Hail the almighty bass – a beautiful cornerstone of countless bands through history. Its versatility is a product of its transformation over time, to become a tool that is both seismic and transient. With such a dichotomy, the possibilities are endless, and that attracts some of the most sagacious of musical minds. Chris “Freekbass” Sherman is one such person; his bombastic aesthetic and revolutionary playing style is evened out by his time learning from one of the most accurate and revolutionary funk bassists of all time (Boosty Collins).
In this focused yet unrestrained way, Freekbass explores the extremes of his instrument while never venturing too far into the obscene, instead riding the line of being an accessible yet progressive artist. Freekbass himself is one of the true cornerstones of a band, with a physical image formed around his vision and shaped by the eccentric. In this new album, All The Way This. All The Way That., Freekbass puts on a clinic for bass enthusiasts, as he invites along a cast of immensely talented musicians to create a work that takes the listener on a travel through funk music’s past, present, and future.
The band on this album is stellar in every performance aspect. The Freekbass Experience is composed of all-star players Rico Lewis on drums (George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic), Sky White on keys (Foxy Shazam), and Sammi Garett on vocals (Turkuaz). Every track is unique in its usage of the band, with Freekbass’ bass lines acting as a centerpiece for most tracks, developed further by his supporting cast. In general, each song could be described as being steeped in a sort of chaotic beauty, creating a very instrumentally deep album that breathes an air of robustness. This is one of the things that defines Freekbass’ aesthetic in a way; from his image to his stage presence, it’s wild, yet neither ignorant nor forced. It’s large, but never overwhelming.
“Blizzard Lizard” offers a great look at this dynamic. A soft opening gets the listener comfortable before the bass slaps them awake, ushering in a groove so funky it warrants a spray of Glade air freshener. While this track has a darker mood, the energy remains potent as heavily effected guitar and synth lines swirl above a dark, black-hole of bass.
Much of the time though, the album has a brighter nature with springy instrumentals and sing-able hooks. An unrelenting pulse between the bass and the drums sets the tone in “You Make Me Wanna Dance.” Here, the vocals sit nicely in an agile arrangement with a lot of interplay between the organ and bass. Added strings nod to older funk and disco. Vocal “ooh’s” on top of that work to create a cinematic atmosphere – a unique experience in a mostly pocket-funk styled song. One thing that stands out here, as well as in numerous places elsewhere on the album, are the transitions between the song’s parts. There is a well-phrased melodic line in “You Make Me Wanna Dance,” much like something out of a Stevie Wonder song. In the more 80’s funk-pop styled song, “Your Love Is Always On Time,” you find a lot of bass fills between side-chained sub-bass and drum breaks alaPrince. And speaking to that point, it’s evident that these modern funk figures, such as Stevie and Prince, lent as much influence to this album as did pioneers like James Brown and P-Funk.
The intricacies in more pop-oriented songs are a testament to the skill of the band on this record. Take “Steppin’ Outta Line” – this song could have easily gotten away with a simple drum beat; bass drum on the one, snare drum on the two, and so on. Instead, you’ll notice that the bass drum lines up almost perfectly with the bass line, which does move around a fair amount without becoming too evasive. One of the lyrics on this song offer a great explanation as to why this type of intricacy is preferred to the more modern simplicity in this funk-pop: “Some may conform with the norm of the time / Others fly the coop / Steppin’ out of line.”
Composition on this album stands out in a big way against the back drop of good-ol’-fun funk jams. Accessible and technical! Modern, yet paying homage to what made this type of music so intriguing to begin with.
The closing song, “Thrust”, sends the album out on a high note, acting as a good cap to a breakthrough album. The chorus holds strong as an earworm. The drums are accurately performed, filling out their function as the co-equal to the bass while breaking out in fills at just the right time; vocals are layered so thick that they are felt seismically. It’s just as much as the bass, though their presence makes it so a voice never get lost in the mix. This chorus is likely the strongest on the album, and along with the chipper instrumental, it is a great end to an absolute trip. As the song fades out, the need to listen through again will surely arise.
