NYS Music 202​0

Author: Nora Hones

  • Jimkata Returns From Hiatus With New Song “Wanna Go”

    Jimkata returned from their indefinite hiatus with the new song “Wanna Go.” The song dropped with a music video on their YouTube channel on July 9. 

    Jimkata is an electro rock trio that evolved from their original jamband roots, to a more electronic sound. The band started at Ithaca College back in 2005 with Evan Friedell (vocals, guitar), Aaron Gorsch (guitar/keys) and Packy Lunn (drums).

    The trio grew up together in the Upstate college town of Oneonta and are the founding members of the band. Dave Rossi served as bassist until 2015, having joined the band after meeting the other members during his freshman year at Ithaca College. Jimkata became a local favorite in Ithaca and across New York state before taking their indefinite hiatus in 2016.

    “Wanna Go” dropped shortly after the band teased of new music on their Facebook page starting back on June 16, 2020. They released a new clip of them working on new music every few days with all the titles together reading, “ DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD RELEASE SOME NEW MUSIC?”

    The new song comes on the coattails of the release of a Greatest Hits Album, Best, on June 12. Jimkata left a quote on the album’s release saying, “All the best things seem to surface after the worst times, all the worst things seem to come around after the best times…”

    To check out the teaser videos check out Jimkata’s Facebook.

    The video features the band setting up a living room and sitting on a couch in a picture frame. There is a theme of being surrounded by the color yellow in the video, and in the teases released and on their website. The song is boppy – a solid return to the music realm for Jimkata. 

    For more information on Jimkata visit their website or their Facebook Page.

  • Woods Fest Music Festival postponed until 2021

    Woods Fest Music Festival postponed its third annual festivities until 2021. The COVID-19 outbreak caused the festival to be moved till next year to protect everyone involved. The lineup includes local favorites like The Roots of Creation, The Old Main, and West End Blend. 

    The festival will take place the same weekend it usually does in August next year on August 7-8 of 2021. The festival will be held at Woods Valley Ski Area on State Route 46 in Westernville. Woods Fest was planning to expand to being a two days festival this year with limited camping available on site and is planning that same structure for 2021. The festival will be back with a newly renovated Woods Valley chalet as the backdrop next year.

    “We are very disappointed to have to cancel this year’s event as it has quickly become an annual celebration of Central New York’s music, art and culture in its two years of existence,” The press release stated. It continued saying, “However, we feel the most prudent thing to do is to postpone this event until next year.”

    The 2021 festival will have The Roots of Creation, The Old Main, West End Blend, Annie in the Water, Strange Machine, Blind Owl Band, Wild Adreatic, Sixfox Whiskey, Les Brers, Maddy Walsh and The Blind Spots, Brickdrop, Trampoline Jetstream, Kluster Phunk, Vaporeyes, Peak, Ramblin’ Brooks Band, with more to be announced. 

    For more information on the Woods Fest Music Festival visit their Facebook Page.

  • CFCU Summer Concert Series Takes to the Virtual Stage

    CFCU Summer Concert Series is coming back in 2020 taking to the virtual stage. The concert series will start on July 9 and runs every week  until September 24. The concert series will include big names like Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People, Terrapin Station, and The Gunpoets.  

    This will be the CFCU Summer Concert Series’s 21st annual free concert series in Downtown Ithaca, NY. The concert series is organized by the Downtown Ithaca Alliance and CFCU Community Credit Union is the keynote sponsor. The Ithaca Downtown Business Improvement District (IDBID) operates as The Downtown Ithaca Alliance. It is a 01c3 not-for-profit organization charged with the revitalization, development, promotion, and management of downtown Ithaca. 

    The concert series will kick off with Luke G & the Candyhearts on July 9. The series will than host: Empire Kings, Mr. McBean, Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People, Notorious String Busters : Mijail Martínez & The Cantina Ramblers, Fall Creek Brass Band, Terrapin Station, Alex Cano, Maddy Walsh and the Blind Spots, The Comb Down, Gunpoets, Swamp Kids, and then wrap things up with Kevin Kinsella on September 24.

    The concerts are usually held at the Bernie Milton Pavilion on the Commons; however, this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the shows will appear virtually on Downtown Ithaca’s Facebook page until further notice. The series will feature a variety of musical styles, with local, regional, national, and international performing artists and will start at 6:00 pm every Thursday.

    For more information about the CFCU Summer Concert Series and other Downtown Ithaca summer events, visit www.downtownithaca.com or check out Downtown Ithaca’s Facebook Event Page. To listen to a selection of music from this year’s performers, check out our 2020 Summer Concert Series Playlist on Spotify.

