Despite how overwhelming it can be to outsiders, when it comes down to it, New York City is truly just a big small town. It’s comprised of hundreds of different neighborhoods which each have their own quirks and personalities, but they all blend together to form a magnificent sum of diversity and prosperity. You will never get to know everyone in the city, or even your neighborhood, but once you live in an area long enough you get to know a hodgepodge of people, which makes the city begin to feel small.
You walk down the block and see the Chinese delivery guy that comes to your apartment twice a week, the butcher who you make friendly banter on the street with, and that same annoying bus driver who you know is out to get you (but you still can’t prove a thing.) Tom Waits’ 1985 track ‘Downtime Train’ paints a murky picture of the obscure way New York can box you in a world knowing everyone around, while at the same time leaving you feeling lonesome and alienated.
‘Downtown Train’ provides an intimate look at the torment a person goes through when they are continuously hoping to run into someone they are madly in love with, but end up seeing everyone they know besides that person. On his local train to Brooklyn, the narrator constantly sees the same faces; all people he knows, but doesn’t care to see. He knows exactly how the Brooklyn girls act, who they are, and what their goal for the night is, but wants nothing to do with them. He notices that they all seem to want to break out of their little circles, but are all afraid to. Although they have the entire city at their disposal, giving them chances to meet new people and experience new things, they choose not to, and for that the narrator wants nothing to do with them.
The narrator is searching for someone different; someone he doesn’t see every night because they are out savoring new experiences and living life to the fullest. He hopes he will see them on the train each night, rather than all the regulars, but knows that the chances are slim because the person he is looking for doesn’t have a routine. Despite knowing everyone on the train, he feels incredibly isolated. He is stuck living the same night over and over again, hoping for something new, but nothing new ever happens. In many ways he is just like all the other people on the train, but by acknowledging his situation he is saddened by it, while those who are ignorant to it tend to live happier lives.
Although Waits never made ‘Downtown Train’ a commercial success himself, the song drew interest from other artists who saw the creative value in the song. Patty Smyth’s 1987 version reached #95 on the Billboard Hot 100, and Rod Steward brought the song into the spotlight with his 1989 cover of the song which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 list. It just goes to show, that even if you know everyone around you, it’s not uncommon to feel completely alone.
‘Downtown Train’ Lyrics:
Outside another yellow moon
Has punched a hole in the nighttime, yes
I climb through the window and down the street
I’m shining like a new dime
The downtown trains are full
With all those Brooklyn girls
They try so hard to break out of their little worlds
Well, you wave your hand and they scatter like crows
They have nothing that will ever capture your heart
They’re just thorns without the rose
Be careful of them in the dark
Oh if I was the one
You chose to be your only one
Oh baby can’t you hear me now, can’t you hear me now?
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train?
Every night it’s just the same
You leave me lonely, now
I know your window and I know it’s late
I know your stairs and your doorway
I walk down your street and past your gate
I stand by the light at the four-way
You watch them as the fall
Oh baby, they all have heart attacks
They stay at the carnival
But they’ll never win you back
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train?
Every night it’s just the same
Oh, baby
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train?
All of my dreams just fall like rain
Oh, baby, on a downtown train
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train?
Every night, every night it’s just the same
Oh, baby
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train?
All of my dreams just fall like rain
Well, on a downtown train
Well, on a downtown train
Well, on a downtown train
Well, on a downtown train
On a downtown train
Johnny & the Bootlegs have released the video for “Thrift Shop” off their recently released EP NYC Rags. Bringing you straight into the heart of New York City life, Johnny & the Bootlegs combine serious talent with lighthearted fun while blending blues, punk rock and soulful rock n roll, and bring a swagger and style to the stage.
The “Thrift Shop” video brings a balance of comical scripted scenes, and live footage of the band, providing a homage of sorts to ZZ Top and their slew of lighthearted music videos. Frontman John Santiago shared, “The idea of us going to a thrift shop to try on ‘somebody else’s clothes to wear our way’ just felt like a lot of fun and relatable. I mean, living in NYC, everyone has thrifted at some point – it’s a necessity of sorts. My personal favorite spot (and the boys now agree) is Urban Jungle in Bushwick and we mention the joint in the song because we’ve popped in there and rummaged their racks plenty.”
Live shots of the band were filmed at The Studio at Webster Hall, prior to its closure last year. Santiago worked as the General Manager of the legendary joint, which made the opportunity possible.
“I came up with the idea in the last couple of weeks before Webster Hall closed up and last minute got Dream But Don’t Sleep Productions to jump on board – we got what is now the final music video ever to be filmed in The Studio at Webster Hall! We went in on a Sunday afternoon while there was a hardcore/metal festival happening on the top three floors and captured the live scenes. We got the filming done and then I jumped into working the event, haha.”
Reflecting on Johnny’s “wild six years” of NYC nightlife and personal trials and tribulations, the NYC Rags EP was recorded at Brooklyn’s Studio G by engineer Jeff Berner (Psychic TV, Chris Cubeta and the Liars Club, NAAM, Heliotropes) and is available for stream and purchase on Spotify, Apple Music, and Bandcamp. New Jersey’s The Aquarian listed Johnny & the Bootlegs as one of the “Top 30 NYC Bands to Catch Live in 2018.”
Catch Johnny & the Bootlegs on Friday, June 8 at Asbury Park Brewery in Asbury, NJ, and on Wednesday, June 20 at Silvana in Harlem.
