: What was it like opening for The Mallett Brothers Band and Jon Fishman?
Will Hanza: Well, we’ve sort of become regulars at Brooklyn Bowl, it’s our home venue really, and recently opened for Electric Beethoven. Working with the folks at Brooklyn Bowl is great, the sound and Vic Cornette on lights is a musician himself and he really works with you. This was our most jammiest show yet, opening the songs up in the moment in a way that keyed us into the improv we should be doing, avoiding meandering and allowing the moment to take over and launch from there. The reaction to the set was great on Thursday (April 12th). The Mallett Brothers are a really great band, and watching Fishman drum from side-stage was a treat. He was nice enough to say that he liked Escaper and that we had that Pink Floyd kind of vibe, which pretty much made my year.
PM: What musical influences came through in the production of the Edge Detection?
WH: The band comes from some diverse backgrounds, including myself who has a father who is a jazz musician, plus Zeppelin and Hendrix are in me. Lettuce and TAUK and more instrumentally oriented bands in the scene – we don’t want to sound like them, but they’re paving the way for what things fans are into, particularly instrumental music. Johnny Butler comes from Coltrane and jazz. Adam Ahuja comes from a pretty heavy jazz background, and is really into Mahavishnu Orchestra. For lack of a better word, this allows for a fusion of sounds, and that comes from combining jazz, classic psychedelic rock, funk rock, and I think it comes together cohesively in the process of what we take with these songs.
Some of the songs on Edge Detection were written out of live jams. We hear them and cultivate them from loose jams that we’ve been digging. We ran out of songs at one of our first shows in January 2016 at B.R.Y.A.C., so we played and improvised, which led to some of these songs being born, including the first two tracks on the album, “Secret Weapon” and “Rare Form.”
PM: What was Escaper’s songwriting process for Edge Detection?
WH: The well rounded sound comes out of that process where we start with a groove, like Jay will start with a bass line, then the keys will add in, then the drums … it’s a little loose at the start, and soon a whole beast is starting to get formed as we go back and listen and see what parts work best. We don’t write songs and then ask everyone to learn it – Escaper builds on the idea that this is everybody’s band, and everyone gets equal credit on the songwriting. I want everyone to feel that this is their band and their music. I am honored to play with the cats I get to play with, not the least because they are invested in the music as much as I am. It’s a challenge and exciting to have a bunch of collaborators create music that you could never do on your own. We all recorded simultaneously in the studio, which gives that sense of synergy and react to each other in the moment, rather than layering things over and over.
PM: How was the reception to Edge Detection and what did you learn from the recording process and release of the album?
WH: The response has been very nice, very strong. We’ve only had a handful of reviews but they’ve all been positive and hey reflect our growth since the first album. The recording process was similar to the last album Skeleton Key and we have found recording in the Bunker Studio in Brooklyn with engineer John Davis (Lettuce, Black Keys) to be our spot and we’ve found a great relationship working with him. He’s brilliant, has a good bedside manner and while we were in there recording, we felt very at home. He’s taken time to get to know us as players to squeeze a better performance out of us while keeping the recording efficient and everything flowing. I don’t know we’d do much different on the next album, but we might add some vocals on the next one.
PM: Where are fans going to be able to see you over the next few months?
WH: We sort of kicked off the festival season playing Rock n Roll Resort, and we’ll do a couple club dates mixed in, but we’re doing a decent amount of festivals – Grateful for Spring in Mountain Sky, PA, then Elements Lakewood, Lakewood, PA on Memorial Day weekend. Disc Jam is definitely one of the highlights on our schedule coming up in early June. We’re doing Bear’s Picnic and Mazzstock in August. Being invited to play any festival is an honor and opportunity that is a great way to pollinate our music in these various places and that can only help us into a touring schedule in the fall in New York and Pennsylvania. It’s all about getting the music out there like Johnny Appleseed – the more that can enjoy, the happier we are.
Hailing from Buffalo NY, Intrepid Travelers combines elements of rock, funk, blues and jazz along with a powerhouse performance certain to make you move and groove. From their home studio in Buffalo, the band shares stories of influence, time on the road, and what exactly a “jam band” is anyway. Join host Andy Hogan for the second episode for Empire State Music Podcast.
The artists of NYS Music 87/90 are busy this spring and have grown immensely since the launch of the artist publicity and media group. The seven artists of 87/90 include the best up and coming bands from across New York State, and they’re stretching out across the country this summer. Let’s check in and see what they’re up to.
Cousin Earth release Human Music on April 27 with a concert at Bowery Electric along with Hunt for Hunter and The Phryg. We’ll have a review of Human Music next week – get ready for this incredible album!