Chris Sherman’s on-stage persona is a sight to witness. That taken along with this new album, one should expect to be seeing the name Freekbass more and more over the next year. Make sure to listen on Spotify, and visit Freekbass’ website for upcoming show information as well as live content. Follow on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and more! And if you’re in NYS, you can see him in Marlboro for Mazzstock 2019, playing onstage with Zach Deputy.
Key Tracks: Thrust, Fre3kroNomoKon, Gotta Get Back To You
Over Memorial Day weekend the city of Boston hosted the 10th Boston Calling Music Festival, located on Harvard University’s amazing campus. The Harvard athletic complex is beautiful and gave some luxury to the festival experience, where each stage was constructed on the Astro turf fields. There was a three-stage setup with the two main stages next to each other, separated by a replica Green Monster that read: “You Are Our People” across the top.
Each day was filled with great acts and music fans with a great energy. Here are some of the best things we saw during this festival weekend:
Brandi Carlile
She greeted her audience, “Hello Rock n Roll People.” She plugged in and was off, on one the best sets of the weekend. Highlights included opening song, “Hold Out Your Hand,” which every fan in attendance was singing word for word. Amazing covers of “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” and Joni Mitchell’s “A Case of You” followed. Brandi and her band put on one of the most special sets.
Anderson .Paak and The Free Nationals
From the moment his drum set rose from the bottom of the stage, .Paak and his band brought funk and soul to the main stage the second night with their amazing songs and musicianship. Anderson .Paak and The Free Nationals are one of the top live music acts doing it right now; it’s amazing to see the growth and following that has already surrounded theses musicians. The highlight of the set was the guest appearance by Lil Nas X, and the duet of “Old Town Road”
Travis Scott
Music festival performances are special, you want to see and artist give their all and hold nothing back – that’s where Travis Scott delivers. His live show was top notch, out-of-control fun. The stage was adorned with a fifty-foot teddy bear, timely pyro technics, and amazing visuals and lights that covered everything on the stage. His stage presences and hype helped make this performance one for the Boston Calling history books.
Tame Impala
Kevin Parker informed the audience that he recently fell off a roof during a photo shoot and was taking lots of pain meds. That being said, it had little to no effect on Tame Impala’s headlining set Saturday night. The sets was like a slow burning fire, slowly progressing until an explosion. It was the bands hit song, “Elephant.” Confetti, smoke and lasers took over the crowd, as this song flipped everyone from a calm somber mood, to 150 MPH hauling down the highway. Impala knows how to entertain a festival crowd, period, allowing them to deliver one of the best sets of the weekend.
Twenty-One Pilots
Prior to this festival there was a lot of hype about Twenty One Pilots being a headliner. The magic of live music, proof you can’t judge a book by its cover surpassed the hype, tenfold. This was more than just a set of music it was a full stage show, opening with a knight igniting a car on stage to start the set, confetti and fire, and a cinematic storytelling element.
Over all, the 10th edition of Boston Calling Music Festival was a success. Music fans were treated to an amazing weekend with clear weather and one of the most eclectic lineups for the 2019 festival season. Great food and that ‘home team comradery’ within the heart of Boston, made this year’s festival one to remember. We are looking forward to what comes next for this premier music festival.
Griz’ Ride Waves: Season One tour rolled into Brooklyn’s Kings Theater last week. Griz is an electronic music producer and saxophonist from Southfield, MI who combines the saxophone with his self described “future funk,” electro-soul, hip-hop and funk beats.
Griz
Ride Waves is Griz’ fifth album, and came after a prolonged hiatus from social media and music. Griz used this time to hone his craft and travel the country while recording new music. He was able to recruit talent such as Snoop Dogg, Matisyahu, Bootsy Collins and Dram, as well as address social issues like gun control. He also recorded his first rap verse.
King’s Theater warmly welcomed Griz and his openers, Dwilly and Yung Bae. LA-based DJ and producer Dwilly took the stage first and delivered urban pop beats and remixes that got the crowd moving. Yung Bae, the Portland-based producer who has amassed millions of streams on Spotify, followed with his disco-centric funky beats.
Fans enjoy the Yung Bae set.