Summer Camp Music Festival 2018 was a circus of strange artistic juxtapositions, wild forays into the outer limits of musical expression, and once-in-a-lifetime interactions between friends, new and old, both on stage and in the crowd. Jay Goldberg Events and Entertainment has fine-tuned this ever-growing event to highlight all the glitz and grunge that makes a proper music festival special, not to mention that the lineup, amenities and culture of Summer Camp continue to set the standard for what fans have come to expect at a major festival.
It was a smooth entry into Three Sisters Park for festival goers during the day on Thursday, and while traffic increased over the weekend, there was no painful gridlock or major incidents to report. It was fun to see the dramatic increase in campsites from Thursday to Friday, and more impressive is the way in which Summer Camp maximizes the grounds to comfortably contain so many attendees, stages, and facilities within a single, highly accessible loop.
While Thursday was essentially a bonus day of music before the headliners took over the main stages for the weekend, the first night of shows was nothing to scoff at as Beats Antique, Crosseyed and Phishless, Lettuce, Porn and Chicken, Steady Flow, Keller Williams, Yonder Mountain String Band and others took turns knocking it out of the park.
Crosseyed and Phishless had the Starshine Stage rolling, treating fans to Stevie Wonder and Pink Floyd covers and teasing them with “Fluffhead” throughout the set without ever playing the Phan favorite. Beats Antique followed on the Starshine stage, successfully bringing the crowd to a boil as twilight faded into neon. Lettuce’s Starshine Stage set was one of the most talked about shows of the weekend: a flawless masterwork of psychedelic funk that had the whole field moving in waves.
Porn and Chicken’s “in-your-face” dubstep set filled out the Vibe Tent for the first time, which also started the process of transforming one of the busiest dance floors at Scamp into a mud pit. Eliot Lipp, a veteran producer based out of New York, delivered a set of his unique precision flow dance grooves, keeping the young crowd moving on their toes, as the grassy floor continued to give way to mud.
The Camping Stage hosted shows throughout the day on Thursday, but it really got rocking at night. Space Carnival, from Ithaca, New York, played an exciting set of extended, spacey jams that had the growing crowd dancing. Louisville’s Quiet Hollers took the stage next, impressing listeners in their Summer Camp return. Scamp veterans, Steady Flow’s heavy gumbo funk attracted a slew of fans, and by the time they covered Dr. Dre’s “What’s the Difference Between Me and You,” the crowd was packed and everybody in it was straight coastin’.
It was the Campfire Stage, however, that set the tone for the weekend on Thursday night. The Kyle Hollingsworth Band delighted fans by welcoming Hollingsworth’s String Cheese Incident bandmate, Jason Hann, who was there to perform with EOTO, to the stage. KHB was joined later by living legend Keller Williams, who helped close out the set with “I Know You Rider.” Keller, who has played Scamp more times than anyone but moe., took to the Campfire Stage next for his own show. Yonder Mountain String Band, who was joined by Alie Kral, played a gorgeous set of traditional bluegrass, then dubbed it the “Yonder Mountain Sausage Party” and walked off stage, promising better ratios later in the weekend.
The VIP upgrade at Summer Camp is worth it for the exclusive sets alone, but the other amenities provided with it make it a great deal. The VIP sets on Thursday were not to be missed. Headliners Umphrey’s McGee played their first sets of the weekend, first an intimate umVIP set, which was then followed by a late-night Red Barn show that featured fan favorites “Slacker,” “Out of Order,” “Blue Echo,” and “Resolution” and a cover of Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.” Other VIP highlights included shows by Break Science, EOTO, and the one-off Nine Inch Nails tribute Nailed It!, featuring Eliot Lipp and members of Cherub, Umphrey’s McGee, and Zoogma.
Three Sisters Park was packed with people by Friday. Tents were being pitched deeper and deeper in the forest and green space was disappearing rapidly in the field. But as the weekend population of Chillicothe steadily rose, so did the jubilation in the air, and anticipation for everyone’s favorite artists.
Friday got off to a hot start as Keller and the Keels broke in the Sunshine Stage early in the afternoon. Moe. followed suit by breaking in the Moonshine Stage afterwards. Moe. opened their first set with Pink Floyd’s “Breathe,” worked through an extended “Puebla,” mirrored the stormy skies with an apropos version of “Haze,” and finally ended early when lightning shut down the festivities for the time being.
The rain held off after some brief showers, but from then on things got very complicated for fans as there were literally dozens of primo acts playing in competing timeslots, people had to pick and choose who they wanted to see and how long they wanted to stay. First Twiddle, Protoje, and Keys ‘n Krates battled for fans; then it was Yonder Mountain String Band, John Medeski’s Mad Skillet, and Con Brio who shared a time slot; the wealth of riches continued with Lettuce, Kyle Hollingsworth Band, and Organ Freeman playing at the same time; and finally SOJA, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, and Nikki Lane made fans make yet another tough decisions on where to spend their time.
After the action packed evening, headliners Umphrey’s McGee launched into their first main stage set of the weekend. The set featured the debut of “Triangle Tear,” a song off of the brand new album it’s you, sit-ins by Lettuce members Eric “Benny” Bloom and Ryan Zoidis on The Police’s “Canary in a Coalmine” and “Booth Love,” who were then joined by pedal-steel guitarist Mike Racky for a cover of Sturgill Simpson’s “Call to Arms” which ended the first set.