    The 2020 CFCU Summer Concert Series Schedule and lineup: 

    July 9    Luke G & the Candyhearts

    July 16  Empire Kings: Mr. McBean

    July 23  Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People

    July 30  Notorious String Busters : Mijail Martínez & The Cantina Ramblers 

    Aug. 6  Fall Creek Brass Band

    Aug. 13 Terrapin Station

    Aug. 20 Alex Cano

    Aug. 27 Maddy Walsh and the Blind Spots

    Sept. 3  The Comb Down

    Sept. 10 Gunpoets

    Sept. 17 Swamp Kids

    Sept. 24 Kevin Kinsella

    Check out this stream and more through our series NY Stream and Support, where you’ll discover artists around the Empire State streaming nightly, and ways to support musicians and charitable groups close to home!

  • American Singer-Songwriter Charlie Daniels Dies at 83

    Charlie Daniels, legendary American singer-songwriter, died at the age of 83 on July 6 after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke. He was a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and wrote the hit, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.”

    Charlie Daniels
     Charlie Daniels in concert at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California. Photo by Dwight McCann.

    Daniels was born on October 28, 1936, in Wilmington, North Carolina. He had a musical background with his father William Carlton Daniels who played fiddle and guitar. Daniels quickly learned both instruments while in school before forming his own group the Jaguars, in the late 1950s.

    Daniels started writing his own music after forming Jaguars and ended up writing “It Hurts Me,” which was a collaboration with Joy Byers that ended up being a Top 40 hit for the B-side of Elvis Presley’s album Kissin’ Cousins in 1964. After Jaguars broke up Daniels moved to Nashville in 1967 and teamed up with producer Bob Johnston. Daniels became a well known and successful session musician. He worked on albums like Bob Dylan’s “Nashville Skyline” and Leonard Cohen’s “Songs of Love and Hate.”

    Daniels then recorded his first album under his name in 1970. The solo album was titled “Charlie Daniels” and didn’t make much of a splash. He then signed with Kama Sutra label and recorded “Uneasy Rider” before he ended up landing with Epic Records in 1975. Having two dozen hits on the country charts and four then crossed over on to the pop charts including “The Devil” and “In America” Daniels was a house hold name. The hit song, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” was written and released on the Charlie Daniels Band’s album Million Mile Reflections in 1979.

    Danial received the Pioneer Award by the Academy of Country Music in 1998. He than received the BMI Icon Award at the 53rd annual Country Music Awards in 2005. He joined the Grand Ole Opry in 2008 and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2016.

    Daniels will be greatly missed from the music community. We mourn his loss and send our condolences to his family and friends. 

  • Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival Announce Plans for Virtual Benefit Festival

    Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival announced plans to put on a Virtual Festival. The “Spirit of Grey Fox” will take place on July 16-19. There will be never-seen-before footage of original 2020 artists for the festival. The festival will be a benefit fundraiser for COVID-19 relief for artists.

    Grey Fox virtual

    The festival will include archived performances from past years on top of the performances from the original lineup. Some of the highlighted 2020 lineup includes The Infamous Stringdusters, Jerry Douglas, and Delle Mae. Some of the highlighted archived lineup includes the Del McCoury Band, Sam Bush, and Hot Rize.

    The festival will benefit the IBMA Trust Fund COVID-19 Relief Fund to help artists crushed by the pandemic. This Fund is specifically trying to help the bluegrass community. The Board of Trustees set aside up to $150,000 for COVID-19 crisis assistance and has established an account specifically for COVID-19 Relief. Musicians can be awarded up to $500 of relief pay. People will be able to donate by going to IBMA Trust Fund COVID-19 Relief Fund’s website.

    The festival will stream for free on nugs.tv and Grey Fox’s YouTube and Facebook Page. For more information the “Spirit of Grey Fox please visit Grey Fox’s website.

    Check out this stream and more through our series NY Stream and Support, where you’ll discover artists around the Empire State streaming nightly, and ways to support musicians and charitable groups close to home!

  • Holly Bowling to release new album of Grateful Dead covers “Seeking All That’s Still Unsung” this fall

    Holly Bowling will releasing a new Grateful Dead album full of solo piano renditions this fall. The new album, Seeking All That’s Still Unsung, is made of music recorded at 25th Street Recording in Oakland, CA. 

    Holly Bowling Photo Provided by Press Release.

