NYS Music 202​0

Author: Fiona Hernandez

  • The Residents Release New Single “DIE! DIE! DIE!” from Upcoming Album ‘METAL, MEAT & BONE’

    Legendary art-rock group The Residents has released their latest single “DIE! DIE! DIE!” featuring Black Francis of the Pixies. Their upcoming album, METAL, MEAT & BONE is based on newly discovered recordings of Alvin Snow (a.k.a. Dyin’ Dog) and includes 10 Dyin’ Dog Demos, 10 interpretations of the demos by The Residents, and six new works inspired by Dyin’ Dog. 

    The Residents have been regarded as icons in the world of experimental music for almost fifty years. In addition to their groundbreaking work in the areas of trance, world fusion, electronica, punk, industrial and lounge music, the group has also been credited with being among the originators of performance art and music video, with their videos included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. 

    To know the story of Alvin Snow a.k.a. Dyin’ Dog, one must enter the world of an outsider turned bluesman. Born on Friday, January 13, 1939, Alvin Snow was abandoned on the steps of an orphanage. Snow created his own reality from the fragments of life drifting through his consciousness. He endured thoughts that were lined with the feeling life’s out to get him. This explains Snow’s unspoken rage and overpowering air of entitlement that allowed him to evade lawyers, angry victims, and the police. Lurking in the dark creases of his mind was a beast that haunted his every being. 

    The penetrating sounds of a jukebox pouring out of a small Mississippi town’s bar suddenly stopped him dead in his tracks one day. “Who’s Been Talking” sung by Howlin’ Wolf left Snow mesmerized and an overwhelming epiphany came over him. He began to devour every song recorded by Howlin’ Wolf and became interested in The Blues ever since. 

    Alvin Snow needed to come up with a stage name and everyone agreed Alvin Snow just wasn’t it. It took some thinking on his part to match the perfect name to his ruffled voice, and even more blemished character. A hospital bed fell on and crushed his dog which give him the inspiration to come up with the name Dyin’ Dog. Before the debut performance of his 10-recorded demos on January 13, 1976, Snow vanished and was never to be heard from again. In September 2019, the Dyin’ Dog Demos were extraordinarily released as a Box Set. The Residents bring these long-lost songs to fans worldwide with the release of METAL, MEAT & BONE on July 10, 2020. 

  • Smithsonian Folkways release LP ‘Doc Watson and Gaither Carlton’

    Smithsonian Folkways has released an album of recordings from legendary bluegrass musician Doc Watson and fiddle player Gaither Carlton. The recordings on Watson and Carlton come from two concerts in New York City in October 1962; one concert at the NYU School of Education and the other at Blind Lemon’s (a folk club in the West Village that was gone the next week).

    Doc Watson and Gaither Carlton

    In the early 1960s, Watson was playing rockabilly tunes on his electric guitar near his home in tiny Deep Gap, NC when he was discovered by folklorist Ralph Rinzler. Watson became known for his heartfelt, powerful singing and the distinctive sound of his acoustic guitar.  

    Ralph Rinzler set up the concerts as Watson’s debut in New York, but it was a young Peter Siegel, who recorded both concerts in New York. Siegel still lives in New York, and founded the Nonesuch Explorer Series. He went on to produce music with Watson, and other talented artists such as Paul Siebel, Tom Paxton, Roy Buchanan. Peter Siegel shared his thoughts on how Doc Watson influenced future guitarists: 

    Today there are all these great flatpicking guitarists we know about. Clarence White, Tony Rice, all kinds of people. Billy Strings too now. At that time, nobody had ever heard a folk guitar player play like that! In folk music, the guitar was an accompanying instrument, which was usually strummed in a specific way. So when Doc showed up, it blew my mind. It blew everyone’s mind!

    Doc Watson and Gaither Carlton

    The music that is played on these recordings is not the virtuosic guitar style Watson is known for. Throughout the album are songs like “Double File” and “He’s Coming to Us Dead” that are comprised of the fiddle, guitar, and banjo to demonstrate the roots of Scottish and Irish music.

    Key Tracks: Double File, He’s Coming to Us Dead

  • Hearing Aide: Hayfitz Releases Debut LP ‘Capsules’

    NYC-based indie folk artist Hayfitz releases debut album Capsules, which debunks the value of time and nurtures brief yet defining experiences into lush songs.

    Hayfitz

    The foundation of Capsules was recorded over eighteen days in a Seattle home surrounded by idyllic views of the Puget Sound and the region’s mountains and evergreens. The setting brought Hayfitz the emotional space to deliver the record with resolve, bringing intentional details to each song and distilling the franticness of a Brooklyn lifestyle.

