NYC’s Peak are off to a hot start in 2020 and in full gear during their winter tour. Following the release of full set video from their Brooklyn Bowl show in October, they recently released Hot Clips Volume 2, the second installment in our live series with selected tracks from fall and early winter tours, featuring new songs and some of their hand-picked favorite jams from the road.
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.
Folk singer James Taylor today postpones his co-headlining tour with Jackson Browne from summer 2020 to summer 2021 due to the current COVID-19 crisis. Taylor said regarding the news:
“Disappointing as it is to have to reschedule these shows, our first tour together, James/Jackson and I look forward with intense excitement to next spring when, hopefully, we’ll finally get to set this thing in motion,” the musicians said in a joint statement. “We were hoping to reschedule the tour a bit sooner but the experts we consulted have advised waiting for a full year. We thank you all for your patience and understanding and are really encouraged by the majority of you who are holding onto your tickets. We WILL honor them.”
While tickets for 2020 will be honored at all shows, if you cannot attend you are eligible for a refund from the point of purchase.
(Rescheduled) James Taylor and Jackson Browne Summer 2021 tourdates
May 14, 2021 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Center
May 15, 2021 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
May 17, 2021 – Ft. Worth, TX – Dickies Arena
May 20, 2021 – Salt Lake City, UT – Maverik Center
May 21, 2021 – Boise, ID – ExtraMile Arena
May 23, 2021 – Tacoma, WA – Tacoma Dome
May 24, 2021 – Portland, OR – Moda Center
May 26, 2021 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center
May 28, 2021 – Anaheim, CA – Honda Center
May 29, 2021 – San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena
June 9, 2021 – Chicago, IL – United Center
June 11, 2021 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
June 12, 2021 – Clarkston, MI – DTE Entergy Center
June 14, 2021 – Dayton, OH – Nutter Center
June 15, 2021 – Charleston, WV – Charleston Coliseum
June 17, 2021 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena
June 23, 2021 – Roanoke, VA – Berglund Center Coliseum
June 25, 2021 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center
June 26, 2021 – Memphis, TN – FedExForum
June 28, 2021 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
June 29, 2021 – Atlanta, GA – Infinite Energy Center
July 4, 2021 – Lenox, MA – Tanglewood(James Taylor and his all-star band)
July 7, 2021 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
July 9, 2021 – Camden, NJ – BB&T Center
July 10, 2021 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health @ Jones Beach
James Taylor released American Standard on February 28, his first release since 2015’s Before This World. On the new album, Taylor infuses new sounds and fresh meaning into timeless works of art, reimagining some of the most beloved songs of the 20th century and making them completely his own.
Taylor says of American Standard, “I’ve always had songs I grew up with that I remember really well, that were part of the family record collection – and I had a sense of how to approach, so it was a natural to put American Standard together,” explained Taylor. “In terms of how [the songs] were performed and recorded before, we paid attention to the chords and melody, but we were interested in doing something new, and in bringing something new to it, we’ve reinterpreted the songs, that’s what makes it worth doing.”
The lead single “Teach Me Tonight” was released alongside the album announcement.
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.
The Decemberists have announced dates for their 20th anniversary summer tour, including a performance at Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards in Lafayette on August 15 and Central Park Summer Stage on August 20.
The group, who first formed in 2000 in Portland, Oregon, will embark on a summer tour headed from the Pacific Northwest to the Northeast, with a final stop at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on August 22.
“Twenty years ago, in a basement practice space in Portland, Oregon, a bunch of musicians threw together under the name The December Brides, a name that lasted only a few hours before it was marginally improved to The Decemberists,” says the band’s frontman Colin Meloy. “On such occasions, it seems fitting to throw some kind of party. And so we’re heading out on the road, we Decemberists, to celebrate the work we’ve made over the last two decades.” For more information and tickets visit decemberists.com.
