Sci-fi Middle Eastern Prog Rockers Consider the Source have announced their “Hero Squad” New Year’s Run over December 28-31, 2020.
CTS will wrap up 2020 with four limited seating, socially distant shows, which will culminate with two nights at The Stone Church in New Hampshire. The venues for all four shows have been following safety protocols with success and the band currently feels they are adequate spaces to perform.
Fans are asked to adhere to any ground rules laid out by the venue and respect the band, audience, and staff’s space. Some venues may require the purchase of an entire table, as all shows are operating as seated shows with reduced capacities set by the venues. Please refer to venue websites for all show info. Tickets are on sale now for the Consider the Source Hero Squad New Year’s Run.
12/28 Jergel’s – Pittsburgh, PA 12/29 Baltimore Soundstage – Baltimore, MD 12/30 The Stone Church – Newmarket, NH 12/31 The Stone Church – Newmarket, NH SOLD OUT
Skyfoot is back to cure your quarantine blues with their fourth album, Astronomy Man. This four-piece band from Boston has firmly established themselves in the Northeast music scene over the last decade, playing hundreds of shows and being named “Best In State” at the 2019 New England Music Awards. Skyfoot recorded this album this past winter and spring and thanks to a successful Indiegogo campaign, Astronomy Man was released on November 2nd.
The eleven tracks on this album shimmy through a number of different genres and feature tremendous psychedelic and funky jams from start to finish. Starting things off is “What’cha Gonna Do,” an upbeat, soaring opener with a catchy chorus. The track culminates in an incredible jam combining Tyler Arnott’s fantastic guitar work with Eric McEwen’s beautiful organ playing. The opening slide guitar in “Follow Me Down” will immediately perk your ears as Aaron Morey’s drum beat kicks in, invoking a cross between a steam engine crossing the plains and a lone cowboy on horseback.
Astronomy Man also features a bunch of longer tracks that allow the members of Skyfoot to explore the space in your living room. “Take Time” is a toe-tappin’ ditty featuring a beautiful dance between banjo and keys before morphing into a kaleidoscopic puddle of a jam. James Taylor’s bass oozes funk during “Everybody Have a Good Time Tonight” and if you close your eyes during this track, you’d swear you were shoulder to shoulder with your best friends at a show. The title track is the quirkiest and catchiest song on the album, but features a shredding guitar solo before skyrocketing into the interstellar. This album takes you on a stellar journey from start to finish, ending with the angelically prismatic “Spoke.”
Skyfoot was able to do something really wonderful with this record. They used every bit of aural space within 67 minutes to pack a mind-bending amount of music into these eleven tracks. This is a band truly worth traveling to see once we are blessed with live music again. Check out Astronomy Man on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube or visit the Skyfoot Store to purchase the album.
Key Tracks: Everybody Have a Good Time Tonight, What’cha Gonna Do, Lovin’ Kind
Indie-Jam darlings Goosereturned to South Farms for their Halloween shows, held November 6 and 7. The week delay was due in part to the torrential rain that hit the Northeast in the last days of October, causing the ground to be too soft for vehicles to enter in Morris, CT. Fans didn’t seem to mind. Celebrating a week late, and turned out in costumes, they were ready for one final dose of Goose Drive-In shows.
The shows brought out fans, good jams and a couple debuts from Goose. In the first set of Friday night’s show, “It Burns Within” was busted out for the first time since 2014. The second set saw the debut of pre-Goose band Vasudo’s “Empress of Organos,” which segued into a cover of The Band’s “Don’t Do It,” a fan favorite. Later in the same set, the new “Earthling or Alien” debuted, with pro-shot footage released from the set.
Setlist: Goose at South Farms, Morris, CT – Friday, November 6, 2020
Set 1: Lily’s Tiger > Butter Rum, The Whales, It Burns Within, All I Need > Secret Agent Man, Into the Myst Set 2: Empress of Organos* > Don’t Do It, Creatures > Honeybee, Your Ocean, Earthling or Alien?^, Yeti Encore: Ghostbusters Rap *First Time Played ^debut
Saturday was ‘Halloween’ for fans, with costumes galore and the final show for Goose this Drive-In season. A theme of ‘Donnie Darko at The Farms’ reflected on the 2001 cult-hit Donnie Darko, with band members wearing costumes related to the movie – Ric Mitarotonda in the title character’s skeleton costume and Trevor Weeks playing the role of Darko’s imaginary rabbit friend, Frank.
