Author: Pete Mason

  • Café Carlyle welcomes Buster Poindexter for two intimate shows this October

    Rock icon Buster Poindexter returns to Café Carlyle, October 8 & 9. As a founding member of the New York Dolls and in a prolific solo career, David Johansen has been a seminal force in rock and roll, influencing countless singers and bands to this day.

    For these performances, Buster Poindexter, Johansen’s celebrated alter ego, will showcase his songwriting, spanning his career from New York Dolls until now, in his inimitable elegant style, interspersed with amusing anecdotes from life in New York, past and present. As Poindexter, his previous engagements have been sellouts and he has become one of the most revered artists to grace Café Carlyle.

    The E Street Band’s Steven van Zandt has said of past performances, “Buster Poindexter at the Café Carlyle is one of the great shows of the year. David Jo does an impressionistic look back at his life through his alter ego’s lens and it all works. It’s a jazz performance. His actor’s chops riffing comedy in between songs. Don’t miss it!”

    Originally opened in 1955, Café Carlyle is New York City’s bastion of classic cabaret entertainment, a place where audiences experience exceptional performers at close range in an exceedingly elegant setting. Since composer Richard Rodgers moved in as The Carlyle’s first tenant, music has been an essential part of The Carlyle experience. No place is that more evident than in the Café Carlyle.

    Reservations can be made online. Café Carlyle is located in The Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel (35 East 76th Street, at Madison Avenue).

  • Steve Kimock & Friends announce 25 year tour, release “While We Wait”

    Steve Kimock & Friends kick off their 25 year celebration on Wednesday, September 25, and leading up to this silver anniversary they’re releasing SKF videos from the archives. Check out “Cole’s Law” from earlier this year at Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, CA.

    The group recently released “While We Wait,” an elegant instrumental with Steve playing lap steel, guitar and piano on the track, alongside Spencer Murphy on bass, and John Morgan Kimock on drums, kalimba, piano, and synthesizers. Written by Steve and produced by John Morgan, the initial source of the song was the bittersweet joy Steve experienced in visiting with a friend who didn’t have much time left. 

    Steve’s playing creates a unique space, one not conventionally occupied by the average mind.  As John Morgan put it, “You cannot identify what you are hearing, which is really exciting to me. I try to run with the ‘UFO’ vibes and let that creep into the production.” Commenting on John’s production work, Steve replied, “I don’t know how he does it.  He takes pieces I’ve done and creates something new…his process is fascinating.”  The other-worldly magic of Steve’s guitar meets its match with John Morgan’s studio alchemy. 

    Steve Kimock and Friends 25th anniversary tour dates:

    Wednesday, Sept 25 – Ridgefield, CT @ Ridgefield Playhouse

    Thursday, Sept 26 – Beverly, MA @ Cabot Theatre

    Friday, Sept 27 – New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge

    Saturday, Sept 28 – Ardmore, PA @ Ardmore Music Hall

  • Rocktoberfest Returns to Rock Albany Warehouse District on October 5

    Ambassador Music Group (AMG) will host its second annual Rocktoberfest music festival on Saturday, October 5th as a benefit for Cohoes-based nonprofit Community Miracles In Action (CMA) and CMA’s Louder Dreams project. The free, family-friendly event will run from noon to 6:00 pm in the heart of Albany’s Warehouse District (15 Pleasant Street, 12207).

    The successful launch of Rocktoberfest in 2018 featured three main-stage acts and two acoustic performances. This year, Rocktoberfest will feature seven acts on the Louder Dreams main stage. Headliners include American Idol’s Madison VanDenburg, Americana-rock group C.K. & The Rising Tide and indie-rockers El Modernist. Rounding out the lineup are pop/indie/R&B artists Vince Palmeri, Julia Gargano, David Cuttino & The Antiks and This Strange Paradise.

