Category: Beyond NYS

Las Vegas Hotel Announces Rapid Testing Lab to Bring Back Large Events

Wynn Resorts CEO, Matt Maddox, announced a COVID-19 testing lab in Las Vegas is in the works to bring back concerts and large events.

Medical workers at Wynn Resorts in Las Vegas test employees.

For months, we have been working with University Medical Center (UMC), Georgetown University and leading labs in California and New York to study technology that can rapidly and rigorously test thousands of people in a matter of hours.
Matt Maddox

Maddox says the reason tourism in Vegas still hasn’t made a come back since the pandemic is the fear of contracting the infectious disease. He believes the only solution to make get the city back and booming again is not relying on the idea that there will be an eventual vaccine.

Hoping our government alone will solve getting Las Vegas back on track is not viable. Hope, as the saying goes, is not a strategy. Instead, community leaders must present science-based options that advance our broader goals to reignite our city.
Matt Maddox

What can go wrong with this plan?

In theory, a lab that anyone could get tested at can provide a safe way to gather without the possibility of getting COVID, but there are factors to consider.

Although the person being tested would get their results within hours, this also means that they have to wait hours to go to the event they were planning. This, in turn, means for those who plan to drive out to a show, their whole day would be spent waiting for a positive or negative result and maybe not even being able to go to the event. The idea is to bring back the bustling music and theater scene, but not everyone is going to want to make a day of this.

Another off-set is getting people to step out of their comfort zone, which may need more than mandated testing. The pandemic, along with the quarantine, left the state of the world feeling fearful after the disease took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Getting people out of fear-mode might just take time.

Extensive research clearly indicates that what is keeping people away from Las Vegas is not so much the physical environment, which we work diligently to keep sterilized, but rather a fear of other people. We must alleviate that fear.
Matt Maddox

Maddox and the medical professionals he is working with says the whole process should reduce the chance of exposure to 0.1%.

Nothing in life is 100% safe but establishing these safe zones by testing thousands of people per day with the PCR test, dramatically mitigates the danger of community spread and, with empirical evidence and careful execution, will work. The probability of a contagious COVID carrier entering a “safe zone” is less than one-tenth of 1%.
Matt Maddox

Who is Matt Maddox

Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox

According to Casino.org, Maddox took over as CEO in 2018, after Steve Wynn was accused of sexual misconduct and had to step down. Maddox previously served as Wynn’s president and Chief Financial Officer since 2013.

What is Wynn Las Vegas?

Wynn and Encore Las Vegas feature two luxury hotel towers with a total of 4,748 spacious hotel rooms, suites and villas, approximately 194,000 square feet of casino space, 22 dining experiences featuring signature chefs and 11 bars, two award-winning spas, approximately 560,000 rentable square feet of meeting and convention space, approximately 160,000 square feet of retail space as well as two showrooms, two nightclubs, a beach club and recreation and leisure facilities.
Matt Maddox press release

October 8, 2020
Fans flock to Swanzey, NH for Goose at Drive-In Live
Goose has been loose across New England in the past few weeks, performing Drive-In shows in Yarmouth, MA, Morris, CT, Essex Junction, VT and soon they’ll head to Ohio, Maryland and North Carolina. Goose hit a fever pitch with fans in 2019 and have made the most of this new era of live music, between a successful Bingo Tour in June, and recent Drive-In stops across the Northeast.

So when Goose headed from Northern Vermont down to Southwestern New Hampshire on Saturday, October 3, they marked the closest shows to New York State, and beyond their just announced Halloween run at South Farms in Morris, CT, these shows stand to be the final chances to catch Goose in the Northeast, possibly until 2021.

Arriving at the Cheshire Fairgrounds in Swanzey, NH, cars were greeted by a friendly staff and it was incredibly easy for you to locate your car’s spot. Areas on either side of your car were marked off for social distancing, and your party could begin once you were parked.

No matter where you parked, the sound was incredibly good. Speaker stacks made it so the folks in the C section towards the back got the same quality as folks in the A section up front, allowing all to hear the new clavinet for guitarist/keyboardist Peter Anspach. Even the sloping hill allowed for good views even from the top of the venue.

