The celebration they wanted – a weekend of music on the site of the 1969 Woodstock Music & Art Fair – continued following Arlo Guthrie’s opening performance to commemorate 50 years since the festival occurred.
Many alumni from the 1969 festival returned to Bethel Woods over the course of the four days to breathe life into their memories, joined by younger generations looking to enjoy music and learn about a piece of 1960’s history.
Each of the three nights brought back performers from the 1969 festival. The Beatles never played Woodstock as they were busy working on their album, Abbey Road. However, Ringo Starr and his All Star Band brought Santana’s keyboardist back to the stage to jam on a couple of Santana’s early works and paid tribute to other performances from 1969, with a medley of tunes later in the set. Saturday brought Carlos Santana back to the stage, with a little help from The Doobie Brothers. Closing out the weekend was a powerful set by Creedance Clearwater Revival’s John Fogerty who, at age 74, rocked with the stage presence and humor of someone 30 years younger. Other 1969 performers to hit the stage included Blood, Sweat & Tears (new lineup) and Edgar Winter, who sat in with his brother Johnny for part of his Woodstock set.
John Fogerty (photo by Kevin Ferguson/Bethel Woods)
Scenes from the 1970 Woodstock documentary immortalized the weather that mired parts of the festival. Somewhat true to that form, some threats of weather and a short but heavy rain hindered the festivities a little bit. Spirits were kept up; some recreating the “no rain!” chants and others taking the opportunity to chat and share stories while activities were on hold.
The weekend was a perfect pace to celebrate the history, and anniversary, of the Woodstock Music & Art Fair. Although the 50th anniversary weekend is behind us, the conversation will keep going. The Museum at Bethel Woods has done an excellent job at preserving and documenting the history of Woodstock with their permanent exhibit and their special exhibit, “We Are Golden: Reflections on the 50th Anniversary of the Woodstock Festival and Aspirations for a Peaceful Future” which remains open through October.
Stay tuned to NYS Music as we bring you parts three and four of our coverage, featuring stories from people who were there, including Nick & Bobbie Ercoline, Duke Devlin, and photographer/Hog Farm member, Lisa Law.
Photos by Steve Malinski.
Main stage photos below by Kevin Ferugson/Bethel Woods:
For one of SPAC‘s final concerts of the 2019 season, the Outlaw Music Festival brought a full afternoon and evening of music and vendors to the park.
This year’s Outlaw Music Festival tour began in Maine back in June and has featured a rotating roster of performers throughout the summer with Willie Nelson & Family as the anchor for each show.
Joining Willie Nelson at SPAC were Pernikoff Brothers, Brothers Osborne, Alison Krauss, and Bonnie Raitt. Deadheads had been looking forward to Phil Lesh & Friends as part of the bill, but instead found themselves wishing Lesh a speedy recovery from a minor back surgery done earlier in the summer.
Check out a few photos from the Brothers Osborne and Alison Krauss sets below.
Marco Benevento has released “Send It On A Rocket,” his self-proclaimed “end of summer anthem” and third single ahead of new album Let It Slide, due out September 20th on Royal Potato Family. In between references to reefer and Topo Chico, deep pockets of bass and spaced-out synths, the cascading composition reveals that behind Marco the bandleader – who covers his piano strings in gaffers tape and enjoys walking his pet goats and peacocks through the Catskill woods – there are patches of sorrow he’s now ready to contemplate more seriously than ever.
The sounds of “Send It On A Rocket” preview the new territory charted between Benevento and Let It Slide producer Leon Michels, a partnership marking the first time Benevento relinquished studio control of his own music. As evident on the new single, that surrender led to his deepest inward exploration, and spontaneous impulses like taping those piano strings. Read Benevento’s introduction to the song via Talkhouse.
