Yung Gravy brought the love to Terminal 5 on Saturday in the form of rotisserie chicken. A 23 year old rapper out of Minnesota, Yung Gravy’s music is inseparable from its humor, defined by its positive quality and littered with charismatic moments such as that of gassing up Mrs. Butterworth.
His live performance radiates the same spirit, hand delivering water and scraps of rotisserie chicken. All this while still maintaining an exceptional energy with moments like parting the crowd down the entire venue and backflipping out of crowd-surfs.
Later in the show, bbno$ joined the stage and closed the show performing “1 Thot 2 Thot Red Thot Blue Thot” along side SavageRealm in a giant thrifted doll mask.
On Saturday night at Industry City, Antibalas delivered their infectious Afrofunk, closing out the Summer Series presented by City Farm Presents. They were joined by the sassy High and Mighty Brass band, rooted in sounds from New Orleans funk to R&B and hip-hop. Both bands exceeded expectations, despite missing parts of their regular lineup, in this new and exciting venue within a redeveloped section of Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
High and Mighty Brass Band
The High and Mighty Brass band brought their energy and unique covers to Industry City. The bands stealthy line up included Charlie Kay (vocals), Evan Howard (drums), Tyler Tritt (trumpet), Nolan Tsang (trumpet), Dan Lehner (trombone), Corey Wilcox (trombone), Vija Brown (guitar), Chauncey Yearwood (percussion and vocals), and Steve Duffy (sousaphone). Two notable covers included TLC’s “Waterfalls” and Ginuwine’s “Pony.” The band recently released “Pony” on video, shot in their hometown of NYC.
Amayo from Antibalas
Antibalas took the stage and continued the high energy affair with their signature blend of Afrobeat, which incorporates elements of improvisation, jazz, funk and traditional drumming. Vocalist and original member Amayo engaged the crowd with his positive vibes and inspirational spirit throughout the night. The talented band members on stage included Jordan Mclean (trumpet), Marcos Garcia (guitar), Reinaldo De Jesus (percussion), Giancarlo Luiggi (shekere), Timothy J Allen (guitar), Kevin Rackza (drums), Raymon Mason (trumpet), Eric Biondo (trumpet), Michael Buckley (baritone sax), Lynn Ligammari (saxophone), and Vince Chiarito (bass). Notably missing from the lineup was the founder, saxophonist Martin Perna, however the replacements held their own, making for a memorable night of music in Brooklyn.
Madison Square Garden was given a heavy dose of uptempo funk on Saturday September 28 as the entire arena was surging with energy as Fearless Flyers and Vulfpeck brought their A-game to a sold out MSG.
Fearless Flyers, one of Vulfpeck’s many side projects, opened the night. Right out of the gate they came out swinging with heavy bass lines at an incredibly quick pace. All dressed in fighter pilot jumpers, the band was cool and clean as they ripped through each song.
Vulfpeck came out to a roaring arena, its members being announced one by one. They started the set with their incredibly upbeat “Animal Spirits” and went quickly into “Cory Wong.” After each song, the band moved seamlessly around the stage, changing instruments and showing off their incredible versatility.
After several songs, Antwaun Stanley joined the band on stage for “1612” which sent the fans into a frenzy, and appeared to be the climax of the night until the band got the crowd singing the chorus to “Back Pocket,” the intensity roared on for the rest of the night.
Vulfpeck Setlist: Intro, Animal Spirit, Cory Wong, My First Car; Daddy, He Got a Tesla; Smile Meditation, Running Away, Baby I Don’t Know Oh Oh, 1612, Funky Duck, Aunt Leslie, Wait For the Moment, Back Pocket, Beastly, Christmas in L.A.,Dean Town
“Have an epic party for me and play my favorite records and remember all the good times we had, the music, images, and waves we caught. That’s all.” These words from Neal Casal shown on The Capitol Theatre stage, began the tribute of his life after the lights went down and Exile on Main Street had stopped playing over the house speakers. His message, hope, and dream were put on display for the audience and it wasn’t until “Moonlight Mile” started to play that everyone realized that our friend was truly gone. The crowd was so eager for this show to start and visibly sad once it finally did. All eyes were on Neal’s jacket, draped over a lone chair on stage with his guitar resting silently next to it.
