NYS Music is proud to announce 15 Jam for Tots shows around the Empire State this holiday season. Kicking off on November 27, each show will have a Toys for Tots box set up for patrons to donate gifts to kids in need.
With a wide variety of artists, including Consider the Source, Runaway Gin, Annie in the Water, Tim Herron Corporation, Strange Machines, and Swedish metal guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, this annual series will connect live music fans with those most in need in their local communities.
Support kids in need this holiday season by bringing an unwrapped toy to any of the following shows. Jam for Tots is brought to you by NYS Music.
Regional shows include:
Mid-Hudson Valley
Nov 27 Open Jam – Main Street Public House, Philmont
Dec 5 Open Jam – The Stewart House, Athens
Dec 7 Yngwie Malmsteen – The Chance, Poughkeepsie
Dec 14 IS – Hilltop Bar and Tavern, Tannersville
Westchester
Dec 4 The Spadtastics – Garcia’s at The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester
North Country
Dec 6 Hunter – The Monopole, Plattsburgh
Western New York
Dec 14 Strange Machines w/s/g Haewa- Flour City Station, Rochester
Dec 20 PA Line “Chrismukkah Show” w/ Special Guests – Buffalo Iron Works, Buffalo
Capital Region
Dec 14 Annie In The Water, The Deadbeats – Putnam Place, Saratoga Springs
Dec 14 Consider the Source w/s/g Swimmer – The Hollow, Albany
Central New York
Dec 8 The Old Main – Woods Valley, Rome
Dec 19 The Action! – Copper City Brewing Company, Rome
Dec 28 Tim Herron Corporation – Funk n Waffles, Syracuse
Tommy Stinson is currently on a run of solo shows throughout Spain, leading up to a Montreal appearance at a 40th-anniversary celebration of The Clash’s seminal London Calling album called Montreal Calling on Dec. 6. Following that show, which also features Alejandro Escovedo, Jesse Malin, and the Asexuals, Stinson will embark on a brief tour of unique venues across New York.
Stinson, perhaps best known as the snotty young bassist for the should-have-been-more-famous ne’er-do-wells known as The Replacements and as Duff McKagan’s replacement in Guns N’ Roses for 16 years, is currently working on several other projects, including a new solo album, the follow-up to his band Bash & Pop‘s 2017 album Anything Could Happen and an album with his other project Cowboys in the Campfire.
While returning to his home in Hudson, he will run through a series of “living room” shows across New York, beginning in somebody’s actual living room in Hamburg, just outside of Buffalo on Dec. 10. Stinson then winds his way east, visiting the famous Bop Shop Records in Rochester on Dec. 11 and Wildflowers Armory, a unique art space in Armory Square in Syracuse on Dec. 12, and finishing up at Barry Family Cellars in the Finger Lakes town of Burdett. on Dec. 13. Tickets for all but the Hamburg show are available through Eventbrite and range from $25 for a general admission ticket to $100 for a limited “Drinks With Tommy” ticket.
NYS Music recently sat down with Stinson to discuss this tour and many other subjects of his past, present, and future. That interview will be published in the next week. For more information on Stinson and his various projects, visit his website here.
Fans braved frigid temperatures and snow at the Oncenter War Memorial Arena in Syracuse, NY on Tuesday, November 12, 2019 for A Day to Remember.
A Day to Remember is headlining The Degenerates Tour, which began its 2-month tour on September 6, 2019, spanning until November 23, 2019. The show had three opening acts. Can’t Swim, based out of Keansburg, NJ, Beartooth, hailing from Columbus, OH, leading up to I Prevail, from Southfield, MI, who all seemed to be eligible headliners on their own.
Jeremy McKinnon – lead vocals- A Day To Remember
The band is touring to support their new single “Degenerates” while preparing for the release of their seventh studio album; You’re Welcome, on November 15, 2019. The album is their follow-up to their 2016 release of, Bad Vibrations.
The show was non-stop energy from the moment Can’t Swim took the stage. Can’t Swim is: Chris LoPorto (lead vocals), Mike Sanchez (guitar), Danny Rico (guitar), Greg McDevitt (bass), Michael Sichel (drums). They are an EMO / Post-Punk group hailing from Keansburg, New Jersey. They certainly set the pace for the remaining show.
