Boston’s Spiritual Rez has announced nine summer tour dates for 2020. The band will embark on a run of shows that will take them from the Mid-Atlantic and into the Northeast, with three stops in New York, including the North Country River Jam in Champlain, The Colony in Woodstock and Knitting Factory in Brooklyn. They’ll also make stops in their hometown of Boston, and kick things off on June 4 at Mountain Music Festival in Minden, WV.
Tour dates and more information can be found at spiritualrez.com
Spiritual Rez 2020 Summer Tour
June 04 Minden WV – Mountain Music Festival
June 05 Harrisburg, PA – The Abbey Bar at Appalachian Brewing Co.
On the unexpectedly warm evening of February 22, a line of eager concert-goers snaked around the corner and onto the street parallel to Webster Hall. Lighthearted chatter filled the late Saturday night air.
“I’ve never seen the line this long…”
“Who are you guys here to see? Are they really this good?”
They were there to see BAYNK, a Kiwi artist that blends intricately layered beats with soothing vocals to produce mellow earworms. Splashing onto the music scene accidentally in 2016 after posting a single to SoundCloud that garnered attention on HypeMachine, the producer has come a long way in five years.
A move to L.A. and two EPs deep, BAYNK has also stepped up his live performance. The artist largely performs within the confines of a frame-like rectangular LED display, which is pre-programmed with visuals that reflect the intricacy of his music.
For individuals who are at the show just to dance and sing, BAYNK has them covered too. Whipping out his best dance moves to his higher tempo songs, he hypes up the crowd to dance along with him—which they do with no hesitation.
On Friday night, America played a sold out show at The Tilles Center on the LIU Post campus in Brookville, Long Island, the first show of the band’s 50th anniversary tour, celebrating the release of their 1971 self titled album. “A Horse With No Name,” originally titled “Desert Song,” was released in the US a few weeks before the album came out and sold over a million copies, being awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. The album went platinum shortly after. The band was opening for acts like The Who, Elton John, Pink Floyd and worked with Beatles producer George Martin from 1974-1979.
Friday night’s show was filled with hit after hit, spanning their 50 year long and counting career. Gerry and Dewey sounded just as good today as they did when they started harmonizing 50 years ago. Songs from the setlist included “Tin Man,” “Ventura Highway,” “Sister Golden Hair” as well as a covers of The Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” and The Mamas & Papas’ “California Dreamin’.” The 18-song set concluded with “A Horse With No Name.” You can see the full setlist below.
The band’s current lineup includes original founding members Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell, as well as Ryland Steen on drums, Steve Fekete on guitar and Richard Campbell on bass. The tour continues across United States and Canada until July when they head to Europe for shows in France, the U.K. and Germany. You can see all the tour dates here at https://www.venturahighway.com/. There is also a biography about the band written by Jude Warne, titled America The Band: An Authorized Biography that is available for pre-order now and will be released on May 15, 2020.
Setlist: Tin Man, You Can Do Magic, Don’t Cross The River. Daisy Chain, Riverside. I Need You Here, Ventura Highway, Eleanor Rigby, Cornwall Blank, Hollywood, The Border, Woman Tonight, Only In Your Heart, California Dreamin’, Lonely People, Sandman, Sister Golden Hair, A Horse With No Name
Nicole Mercedes, the Brooklyn-based dream-pop singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, has shared the debut single “Stoop” from her sophomore album Look Out Where You’re Going, due in April 2020.
Mercedes tells Atwood Magazine about the meaning of the track, saying, “This is a song about embracing the feeling of loneliness, about those summer nights where all you’re looking for is a distraction, and a rotating door of friends and strangers to drink with, talk with, make out with. The stoop is my favorite place to do that because things are constantly happening around you and you can kind of just sit there drinking some wine in your slippers, passively being a part of the landscape.”
The forthcoming album is a collaboration with producer Joe Rogers (Laura Stevenson, Rubblebucket) and Deer Tick’s Andy T. Mercedes performs all compositions and arrangements on the LP, and with Rogers has created a sound that is both equally pop and haunting all at once. Mercedes’ previous projects include Debbie Downer and Flocke, but her solo endeavor sets forth a whole new era of lush, cinematic, sex-positive, feminist, self-aware songs.
Mercedes performs next at The Sultan Room on March 19 in Brooklyn. Get tickets here.
On Wednesday, April 1, The Strand Theater in Hudson Falls will welcome Twiddle frontman Mihali Savoulidis, with a special guest yet to be announced. Mihali has a long history performing in the greater Capital Region, both with Twiddle and solo side projects that have sold out Putnam Place and Pearl Street Pub in the last year. The show is part of the A.I.M. for Spring Concert Series, presented by ADK Music Festival.
Grateful Dead cover band heavyweight champions Joe Russoâs Almost Dead (JRAD) continue their reign at a legendary venue with three nights at the historic Capitol Theatre, starting on Friday, February 21, 2020 (2/21/20)
Kamasi Washington and his band came through Brooklyn’s Kings Theatre this week as part of his latest round of winter tour dates. Although there has not been new music since 2018s critically acclaimed double LP, Heaven and Earth, Kamasi just released a film, Kamasi WashingtonLive at the Apollo Theater, on Amazon Prime Video. The live film was recorded at Kamasi’s show at the Harlem theater on February 23, 2019.
The show opened with a short R&B and Soul DJ set from Natasha Diggs. Natasha paid homage to many late artists with her set; music filled the room as fans filed into their seats. The setting was a perfect fit for Kamasi’s music, and the first thing he said when the band took the stage was in admiration the beautiful theater.
