On Saturday, September 28, 2019, Jimmy Herring played Brooklyn Bowl NYC with his new band The 5 of 7. The band consists of bassist Kevin Scott, drummer Darren Stanley, guitarist and singer Rick Lollar, and Matt Slocum on keyboards.
Herring is best known for being the lead guitarist for the band Widespread Panic. He is also the founding member of Aquarium Rescue Unit and Jazz is Dead. Jimmy is a guitar legend and has played with other legendary bands like The Allman Brothers, Phil Lesh and Friends, and The Dead.
The two hour set started with a Miles Davis cover of “Black Satin” and continued with songs from Jimmy Herring during his solo career like “The Big Galoot,” “Matt’s Funk” and “1911.” The show was also streamed live on The Relix Channel, seen below. The show was amazing and an absolute must for fans of jazz infused rock and roll with heavy guitar solos.
Setlist: Black Satin, The Big Galoot, Matt’s Funk, Sketch Ballad, Soulful Hang, Miss Maybelle, One Strut, 1911, Check the Hand, Former Lives, Buddy, Kaleidoscope Carousel, Two Good People (Zone 28 Grams, Baby Gas & King Cydal cover), Scapegoat Blues
Music Festivals have started to use the “Event Bubble” strategy to create a safe environment during the pandemic era. A music festival doesn’t sound like the most safe activity during COVID-19, but with festivals like the Utopia Music Festival using the “Event Bubble” strategy attending a music festival is relatively safe activity for individuals to partake in while the pandemic rages on.
Tumbledown 2018 pictured by Dave DeCrescente.
How the “Event Bubble” strategy works is that all attendees are screened with a COVID-19 test a few days before the festival takes place and are then tested again at the entrance with a wrapped test. This double test works to help create this bubble of safety at the event because everyone in attendance should be COVID-19 free.
At Utopia Music Festival, which took place over the Labor Day weekend, there were open-air gatherings using these strategies allowed an attendance of 250 people.
The current hope is these strategies could make large music festivals in the midst of a global pandemic a possibility. The problem right now is the fact the COVID-19 test isn’t 100% accurate. According to Harvard Health Publishing, “The reported rate of false negatives is as low as 2% and as high as 37%” for Molecular tests.
This means that in some areas there is a 37% chance that if someone is tested and it comes back negative they could actually be positive for COVID-19. The chances of getting a false positive are exponentially lower and are close to zero. Generally it’s a lab error if someone does get a false positive result.
Levitate 2019 photo by Zingari photography.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Requiring COVID-19 testing is a significant financial undertaking that might not make sense for DIY events with tight budgets, or for large festivals such as Coachella, whose guests don’t stay on site” a possibility. The “Event Bubble” approach can create a virus-free bubble where screened staff and attendees can enjoy the festivities while being removed from the danger of outside contact with the rest of the world for the duration of the event. This would however definitely be difficult to enforce and control in larger scale events let alone the free of false negatives being present at the event.
If the “Event Bubble” takes off more and more festivals in the real world could be a possibility sooner than one might think but most likely they will be small scale festivities for the time being.
In a year mired in social and political unrest, it is only fitting that legendary hip hop group Public Enemy returns for their first album in three years, and the first under the Def Jam umbrella in almost three decades.
Known for their stern political commentary, P.E. has served as an inspiration for a number of thought-provoking emcees and it seems they have deemed their work incomplete with the release of What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down?
The album features classic hip hop acts such as: Cypress Hill and rapper turned actor Ice-T, production from the one-and-only DJ Premier and a remake of the group’s most infamous record, “Fight The Power.” The star-studded remix features Nas, West coast emcee Rapsody, Roots front-man Black Thought, Jahi, as well as YG & Questlove.
In an interview on TNT’s popular late-night basketball talk show Inside the NBA, Chuck D was interviewed by basketball legends Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal, where he revealed his motivations for the latest project. On the meaning behind the album’s tittle, Chuck D reveals, “using the platform of music to make a statement. Beware of government tricks on the way to the voting poll. This has been a strange year and we want people to be prepared and aware.”
While trends in music are anachronistic, Public Enemy’s brand of passionate and demanding form of politically charged hip-hop has maintained relevancy. With their efforts being one of the reasons that commentary on the plights of minorities has become ubiquitous.
We’re heading into the fall and NYS Music is gearing up for our first ever season of NYS Music in Motion, hosted by rocker Frank Palangi and sponsored by Helping Friendly Salve.
The series will bring together seasoned musicians from across New York State, who hail from the Empire State or have made New York their home, and Palangi, a native of Warren County.
