On Friday night, June 14, Albany’s Jupiter Hall closed their stage for the last time; but before the darkness, the venue was alive with flashing lights, fans, great music – and snow!
Another great show by Chaos Collective and Joe Von Schnizel, The Jupiter Hall venue went out with a bang! The feeling at the show was not one of despair, but rather a celebration. Four bands played, but they seemed to have the hearts of all the prior bands within them, and they gave it all to the appreciative fans.
Frank Palangi, an indie rock songwriter, opened the show with his band. His deep, full voice is reminiscent of Dave Gahan, the lead singer of Depeche Mode. His range was amazing, ccompanied by Greg Auffreduo on drums. You can catch some of his upcoming shows at Abrews in Dracut, MA on June 23 or The Schenectady Armory Center, June 29. For a list of other events, see his website.
Setlist: Set Me Free, Live It Up, Intro, It’s All Right, Break These Chains, Metallica Mix, Turn It All Around, Purple Haze.
Chris Itani
Next up were The Hard Luck Souls, an original blues-influenced hard rock band from the Capital District. Chris’ cool bluesy rock voice, led the tight, well-rehearsed group featuring Chris Itani on vocals, Brian Gentile on guitar, Mark Schmidt on drums and Dave Smassanow on bass. The setlist was from their 2017 CD, Closer to the Flame, and included: “You’re Not a Saint,” “In My Head,” “Izzy’s Thunder,” “Believer,” “Fly Away,” “Get Back,” “Better Keep On Running,” and “I’m Not Ashamed.”
You can catch The Hard Luck Souls at the Troy Farmers Market on June 29, 2019, Check their Facebook page for more times and locations. Check their Facebook page and sample the CD here.
Bob Messick, Bassist for Wasteland Junction
The show kept moving along with Wasteland Junction, a hard rock band from Schenectady, NY. The sounds of Wasteland Junction kept fans on their feet. Bob Messick held it down on Bass, R.J. Fowler on drums, Chris Fowler on rhythm guitar and Cy Romleski venturing on lead guitar completed the group. You can see them on August 2, at Chrome in Waterford, NY with Revenge (Kiss tribute band).
Setlist: I Profit, Tooth in Nail, Ride the Lightning, Cold Sweat, Iron Fist, What Your Doin’, Stone Cold Crazy, Kill the King, Priest Medley.
David Smith
The night closed after Revenge, the Kiss Tribute band swept up the stage with a wild performance. The music was loud and rocking. How fitting to have “Rock and Roll All Night” as the last song. The venue has died, but the memories of the music and the bands will rock, and roll all night. Thank you to all the entertainers, the event coordinators, promoters, staff and especially, the fans. Let’s keep local music alive.
Setlist: Detroit Rock City, Psycho Circus, Rise to It, Deuce, Lick it Up, A Million to One, War Machine, Hide Your Heart, Shock me, Love Gun, I was Made for Loving You, Black Diamond, and The last song of the set, the last song of the show, the last song played at Jupiter Hall, was Rock and Roll All Night!
Dead and Company ushered in the summer concert season at SPAC on Tuesday, June 18 with their bluesy, jazzy jam sessions that lasted late into the warm evening. Check out the setlist and photo gallery below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMeieLIBVfE
Set 1: Feel Like a Stranger>Hell in a Bucket>Alabama Getaway, When I Paint My Masterpiece>It Must Have Been the Roses>Cumberland Blues>Cassidy>US Blues
Set 2: Here Comes Sunshine>Shakedown Street>Wharf Rat>Playing in the Band>Uncle John’s Band>DrumsSpace>Viola Lee Blues>Dear Prudence>Casey Jones
Hello readers, I have finally made it back safely from my trip into the paranormal carnival that lives every year on the farm in Manchester, Tennessee. Yes my friends I am of course referring to the annual Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, now a larger than life gathering of existence and culture from around the world. I first attended Bonnaroo many moons ago, as a wide-eyed teenager, and it has been an absolute pleasure to return under the NYS Music banner to report back to you on all my findings there. I arrived of course with some foggy memory of what life on the farm was like, but no blurry recollection from years ago could prepare me for my trip through the wormhole and into the fertile cradle of vivacity that is Bonnaroo. Allow me to spin you a yarn of my discoveries as I breathed in all that this country’s largest camping festival had to offer. After all, Bonnaroo is indeed the beautiful mecca of discovery. Come with me as I gaze back at my wonderful weekend.
