NYS Music 20​19

Category: Jam/Progressive

  • PEAK announce Winter Tour 2020; perform at Mercury Lounge December 30 with Digital Frontier, Teddy Midnight

    PEAK had a truly remarkable 2019, and they’re looking forward to winter tour 2020 with a slate of Northeast shows, as well as one big show to close out the year.

    Combining the characteristic flair that a weathered live band brings to the table, PEAK has the instrumental prowess and focus that draws crowds in. The group’s music, described as psychedelic indie funk, is a mix of poetic, melodic songwriting, moody electrofunk, riffed-out blues-rock, and exploratory danceable improvisations. Some of their many influences include artists such as The Band, The Talking Heads, Phish, The Grateful Dead, Radiohead, James Brown, and Miles Davis, as well as modern songwriters such as Conor Oberst, Mac Demarco, Kurt Vile, and Jack White to name a few. 

    peak winter tour 2020

    PEAK consists of singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeremy Hilliard, drummer Kito Bovenschulte (Particle), bassist Josh T. Carter (Hayley Jane and the Primates) and Johnny Young on keys.

    Their latest album, Electric Bouquet, offers a staple sound that PEAK can use to differentiate themselves from an ever-growing list of funk/rock bands.

    Joining PEAK on December 30 are Digital Frontier, who lay down robotic dance beats and driving bass lines, producing progressive, multi-dimensional, synth-laden soundscapes; Teddy Midnight, who mix house, disco, techno and breakbeat with drum and bass to bring high energy to the dance floor; and Up & Orange, who bring soaring melodies, chunky grooves, and drum and bass driven electronica. For more information visit here.

    PEAK WINTER TOUR 2020

    12/30 New York, NY Phish After Party**

    2/1 Krogh’s, Sparta, NJ ^

    2/7 Sarah Street, Stroudsburg, PA*

    2/21 Stone Church, Newmarket, NH#

    2/22 Riverstreet Jazz Cafe, Wilkes Barre, PA#

    2/27 Thunder Road, Boston, MA#

    2/28 The Acoustic, Bridgeport, CT#

    *w/ Jabbawaukee

    ** w/ Digital Frontier

    ^ w/ Crow’s Wine

    # w/ Space Kadet

  • Circles Around the Sun release first single off Neal Casal final album “Babyman”

    Circles Around the Sun has unveiled the video for “Babyman,” the first single and lead track off the group’s upcoming self-titled studio album, to be released on March 13, 2020. The video was directed and animated by Steven Mertens (Regina Spektor, Dan Auerbach, Sheryl Crow).

    neal casal babyman

    “Babyman” was recorded just a week before guitarist and founding member Neal Casal tragically took his own life, and Circles Around the Sun marks the third studio album from the group. Casal left behind a note asking surviving members Adam MacDougall (keys), Dan Horne (bass) and Mark Levy (drums) to move forward with the band. Along with a rotation of guitarist, the three have been doing precisely that, with Scott Metzger (Wolf!, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead) filling in on guitar.

    We love this music. The three of us—Dan, Mark, and myself—we really love it and really don’t want to stop playing it,” says MacDougall. “I don’t want our decision to come off in any other way than based on the fact we really, really love this band so much. We would always sit around and talk about the dream: the feeling of what it was like to be a teenager and start your own band. It’s your band, with everyone pulling their own weight, doing their part. This band felt like being in high school again.

    Circles Around the Sun 2020 Tour Dates

    12/29 – Fort Collins, CO – Aggie Theater
    12/30 – Englewood, CO – The Gothic
    12/31 – Crested Butte, CO – Crested Butte Public House
    1/7-12 – Miami, FL – Jam Cruise
    1/16-19 – Cancun, MX – Playing In The Sand
    3/28 – Frisco, CO – 10 Mile Ride: A Deadhead Ski Trip
    4/3-5 – Ventura, CA – Skull & Roses Festival

  • In Focus: Goosemas at Wall Street Theater

    If one band is on the lips of live music fans around the Northeast, it’s Goose. And for good reason – the group has had a break out year, with an instantly memorable Peach Festival set, a Fall Tour that saw them sell out and upgrade venues left and right, and now have sold out the Wall Street Theater in Norwalk, CT for their sixth annual Goosemas year-end, hometown show.

    In addition to bringing in over 300 pounds of food for Open Doors shelter in Norwalk, Goose performed two sets – The Ghost of Goosemas Past, and The Ghost of Goosemas Future. The ‘Past’ set featured The Band’s “Christmas Must Be” to open the night, original Goose guitarist Peter Castaldi joining for “Gringo,” Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s “Carol of the Bells” and a set closing “Linus and Lucy” seen below.