    Capsules took on its current shape in a secluded winter cabin in Parker, Pennsylvania where friend turned collaborator, Patrick Gregg, hosted Hayfitz for two separate week-long periods. Each inspired by contemporaries like Andy Shauf and Chad Vangaalen, Gregg and Hayfitz collaborated to bring a range of woodwinds to the recording process, with Gregg playing everything from bass clarinet to saxophone. Gregg’s added aptitude in both modular and analog synthesis formed the underlying soundscapes that created a cohesive record, running Hayfitz’s demo midi sequences through various vintage synthesizers.

    The album opens up with the song “Pinpoint,” an illustration of Hayfitz’s complicated and perplexing emotions towards a girl. Throughout the album are songs like “Daylight,” that display Hayfitz’s fear and susceptibility and “Hold On,” which demonstrate Hayfitz’s perseverance to have strength and hope in his darkest moments. The song “Kitchen,” relates to today’s current situation, making it the perfect quarantine reflection: 

    “Kitchen” is about being left alone with someone you’ve just met and quickly becoming enamored with them. We hardly ever have control over the circumstances of these first moments we share with a stranger and it’s utterly terrifying to think about what’s going through their head. It’s oddly coincidental that my song about being unexpectedly trapped in a kitchen is coming out during a time where we now all find ourselves in isolation, without having planned for it. We’re finding expedited and deeper connections with those who we’re sharing our small spaces with and being forced to adapt immediately to this new way of life.

    People have experienced feelings of fear and uncertainty due COVID-19, but Hayfitz’s album communicates that all we have to do is just “Hold On.” 

    Key tracks: Pinpoint, Daylight, Hold On

  • Hamilton Movie Theater Announces Hamilton Unity Concerts Part II

    Hamilton Movie Theater has announced that they will continue Hamilton Unity Concerts starting Sunday, May 31 and running through the end of June.

    Concerts will be live streamed at 7PM on their Facebook page.  Hamilton Unity Concerts Part II will support a variety of non-profit organizations. A link will be provided on their Facebook page for people to donate to the organizations and offer tips to the artists. 

    The concerts will kick off with Vermont-based indie-rock band Jesse Taylor on May 31. Other artists who will perform include: Liz Fiddle, Jeffrey Monty, Sam Herbert, and Blaine Holcolmb. Check out more details below.

    Hamilton Movie Theater

  • The Material World Foundation Launches ‘The Inner Light Challenge’ to Support COVID-19 Non-Profits

    The Material World Foundation, founded by George Harrison, has created The Inner Light Challenge to help organizations such as MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund, Save the Children, and Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors without Borders) who provide care to those affected by the pandemic.

    The Material World Foundation

    The Inner Light Challenge has asked people to share a verse, chorus, or line from The Beatles song ‘The Inner Light’ and post it to social media using the hashtag #innerlight2020. The Material World Foundation will give another $1 (up to $100,000) to help those affected by the virus for every person that posts using the hashtag #innerlight2020.

    MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund has helped musicians who are unemployed due to COVID-19. As of now, the organization has raised close to $14 million dollars for musicians. Save the Children has offered toolkits for children who are being homeschooled and Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) has helped over 70 countries combat COVID-19 by providing health services. 

  • Chenango Blues Association Reschedules 2020 Festival to 2021

    The Chenango Blues Association announced on their website that their 2020 summer festival will be cancelled. The festival which was originally scheduled for Friday August 21 through Saturday August 22  is postponed to next year. Statements from the association can be seen below.

    chenango blues association

    We agonized over this, and we held out as long as we could , but we have arrived at the conclusion that there is no responsible way to move forward with any of our planned events for 2020. We are all as disappointed as we know you are, and it was difficult to contact all our artists and break the news. At this point in events no one was very surprised, and everyone shared the belief that it was the safe and reasonable thing to do. Our artists, our volunteers and of course all our fellow music lovers mean the world to us and the thought of an event that would put anyone’s well being at risk was reason enough to take pause. An event next year where we will all be present to enjoy it means a lot more than rushing in to something we don’t understand well enough to prepare for. We like all of you too much to do that!
    It came as quite a blow to have to do this but I have to tell you-we were uplifted by the many kind words of vendors, volunteers and artists about how much the event means to them and how excited they were to participate next year. In fact, most of our artists have already agreed to perform at the 2021 Fest, and we are all thrilled to death because we thought it might be our best lineup yet!
    Hope to see you all next year-it will be bigger and better than ever. Until then-wash your hands, cover your face and stay safe!

    While the Chenango Blues Fest is off for 2020, check out NYS Music’s coverage of past Blues Fests from 2019. 

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