KISS brought their End Of The Road Tour to Syracuse, NY at the St. Joseph’s Health Amphitheater last night. Fans of the iconic rock stars were treated to loud heavy guitars, theatrics, explosions, silly gimmicks, lots of fire, fast paced music, and even more explosions. Even if you’re not a big fan of their music, it’s hard to not have a great time at a KISS concert. With all the production, rivaled by very few others in the music industry, KISS is just a great time.
As the name suggests, this claims to be their last and final tour ever. With Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley both near 70 years old, it would be good timing to retire the band that has been performing since 1973. If this truly is the final KISS tour, it is going out with a bang with one of the most pyrotechnic, flame-throwing concert sets you’ll ever experience .
The boys were back in town at the New York State Fair. In 2018, Dropkick Murphys was a last minute Chevy Court fill-in for Dickey Betts, who suffered a mild stroke and was unable to perform. Singer Ken Casey announced at the 2018 performance that it was the band’s first state fair appearance. The Boston-based Celtic punk rock band drew a crowd of 13,000 in 2018. This year, they more than doubled that with an estimated 30,200 in attendance. Casey joked that, “We played here last year as a last-minute addition. They invited us back this year. I can tell you, we don’t get invited back too many places.”
Singers Al Barr and Ken Casey traded vocals throughout the evening as they ran back and forth across the stage, getting the crowd amped up. They brought along their traditional entourage of back-up sounds that included an accordion, banjo, keyboard and of course the bagpipes. All punk music should have bagpipes! The Dropkicks played a nice mix of fan favorites and rebel rousing tunes including, “The Boys Are Back,” “The State of Massachusetts,” “Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya,” “First Class Loser” and their spin on the traditional Irish song “Black Velvet Band.”
The Dropkicks ripped through 23 songs and kept the crowd on their feet and bouncing along to the music. A quick poll of the audience determined there were many first-time attendees. The band ended their main set with the inspirational union track “Worker’s Song” before coming back to finish off the night. For the encore, Ken Casey let the crowd sing along to the catchy hit “Rose Tattoo.” They rounded out the evening with “Until the Next Time” and ended with their biggest sing along hit, “I’m Shipping Up to Boston.” Singers Casey and Barr ran through the crowd high-fiving fans and inviting them to sing along. The band knows how to make their fans feel welcome and that is why the Dropkicks will keep getting invited back.
Thursday morning, just hours before her show at the New York State Fair Grace Potter announced the release of her first new single in four years, the soul wrenching “Love is Love.” Fans in attendance at Chevy Court were the first to hear the song performed live according to Potter. The song is the first single from Grace Potter off her upcoming album, Daylight, set to be released October 25.
Potter told fans they were going to play a few new songs but, “had to get warmed up first.” The band kicked off the set with “Medicine” and played many dance-worthy tunes including “Loneliest Soul,” “Nothing But the Water,” “Alive Tonight,” “The Lion, The Beast, The Beat and the hip shaking hit, “Paris (Ooh La La).”
Potter proclaimed her excitement for “being back in Central New York where she belongs.” She attended college at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY and recalled visiting Syracuse while she was at school. “We used to go to Syracuse to go shopping and it was the big city.” She told the audience that she has a new appreciation for State Fairs now that she has a kid, “I used to spend the whole time avoiding the fried dough. But now I’m like, yeah I’m having the fried dough.”
Grace Potter and her backup band worked their way through a high energy 95-minute set leaving the estimated 8,700 in attendance dancing as she walked off the stage. Be on the lookout for her new album Daylight October 25 and available for pre-order now.
Few things are more poetic than the lyrical talent of Curtis Flach. It’s been quite the year for C.K. and The Rising Tide. The band, a five-piece Americana and folk powerhouse, is relatively new on the scene, but they have slowly been playing every major venue and more, grabbing new fans along the way. Flach released a solo EP in 2016 before finding his band members.
In 2018 the band, then only a trio and managing itself, released American Romance, a 10-track homage to the finer things in Americana. Armed with fun songs like “Friends” and slower ballads like “Road to Damascus,” American Romance ushered in a wave of success, two new members and new management.