This musical wake consisted of numerous segments, each focusing on different chapters of Neal’s life. The first set highlighted Neal’s earlier work and had his friends and collaborators each share songs that Casal had written, while the second set highlighted his projects with friends over the last decade. Behind the stage was a screen showing pictures from Neal’s life as well as the photos Neal took himself. Gary Waldman led us through Neal’s life between songs, telling stories that highlighted their friendship and also his experiences as Neal’s manager. The emcee’s jokes and tales had the crowd engaged and excited for each new detail he’d share with in his stories.
The two hour first set was full of beautiful solo performances, touching respects and countless collaborations from Neal’s former band members. Hazy Malaze, one of Casal’s early bands, ended the set before Peter Shapiro came on stage to thank the crowd for coming out. He regaled the audience with a tale about needing “intermission music” for the Fare Thee Well shows and how that led to the creation of Circles Around The Sun. Before leaving the stage, he announced that the stage at the Garcia Forest at the Lockn’ Festival will now be known as the Neal Casal Stage.
After a very short intermission, the tribute continued with a more upbeat second set starting with Beachwood Sparks and then the premiere of the new Circles Around the Sun lineup featuring Eric Krasno on guitar. Joe Russo also popped in for a tune before coming out with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead with Adam MacDougall filling in for Marco Benevento. After a few songs, Chris Robinson came on stage and played with a few members of Chris Robinson Brotherhood to end the set. The late hour didn’t deter the crowd or the performers, and the entire lineup came out for an encore performance of “Farther Along” and a final prayer Robbi Robb to end the night. It was a memorable, emotional evening that left everyone both fulfilled and drained after five and a half hours of music.
You can watch the entire Tribute below on Relix’s YouTube channel.
Denver, Colorado psychedelic jam-trio Cycles are making their way through the northeast this week, performing a series of shows throughout New York state as part of an extensive 2019 fall tour. Last night, the band played at Buffalo Iron Works, with Colorado’s The Magic Beans and Connecticut’s Eggy, for a commemorative night celebrating the venue’s tenth anniversary. This past Wednesday, Cycles sat down for an interview with NYS Music in Brooklyn, NY, just before performing a set at famed music club The Knitting Factory.
This was a first time appearance for the trio’s drummer Collin O’Brien, not only at the venue, but in Manhattan altogether. “I haven’t been to New York in like fourteen years,” he told NYS Music. “I’ve been freaking out walking around all day.”
It was a return, however, for the band’s guitarist Patrick Harvey and bassist Tucker McClung, whom have performed as Cycles in NYC before. “We’ve played New York a few times,” said McClung. “There was Brooklyn Bowl, and then we played at American Beauty once, for a Phish after party. That was really fun.”
“There’s a really sick jam from that [Phish] show,” said Harvey.
Sick jams were definitely in full supply for their The Knitting Factory show, which saw the band deliver a full range of musical styles, from jazz to funky-metal to soulful rock, across a dizzying set of songs that were all linked together via impeccable technical abilities.
While new to the city, O’Brien is also a relatively new addition to Cycles, at least as a full time member. The Chicago-born drummer moved to the band’s home base of Denver earlier this year and jumped on board with the band just in time for huge gigs like Arise Music Festival, Peach Music Festival, and Resonance Music Festival just last weekend. “I love it,” he said. “This has been the best summer of my life.”
He certainly fits into Cycles’ live musical experiment, with constantly shifting drumbeats and tempos thrown up against barrages of shrieking guitar solos from Harvey and slap-happy bass rips from McClung. As a unit, the band navigates an amazing balance between improvisational spontaneity and technical precision, and the results fuse together unique, often even quirky, song material with a sustained sense of freewheeling whimsy. A sense that, musically, anything could happen at any moment.