Formula 5 just wrapped up a 4-show run with Goose, including covering each other’s originals “Trout Waters, Part 1” and “Jive 1” at Pacific Standard Tavern in New Haven on Saturday, April 14. They’ll be at The Waterhole kicking off Party on the Patio this Thursday, perform with Cypher at Flour City Station on April 26 and The Hollow in Albany on April 28 with Space Carnival.
Let’s Be Leonard opened up for The Magic Beans at The Hollow on April 12 and will be back in the Capital District with a headlining show at Putnam Place with Root Shock on May 19. They’ll perform at Sterling Stage Folkfest on Sunday, May 27 with a set of originals plus Dead sets on the side stage.
Folkfaces recently wrapped up a week long tour in the south, and have a summer tour announcement coming soon. They’ll open for Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band on May 3 in Rochester and will be opening for The Felice Brothers at The Waterhole in Saranac Lake on June 15. They are planning for their upcoming album to be recorded at GCR Audio, and released the video for “We’re on the Move Now” featuring Abby the Spoon Lady.
Intrepid Travelers are celebrating their 5 year anniversary early with Cinco en Mayo: 5 nights of IT in May at Nietzsche’s. The Buffalo based band will also hold their renamed Solstice Fest (formerly IT Fest) June 22-23 in Hannibal, NY.
Gowanus will be entering the studio next month to record their second album.
Space Carnival will be opening up for fellow 87/90 artist Formula 5 on Saturday, April 28 at The Hollow in Albany, and were recently added to the lineups for Summer Camp, Disc Jam and Mazzstock music festivals.
One of the most integral people in planning this summer’s Curveball festival featuring Phish is the president of Watkins Glen International, Michael Printup, who took the time out of his busy schedule to give an interview to NYSMusic.
This will be the third festival the band has held at the track most famous for NASCAR racing. In 2011, there was Superball, followed by Magnaball in 2015. Like those two, Curveball is a three-day event taking place August 17 to 19 this year.
Printup shared some interesting tidbits about Curveball and about his history with the rock band born out of the mountains of Vermont. His first interaction was back in 1998 when he was the general manager of the Providence Civic Center while Phish was on, what has now become, the legendary Island Tour. It was the first time he saw the band live, but his biggest takeaway wasn’t the music.
“I mean, it was a small arena,” Printup said. “What I remember most was the fans. They’re just — they’re just so awesome. I noticed the respect and dedication of the fans, and I saw that the band respected the fans in a great way. It shows in what they do, all the planning they put into putting on these large-scale festivals. I’ve been in sports for my entire life — the NFL, Southern California, Miami, Boston — and you don’t see that kind of thing between the fans and what they’re coming to see like you do with Phish.”
That observation has directly led to the relationship that the Phish organization has with Watkins Glen. It was back in 2016 when the planning for Curveball began. Printup said that Richard Glasgow, a member of Phish’s management team, visited the site and began the discussion of a festival in 2018.
“Richard and I talk at least once a month,” Printup said. “I was in Las Vegas the same time Phish was there in 2016. They realized I was in town and they invited me to attend a soundcheck. So there I was, with like six other people in the empty arena, and they’re just up there jamming.”
That type of relationship bonding has made doing business with Phish a breeze, Printup said. At Magnaball, he recalled, when the band was walking off stage just before the weekend’s final encore, the band stopped by for a “quick hello” and then invited him stage side for the encore.
Printup, who is very professional and has a knack for teasing things without giving them away, touched on a variety of topics. For starters, he did confirm that the fan favorite event — in the past titled the Runaway Jim 5K road race — will happen again this year. He mentioned that the band had inquired about a parade, but would not give any more info on the subject.
One of the things fans have wondered about since Magnaball was the capacity of the venue and the ticketing situation. It was announced prior to the festival that all tickets had been sold and none would be sold at the gate. However, many ticketless fans who showed up were able to buy tickets from the venue at the gate. Printup explained that when the sellout announcement was made, the racetrack was only allowed by officials to cap the capacity at 50,000 people. A late inspection of the venue took into consideration the bathrooms and showers that are at the track year round, thus allowing an extra 10,000 to be added to the max capacity. Printup did not have the information as to whether or not all extra tickets were sold.
For Curveball, though, he insisted that fans don’t wait much longer to buy their tickets. While for a NASCAR event they’re prepared to handle 160,000 people, it’s not the same for a music festival.
“I have spoken to Red Light Management and Phish, and they highly recommend buying soon,” he said. “The max we can have is 60,000 per day, and Richard (Glasgow) has said sales are going very well.”
The discussion then flowed into how Phish puts on their well documented secret sets. At each festival since The Clifford Ball in 1996, the band has done an unannounced or special set. At Superball, they performed the Storage Jam at about 2 a.m. on Sunday morning in a storage shed they had on grounds. Magnaball featured the fan-favorite Drive-In Jam, which was a merging of visual art projected onto a large screen draped from the bleachers, while the band performed an all-improvised set behind the curtain.