    Rocktoberfest is central to AMG’s mission of featuring local musicians, partnering with and promoting local businesses, and helping local non-profits. Fulfilling the goal of helping local non-profits, Rocktoberfest 2019 has partnered with Community Miracles in Action (CMA). CMA is a drop-in teen center offering a safe place for kids to set and achieve goals, build meaningful relationships, and connect with adults who provide structure and compassion. In support of this collaboration and in support of teens, the “Louder Dreams” rock stage will feature special performances by CMA and Youth FX (another non-profit organization helping students through film) youths in between main acts.

    In an interview with Spot 518 (“Calculated Venture”) in 2018: “The community aspect of the music scene here is unlike anywhere I’ve been,” said Andrew, co-owner and artist manager of AMG. “I think there’s potential for something bigger to happen in the music scene, here in Albany,” said Rose, co-owner and marketing director of AMG. “And we’re on the brink of making it bigger than what it is right now. I think we’re all trying to make it happen.”

    Rocktoberfest

    Ambassador Music Group (AMG) is an artist management company based in Albany, New York. AMG’s artists have performed on stages across New York and New England and benefit from a devoted management and PR team. While promoting their own roster, AMG reserves resources to support local musicians, partner with local businesses, and help children through music. Learn more at www.ambassadormusicgroup.com.

  • The Morning Sea release video for “Mad in Berlin”

    Brooklyn-based, folk-Americana group The Morning Sea recently released their new single and video, “Mad in Berlin” via Americana-UK. Recorded in band member Sonny Ratcliff’s Brooklyn apartment, “Mad in Berlin” is the second single from their upcoming album Half Keys and features footage from the band’s travels to Berlin.

    “Mad in Berlin” portrays an air of excitement and freedom, and a sense of optimism slightly obscured by a wary sense of struggle on the horizon. The song’s video, directed and edited by Ratcliff, captures these emotions beautifully by combining a blend of joyful and melancholy images.

    Songwriter / frontman, Adam Cohen, started The Morning Sea as a solo project in 2013, but the project quickly flourished into a full-fledged band with the help of a talented crew of New York City musicians, notably including Cohen’s long-time collaborator Ratcliff, a multi-instrumentalist and producer. The band has since gone on to create three previous albums, multiple singles and videos, and have played countless shows at New York City’s most prominent venues.

  • Runaway Gin to bring “Evil Phish” to The Knitting Factory this December

    On the heels of their first 3-song second set at a Hurricane Dorian Afterparty in Charleston, SC, Runaway Gin – a Tribute to Phish has announced the “Ophishal YEMSG Preparty” along with Facebook groups Phish Chicks and Phish Tour 2014. The event will feature two sets of “Evil Phish” starting at 8:30pm on Thursday, December 26th at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, NY.

    The band recently released an HD Video of “Tube” from their March 30th show in Richmond, VA.

    Runaway Gin 2019 Fall/Winter Tour:

    Saturday, September 7th: Charleston Pour House

    Friday, September 13th: the State Theatre – Greenville, NC^

    Saturday, September 14th, the Ramkat – Winston-Salem, NC

    Friday, October 11th: the Glass House – Lynchburg, VA

    Saturday, October 12th: the Lincoln Theatre – Raleigh, NC

    Thursday, October 17h: Victory North – Savannah, GA

    Friday, October 18th: Capri Theatre – Montgomery, AL

    Saturday, October 19th: Zydeco – Birmingham, AL

    Friday, November 1st: Neighborhood Theatre – Charlotte, NC^

    Saturday, November 2nd: the Broadberry – Richmond, VA^

    Friday-Saturday, November 8th: the Woodlands Festival – Charleston, SC

    Thursday, November 14th: 1904 Music Hall – Jacksonville, FL

    Friday, November 15th: the Orpheum – Tampa, FL* 

    Saturday, November 16th: Revolution Live – Ft. Lauderdale, FL* (with Pink Talking Fish)

    Friday, November 29th: the NorVa – Norfolk, VA

    Friday, December 6th: Charleston Pour House – Charleston, SC+ (Just the covers Phish afterparty)