Introduced via dear friend Richard Swift (who was set to mix the LP before passing), Marco made Let It Slide with Michels (Sharon Jones, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Lady Gaga) and an unexpected, Upstate NY bromance ensued, and Marco’s trust in Leon ultimately informed the album’s core: free yourself to be yourself. Citing influence in Can, ESG, Childish Gambino, and Mulatu Astatke, he dug deep into his lyrics, exploring acceptance, desire, and regret, while embracing the moment – an impulse to cover piano strings in gaffers tape created the LP’s main muted sound (along with the Binson Echorec, the tape machine behind 1970s Pink Floyd).
This fall, Marco Benevento and his band – including Karina Rykman (bass) and Andy Borger (drums) will make 30 stops from coast to coast, with 5 shows in New York over two weeks in October.
MARCO BENVENTO Tour Dates
10/10 – Buffalo, NY – Iron Works 10/11 – Ithaca, NY – The Haunt 10/12 – Albany, NY – Cohoes Music Hall ** 10/13 – Woodstock, NY – The Colony * 10/17 – Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall ^ 10/19 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground ^ 10/20 – Holyoke, MA – Gateway City Arts ^ 10/23 – Fairfield, CT – FTC StageOne ^ 10/24 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg ^ 10/25 – Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts ^ 10/26 – Washington, DC – Pearl Street Warehouse ^ 11/2 – Shizuoka, Japan – Frue Festival 11/6 – Pittsburgh, PA – Club Cafe ^ 11/7 – Grand Rapids, MI – Founders Brewing ^ 11/8 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall ^ 11/9 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club ^ 11/10 – Milwaukee, WI – The Back Room @ Colectivo ^ 11/11 – Davenport, IA – Raccoon Motel ^ 11/12 – Indianapolis, IN – HiFi ^ 11/13 – St. Louis, MO – Old Rock House ^ 11/14 – Nashville, TN – Basement East ^ 11/15 – Louisville, KY – Zanzabar ^ 11/16 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Tavern ^ 12/5 – San Diego, CA – Casbah San Diego 12/6 – Los Angeles, CA – The Teragram Ballroom ^ 12/7 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent ^ 12/8 – Felton, CA – Felton Music Hall 12/9 – Mill Valley, CA – Sweetwater Music Hall ^ 12/10 – Arcata, CA – Humbrews / Humboldt Brews ^ 12/11 – Eugene, OR – WildCraft Cider Works ^ 12/12 – Bend, OR – Volcanic Theatre Pub ^ 12/13 – Portland, OR – Doug Fir Lounge ^ 12/14 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile ^
Rapper Cardi B brought her ” Femme It Forward” tour to Saratoga Performing Arts Center on Friday September 6th. The South Bronx native had originally been slated to perform on May 26, but rescheduled the show to September, but that didn’t keep the fans from packing SPAC.
Cardi gave fans a short 50 minute set, but fans didn’t mind as she churned through her hits, even though hits like “Money” and others were consensed from their album length. With multiple costume changes, plus Nicole Bus and Teyana Taylor leading the way, Cardi B gave Saratoga a night to remember.
There is a subtle science behind making a good mixtape, and I’m not talking about a musician’s collection of work captured on a flimsy metal strip of magnetized particles of rust. Mixtapes were once ubiquitous to the teenaged way of life. If you survived puberty, it was because you made a mixtape. If Charles Shultz was a kid of the 80s, Linus would have had a Walkman. No doubt. So how does one go about creating a playist?
So, yes. Ask a kid of the 80s the importance of a good mixtape and you’ll start an hour’s conversation on his or her collection, or best yet, shared insight on the process involved on how to compose an intimate audio experience.
It takes more than compiling a group of songs. The fictional Rob Gordon warned us of this. It’s a delicate thing. There are a lot of rules. What rules may apply depends on what your intentions may be for the final product. Is this tape for your own consumption, or are you going to be sharing this masterpiece with someone else? If the latter, then who is your audience and what is your message?