Palangi is a homegrown indie rock recording artist, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Palangi fuels his positive ambition naturally by serving up a feeding frenzy of edge heavy guitars, with a side of deep, gritty vocals. With a no-quit mentality, Palangi draws on influences from 80s & 90s rock, including post-grunge and heavy metal.
His latest EP, Bring On the Fear, found him working with Lester Estelle (Kelly Clarkson), Brian Craddock and Brandon Maclin (Daughtry), which allowed Palangi to step up and think about the recording process as a whole. The results can be seen and heard in the video for “Gone Mad,” released this past summer.
Palangi opened up for major bands including: 3 Doors Down, Red Sun Rising, Buckcherry, Candlebox, Aaron Lewis (Staind), Starset, Kip Winger, Jack Russell’s Great White, Lacey Sturm (Flyleaf), FUEL / Marcy Playground, TRAPT with Smile Empty Soul / Candlelight Red / Veer Union, and Powerman 5000 with HEDPE, to name just a few.
Tune in starting on Friday, October 2 and every other Friday for each installment of Music in Motion on the NYS Music YouTube, IGTV and Facebook page.
Palangi will have a sit down conversation with each artist, with a first season lineup that includes the following musicians from across New York.
Frank has interviewed a great deal of musicians on his IGTV, including American Idol alumni Charles Grigsby, Jess Meuse, Riley Bria, Vanessa Olivarez and Madison VanDenburg, plus The Voice’s Moriah Formica, Daughtry guitarist Brian Craddock, Hole/Candlebox drummer Robin Diaz, Jack Russell from Great White and guitarist Robby Lochner.
What comes to mind when you think of the Allman Brothers Band? Likely it’s the fact that they were one of the finest live bands in rock history, the artists behind perhaps the genre’s most beloved live album.
What likely doesn’t come to mind is the indispensible role they played in getting Jimmy Carter, a brainiac peanut farmer/engineer from their home state of Georgia, elected 39th President of the United States.
Jimmy Carter Rock & Roll President is the name of a fascinating new documentary that demonstrates how Carter’s lifelong passion for music gave him an unexpected edge as a candidate, and as a charity champion in his post-Presidential years. It was a deep love that enabled him to not only build relationships with musos that filled his campaign coffers, but to transcend racial and generational divides to score a monumental upset in the 1976 Presidential contest.
The film boasts extensive interviews with a host of stars with whom Carter has enjoyed close friendships for decades. These include, but are not limited to, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Bono, Jimmy Buffett, Paul Simon, Rosanne Cash, Nile Rodgers, Garth Brooks and, of course, the late Gregg Allman.
In the film, Allman reminisces about his first meeting with Carter, when he attend a party Jimmy threw for one of his most loved musicians, Bob Dylan, at the gubernatorial mansion.
NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 29: Singer Bono of U2, former President Jimmy Carter and co-founder of WAFF Nile Rodgers attend We Are Family Foundation 2016 Celebration Gala on April 29, 2016 in New York, New York. (Photo by Shahar Azran/Getty Images)
When Allman happened upon the shoeless, jeans-wearing Carter, he thought he looked like “a bum.” Carter began their discourse by telling him he was going to be “the next President of the United States.” The Allmans, their manager Phil Walden and his Capricorn stable of acts like Charlie Daniels and the Marshall Tucker Band, would play a vital, early role in getting Carter’s 1976 campaign underway, by playing a host of benefits to raise funds for his run.
But it is Carter’s close friendship with the mercurial Bob Dylan, and his deep appreciation of his music, that may be the true highlight of this film.
Carter’s son Chip tells how his father would listen to Dylan’s music with him and his brothers, knowing all the many words to the songs on every one of his albums, and often quoting them. When Carter finally met Dylan, they had profound talk about Christianity, which Dylan was then exploring. That was the beginning of a still-close friendship with a man whom Dylan calls “a kindred spirit.” In a speech captured in the film, Carter speaks optimistically about the state of the nation, by paraphrasing Dylan’s “It’s Alright,Ma” – “We have an America that is busy being born, not busy dying.”
Carter’s love of music was also evident in his pre-political days, when as a child he gravitated to music played on a battery-powered radio in his electric-free home, and when he spent $600 on a stereo for his young family, even though money was very tight.
In the film, the former President also waxes extensive and poetic on the central role of music in America. “Our music, our love of it, is what holds America together,” says Carter. Growing up in a county that was 80% black, Carter talks of his love of gospel music and how it bound him to the African-American community, and how church music helped give birth to rock and roll. Also addressed is how the folk music of ‘50s and early ‘60s helped form his political views.
Another highlight of the documentary is the wonderful performance footage, much of it from events Carter held at the White House during his term.