Flach and his bandmates, who include keyboardist and violinist Danny Boudreau, drummer Rob Piccola, bassist Chris Brant and lead guitarist John Lenio (who joined the band in the last few months) are set to release 10 new songs later this month. The album, Perfect Stranger, is said to be more positive, more at peace and quite frankly, “more mature.” Perfect Stranger was released August 16, and followed up with a show at Lost & Found in Albany the next day.
“With this album, we approached things much differently,” Flach said. “When we recorded American Romance, we all recorded our parts separately and didn’t hear it all together until it was fully mixed. We actively worked as a whole this time around.”
Boudreau concurred with Flach’s statement. Boudreau, who has only been playing the violin for a few years, was concerned about his parts in American Romance. This is his first time participating in a band, let alone one that’s successful.
“I didn’t understand how I was going to write my parts because I had no idea what everyone else was doing,” he said. “Luckily, once it came together, it all worked. It was amazing.”
Flach, Brant and Boudreau were the original trio, with some help from Flach’s brother. After recruiting Matthew Copperwheat and Piccola, the band came into its own.
“I’m no longer handling a lot of production tasks, which gives me more time to write and work on music,” Flach said. “Andrew and Rose are amazing at not only keeping us on track, but they are getting us gigs and marketing us in a way we never could have imagined.”
Andrew and Rose Gabriel are the owners and managers at the band’s record label, Ambassador Music Group. The Gabriels pride themselves in handling all the business and marketing for their clients so everyone can focus on what they do best.
“Andrew is really good at keeping us going with deadlines and making sure we fulfill whatever responsibilities we have,” Flach said. Brant added his managers are really good at keeping the group organized. All band members said Rose Gabriel is absolutely amazing with her marketing and social media management, garnering the band significant recognition.
“Between the two of them, we’ve been able to keep it moving along and stay focused,” Brant continued. “It’s been a great fit for us and I hope for them too.”
The Management
Andrew and Rose Gabriel said their business is in “permanent beta” mode. What does that mean? It’s pretty simple; they keep seeing what works for each client and then adjust the business accordingly.
The Gabriel force, who are also partners in life, has made quite a name for itself in the local community. They’ve worked with many of the acts in the Capital District music scene — including Grape Juice, Sydney Worthley and El Modernist — either through doing business directly or featuring bands on their hit live social media show, “AMG Live!”
“AMG’s slogan is ‘focus on music, we’ll take care of business,’” Andrew said. “During this album cycle, we did just that. We were pretty hands-off with the artistic direction of the album. We heard a few demos early on and knew that [C.K. and The Rising Tide] had something special in the works, so we got out of the way and did what we do best: take care of business.”
It’s definitely a lot of work. The hardest part of managing groups like C.K. is no rest. “We get no rest because this band accepts and accomplishes every challenge we throw at them,” Rose said. “We offer feedback one night and the next night they’ve implemented it. We push them to be the best artists they can be and, likewise, they push us to be the best managers we can be.”
Ambassador and C.K. and The Rising Tide just celebrated its one year anniversary together. Flach said he’s hoping the Gabriels are drafting the second year contract. But that’s the thing — the partnership works for the band as well as it does its managers. Both parties have learned a lot about their respective roles in the past year, but neither would change anything.
“We honestly wish we found them sooner,” Andrew said. “…this year [has] made our team stronger, more connected and more ambitious.”
The camera’s eye
Attend any C.K. show, and you’ll probably see a petite blonde with a camera in her hand. If you’ve seen any artwork for the band, the same woman is behind it. Looking at most photos of the group, an A.K. Photography and Design logo is visible somewhere in the frame.
Ann Kielbasa is the official C.K. and The Rising Tide photographer and graphic designer. But she’s special — she’s been there since the group was rehearsing in a garage. She’s a critical part of the foundation that keeps it going because she’s spent so much time showing it off in her work.
“It’s been a whirlwind to watch them grow like this,” Kielbasa said. “It’s very hard to put all of these emotions into words because I’ve watched them blossom into what they are now.”