Yeah. There are a lot of questions you need to ask yourself. But, perhaps the best way to understand the complexities behind a good mixtape is to speak to people who mix music professionally.
Kim Neaton knows this all too well.
“I’ve made playlists for everything from a baby shower to a six-hour cider festival,” said Neaton. Not to mention, she spent four years programming radio shows at WEQX. “I’ve made playlists for all sorts of occasions and love the topic of making the right playlist depending on what type of event or crowd.”
Auditory chaos
Neaton stands between the bar and the shuffleboards at Franklin Alley Social Club with a beer in hand. The arcade was an off-the-wall idea conceptualized by Frank and Heidi Sicari, owners of Takk House. The front door is in a Troy alleyway. It’s the basement of the old Knights of Columbus from nearly a century ago; a “retro boutique gathering space.” The bar features craft beers and there’s a few classic coin-operated games in the back.
It’s a Thursday night and Neaton is there to takeover the jukebox. It’s an event the Sicaris throw on occasion, allowing a guest to come in and arrange the night’s music. She downplays her responsibility. “We picked a music theme for the night, made a four-hour playlist … plug in and it plays. No real DJ skills required.”
WEQX has been the local authority on alternative music. Its radio signal has washed over the Capital District for more than 30 years. In four of those years, Neaton grew the reputation of throwing an occasional Beastie Boys track onto a show. Before leaving two years ago to join Guthrie/Bell Productions, she was one part of the station’s triumvirate who decided which bands received airtime and which bands did not.
The conversation within Neaton’s circle of friends stops as one song transitions to another. As Neaton said, she’s not chained to a booth. The music is playing straight off a digital playlist she pieced together on Spotify. A four-hour playlist on the popular streaming service can be haplessly curated within minutes, but not the order.
Neaton puts careful thought into what song follows another. Once, she said, a friend asked her to compile a list for a gathering. Neaton couldn’t attend, but gifted her friend a link to the playlist. The following day, she asked how it all worked out. She was met with a hesitant okay. Neaton asked if she had kept to the order. Her friend had not. Instead, she had hit shuffle.
“It’s about understanding the vibe of the audience,” said Neaton. When her friend strayed from her order of songs, she tossed away the segue from one song to another; it introduced an auditory chaos.
Sounds are important
Music is the manipulation of sound. Listen to Adrian Lewis, John Drabik or Chris Arndt play guitar, and you’re fascinated by the dancing of chords. Stripped down, it’s sound produced by vibrating strings. Since the first instrument was created, time has nurtured an appreciation of such sounds orchestrated into composition.
“I’ve learned this from teaching music production and engineering — I’m trying to teach them ear training,” said Josh Mirsky. On top of fronting Mirk, he owns Foster House Studios and teaches Hip Hop Academy. “We work tirelessly on ear training.
For me, that’s one of the most important skills to have when they leave: to be able to hear what’s happening in the song.”
Mirsky has a critical ear for sound. He has produced for Jay-Z. He’s also worked for major record labels and licensed tracks for national television networks, including NBC, VH1 and ESPN.
“I’ll hear something and I’ll get so flabbergasted,” Mirsky said. The producer is able to pinpoint when the marriage of sounds fail. In the studio, the bridgework to a song is laid out into separate tracks. Open GarageBand on a Mac. Each instrument has a unique track. When mixing sounds, he’s listening for how each track complements the others. “Sounds are the most important thing… I spend an hour per sound.
“Either I know the sound I’m going to —because I’ve used it and it’s a favorite of mine — and I know the depth that it’s going to add to the piece, or if I don’t know the sound, but hearing the sound in my head and finding one that sounds similar and manipulate that. It might take me an hour to find that sound.”
The Vibe
Moonshine Records earned meteoric popularity with the emergence of the rave scene in the mid to late 90s. The Los Angeles-based record label owned a stable of popular DJs that included DJ Keoki, Ferry Corsten and Carol Cox. Paul Oakenfold, twice-voted as DJ Magazine’s Best DJ in the World, had his first release in the U.S. under the Moonshine label. In 1997, Moonshine ran its first electronic-music tour through the United States. In each of its four tours, Denver was a stop.