The crowd was on their feet as Griz took the stage. His setup included a raised area for his DJ equipment and saxophone, and an area to perform near the front of the stage, with a huge LED display illuminating with positive messages. Griz was accompanied on stage by guitarist Muzzy Bearr, vocalist Chrishira, and horn/trumpet players.
“Can’t Get Enough” featured Griz’ first rap verse, and showed his depth and talent. He sounded great and the crowd was loving it. The lyrics pulsated in bold letters behind him, and the light show was incredibly well timed.
Guitarist Muzzy Bearr, Griz, and vocalist Chrishira
The saxophone and guitar combination in “Caught Up” has a classic disco funk meets reggae feel. It’s hard to not start dancing, and that is exactly what the crowd did.
“It Gets Better” emanated with positivity, and combined elements of hip-hop, jazz and funk into one danceable tune. The LED screen displayed the lyrics and was a positive reinforcement of the chill vibe. The crowd enjoyed the song, and was singing along in unison by the end.
Griz seamlessly intertwines his funk and hip hop beats with positivity and the saxophone, creating pure musical bliss in Brooklyn. This show was an enjoyable party, from start to end, that is not to be missed.
Two groups who got their start in New York City, who both have been inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame and who are both immensely influential round out the finals of this year’s NYS March Madness. Vote below to decide who the greatest artist is to come out of New York State.
Growing out of the 1970s punk scene in New York City, Talking Heads became an immensely popular band by the early 80s, influencing the likes of Vampire Weekend, Phish and many more. The new wave genre can be traced back to Talking Heads and their songs have become an irrevocable part of classic rock n roll from the 80s. “Once in a Lifetime,” “This Must be the Place (Naive Melody),” “Burning Down the House,” “Girlfriend is Better,” “Slippery People,” “Cities,” and “Road to Nowhere” are the tip of the iceberg of the hits that defined their career.
Talking Heads only had a brief tenure as a band (1977-1991), but their impact has lasted more than twice the length of their career. While their tenure was shorter than fans new and old would have liked, the intense period from 1977-1983 is remarkable for their albums and touring history, a spawn of the CBGB scene. Collaborations with producer Brian Eno netted More Songs about Buildings and Food, Fear of Music, and arguably their greatest album, Remain in the Light. 1984’s Stop Making Sense continues to be heralded as one of the greatest concert films ever, and the Jonathan Demme film won a National Society of Film Critics Award for best non-fiction film that year. Although David Bryne, Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz and Jerry Harrison may never perform together again, their music is timeless and the legacy continues to grow.
So listen up, ‘cause you can’t say no to the Beastie Boys. One of the biggest names in hip-hop can be summed up into one hyphenated word: influential-chaos. It’s impossible to capture all of the audio-idiocracies in tracks like “Girls” or “Triple Trouble,” that mimic the chaos of New York City streets. As pre-teens growing up in 80’s pop-culture, the ‘Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Inner Excellence’ collapsed a mass of influence, and basically every musical genre, into one acronym. From the whitful inception of “Cookie Puss,” about a Carvel cake recorded overnight in a friends home studio, to their collaboration with Rick Rubin and rocking entirety of Woodstock ‘99 in a 200,000 person titlewave, the Beastie Boys dominate.
Seven of the nine albums went platinum, in addition to selling over 50 million records across the globe makes them more influential than the five boroughs would have ever imagined. When they weren’t fusing jazz and metal loops with their punk roots, the group popularised the appeal of rap music beyond black culture with anthems like “Fight For Your Right.” Moreover, Beastie Boys influenced well beyond music speaking out on culture, politics and human rights issues in such a potent time in America. Issues we are still battling, thirty years later. Licensed to Ill is the most influential album of all time. It broke into Billboard’s top 100 as the first rap album. It was number one. Their music was potent, so potent riots broke out mid-set. They were influenced and then influenced the world. Beastie boys, and their music, stand toe-to-toe with relevant artists today, despite their disband in 2014.
Vote now for who you think is the greatest artist to come out of New York State. You can vote on Twitter too! The winner will be announced on Monday, April 8.
