The 40th Anniversary Blues Music Award nominations have been announced by The Blues Foundation. Nominees in twenty-five different categories will converge in Memphis on May 9th 2019, at the Cook Convention Center for the award ceremonies and artist performances.
Several Blues Music Award nominees appeared in Central New York venues within the past year, including The Westcott Theater, Funk ‘n Waffles, Wakely’s, the New York State Blues Festival, Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, and the Chenango Blues Festival. The nominated artists that appeared at these venues are
Larkin Poe – Band of the Year,
Samantha Fish – Contemporary Blues Female Artist, and Contemporary Blues Album – Belle of the West,
Danielle Nicole – Contemporary Blues Female Artist, and Instrumentalist – Bass,
The staff of NYS Music is always on the lookout for music by New York State-based bands. We are excited to introduce our new Spotify playlist which feature music from some of the state’s biggest artists, as well as many up-and-coming local acts that you should be listening to.
We are constantly adding to the Spotify playlist and are welcoming submissions via our Submission Form. We are only considering submissions made by, or for, NYS-based artists and musicians.
Rumors have now turned into answers with the official announcement for the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock. Questions have been answered as to when the show will take place and where, as we now patiently wait for next month’s official lineup announcement when tickets for the event will also go on sale.
Woodstock 50 will take place on August 16-19, at the Watkins Glen International Speedway in Watkins Glen. The event will run the same weekend as the Bethel Woods Music and Culture Festival’s own Woodstock anniversary special. Original Woodstock co-founder Michael Lang stated that he is still working with organizers on capacity for the event which he expects in the six figure range.
Lang also stated that the three-day event will see “newer bands,” to honor the legacy of the festival by staging “celebrations of artists” who appeared at the original Woodstock event. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Lang stated: “Having contemporary artists interpret that music would be a really interesting and exciting idea. We’re also looking for unique collaborations, maybe some reunions and a lot of new and up-and-coming talent.”
For the past several weeks, music enthusiast have been checking the internet everyday waiting for an official announcement ever since original Woodstock co-founder, Michael Lang, told the Poughkeepsie Journal that plans for the anniversary show was in the works but not a done deal.
Lang’s event will also feature programs, speakers and partnerships like Headcount. He said: “We want this to be more than just coming to a concert, and hopefully a lot of the bands will become part of this effort to get people to stand up and make themselves heard, to get and out vote. And if they don’t have a candidate that represents their feelings, to find one — or to run themselves.”
With Live Nation backing the Bethel Woods event the same weekend, and with Lang’s statement about “newer bands,” both lineups should look completely different. There is a 90-mile radius clause for artists when performing shows within a certain time frame. It’s highly unlikely that Live Nation will allow artists appearing at the Bethel event to appear at the Watkins Glen event. Having the same artists at the same shows on the same weekend could also hurt ticket sales for both events.
This year’s festival features a wide array of styles, ranging from the traditional Bonnaroo fare to pop and hip hop artists.
The 18th annual event kicks off June 13 with the Grand Ole Opry, which features Saba, Space Jesus, All Them Witches, The Nude Party, and Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever. The festival ends June 16 with Carlile, Cardi B, the Lumineers and Phish performing two sets.
Tickets will be released at noon Central Time on Thursday, Jan. 10 through the Bonnaroo website. In addition to four-day general admission, VIP and Platinum level tickets, Bonnaroo now offers a layaway plan for those wishing to purchase general admission tickets, with plans starting at $47.
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.
We’re all lucky it’s been a pretty mild winter so far this season. Even so, Cousin Earth invited some friends to the Knitting Factory on January 5 for their annual Wintercourse celebration and they brought the heat.
Brooklyn-based outfit Bushicks started the night off strong with their original spread of rock and roll, staying true to the classic genre. Chunky guitar riffs, no-nonsense lyrics, and a hard-hitting rhythm section of John Adamski on drums and Jessica Bogwicz on bass really drive this three-piece. Front-man Jonny Patrizio shredded his way through the ten-song set featuring mostly originals, a song debut, and some special guests. Saxophone player Dan Visintainer lent his horn skills all throughout mid-set on “BioFunk,” “No Goal,” and an ode to the Bushicks music influence in “Rock Rollin’.”