In their Knitting Factory show, they showed this resolutely. Some songs bled out into super spacey, affecting moments of trippy space rock. Other moments saw battles for highest intensity between chromatic guitar picking and dramatic drums fills—sometimes while McClung was balancing his bass on one finger like a vaudeville performer. At one awesome point in the set, Harvey broke from a melodic guitar solo to incorporate audio samples of an eighties’ sounding, glam rock tune into a hard-driving metal-funk jam from bass and drums. Does that sound odd? Absolutely. It is exhilarating and actually pretty groovy.
“I think when we first started, it used to be challenging to make it sound really full,” commenting on the three-piece driving force behind such heavily improvisational shows night after night. “But now, it just feels like I get to do whatever I want all the time. We’ve been playing together so much over the past three years, I feel like we all know where to get in and fill space, or where to leave space.”
Tucker McClung, Bass.
“Yeah, there is a lot of freedom in not having a lot of people on stage,” said O’Brien. “It’s easier to communicate ideas more instantaneously.” This sense of freedom is what gives the band the inspiration to perform a live musical game show next month, at Denver’s Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom (where they will actually have many people on stage).
Tucker broke the concept down to NYS: “It’ll be one set of us performing as Cycles, but we’ll open up the night with a set of this game show. It’s going to be a super interactive experience. We might have as many as 30 to 40 people coming up intermittently and participating in the show, and we’ll be the host band for this Johnny Carson mixed with Wheel of Fortune kind of experience.”
“And,” added Harvey, “we have a game show host who is the freakin’ man! Dennis Craig. Definitely the best host any game show could ask for.”
“It’ll be a healthy amount of uncertainty,” said O’Brien. “Stuff will go wrong in the best possible way.”
Cycles Guitarist Patrick Harvey. Photo: Miles Hurley
The rest of Cycles’ schedule coming ahead has them linking up with jam scene contemporaries like The Magic Beans, Sunsquabi, and others. The trio looks forward to a huge hometown show in December: a debut at Denver’s The Fillmore Auditorium opening up for Umphrey’s McGee.
“I used to see them all over the place when I lived in Chicago,” said O’Brien. “They’re so nice. They’re just some normal guys that are like really, really freaking talented.” McClung, meanwhile, talked about seeing the six-piece staple act for the first time at this year’s Resonance Music Fest. “Yeah, they did an acoustic set which was pretty awesome. I was getting really pumped watching it.”
This week, catch Cycles as they finish their New York stretch with a show tonight at Syracuse’s The Westcott Theatre, followed by shows next week at Olive’s in Nyack and at The Hollow in Albany. While this season of touring seems to continue a road-tested sense of hardcore gigging for the band, they show no sign of slowing down, an instead an invigorated and grateful attitude for the experience.
When you’re as blessed to be doing what we’re doing, it’s foolish to be agitated at the world. Because you have this awesome opportunity to rock out. There’s nothing better than this. If there was something better than this, I’d be doing it.
Patrick Harvey, Guitar.
For more information about the band, their music, and their upcoming shows, head to their website.
On Saturday September 21, 2019 four veteran hard rock bands rolled into Tags Summer Stage in Big Flats, NY to close out the summer concert series with a bang. 80’s iconic rock bands RATT, Warrant, Firehouse and Kix shared the stage for a night of rock and roll, reminiscing with gritty guitars, thundering bass, pounding drums, classic hits and power ballads. The entire six hour concert was abounding with that quintessential big driving eighties sound, par can lights, iconic riffs, screaming guitar solos, and lots of hair (for those who still have it) – along with plentiful lipstick and leather and vintage concert T’s both onstage and throughout the crowd. For many, 30 years ago seemed like yesterday and we were transported back to 1989.