Kielbasa, while not a part of the official five-piece group, is considered one of the most important parts of the squad. While balancing her full-time job, she’s essentially working another 40-hour-plus gig keeping up with the men and developing her photography business.
“There’s such a sense of pride because I’ve seen all of the encouragement they’ve received and how hard they work behind the scenes,” Kielbasa continued. “I’ve only heard snippets of what’s coming and all I can say is wow. I can’t wait to hear the full thing.”
In regards to her photography, her goal is simple; she aims to visually epitomize the C.K. sound.
“I want to show people what they sound like and who they are without having to know the context,” Kielbasa said. “I’m so lucky to have such an insider view of this and I want to convey some of that knowledge through my lens.”
The Gabriels can’t get enough of Kielbasa either, calling her an “incredibly fun and professional person to work with.”
The Buzzards are Circlin’ ‘round
Drummer Piccola, who was recruited from Craigslist, said it didn’t take him too long to learn his parts on American Romance. Taking over for Flach, who provided drums on the first album, has been exciting.
“Honestly, I think Curtis might be a bit better of a drummer than I am,” he said. “But we all have a corner of the group that works best for us.” Piccola added he’s excited about the release because, like his bandmates, he wants to see how people connect with the music.
A chance to connect came on July 26, when the quintuple-threat released its first single from Perfect Stranger on YouTube, a hauntingly beautiful song called “Follow The Buzzards.” The MP3 track was released several days later. Boudreau explained how “Buzzards” is only a glimpse of what’s to come.
“I feel like Perfect Stranger is much more excited about the prospects of the future, while American Romance talked about things long gone and bitter loss,” Boudreau said. “One lyric that really stands out to me is ‘Follow the sweet, sweet sound / leave it all in the cold, cold ground’ because it’s kind of a way to break with the past of hurt and move into happier times.”
The music video for “Follow The Buzzards” reached 1,000 YouTube views within three days. At print time, the video is close to 2,000. Boudreau said if “Buzzards” is good, listeners will love the rest of the album.
“We’re heading more into indie rock while still maintaining our roots of folk and Americana, which we love,” Brant explained. “This album is definitely a bit different than what we released last time.” Despite the differences, the band assures fans they will still recognize that signature C.K. sound.
Flach is excited, but he’s cautious. He explained that he’s afraid to really go into how much the band’s sound has matured because he doesn’t want to “shoot [himself] in the foot.” However, he admits he’s stepped up his game. No longer the sit-in drummer with 50 different jobs — he’s now the frontman.
“Six months after American Romance, I presented some demos and it has now blossomed into this,” he said. “We’re feeling confident that we’ve been able to top what we put out last time in what’s coming soon. We’ve really been working hard on this.”
The band’s sound has evolved. What was once simple and characteristic of a band getting on its feet is now layered with advanced production and the sound of musicians who know what they’re doing. You can hear the improvement in Flach’s voice, and he’s blessed to have support from four men who are rapidly improving in their own right. It’s a pretty impressive feat, especially when you consider how all five band members work full-time jobs.
C.K. and The Rising Tide will be playing Rocktoberfest 2019, Ambassador’s one-day music festival, at Colonie Park on Oct. 5. It shares a bill with Madison VanDenburg, El Modernist, Vince Palmeri (another Ambassador talent) and more.
“I think we’re all excited to just connect with people some more,” Piccola concluded. “We use our music to convey emotions and thoughts. I’m just excited to see how the public will connect with us.”
Perfect Stranger will be available on iTunes, Spotify and in CD format.
This article was originally published by The Spot 518, is property of Spotlight Newspapers in Albany, N.Y., and appears as a special to NYSMusic. TheSpot518 and NYSMusic work in partnership to provide readers with in-depth coverage on the local music scene in the Capital District and New York state, respectively. For more, visit TheSpot518.com.
Beck and Cage The Elephant arrived in Saratoga on Monday night, as it was the next stop in their Night Running Tour, which will conclude at the end of August. The night was kicked off with a bang, as the New York City based Sunflower Beans brought an energetic indie-rock sound, bringing the early-arriving crowd to their feet. Their set was followed up by Spoon, who kept the same pace and energy as the Sunflower Beans, despite being two decades older.