Between UM sets, Tipper filled the Moonshine amphitheater to the brim with fans anxiously awaiting the Englishman’s Journey set, which featured a one-off collaboration with visual artist Steven Haman, adding elusive three-dimensional visuals to the mix as Tipper moved from downtempo ambience to uptempo grooves as the set progressed. It’s safe to say Tipper had a successful Summer Camp debut, as he absolutely packed the house, delivered a fire set, and left half the festival in exuberant reflection and wanting more.
Umphrey’s McGee returned to the Sunshine Stage and played a string of classics. They opened with “Ocean Billy,” followed with a “Remind Me” > “Miss Tinkle’s Overture” > “Wappy Sprayberry” > “Remind Me” sandwich. Nigel Hall, of Lettuce, then joined Bayliss and company on keys for “Den.” After a brief pause, UM encored with another 2018 debut, “Half Delayed,” followed by another classic, “Partyin’ Peeps.”
The parade of talent was hardly over after the headliners exited the stage on Friday night. In fact, the party went long into the night, but once again fans had to make some tough decisions on whom to see. Slightly Stoopid, EOTO, and Zoogma all played at the same time, as did R.L. Grime, The Funk Hunters, The Rumpke Mountain Boys, and Marco Benevento; and while Break Science and Zomboy played outstanding electronic sets at the Vibe Tent, Pink Talking Fish performed in the Soulshine Tent, and Buffalo’s Aqueous played a wild two-hour, six-song set at the Campfire Stage, letting Scampers feast on their deep exploratory improvisation. The set also featured a “Cliffs of Dover” bustout, playing it for the first time in 300 plus shows, and the debut of Oysterhead’s “Pseudo Suicide.”
The VIP lineup for Friday was even more ridiculous than Thursday. The special sets kicked off early, with Kyle Hollingsworth and Joel Cummins pairing up for a keyboard soiree. Keller Williams, the busiest player on the scene, did another set for the lounge while the rest of the stacked schedule included shows by Horseshoes & Handgrenades, Spafford, and The Werks, plus late-night Red Barn sets by moe. and Twiddle.
Regardless of which adventure one chose to explore on Friday, there was ample fun and too much brilliant music for one person to take in, so you couldn’t go wrong. But before any of it got started, I had the pleasure of speaking with Greg Ormont, vocalist and guitarist from Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, to bring you a bird’s eye view of the festivities. Fresh off of two sold out 930 Club shows in Washington, D.C. and a headlining slot for the sold out Domefest, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong arrived at Summer Camp riding a high wave. Greg’s energy ahead of the Pigeons show was evident, as he was jubilant in describing Summer Camp, saying “this festival is awesome because a lot of our friends play here. So it’s a reunion for the artists—our buddies Aqueous are here, I just saw the Main Squeeze last night—it’s nice to be around the water cooler with all the homies again and the crowd out here is wild. It’s a rowdy group of people who love music.” After Friday, I could not agree more.
Before the music got started on Saturday, I spoke with Rob Hauk, Dave Loss, and Evan McPhaden of Aqueous, who, having just played a dynamic late-night set a few hours earlier, echoed Scrambled Greg’s sentiments. It’s so refreshing to know that these brilliant musicians can appreciate a festival for the same reasons that so many of the fans do—of course, the music—but, as guitarist Dave Loss said of Summer Camp, “It’s like a homecoming. A lot of our friends are here and it’s always fun to play in the Midwest.” Drummer Rob Hauk added, “The fans out here like our edge.” It’s this humble vibe, paired with outsized talent, which makes the whole Summer Camp experience one to savor for fans and artists alike.
Like Friday, Saturday offered a full slate of insanely juxtaposed sets from so many strangely complementary artists. The Moonshine and Sunshine Stages hosted wildly diverse rosters of music all day long. Spafford, the rapidly ascending jamsters from Arizona, started the day’s proceedings on the Sunshine stage with a hot set. They were followed in the heat by the veteran Colorado jamgrass outfit Leftover Salmon, who kept it cool jamming on classics and fresh cuts from their new album Something Higher. Just to keep it interesting, organizers followed that up with Action Bronson’s set of hardcore, humorous rap. STS9 hit the Sunshine Stage next and sounded out a seriously sexy show replete with liquid grooves, tight rhythms, and danceable jams. Despite the heat, STS9 had the crowd dialed into the party throughout their show. While there were still the familiar rumblings of jaded Tribe fans hankering for the old days following the show, the band at present is at the height of their powers and continuing to progress as a unit.
Headliners Umphrey’s McGee finished out the night on the Sunshine Stage again on Saturday. The first set included classics like “Plunger,” “Glory,” “2×2,” and “Hurt Bird Bath,” plus the always bouncing Snoop Dogg track “Ain’t No Fun (If the Homies Can’t Have None),” with percussionist Andy Farag on vocals. The sextet returned with a “Mulche’s Odyssey” > “It Doesn’t Matter” > “Mulche’s Odyssey” combo that led into the live debut of “Seasons,” another cut from it’s you. Other second set highlights included a smooth cover of Prince’s “1999” and solid takes on “Dump City” and “August.” A “Jajunk” encore concluded an eventful day at the Sunshine Stage.