Former Bushicks vocalist David Schnurman aka “David The Goliath” then took the spotlight behind the mic in his first hometown performance back with them for “No Buts About It.” In a triple threat to close out the set, the trio blasted through their very first single “Truffle Shuffle” before debuting a flawless take on the Rush classic “YYZ.” Finally, Joey Calfa of Cousin Earth appeared on stage while SUNY Oneonta professor Mark Pawkett was brought up for a blazing rendition of Frank Zappa’s “Black Napkin.” As the leader of the SUCO (State University College at Oneonta) Frank Zappa ensemble, Pawkett served as a mentor to Patrizio, Calfa and Nate Searing of Cousin Earth, all of whom were enrolled in the Zappa cover band Mothers of Intention. It was an emotional throwback, solidifying Pawkett’s success as a teacher.
Set break music was provided live in the form of a Teddy Midnight DJ set provided by Teddy Midnight bassist Sean Silva, also a student of Mr. Pawkett. In previous years of Wintercourse there has been a comedian MC’ing between bands, but this year, Corey Feldman took the reigns and introduced each band by displaying hilarious photos of their members in front of the stage.
Next up was the incredibly high-energy Funky Dawgz Brass Band of Connecticut. As the rhythm section of tuba and drums laid down the first groove of the set in “I Like It,” the rest of the six-piece horns came out dancing which quickly spread throughout the willing audience. From the bands anthem “Dem Dawgz” to the party track “Beyond the Void,” the Funky Dawgz showcased their infectious mix of NOLA funk, R&B, and twists on classic pop hits. As the crowd inched closer to the stage, an all-out dance party broke out for Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” before trumpet player Aaron Eaddy took a turn with vocals on the hip-hop track “Live Ya Life.”
Each member of the band was given time to shine as they traded solos throughout the hour long set, mixed vocal melodies with horn parts, and hyped up the crowd. Taking advantage of the welcoming listeners, saxophonist Tommy Weeks hopped off stage and weaved his way through the crowd during a peaking solo. The Funky Dawgz didn’t let up once, keeping the crowd moving and energy way up as they closed the set with “Love Don’t Cost A Thing.”
After a short break, the night’s hosts “Cousin Earth” quickly set up and opened their Wintercourse set with the Queen staple “Bohemian Rhapsody,” highlighting newest member Melissa Goscinski’s beautiful falsetto, much to the delight of everyone in the room. With their unique ukulele arrangements and stage antics, Cousin Earth provided a set full of surprises. “When The Dinosaurs Come Back From Outer Space” saw the appearance of a dancing dinosaur in the crowd before they launched everyone back into the stratosphere with the dance track “Super Fun Laser Beams.” The funky “Alive,” from the recently released album Human Music, paved the way for former vocalist Tara Lawton to come out and rejoin the group on Aretha Franklin’s “Rock Steady.”
The whole Cousin Earth family was in high spirits, joyously singing and dancing together before breaking out into an rocking “Outrage” by Soulive which saw Calfa trade his ukulele for an electric guitar. Continuing in their space-themed tradition, a new song was offered in “Please Don’t Kill Us,” a humorous plead to extraterrestrials to spare planet Earth. “Soft Shell Crab Nebula” took things up one last notch before The Beatles’ “Helter Skelter” ended the nearly 80-minute set and brought us all home.
Shortly after midnight, and with the crowd still eager for more, Bella’s Bartok gladly provided. Bassist Dan Niederhouser noted the Massachusetts band’s love of playing in New York City and it was obvious the feeling was mutual with the Brooklyn crowd. Kicking off with “The Strigoi Waltz,” the six-piece band of gypsy-rockers captivated the audience with their speakeasy attire and lively stage presence. It was a fitting set for the late night crowd as fans sang along and swung to “Frankenstein’s Monster” and “The Fiddler and The Devil” as if they were suddenly transported to a dance saloon, if there ever were such a thing.
