Category: Genres

  • Listen to Spaghetti Eastern Music’s latest, the ambient “Peace Within”

    Spaghetti Eastern Music, a genre-leaping solo project from NYC and Woodstock guitarist/keyboardist Sal Cataldi has released his latest single “Peace Within.” An ambient piece that slowly unfolds in a series of waves, this aural meditation gives the listener an instrumental chapter of chill with an apt tonic for these troubled times.

    Using an echoey piano, vibraphone and phased strings, ones that could be a lost track from Eno’s “Another Green World,” Cataldi provides a soothing musical bedrock. This is complemented with sustained drones from a duo of Ebow guitars, drenched in reverb, setting the stage for the lead guitar which propels the searching melody of the piece. The calming and cavernous ambience created is periodically shocked and heightened with heavily processed, thunderous percussive accents.

    Cataldi’s cheekily titled debut album, Sketches of Spam, and his January 2020 single, “Her Lemon Peel Raincoat (Because It’s Raining),” have drawn notice from critics at a multitude of prestige outlets like The New York Times, Time Out NY, Jazz Times and The Huffington Post.

    The single is available for download and streaming via Bandcamp, CD Baby, iTunes, Spotify. The track was recorded by Cataldi during the Covid19 crisis at the studio aboard his houseboat in Port Washington, Long Island, Houseboat Garlic Knot Studios, and at his Sonic Garden in West Saugerties, right down the road from Big Pink. The track was mixed and mastered by Grammy-winning engineer Bob Stander at Parcheesi Studios.

  • Tanglewood cancels 2020 season; announce Online Festival

    The Berkshires will be a little quieter this summer, as the Boston Symphony Orchestra has announced they will not hold live performances and educational programs at Tanglewood this summer. The 2020 Tanglewood season was set to kick off on June 19 and run through August 27.

    In an effort to keep the spirit of the storied music season alive, Tanglewood will be offering a wide range of newly created and retrospective content with the Tanglewood 2020 Online Festival.

    The festival will include both free-of-charge archival offerings as well as newly created content available for purchase. Video and audio streams begin on Tanglewood.org July 1, with the ability to purchase starting on June 15. The groundbreaking digital series of audio and video streams includes newly created content to be recorded at Tanglewood’s Linde Center in June and July.

    Ticket holders to Tanglewood performances this summer who donate more than $100 worth of tickets to the BSO will receive complimentary access to the complete selection of paid and archival Tanglewood digital content and a tax receipt for the total ticket value contributed. Donations made by August 31 will also be matched by a group of generous donors who have joined together to help support musical artists and programs in these unprecedented times, amplifying your impact.

    Tickets for this year’s performances will be honored for the postponed date next year. Reschedule dates include:

    • Ringo Star (6/19/20), rescheduled for Saturday, June 19, 2021
    • Trey Anastasio with the Boston Pops and Keith Lockhart (6/20/20), rescheduled for Friday, June 18, 2021
    • Judy Collins and Arlo Guthrie (6/21/20), rescheduled for Sunday, June 20, 2021
    • Brandi Carlile (6/26/20), 2021 date TBA
    • Patti Labelle and Darlene Love (6/27/20), 2021 date TBA
    • The Mavericks with Los Lobos (6/28/20), 2021 date TBA
    • James Taylor (7/4/20), rescheduled for his annual July 4th performance during the 2021 season
    • Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me! with Peter Sagal and Bill Kurtis (8/27/20), rescheduled for Thursday, August 26, 2021
    • John Legend with special guests The War and Treaty (8/28/20), 2021 date TBA

    An overview of Tanglewood’s 2020 Online Festival programming can be found here.

    tanglewood 2020
  • Watch The Empire State Building with lights synced to Billy Joel’s “Miami 2017”

    The Empire State Building synced its lights to Billy Joel’s “Miami 2017” for a unique music-to-light show that served as the surprise finale to Robin Hood and iHeartRadio’s “Rise Up New York” virtual telethon on Friday, May 15, hosted by Tina Fey.