Photo by Rob Roane
In its seventeenth consecutive installment Bonnaroo hosted a wide array of artists across its numerous official stages and instalments, but it hosted so much more than music. I will of course spotlight some of the incredible sound I absorbed from the stages, and I will also describe some of the additional color qualities that really cement this festival in greatness. Firstly, it is important to establish here too that Bonnaroo is a fierce beast of an endurance test. For four days and nights I sought out to hear old favorites, discover new ones, and bask in the glow in the diversity of the festival, and I did just that. Let’s start with my arrival on the farm.
Thursday
Arriving at a festival is always a special feeling. Those familiar with it know that the Thursday night energy can be something fierce. Patrons are fueled by an anticipation that has been building for months. The evening comes quickly, as Thursday is the only real day in which travelers are not encumbered by heat or other tiring forces that set in once the weekend really gets rolling. As I arrived on the farm, I was immediately reminded how different this place was than anywhere else on earth. I cannot state this enough friends: arrival at Bonnaroo is absolutely electric. As soon as my size 12 touched the hallowed grounds, I was infected with the vibe. Electric neon jumped from every avenue. Sound took over. This year’s festival saw 80,000 patrons make land, the most the site has had on it in some time, and the party was indeed completely sold out. Due to traffic, I arrived slightly delayed, but to my delight, Thursday’s Grand Ole’ Opry set was broadcast on the AM radio. I listened to the sound of Nashville as I set up camp, curated by the great Old Crow Medicine Show. While the reception was a little fuzzy, it came through clearly enough to remind me that while Bonnaroo is the true melting pot of the festival circuit, it is embedded in its Tennessee roots, as it should be. I moved quickly at camp, and finally departed for “Centeroo,” the central hub of the festival and venue area. The Nude Party, a twang rock operation from Boone, NC already had the Thursday party in full swing at “That Tent.” This sextet of rockabilly troubadours delivered a sound that I can only describe as very full, and present. They’re a mountain party in a pressure cooker that is just waiting to break out. The packed house crowd ate their energy up and delivered it back to the stage in a to and fro dance. It was good to be back.
I trekked onto “This Tent” to get my first taste of
indulgence in new discovery of the weekend.
Being from NC myself, I was plenty familiar with The Nude Party, but the
next group I saw came under several recommendations preceding the festival. The Comet Is Coming is a progressive
jazz psych funk trio all the way from London. This trident of a unit comprised
of drums, sax, and keys assured the crowd that the comet was for sure coming.
Their party consisted of an ongoing flow of rhythm in continues breaks and time
changes that saw each member take lead while the others followed. Their little
game of follow the leader always culminated a massive crescendo of interplay,
which saw each member bursting at the seams with tempo. The jams always came to
a boil, leaving the crowd in frenzy after each and every take. With no real
soloist element amongst the trio, this was a true sound build band. Completely
unrelenting high energy, my first time with The Comet Is Coming was a microcosm
for everything that is great about this festival. I discovered my first new
favorite band of the weekend, I was filled with intrigue and inspiration, and I
left fulfilled, but certainly still hungry for more. The night was still young.
Back across the causeway my eyes darted from one luminescent structure to
another. This gathering had a heartbeat, the pulse of which is unmatched. I
followed my feet to the Magic City
Hippies, a new age digital indie funk operation from the majestic city of
Miami.
The Magic City Hippies are a true Bonnaroovian outlet. They lace some familiar samples over breaks and supplement them with catchy guitar riffs all while interacting with the crowd, which continued to grow under the loving cloak of “That Tent.” They’re all fun, all the time, the way a Thursday night at the farm should be. Let me tip my cap to the way this lineup was curated and slotted. Those behind the scheduling at Bonnaroo are absolute masters. As the electro funk party simmered, I got a chance to catch up with the Magic City Hippies and talk about how much it meant to be at Bonnaroo, amongst such great company.
Photo by Rob Roane
NYS Music: Can you guys talk
a little about what it means to bring your block party vibe from Miami all the
way to the big stage here at Bonnaroo?