Flanked by two drum sets, Kamasi stood center stage and dove straight into “Street Fighter Mas” from Heaven and Earth. When the band plays live, they tend to only play five or six songs, but extend them with solos and improvs to fill a nearly two-hour set. Both drummers took their turn during the show, delivering very different drum solos, accompanied by two separate solos on upright bass.
After the first song, Kamasi introduced his father, Rickey Washington, on stage who continued to play flute and soprano saxophone for the rest of the night. The father and son stood side by side. The chemistry between them could be felt across the theater.
The main set ended with a lengthy rendition of “Fists of Fury,” which featured soaring vocals from singer Patrice Quinn. There were several movements during the performance of this track, but the final solo of the night was reserved for Kamasi on tenor. The man is a master on the saxophone and his solo ended with a standing ovation from the audience, followed by a reprise of the epic conclusion. It was the most powerful moment, ending the show with a thunderous finish.
In addition to the live film, Kamasi released the stand alone track “The Bombshell’s Waltz,” earlier this month also on Amazon Music. The band is just beginning this stretch of live dates, which continue across North America until a final show on March 12 in San Antonio – see the full itinerary HERE.
Mount Sharp is back with their first release in five years, That Shadow, due out on February 21 via Dadstache Records. They’ve just released the single and video for “Ordinary” ahead of the album’s release and their record release show at Gutter in Brooklyn on Saturday, February 22.
The first taste of the new record came with their first single, “Apostate.” Post-Trash, who premiered the video, said,”Our first taste of the band’s long-awaited new music comes in the form of ‘Apostate,’ a song that pulls from the band’s more serene end, a dreamy song to melt away to during this heat wave. Built on a resonant twang and a pulsating rhythm, the song breathes at a natural clip, drawing between a soft intimacy and a thick fuzzy build up by the bridge. There’s a syrupy quality to the vocals that stick with you after the song has ended, and while you may not instantly remember the lyrics, the melody is now part of consciousness, like a distant memory that repeats in your mind.”
Mount Sharp began on a rooftop in Brooklyn, or on a boat in Maine, or perhaps somewhere in between. The band grew around the bittersweet, poetic songwriting of Swood (Sarah Wood) paired with Bryan Bruchman’s noisy, chaotic tendencies around 2012. On 2014’s WEIRD FEARS EP (with the rhythm section of Ryan Zumsen and Maia Macdonald), the band exhibited a blast of unbridled energy, excitement, and confusion – a fitting soundtrack to a brief, blissful, carefree time before so much changed. The band – now with Sal Garro and Jonathan Pilkington Kahnt firmly holding down the drums and bass – has matured, and the songs are maybe a little more serious, maybe a little more reflective, but no less cutting and catchy. Taking inspiration from the cosmos, sci-fi TV, and the messed up state of the world, Mount Sharp puts all the feels into song.
That Shadow follows, too. It’s full of sticky melodies, lyrics that cut, and surging waves of noise. It’s designed to get under the skin. Inspired by years of watching all the assholes they know win, figuring out how to be kinder to themselves, and all the beautiful and tragic machines in space, the band says the record is everything that pulls them to look behind themselves. They believe we should be looking up and dreaming.
All tracks were produced by Brian Sendrowitz (Beat Radio) at Miracle Flag in Bellmore, NY, mastered by Sarah Register (Talk Normal, Protomartyr, Caroline Rose, Chastity Belt, Big Thief, Lower Dens, and Big Ups), and with artwork using images of textile artist Jenna Breiter’s work, including an original illustration for the LP cover.
Valentine’s Day is a day for celebrating someone special in your life. For the sell-out crowd at The Bowery Ballroom in New York City, that someone was Anna of the North.
Performing on a stage lined with dozens of roses and adorned with two white teddy bears, the Norwegian artist left no question as to why the room chose to spend their night with her.
Despite fighting off a sore throat on only the second night of her tour, Anna of the North maintained high spirits by encouraging the crowd to sing to her, making the occasional quip in between songs, and of course, drinking her medicine—whiskey. Her infectious smile and energetic dancing reflected back onto the audience, which was full of couples whipping out their best moves.
Calling all bluegrass fans! On Valentine’s Day, Grey Fox gave us a gift — its preliminary lineup for the 2020 festival.
From July 15 – 19, fans from 30+ states and a dozen countries across the globe will meet on the Walsh Farm in Oak Hill, NY — a hamlet in the Catskills — to enjoy this much anticipated, family-friendly event.
Kicking off the lineup this year is Jerry Douglas — GRAMMY, CMA, and IBMA award winning artist, most notably known for his resonator and lap steel guitar skills. For three days (July 16-18) Douglas will perform alongside his own ensemble and various bluegrass icons.
Photo courtesy of the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival press release.
Other artists who will grace the stage this summer include TheDel McCoury Band, The Infamous Stringdusters, Railroad Earth, Yonder Mountain String Band, Cape Breton favorites Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy, 2020 Grammy winner for best bluegrass album Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper, and many more. The excitement doesn’t end here, though — additional headliners will be announced in the near future.
On top of the five-star lineup, entertainment can be found through road stories told by traditional bluegrass bands or by attending a gospel show on Sunday morning. Whether artists are performing on main stages, delivering intimate workshops, or moving listeners to get up and dance, Grey Fox is an experience not-to-be-missed for every generation.
Tickets for this much-loved event are on sale now; for performance dates, artist links and more festival information, visit www.GreyFoxBluegrass.com or call 888.946.8495 or 315.404.5738.