The Moonshine Stage also featured crazy variety on Saturday. If you’ve ever been lucky enough to catch Mike Dillon in one of his various projects, it will come as no surprise that the Punk Rock Percussion Consortium he led at Summer Camp was the most unique show of the whole weekend. Being a percussionist extraordinaire, it only makes sense that Dillon brought the drum circle, a music festival campground staple, to the main stage. Featuring a number of special guests, the drum circle included about a dozen musicians simultaneously playing various percussion instruments on Mike Dillon’s original compositions. Indie-rockers Guster followed the Percussion Consortium, and vocalist Ryan Miller summed up the whole Scamp vibe, saying, “Thank you to the curators of this fucked-up, weird festival.”
The weirdness was in full effect as classic hip-hop foursome Cypress Hill took over the Moonshine Stage for their much anticipated set. The crowd was into the hits “Insane in the Brain” and “Dr. Greenthumb,” but there was also a deluge of in-and-out traffic for the show, as a number of the attendees only showed for a song or two just to say that they had seen Cypress Hill.
The crowd could not have been more different for moe.’s first set on Saturday. The amphitheater was packed with moe. fans who were delighted to be there and weren’t going any further than the next dance step took them. There was bliss in the air as the band opened with “Billy Goat,” featuring bassist Rob Derhak’s signature vocals and basslines. Ain’t nobody live forever, indeed, but everyone in attendance was grateful and ecstatic for Rob’s Summer Camp return. The first set also saw the band do fan favorites “Kids” and an adventurous version of “Rebubula.” The quintet came out blazing in the second set, covering Pink Floyd’s “Time” and “Breathe” before starting a saucy “Plane Crash,” which transitioned into a “Buster” > “Silver Sun” jam. To cap it off, the rockers encored with the end of “Plane Crash” before finishing with the debut of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song.”
The Saturday late-night lineup was up to snuff as well, with The Werks crushing the long jams all night, with beaming versions of “OG,” “Headin’ South,” and “Going Round,” plus a tasty “Hard to Find” > “Lights Out” > “Hard to Find” sandwich. Meanwhile, Z-Trip and Liquid Stranger kept the Vibe Tent packed with people until the end of the night. Sun Stereo also pulled off one of the coolest tribute sets of the weekend with their Sun Stereo Battles the Pink Robots set, during which they played songs from The Flaming Lips’ Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Once again the late-night VIP shows were stellar on Saturday, with Aqueous, STS9, and Keys n’ Krates all taking the stage.
Sunday’s schedule had absolutely no slack in it either: all of the headliners played, a handful of festival mainstays joined the fray, and a wealth of up-and-comers took to the stage. Longstanding, influential rockers Los Lobos played a crowded show under the scorching sun to start the final day on the Moonshine Stage, proving that they can still work their magic after all these years. Victor Wooten also made the most of his time at Summer Camp, playing three sets on Sunday. The Victor Wooten Trio set on the Moonshine Stage, featuring drummer Dennis Chambers and saxophonist Bob Franceschini, treated fans to some of the most fun and savvy musicianship of the weekend. J.J. Grey and Mofro added a set of bluesy originals and poignant covers, including John Anderson’s “Seminole Wind” and The Beatles’ “Hey Jude.” Tycho dropped in for a set of ambient electronica played before a large crowd at the Moonshine Stage.
Fittingly, moe.’s two Sunday sets closed out the Moonshine Stage in style. They opened the first set with the rocker “Seat of My Pants,” went back to the Led Zeppelin catalogue for a cover of “Hey, Hey, What Can I Do,” and finished the first set with a flourish, pairing “Lazarus” and “Moth.” Moe. returned with purpose, letting drummer Vinnie Amico lead the band into “Brent Black” which was followed by two gems, “Bullet” and “Kyle’s Song,” that had all the moe.rons singing along. “Four” > “Brent Black (Reprise)” concluded the set, but moe. was not about to stop there, as they encored with tasty takes on “New York City” and “Wind It Up,” putting the final touches on a heady weekend of music.
The Sunshine Stage was stacked with headliners all day Sunday. Umphrey’s McGee played their final set of the weekend, a concise show that saw two more it’s you debuts, “Xmas at Wartime” and “Push & Pull,” a funky “Mail Package,” plus a multi-layered chain-jam featuring “Bridgeless,” “Great American,” “Tribute to the Spinal Shaft,” “Whistle Kids,” and a cover of Toto’s “Africa.” (Weezer fans eat your heart out!)
Sunday was the hottest day of the festival, with temperatures climbing toward 100 degrees, but Greensky Bluegrass was able to match the heat with a sweltering late afternoon set of bluegrass, priming the massive crowd for the Phil Lesh shows that were to follow on the Sunshine Stage.
Phil Lesh is one of the original beacons from which music festivals draw inspiration and he has played at nearly every major festival and venue in America, so it was a great pleasure to witness his Summer Camp debut. He brought with him the Terrapin Family Band and a friend by the name of Eric Krasno, but there were many more surprises in store. Phil opened with a pair of classics, “Alligator” and “Brown-Eyed Women” before bringing Anders Beck from Greensky Bluegrass up to play on “Cassidy.” Next, Phil picked another one from the Pigpen-era songbook, playing a scorching “Mr. Charlie.” He then invited moe. guitarist Al Schnier to the stage to help with “Jack Straw” and Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone.” The first set closed with “Dancing in the Streets,” which had everybody moving in sync and ready for more Dead jams. When the band emerged for the second set, Al Schnier was once again on stage, playing lead on a sizzling “Shakedown Street.” Crowd favorites “China Cat Sunflower” > “I Know You Rider” followed, but Phil was pulling no punches on Sunday and unleashed a beautiful “St. Stephen” > “Terrapin Station” combo, only to venture into a raucous “Viola Lee Blues” that drifted into a cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ In the Free World” which ended the second set. In typical fashion, Phil returned with a donor rap honoring Cody, his liver donor, before encoring with Wilson Pickett’s “In the Midnight Hour,” accompanied by JJ Grey and the Mofro horn section.