Magic City Hippies: Ah man,
you know, we know we’re here for a reason, to deliver what we love to deliver
and that’s music. We come from Miami, a city rich of course with Latino culture
so we knew early on that if we were going to make music that it had to make
people move. To come here to the big stage, I was cheesing a little bit up
there. We used to play sweaty house parties on a Friday night, the ones where
it would just be us and twenty people in a room with the fog machine is on way
too long and just sweating it out with our friends. The Bonnaroo Beacon called
us an alt-pop-party starter band and that’s kind of what we are. We’re blessed
to be here.
Thursday night ‘Roo is the party starter, and the Magic City
Hippies were right in place. The party was far from over though.
Before Space Jesus
descended on the mass to hit the crowd with the first real dose of bass, I
stopped in the Snake & Jakes’s Christmas Club Barn to take in the Kasvot Växt dance party. The Christmas
Club Barn is exactly what it sounds like- a blinking beacon of Christmas
decorations complete with a full service bar and DJ booth. This is what Bonnaroo
is about, random themed destination installations in which patrons can simply
immerse themselves in surrealism, a theme that would reappear throughout the
weekend. Strangely, little to no Kasvot Växt, a fictional Scandinavian rock
band created by Phish was actually played during this set. Nevertheless, my
eyes still gaped wide with stimulation from this interactive candy cane land.
Photo by Rob Roane
Space Jesus, a New York native, took the throne on “The
Other,” Bonnaroo’s third largest stage. This stage once was a tent, but the
cover has long since been removed to form a fully operational stage used mostly
for bass music throughout the weekend. Space Jesus wasted no time getting right
down to it, as the thump from the woofers got deeper and deeper. I could see
immediately that this type of stuff is what many of the patrons craved and was
what they came for. This is a snapshot of how Bonnaroo has changed in the years
since I once frequented the farm. Not in a bad way though, the bass hawks are
devout fans, will follow an artist like Space Jesus wherever he goes, and help
establish the diversity in genre that allows for this festivals long term
continuance and success. It was nice to see the mostly college aged crowd head
banging in unison to the deep melodic womp of Space Jesus. This man came to get
down (he came to get down), and being that there were no seats (nor would they
be needed), the kids jumped around.
The clock now lingered past two in the morning as I sauntered back to camp, so filled with excitement and purpose. I had finally come home; after all it was this festival that sparked my real love for live music and the culture that surrounds it. One foot back onto the already beaten path leading into the massive campgrounds and another creature of the surreal approached me. A GIANT VW Beetle-like motorist comes cruising down the road, two stories tall, laden with go-go dancers and sewn in all kinds of light, this mechanized creature of the night is apparently a staple of the roadways at the festival, and made its first pass through the hordes. Conceived in some kind of post apocalyptic Mad Max comic book acid trip, this stuff happens only at Bonnaroo my friends, only at Bonnaroo.
Friday
I awoke Friday morning under what Bonnaroovians know to be very mild conditions. A place known for its unbearable heat, most of the weekend’s temperatures hovered in the mid seventies, a blessing for all those in attendance. While we did have to brave the heat and subsequent dust bowl circumstances would come later in the weekend, Friday proved to be quite pleasant. The first full day of the festival was now underway, I got my first chance to really hone in on what makes Bonnaroo standalone: diversity. In the prior night’s darkness and absolute loony-bin madness it was hard to make out the exact complexions of those sharing the crowd around me. In Friday’s daylight I was able to make a first real glance at this feature. I took in some fantastic acts on Friday, including the first dose of the weekend’s main headliner Phish, but first let me comment on the array of color at the farm in the form of its main attraction: the people.
Photo by Rob Roane
On my morning walkabout I was immediately reminded and attracted to the real feature of Bonnaroo 2019. Bonnaroo is a culture sponge, a tapestry of different walks of life all sewn together under like-mindedness in music and community. There were so many different kinds of people at this festival. Bonnaroo really delivers in this regard. The population at the farm is a far more accurate depiction of the real world than an outsider would imagine. People of all races, genders, and ethnicities are strewn about at every nook and cranny of the grounds. It is beautiful. The diversity in the genres of the bands on the stages finally reflects the diversity of the crowd. Bonnaroo has evolved over time from its jam band central roots, to the diverse cultural quilt that it is now. Congrats to you Bonnaroo, and to you Bonnaroovians, for you are the true testament of the magic and greatness that lives at the farm. Now let’s see some music.