Chris LoPorto-lead vocals-Can’t Swim
When Can’t Swim left the stage, they were quickly replaced by Beartooth. The crowd started to expand, they shouted and jumped with intensity as Beartooth ripped the stage in true metalcore/punk rock style with heavy beats and strong riffs.
The band was named after the Bear Tooth Court, where their original bassist Nick Reed grew up. Shomo has stated that Beartooth was supposed to be a mere distraction while he was still a member of Attack Attack! having no intentions to record or play live music; however, after his departure, he focused on Beartooth, which has surpassed his wildest expectations. He recruited guitarist Taylor Lumley, bassist Nick Reed, and drummer Brandon Mullins for live performances.
Caleb Shomo -lead vocals- Beartooth
After a long break to set up the stage for I-Prevail, the crowd had really loosened up. The security unit in front of the stage was heavily present, as the crowd surfing, mosh pit and wall of death activities began. At one point, someone dressed as a shark, crowd surfed into the guards.
I-Prevail was strong enough to be the headliner. The band—Brian Burkheiser, Eric Vanlerberghe, Steve Menoian, and Dylan Bowman — easily toss and turn between heavy metal, alternative, hip-hop, and electronic moods without warning, boundaries, or rules. They were hard-driving and loud, and the fans took in every note with electricity.
Brian Burkheiser -lead vocals- I Prevail
Finally, after a long night of hard-hitting music, A Day To Remeber took the stage. The crowd got silent, as the curtain rose to reveal the headliners. Formed in 2003 and known for their fusion of pop-punk and metalcore, the band provided the soundtrack for millennial teen angst with their fourth album, Homesick, about a decade ago. Their fans — now adults —arrived to relive their emo days.
The music got into your chest and became the heartbeat within you, pulsating through every nerve. The five-man band showcased some new material and pulled out all the stops to do so. Beach balls bounced off the stage and into the mosh pit below during the performance of “Rescue Me,” A t-shirt gun fired into the audience while the band presented their newly released single “Degenerates,” which is the first single off their upcoming album You’re Welcome, released on November 15, 2019
Setlists:
Beartooth: The Lines, Hated, Aggressive, You Never Know, Bad Listener, Disease, In Between.
I Prevail: Bow Down, Gasoline, Rise Above, Scars, Paranoid, Hurricane, Breaking Down, Deadweight, Come and Get It.
A Day To Remember (ADTR): The Downfall of us All, All I want, Mr. Highway’s Thinking About the End, Paranoid, Sticks & Bricks, My Own Worst Enemy (Lit Cover), Better Off Ths Way, Right Back at it Again, Rescue Me, Have Faith in Me, Degenerates, Bullfight, Sometimes You;re the Hammer, Sometimes, You’re the Nail, End of Me, 2nd Sucks, I’m Made of Wax, What are You Made of?
ADTR Encore: If It Means A Lot To you, All Signs Point to Lauderdale, The Plot to Bomb, the Panhandle.
Blues music legend Willie Dixon liked to say, “Blues is the roots, the rest is the fruits,” to explain the influence of that genre on other forms of music. But as the music progresses, the roots of blues music itself are sometimes heard less often, lost in the cacophony of over-amplified electric guitarists with pedalboards the size of dinner tables. Fortunately, two young bluesmen, neither of them more than 33 years old, are preserving and promoting the roots.
Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton and Jontavious Willis have paired together for a brief tour that found its way to the Auburn Public Theater on Sunday, November 17. Playing to an intimate, attentive audience of perhaps 60 people.
Jontavious Willis and Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton
Paxton opened the evening, displaying comfortable ease in switching from guitar, to banjo, to harmonica, and then fiddle throughout his set. He covered a range of jazz, ragtime, train songs, and acoustic blues. Incorporating finger-picking, flat-picking, and slide playing styles. Paxton also utilized particularly bawdy humor that was often a staple of both minstrel shows and blues songs that hark back to the ’20s and ’30s. A skilled storyteller, Paxton explained how songs came to influence him, through his family and personal experiences, or through their historical significance. His music can be found here.
Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton
Jontavious Willis followed with more of the same styles of roots and blues music, though many were more contemporary in origin, including original songs of his. A popular performer in Central New York, Willis has also performed in Norwich and Syracuse, and was returning to Auburn after a very well-received show just last year. Willis released his highly acclaimed recording Spectacular Class, in April of this year, produced by Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’. It is available here.
The duo paired for an impromptu song at the back of the audience, before returning to the stage for one final song together. The setting, and smaller crowd, made for a distinct connection between the musicians and the audience, and shaped the evening into an enjoyable journey back to times, places, and songs that impacted what is heard today in blues, roots, Americana music, and more.
Jerron Paxton and Jontavious Willis ask the audience for one more song.
While conducting archival research at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Judith Peraino of the College of Arts and Sciences said of the finding, “It sounds like he recorded them in his apartment with an open air microphone, just voice and acoustic guitar.”
Syracuse alumnus Reed had labeled Side 2 of the tape “The Philosophy Songs (from A to B and Back).” Side 1 of the cassette consists of songs dubbed from soundboard recordings of Reed’s 1975 concerts. Peraino said her first reaction to discovering the cassette was “disbelief and uncertainty.”
“The sound of Reed’s voice on ‘The Philosophy Songs’ is very different from his live concert performances on Side 1,” she said. But when one Warhol Museum staffer commented that Peraino had found an unreleased Lou Reed album, “that’s when the excitement really hit. Such a discovery is rare, and it is certainly a highlight of my career.”
The “Philosophy Songs” cassette is one of almost 3,500 audio tapes at the Warhol Museum, part of the extensive collection Warhol assembled of the sounds of his life. A critical source for Peraino’s research was Bruce Yaw, a bass player who toured with Reed from 1975-76. Although he passed away in September at age 73, Yaw lived near Ithaca in the village of Sempronius. Extensive interviews and personal archive were shared with Peraino, which includes demo and soundboard tapes that she used to put the newly discovered cassette in context.
Peraino said that while demo tapes and soundboard recordings are not particularly rare finds, this is different.
“What makes this rare is the gift aspect of the tape,” she said, “that Lou Reed intentionally created both a curated set of songs and a composed set of songs on tape meant only for Warhol. This is a harbinger of the mixtape culture and gift-giving that flourished in the 1980s and 1990s.”
Peraino also unearthed a partial recording of the “Philosophy Songs” at The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
Peraino’s extensive research into Warhol’s archive and Reed’s music has illuminated the story behind the unreleased songs. The tape, she writes, records “the entangled passions and psychologies of [Warhol and Reed’s] decadelong relationship.” Reed and Warhol famously collaborated in the mid-1960s, resulting in the multimedia Exploding Plastic Inevitable events and the album The Velvet Underground and Nico.
Their multiple attempts to start another musical collaboration in the mid-1970s is not widely known. Warhol first approached Reed to create a Broadway musical based on Reed’s Berlin album. After that idea fizzled, Reed created the just-discovered tape of songs based on Warhol’s latest book and his own latest songs and performances.
As such, the tape functions as an audio double portrait: One side is Lou Reed; the other side is Andy Warhol.
“Reed brought an experimental and literary sensibility to his songs, composing vivid and sometimes brutal portraits of complex characters in sound and words,” Peraino said. “This tape from 1975 reveals an intimate side of Reed’s musical portrait-making through a story that is his own, touching on his ongoing involvement with Andy Warhol and exploring the expressive potential of the medium of the cassette tape.”
This September, Andrew VanNorstrand released his debut solo LP That We Could Find A Way To Be and this month premieres the video for “Boy with Gray Eyes” off the album. Americana Highways premiered the audio for “Boy With The Gray Eyes” and said of the track, “In a song about hope and hesitation, VanNorstrand constructs comforting, introspective guitar sounds, and the low vocals, clarinet and fiddle are the icing on the cake.”