    The ‘Future’ set was bookended by fan favorite “Wysteria Lane,” followed by a debut of Robert Johnson’s “Sweet Home Chicago,” made famous by The Blues Brothers. Debuts of “Arrow” and “Honey Bee” were surrounded by songs released earlier this year, “White Lights” and “Creatures.” An improv heavy jam on The Beatles “Tomorrow Never Knows” was dark and went deep, prompting a few nearby to ask “Is this still ‘Creatures’?” The venue had loyal fans packing every inch of the venue until past 1 AM, and energy flowing from eveyone touched by the magic of Goosemas.

    Opening the night was TalkPeck Soundsystem, featuring a combination of covers of Talking Heads, Vulfpeck and LCD Soundsystem, all of which were knocked out of the park to warm up the crowd, and then some.

    goosemas wall street theater

    Goosemas, Wall Street Theater, Norwalk, CT

    Set 1: Christmas Must Be, Tumble, Gringo, All I Need, Carol of the Bells, Rosewood Heart, Christmas Wrapping, Yeti, Linus and Lucy

    Set 2: Wysteria Lane, Sweet Home Chicago*, Arrow*, White Lights, Honey Bee*, Slow Ready, Creatures, Tomorrow Never Knows Jam, Your Ocean, Wysteria Lane

    *debut

    • goosemas wall street theater
    • goosemas wall street theater
    • goosemas wall street theater
    • goosemas wall street theater
    • goosemas wall street theater

  • Mountain Jam announces 2020 dates

    Mountain Jam has announced the festival will return to Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in 2020. Dates for the festival are May 29-31, 2020 with lineup and more information coming in the new year.

  • Runaway Gin – a Tribute to Phish – adds 2020 Winter Tour Dates, perform at Knitting Factory on December 26

    Runaway Gin – a Tribute to Phish – has announced their ‘Ophishal YEMSG pre-party’ in New York City on Thursday, December 26. Hosted by Facebook groups Phish Chicks, PHISH TOUR 2014, and GrooveSafe, the event will feature two sets of “Evil Phish” starting at 8:00 pm. Kicking off the night will be special guests Space Junk is Forever. Peak Builders Network will host a meet-up at 7:00pm and hold a raffle to benefit the non-profit GrooveSafe, who also receive a portion of each ticket sale.

    runaway gin 2020 winter

    The Charleston, SC based quartet Runaway Gin has also announced that they will now be extending to a 19-date 2020 Winter Tour. The tour begins Friday, January 10th at the Masquerade in Atlanta, GA and then returns the band to Nashville, TN for a debut at the Mercy Lounge the following night. The following weekend Gin will make their long awaited Colorado debut with a 2 night-run in Steamboat Springs Thursday and Friday nights followed by a Saturday show in Denver at Cervantes.

    Saturday, February 8th returns the band to their home venue: the Charleston Pour House. At the end of February the band will return to the Orpheum in Tampa, FL as well as Revolution Live in Ft, Lauderdale, FL. The first weekend in March brings the Charleston based tribute up to Portland, ME for a debut show at PHOME, a Boston debut at Brighton Music Hall, and a Hartford, CT debut at Arch Street Tavern. 

    The end of March brings the band north again for a return to the Ardmore Music Hall just outside of Philadelphia, PA and a Pittsburgh debut at Thunderbird Music Hall. Returns to the Pour House Music Hall in Raleigh, NC and the Broadberry in Richmond, VA close out this tour. 

    The band has also just released full show soundboards from their Norva debut November 29th containing both a 30 plus minute “You Enjoy My Frankenstein” and a 24 minute “Runaway Jim” on the anniversary of Phish’s longest jam, the ‘Worcester Centrum Jim.’

  • Best of NYS 2019: Albums of the Year

    NYS Music’s annual rundown of the best and brightest that 2019 had to offer musically rolls on with our selections of the best albums of the year. The staff has spoken and selected the best album release for both national recording acts and those who call New York home. The results ended up producing a well known name in the jam community whose latest release shines and a band well known and revered in the rock scene that just returned to touring after a long layoff. And if you missed our earlier selections for 2019’s best “under the radar” bands, go here and catch up.

    Album of the year – NY edition

    The one name that seemed to pop up more than any other in our NY poll belonged to a Mr. Marco Benevento. His new release Let it Slide has been received with much acclaim and highlights the keyboard extraordinaire’s signature sound. In a departure from his other solo album releases (this is his sixth one to date), Benevento handed the keys for this one over to an outside producer in Leon Michels and the two Hudson Valley residents collaborated to make a record that’s both complex and an easy listen, combining elements of rock, jazz and funk.

    With a host of tracks that feature poignant piano fills and simple yet effective rhythms, Let it Slide has received its fair share of critical acclaim. Rolling Stone praised “the textures and colors available in his keyboards and arsenal of manipulated pedals and effects,” along with his “deceptively rich, catchy melodies and straight-ahead grooves.” The album, as a whole, does a superb job of putting the music first and foremost with vocals and effects that compliment it.