Photo by Rob Roane
My first parlay at the “Which Stage,” Bonnaroo’s effective second stage, came with Nahko & Medicine for the People. Nahko brings this justice rich, earthy sound that is meant to inspire change and celebrate the planet. Nahko moved through his big poppers “Budding Trees” and “Black as Night” before I moved on to pop through Catfish and The Bottlemen, and a little of Parquet Courts. The former radiated this wild alt 90’s British rock, while the ladder boomed with New York flavor. Paul Vile (Jelloman) slung Jello shots into the crowd as Parquet Courts moved seamlessly through their post-punk catalogue. The New York sound was alive with Parquet Courts.
My first trip to the famed “What Stage,” the granddaddy of the Bonnaroo stages, I came for The Avett Brothers, a personal favorite at the festival, second only to the foursome from Vermont slated later in the evening. The Avetts smoothly laid into their set with “Vanity,” before turning the knobs to eleven with a nicely placed “Satan Pulls the Strings.” They queued up crowd pleasers “Ain’t No Man,” and “I Wish I Was,” before finishing strong on “Kick Drum Heart” and “No Hard Feelings.” It was great to see these North Carolina boys get their due yet again on arguably the biggest stage in the country. The sun began to sink low as the Avetts concluded, and I turned around backwards to face the mass and drink in this magnanimous movement.
Photo by Rob Roane
I caught a handful of the GRiZ set before heading back to revamp for the evening, for it was an evening of Phish my friends. GRiZ is simply put: awesome. Not only was this one of the only sets of the weekend which saw a real melding of the ages in the crowd, it was of course full steam from the jump off to the time I departed. GRiZ bridges the gap between today’s jamtronica and yesterday’s mastery of horns and musicianship. The crowd at the “Which Stage” was a complete arsenal for GRiZ, and to this point in the weekend it was the biggest crowd I encountered. This is demonstrative of GRiZ’s appeal, and it’s no accident he was chosen to host the G.O.A.T. Superjam later in the night. More about that shortly, first, let’s talk a little Phish.
Phish returned to Manchester for their third romp on the farm, once again to deliver three sets in total. First, their late slot to face plant the crowd into rock. While many devout Phish fans bemoaned them for returning to ‘Roo to deliver presumably what they refer to as “a festival set,” not standard of a regular Phish show. One that does not involve lots of improv or creativity in the set list. A set that serves a purpose, to expose newer, younger fans to their music, while not going too far out and not getting so weird that the crowd is turned off in the same stroke. Well a big ole poo-poo to those fans, because guess what: Phish came on stage at Bonnaroo and tapped up a complete barnburner from start to finish. This was no average “festival set” people, this was a statement that the boys from Vermont were here, and they were not messing around. Yes, the crowd was notably younger than an average Phish show, but that’s a great thing. That ensures the longevity of the music.
Photo by Rob Roane
I took in the set with Twitter’s Lil’ Nug, a young girl who has ascended to Phish fame after trolling the band a few months before, having no idea who they were, or why they were headlining Bonnaroo. A ripping “Carini”-> “Down With Disease” -> “Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.” took the opening stanza. The band moved nicely right along through “Everything’s Right” before truly introducing the farm to what space smelled like with “Mercury” -> “Tweezer” -> “2001”-> “Steam.” Welcome to the land of milk and honey my friends, Phish had arrived at Bonnaroo. Lil Nug got down, I got down, and we all got down. Find a complete set list at the bottom of this recap.
Bonnaroo boasts the largest genre web of any festival of its kind. There is nothing more exemplary of this GRiZ’s G.O.A.T.: A Music Legends SuperJam. The jam featured artists from all over the spectrum coming together for one late night exclamation point that pays homage to music legends of the past, without whom events like Bonnaroo with remain only figments of grandiose imagination. This year’s jam featured GRiZ bringing one all star after another, including Nahko, Rubblebucket, Sunsquabi, members of Walk The Moon, members of Trey Anastasio Band, and so many more. This ridiculous collection of talent did justice to those that came before them. Climaxes included “So What’Cha Want” (Beastie Boys), “Right Place Wrong Time” (Dr. John), “Respect” (Aretha Franklin), “1999” (Prince), “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” (The Beatles), and a litany of other stellar renditions of fabulous canon classics. Find the complete set list below.