Tim Pittz left the Capital District and stumbled into Colorado’s drum and bass scene. He was spinning records as DJ Canon. It was the height of rave’s popularity, and Denver was the right place to be. But, there was a lot of competition.
“A hundred DJs will have the same f–king records,” said Pittz. “But those are usually the anthems and bangers that get played to death. I would scour record shops looking for something different.”
Europe drove the market. Oakenfold, Tiësto, Corsten, Armin Van Burren were all household names by 2000; all of them developed their names in Europe. Pittz landed a connection that supplied him promotional tunes weeks before the official release stateside.
“So when everyone else was playing record xyz, I had moved on to something else,” he said.
Pittz ran with a crew that consisted of stage names like Fury, Ecco and MC Dino. At their height, they shared the stage with De La Soul, and played the Moonshine Over America Tour when it rolled through Denver in 2000. They played in front of several thousand ravers going “bonkers” insider the Denver Colosseum. He’s now retired and living with his wife in Philadelphia.
Preparing for your audience is key to recognizing the vibe of the room. Each venue was unique. Your time slot, and who you were playing before or afterwards, offered a particular responsibility to how the night was to flow.
“DJ Hype, for instance — I know he’s going to be blowing the speakers out of the room and killing the dance floor with people losing their minds,” said Pittz, “so I viewed it as my job to get heads bobbing by laying the groundwork for that.” That involved playing groovy, catchy tunes, he said. His MC helped engage the crowd. Avoiding the popular anthems was important in order for his crew to stand out, he said. He helped the MC by feeding into his flow with the right tunes. “You just know when something is going to kill, but you can’t just go straight for that,” he said.
“It’s a build-up.”
Understand the vibe.
Sounds are important.
It’s a build up.
Think about all of this when you next compose a playlist.
Since their inception back in 2004, The Wood Brothers have been creating their own flavor of American traditional music on their own terms. The trio is comprised of brothers Chris (bass & vocals) and Oliver (guitar & vocals) Wood , as well as Jano Rix (percussion & shuitar). Together they have been successful in creating a unique musical gumbo which includes the combination musical styles including Blues, Folk, Country, and Rock.
The Wood Brothers also recently received critical acclaim for their latest studio release, 2018’s One Drop Of Truth, which included a Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album. If that weren’t enough to keep the band busy, The Wood Brothers have just released Live At The Fillmore a new live album, their fifth, that was recorded over a two night stint at San Francisco’s famed musical landmark. The trio is famous for their live performances and the band shines on the stage. The opening track on Live At The Fillmore is “Blue and Green,” which is a stripped down, intimate number off of 2011’s Smoke Ring Halo LP. The deft vocals that Oliver and Chris deliver, as well as the ambient noise of the crowd, easily transports the listener to the gig at the historic Fillmore.
The boys tear it up on the third track “Snake Eyes” with a great percussion intro by Rix, which leads into a nicely executed guitar accompaniment by Oliver, featuring some heavy feedback. The Wood Brothers infectious performance, along with the a little on stage prompting from Oliver persuaded the audience to join the band in the chorus of the upbeat number, creating a vivid picture in the mind’s eye of the listener. The trio’s harmonies were spot on and the track wrapped up with another nice guitar fill by Oliver.
The Wood Brothers keeps the energy flowing with “Raindrop,” the fifth track from Live At The Filmore LP. Oliver and Jano constructed an intro featuring guitar and percussion which effortlessly leads into the jamming number. With the catchy opening vocal “Broke a heart for a cheap thrill. Seemed worth it at the time. There’s a hundred of ’em out there still. You can hear ’em all cryin’,” Oliver is able to evoke the frustration that anyone can feel while trying to get over a painful breakup.