    Holly Bowling is a classical pianist who is based in San Francisco. Bowling uses the influence of jam band music to create an unique style. Her sound is emotionally rich and highly technical. She has already created albums focusing on Phish in the 2013’s Distillation Of A Dream album and the Grateful Dead focused Better Left Unsung (released December 9, 2016 through The Royal Potato Family). She known for her new band Ghost Light with Tom Hamilton, Raina Mullen and Scotty Zwang.

    In this new album Bowling is attempting to create a record that feels similar to her live performances. Bowling is also using this album to create unique sounds that can only be done in a studio. The album will have the feel of a live album while accomplishing things that are impossible from a musical standpoint to create live on the road. 

    How Holly Bowling is Making the Album Possible

    The album has been in the works for the last year and a half and has been recorded and mastered. But Bowling has a Kickstarter to get the album out to fans. The freedom that’s given her using a Kickstarter makes it so she can be an independent artist. The contributions to it will help to cover mechanical license fees, vinyl creation, and expenses associated with the release of the album. Some of these expenses include distribution, marketing, publicity. The mechanical licensing allows her to release covers of Grateful Dead songs and makes sure the original creators are fairly compensated

    For more information on Seeking All That’s Still Unsung and Holly Bowling visit her website and her Kickstarter.

  • Jeremy Beck & The Heavy Duty Horns Release New EP Take Me By The Hand

    NYC Based Band Jeremy Beck & The Heavy Duty Horns dropped their Take Me By The Hand EP on June 26th. The four song EP has a soulful, gospel, jazzy sound. Band leader Jeremy Beck has roots in rural Alabama and New Orleans. These roots influenced his music and sound greatly which can be heard throughout the EP.

    The Eight piece band decided to release their EP amidst COVID-19 and the fight for racial justice and equality in the United States. They understood the implications of releasing this EP during a pivotal moment for civil rights in America with it’s soulful, gospelly, and jazzy roots. “In a musical context, Black music has created what we know as American music. Without the great Black musicians, artists and writers, plain and simple, American music would not exist.” Beck explains, “So much of the music I’ve played and produced throughout my career has been directly inspired by Black musicians and I will be forever grateful. Growing up in Alabama and during my time in New Orleans, Black music and culture molded me into the musician and person I am today.”

    Jeremy Beck & The Heavy Duty Horns. Photo provided by Jeremy Beck & The Heavy Duty Horns press release.

    The EP includes the title track, “Take me by the hand” and then the love  song “Oh Baby!.” The EP wraps up with the upbeat, high tempo, song “Somebody Call Frank,” and ends with “Sing Hallelujah,”about a perfectly imperfect love. This Ep marks the first compilation of songs credited to a band composed of sidemen who have cut their teeth playing with big names like Bonnie Raitt, Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings and Missy Elliot.


    Take Me By The Hand is out and available everywhere now. For more information on Jeremy Beck & The Heavy Duty Horns visit their website or their official Facebook page.

  • Live Nation is Under Scrutiny From Religious Leaders Over Hindu-Buddhist-Jain Statues

    Religious leaders from Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and Jain denominations are urging Live Nation to remove Hindu-Buddhist-Jain statues that are located in various night clubs and requested a public apology.  The statues are located in eight major US cities in the Foundation Room night-clubs in House of Blues and the religious leaders find them highly inappropriate.

    Lord Parshvanatha in Foundation Room Chicago with masquerade ball mask in his lap.
    Photo from from Foundation Room Facebook page.

    Foundation Room night clubs are a part of the “House of Blues” network of Live Nation Entertainment and are located in Anaheim, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, and New Orleans. Live Nation Entertainment’s network also includes Ticketmaster, bringing 40,000 shows and more than 100 festivals to life, selling 500 million tickets per year.

    With Live Nation being such a large corporation and having a great deal of influence on the music world, and claiming to be the “world’s leading live entertainment company,” statues of Hindu-Buddhist-Jain icons adorning these music venues is out of line.

    Leaders released a joint statement on June 26 saying that, “placing highly revered Hindu-Buddhist-Jain icons to adorn night-clubs was very disrespectful, out-of-line, prone to desecration by patrons, and could be disturbing to the adherents of these [Christian-Hindu-Buddhist-Jewish-Jain] faiths.” The group of religious leaders include: Greek Orthodox Priest Stephen R. Karcher, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, prominent Buddhist Priest Matthew T. Fisher, well-known Jewish Rabbi ElizaBeth Webb Beyer, and renowned Jain leader Sulekh C. Jain. 