The Decemberists 20th Anniversary National Tour Dates
Jul. 28 – KettleHouse Amphitheater – Missoula, MT
Jul. 29 – Paramount Theater – Seattle, WA
Jul. 31 – Edgefield – Troutdale, OR
Aug. 1 – Edgefield – Troutdale, OR
Aug. 3 – The Mountain Winery – Saratoga, CA
Aug. 4 – The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA
Aug. 6 – Gallivan Center -Twilight Concert Series – Salt Lake City, UT
Aug. 7 – The Mission Ballroom – Denver, CO
Aug. 8 – CrossroadsKC – Kansas City, MO
Aug. 10 – Surly Brewing Co – Minneapolis, MN
Aug. 11 – Auditorium Theatre – Chicago, IL
Aug. 14 – Roy Thompson Hall – Toronto, ON
Aug. 15 – Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards – La Fayette, NY
Aug. 16 – Wolf Trap Center for the Performing Arts – Vienna, VA
Aug. 18 – The Met Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA
Aug. 19 – The Boch Center-Shubert Theatre – Boston, MA
Phish frontman Trey Anastasio will perform 10 shows from late May into early June across the Northeast and into the Midwest. Trey Anastasio Band will headline nine of the dates, and will then share the bill with Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit at Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands PAC in Canandaigua. Tickets are on sale Friday, February 21 at Trey.com/tour.
Trey recently performed at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester in January, and will perform at Tanglewood in June with the Boston Pops.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS8ajag-DJ8
Trey Anastasio Band Summer Tour
May 22 – MECU Pavilion – Baltimore, MD
May 23 – Stone Pony Summerstage – Asbury Park, NJ
May 24 – Stone Pony Summerstage – Asbury Park, NJ
May 26 – The Strand – Providence, RI
May 28 – Thompson’s Point – Portland, ME
May 29 – Mountain Jam – Bethel, NY
May 30 – Constellation Brands-Marvin Sands PAC – Canandaigua, NY*
June 2 – Royal Oak Music Theatre – Royal Oak, MI
June 5 – Stage AE – Pittsburgh, PA
June 6 – Jacob’s Pavilion at Nautica – Cleveland, OH
On February 28, 2018, at 4:00 am, drummer John Colpitts was nearly killed. Colpitts, a founding member of Oneida and a prolific Brooklyn percussionist also known as Kid Millions and Man Forever, was in Los Angeles traveling to the airport when he was involved in an accident. His car was struck at high speed and the accident was so serious that it took him out of commission for five months before he eventually picked up his drumsticks and returned to his instrumental passion.
Two years later to the day, Roulette will present the US premiere of a narrative performance by Colpitts that explores pain, recovery, transcendence and a return to life and art. Known for his intense playing style and fervent live performances, Colpitts will perform solo with drums, adopting the modes of Laurie Anderson and Spalding Gray to evoke the question: How does one truly recover from an accident when your body is changed forever?
With drums and narration from John Colpitts and directed by Mark Armstrong, the performance at Roulette starts at 8pm on Friday, February 28, 2020. Marking the US premiere of this narrative performance, Colpitts explores the car accident that nearly ended his life and its aftermath. Tickets are available .
A composer, drummer, writer, and educator based in Brooklyn, John Colpitts performs under the moniker Man Forever and Kid Millions. Named one of the 100 Greatest Drummers in Alternative Music by Spin Magazine in 2001, he founded and plays drums in Oneida, People of the North, and Man Forever.
Founded in 1978 at the height of the NYC downtown experimental arts revolution, Roulette Intermedium is now a state-of-the-art performing arts venue, presenter, and producer of new and experimental music, dance, and intermedia. In 2011, Roulette moved into its current 400-seat, renovated 1927 art deco theater in Downtown Brooklyn. In 2019-20, Roulette will present 120 performances and special events and will also host 125 organizations through our Community Services Program, featuring partnerships with over 70 diverse Brooklyn institutions.