The headliners were the highlight on Sunday, but the schedule was packed all day. Diplo played the final Moonshine Stage show, packing it one last time, and dropping the set of the weekend for a lot of Scampers. A number of bands growing in popularity, such as Backup Planet, Future Rock, Kung Fu, Mungion and Sun Stereo also performed throughout the day, plus the VIP stages hosted even more unique performances, including shows by Tyler Childers, Mike Dillon, Liquid Stranger, Tauk, Victor Wooten, and a special show by Everyone Orchestra. The Everyone Orchestra featured an All-Star lineup, with members of Umphrey’s McGee, moe., The Terrapin Family Band, Roosevelt Collier, Mike Dillon, and more, and was played in celebration of the Make-a-Difference Village—the extensive outreach program hosted by Summer Camp Music Festival that benefits a plethora of nonprofit organizations and good causes over the weekend.
While there were plenty of heartwarming moments at Summer Camp, one of the most heartening experiences was speaking with Aaron Ghitelman of HeadCount, an organization founded by the Disco Biscuits’ Mark Brownstein that registers voters. HeadCount is now in its fourteenth year of existence and continues to grow throughout the music scene and beyond, with a presence at more than 1,000 events per year. Not only are HeadCount volunteers handing out Bobo’s Oat Bars for music fans who register to vote at events like Summer Camp all across the United States, they are gaining significant support from the artists themselves. In speaking with Ghitelman, he said, “Al Schnier was one of the first artists after Brownie to get involved, which led to Bob Weir’s involvement.” Artist engagement with HeadCount is on the rise, too. David Byrne, Dead and Co., Jack Johnson, Lake Street Dive, Dave Matthews, and Phish have all played a role in supporting HeadCount. Look for HeadCount at Participation Row on Dead and Co. tour, at Lockn’ Music Festival, Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn Steel, the Capitol Theater, SPAC, and many other venues this summer.
That’s a wrap on Summer Camp 2018! In a phrase, it was fireworks, calliopes, and clowns. The music never stops, so we will see you next year, Scampers, until then check out our coverage of all the summer’s hottest concerts in New York and beyond.
Before JJ Grey was ever seen on stage, the sound of his harmonica came humming across the PA. The man himself soon followed as he sauntered out in a slick black suit. The harp echoed throughout Funk ‘n Waffles Music Hall in Rochester. As the evening progressed, he shed the harmonica to rock out some guitar. Then lap steel, tambourine and keys followed. The instrument that was ever present was his soulful Southern croon belting out his dirty funky blues with swampy Florida roots.
Despite the prowess across many instruments, Grey is not a one man band, of course. Mofro, all in nearly matching black suits, were there every step of the way. Their attire, it should be stated, was not apropos of the evening – a hot and muggy one – even for a band from Florida. Grey even switched up the lyrics in “Every Minute,” singing “so good to be hot… in this club.” The bass, guitar, keys and drums slugged out the blues and funk while a two-trumpet back line brought some bright New Orleans flavor to the mix. Each member brought their own character to the sound and each was featured multiple times throughout.
Through his lyrics and his inter-song bantering, Grey brought to light some of his life philosophies. It’s clear he’s never been happier. He may have been an idiot before, but as he continues to improve, “next year he’ll be an idiot this year,” he says. At times, he sounded like a preacher, doling out the gospel of Mofro. “Lord I’ve changed!” “Glory Hallelujah!” Still at others, he was pining for his grandmother’s cornbread.
The rabid crowd, almost entirely decked out in Mofro attire, were not just around to be entertained, but to get involved. Most of the songs turned into singalongs. Grey using that to his advantage, managing mic-in-the-crowd choruses on “A Woman” and “Brighter Days.” None was more moving than the encore of “Hey Jude.” The show closed with the crowd heartily singing the finish to the quintessential Beatles classic. If every day ended with a communal singing of “Hey Jude,” the world would certainly be a better place, and JJ Grey would be an even happier man.
Freddy and Francine, a trio out of Nashville, opened the night with some quieter, but no less soulful tunes. It tested the exuberant crowd, but their gorgeous and powerful three-part harmonies won them over and played as a perfect setup for JJ Grey and Mofro.
Setlist: How Junior Got His Head Put Out, A Woman, Every Minute, Brighter Days, Country Ghetto, Hide and Seek, ?, Seminole Wind (John Anderson), Lochloosa, Orange Blossoms, Lazy Fo Acre, Ho Cake, The Sun is Shining Down
E: Hey Jude
Ponder, known for spelling their name with a lower-case “p” and as one of Buffalo’s up-and-coming alt-rock/jam groups, is hitting the road on June 23 in Rochester for their eight city tour across New York and for the first time ever, Vermont.
Courtesy of ponder’s website.
Ponder was formed in 2015 as a solo project of songwriter Gabriel Birkby, but quickly morphed into a band and has become a Buffalo fan favorite. This is their first time hitting the road since 2017 when they visited spots stretching from Buffalo, clear through New York City. They’ve undergone some major line-up changes within the last six months and the group is now somewhat of an amorphous funk/rock powerhouse and are known for constantly having their friends in music hop-up on stage.