  • moe.ron Mondays to begin streaming on Nugs TV next week

    Beginning Monday, May 18, Nugs TV will kick off the free weekly series moe.ron Mondays. The first edition features moe.’s performance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO on July 12, 2018. Two sets of seamless jamming are in store, including an encore featuring members of Pigeons Playing Ping Pong.

    Fans are asked to consider donating to the moe. organization via 2nu.gs/moeTouring and MusiCares Relief Fund via 2nu.gs/moeMusicCares.

    Setlist via Phantasytour

    Set 1: Seat Of My Pants> Who You Calling Scared> Captain America> Buster> Pastorus*> Silver Sun> Akimbo> ATL> Puebla
    Set 2: Plane Crash> Buster> Four> Skrunk> Prestige Worldwide> Silver Sun> Plane Crash> Letter Home> Wind it up
    Encore: Fame^
    *official title of segue/jam debuted at Summer Camp 5/26/18
    ^w/ Greg Ormont & Jeremy Schon on guitar / vox from Pigeons Playing Ping Pong

    mondays nugs tv
    Official Show Poster by Emek
  • Suwannee at Home: Spirit Raiser 2020

    From Live Oak, Florida the Suwannee at Home: Spirit Raiser 2020 will take place May 15th through 17th. This will be a virtual online festival streaming across multiple platforms. The festival’s intention is to raise the spirits of the music community and to raise some funds for festival support staff.

    The festival is being presented by Spirit of Suwannee Music Park and Relix Magazine and will be hosted by Suwanee Rising Event Co-Producers: Beth Judy (Suwannee Spring Reunion, Suwannee  Roots Revival) and Paul Levine (Hulaween, Purple Hatters Ball). The festival will take place Friday, May 15th from 4PM-9PM, Saturday, May 16th from 4PM-9PM, and Sunday, May 17th from 2PM-8PM.

    Suwannee at Home: Spirit Raiser will Featuring Members of: Big Gigantic, Donna The Buffalo, Doom Flamingo, Dopapod, Dumpstaphunk, Eric Krasno, George Porter Jr., Grass Is Dead, Greensky Bluegrass, Jennifer Hartswick & Chris Chew, Jim Lauderdale, Joe Craven, Jon Stickley Trio, Keller Williams, Larry & Jenny Keel, Leftover Salmon, Lettuce, Luther Dickinson, Mike Dillon, moe., Nikki Talley, Railroad Earth, Rev Jeff Mosier, Roosevelt, Collier, Sierra Hull, Snarky Puppy, Steep Canyon Rangers, The Duhks, The Motet, The New, Mastersounds, The Nth Power, The Travelin’ McCourys, Toubab Krewe, Umphrey’s McGee, Van Ghost, Verlon Thompson, Weedie Braimah, Will Kimbrough, Zach Deputy, with more to be announced.

    Artists are both performing live and sending in pre-recorded content from their respective areas of self quarantine. These artists are volunteering their time with performances to brief cameos to 30 minute slots to Q and A sections.

    Suwannee at Home: Spirit Raiser will be able to be viewed online everywhere on Zoom via Facebook and Website. Live Oak Music and Art Foundation Inc, a 501c3 organization will collect and distribute any collected funds and will be the sole recipient of any merchandise sold.

    For more information please visit Suwannee at Home: Spirit Raiser’ website.

  • Prince and the Revolution stream 1985 Carrier Dome show, raise funds for WHO

    Prince’s estate, sitting on a trove of unreleased Paisley Park studio recordings as well as video footage, will stream the March 30, 1985 ‘Purple Rain’ show from Syracuse at The Carrier Dome which will be livestreamed on Prince’s YouTube channel from Thursday, May 14 until Sunday, May 17.

    The album from the show will be available for purchase digitally for the first time on Friday. Donations will benefit the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund and Google will match donations up to $5 million.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRa8ZH_iOXo

    “Hello Syracuse and the World,” Prince says to open the show. “My name is Prince, and I’m here to play with you.”

    A Thursday pre-party kicks off at 6pm with Prince & the Revolution drummer Bobby Z with a live Q&A with the Current’s Andrea Swensson.

    The Carrier Dome concert also aired live to more than 12 million viewers in Europe through Eurovision and became a hot bootleg shortly after.