Of the Superjam, GRiZ said:
“The major point of this thing is to play a bunch of rad music and continue to re-tell stories of the great people who played music in the past.” He went on specifically to comment on Dr. John, who had passed on the week before.
“The definition of
funk music, which he carved out a large piece of, gave way to re-inventing
music however you feel. You don’t need to put things in a bo or follow any
rules or worry about what your heart feels about the music- you can just let it
go.”
Knees quaking, mind melting, I moseyed through Girl Talk for a second before hiking back into the jungle party that lay outside the walls of Centeroo. I was happy to see Girl Talk playing old mixes, reminiscent of when I discovered the blend DJ years before. Exiting a superb Friday night, I was reminded that like New York, Bonnaroo does not sleep.
Phish setlist: Carini -> Down with Disease -> Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S., Everything’s Right -> Mercury -> Tweezer -> Also Sprach Zarathustra -> Steam, Martian Monster, More -> Harry Hood -> Character Zero
E: Possum -> Tweezer Reprise
G.O.A.T.: A Music Legends Super Jam with GRiZ set list:
Miserlou (Dick Dale) (Core Band), So What’Cha Want (Beastie Boys) (GRANT INTRO), Right Place Wrong Time (Dr. John) (Core Band), Could You Be Loved (Bob Marley) (Nahko, Nattali Rize), This Land Is Your Land (Sharon Jones) (Deva Mahal), Piece of My Heart (Janis Joplin) (Jennifer Hartswick), Valarie (Amy Winehouse) (Jennifer Hartswick), Respect (Aretha Franklin) (Chrishira Perrier), 1999 (Prince) (K. Flay, Chrishira Perrier), Mary Jane (Rick James) (Chrishira Perrier), DANG! (Mac Miller) (PROBCAUSE, Chrishira Perrier), Grinding All My Love (Nipsy Hussle) (PROBCAUSE), Lithium (Nirvana) (K. Flay), What I Got (Sublime) (GRiZ, MUZZY BEARR), Blackhole Sun (Soundgarden) (Linsay Ell), While My Guitar Gently Weeps (The Beatles) (Linsay Ell), Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash) (HOBO JOHNSON, RKS BASS & DRUMS), Bring It On Home To Me (Sam Cooke) (SAM MELO, Jennifer Hartswick, Linsay Ell), Wake Me Up (Avicii) (NOAH KAHAN, Music City Mystique Drumline), Drumline Interlude (Music City Mystique Drumline), We Will Rock You (Queen) (Walk The Moon, Music City Mystique Drumline), Under Pressure (Queen & David Bowie) (Walk The Moon, Rubblebucket), Let’s Dance (David Bowie) (Rubblebucket, BLACKSTAR BAND), Life On Mars? (David Bowie) (Rubblebucket) (BLACKSTAR BAND), Freedom! ‘90” (George Michael) (Deva Mahal, MUZZY BEARR, Chrishira Perrier).
*Song (Original Artist) (Lead Performer)
Stay tuned for Part 2 of NYS Music’s Bonnaroo coverage!
This morning online ticket mecca, CashorTrade, launched a Trader’s Protection™ program which provides 100% assurance – and insurance. Now, all #Embracetheface users including Gold Members have a full proof money-back guarantee on all tickets sold on the site. Not to mention, tickets are already being sold at prices “set to disrupt the secondary ticketing industry.”
CashorTrade is a rapidly-growing hub, sucking music fans into a “Face Value Movement,” unavoidably changing how we experience the concert experience. Co-Founder, Brando Rich praises his community for holding out for a one-to-one ticket exchange with likeminded fans.
Not only is CashorTrade generating a love of music and community, but it cuts the competition by a landslide – disrupting a $15 billion industry, taking on ticket giants such as Stubhub and SeatGeek. For Gold Members ($24/yr), Trader’s Protection matches Paypal’s 3% rate, which approximates CashorTrade’s credit card processing costs. Any free member pays 10% of each transaction. In comparison, secondary ticket platforms charge an average of 28%-45% on top of an already-inflated price
Fun Phact:In the summer of 2017, the website supplied over 50,000 tickets to fans at face value throughout Phish’s “Baker’s Dozen” shows, amounting to nearly 25% of all the seats at Madison Square Garden during the 13-night run.