STEPHEN PEARCY ~ RATT
Kicking the night off were veteran rockers Kix. Hailing from Hagerstown, Maryland, Kix formed in late 1977 with Ronnie “10/10” Younkins, Brian “Damage” Forsythe on guitars and bassist Donnie Purnell, with drummer Jimmy Chalfant and frontman Steve Whiteman coming on board shortly after. Kix released their debut self titled album Kix in 1981, followed up by Cool Kids in 1983 and Midnite Dynamite in 1985. It was after their release of their platinum album, Blow My Fuse in 1988, when the band experienced major commercial success with the hits “Blow My Fuse,” “Cold Blood,” and the power ballad “Don’t Close Your Eyes,” which reached number 11 on Billboard 100.
Kix hit the stage at 5:30 pm and began figuratively blowing fuses with their jaw dropping performance. Never missing a beat, Kix hit the ground running and never slowed down a for second during their hour long set. Steve Whiteman’s vocals were as strong as ever and still hit those high notes effortlessly. Whiteman, who has been out front revving up the crowds for nearly four decades with his charismatic and highly energetic stage presence, ran out on stage wearing all blue, as the band kicked into their opening number “Midnite Dynamite.” Whiteman has avoided the fate of many rock frontmen of his generation and has withstood the test of time as he still has the pipes, stage presence and energy of performers half his age.
KIXROCKS TAGS SUMMER STAGE
Despite being the first band in this classic line-up, many fans felt that Kix stole the show with their no frills, in your face, straight up rock and roll. As stated previously, Whitemans’s vocals were spot on superb. Both guitarists Younkins and Forsythe, although not overly flashy, were highly impressive with their style of playing and musicianship. Each yielding exquisitely beautiful guitars, their tone was magnificent as they complimented each others unmistakable style. Rounding out the astounding musicians in Kix were drummer Chalfant and newest member (2003) bass player Mark Schenker. Talk about a rock and roll bottom end, these two had the air moving. I’m sure the fans in the lawn section could feel the power emanating from the subs as the bottom end exploded like thunder.
The bands dominating performance unequivocally stunned the large crowd at Tags Summer Stage with their dynamic show stopping 10-song set. Their set included the opening number “Midnite Dynamite” as well as favorites “Get It While It’s Hot,” “Cold Blood” and “Don’t Close Your Eyes.” For a veteran rock band with a career that spans over forty years, Kix is proving to generations of fans, new and old, that they are timeless and still in charge. With seven studio albums under their belt, there are an array of songs in their catalog from the classics to the lesser known that they can pull out any night leaving the crowd wanting for more.
C.J. SNARE GREETS THE CROWD AT TAGS
Next up was Firehouse led by original members vocalist C.J. Snare, guitarist Bill Leverty and drummer Michael Foster, along with newest member Allen Mckenzie who joined the band in 2004.
Firehouse wasted no time kicking things off in blazing style as they exploded into their opening powerhouse number, “Overnight Sensation,” from their 1990 double platinum self titled debut album. Next was “Crash” from their 2003 album Prime Time, followed by “Shake and Tumble” from their debut album. Although Firehouse has not released an album of new material, they are no strangers to touring as road seasoned and extremely talented musicians and showmen who continue to perform with the energy and presence they have been know for for the past thirty years.
Tonight was no different. Snare had the crowd engaged and on their feet from the minute he stepped on stage as he interacted openly, made jokes and even invited a couple onstage to celebrate a special occasion with a dance during “When I Look Into Your Eyes.” His stage presence and commanded rock and roll respect and his vocal range and power are still as strong and commanding as ever. Leverty’s guitar playing remains soulful and melodic, yet blistering and intricate as he takes his playing through the stratosphere with his custom C.R. Alsip guitar. As Leverty solos through all the iconic Firehouse songs, it is easy to hear why he still remains one of the most gifted and talented guitarists after all these years.
BILL LEVERTY ~ FIREHOUSE
Rounding out the accomplished veteran line-up are original drummer Foster and their newest member, bassist McKenzie. Together, this dynamic duo kept the pace and rhythm with booming finesse as the band continued playing hit after hit including “Oughta Be a Law,” “All She Wrote” and “Lover’s Lane.” Firehouse closed out their 11 song power packed set with “Reach For The Sky” and lastly, “Don’t Treat Me Bad.”