Toward the middle of the set in “Satan’s Song” the band had already weaved their way through a genre bending selection of original material, commanding the music like a witchdoctor. Singer Asher Putnam hypnotized the venue during the circusy “Masquerade” and joyously lead the Beetlejuice-infused dance party on stage through “Creepster,” “Bones,” and “Zora.” With such unique theatrics and an array of influence, it’s difficult to describe Bella’s Bartok other than completely original. They have managed to take Eastern European folk sensibilities and mix them with Americana, pop, and punk traits, all while keeping the vibe fun and joyful.
The crowd was left fulfilled and spent as the 8th year of Wintercourse proved Cousin Earth knows how to throw a post-New Year’s party. Going on almost a decade for this event, one thing is certain: everyone loves having Wintercourse.
On December 30 at the brand new Sony Hall in Times Square, Ghost Light continued their New Years run with a sold out show, capping off an amazing 2018 for this brand new super group.
Consisting of Tom Hamilton, Holly Bowling, Raina Mullen, Steve Lyons, and Scotty Zwang, these amazing musicians have a clear ambition to take their original songs as far as possible in the realm of improvisation, with each musician bringing their own style to the table. With a brand new album out and a full year of shows and festivals under their belt, Ghost Light is in for a bigger 2019.
For the past four years Phish has ended the year with a run of shows at the historic Madison Square Garden, and from these shows an impressive lineup of late night collaborations has kept the masses entertained into the early hours of the next day. On December 29, saxophonic pioneer Skerik was joined by the talented Billy Martin of Medeski Martin Wood, Ghost Note’s MonoNeon and Wilcoâs Nels Cline at the brand new Times Square music venue Sony Hall.
A two hour-plus set of improv showcased these talented musicians and their unique styles. Nels Clineâs Guitar worked beautifully with the sounds of Skerikâs Electronic Sax, and bassist MonoNeon settled in nicely with the style of the great Billy Martin.
The Marcus King Band played their last two shows of 2018 as openers for As the Crow Flies at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester. Playing to a full house, the band’s set featured songs from their latest release Carolina Confessions, released on October 5th, an album which has found itself on many best of lists for 2018.
In addition to Marcus King on lead guitar and vocals, the group includes drummer Jack Ryan, bass player Stephen Campbell, trumpeter/trombonist Justin Johnson, saxophone player Dean Mitchell and keyboard player DeShawn “D’Vibes” Alexander. Special thanks to Jeff Raspe and 90.5 The Night for logistical assistance with this shoot.
Phish has now celebrated 10 New Year’s Eves since their return in 2009, with eight of those year-end shows taking place at Madison Square Garden. For their ‘Tin’ anniversary, Phish once again brought out a full production from David Gallo design set to the tunes “Mercury” and “Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.,” wrapping up four jam-filled nights in a silver bow to bring us into 2019.
Over those four nights, Phish performed cohesive sets that flowed from one show to the next, with each night seeming to pick up where the previous night left off. With exclamation points throughout the shows and jams moving smoothly from one song to the next, the run featured some of Phish’s best New Years run jamming inside Madison Square Garden since their first New Years in 1995. New Years Eve 2018 marked 60 shows at the World’s Most Famous Arena, with only Elton John and Billy Joel having more performances in their careers.
Phish loves bringing things full circle, and while the disappointment of a cancelled Curveball festival last August was a low point for fans, the New Year’s celebration took the music that arose from the ashes of Curveball and brought it front and center on the 31st. Kazvot Växt songs were performed each night of the run to much audience approval, with four songs held back for the final show of 2018, notably the fan favorite “Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.” The Halloween performance as Kazvot Växt should be looked upon as a turning point for Phish, as this new album/identity has been received better than any other album or new material since their return. For the band to put Curveball in their rearview and move forward with such impressive and well-received material is but one small example of their ability to evolve over time while testing out new ideas and territory with caution thrown to the wind. Performing a Kazvot song right after midnight solidified the new material’s place firmly in the Phish catalog, and we will surely see these songs in rotation moving into this summer, as well as Mexico next month.