The sixth tune, “Chocolate On My Tongue,” has an infectious groove that will get your foot tapping along with The Wood Brothers as they expertly ply their trade. Catchy riffs and smooth harmonies make this tune a true gem of a performance and a highlight on the LP.
Overall the fourteen tracks on Live at The Filmore are successful in proving The Wood Brothers are at their comfort zone on stage, playing for a live audience. It also illustrates how proficient the trio, who have had extensive time on the road performing, are able to anticipate and coordinate their playing together as a road tested unit. Oliver Wood once said while talking about selecting songs for a set list: “Sometimes it is like choosing between your children, you don’t want to have to do that but sometimes you have to.” Luckily for fans of The Wood Brothers, the band chose extremely well on Live At The Filmore, creating a voyeuristic experience where the listener gets to experience the best of two nights in the life of a great live band playing at a historic musical venue.
The two-day music and arts event, Adirondack Music Festival, returned to Lake George this past weekend for its fifth year in a row. Held once again on the serene LG section that is Charles R. Park, this year’s ADK Fest felt like the most well-received and celebrated yet, as many attendees seemed to vocally attest. If you were in attendance this weekend, you most likely at some point overheard someone discovering the festival for its special charm. Something along the lines of: “I can’t believe how nice this festival this is” and “Well, I am definitely coming back next year.”
As with every year since its start, ADK Fest opted for a classic setup with two main stages of music, set side by side—the style adopted by big-time events like Gathering of the Vibes and the first few years of LOCKN’. This format, which has bands perform back to back without delays, kept the energy on the field, and white hot, from early morning through sunset, as well as kept collective excitement packed into one shifting, intimate crowd.
A number of recently highly popular musical acts made their debut at ADK Fest. Midnight North, for starters, features members of The Terrapin Family Band and have been a hot ticket over the last year or so. Dead-relation aisde, Midnight North is its own beautiful creation, an americana powerhouse of band that displays a strong breadth of songwriting through dynamic, soulful musicianship. Members of this band were well connected within this music scene from the west coast and sat-in with many other artists as well.
Other buzz-generating artists performing at ADK for the first time ever were artists like The People’s Blues of Richmond, Marco Benevento, and G. Love and Special Sauce. People’s Blues, PBR for short, surely must have unexpectedly knocked a number of ADK patrons out of their musical comfort zone with their fearlessly-intense style of garage-punk blues. But the trio’s ceaseless, air-tight musicianship won many fans over as well. Marco Benevento’s own power-trio took the main stage just a few hours after them and wielded their own no-holds-barred mash of indie-pop, funk, and glam rock.
It felt strange to see G. Love perform a midday set at three in the afternoon -here was an artist, after all, that surfed high through the 2000’s on a number of big hits, but he was a highly received set nonetheless. In addition to a solo acoustic intro, the guitarist and hip-hop-inspired vocalist careened the edge of the stage above a swath of outward hands and starry-eyed expressions. G. Love’s collaboration with Twiddle frontman, Mihali Savoulidis, saw the two trading vocals for guitar riffs on a version of Hall and Oates’ “I Can’t Go For That,” which was much better than the “What I Got” that happened between the two in Twiddle’s headlining show later.
ADK Fest Day 1: G. Love and Mihali cover Hall and Oates. Photo: James Sullivan
Yet the four man dance-ready jamband, Twiddle, still performed a huge couple of sets to close out Saturday evening, to an elated audience that swamped the park’s concert area all the way to the vendors in the back. Highlights of their two closing sets were a guitar-shredding collaboration with Midnight North frontman, Graham Lesh, on their original “Subconcious Prelude” and then the foursome’s searing finish on “The Box.”