Colorado-based, three-piece stringband Head For The Hills released their newest studio work this past Friday, an EP: the politically minded and emotionally vibrant, four-song collection called Say Your Mind. Featuring a heady mix of special guest artists, like Pimps of Joytime’s Kim Dawson, Elephant Revival’s Darren Garvey and others, the record is some of the band’s most creatively satisfying work yet.
Born out of the Colorado music scene, Head For The Hills have been pushing boundaries in the studio and on stage for over fifteen years now, and that decade and a half has earned them regular performances at mega festivals like Telluride, SXSW, and High Sierra, along with recognitions from the likes of NPR and others.
Ahead of an East Coast tour this week that, starting in Virginia, will hit NYC, Burlington, Connecticut, Lima, NY and Mt Holly, NJ, the band’s bassist Matt Loewen talked with NYS Music about the new EP Say Your Mind, the title track’s new music video, and more.
Miles Hurley: So, your new release. How did you guys go about deciding to make an EP of four new songs rather than a full album or something else?
Matt Loewen: So, we’ve been in a little bit of a transitional period, in terms of being a band that had a mandolin player in it, to being a band that plays with percussion in it. We’ve been an acoustic four-piece band for a long time, so we’ve been in the process of evolving a little bit, I guess. And we went into the studio and recorded those four songs, and I really thought it was a strong statement. But in terms of the EP thing…the way the music industry goes, to make it work you kind of have to put stuff out all the time. And I think we’ve shifted from everybody just put out a record, and then twelve to eighteen months later you put out another record, and then twelve to eighteen months later you put out another record. But that’s just not the way it goes anymore. I mean, I love albums, I have thousands of records, I love the long play album format.
But I also think it’s cool how things have opened up, and how you have the full myriad of ways of going about releasing music, whether its a record, or an EP, or just a single, or just a video, etcetera. So we’re starting to look at doing all of that different stuff, and we’ve got some other interesting things later this year that are, again, not in the full album format, but just making music and getting it out there.
MH: That’s cool. So then, would you say the band is in a writing period? Or do you have material that you’re currently sitting on?
ML: I wouldn’t say we’re sitting on things, but writing, it’s just always happening. We all write a little bit, but there’s two primary writers, Adam and Joe, and they are always writing. So we’ve got some songs that we haven’t recorded. But we don’t do the thing where you hole up for a month and write a bunch of songs. We’re always writing and coming up with stuff.
MH: I’ve heard a similar sentiment from other artists I’ve spoken with recently, that it’s more common to be touring and working, and living life and all that, and songwriting is worked into the lifestyle.
ML: Yeah. Which is cool and not cool, sometimes. But overall I think its cool.
MH: So, for Head For The Hills, bringing guests into the studio process is not something new. But can you tell me about some of the artists you invited this time around? I see Kim Dawson, Todd Livingston, even a horn section. Are these old or new friends to the band?
ML: Everybody that’s on the EP are people that we’ve known for awhile. The drummer, Darren, was with Elephant Revival, their percussion guy, although they aren’t playing right now. That’s how we know him. The rest of the people we’ve known for awhile, and it was fun to have that kind of family atmosphere. Sometimes you do bring in people that you’ve never met before, and the first time you meet them is when you’re trying to be creative, which can in and of itself be really awesome. But yeah, this time it was bunch of friends, and we got them in there and it was cool. We’d been bringing in some of those people into the live show, locally, because they’re all our Colorado friends. We’ve had the horn section up at some concerts, we’ve had Kim come and sing…so there was a familiarity thing, and it was really rewarding.
MH: That’s always an interesting thing, hearing what artists create in the studio and then they sometimes have to choose what of that makes its way into the live show. For the EP, did you have to make decisions about trying to recreate some of it’s different sounds live, or maybe just playing them in a stripped down way?
ML: Well, that’s all part of the process, exactly what you’re talking about. Because inevitably, in the recording we do, there’s typically going to be overdubs. There’s always little things that you add, like Joe will double the violin part, and no matter what you just can’t be two people at once, right? (laughs) So we can’t do that live, and we have to figure out how to approach that. And, with this new stuff, these four new songs, we play pretty much everything. Like “Can’t Stay This Way For Long,” which has a pretty significant horn section on the album, we still play that live. What’s cool about it is, Joe and Todd Livingston, who is playing dobro on the road with us, they’ve learned those horn parts, right? So they’ll come in and replicate some of those parts. And, inevitably, the songs become their own thing live, because that’s just kind of what happens, which is cool. But that’s how I’d say we’ve kind of approached that, on this new stuff. Picking some of those new pieces up, and playing them in the tunes. It’s been fun.