The band’s lineup setting out for the summer tour consists of Gabe Birkby on vocals/lead guitar, Andy Hogan on bass, Paul Sottnik on keys, and Rochester’s Marcus Peters on drums.
Tour dates:
June 23 – Funk n’ Waffles – Rochester, NY (w/ Mother Funkin’ Planets & Freeway Revival)
June 27 – Radio Bean – Burlington, VT (w/ The Schroons)
June 29 – Parish Public House – Albany, NY (w/ Vicious Jimmy)
June 30 – Lot 10 – Ithaca, NY (w/ Amongst the Monks & Lucky Old Sun)
July 6 – Thin Man Brewery – Buffalo, NY (w/ Amateur Hockey Club)
July 13 – Mojo’s – Jamestown, NY (w/ Cold Lazarus)
July 21 – Funk n’ Waffles – Syracuse, NY (w/ Barroom Philosophers)
July 27 – Cobblestone Music Festival – Buffalo, NY
For more information visit their website or their Facebook or Instagram. Their music can be found on Spotify and iTunes.
Imagine being in a band and living the rockstar life in your 20s—touring, recording, the whole bit. Life happens and you part ways for a mere 44 (Go Orange!) years. Then imagine getting a second chance to write a fresh record and perform live with the group of your youth. That’s the story of Syracuse Area Music Awards (The SAMMYs) Hall of Fame inductee Jukin’ Bone. For years, the band never quite received the recognition they deserved until now. And this recognition sparked the idea to get together and work as a group again. NYS Music sat down with Joe Whiting and Mark Doyle to discuss the past and present of the roots rock band.
Creating the Initial Group
Joe Whiting, a Skaneateles, NY native, and Mark Doyle, hailing from Auburn, NY, met when they took part in a jam session hosted by a music teacher. They were aware of each other for a couple years and things clicked the first time they played together. Whiting and Doyle played a couple of gigs with some rotating musicians-“bits and pieces”- before they formed a real group. Doyle said the group’s formation was “serendipitous” and formed around 1968.
Doyle was teaching guitar lessons at Music Mart, a music store that used to be in Auburn. Dick Howard, a bit of a local legend and shop owner, introduced Doyle to their would-be drummer: Tom Glaister. Tom was out on a Salvation Army truck delivery when he stopped by the store to say a quick hello to Howard. “[Doyle and Glaister] hit it off and somehow he ended up in the band. These things just happened” according to Doyle. Doyle then met George Egosarian at “The Beach” on Marshall St. in Syracuse. Though it’s not there today, it was a space that was across from what’s now Pita Pit for those familiar with Syracuse’s Marshall St. today. It was a big grassy area next to a parking lot where the “hipsters” used to hang out, smoke weed, drop acid, etc. Egosarian started on bass in the group and later transitioned to second guitar. John DeMaso eventually joined the group and became the bass player. Glaister left before the second album, and his talents were so great they opted to replace him with two drummers to fill the void: Danny Coward and Kevin Shwaryk.
Record Deal and Name Change
Before the group was called Jukin’ Bone, they were known as Free Will. Free Will signed with some promoters that worked with Concerts West on the premise that they could help the band secure a record deal. The band played a brutal showcase in New York City that was five sets a night for five consecutive nights. The showcase attracted A&R scouts from various record labels to sign new talent. The band’s efforts were rewarded when they received two record deal offers: one from Janus Records and a “better” offer from RCA. The band signed with RCA.
RCA had strict union policies and mandated that their artists record only in their studios. When someone ratted the band out to RCA for recording a demo at a non-RCA studio, RCA said they had to change the name. Whiting recalled that they had to record the demo again in RCA’s studios just as a formality.
“The first RCA album was a disgrace” according to Doyle. Their producer, Lewis Merenstein, had the vision to record a live album at Electric Lady Studios. Live albums can be a great way to capture the live energy, but their final product was greatly compromised by the hippies off the street in attendance and the “buffet of booze and drugs.” The group would stumble up to the stage to perform multiple takes and the “least offensive takes made the record.” That was Whiskey Woman. The second album was slightly better because it was recorded in the studio, but it still wasn’t what they considered their best sound. That was Way Down East. Neither album adequately captured the essence of Jukin’ Bone’s sound.
Eventually, RCA bought the band out of their agreement before they recorded a third album. “By then the wheels started to come off in all aspects.”
Besides the recording, the group shared their music on tour all around North America, from New York to Minnesota, Florida, Texas, and more. They opened up for the Allman Brothers, ZZ Top, The Kinks, and John Mayall just to name a few.
While opening for John Mayall at a college in Rochester, the power went out not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, but 5 times! This was a rocky start as this was during their first song. But they earned fan support as they persevered and played through it.
Though their tour life was relatively mild, they did manage to crack up a few Winnebagos in their travels. When traveling to Texas, they’d drive without stopping from New York. “You gotta be young and high” to do those drives.
The Interim
Before they reunited as a group, Doyle and Whiting kept up with their musical careers and continued their friendship even as the band parted ways. Whiting did stints with Bobby Comstock who had a few hits in the late 50s, Elf, and Savoy Brown. He really focused on his own band for years which opened for Van Halen.