Another artist who met the crowd with a freewheeling sense of stage presence was the northeast jam scene’s golden girl, Hayley Jane. Fronting her band, The Primates, for a midday Sunday set, Jane sang face-to-face with a rail-climbing mass of highly excited young women. Hayley and The Primates as a unit announced their decision earlier this year to go on hiatus. This set at ADK Fest was undoubtedly an emotional one for many, despite the fact that Hayley, in her true style, beamed with smiles and soul through her own set. The joy transcended others that she guested on stage such as with polyrhythmic dub-rock band, Bartika, and then Jane sat in with Everyone Orchestra’s set a bit, after her own.
In a very special move, Adirondack Music Festival booked an Everyone Orchestra set for its day two second-to-headlining spot. EO shows are, of course, completely improvisational from start to finish and are always performed by a mix of artists from different bands. Lake George’s set was pretty substantially stacked for its members. Solo artists Haley Jane and Ryan Montbleau handled lead vocals (with the latter also offering some nice guitar solos here and there), while Deep Banana Blackout’s, Fuzz Giovanni, handled lead guitar work.
Saxaphone legend Sam Kinninger was a secret weapon here, shining up the band’s various types of funk and rock jams with amazing melodic work. Kinniger and the rest played beside a hefty rhythm section that included moe.’s Vinnie Amico on drums, TAB’s Tony Markelis on bass and Steve Moltiz on keys. Highlights here were a belly-laugh inducing, reggae-tinged sing-along about golf pirates. Super creative vocals led by Ryan Montbleau followed with an extremely moving, soul inspired jam which Everyone Orchestra impresario, Matt Butler, built a vocal tribute to the recently passed Neal Casal.
ADK Fest Day 2: Everyone Orchestra Pays Tribute to the late Neal Casal. PC: Miles Hurley
While some roll their eyes at cover bands, Pink Talking Fish works extra hard and thinks creatively to stand out from the ever-growing pack. The quartet began their set with a great surprise in The Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage,” which Phish has covered on rare occasion. In a climax to their set, PTF reprised a bit of the magic from their Junta album extravaganza at The Capitol Theatre earlier this year, which had Pigeons Playing Ping Pong’s Greg Ormont act as Master of Ceremonies. Here at ADK Fest, PTF began with a beautiful segue-sandwich from “You Enjoy Myself” to Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” and back. Upon returning to the Phish hit, Ormont joined the band mid-song, to first engage in some trampoline-style jumping with bassist, Eric Gould, and new guitarist Cal Kehoe. They finished with a very kooky vocal jam.
It was another strong move to have Pigeons Playing Ping Pong return to close the festival Sunday evening, just as they did last year. These four jam-funk players having seen a truly meteoric rise recently (they will be headlining Explore Asheville this coming December). A few highlights for their near-explosive set included an electronically charged collaboration with Steve Moltiz on their own tune, “Live it Up,” and a very colorful jam on Deee-Lite’s “Groove Is In The Heart.”
Major music events in Lake George, NY like Adirondack Music Fest often share in a little community-favorited crown jewel—a post festivities top-off at local music hub, King Neptune’s Pub. Being a time-tested spot for upstate bands to play, King Neptune’s always sees great crowds, but then really turns out when late night performances go down.
For Saturday night’s musical extend, nearby favorites, Funktional Flow from Buffalo, and New Haven, CT’s, Eggy, offered a proper finish to a full first day of music. Eggy, coming from the fertile music scene in New Haven, made a grand introduction for themselves in this venue, and they rocked the opportunity big time. The groove rock four-piece blasted their way through intense versions of originals like “Shadow” and “One More Dance,” along with improvisationally-heavy takes on covers like Traffic’s “Low-Spark of High-Heeled Boys.” For a set-topper, Eggy invited Midnight North keyboardist, Alex Jordan, for a blissful and high-powered take on the band’s “Buying Time.”