    Setlist: Let’s Go Crazy, Delirious, 1999, Little Red Corvette, Take Me With U, Do Me, Baby, Irresistible Bitch, Possessed, How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?, Let’s Pretend We’re Married, International Lover, God, Computer Blue, Darling Nikki, The Beautiful Ones, When Doves Cry, I Would Die 4 U, Baby I’m A Star, Purple Rain

  • Latest Shakedown Stream features 1991 Grateful Dead show at Giants Stadium

    As announced by Grateful Dead archivist David Lemieux, this week’s Shakedown Stream will feature the June 17, 1991 show from Giants Stadium. You can tune in on Friday night starting at 8pm ET on the Grateful Dead’s YouTube channel.

    1991 grateful dead giants stadium

    On that night Little Feat opened the show and “Dark Star” was teased a few times and jammed out of “Drums,” a first since 1974. Read an in depth review of the 1991 Grateful Dead show at Giants Stadium here.

    Setlist: Eyes Of The World, Walkin’ Blues, Brown Eyed Women, When I Paint My Masterpiece, Loose Lucy, Cassidy, Might As Well Saint Of Circumstance-> Ship of Fools-> Truckin’-> New Speedway Boogie-> Uncle John’s Band-> Drums-> Jam-> China Doll-> Playin’ In The Band Reprise-> Sugar Magnolia

    Encore: The Weight

    Additionally, the Dead’s series “All The Years Live” has released footage of the show opener from June 14, 1991, at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in D.C., “Cold Rain and Snow.” Lemieux has been sharing videos from previous releases will be shared, with unreleased videos coming soon as well.

  • Live From Out There Announces Virtual Festival

    11E1even Group, in partnership with LivexLive, have announced their The Live From Out There festival for four weekends of music. The festival will be accessible by subscription and pay-per-view and will run from May 15th through June 7th. 

    11E1even Group has been putting on their Live From Out There performances which have been providing a wide variety of content streaming for people to view from their homes while raising money for the greater music community through Sweet Relief’s COVID-19 Fund for the last two months. The festival will run as a four-week pay-per-view and subscription series for viewing the festival.

    The lineup includes Big Gigantic, Dispatch, Zeds Dead, moe., Nahko, Umphrey’s McGee, STS9, Turquaz, Hiss Golden Messenger, Twiddle, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, Goose, James Petralli & Michael Hunter of White Denim, Zach Williams of The Lone Bellow, Motet and many more.

    The Live From Out There festival will be partnering with Summer Camp Music Festival for its second weekend May 22nd through the 24th for the “Summer Camp Virtual Festival: A 20 Year Retrospective.” This weekend will focus on featuring live music, throwback performances, interviews, workshops, panel discussions, giveaways and more. The Summer Camp team will also take the opportunity to connect Summer Campers with each other through these virtual programs. 

    The subscription series will run from May 15th to June 7th and subscribers will have access to four weekends of live and archival sets, with the majority available on-demand after the live broadcast. Tickets for pay-per-view and subscriptions are on sale today, May 13th and details can be found on the Live From Out There website.The content will be available on all LivexLive platforms either by their website or by accessing their app.

    This Thursday, May 14th at 8PM EST, Live From Out There will host a free performance on the LiveXLive platform to introduce fans to the new platform and prepare them for the upcoming festival. People can watch on LiveXLive.com and apps, social media channels and its OTT channels on Amazon, Apple TV, Roku and Samsung TVs, desktop and mobile/tablet. The performance will feature Rick Mitarotonda and Peter Anspach of Goose performing a very special acoustic set from their home in Connecticut.

    The Live From Out There series has generated over $400K so far. All the proceeds from each subscription benefit Sweet Relief’s COVID-19 Fund. This organization is using donor-directed funding to provide immediate assistance, lodging, clothing, food and more to the musicians and crew involved in the series as well as music industry workers and artists who have suffered a loss of income due to the recent outbreak and resulting restrictions placed on live events and gatherings.

    For more information visit the Live From Out There’s Website.