Highlights from the evening included an early cover of The Band’s “Look Out Cleveland” and 20-minute versions of “Madhuvan” and the second set opening “Tumble.” Tom Waits’ dark “Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis” followed “Tumble,” and was repeated in the encore due to skipping a portion of the song the first time. The encore was polished off by the second ‘Jive’ tune of the night, “Jive Lee.” Listen to the show on Archive here.

Swanzey has succeeded in a state where live music is still embraced and allowed, and should be looked at as a template for how to pull off live music until the pandemic has subsided. On Saturday, October 31st, Pink Talking Fish will headline a at Drive-In Live in Swanzey, featuring Mihali from Twiddle and Neighbor, marking the grand finale for the Drive-In Live concert series.

The night before in Burlington, Goose welcomed Giant Country Horns member Dave ‘The Truth’ Grippo for most of the show, including “Time to Flee,” seen below.

Setlist – Goose at Drive-In Live, Swanzey, NH, October 2, 2020

Set 1:Yeti, Look Out Cleveland*, Honey Bee, Jive I, Madhuvan, 726
Set 2: Tumble, Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis^, All I Need, Echo Of A Rose, Flodown
Encore: Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis^, Jive Lee

* The Band ^Tom Waits

For Halloween, Goose will perform two shows on Friday, October 30th and Saturday, October 31st. South Farms has hosted numerous acts, using the multipurpose outdoor venue with a grid-like layout where the audience is situated in pairs, on 8’x8’ plots of grass.

Unlike drive-in shows, South Farms is equipped for the band to use live sound, as opposed to FM radio transmitters. Social distancing guidelines are in effect while attending the event.

Ticket presale begins on Wednesday, October 7 at 10 AM ET, followed by a general onsale on Friday. October 9 at 10 AM ET.

photos by Zach Culver
October 7, 2020
The ‘Heroes Act’ Passes in the House of Representatives

The ‘Heroes Act’ passes in the House of Representatives on October 1, 2020 including the Save Our Stages revisions which were added on September 28, 2020. The $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus aid package will include $10 Billion set aside for independent music and live-entertainment venues.

The relief bill passed in the largely Democratically – controlled House of Representatives with votes 214 to 207. The votes were split largely along party lines. Unfortunately the bill still needs to be passed in the Senate which is notoriously slow in passing bills and is largely controlled by Republicans.

The State Theater of Ithaca lit up in red during the “Red Alert” demonstration in support of Save Our Stages.

The addition to the ‘Heroes Act‘ including Save Our Stages revisions will make a huge impact on the live entertainment industry that’s suffering horribly due to the coronavirus Pandemic. According to the Variety article, “A poll taken by the 2,600-member National Independent Venues Association, some 90% of its members said they will be forced to close permanently without federal assistance.”

According to section 619 of the ‘Heroes Act,’ “Grants for Independent Live Venue Operators (H.R. 7806, Save our Stages Act or the SOS Act) 37 1. Authorizes $10 Billion for the SBA to make grants to eligible live venue operators, producers, promoters, or talent representatives to address the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on certain live venues. 2. The SBA may make an initial grant of up to $12 million dollars to an eligible operator, promoter, producer, or talent representative; and a supplemental grant that is equal to 50% of the initial grant. 3. Such grants shall be used for specified expenses such as payroll costs, rent, utilities, and personal protective equipment.” Basically this is saying that independent venues, producers, promoters and talent representatives can use the funds to cover things like rent, mortgages, utilities, insurance and other expenses that these businesses are in during the ongoing pandemic.

One factor that may hold up the passage of the ‘Heroes Act’ relates to the recent outbreak of COVID-19 among Senators and the President. Three Senators – Thom Tillis (R-NC), Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) – all tested positive and are quarantining. Thus, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has postponed all floor activity until October 19, thus prolonging the time it will take to debate and vote on the ‘Heroes Act’ by two weeks.

For more information on the ‘Heroes Act’ read the one page summary here.

October 4, 2020
Montreal’s Le Couleur take Influence from the Skies on “Concorde”

Le Couleur, an alternative pop group from Montreal comprised of vocalist, Laurence Giroux-Do, bassist Patrick Gosselin, and drummer Steeven Choudinard, has released their latest album Concorde. Despite COVID-19 cancelling numerous live performance schedules and release dates, that has not stopped Le Couleur from expressing fine work; Concorde is a well-tuned, melodic, and soothing album.