Doyle, who also had an interest in production, worked on a number of records playing and producing. Doyle found that working with great producers was a fantastic way to learn. He played with Meat Loaf and spent time with the record producer Tom Dowd. He saw how to bring performances out of musicians when he observed Arif Mardin in the studio with Andy Pratt. He also hooked up with David Werner and learned from that experience how NOT to produce a record.
Unfinished Business
Fast forward to 2017/2018. The band finally earned the recognition they deserved in the Syracuse community. Whiting called Doyle and asked him “what if we got together and made the record we never got to make?” Doyle didn’t even have to think about it before saying yes. George Egosarian and John DeMaso were also on board and they got to writing.
Prior to this, Doyle had played on a couple of Jimi Hendrix project albums for an Italian record label. The head of the label contacted him ten years later and asked about leasing the early Free Will music. (Not Jukin’ Bone!) This call happened to be the day after Whiting phoned Doyle and this gave them a way to fund the new record.
Aptly named, Unfinished Business is a true Jukin’ Bone masterpiece comprised of all new material. They wrote from scratch, not relying on any residual music from the past.
The first song written was “Nothin’ to Lose.” The old Motown song “Ain’t No Stopping Us Now” was stuck in Doyle’s head, and was a sentiment the group felt with this fresh chance. They eventually came to “Ain’t Got Nothing to Lose” to substitute in the song instead. Egosarian, “the master of the unobvious phrase,” got to work on the lyrics which Joe fine tuned later. They were off and running with the rest of the album from there.
The old Gibson SG was used on the new record; Egosarian played it on “End of the Bar” just to have it on there. When asked about how his voice has held up all these years, Whiting says he doesn’t really have a secret in terms of maintenance. He feels has a better high and low end than he ever did, and he feels his voice has held up because he says, “I never shut up.”
They recruited Syracuse University professor Josh Dekaney to play drums on the album. They wanted a percussionist with a classical training like their former drummer. The album was recorded as they wrote between Doyle’s home studio and More Sound Recording Studio and engineered by Jason “Jaco” Randall and Andrew Greacen.
They went into this new project with no expectations. They just wanted to make good music and set the record straight!
Key Tracks: Nothing to Lose, End of the Bar, Gris Gris
Shows in August
With the new album comes live shows. Jukin’ Bone will be playing two nights at Auburn Public Theater in Auburn, NY. The shows are August 17 and 18, and there may be future live dates depending on how this goes. More show information can be found here.
Don’t miss a great opportunity to see some local legends doing what they love once again!
Primus Setlist: Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers, HOINFODAMAN, Too Many Puppies – Sgt. Baker, American Life, The Desaturating Seven, The Valley, The Seven, The Trek, The Scheme, The Dream, The Storm, The Ends?, The Pressman, Welcome to This World, My Name Is Mud > Jerry Was a Race Car Driver, Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver (Encore)
The Salt City’s annual rite of summer, Taste of Syracuse, kicks off Friday June 1 and runs through June 2, 2018. The annual free festival pairs the region’s foods and music in Downtown’s Clinton Square. This year’s headliner is ’90s alt-pop icons, Smash Mouth.
The fest’s claim to fame is the $1 food samples from the various eateries set up in the square. You can find the full dollar menu here.
Other than the food, Taste of Syracuse also provides a great free look at the wealth of musical talent from Syracuse and surrounding areas. With three stages, there is no shortage of music to be found. Things get going at noon Friday with Just Joe on the Clinton Square Stage, Peg Newell and Robyn Stockdale on the Erie Boulevard Stage and Max Scialdone on the Main Stage.
https://youtu.be/1X0BB-61s6Q
Music continues throughout the day with soul being the theme on the Clinton Square Stage. Tanksley performs at 6:30 p.m. followed by Israel Hagen’s Stroke at 7:45 p.m. Prime Time closes out the night at 9:30 p.m.
The Erie Boulevard Stage gets funky Friday night with a double shot of Root Shock and Sophistafunk. The two Syracuse bands recently paired for a mini-tour together called the Salt City Shakedown that also included Syracuse’s Skunk City. Root Shock won the 2017 SAMMY award for Best New Artist and also captured the NYS Music March Madness title that year. Country Swagg and Hard Promises close out the Main Stage Friday night.
Saturday gets started at noon with Lori Ann singing the oldies on the Clinton Square stage. Syracuse’s master of the slide guitar, Colin Aberdeen will get funky on the Erie Boulevard Stage at the same time.
Colin Aberdeen performing at the Dinosaur BBQ in April 2017
The Main Stage on Saturday will feature Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at at 1:30, followed by the folk rock stylings of Poor Tim, featuring Shawn “Big Sexy” Smith, a former contestant on NBC’s The Voice and Justin Smithson, who has performed at Carnegie Hall.
Chris Eves and the New Normal follow Poor Tim. The New Normal’s single “Green and Blue” was recently included on Relix magazine’s June Digital Sampler. You can listen on Spotify below:
Country act, Grit and Grace and the latest “Vinyl Albums Live” set, “The ’90s Mix Tape” follow. Closing out the main stage and the festival is ’90s pop group, Smash Mouth.
Other acts performing on Saturday include Grateful Dead tribute act Dark Hollow, hip hop from Joe Driscoll and the Brownskin Band, Americana from the Old Main, and funk from Skunk City on the Erie Boulevard Stage.
The Clinton Street stage features the soulful alt-rock of the Black River, Tim Herron and Great Blue, Soul Risin’ and the Barndogs DELUXE.
Attendance to the two-day festival is free. For the complete schedule, see below.