David Byrne’s American Utopia will return to Broadway for a second engagement, beginning September 18, 2020 and lasting for a 17-week run, ending in January 2021. The most recent run, which was held at Hudson Theatre in Manhattan, saw the curtain close on Sunday, February 16.
Based on Byrne’s 2018 album,American Utopia opened in October 2019, with Byrne joined by an 11-piece ensemble playing songs fromthe album, his solo material and Talking Heads works alike.
“It’s become obvious to us in the band, the crew and the producer team that audiences want, dare I say need, to see this show,” said Byrne. “They’re not ready to have it disappear just yet. We feel the same way, we love doing this show. So, it’s thrilling to us that we can announce that we’ll be back in September.”
The producers of the show shared Byrne’s sentiments. “It has been a joy to bring American Utopia to Broadway. David Byrne is one of our greatest living artists and it’s cause for celebration that he has made his Broadway debut with this brilliant production. We have been blown away by the range of audiences of all ages and backgrounds who have come to see American Utopia.”
For those unable to make the shows later this year, Spike Lee has announced that he will direct a filmed version of American Utopia. And later this month, Byrne is set to appear as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live on February 29, alongside host John Mulaney.
Brooklyn native Pop Smoke, was killed in Los Angeles early Wednesday morning according to a report from Rolling Stone. A representative from the Los Angeles Police department confirmed that they responded to a 911 call around 4:30 this morning to find Pop Smoke shot. Pop Smoke was rushed to an area hospital were upon arrival he was pronounced dead, he was only 20.
Even though several people were questioned at the scene, no arrests have been made as of early Wednesday morning. Up to six people are sought in connection with his death, police said. The nearly 3,000-square-foot home on which the alleged home robbery took place is a rental property reportedly owned by Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, daughter of John Mellencamp and star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
Pop Smoke’s death comes after his new mixtape, Meet the Woo 2, made its debut at number eight in the Rolling Stone albums charts. Meet the Woo 2 was released earlier this month and was a accumulation of collaborations from this past summer with other trending rappers such as Travis Scott, Lil Tjay and Calboy. The mixtape was received well by fans, with already 37 million streams.
Born as Bashar Jackson in Brooklyn, New York, Pop Smoke was living the dream as he went from a unknown artists to the next-up in a span of months. Last year in April he released a hypnotic song titled “Welcome to the Party”. He quickly earned a major label deal with Victor Victor Worldwide and Republic Records. The hit has since had 80 million streams and an official remix with superstar Nicki Minaj. Minaj took to Instagram earlier to give her condolences on Pop Smoke’s early demise.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wKzSGnCP0/
The rapper’s rise to fame has been scattered with hardships since last October. Rolling Stone had reported that Pop Smoke and a slew of other local rappers were scheduled perform at the New York festival Rolling Loud but were demanded by police to be removed from the lineup in a letter that “if these individuals are allowed to perform, there will be a higher risk of violence.” He was also arrested in January after allegedly transporting a Rolls Royce, worth $375,000, from California to New York.
We will continue to update as the story develops.
Pop Smoke performs “Welcome to the Party” in LIC Queens
Pool Cosby, a sample-based electronic band from New York City consisting of producers Jacuzzi Jefferson, Kevin Kuh, and Otto Botté, is kicking off 2020 with the release of their brand new single “Day Breaks,” featuring vocals from Ivy Sole.
“Day Breaks” is the follow up to their most recent single and accompanying video, “I Like You,” featuring vocals from NY’s own indie-pop artist, denitia.
Both tracks can be found on the group’s upcoming full-length album, Day Breaks, slated for release on March 6. The record will feature guest performances from Soren Bryce, Ivy Sole, Denitia, Tiger Darrow, Yoh, Rochee, Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire, Bill $aber, and Kiah Victoria.
By combining their diverse musical and cultural backgrounds, Pool Cosby has consistently pushed the boundaries of their music over their career. The group aims to contextualize the artists they collaborate with as well as challenge the traditional ideas of musical genres.