The crowd at Tag’s did not have any time to cool off before Warrant took control of the stage in dominating fashion. With original members guitarists Erik Turner and Joey Allen, bassist Jerry Dixon and drummer Steven Sweet along with ex-Lynch Mob vocalist Robert Mason, who joined the band in 2008, they took the stage around 8:30, ready to roll as they exploded into their opening number “32 Pennies.” This summer Warrant is hitting the road promoting their “Dirty 30” tour in celebration of the anniversary of their first album, Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich, which was released in 1989.
WARRANT
For the last thirty years Warrant has been tearing up the charts, recording and touring since the release of their double platinum debut album despite lineup changes on and off. Although Mason brings his unique style, energy and dynamic vocal performance to the band, he covers former original vocalist Jani Lane’s range effortlessly with tenacious vigor and rock and roll attitude.
Warrant exploded on stage with as much passion and attitude as they have for the last 30 years. It is obvious they want to give the fans what they have been coming to see after three decades of touring. Make no mistake, the performance, rock and roll attitude and energy are a big part of what makes Warrant as popular as they are with the fans, however the musicianship and dedication to their craft is what it is all about. Their powerful, unmistakable signature sound on all of their big hits such as “Down Boys,” “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” and “D.R.F.S.R.,” as well as their power ballads including “Sometime’s She Cries” and “Heaven” was evident Saturday at Tag’s.
ROBERT MASON ~ WARRANT
After much excitement and anticipation, headliners RATT took command of the stage at 9:45. If the eager crowd at Tag’s had not had their fill of incredible rock and roll yet, they were in for a full out assault as RATT invaded Big Flats, New York. With only two original members of RATT in this current line-up, RATT, with frontman vocalist extraordinaire Stephen Pearcy is going strong; they look and sound as good as ever.
Along with Pearcy, bassist Juan Croucier is the only other original member of this multi-platinum commercially successful rock band. Despite the absence of three original musicians, this version of the band currently consists of guitarists Jordan Ziff (2018) and Chris Sanders (2018) formerly of Brittany Fox, along with drummer Pete Holmes formerly of the band Black and Blue. This line-up is phenomenal with Ziff easily filling the shoes of original RATT guitarist, Warren DeMartini.
JORDAN ZIFF ~ RATT
RATT kicked of their supercharged 75-minute set with “In Your Direction” from their 1984 multiplatinum album Out of the Cellar, followed by “Wanted Man,” from Cellar and “Dangerous But Worth the Risk” from their 1985 follow up album, Invasion of Your Privacy.
RATT mesmerized the audience for over an hour with 14 songs from their catalog of hits including “Way Cool Jr.,” “Lay It Down” and “You’re in Love.” Ziff and Sanders shredded through the classic RATT songs with finesse and speed making even the most intricate guitar parts appear simple. Croucier appeared to have the intensity and vitality as he had during the early days of RATT with his dynamic stage presence and performance, flipping his bass guitar around and over his head. RATT closed out the show with “Back For More” and finally their biggest hit, and probably most well known song, “Round and Round.”
Despite the cooling temperatures on the last day of summer 2019, Kix, Firehouse, Warrant, and RATT easily had the crowd at Tags heated up and not wanting the night, or summer to end. However, for all that attended this awesome rock and roll show, the summer most definitely ended on a positive, memorable note.
Gov’t Mule and Warren Haynes made a stop on their Bring On The Music fall tour on September 19 with a performance at Albany’s Palace Theatre. The name of the tour is a play on the band’s new concert film and corresponding live album, Bring On The Music – Live From The Capitol Theatre, which came out in June on CD, vinyl, DVD, and BluRay.
To see the Southern rock jam band Gov’t Mule live at this beautiful and historic Albany landmark was an amazing experience. The lighting was nothing short of perfection, which added greatly to the experience.