Don’t judge a book by it’s cover, so they say. But what about an album? In the case of the self-titled album from The Tins, a trio out of Buffalo, you’d do okay making judgment without listening to a note. But you definitely should… listen that is.
At passing glance the cover is just a painting of the band’s members, keyboard player and vocalist Mike Santillo, drummer and vocalist Dave Muntner, and guitarist and vocalist Adam Stanley. But to any readers of Rolling Stone magazine in the ’90s, the style will feel quite familiar. That’s because it’s the work of Philip Burke, whose art donned the magazine’s covers for nearly a decade. Burke is also from Buffalo, as is the album’s producer, the Goo Goo Dolls’ Robby Takac. So The Tins have the backing of some historical talent in their hometown.
Burke’s cover, familiar as it is, is sprinkled with bold surprises. Bright and unnatural color combinations jump out of the frame, figures that seemed normal at first glance ooze with distortion on further examination, and hidden shapes emerge from nowhere the longer you stare.
Likewise, the music inside the package, familiar at first, is packed with surprising twists and turns and exciting splashes of color that push it past the ordinary. The rock trio lays out interesting enough rock tunes at their base, with bits of psychedelia, new wave and folk mixed in, and just the right amount of melody and hook to reel the listener in closer. That’s when the colors and shapes start to pop, turning the interesting into the exciting.
Santillo’s keys carry the first pair of songs. Immediately, a bubbling and floating organ joins Muntner’s driving beat on “Hear Me Out,” then returns with an 8-bit sounding flurry near the song’s end. His sound gets crunchier and a bit reminiscent of Genesis next in “Oh My God.” Stanley’s guitar picks up the next two, with a catchy Death Cab for Cutie-esque head bobber in “Sundried Mind” and the ’80s-style rocker “Jigsaw Queen” that bursts with colorful zigs and zags throughout. Bruce Springsteen’s classic “State Trooper” gets updated with a dark underbelly of keyboard swirls and an exhilarating post-scream rock out. “A Minute of Your Time” seems standard at first, but slows to reveal a watery guitar jam, and later again opening up to a suspenseful building finish. “Mountain Song” is what it says, a mountain of a song, a straight up power rocker with loud crunching guitars, pounding drums and big three-part harmonies. But it, too, is not without surprises, as it repeatedly dips into atmospheric interludes.
What does it all mean?! According to Stanley, the songs stand as a singular unit, “about feeling stuck, the need for freedom and escape.” But more importantly, it’s about making people dance. “What good is this if you can’t groove to it, you know?” The Tins‘ eight tracks clock in at a bit over 30 minutes. Perfectly situated to throw it on repeat, surely cracking with new discoveries on each listen.
The album drops this Friday, June 1 when the band will celebrate with a release show at the Lockhouse in Buffalo, followed by a summer tour that will bring them all over the northeast. See the full dates below.
Key Tracks: Jigsaw Queen, Sundried Mind, State Trooper
Albany-area jamband, Formula 5 has lent its name to a new shake in Capital District Ben & Jerry’s scoop shops. The band is also set to host its Rock the Dock Music Festival in Lake George on July 13.
The Formula 5 Flavor Shake combines the iconic Cherry Garcia, Totally Baked and Phish Food ice creams with mini M&Ms and milk. It is available throughout the summer at scoop shops in Saratoga Springs, Albany and Lake George. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the shakes will benefit the FUND for Lake George and Friends of Five Rivers.
Albany scoop shop co-owner Mike Sperduto said of the shake
“Bringing Ben & Jerry’s and Formula 5 together to mix up a shake just made sense. From The Grateful Dead and Phish to Willie Nelson, we keep our eyes on the smile, music and ice cream, so taking this to a local level made sense, and especially with the commitment of a band who embraces our values really solidified it for us.”
Watch the Formula 5 commercial advertising the new shake below:
The band is also set to host its second annual Rock the Dock Festival on the dock of the Lake George Steamboat Company in Lake George on July 13. In addition to the host band, other artists performing at Rock the Dock include, Soule Monde (Featuring Ray Paczkowski & Russ Lawton of Trey Anastasio Band), Strange Machines and Let’s Be Leonard.
Luke Dow, event manager for Rock the Dock, shared background on bringing the event to the docks on Lake George:
“Rock the Dock was started as a way to celebrate the Lake George Steamboat Company’s 200th anniversary by doing something that the company has never done in its history, hold a concert on the pier. The free concert was a way of giving back to all the loyal patrons as well as showcase the talents of local artists and food trucks. This year’s festival will also be focused on giving back, with 25% of all ticket proceeds benefiting the FUND for Lake George, to help with their efforts to keep the lake clean and pristine for years to come.”
Tickets for this year’s festival are $7 and available at the Rock the Dock website.
Formula 5 recently covered the Rush classic, “La Villa Strangiato” at the Hollow Bar and Kitchen in Albany. This performance marks the first time the band has covered Rush in a live setting.
Creating the Initial Group
Primus Setlist: Those Damned Blue-Collar Tweekers, HOINFODAMAN, Too Many Puppies – Sgt. Baker, American Life, The Desaturating Seven, The Valley, The Seven, The Trek, The Scheme, The Dream, The Storm, The Ends?, The Pressman, Welcome to This World, My Name Is Mud > Jerry Was a Race Car Driver, Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver (Encore)
Don’t judge a book by it’s cover, so they say. But what about an album? In the case of the self-titled album from The Tins, a trio out of 