ADK Fest Day 1: Eggy rocks late night w/ Special Guest Alex Jordan. PC: Miles Hurley
While night one’s crowd was impressive, festival buzz Sunday afternoon must have spread like wildfire to make late night two’s crowd even more massive and energetic, for Neptune’s at the tail end of the weekend was nearly flooding out the door. After Sunday night’s originally scheduled openers, psychedelic funk outfit The New Motif, had to cancel their slot and the evening switched around to second act, Annie In The Water, opening before a festival-family superjam close out.
Annie in The Water thus kicked off with a very uplifting display of original music, with some cover hits thrown in for good measure. A presentation of styles ranging all the way from folk rock to reggae to even some hip-hop was connected via strong, confident solos and endearing vocals. Members of Lucid, Magic Beans, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong coalesced into one family-type super jam set, for a final set at Adirondack Music Festival, that seemed to represent everything this dynamic music scene is about. At one point in this performance free-for-all, three keyboardists—Magic Beans’ Scott Hatchey, former Formula 5’s Matt Richards, and PTF’s Richard James—hammered away on one rig at the same time, for a spectacle that was also technically impressive.
As with any festival, there’s more musical experiences than can be reported on. From piano wizard Marco Benevento and his trio debuting material from their new record (Let it Slide), to upstate jam favorites Lucid commanding the main stage mid-Saturday as they do with fervor every year, ADK Fest’s fifth year was artistically overflowing. All of this top-notch live music was met resolutely throughout the weekend with a positive and welcoming vibe, upheld via a sense of strong community and creativity. For mid-size festivals Adirondack Music Festival is one of the best you can experience in the ever-musically-fertile land of upstate NY—yet here’s to a steady growth from mid-size to who knows how big.
Check out a gallery of images of Adirondack Music Festival 2019 below, courtesy of photographer James Sullivan.
Five bands on the same bill in one night makes for one long, but rocking evening. With so many bands playing it really felt like Breaking Benjamin brought a mini rock festival to the Lakeview Amphitheater in Syracuse, NY on Saturday August 24.
There was a great mixture of new and well known faces on the stage performing that night. Opening the evening was one rad rocker-chick named Diamante. Her blue hair and Joan Jett inspired style added to her incredible stage presence.
Next up was another amazingly talented rad rocker chick named Dorothy. Dorothy’s fashion and singing style was completely different, but equally as rocktastic as Diamante. It was great seeing two stylish and talented women opening up this tour. Dorothy has an old school rock sound mixed within with her sound. Diamante may have looked like Joan Jett, but Dorothy sounded more like a Joan Jett vibe/sound.
Three Days Grace is one of those bands that you don’t realize how many hits they have on the radio until you see them perform live. They have come a long ways with their lead vocalist change up back in 2013, but their new singer knows how to bring the energy and connect with the crowd.
Direct support for this tour was Chevelle. Chevelle is a three piece and always has played as a three piece live with no additional guitarist or tracks. They pride themselves on playing truly live and they don’t disappoint. Chevelle is a band that is all about the music and their performance reflects that. Chevelle is much like Three Days Grace where you just don’t realize how many of their songs have been on the radio over the years.
Headliners Breaking Benjamin started out strong with “Red Cold River” while lead vocalist Benjamin Burnley walked out giving the crowd a heart sign then began to sing. Breaking Benjamin had a cool stage set up along with pyros.
Breaking Benjamin are known for their song mash-ups during their sets and they brought it to Syracuse. This time their mash up consisted of “The Imperial March,” “Cowboys From Hell,” “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Enter Sandman,” “Bulls On Parade,” and they finished with a drum solo from Burnley. Burnley turned the mic over to band members guitarist Keith Wallen and bassist Aaron Bruch to sing a few songs.