When asked if he could give the fans a hint, or even speak off the record about what Phish has in store for this year, Printup was emphatic and filled with laughter. “No way!” he said.
Printup gave loads of credit to the local community for the help and support for the weekend.
“There is a big trust value between everyone,” he said. “There’s so much that comes along with something like this. Our local sheriff knows how to handle it all, the traffic and stuff like that. Our goal is not to inundate the community, but involve them.”
He said he’s only heard positive things from the locals, who genuinely enjoy when the Phish crowd comes to town. Printup said that he will sometimes check some of the band’s message boards in the week leading up to the festivals and everything has been positive.
It’s no secret that Phish fans like to party when they experience the band. Printup said that the crowd isn’t that different from other music crowds, but did warn that people trying to be nefarious might want to reconsider.
“Country fans, EDM fans, they like to have fun as well,” he noted. “But I know how many undercovers there will be out there. I wouldn’t take that kind of risk and possibly be arrested. Obviously booze isn’t going to get you arrested, so I just hope everyone is smart about having fun that weekend.”
But overall, Printup said that we are all in for a very special time, with a lot of new features to keep fans engaged.
“I’m most looking forward to the show, of course,” he said. “And I want to give the band a huge thank you, because they’ve just been awesome.”
A friend recently referred to Albany as the “super deep-tiered jam band capital of the Northeast.” As mediocre as that sounds, we actually do alright. Thursday, April 12 was a “Tier 3 Night” at the Hollow Bar and Kitchen, but good luck convincing those there to see The Magic Beans that it was anything short of incredible.
Saratoga’s rising star, Let’s Be Leonard, opened up the evening with an ultra energetic “Spit It Out.” While the members of this band may be young, their sound is mature and smart. Even their vocal jam included nicely blended harmonies. Connor Dunn’s saxophone skills only added to the fun. Although the volume may have been a bit too high for some, it was refreshing to see a band with this much potential. It won’t be surprising to see these guys on the festival circuit for years to come.
Around 10:30, the crowd began to swell as locals arrived to see Boulder, Colorado’s The Magic Beans. Despite their current Rocky Mountain hometown, Albanians claim a small piece of the Beans as their own. Bassist Chris Duffy, formerly of Dirty Paris, is originally from the Capital City and fans are always delighted to bring him home.
Like a hurricane gaining strength over water, The Magic Beans’ jams tend to rise in energy and explode with each powerful crescendo. Just when you thin they’re finally ready to set everyone back down on Earth with something light and breezy, they burst back into a fast paced yet funky jam to fuel the groove of the crowd.
With thick bass lines, heavy synthesized keys and occasional hip hop beats, their transitions are still crisp and seemingly effortless. Scott Hachey’s facial expressions as he flexes his guitar prowess indicate the thrill for both the band and the audience.
Nearing the end of the night, the Hollow was pulsing with some pretty impressive lights. A powerful “Luck” could have closed the evening, but the Beans decided to throw in some Talking Heads “Girlfriend is Better,” with their latest “Casino Cabaret” for fun.
After picking my jaw up off the floor, I’ve came to the conclusion we were witnessing the steady rise of what is now a lower tiered jam band. This show was better than the last and light years beyond what we saw a few years ago. Although not someone I’d compare them to in style, I have not been this excited for a band since discovering Pigeons Playing Ping Pong. I fully expect to see this band become a household name in the jam community and they will always have a home here in Albany.
Twiddle jammed through 2 nights at the State Theater of Ithaca this past weekend. An acoustic set kicked off the first set on Friday, followed by a three-song second set.
Saturday was capped with an encore of Tom Petty‘s “You Don’t Know how it Feels.” Catch Twiddle this Thursday at the 20th anniversary of Higher Ground in Winooski, VT and Friday in New Haven, CT at College Street Music Hall or this summer in Burlington at Tumbledown.
Setlist, Friday April 13
Set 1: Wildfire, Rocky Raccoon, Five, Hattibagen McRat, Glycerine Medley Set 2: Gatsby the Great, Polluted Beauty, Apples Set 3: White Light, Syncopated Healing, Beethoven and Greene, Jamflowman Encore: Orlando’s > Orlando’s
Setlist, Saturday April 14
Set 1: Peas and Carrots, Lost in the Cold, Drifter, Earth Mama, Doinkinbonk!!! Set 2: Nicodemus Portulay > Subconscious Prelude, Every Soul, Dr. Remidi’s Melodium Encore: You Don’t Know How it Feels
Tucking away their fifth studio effort, the North Carolina
Pete Mason