Photo by Stephanie J Bartik
Gov’t Mule is comprised of guitarist Warren Haynes, drummer Matt Abts, multi-instrumentalist Danny Louis, and bassist Jorgen Carlsson. Haynes took the stage and commanded the crowd’s attention with his soulful vocals and guitar chops while wowing the eager fans with the first song, “Traveling Tune.” His talent is known throughout the music world and he is the inspiration of many guitar players. He was the guitarist for The Allman Brothers Band and put together Gov’t Mule with the late Allen Woody (bass) in 1994 as a side project.
There is a connection between Haynes and bass player Carlsson and Abts on drums that can be easily observed. Each band member became completely immersed in not just their individual instruments, but the songs themselves. With Haynes’ soulful voice and virtuosic solos with expansive guitar tones, Carlsson’s expert bass playing, Abts locking it in with insane drumming, and Danny Louis dazzling the crowd on keys, each tune was performed to perfection
Jorgen Carlsson on bass
With rock at its core, Gov’t Mule integrated a full range of musical styles including blues, jazz, soul and some funky rhythms. No one left the room disappointed. If given the chance to see this band first hand, you owe it to yourself to do so.
Check out the Gov’t Mules website for a full list of the band’s upcoming tour dates, ticketing, and more information.
Set One: Traveling Tune (part 1), Mule, Pressure Under Fire, Time To Confess, Lay Your Burden Down, Inside Outside Woman Blues, Unring The Bell, Endless Parade, Revolution Come, Revolution Go
Set Two: Wandering Child, What is Hip?, (with Jerry Marotta, without Matt Abts), Freeway Jam, Child Of The Earth, Lively Up Yourself, Fool’s Moon, Thorazine Shuffle, Traveling Tune (part 2)
On September 21, 1970, Vida Blue no-hit the Minnesota Twins in his eighth career major league start for the Oakland Athletics. 49 years later and fresh off the release of their new album Crossing Lines, Page McConnell’s All-Star band with the same namesake reunited at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester and knocked the ball out of the park.
Vida Blue
The band played every song from their new album and a few tasty “seasoned veteran” Vida Blue songs as well as covers from prior tours. The main set included heavy hitters “Jealous Guy” by John Lennon and “Sheep” by Pink Floyd. Gary Numan’s “Cars” was part of the encore, and really got the balcony shaking.
Page McConnell, Adam Zimmon, Russell Batise and Oteil Burbridge love playing together.
Vida Blue’s current batting order includes Page McConnell (keyboards), Russell Batiste (drums), Oteil Burbridge (bass), and newcomer Adam Zimmon (guitar). McConnell, best known for his work with the rock band Phish, was full of banter throughout the show and introduced his bandmates halfway through their marathon two and a half hour set. McConnell, Batiste, Burbridge and Zimmon were all smiles the entire time and clearly loved playing together. At one point, McConnell mentioned that they plan to play together again soon, causing the crowd to erupt with excitement. The fans sincerely loved the show and want more Vida Blue.
Oteil Burbrige
Setlist: Analog , Real Underground Soul Sound, Where Did It Go, CJ3, Jealous Guy, Phaidon, Dry Spell, Checking Out, Where’s Popeyes, Weepa, Maybe, Who’s Laughing Now?, If I Told You, Final Flight, Sheep, Most Events Aren’t Planned
Santa Cruz, California’s Sound Tribe Sector 9 (STS9) touched down on September 20 at the Brooklyn Mirage for their Apo11o tour, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. STS9 celebrated a theme of space exploration in their setlist and gave New York City a much anticipated dose of their celebrated livetronica. They were joined by some of their favorite musical friends: Orchard Lounge, Cut Chemist and Mark Farina.
Hunter Brown of STS9
Orchard Lounge kicked off the festivities with a delicious set of eclectic dance mixes, downtempo and “bass-dropping efunk.” Hailing from Chicago, the band members include Spencer Lokken, Bethany Lokken and Ben Silver. Their melodic interwoven beats had the crowd moving and grooving immediately.