His love of jazz is evident in a clip where Carter sits in with Dizzy Gillespie to perform the stop-time vocalizing on “Salt Peanuts,” and in footage featuring Dexter Gordon, Herbie Hancock and a wheelchair-bound Charles Mingus. Also featured are wonderful performance of Paul Simon playing his “American Tune” and Aretha Franklin ”singing God Bless America” at his inauguration, as well as Ray Charles (singing “Georgia on My Mind”), James Brown and many more.
Former Secretary of State Madeline Albright discusses how Carter used music as “soft power,” to bring others to his way of thinking, be it the Republicans entertained at a South Lawn concert by his friend Willie Nelson, or by bringing the first Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. to Nashville grant his biggest wish – to meet country music’s royalty.
Rosanne Cash and David Crosby speak about the uniqueness of those times, how, in the post-Nixon years, it was the first time “the youth were in charge.” Crosby discusses how his band showed up unannounced at the White House and were ushered right in to meet the President, a reflection of these non-polarized and casual times.
At the ceremony where Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, Bono put it best, calling Carter “a rock star to the rock stars.” He was importantly “a man who knew all the words to the songs that were my generation’s telegraph” according to Bono.
Another profound thing the documentary shows is how much the world, and the man who occupies the Oval Office and his relationship with musicians today, have changed.
When it comes to the current President, the headlines are about how stars like Neil Young, John Fogerty, the Rolling Stones, Elton John, the estates of the late Tom Petty and Leonard Cohen, etc. etc., are sending “cease and desist” letters to stop the use of their music in Trump campaign stops.
What this film also brings to light is the inherent goodness and greatness of Carter, his true love of music and how it powers his seemingly inexhaustible passion for peace and charitable works.
Director Mary Wharton and music journalist/writer Bill Flanagan hit all the right notes in this documentary, making it a must-see for fans of music. The film is available now virtually at JimmyCarterMovie.com, and will see its home entertainment release on Friday, October 9 and debut via CNN on January 3.
This concert is seen as an historical moment, where one older punk band, The Who, passed the torch to a new, younger one, The Clash.
An expectadly rowdy crowd of more than 80,000 packed The Rich. David Johansen warmed up the crowd with a half-hour set, including “Stranded in the Jungle” and a medley of the Animals “We Gotta Get Out of This Place”, “Don’t Bring Me Down” and “It’s My Life.”
The Clash were just coming off the release of Combat Rock, recorded at Electric Lady Studios on West 8th Street in New York City. Hits including “Rock The Casbah,” which reached the Top 10 in America, and “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” gave The Clash a worldwide smash hit in 1982. Less than a year after this performance in Buffalo, guitarist Mick Jones would leave the band. Watch a slideshow of photos by Michael Mack of The Clash from the performance below.
For The Who, this was the first of many farewell tours, having lost drummer Keith Moon just 4 years prior. Kenney Jones (Small Faces, Faces) took over behind the kit, with Tim Gorman on keys, Roger Daltrey on harmonica, guitar, and vocals, John Entwistle on bass and Pete Townshend on guitar and vocals.
Given the packed stadium – with entrances only on the floor at the time – the temperature inside the stadium was warm to say the least, with fans drenched in sweat, and some passing even out. As if Keith were looking down from heaven, the skies that were overcast all day opened up during the emotionally charged “Love Reign O’er Me,” the only time of the evening it would rain. As the song ended, Daltrey remarked “How’d you like that one?,” with Townshend saying “Even the Rolling Bones couldn’t have done that one.”
via Matthew Heimberg
While no video or audio exists from this show of The Who, you can view a slideshow of photos by Michael Mack here, and watch below for The Who from December 17, 1982, closing our their North American tour in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Clash setlist: London Calling, Career Opportunities, The Guns of Brixton, Police On My Back, Rock the Casbah, Magnificent 7, Train in Vain, Brand New Cadillac, Armagideon Time, Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Encore: Clampdown, I Fought the Law
The Who setlist: Substitute, I Can’t Explain, Dangerous, Sister Disco, The Quiet One, It’s Hard, Eminence Front, Behind Blue Eyes, Baba O’Riley, I’m One, The Punk And The Godfather, Drowned, A Man Is A Man, Cry If You Want, Who Are You, Pinball Wizard, See Me Feel Me, 5.15, Love Reign O’er Me, Long Live Rock, Won’t Get Fooled Again
Encore: Naked Eye, Summertime Blues, Twist And Shout
On a day clouded by social media turmoil featuring Tory Lanez and Megan Thee Stallion, A$AP Ferg has quietly released Floor Seats II, the sequel to his 2019 EP, Floor Seats. Looking to follow-up on the success of its predecessor, which spawned hit records like “Jet Lag” and “Floor Seats.”