Cage The Elephant took the stage shortly after the Spoon’s set. The lights all fell, and the Bowling Green native band was silhouetted by the surrounding pyrotechnics. Eventually Matt Shultz, the band’s lead singer, emerged wearing an outfit you’d only imagine from a Cage The Elephant frontman— a grey trench coat, a masquerade mask, a straw sunhat and an assortment of accessories on various satchels donned by the singer. This was the outermost of many (and I mean many) layers that Shultz was wearing. Throughout the set he unpeeled each layer, revealing strange outfit after strange outfit, until he was left in a nude leotard and red short-shorts. These layers of clothing didn’t impede Shultz’s mobility in the slightest however, as there wasn’t a single minute in the 19-song-set that he wasn’t running, dancing, jumping, or leaning hard into each and every lyric.
Photo by Jim Gilbert
Cage just released their fifth studio album, Social Cues, this past April, so naturally, they played many tracks from the new record, including; “Broken Boy,” “Social Cues,” “Ready To Let Go” and various others. As the set went on the energy of the band never slowed, keeping the thousands in attendance dancing right along. Playing hits such as “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked,” “Come A Little Closer” and “Cigarette Daydream,” before finally finishing their set with “Teeth.” However, just because the band was done didn’t mean Matt Shultz was. Midway through the last song the singer left the stage and began to make his way through the crowd, and didn’t stop when the song concluded and his bandmates left the stage. Shultz continued on, making his way through the amphitheatre, eventually reaching the lawn, where he crowd-surfed all the way up to the concourse and eventually made his way to the balcony, embracing and entertaining fans the whole way. It was almost 20 minutes after the set that Matt Shultz made his backstage, however, we hadn’t seen the last of him yet…
After Cage The Elephant’s long and exhilarating set it was hard to believe we still hadn’t seen the main act. But, sure enough, there was another entire set to be seen, and it did not disappoint. Beck opened his portion of the night with an acoustic slide guitar solo, such as one you may hear in an Old Western, that solo transitioned into arguably his most recognized song, “Loser.” Beck’s set was filled with his signature indie-rock-rap music, impressive solos from him and his band, bright lasers and lights, and fans who had not stopped dancing since the night began. The night did slow down for a few minutes, when Beck gave a touching speech, talking about his mother who was in the crowd, the importance of savouring what you have and not taking anything for granted – this did not disappoint the fans though, as they continued to cheer and show their support. Beck then covered the Korgis “Everybody’s Gotta Learn Sometime,” then played his own “E-Pro,” before exiting the stage in preparation for the encore that was surely to follow.
Beck began his encore with the sound of the iconic guitar intro of “Where It’s At,” leaving no one unsure of what song was being played. Once that was over Beck gave an unexpected but riveting harmonica solo, beginning his 1994 song “One Foot in the Grave.” Following this, Beck invited the Spoon singer, Britt Daniel, to come back on stage and asked him what he song he wanted to play, Britt replied, “Pump It Up” by Elvis Costello, and so that became the third song of the encore.
Next, Beck invited yet another singer back on stage, this time Cage The Elephant frontman Matt Shultz (who came out wearing yet another exotic outfit, this time complete with a yellow rain jacket and hat). Beck and Shultz sang their recent single together, “Night Running” (of which the tour was named after), followed by a reprise of “Where It’s At,” during which confetti rained from the amphitheatre before the night finally came to an end.
Woods Fest Music Festival is quickly becoming a “can’t miss” event in Central New York, featuring many of the best emerging and established bands in the region and New England.
The all-day festival also featured a Super Jam to finish the night on the big stage. The jam saw members of Nina’s Brew and The Old Main joining Annie in the Water on stage to finish the festival. Following the outdoor festivities, the music continued inside the lodge until sunrise.
The Group Therapy Tour was just the medicine needed for more than 15,000 fans of Barenaked Ladies that packed into CMAC this past Friday night. This being the first time they’ve toured in over a decade, Hootie & the Blowfish was not only celebrating the 25th anniversary of Cracked Rear View Mirror‘s release back in 1994, but also announced their upcoming album Imperfect Circle, due for release this fall.