    Some of the more interesting tracks on the album are the strictly instrumental ones dubbed “Graffiano” that are brief piano interludes placed between the more traditional three or four-minute tracks. Although they are short in length, it gives an insight to level of creativity Benevento brings to his music. “The piano sound at one point didn’t feel right, so when no one was looking, I put some gaff tape on the strings to mute it,” says Benevento. “Everybody loved it and started calling it the Gaffiano. They’d say, ‘Go play something that sounds like Sun Ra meets Keith Jarrett on the Gaffiano,’ and I’d make up these crazy pieces on the spot.”

    Between this and tracks with insightful vocals like “Lorraine” that deals with loss and change and “Solid Gold” which explores tenets of friendship, Let it Slide flows beautifully from start to finish, never getting too high or too low in mood or tempo. And between the initial tracking done at Diamond Mine in Queens with mastering and overdubs being taken care of in Upstate NY, it’s an ideal selection for our NY Album of the Year.

    Album of the Year – National

    For the non-New York Album of the Year, one seemed to rise above all the others. And it’s from a band that just made their triumphant return to touring to support it. Released in August, Tool’s Fear Inoculum is the group’s fifth studio album and their first one in nearly thirteen years. It features the signature Tool sound of pulsating, driving rock grooves with ethereal vocals supplemented by front man Maynard James Keenan. The album is the product of many years of work with setbacks and injuries to band members laced in between. In retrospect, Keenan recounted that the band constantly second-guessing themselves was a reason for the album taking so long, and that he believes the version of the album the band had going eight years ago in 2011 would have been “fantastic” too. But it still gets the job done in terms of bringing the intense sounds and feelings of a Tool show to your living room.

    Not your typical hard rock band, Tool features several tracks on this album that stretch past the 10-minute mark, showcasing the band’s ability to find a groove and explore from within. The album as a whole has a runtime of 80 minutes – the maximum length for any CD. The concept of seven is a recurring theme of the album both musically and conceptually; guitar riffs were written in unusual time signatures related to the number seven, while Keenan introduced ideas related to seven as well. This is highlighted with the song “7empest,” a 15-minute rock exodus that’s the longest on the album.

    The album also explores the concept of growing “older and wiser”. Keenan explained that the album covers the idea of “embracing where we are right now, acknowledging where we’ve come from and some of the things we’ve gone through.” They must be doing something right because the album debuted atop the Billboard 200 in September and has reached almost 250,000 album sales. It seems to have been well worth the wait and a recent successful tour in North America helped solidify this. But you don’t have to take our word for it. Take a listen below to the entire and listen for yourself.

  • Jam for Tots shows across New York State collect hundreds of toys

    Story and photos by Alex Ehmann

    On Saturday, December 14, a healthy crowd of Santas, Deadheads and the Saratoga jam scene flocked to Putnam Place in Saratoga Springs for a evening of giving and fun. For the 14th year in a row, David Brayman held his annual Jam for Tots charity get together, which by all accounts was a huge success. The event had music featuring The Deadbeats, who played a flowing set of Grateful Dead classics, followed by Annie in the Water, whose high energy set kept the crowd wanting more. At least a hundred toys were donated, along with many specialty items that were generously given to be raffled off.

    The hottest raffle of the night was a pair of VIP tickets to the 2020 Adirondack Independence Music Festival, which went for well above listed value. Other items included tickets donated by 102.7 WEQX for the Winter Wondergrass Festival in Vermont next April, as well as Grateful Dead merchandise such as finely crafted wooden pieces, tie dyes, hats, pins, and patches. All proceeds from the event benefitted Things of My Very Own, a non-profit charity in Schenectady, whose focus is on providing essential items for children and families in need.

    The Putnam Place Jam for Tots show was just one of 15 held around New York State this holiday season. NYS Music proudly promotes these events to give back to local communities to those most in need. Special thanks to the Toys for Tots chapters across the state for their support, as well as the bands, promoters and fans who made these shows a huge success.

    Saratoga Jam for Tots – Putnam Place

    Don’t miss the final Jam for Tots shows of the season!