This latest project comes on the heels of reported disfunction within the A$AP collective. A$AP mob founding member A$AP Illz has accused the 31-year-old Harlem-bred emcee of stealing ideas and claimed the “Plain Jane” rapper’s affiliation with the Mob was over.
Not one to go back-and-forth through the media, Ferg has predictably kept quiet, relying on his art to do the talking for him. The 10-track project features a myriad of notable guest appearances that captures Ferg’s Kaleidoscopic approach to music.
The intro features rock & roll legend Marilyn Manson, while the star-studded tape also features: Lil Wayne, Tyga, Nicki Minaj, Puff Daddy, New York City up-and-comer Jay Gwuapo, as well as XXL 2020 Freshman Class members Fivio Foreign and Mulatto.
Known for his hard thumping and anthem-like records, Ferg and A$AP Mob affiliate A$AP Rocky, serve as the lynchpins the the group’s success. With their ascension as major players in hip hop, the collective has been able to venture successfully into other fields. With A$AP Bari’s successful Vlone brand a prime example. While the group’s dissimilation may seem in effect. For now though, A$AP Ferg still carries the moniker, and with an impressive resume of Billboard charting hits, his descension is certainly not imminent.
On September 19th, more than 60 musicians gathered to honor a man who had worked for over 40 years in the music world, the late great Joseph Louis Manganello, aka Joe Mango.
As his obituary stated, “Mango was a renowned sound engineer who worked with many local and national bands throughout the years. He also worked with the bands that played at BRYAC Restaurant and Raw Bar in Bridgeport and also worked at Guitar Center in Orange. He was an accomplished voice and theatre actor. Joseph was the co-founder and co-producer of the Soupstock Music and Arts Festival benefitting the Mary A Schmecker Turtle Shell Fund that took place in Shelton every year. He loved to attend music festivals and was an avid Hot Wheels collector, but his most prized collection was friendships. Everywhere Joseph traveled, he acquired a new friend who instantly became a member of his extended family.”
Joe Manganello, aka Joe Mango
It was this prized group of friends who gathered from across the country to honor the late sound engineer, thanks to promoter Josh Kroop who helped arrange the socially distant event.
“I know how profoundly this would have impacted Joe Mango and how much he impacted the lives of everyone involved! You guys are the best of the best! I hope we all carry the feeling we shared this past Saturday around for the rest of our lives. I know I will!” said Kroop.
“Joe Mango was a fixture in the music scene. He made the music sound great and used music to bring us together for noble causes,” said Tim Palmieri guitarist of Kung Fu and The Breakfast.
“Mango & I had an understanding! He was one of the only “grumpy sound guys” in the country that I know fully had everyone’s best interest at hand! If he asked me to turn my amp down, which he always did, I had absolutely no problems with that! I trusted him completely because his motivation wasn’t to control the sound, it was simply to make sure everyone in the room had the best possible experience! He truly cared because that’s the kind of guy he was & that’s exactly why we all loved him so much!” stated Danny Meyer (guitarist Star Kitchen, Eric Krasno Band, Alan Evans Trio, On The Spot Trio) of the late sound engineer.
The night, which was streamed across the internet thanks to media mastermind MKDevo, helped raise over $7,000 which will be used to help Joesph’s family pay for end of life expenses as well as portions to be donated to The Mary A Schmecker Turtle Shell Fund, an organization charity which seeks to build community through art, music, theater, skilled craft, and other creative pursuits in order to create a rich cultural heritage for tomorrow.
Highlights of the night included “Midnight in Harlem,” sung by Elise Testone with the BRYAC All-Stars backing her, “Sweet Like Honey” by Alpaca Gnomes with Fuzz (Deep Bananna Blackout) sitting in, Rich Zurkowski covering Black Sabbath’s “Fairies Wear Boots” with Darien Cunning, Michelangelo Carubba (Turkuaz), Johnny Durkin (DBB) and Kris Yunker (On Spot Trio, Jen Durkin and The Business, Alan Evans Tribute), Goose’s rendition of Radiohead’s “Weird Fishes/ /Arpeggi” and, of course, the Mango All-Stars’ cover of Phish’s “Mango Song.”
“Thank you so much to everyone who joined in honoring our colleague, our friend, our biggest fan, Joe Mango. We cannot thank you enough for the generous donations being made to assist his family during these difficult times and to the The Mary A. Schmecker Turtle Shell Fund, the non-profit that Joe co-founded and was passionately committed to for building community through the arts.