Opening and getting the night started was the Barenaked Ladies. With Ed Robertson on lead vocals and guitar; Jim Creeggan on bass and vocals; Tyler Stewart on percussion and vocals; and Kevin Hearn on keyboards, guitar and vocals; this quartet have perfected their harmonies and playing over the years, but it’s their stage presence that really lifts them above most bands. The one thing that hits you first (if this is the first time you’ve seen them live) is they have so much fun playing together. Racing across the stage, playing to not only the crowd but to each other, fun has to be their middle name (Barenaked Fun Ladies), just has to be.
They are known for their improvisation – their number one hit “One Week” was added to the album Stunt to demonstrate their flair of improv and the energy they exude during their live shows. Capturing it perfectly on the album and again Friday night, these fun loving guys have proven they still have what it takes to get the crowd out of their seats, dancing and singing. In fact, if the band “Had a Million Dollars,” they wouldn’t have to buy their love because it was right there in front of them as the crowd sang the lyrics word for word while the band pitched and knocked stuffed animals out of the park. Closing the set out with a mash up of some favorite rock songs, percussionist Tyler Stewart demonstrated what his and the other band members’ strongest qualities are: their versatility and talent, both vocally and musically.
With a quick changeover, it was just minutes before Hootie & the Blowfish took the stage. The moment they came out, the crowd rose to their feet. With hands in the air and phones on record, the crowd ate up every moment they played, hungry for more.
The setlist was outstanding, giving the crowd a taste of an expanse of music from their library, those that have influenced them along the way, and just favorites of both the crowd and the band. Joining them a few songs into their set, one of the best moments of the night was when Barenaked Ladies sat in for a cover of the Beatles’ “A Little Help from My Friends.” This classic song was just an epic choice to feature all these talented musicians and what they bring to the stage.
Like a storybook unfolding, Darius told a story the whole evening through music. Sharing past hits from music that influenced them, such as R.E.M.’s “Losing My Religion,” and showing how music can soothe and collectively unite as he and the band dedicated “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?” to the families and victims of the past week’s shootings, it once again demonstrated how music heals and is a universal language to which everyone can relate.
With a new album to be released on September 6, those in attendance got just a taste of what’s to come. This will be the first album they’ve released since 2005’s Looking for Lucky. A performance of “Rollin’“ as an appetizer left the crowd wanting more, at least it did for this photojournalist.
Despite a slow start to the evening that included the massive number of people coming in to the venue, the issues with ticketing (CMAC is a Ticketmaster venue so buying from third parties is not encouraged or honored) and a strange rain storm that occurred in the beginning of the evening, (rain on one side of the amphitheater and not the other), all in all, it was an amazing night of music that made all the gray moments shine like the rainbow that appeared right before the show began.
Barenaked Ladies Setlist: Bringing It Home, Odds Are, It’s All Been Done, Gonna Walk, The Old Apartment Matter of Time, Brian Wilson, Lookin’ Up, Pinch Me, Big Bang Theory Theme, One Week, If I Had a Million Dollars, Barenaked Rap: Shallow / Old Town Road / Sicko Mode / High Hopes / Whole Lotta Love / Another One Bites the Dust
Hootie & The Blowfish Setlist: Samuel L. Jackson Ezekiel 25:17, Hannah Jane, State Your Peace, I Go Blind (54-40 cover), Sad Caper, Not Even the Trees, With a Little Help From My Friends (Beatles cover with Barenaked Ladies), Hold My Hand, I Will Wait, Let Her Cry, Hey Hey What Can I Do (Led Zeppelin cover), Will the Circle Be Unbroken?, Desert Mountain Showdown, I Hope I Don’t Fall in Love With You (Tom Waits cover), Alright (Darius Rucker song), Running From an Angel, Losing My Religion (R.E.M. cover), Time, Rollin’, Wagon Wheel (Old Crow Medicine Show cover), Old Man & Me, When I Get to Heaven / Fight the Power / Freaks of the Industry Encore: Goodbye, Go and Tell Him (Soup cover), Only Wanna Be With You / Get Down on It, Country Roads (John Denver cover)
Hailing from Vinton, Louisiana, Marcia Ball will be bringing her unique sound to Caffè Lena on Friday, August 30. USA Today described her music as being a combination of “Texas Stomp Rock” and “Louisiana blues-swamp,” an intriguing combination. Each performance of Marcia Ball’s becomes a musical party of joyful music and triumphant vocals, and every note comes with a twist that is all her own.