    President of Universal Society of Hinduism Rajan Zed highlighted that Hindu deities Lord Ganesha, Lord Shiva, Lord Rama, (among others) were meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be thrown around loosely in a night-club for dramatic effects or a mercantile agenda. Devotees of these religions would see such denigration of sacred deities as hurtful.

    Lord Ganesha at Foundation Room Houston with wine-glass in front of him. Photo from from Foundation Room Facebook page.

    Sulekh C. Jain explained that the statues of Lord Mahavira and Lord Parshvanatha don’t belong in night-clubs and that they belonged in temples for veneration. He then suggested that Live Nation Entertainment could donate these to Jain temples in the USA and the Jain community would gladly pay for their transportation.

  • NYC Council Members form Caucus to support Independent Music Venues

    Former hardcore musician and NYC Council Member Justin Brannan of Brooklyn and NYC Council Member Keith Powers of Manhattan have formed the “CBGB Caucus” to help support independent music venues during the pandemic. The councilmen hope to protect and help small venues from being forced to close during these trying times. 

    NYC Music Venues

    Brannan was a member of hardcore bands Indecision and Most Precious Blood before getting into politics. This close connection to being a musician and the need to keep venues afloat is one of the reasons behind the formation of “CBGB Caucus.” CBGB is an historic a New York City music club that opened in 1973 and closed its doors in 2006.

    According to Brooklyn Vegan, the councilman, “shared a letter to members of the NYC Congressional Delegation offering their support to efforts by the National Independent Venue Association.” Currently, 90% of venues will be forced to shut down without much needed aid the councilmen are pushing for. 

    To help support and save independent music venues, visit SaveOurStages.com where you can quickly fill out a form to contact your legislators about the need for aid for venues. You can also help support individual NYC music venues survive the pandemic by donating to them directly. A list of venues you can donate too can be found here.

    The full letter can be read below:

    Members of the New York City Congressional Delegation,

    We are writing to express our support of the National Independent Venue Association’s efforts to expand the Federal Paycheck Protection Program to offer more help for businesses like theirs that are completely shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are in need of support during this unprecedented time. We need to allow independent music venues to recover in order to preserve some of New York City’s — and our country’s — most important cultural institutions.

    With nearly 2,000 venues in all 50 states, the National Independent Venue Association represents an industry that has served as a cultural hub for New Yorkers of all different communities. These businesses have been particularly impacted by the pandemic due to their inability to reopen under profitable conditions for the foreseeable future. This has also affected all of the staff that work at these venues including production staff, managers, promoters, producers, stagehands, drivers, and a myriad of others whose livelihoods cannot resume until the pandemic has passed.

    We stand by the proposal to create a benefit which, along with emergency unemployment insurance, would be available to those who cannot work due to a canceled live event or performance during the continuation of the shutdown. This simple change could allow families across New York to continue to pay rent, while preserving our music venues. Flexibility in these programs, especially for the performance industry, is needed now more than ever.

    We look forward to working together in order to ensure that this valuable community in our city can get help. We at the Council are happy to lend our support.

    Thank you for your consideration, and with any questions, reach out to our offices.

  • Watch the new Blind Melon Documentary “All I Can Say” featuring footage by Shannon Hoon

    “All I Can Say,” a documentary on the late Shannon Hoon, the late lead singer of Blind Melon, was released on June 26. The film will not be released in theaters as planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but will be available to rent on Relix. 

    The film is made up of many clips Hoon filmed of himself between 1990 and 1995. Hoon was known for religiously filming himself and his day to day life and left over 200 hours of raw footage right up until his death at the age of 28. The footage starts from before Hoon joined Blind Melon and through the band’s experiences in L.A, filming right up until a few hours before his death. The film was co-directed by Danny Clinch, Taryn Gould, and Colleen Hennessey. 

    The film was funded by a Kickstarter that hoped to raise $100,000 but ended up raising $115,524 with almost 2,000 backers to the campaign. The Kickstarter explained their hopes for the film saying, “This film documents the band’s rise to fame, Hoon’s family life, his creative process, his tumultuous struggle with addiction, as well as the politics, technology and culture of the 90’s. It is being made in a way that honors the footage Hoon shot while maintaining a genuine and authentic story.”

    Oscilloscope Laboratories made the film available to the public via a rental program. Viewers can purchase a 3-day rental period of the film. Relix is partnered with Oscilloscope to share the film.

    https://youtu.be/3xph8pPJMB8

    For more information or to rent the film visit Relix Presents website.