MH: “Say Your Mind,” the title track, has a great music video along with it, which you directed. Can you tell me a bit about what’s going on in this video?
ML: The guy that plays the main character is Boots, the one with all the jewelry and that drives the car. He’s been a friend of the band for a long time, and he’s a local. He lives up in the canyon, outside of town. I just think he’s so f***ing interesting. You know, he was born in Queens, had famous parents, moved to the Bay and knew The Grateful Dead and Bill Graham, he was a technical guy that went on tour, was an animal person that was on the Jack Parr show. He’s just a fascinating dude. And I always wanted to make a music video with him, and the original concept was that he was going to be driving around town in this convertible. That was an idea in my head for a really long time.
Then it came time to do a video for this “Say Your Mind” song, and I started kicking that idea around again, with Boots, and it evolved into this story about a father and his relationship with his kid. There’s some heartache there, and so the story is about reconciliation, about coming together, and love and family can really bring things together. So that’s the story of the video, which to me is a parallel narrative to the song, because the song is really a message from a father to their child. Adam wrote it, he was inspired by this experience to write a song as a sort of letter to your child, and about doing your thing and being happy, living life to the fullest.
When I think about music videos, I’m most interested in parallel narratives if it’s going to be a narrative-based thing. So instead of something that’s directly following the words of the song, I’m into doing something that’s similar but not exactly the same thing, and telling a related story that can maybe highlight some elements of the lyrics but not be directly tied to it. So that’s what we did with “Say Your Mind.” The party at the end of the video is shot at Joe’s house, with a bunch of our friends and family, it’s Adam’s family that’s in the video, like his daughters.
MH: You’ve done a bunch of videos for your band in the past as well. Has video production been in your background for a long time?
ML: You know, I actually started doing it for the band. And yeah, I’ve been doing it for a little while at this point. My background with it is really all centered around making content for us. I’ve expanded and worked with other people. I’ll eventually be doing a video for another group, when we get back from tour. But yeah it began, well, years ago, before video became as ubiquitous and necessary as it is now. But I rented a camera when we recorded our self-titled record in the studio. And I thought, we should video this, why not? Let’s just rent a camera. So we took a bunch of video footage and then I was like, “Well shit, I guess I’ve gotta edit this, or do something with it.” (Laughs) So I got my software and did up the whole thing. That was pretty much the beginning of it, for me, and I’ve had a bit of a network from it, other bands and creative people that need stuff. It’s allowed me to grow and do different stuff, and I’m always looking for more work.
MH: The last track on the EP, “I Am The Problem.” Honestly, I don’t think I’ve heard anything quite like that, the mix of hip-hop and Americana songwriting.
ML: Good! Well thanks, I’ll take that as a compliment, whether you mean it that way or not (laughs).
MH: Definitely a compliment!
ML: Sweet! Yeah, that’s definitely a product of Joe’s personal background as a writer and as a musician. Separately, he has had different hip-hop groups, one in particular called Whiskey Blanket that still makes records. He’s done that for as long as he’s been with our band. I think, over time, those things get closer to each other, more and more hip-hop worked into his writing for Head For The Hills. Another example is from a few records ago, a song called “Never Does.” It’s very rapid-fire, and if you were to look at the words on a page and the way that the rhymes actually make out, and the way the end line rhymes, all that stuff, it’s pretty similar to the way someone would concept a hip-hop verse. So, flash forward to now, on “I Am The Problem.” The concept for the song was alway that there would be this part in the middle where he raps, essentially. And the decision was made to just go for that. And he goes on and on and on, which is progressive. It’s cool to hear it live, it’s a lot of words, and he just goes for it (laughs). I hope that people are ready for it!
MH: So, you have a little tour coming up soon, which will start on the East Coast and then head back out west. So I’m curious – over the years, as you’ve toured more and more with Head For The Hills, have there been certain scenes or places around the country that you’ve really taken a liking to, or looked forward to returning to?