    Thursday, December 26th: the Knitting Factory – Brooklyn, NY

    Saturday, February 1st: Cervantes – Denver, CO

  • Lake Street Dive Plans Four New York Stops in October

    Lake Street Dive will conclude their extensive 2019 US tour in October in support of its critically acclaimed 2018 album, Free Yourself Up. The band will perform in Brooklyn in support of the Avett Brothers on Oct. 5, then head north to Albany for a solo performance at the Palace Theatre on Oct. 6. They swing back to the Empire State in mid-October with stops in Buffalo on Oct. 18 and Geneva on Oct.19.

    Free Yourself Up was released last year on Nonesuch Records to critical and popular acclaim, spending a remarkable seven and a half months on the non-commercial radio charts and an equally rare eighteen weeks on Billboard’s Top Current Albums chart. The record debuted at No. 4 on the Top Album Chart and No. 8 in the Billboard Top 200 Chart, and the lead single “Good Kisser” was in the Top 5 at Americana radio for more than a month.

    Lake Street Dive Tour Dates

    Oct. 2 – Lebanon Opera House – Lebanon, NH (Sold Out)

    Oct. 4 – DCU Center – Worcester, MA^

    Oct. 5 – Barclays Center – Brooklyn, NY^

    Oct. 6 – The Palace Theatre – Albany, NY

    Oct. 8 – College Street Music Hall – New Haven, CT

    Oct.10 – Harvester Performance Center – Rocky Mount, VA

    Oct. 11-12 – The National – Richmond, VA

    Oct. 13 – Greenfield Lake Amphitheater – Wilmington, NC (Sold Out)

    Oct. 15 – Sunoco Performance Theater, Whitaker Center – Harrisburg, PA

    Oct. 17 – Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ON (Sold Out)

    Oct. 18 – Asbury Hall – Buffalo, NY

    Oct. 19 – Smith Opera House – Geneva, NY

    ^ in support of The Avett Brothers

  • Jason & The Rex release debut music video and single “Bullets are Flying”

    Brooklyn alternative hip-hop artist, Jason & The Rex recently released their debut single and accompanying music video for “Bullets Are Flying.” Inspired by emotion from the Parkland shootings, Jason unfurls a pensive, sometimes manic flow that expresses the convoluted public discourse surrounding the gun violence epidemic in the U.S. over vibrant horns, a melancholy piano lead, strange-sounding synths, and a reverb-washed chorus create a dense soundscape.

    Hoping to inspire activism within his art, Jason layered hidden meanings and messages with each aspect of both the video and the track. The dancers movements, the TV screens, sounds and atmospheric layers created from voice samples of common gun-violence soundbites are just a few examples of the extreme intuitiveness found in the creation of this video, conveying an emotive message of gun violence. 100% of proceeds from “Bullets Are Flying” will be donated to March For Our Lives.

    Hip-hop, future-funk, and dream-pop influences blend to create a densely layered lamentation of our nation’s gun violence crisis in “Bullets Are Flying.” Jason draws on his love for socially-conscious 90’s hip-hop artists like De La Soul and Common with the synth-heavy, lush soundscapes of psychedelic dream-pop artists like the Cocteau Twins, the Cranberries, and Tame Impala. The video is directed by Samantha Silver and produced by Tag Brum.

    “Bullets Are Flying” will appear on Jason’s forthcoming EP Synthesizer or Variations of: An Endemic Cycle, which will explore and expand the theme of living in the mass shooting generation.

  • John Leguizamo’s one-man play ‘Latin History for Morons’ returns to NYC

    Following its Tony-nominated hit Broadway run seen by tens of thousands, Tony Award winner John Leguizamo’s one-man play Latin History for Morons will return to New York for one night only at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, NY on Saturday, November 9.