A dozen songs were played in Set 1, with notable sequences including “Steam > Chalk Dust Torture > What’s the Use?” and Trey’s ‘favorite’ song (as Fishman put it) “Ass Handed” which was followed by a fiery “Run Like an Antelope.” This was your standard ‘warm up’ set on New Years, where the hits keep coming and the jams are few, although “Sand” did stand out as the longest song of the set. Set 2 found the deep jams per usual, with an 18-minute “Down with Disease” kicking the set off and after a randomly placed “Farmhouse,” a near 18 minute “Seven Below” followed, for the jam of the night that ebbed and flowed through psychedelic and arena rock sections and finally band and audience interplay in the ‘woo-ing’ that Trey seems to love engaging in with the fans.
A “Harry Hood” that stopped after the second section of the composition was halted unexpectedly for a “Passing Through” that split “Hood,” but fell short of the Halloween version where the fans sang along with the ‘Way-o Way-o’ callback. The band clearly was hoping to bridge the fans singing ‘Way-o Way-o’ into the return to “Hood,” which ended up being more of a surprise since some fans (ahem) forgot they hadn’t finished “Hood” and brought it to a triumphant close. Regardless, the second set was the set of the night and had fans sweating as the clock ticked past 11pm and we headed into the final Phish of 2018 and first of 2019.
For the New Years gag, Phish took a combination of two past gags – “Steam” (2011) and “Petrichor” (2016) but with visuals that engaged the entire arena, including lights, balloons, streamers, smoke, acrobats, stage dancers, inflated foods and Trey and Mike in silver space suits. With the opening notes of “Mercury,” the silver balloons that hung from the ceiling connected to the semi-recent composition that Trey had found new life in during the summer of 2018, with improvisation taking the song well past the 20-minute mark on multiple occasions, and making a believer out of many fans.
After a few minutes of the composition, aerial dancers were lifted above the front of the stage, releasing silver streamers that poured down in front of the stage, the silver strands of mercury shining bright with floating lights pouring out smoke that decorated the space behind them, building towards the midnight peak. As a recording counted down from 30 seconds, the acrobats climbed into their nets and were dropped to the stage one by one for the final 10 seconds of 2018, and with that, “Auld Lang Syne” was played and thousands of balloons and silver streamers poured from the ceiling, and MSG being filled with Mercury-colored Silver Grandeur.
As the first song after midnight, Phish opted for the popular Kazvot Växt tune “Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S.” after “Auld Lang Syne,” a sing along with amazing energy – the crowd echoing ‘Say it to me S.A.N.T.O.S.’ and ‘This is what space smells like/you will always remember where you were” – gave chills both then and on subsequent relistens. While Trey and Mike were lifted up into the air throughout the song, the stage was then peppered with various pool-floats that represented various things that space could smell like, plus googly eyes for added ‘space’ effect. Trey meanwhile was running around the stage with his wireless guitar that found him playing “S.A.N.T.O.S.” to those behind the stage with cheers, smiles and tears aimed right at the Bad Lieutenant, who looked nothing short of elated. The energy of the rest of the night flowed in the form of “Simple” which was cut short for “Saw it Again” and “Limb by Limb,” and a combo of Lou Reed’s “Rock and Roll” > “Suzy Greenberg” lifted the crowd up one final time to close out the first set of 2019. With more than 20 minutes left, fans wondered what was in store – “You Enjoy Myself,” or perhaps “Fluffhead” were on every fans wishlist, but the fan favorite of them all, “The Lizards” would be the first part of this encore, with another rocker in “Character Zero” following for a climax of pure energy.
Phish has made their mark on Madison Square Garden and set the standard for performances on New Years Eve. Here’s to Phish finding even more inventive ways to engage their fans and continue their storied career into its 36th year in 2019.
Set 1: The Moma Dance, Stray Dog, 555, Sand, Lawn Boy, Steam > Chalk Dust Torture > What’s the Use? > Play by Play, Waste, Ass Handed, Run Like an Antelope
Set 2: Down with Disease[1] > Farmhouse > Seven Below > Twist > Harry Hood > Passing Through, Harry Hood
Set 3: Mercury[1] > Auld Lang Syne, Say it to Me S.A.N.T.O.S., Simple, Saw It Again > Limb By Limb > Rock and Roll > Suzy Greenberg