Below The Moss Forgotten: Phish in the Pacific Northwest was a three-day pop-up museum exhibit presented by The Phishsonian Institute and PhanArt, recently held in the Horizon Lounge at Oregon State University’s Memorial Union. Held during the inaugural Phish Studies Conference, the exhibit represented shows from the band’s PNW debut in Ashland in 1991 to the band’s recent run at the Gorge in 2018.
Presented by Alex Grosby of the Phishsonian and Pete Mason of PhanArt, immense thanks is owed to the Oregon State School of History, Philosophy, and Religion, OSU Theatre, and the Benton County Historical Society for their strong support and all of the conference attendees for their kind words and enthusiasm for this inaugural project.
Private collectors and numerous artists contributed works to this vision to bring it to life. The exhibit made the Memorial Union a welcoming environment for scholarship and added a level of experience to the event. We hope to continue to present Phish exhibits in the near future. You can revisit the exhibit by viewing the slideshow below.
Check out more photos from the Phish Studies Conference by Derek Finholt and visit Phish.net for an in depth recap of the conference by Jnan A. Blau.
O.A.R. is in the beginning stages of their 2019 summer tour, a thirty-plus date run set to make stops all across the country. On Tuesday June 11, the band made its way to New York City metro area at the beautiful South Street Seaport venue, Pier 17. The rooftop stage nestled in the skyline of the city, backdropped by the Brooklyn Bridge, was a setting for an intimate performance. A twenty-four song setlist included new tracks, “Knocking at Your Door” and “OH MY!,” as well as O.A.R. staples “About Mr. Brown” and “I Feel Home.” The band is in a great place and it shows through the music, and an amazing energy from the crowd. Pier 17 made a great omen, a send-off for The Mighty O.A.R.
Setlist: Dangerous Connection, About Mr. Brown, Living in the End, Something Coming Over, Fire, Black Rock, Place to Hide, Knocking at Your Door, Shattered (Turn the Car Around), Are You For Real, Love and Memories, About and Hour Ago, I Feel Home, Oh My, Night Shift> Stir It Up, Heaven, Miss You All The Time, That Was a Crazy Game of Poker, Hey Girl, All Because of You, This Town, City on Down.
Wolfmother brought their fast-paced hard rock to the famed Irving Plaza on Monday, June 10. Andrew Stockdale lead the Australian outfit through a full set list of the band’s famed hits. His band now includes former member of The Vines, drummer Hamish Rosser, and bassist Brad Heald. Their camaraderie really shows in the flow and style of the band and compliments Stockdale’s heavy, raunchy, psychedelic Gibson SG sound. From hits “Woman” to the encore, “Joker & The Thief,” Wolfmother reminds you how awesome a good rock show can be.
Setlist: Victorious, White Unicorn, Colossal, Woman, New Moon Rising, Apple Tree, Mind’s Eye, Dimension, California Queen, Vagabond, Pyramid, Gypsy Caravan
June 21, 2019 is just around the corner, which means summer is almost here and, more importantly, the 18th edition of Rochester International Jazz Festival is about to begin.
Jazz Fest is a comforting tradition on the Rochester scene, but that embraces great change with each year. It is continually being modified to adjust to forces out of the producers control and in an effort to create a perfected festival experience.
This year sees some big changes. For one, the title sponsor is now CGI taking over for longtime sponsor Xerox. The footprint of the festival is also changing quite a bit. Harro East and Anthology are no longer venues. They are replaced by Geva: two venues in one place, Fielding Stage and Wilson Stage. Also, M&T Pavilion Squeezers Stage is housed in a new tent on Parcel 5.
What hasn’t changed is nine straight days of world-spanning A-class music. We don’t really think you can go wrong with this year’s lineup, but here are some suggestions to help guide you on your way.
Jam-adjacent
Some musicians, better known for their involvement in jam bands, will be performing at the fest. Percussion master Cyro Baptista and singer Jennifer Hartswick, both members of the Trey Anastasio Band, are bringing their equally compelling solo bands. Hartswick will be joined by Nick Cassarino on guitar. Aron Magner, of the trance fusion Disco Biscuits, has a brand new jazz trio called Spaga, who will be playing one of their first shows together.