    Latin History for Morons is inspired by the near total absence of Latinos from Leguizamo’s son’s American History books. Leguizamo embarks on an outrageously funny, frenzied search to find a Latin hero for his son’s school history project. From a mad recap of the Aztec empire to stories of unknown Latin patriots of the Revolutionary War and beyond, Leguizamo breaks down the 3,000 years between the Mayans and Pitbull into 110 irreverent and uncensored minutes above and beyond his unique style.

    Ben Brantley of The New York Times called the show a “surprisingly poignant one-man play that slyly poses sharp and timely questions of what culturally defines American identity and who, in the nationalistic age of Trump, has ‘the right’ to be here.”

    Latin History For Morons

    Latin History for Morons concluded its successful run on Broadway on February 25, 2018. The original 16-week engagement was extended an additional three weeks on opening night, November 15, 2017. The production was the first play of the 2017-2018 season to recoup its entire capitalization.

    This marks theatre’s most prolific modern Latino playwright, John Leguizamo’s sixth one-man venture onto the stage, following success on Broadway with Ghetto Klown (Outer Critics Circle Award, Drama Desk Award), Freak (Drama Desk Award), Sexaholix…A Love Story (Tony nomination) and Off-Broadway with Mambo Mouth (Obie Award) and Spic-O-Rama (Drama Desk Award). 

    Directed by Tony Taccone (Wishful Drinking, Bridge & Tunnel), the Tony-nominated production of  Latin History for Morons is written and performed by Leguizamo, featuring scenic design by Rachel Hauck, lighting design by Alexander V. Nichols, and original music and sound design by Bray Poor. Latin History for Morons is produced by THE WOW Agency, Berkeley Repertory Theatre and The Public Theater.  

  • James Murphy and Friends to perform at The Kitchen’s new benefit concert series on September 25

    The Kitchen, one of New York City’s most forward-looking nonprofit spaces, will kick off a new benefit concert series on September 25 with DJ sets from James Murphy (LCD Soundsystem/DFA) and friends. The first floor theater will host Murphy, with doors opening at 8:30pm and the DJ sets running from 9pm-12am. More information on the upcoming concerts for the 2019-20 season will be announced soon.

    The Kitchen shows innovative work by emerging and established artists across disciplines, with programs ranging from dance, music, performance, and theater to video, film, and art, in addition to literary events, artists’ talks, and lecture series. Since its inception in 1971, The Kitchen has been a powerful force in shaping the cultural landscape of this country, and has helped launch the careers of many artists who have gone on to worldwide prominence.

  • American Roots music takes centerstage at Folkfaces Fest this October in Darien Center

    Folkfaces will hold their second annual music fest this October 3-6 at Cherry Hill Campground in Darien Center, NY. The four-day event boasts 42 local and touring acts from a plethora of different genres, with an emphasis on original American roots music. The festival will also include vendors, food, art, workshops, games, raffles, bonfires, late-night jams, camping, yoga, and more.

    folkfaces fest

    The festival kicks off on Thursday, Oct. 3 with early set-up and a pre-party featuring Pennsylvania bluegrassers, the Jakobs Ferry Stragglers. Friday through Sunday, music will start at noon and run until midnight or later. Headlined by Spoon Lady and the Tater Boys, these American roots musicians are a YouTube sensation and busking extraordinaires from Asheville, NC. Abby (Spoon Lady) met up with Folkfaces on their 2018 spring tour and became fast friends. She’ll bring her spoons and some friends (The Tater Boys) to play with, and also giving a Spoons workshop.

    Other notable acts on the festival bill include folk multi-instrumentalist Aaron Jonah Lewis, two sets by Adirondack freight train stringers The Blind Owl Band, NOLA buskers Yes Ma’am, delta blues-inspired slide guitarist Cristina Vane, down-home folk swingers Woody Pines, roots/Americana/old-time multi-instrumentalists Aaron Lipp & Bobby Henrie, and Finger Lakes-based bluegrassers Dirty Blanket. Not to mention, two sets from Folkfaces.

    For more information on Folkfaces Fest in Darien Center, visit the event’s website or Facebook event.