Andrew VanNorstrand, a musician, singer, songwriter and producer living in Upstate New York, has performed on festival stages, concert halls, dance floors and living rooms all over North America and beyond. For eighteen years, he toured and recorded with the popular dance band Great Bear which also featured his brother Noah VanNorstrand and mom Kim “Mama Bear” Yerton. Andrew and Noah continue to perform together in the bi-coastal folk quartet Wake Up Robin and acoustic power trio The Faux Paws.
His debut solo album, That We Could Find A Way To Be, focuses on the complicated intersections of love, faith, loss and uncertainty, queerness and the search and struggle for understanding from the rust belt to the Blue Ridge, from a cold spring in New England to a summer’s night in Charlottesville. Andrew blends traditional folk, old-time and country music with indie-roots-Americana and a passion for shared connection and a song well sung.
On November 13, Andrew will make his solo, live television debut on Central New York’s ABC affiliate, WSYR Channel 9’s Bridge Street. He also performs a few shows around CNY over the next two months. Click for details below, or visit Andrew’s website for more details.
The Syracuse based duo, Jess Novak & Ben Wayne, are dropping their four track EP Rise today, November 10, across all streaming platforms. This alternative Indie-folk rock-duo fused their previous individual works with their environmental inspiration while recording in Nashville, Tennessee to breed Rise. The EP builds on both their individual strengths from Wayne’s Southern California rock and reggae roots, and Novak’s distinct violin, songwriting and vocal skills, which are well recognized with her winning Best Female Vocalist by the Syracuse New Times back in 2018.
Ben Wayne (left) and Jess Novak (right) promotional picture for Rise.
The EP opens with the song, “After All” which has a distinctly doo-wop rhythm to it. In conjunction with Novak’s vocals it differs from every other song coming up on your favorite streaming service. It’s a refreshingly unique combination of doo-wop and alt-rock that we don’t hear nearly enough. With the rhythm section being layered with lead guitar, carrying an almost country feel, the song is hard to categorize into one singular genre. A trend of Rise in general. It’s not one singular sound. It’s not one singular genre. It is a little bit of its own thing – which is one reason it’s so enjoyable and a well rounded.
The second track “Carousel” is a known Ben Wayne song. While Jess Novak writes and takes the lead vocals on the other three tracks, Wayne leads on this hauntingly beautiful and painful song. It starts with a little walking bass line on the acoustic guitar played by Wayne and a violin smoothly dropping in, with Wayne’s drawl starting shortly after. The song revolves around accepting that things are coming to an end and letting the other person go even though you could still be happy with them. It’s the kind of song you listen to on repeat with your headphones stuck in your ears, escaping the world, or maybe more correctly escaping your own carousel that you are stuck on.
Ben Wayne (front) and Jess Novak (back) promotional picture for Rise.
“Here to Stay,” an abrupt change from “Carousel,” fits Rise‘s diverse musical and artistic showcase of both Novak and Wayne’s talents. They don’t have to stick to one particular sound or genre or tempo. The song is heavy on Novak’s vocals without Wayne backing on it much if at all. This track really stars Novak’s accompanying band which is made up of Jeff King on guitar, Steve Brewster on drums, Mark Hill on bass, Tim McDonald on keyboards, and of course Jess Novak on Violin. Between the tempo changes, build ups and guitar riffs it’s definitely a track that is beyond vocally focussed and gives credit to all the great musicians involved.
“Ripper” swings. It has and upbeat, dance-tempo, making it hard for you to sit still. You will find yourself bobbing your head without meaning to. The song has a similar sound as “Here to Stay,” with more punch to it. With the topic of having your heart ripped out and being excited about it, it’s not the most common motif.
The EP had help from producer Bill Warner and songwriter Kirsti Manna, who is best known for her work with Blake Shelton. Rise is a powerful piece of work made by Jess Novak & Ben Wayne. It’s something worth listening to if you’re looking for new music to add to your arsenal. The EP release party is at The Ridge located at 1281 Salt Springs Rd, Chittenango, NY 13037 on November 10th at 3PM. For more information check out Jess Novak’s website and Ben Wayne’s website.