Orchard Lounge
Next up was Cut Chemist, also known as Lucas McFadden, a DJ from California who utilizes original 45 records along with his digital production. He specializes in hip-hop, funk and scratching, an art form that is dying in the current digital revolution. Drawing from artists like the Beastie Boys to Chali 2na, Cut Chemist delivered adventurous breakdance-worthy urban beats.
Cut Chemist
STS9 took the stage to a packed house and did not stop playing their space exploration-themed jams until the first set ended. The first set began with a new urban tune “Strange Games” that later turned into “When the Dust Settles Reprise,” a morphing of “When the Dust Settles” from the album of the same name. The jam sandwich continued with “Tooth” transitioning into “Golden Gate,” also from When the Dust Settles, as well as old school favorites “Golgi” > “Grow” > “Kamuy.” The band closed out the set with new song “Push The Sky” and then took a well deserved setbreak.
STS9
The second set continued to go where “no sectornaut has gone before,” as the band had landed on the Moon, metaphorically speaking of course. “Looking Back On Earth” opened the set, and transitioned into “Rabble” and “Open E,” transporting the crowd into the ethos. “Scheme” was up next, another tune from When the Dust Settles, followed by “Hubble”, the STS9 classic named after the famous satellite telescope. The crowd could not contain their excitement during this rarely played tune from Interplanetary Escape Vehicle. A transition from “Seed” into “Click Lang Echo” followed with more tasty intergalactic jams. The set wrapped up with “World Go Round” from The Universe Inside. STS9 finished the evening on a high note with the perennial favorite “Inspire Strikes Back”, named after the famous Star Wars sequel.
STS9’s Zach Velmer addresses the audience
DJ Mark Farina kept the festivities going with his signature blend of house, jazz and downtempo. Known for his “Mushroom Jazz,” Farina wove well-known and obscure tracks into a dance tapestry that delighted the late night crowd well into the early morning hours.
DJ Mark Farina
The Brooklyn Mirage was successfully launched into outer-space by post-rock dance musicians Sound Tribe Sector 9, supported by their savvy DJ friends. NYC Fans were delighted by the space exploration theme well into the night, and excitedly await their next trip into the cosmos with this talented band.
The crowd loving STS9
Set One: Strange Games >> When the Dust Settles Reprise >> Tooth >> Golden Gate > Golgi > Grow >> Kamuy >> Push The Sky
Set Two: Looking Back On Earth >> Rabble >> Open E, Scheme, Hubble, Seed >> Click Lang Echo, World Go Round
It had been 11 years since Phantom Planet had played a live show. Many wondered if the group was ever going to end their hiatus and get back together, even after releasing their new track “Balisong” earlier this year.
Phantom Planet performed an intimate show on September 18 at Elsewhere in Brooklyn, NY.
On September 18, members Alex Greenwald, Sam Farrar, Darren Robinson, and Jeff Conrad performed to a sold-out show on the rooftop of Elsewhere in Brooklyn. It truly felt like a homecoming for the band.
“We feel like we’re returning home,” Greenwald said in a statement. “The boys in Phantom Planet are my brothers, and we figured it was time for a full-fledged reunion.”
The venue was packed with fans who either have been following the band since the members were teens or those who are just discovering them for the first time through their latest singles “Balisong” and “Party Animal.”
The guys performed the new singles along with hits like “California” and “Big Brat.” But for the first time during a live show they also included “Local Black and Red” from their first record, Phantom Planet is Missing. The crowd had a chance to choose which song should be sung at certain moments during the set. One of the many reasons why Phantom Planet has always been one of the most engaging bands out there.
Even though official tour plans have not been announced, the band has confirmed that more music will be coming out and official tour dates are in the making.
In the meantime, fans will be happy to hear that they will be opening for Maroon 5 for a New Year’s Eve show in Las Vegas for two shows on December 30 and December 31. Read our recent interview with Phantom Planet here and catch up with the band in 2020.