While not exclusively held at the new Geva Theater Fielding Stage, this venue will be home to a slew of excellent Americana artists: Acoustic guitar phenom, Jon Stickley, will be with his well-travelled trio; One-man wonder, The Suitcase Junket, will wow with his bag of tricks; and Circus No. 9 brings their unique blend of progressive bluegrass sounds.
Sun, June 23 6:30 PM & 8:30 PM Geva Theatre Center â Fielding Stage
Instrumentalists
It isn’t easy for an artist to make an instrument you’ve heard countless times seem new again, but these groups are each defying that on their respective tools of the trade. Adam Ben Ezra on bass, Stefon Harris on vibes, and, newcomer from across the pond, Nubya Garcia on sax . All are can’t miss players playing at this year’s festival.
Fri, Jun 28 7:30 PM & 9:30 PM City of Rochester Jazz Street Stage FREE
Party Time
It’s summer, it’s a festival and sometimes you’re just going to want to get up and dance. These bands will offer that opportunity. Another brilliant young product of the UK, Kansas Smitty’s House Band, sounds decidedly American covering a wide range of styles. Empire Strikes Brass appropriately strikes a balance between evil, spacey and horn-y, while Aquaducks get a bit more down and dirty with their funky output.
Mon, June 24 7:30 PM & 9:30 PM City of Rochester Jazz Street Stage FREE
Tue, June 25 7:00 PM & 9:00 PM Fusion Stage FREE
Adventurous
The Nordic and Euro Jazz Now Series at the Lutheran Church is our go-to spot for musicians painting outside of the lines, challenging our sensibilities. When in doubt, you can go there blind and there’s a good chance you’ll catch something mystifying. Although, it isn’t the only place to seek adventure. These three artists will definitely take you there, so don’t miss ’em!
“It’s not who you know, it’s who you don’t know” has been the festival’s mantra from the beginning. Though after 18 years, there will be plenty of returnees who you definitely know. This year, three guitarists are standing out on our list of must-see-agains. Bill Frisell, who has brought a number of different bands to his seven festival appearances, returns with his trio. Ron Artis II and the Truth was a “wow” discovery last year, and Scott Sharrard is always a sure bet for some hot jams.
At a festival with some of best from across the globe, there’s still plenty of space carved out for the incredible amount of talent we have right here in Rochester. Proceedings on the Jazz Street Stage get started daily by younger sets from local schools and bands. They get the Big Tent and Squeezers Stage moving with free early sets and keep the Fusion Stage grooving throughout midweek. Plenty more regional artists get sprinkled in throughout. Here are three Rochestarians you definitely don’t want to miss.
More so than ever before, we’re just scratching the surface here. There is nary a wrong turn to make, so get out there and try something new. See the full lineup and all the details at the highly informative Rochester Jazz Fest web site, and stay tuned to our twitter feed for daily updates.
We have all been there; a concert you simply cannot refuse. A 220-dollar concert ticket followed by 100-dollars in fees, nearly a 50 percent up charge. It’s your favorite band, a no-holds-barred night out, but at what cost. The next few gigs you land 60-80 dollar tickets purchased from an online-fan-page-stranger. They even let you PayPal them after you got through the doors. As diehard fans, and musicians ourselves, we don’t want to be exploited; we want an exciting live music experience. Since we still yearn for human connection and tangible experiences transcending all sound – again, CashorTrade delivers.
We linger on this narrative because it is overwhelmingly real. You have already lived through it, overpaying, or missed out from an absurd standing room ticket. CashorTrade, an online ticket exchange and social platform for pure music junkies, is growing rapidly to bring real fans tickets at face value.
The Vermont co-founders and brothers, Dusty and Brando Rich, have bred CashorTrade from of their passion of live music, as well as disgust in oversaturated and overpriced tickets. Their story begins with a failed attempt to acquire Phish tickets at Hampton Coliseum in Vermont after the bands five year hiatus. It was Phish’s first performance since Coventry on August 15, 2004. The band started with “Fluffhead,” which was not played since 2000 (phish.net), but it should not merit a four-figure ticket price.
“What got us the most, was seeing the tickets listed for two – thousand – dollars a piece,” said Brando Rich. “When Phish stopped touring in 2004, Stubhub was created, and Facebook… The dawn of peer to peer ticketing platforms. A lot had changed, and five years later [2009] things are up and running… It has taken what used to happen in brick and mortar box offices to the extreme and ruined it for fans.”