Thank you to everyone who made last night possible – every moment was special and reminded me that Joe will never be forgotten; he will always live on – through music, and through all of us. Be good to one another. Appreciate the things you have. Fight for the things you believe in. And always follow your heart, the one thing Mango always did,” stated Nicole Heriot Mikula who is the co-founder of Celebrate Shelton and the festival director for CT Folk.
If you missed the event and would like to watch the stream and you’d like to make a donation, you can still watch the stream here. You can make donations to Joe’s family via Venmo @welovemango and PayPal.
Lucas Garrett, a 27-year-old musician from Glens Falls, NY, has just released his album Familiar Floors. Since his EP Evening’s Come, but It’s Not Dark in 2017, he has come out with a few powerful singles. However, this album marks a transition in his career where he sings about his life in a new, but confusing light.
Lucas Garrett’s ‘Familiar Floors’ Album Cover
Consisting of four songs – “Wires Humming,” “All Around Me,” “Inside Out,” and “One More for the Road,” – his album’s lyrics speaks volumes. With a mixture of rock and roll and folk, Garrett shows his talents with great musicians by his side. Bandmates including Kevin Kosach on bass, Emmett Rozelle on drums, and Cassandra Pratt and Bob Bates on Violin, all who contribute to Lucas Garret’s musical vision.
Where am I right now? I cannot pretend To know where this room starts and Where it will end I have a strange feeling I’ve been here before Nervously make my way Across familiar floors
Lucas Garrett – ‘Inside Out’
The album’s name, Familiar Floors, resonates with anyone who has ever felt befuddled in their own life, not knowing what got them to where they are now or where it will take them in the future. Garrett has made this clear through his music that life takes you on unexpected journeys, but you always have to make the most out of where it takes you.
Two Tails Graphics and Consulting
Lucas Garrett has not had an easy life, but he is also very aware of how fortunate he has been. The singer-songwriter suffers from Pompe Disease which makes him wheelchair bound and in need of respiratory aid, but still he gets to live his dream of producing music. He understands the meaning of music and how music is different for every ear listening. Garrett says, “Music is an equalizer, ‘cause everyone gets it, you know? I play a lot better than some people, I play a lot worse than some people, and it has nothing to do with what I got goin’ on health-wise. And no matter what you do in life, there’s always gonna be someone better than you—and someone worse than you.” He does not let his condition define him, which continues to speak to his identity as an individual and as a musician.
I can see your ecstasy all around me We have eaten, now we wait for the new day
Lucas Garrett – ‘All Around Me’
In his new song “All Around Me,” he sings about ecstasy which expresses his feeling of great happiness. Not only does he speak of happiness in his lyrics but he demonstrates all emotions: sadness, anger, and enjoyment, to name a few. On “Wires Humming,” you can hear these emotions come to light.
My mind is burning The world is burning What the hell can we do?
Where do we go? Gone before tomorrow We’ve been wasting Away our days Unrelenting dreams
Lucas Garrett – ‘Wires Humming’
It is not an easy task making lyrics that resonates with not only himself, but his listeners as well, and Lucas Garrett shows his talents better than ever in this new album.
Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm on 102.7 FM, you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music from up and coming artists. Tune into WEQX.com this Sunday night to hear music from The Sea The Sea, Sarah King, The Rough Shapes and many more!
WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to an ever-expanding listening audience. NYS Music brings you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.
On the wave of their latest release, Stumbling Home, WEQX will play the single “I’ll be Loving You.” Heartfelt lyrics, soul stirring harmonies, and very attentive arraignments make this music so interesting to indulge in listening. 15 million Spotify streams can’t be denied. The Sea The Sea is a pop band only in their melodic infectiouness, otherwise they are at their best when subverting conventions and making really excellent music.
Sunday evening EQX will broadcast Sarah’s newest single, “Nightstand” before it is released on October 2. Sarah’s powerful and dynamic voice is a link between Americana roots and pure wide open soul. Her songs are insightful and cut to the many dualities of the human condition. There is an intensity to her lyrical honesty and vulnerability. You’ll feel like you’re sitting on a front porch in the deep south on a sultry summer night with one too many drinks behind you, looking out at a dark, beckoning path toward a future you want to believe in but can’t quite see.
If dark moody rock-billy is a thing, here it is in all its glory. The Rough Shapes latest release is titled “Lost Stations” and is full of significant flowing melodic songwriting coupled with world-class performances by this guitar, bass, and drums trio of Jeff Kadlic, Colin Almquist and Dan Cartwright. On the surface the music plays, but there are layers of rich textures that continue to reveal themselves upon each deep listen to this awesome new release.