Marcia Ball has won many accolades over her career, including a recent induction into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame in 2018. In 2002, she won the Blues Music Award for “Blues Album Of The Year” for Presumed Innocent. In 2004, her album So Many Rivers was nominated for a Grammy Award and won the 2004 Blues Music Award for Contemporary Blues Album Of The Year, as well as the award for Contemporary Blues Female Artist Of The Year . She has been awarded a total of ten Blues Music Awards, ten Living Blues Awards and has been nominated for a Grammy five times.
Clearly, Marcia Ball is an incredibly talented musician who has cultivated a sound and style that can only be described as her’s. She will be performing two shows at Caffè Lena, an early show at 6:00, and a late show at 8:30. To get tickets to the early show, go here. To get tickets to the later performance, go here.
Guster made the best of weather malfunctions at SummerStage 2019 in Central Park on Thursday, August 8. The beautiful stage and lush canopy of trees created a secluded, intimate environment in the heart of New York City. The day was filled with beautiful skies, and the weather forecast was partially cloudy without indication of showers, up until later on in the day.
Rubblebucket has delicious clouds as they perform
Indie rockers, Rubblebucket, opened for Guster, and were fortunate to have blue skies and incredible cloud mood throughout the show. The Brooklyn based bunch includes: Alex Toth (trumpet, leader), Kalmia Taver (vocals, saxophone), Adam Dotzon (trumpet, vocals, flutero), Ryan Dugre (guitar), Noga Shefi (bassa), Jeremy Gustin (drums), and Sean Smith (trumpet). Their vibrant, colorful outfits and art-pop spirit descended upon Central Park, and offered synchronized dancing on stage, as well as a high level of connectivity as they grooved together. At one point, the energetic Taver had the audience sing “Love, Love, Love, Love” while pointing with one finger in the air, transitioning into “Came Out of a Lady.” Rubblebucket made many new fans that night.
Kalmia Taver interacts with the audience
Boston, MA’s Guster took the stage at 7:46 pm, with storm clouds moving Northeasterly, towards the Rumsey Playfield in Central Park. Guster consists of Ryan Miller (guitar and vocals), Adam Gardner (guitar and vocals), Brian Rosenworcel (drums and percussion), and Luke Miller (bass). They brought their signature blend of rock and roll as long as they could, starting with “What You Wish For” from Lost and Gone Forever.
Luke Reynolds of Guster is loving his job
A deep orange and pink sunset began during Ganging Up on the Sun’s “The Captain,” followed by “Don’t Go” from Look Alive. “Stay with Me” brought lightning in the west, and the orange sky transitioned into black clouds. Drops were felt during their final song, “Satellite,” another tune from Ganging Up on the Sun.
The stunning pink and orange cotton candy sunset behind Guster at SummerStage
At 8:04 pm, the rain came down, the venue cancelled the show, and the band announced that everyone needed to leave immediately. Within 10 minutes, ferocious lightning strikes rolled in, and pouring rain soaked anyone who wasn’t under cover. Mother nature took over to end the evening, but outstanding musical performances and great summer vibes were had until that point.
These Guster fans soon wished those clouds were not there!
Guster Setlist: What You Wish For, The Captain, Don’t Go, Stay With Me Jesus, Satellite…
Setlist: I Love It, Real World ’09, Lonely No More, Her Diamonds, If You’re Gone (Matchbox 20), Can’t Help Me Now, The Great Unknown, Street Corner Symphony, One Less Day (Dying Young), Little Wonders, Fire on the Mountain, Let’s Dance (David Bowie), Early in the Morning, 3AM (Matchbox 20), Ever the Same, Someday, I Am an Illusion