CashorTrade has become a social network that allows people to have friends, share photos and connect with one another. It makes trading with people you know, love and trust that much easier. The Rich brothers have plans on building that further because “we want to better connect friends who have tickets they need. And, for fans to know about shows they are attending or interested in attending,” which is tailored to each specific user-profile.
The dawn of the internet had changed the concert experience, for better and worse. When it comes to ticket consumption Brando stresses that not all ticket company owners are fans. “I would go as far as saying that most are not fans. In the end, what my brother and I created is most helpful to fans because we are fans. We grew up loving live music – every ounce of it.”
“We would do whatever we could to get to the next show, fighting to make burritos in the lot, to make money [for our next tickets]. Your community feeds you, clothes you and it becomes your life.”
This lifestyle shows through the organic growth in the company, nearing a quarter-million users across 20 countries. CashorTrade is growing at 3,000 new users per month, and expanding. With closed first round investors, direct artist-partnerships, festival partnerships and a growing online platform, CashorTrade is on the rise. Fees diminished to ten-percent or less keeps the pressure off your wallet and draws focus to the music and those enjoying it.
Yesterday, June 12 at 2 p.m. EST, CashorTrade officially partnered proudly with Phish’s official charitable outreach, The WaterWheel Foundation – then again, it all began with Phish. Since 1997, WaterWheel’s outreach aides social and environmental efforts throughout each tour stop, notably local efforts in CashorTrade stomping-grounds: Vermont. Fans selling Phish tickets can opt to donate their profits directly to WaterWheel, while buyers will be charged CashorTrade’s transparent credit card fee (3%). Likewise, 100 percent of those ticket revenues go directly to WaterWheel, who has raised millions for more than 425 groups.
CashorTrade is closing in on their community, helping tickets stay in the hands of a tight-knit, music loving, and sustaining populous. They provide a platform where we can do it safely, carefree, and now, feel good by effortlessly giving back. Fans now have control and positive choice.
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“We recently partnered with Billy Strings, an up-and-coming bluegrass guitarist, who is an amazing prodigy. I love his vibe and he really seems like the perfect fit for CashorTrade – so we are very excited to become his dedicated reseller.” Likewise, the company has paired with the killer, nationally touring act, Twiddle, said Rich. “They are selling out shows left and right; and they’re from Vermont, so that was a natural fit.”
“Partnerships are exciting, becoming an artists’ dedicated reseller is something we have always dreamed of doing,” said Rich. Additional partnerships with WaterWheel, Summer Camp Music Festival, Disc Jam and Osiris’ The Drop Podcast are just the beginning for CashorTrade. There is a lot of power in the fans.
According to their website, festivals are life changing moments. For Brando there are too many to count by hand, but the first Clifford Ball in 1996 holds a special place in his heart.
Phish played their first time at the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base. “My parents had just dropped me off my first year of college at Johnson State in Vermont. I got settled and drove straight to Plattsburgh, NY. It was the – most – amazing – three days of my life, having never seen so many people. It was something like experiencing a Woodstock-esque festival, with jam-packed streets, mayhem and three miles of party. That was pretty life changing, to see a plane fly overhead with Phish lyrics – and to think – what an extravaganza this is.”
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After the Crossgates Mall crowd at Jupiter Hall in Albany dissipated, the dark metal corridors echoed with the growling sounds of screams from beyond.
The Chaos Collective, an upstate live entertainment group, and event manager Joe Vonschinzel, brought the areas darkest, loudest, most theatrical death and black metal bands together for what will, unfortunately, be one of the venue’s last shows.
As you walked to the closed doors and slowly opened them, you could see blue and white light pulsating from the stage. The screams and drums, mixed with wailing deep guitars, made one feel as though they were entering another world, another dimension. The bands put it all out there for the fans, and the fans loved every thunderous moment.
The metal lineup for the night at Jupiter Hall was: Vile Tyrant, Goatmass, Scavengers, Organ Harvest, Faced518. Jupiter Hall will have their last show next weekend, June 14, with Revenge, a non-make up Kiss tribute, Frank Palangi, The Hard Luck Souls, and Wasteland Junction.