The annual Great Salt City Blues Concert makes its return to Syracuse on Friday, Dec. 27at 7:30 p.m. The event—being held at The Palace Theatre—is a yearly extravaganza that celebrates great blues artists. This year’s theme is to pay tribute to five legends of the genre, where current musicians will be honoring greats of the past. The honorees consist of, Albert Collins, Freddy King, Big Mama Thornton, Slim Harpo and Memphis Minnie.
The participating musicians include:
Austin John Doody, Mark Gibson, Tas Cru, Mike DeLaney, Bill Barry, Pete McMahon, Ross Moe, Jerry Neely, Mikal Serafim, Diana Jacobs, Curtis Waterman, Bob Purdy, Ron Spencer, Cathy LaManna, Dunham Hall, Jimmy Wolf, Jane Zell and Dawna Zahn.
Advance sale general admission tickets will be sold for $25 and can be purchased at Soundgarden in Armory Square & The Palace Commons, while tickets at the door on the night of the show will be $35.
Tickets for the Salt City Blues Concert can be purchased online through Brown Paper Tickets.
Ithaca, NY based progressive soul band, Noon Fifteen is set to release its epic prog-pop suite, At the Festival,Halloween weekend. Packing a punch in its 22 minute run-time, the album is a brilliantly-efficient storyteller.
The members here are key to its delivery, starting with Mandy Goldman on vocals, whose dynamic range and myriad styles power this piece. Rounding out Noon Fifteen are: Samuel B. Lupowitz (keyboards & vocals), Joe Massa (guitars), Harry Nichols (bass, percussion, & vocals), and Phil Shay (drums & vocals). Joining the band on this outing is Chris Ploss, not only on percussion and vocals, but he also recorded and mixed the album at Sunwood Recording in Trumansburg, NY.
At the Festival explores the mood of Hero, the protagonist of the piece, as he contemplates the state of his life – past and present. Wondering where the time has gone and trying to truly feel his emotions, Hero conversely numbs himself with liquor and pills. It is this internal struggle that underlies the entire mini-rock opera.
The alternate musical styles of At the Festival drive the narrative through the album. The band shines here moving effortlessly between pop soul sounds, prog rock riffs and sonically soaring movements. The free, yet vocally stunning “Wandering” showcases the beautiful harmonies this group can deliver, and simultaneously offers a small respite to Hero. As the story works to conclusion, it is apparent that Hero’s struggle is not over as he is battered by mourning and lost love in “Rock Bottom” and he defiantly disavows everyone in “My Ghost.”
Well-crafted and performed, At the Festival is a testament to Noon Fifteen’s willingness to explore and grow musically. This is an effort to be cheered.
Key Tracks: Time for Me, Rock Bottom, My Ghost
Join Noon Fifteen for their album release party at The Range in Ithaca on Saturday, November 2.
Ithaca’s progressive soul band, Noon Fifteen, today premieres “Time For Me,” off their upcoming album At the Festival. They’ll celebrate the album release at The Range in Ithaca on Friday, November 2.
“Time for Me” introduces the suite’s protagonist, sung by bassist Harry Nichols, and sets up musical ideas which are revisited, twisted, and elaborated on throughout the piece. The song serves as the jumping off point for the album and was the first part written, having been inspired by a trip to festival during where Nichols witnessed a grieving friend experience renewal.
A small town band with a big imagination, Noon Fifteen’s first release, Volume One, showcases the band’s vintage soul roots and hinted at its progressive tendencies. With At the Festival, the band dives head first into that prog propensity. The record is a seamless 22 minute suite, a mini rock opera that tells a tale of grief, and questions how far we should go to remember those we have lost.
Based in Ithaca, the five-piece is influenced by 1960s California and Liverpool, 1970s Memphis and New Orleans, and the DIY ethos of the internet-powered independent music scene. Fronted by Mandy Goldman (vocals), Noon Fifteen is Samuel B. Lupowitz (keyboards & vocals), Joe Massa (guitars), Harry Nichols (bass, percussion, & vocals), Phil Shay (drums & vocals), and are joined by Chris Ploss for the album (percussion & vocals).
At The Festival was recorded & mixed by Chris Ploss at Sunwood Recording in Trumansburg, NY, with additional recording by Samuel B. Lupowitz, and was mastered by Matt Saccuccimorano at Scaramanga Industries.