Rochester based multi-instrumentalist Alex Northrup and his band The Backup released their six-song album in March titled Long Story Short. The band is made up of Alex Northrup (keyboard, vocals), Andrew Carter (bass guitar, backup vocals), and Jake Walsh (drums, backup vocals). The trio has a sound that ranges from really small to huge, making use of each member’s prowess on their instrument and their abilities to hold a strong harmony. One thing that pops out in any of Northrup’s recordings is Alex’s ability to take a song out of the pocket with his strong keyboard performances. Evinced by the six tracks on this release, Alex Northrup and The Backup are beginning to carve out a sound all their own.
The opening track “Put on the Break-Up” ultimately sets the overall pace for the album. The sweet vocal melody is hashed out by wonderfully performed harmonies. Nothing here is too pristine; that is to say, the vibe is similar to the old Weezer Pinkerton days. The listener will be able to tell that the process of recording that the band took was organic, leaving the bulk of the work to the musicians to make the songs sound good.
“Sinning on a Saturday” offers a better look at how dynamic the band can be in their orchestration. The bass takes on a life of its own and the texture of the keyboard flexes a bit more as well, as Alex navigates his chord progression to make meaningful and interesting solos. The mood shift that takes place between the verse and chorus is subtle, but noticeable enough to invoke the feelings reflected in the lyrics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXOWdRFEhr8
One thing that should be taken note of is how Alex writes his lyrics. He talks casually, and even comically at times, about serious issues while never sacrificing the weight of the song’s topic. “Girl of My Dreams” is one such song. The ballad is a nice throwback to older ballads from the 50’s and the band does the style justice. While most of the songs are written by Northrup himself, he does collaborate with other members of the Rochester music scene. Specifically in “There We Go Again”, where some new creative elements and bass lines are added in by Dave Drago.
The album’s cap is an ethereal instrumental that comes out of almost nowhere to great effect. Each song flows into the next really well, and the entire album felt like it should end much like it does in “Blinded by Delight.” The band’s harmonies are sitting tight in the background behind a beautiful soundscape of textures. Overall, the album’s flow offers a whole new dimension worth analysis of its own. Definitely take a chance on this release, and be sure to find Alex Northrup and The Backup on Spotify, Bandcamp and social media!
Key Tracks: Sinning on Sunday, Put on the Break-Up, Girl of My Dreams
Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds have announced a final stint of shows before lead singer Arleigh Kincheloe embarks on maternity leave, with a second baby on the way, due in October. But that has not stopped her from holding true to the nitty-gritty Dirty Bird funk that goes down each and every time the band hits the stage.
The Dirty Birds had just performed a free show at Athens Riverfront Park in Athens, NY. For the last three dates fans will flock to Chattanooga, TN; Jersey City, NJ and a final cap at Brooklyn Bowl on September 14.
Kincheloe told NYS in a phone interview how it is just time to take a break from the road, rightfully so. However the front-woman stuck out the entirety of her pregnancy touring on the road, where as she did not with her first child. Despite the reactions by some fans, mothers especially, this is a true gift, taking the bands family ties to a second generation. Kincheloe is nothing short of grateful and glowing to be moving around stage with her child. Spiritually, and quite literally, Kincheloe feels her newborn-to-be on stage with her, making for a unique and special run of final shows.
Arleigh, rocking out with her newborn-to-be in Athens, last Friday.
Touring vigorously with Kincheloe’s latest realise Gold, the band spent the latter half of 2018 and early 2019 on the road selling out venues, including the accliamed Levon Helm Studios. Gold was produced and co-written in collaboration with Carter Matschullat (Chef’Special, Secret Weapons) at Brooklyn’s DØØM Studio, and made NYS Music’s Best Album of the Year in 2018, below.
The glimmer of Gold has caught our eyes. The overanxious wait for another Dirty Bird release had us on edge. In the past three years we have been deprived of the nitty-gritty funk powerhouse and soulful horn section that is Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds. While Gold is everything we want, this record is a spotlight on the undeniable front-woman Arleigh Kincheloe, a.k.a Sister Sparrow. This razors edge has captivated fans – a blend between modern-pop shimmer, electronic accents and that Dirty Bird flare.