    Dec 20 PA Line “Chrismukkah Show” w/ Special Guests – Buffalo Iron Works, Buffalo

    Dec 26 Runaway Gin – Knitting Factory, Brooklyn

    Dec 28 Tim Herron Corporation – Funk n Waffles, Syracuse

    Rochester Jam for Tots – Flour City Station

    Rome Jam for Tots – Copper City Brewing Company

    Tannersville Jam for Tots – Hilltop Bar and Grill

    Athens Jam for Tots – The Stewart House

    Poughkeepsie Jam for Tots – The Chance

  • Nick Piccininni Discusses Joining Yonder Mountain String Band as New Mandolinist

    Yonder Mountain String Band announced a lineup change this week. Mandolinist Jacob Jolliff will be leaving the band at the end of this year. His final show will be Yonder Mountain’s New Year’s Eve show at the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen, CO. Nick Piccininni

    In a statement, the band wrote, “As of January 1, 2020, we will be saying farewell to our brother and fellow musician, Jacob Jolliff. This comes to you as a deeply considered decision. We are grateful for the music, the memories and friendship we forged with Jake and are in full support of his future endeavors with The Jacob Jolliff Band. We hope to join forces with them down the road.“

    Joining the fold is multi-instrumentalist Nick Piccininni, who will be joining the band as its new mandolinist. Piccininni, a Central New York native, has been a part of several projects, one of them is Floodwood, which includes mandolinist Jason Barady, who also performed with Piccininni in Woodenspoon, moe. drummer Vinnie Amico and guitarist Chris Eves. Al Schnier of moe. is a former member of Floodwood. Piccininni also performs as a duo with Barady and in a recent project, Follow the Muse.

    Piccininni sat in with Yonder Mountain at a few shows this past year, paving the way for his joining the veteran string band. When reached for comment, he told NYS Music that the foundation of this new opportunity has its roots in the Summer Camp Festival, an annual event jointly hosted by moe. and Umphrey’s McGee in Chillicothe, IL each May.

    We used to run into the fiddle player, Allie Kral, at Summer Camp in Illinois when we would go out there with Floodwood. She made the suggestion to try me for the few shows I filled in this summer. I guess it went well enough that they felt comfortable with asking me along with this change! I felt really comfortable with everyone in the band and crew. My first show is in Park City, UT on Jan. 6. I’ve never been to Utah so that’s cool.

    Nick Piccininni
    Photo courtesy Misse Thomas, AzureEyes Photography

    Piccininni has every intention of making this a permanent gig while still hoping to maintain time for his other projects.

    “I will say that on both sides, I think the idea is to get into this winter tour to make sure the fit is right. But they have expressed that their first choice would be to just move forward with me as their new mandolinist. Piccininni continues, “Barring any personality conflicts, which I don’t think any of us really see being an issue if this becomes my main gig it will be tough to maintain everything I already had going. But I do intend to do my best to keep up with it all. Yonder doesn’t play a super intense schedule, so that does leave room for other projects, which is awesome.”

    Piccininni’s next performance is with the Amico-Barady Quintet, moe. drummer Vinnie Amico’s annual jazz show at Tiny’s Grill in Utica on Dec. 29.

  • Benefit for Charley Orlando to Take Place Sunday at Syracuse’s Westcott Theater

    Charley Orlando may be best known to the jamband world as the former frontman for psychedelic ’90s road dogs Dexter Grove, who toured incessantly for the better part of ten years. The Syracuse area knows Orlando as not just a musician but also one of the area’s biggest music ambassadors. This Sunday, Dec. 22 the Syracuse community will come together at the Westcott Theater with a full day of music to celebrate his contributions while also raising money for a recent emergency spinal fusion surgery Orlando had performed.

    Photo: Ian LaRochelle

    Tickets for the all-ages benefit are $20 and can be purchased online, at Sound Garden in Armory Square, Syracuse, or Funk ‘n Waffles on Clinton Street. Doors open at noon. Artists scheduled to perform include Sophistafunk, Root Shock, Pearly Baker’s Best, The Old Main, Chris Merkley, Chris Eves, Bea, and Joe Driscoll. See the schedule below.

    Orlando’s recent projects include the Grateful Dead tribute band, Pearly Baker’s Best, who has a Monday residency at Funk ‘n Waffles. He also has done work as a solo artist and with his bands Ruha and the Charley Orlando Band. His work managing the Little Rock Music Group has helped bring many national, international and regional acts to Syracuse-area venues such as Funk ‘n Waffles, Ray Brothers BBQ, along with the Seedstock Festival in Cortland and the Middle Ages Brewing Company Brewfest in Syracuse. Little Rock Music Group also represents David Gans along with such up-and-comers as Root Shock, Big Sexy & the Scrambled Eggs, All Poets & Heroes, and Steven Cali.

    All proceeds from the event will go towards Orlando’s medical bills. Those who cannot attend the show can contribute funds through Facebook here.

    Scheduled performers:

    Bea: 1 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
    The Old Main: 1:45 p.m. – 2:45p.m.
    Chris Merkley: 3 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    Pearly Balers Best: 3:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.
    Chris Eves: 5 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
    Joe Driscoll: 5:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
    Sophistafunk: 6:45 p.m. -7:45 p.m.
    Root Shock: 8 p.m. – 9 p.m.

    https://youtu.be/Fiel8ObUkHM