ML: Yeah, I’d say so! You know, being based in Colorado, it’s a lot easier for us to get to the West Coast and the Midwest, so over the years that’s where we’ve spent a lot of time. Especially the Northwest, love going there, love Portland and Seattle and that whole area, it’s been good to the band. I would say the same for Chicago, it’s been a favorite for the group. But over the past couple of years, we’ve just started to expand a little bit more eastward, and have actually really enjoyed getting out there. And I say that because…my initial answer is always the Pacific Northwest, but part of that is bred in familiarity, like we go there all the time. I haven’t been to Burlington, VT ten times, I’ve only been twice, and I love that area. It’s a big-ass country, and there are just so many different people and places. And I find myself enjoying a lot of them where people are open minded, proudly respecting people for who they are, stuff like that. As long those elements are in place, I’m down. (Laughs) If people are close minded and weird, and there’s a bunch of bigotry going on, that makes it harder to really enjoy a place. I’m also really looking forward to getting back to New York, always such a crazy, vibrant place.
MH: Nice! Well I am personally planning to catch you guys on April 4 when you perform at Rockwood Music Hall. Have you played there before?
ML: We have been there before. The last time we played somewhere else, but the first time we played at Rockwood, and yeah, that’s a cool spot. The first night we played there, the music that was presented before us was a singer-songwriter with a pianist and bassist, and the bassist ended up being Leland Sklar, who’s like one of the most recorded, most famous studio bassists of all time. Which is just random, but that’s the way that place definitely is, and I got to meet him which was f***ing awesome. And then after him was this band from, like, South America. I’m not even sure what you would call it, definitely not a salsa band but like a modern dance, but it was so good. So yeah, such a cool place. I’m a big fan and definitely looking forward to getting back there.
Two weeks ago, we started with 64 artists from New York State, representing all genres and corners of the state. Now we have reached the Final Four of NYS Music’s March Madness and these four remaining artists represent four different genres – folk, rock, rap and jam – an eclectic mix of what makes New York State a breeding ground for all types of music.
Beastie Boys bested Billy Joel to take the crown in the TIP the Band region, and they will face off against the lone Upstate victor in the Final Four, moe., fittingly, out of the Funk n Waffles region.
Vote below for who you think is the best artist from New York State in the past century! The finals will start this Thursday, April 4. You can also vote on Twitter!
Soul and hip hop group, Entreband from the Albany area booked their first multi-date tour which starts March 13 at SUNY Oneonta college. They will be joined by hip hop artiasts D3v and B. Chaps at ten dates including shows in Pittsburg, Cambridge, Brooklyn and Albany.
Entreband houses Souly Had with other producers and vocalists. His songs such as “Deja Vu” have collectively received over 1.5 million listens after an unexpected boost from being added to a highly-visited public Spotify playlist. Amongst the ranks are Mac Moon, Deo Worldwide, and MostlyEverything with Tomcbumpz and DJ Siroc handling many of the instrumental beats. The group has also built a following by performing live along side artists such as The Age and Clear Mind.
Openers D3v and B. Chaps also find themselves rising in popularity. D3v just launched a provocative new music video “Mad @ Me,” while B. Chaps has a project out called “Clips” which experiments with a plethora of genres. Delirium Entertainment will run point on the tour and has all information available on social media and internet platforms.
The Governors Ball Music Festival will hold its 9th event over May 31-June 2, taking place at Randall’s Island Park in New York City. The impressive line up includes Tyler, the Creator, Florence + the Machine, Kacey Musgraves, Charlie XCX, Lil Wayne, The Strokes, Lily Allen, The 1975 and many more.
Starting today you can visit the Governors Ball Music Festival webpage to get special “Announce Day” priced tickets for the event that ends at 11:59 p.m. as well as the full line up for the event. Regular pricing begins at midnight on Jan. 8.
The Governors Ball is a New York grown and cultivated festival that has proven to be one of the country’s most successful festivals in its previous eight years of existence. The festival prides itself on community engagement, working with and donating to numerous non-profits and community groups each year.