When performing live, Philippe Beaudin joins on percussion and Francis Do Monte plays guitar and keyboards. For their new show, they recently changed and showcased their new formation, consisting of six musicians in total. The French-Canadian group had put out EPs in 2013 and 2015, before finally releasing their critically acclaimed debut album P.O.P. in 2016. Le Couleur’s synth-pop sound is filled with intricate melodies, tight basslines, and the album is a very enjoyable listen for indie pop listeners and recent live performances at home are just as nice to listen to. Amid the pandemic, they have recorded home performances in place of in-person events. Interested readers can find these in-home performances on YouTube.

Concorde is named after an outdated airliner model that had a notable incident in 2000 when a fuel tank explosion on an Air France flight killed all onboard. The airliner would go out of service in 2003. Prior to the disastrous effect of the Concorde flight, it was positively perceived for its sleek design, and allowed faster flights in comparison to other airline models. The group was inspired by the ups and downs of the Concorde timeline along with the airliner’s symbolism. The Concorde’s sleek design represents that sexy, idealistic image of the carrier. The crash and its eventual retirement mark the “macabre” side that Le Couleur.

Key Tracks: Concorde, Comme une fin du Monde, Train de Minuit,

Concorde is out now on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music, Deezer, and many other platforms.

September 29, 2020
Sessions and the Joy Ruckus Club Set to Host a Virtual Livestream on Oct. 17-18

Sessions and the Joy Ruckus Club will partner to provide the largest Asian American virtual music festival on Oct. 17-18. The virtual two-day festival will feature over 70 artists with $2.99 early bird ticket prices and a VIP option available. Both organizations are located in San Francisco, California.

The Joy Ruckus Club is a humanitarian-oriented online concert series created by artists of Asian descent with over 700,000 music fans. Kublai Kwon is the CEO of Joy Ruckus Club and has been promoting Asian artists in the U.S. for over 20 years. Sessions is a platform dedicated to marketing and production to help artists become a success in cultivating a fan base and earning incoming. Tim Westergren, the former founder of Pandora, and Gordon Su, a video game developer and entrepreneur created Sessions.

Sessions and Joy Ruckus club’s partnership is committed to promoting Asian artists in America and expanding their reach to over 185 countries. Their livestream event will include performances from around the world including Asia, Australia, New Zealand, London, and more.

Headliners for the event include Eric Nam, Kid Trunks, Luna, Kevin Woo, DJ Cam Girl, James Lee, KAACHI, Ethan Kim and DJ Sura. Fans can purchase tickets for the livestream here.

Sessions is dedicated to being the first global digital platform that truly serves and supports all artists and events. By launching the initiative with Joy Ruckus Festival, the largest Asian American virtual festival in the world, we are setting the bar high. Our goal is to support the overall music community, and bridge the gap between real live events and the virtual streaming world. We are investing in promoters by putting marketing money behind their events and using the full capability of our platform to generate revenue and make this a success for everyone.
Tim Westergren, Co Founder of Sessions and Former CEO of Pandora

September 29, 2020
Music Festivals Start Using an “Event Bubble” Strategy to Exist During the Pandemic Era

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.

September 28, 2020
Phish to celebrate Trey Anastasio’s birthday with Dinner and a Movie from Polaris 1999

As Phish moves their Dinner and a Movie series from weekly to monthly, the newest installment has been announced, featuring the band’s performance on July 23, 1999 from Polaris Amphitheater in Columbus, OH. The never before seen full show archival video will air on Wednesday, September 30 at 8:30PM ET at LivePhish.com, which also happens to be Trey Anastasio‘s birthday (more on that below).

For the Dinner part of the evening, Phish HQ’s Betty Frost has put together a spread that includes enchiladas, a jicama/orange/cucumber/mint salad and apple fritters. You can find recipes for all these here.

Released on Live Phish in November 2019, the show in the Columbus suburbs was the 17th show on a 20-date summer tour. A humid evening, the show started with a 12-minute “Ya Mar,” and features Anastasio on keys briefly on the “Punch You in the Eye” intro.

On July 23, 1999 Phish returned to Polaris Amphitheatre for their second show at this 20,000-seat outdoor shed in the Columbus suburbs. It was the 17th show on a 20-date U.S. summer tour.It was still light out on a sticky Ohio evening when the band took the stage with a rollicking Ya Mar opener, followed by NICU, followed by Back At The Chicken Shack > Punch You In The Eye with an extended synthesizer-infused intro.