  • The Jazz Foundation of America Partners With Relix for Online Benefit Concert

    The Jazz Foundation of America has partnered with music publication Relix to produce an online concert on May 14 at 8 PM ET, dubbed #TheNewGig. Hosted by actor/producer Keegan-Michael Key, the lineup will include; Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, Jon Batiste, Ivan Neville, Angelique Kidjo, Robert Cray, Stanley Jordan and more. Performances are expected to be new and will be pre-produced prior to air time. Drummer Steve Jordan will serve as the concert’s musical director.

    Relix publisher Peter Shapiro said in the press release: “We are honored to be collaborating with the Jazz Foundation of America to host #TheNewGig on Relix’s YouTube platform. Jazz and blues lie at the foundation of everything, really, and it is at the core of the music that we feature everyday on our websites, in our magazine, and on our social platforms. As part of giving back, it’s a privilege to host this very special event.

    In addition, the stream will feature performances by Herbie Hancock, Patti Smith, Brittany Howard and more who performed at the organization’s annual fundraiser ‘A Great Night in Harlem’. Many celebrities including Danny Glover, Bruce Willis and Mark Ruffin are set to make appearances during the music fundraiser. 

    Monies raised from the online concert will benefit the COVID-19 Musicians’ Emergency Fund. Established in March of this year, the emergency fund is geared towards helping musicians and their families affected by the pandemic by offering funding to cover basic living expenses. 

    “An entire community of artists who survive month-to-month have gone from standstill to freefall, financially speaking, but their music has continued to give us solace and comfort in quarantine,” said Joe Petrucelli, Executive Director of the JFA in the press release. “Support for #TheNewGig and the COVID-19 Musicians’ Emergency Fund offers them direct assistance and creates a sense of solidarity and hope in a time of despair and uncertainty.”

    To tune into the #TheNewGig, head to the Relix YouTube Channel on May 14 at 8 PM ET, with a 10 PM ET rebroadcast. For more information, visit Jazzfoundation.org.

    the jazz foundation of america

  • Hearing Aide: Lettuce ‘Resonate’

    Lettuce once again flaunts their funky prowess, proving they can take the form of any sub genre of funk on the planet on their new ablum Resonate. Each of these tracks nods to an iconic genre, idea or artist that have breathed life into the sounds we love today. Listeners will find an ode to pivotal musicians like Ndugu Chancler, famous studio drummer, to features with Big Tony Fisher of Trouble Funk. This is a very special collection that could not have come at a better time. 

    The album kicks off with three classically funky instrumentals, chock full of memorable hornlines, flavorful solos, and a stupendous production value. “Blaze,” “Good Morning Mr. Smink” and “NDUGU” are all snappy, precise and detailed tracks, sure to light a fire under your ass. Listeners will feel and hear quintessential flavors from the founding mothers and fathers of funk. Not too much flair, just a steady flow of good music. 

    Then “Checker Wreckers” comes barreling through the door with a heavy footed beat accompanied by Big Tony Fisher’s gravely, hype lyrics. It’s easily the most powerful song on the album and is without a doubt, a key track. Nobody quite knows what a Checker Wrecker is, but who cares, it’s fun to say. 

    One of their more adventurous funk fusion attempts is “Moksha,” where Lettuce presents their usual grooves and beats while award winning sitarist, Indrajit Banerjee, laces some electrified sitar throughout the track. Everyone comes together to share the space of the track, while still seamlessly blending the two genres together. It’s an incredible feat considering how the two genres could not be more different.

    ‘Remember The Children” is a near perfect cover of Earth, Wind and Fire’s 1972 hit. An untrained ear would genuinely not be able to tell the difference between this and movements from the original track. (Obviously, Lettuce put some of their own person flair in their version.) There was never a doubt that the funk outfit was talented or not, but this takes a level of dedication and perfectionism that must be admired – especially when a song like this has so many different elements of instrumentation. 

    It’s a shame Lettuce won’t be able to flaunt their new album in a live setting for some time due to recent events, but that won’t stop fans from breaking it down in their living rooms. Lettuce is doing their part to help our first responders and medical care workers. Fans can buy Lettuce branded masks, and when they do, Lettuce will donate a mask to healthcare systems in need. Take your favorite bands, take care of those on the front lines of this pandemic, and take care of yourselves.

    Key Tracks: NDUGU, Checker Wrecker, Remember the Children