Set 2 turned up the heat with a first even pairing of “Ghost” > “Free,” with a lightening storm growing as intense as the jams between these two. A 25-minute “Birds of a Feather,” then still a new song in their catalog, allowed the band to play on and off with the storm as it raged overhead. During the late-set “Meatstick,” Anastasio announced that the band’s New Years Eve performance would be held at Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation in southern Florida.

Sticker sold on Summer ’99 tour – courtesy of PhanArt

Dinner and a Movie is presented free to all, with a charity selected each week where donations are asked to be directed. This installment’s beneficiary is the ACLU. Founded in 1920, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, multi-issue, public interest organization devoted to protecting the civil liberties of all people in the United States. Recognized as the nation’s premier public interest law firm, the ACLU works daily in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

Over $850,000 has been raised by Phish fans since late March for the Waterwheel Foundation and other charities highlighted in the Dinner and a Movie series.

Sticker sold on Summer ’99 tour – courtesy of PhanArt

Additionally, a group of Phish fans have put together a fundraiser idea for Dinner and a Movie, celebrating Trey Anastasio’s birthday. The goal is to raise $20,454 for the Waterwheel Foundation, which is the number of days Trey will have been alive on his birthday. See below for details and support Waterwheel Foundation!

Setlist via Phish.net

Set 1: Ya Mar, NICU, Back at the Chicken Shack > Punch You in the Eye[1], Fast Enough for You, Back on the Train, David Bowie, Strange Design, Possum

Set 2: Ghost -> Free > Birds of a Feather > Meatstick > Fire

Encore: Bouncing Around the Room > Rocky Top

[1] Trey played keys for part of PYITE.

Trey played keys for part of PYITE. During Meatstick, Trey talked about the band’s desire to teach fans the Meatstick Dance and break the world record. He then informed the crowd that the New Year’s Eve concert would be played in Florida. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.

September 28, 2020
CT Musicians Gather, Pay Tribute to Sound Engineer and Festival Producer Joe Mango
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.
September 26, 2020
The Sea The Sea, Sarah King, The Rough Shapes and more featured on this week’s EQXposure

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.

The Sea The Sea – “I’ll be Loving 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.

Sarah King – “Nightstand”

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.

The Rough Shapes – “Lost Stations”

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.

September 26, 2020
‘Harry Chapin: When In Doubt, Do Something’ Documentary Announced For October 2020

The ‘Harry Chapin: When In Doubt, Do Something’ documentary following the life of the legendary songwriter Harry Chapin has been announced for October 16, 2020. The film will premiere in theaters across the United States as well as on a virtual cinema platform.

The documentary is a Greenwich Entertainment film and is being directed by Rick Korn. The film was produced by Korn, S.A. Baron, and Chapin’s son, Jason Chapin. It follows the GRAMMY-nominated folk singer starting in his childhood which he spent under the shadow of his father Jim Chapin who was known for his jazz drumming and as an author of books about jazz drumming. It then moves on through his unfortunately short life and highlights all the ups and downs he experienced throughout his life.

Harry Chapin tragically died on July 16, 1981 in a car crash on interstate 495 in New York. Some of his most well known work includes “The Cat’s in the Cradle”, “Taxi,” and “A Better Place to Be.” The film focuses on his humanitarian efforts as well which is why the film is being released on World Food Day which fits perfectly as Jim Chapin was the co-founded of the influential hunger non-profit WhyHunger. A portion of the proceeds from the film will go to both WhyHunger and The Harry Chapin Foundation.

The documentary uses archival footage and new interviews to give the viewer a glimpse into Harry Chapin’s life. It focuses on how the singer-songwriter used his fame as a launching point to help others and influence politics. It features testimonials from Chapin’s family (including Tom Chapin and Steve Chapin), as well as peers including Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Pete Seeger, Kenny Rogers, Robert Lamm (Chicago), Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Pat Benatar, Bob Geldof, Ken Kragen, longtime bassist John Wallace, and WhyHunger co-founder Bill Ayres.

Harry Chapin sold over 16 million records during his short but unforgettable life. He also had 14 hit singles and two GRAMMY nominations. In 1977 he was a key participant in the creation of the Presidential Commission on World Hunger. In 1986, he was posthumously awarded the GRAMMY President’s Merit Award. He was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame in 2011.

For more information on the documentary read the full press release here.

September 23, 2020