Debuts were on tap throughout the night, with an apropos cover of Echo & The Bunnymen’s “The Killing Moon” hitting on the Halloween and Donnie Darko theme to start the night. Two bands from the 80s and 90s were found at the end of Set one and start of Set two, with Tears for Fears “Head Over Heels” and Duran Duran’s “Notorious,” respectively. Original pairing “Seekers on the Ridge pt. 1” > “Seekers on the Ridge pt. 2” came in the middle of Set two, ahead of the ever popular “Hot Tea” and “Wysteria Lane.” A little more Tears for Fears came in the form of “Mad World” to wrap up the themed affair.
Setlist: Goose at South Farms, Morris, CT – Saturday, November 7, 2020
Set 1: The Killing Moon*, Arrow, Doobie Song, Slow Ready, Jive 1 > Jive Lee, Head Over Heels*
Set 2: Notorious*, Tumble, Seekers on the Ridge pt. 1* > Seekers on the Ridge pt. 2*, Hot Tea, Wysteria Lane> Head Over Heels Reprise
It was the night after Halloween in Sussex, NJ. All who dared to traverse the wind and rain were met with a field of mud and fans. Twiddle got New Jersey Slipping’ brought the heat to their last drive-in show, this past Sunday November 1 at the Sussex County Fairgrounds. This show featured high energy and dynamic jams throughout both sets. Highlights included a monstrous Gatsby The Great > Slippin’ In The Kitchen > Gatsby The Great in the first set, an incredible Cabbage Face in the second set, and a roaring Juggernaut encore.
Twiddle at the Sussex Fairgrounds Drive In
The line of cars leading up to the show looked intimidating, but cars were being moved to their spots quickly and with ease. Social distancing was enforced and masks were widespread, minimal panic. Goes to show that live music events, even though reminiscent of a futuristic, dystopian, post apocalyptic scenario… can be done safely and successfully.
Lights by Herm Lights
It was raining all day and some at the show. After the sun went down it felt freezing. During a wet, cold night like this it’s vital that the band ‘bring the heat’ to get the crowd moving. In a situation like that, if the music is slow and not captivating people will leave because it’s uncomfortable to stand outside. But if it’s thumping and everyone’s dancing, you bet they’re going to stay.
Ryan Dempsey takes a rare keytar solo
Twiddle brought it. Dynamic, bass heavy, shredding, face melting goodness, no kumbaya sing songy b.s… Okay maybe one “When it Rains It Pours,” but that one’s so catchy and appropriate for the night that we’ll let it slide.
We’re not in Vermont anymore
The first set started out with Polluted Beauty, some positivity to lift the spirits and get the crowd going. Then the monstrous Gatsby The Great >Slippin’ In The Kitchen > Gatsby The Great which took up most of the first set, weaving in and out of intricate grooves. “Syncopated Healing” closed up the killer first set.
Mihali x3
Set two featured the popular “When It Rains It Pours,” a monstrous “Cabbage Face,” and “Frankenfoote” to close up the set. Set two featured a wider variety of songs and grooves. Ryan Dempsey took a key-tar solo, got up on his chair to play with his foot, and threw a pumpkin at the crowd which masterfully bounced on the rail and missed anyone around.
Brook Jordan shining
Twiddle put on an incredible show; their fans were screaming for more. They return with a hard rocking “Juggernaut” encore to close up the show.
Twiddle New Jersey “Juggernaut” encore
My car neighbors mentioned they’ve seen Twiddle twice before and it got me thinking: I’ve been spoiled to see and shoot this band all around the states for over five years now. And I must say that I’ve always like the band, but after this show I think I’m a true fan.
You gotta like apples, man
Twiddle at Sussex County Fairgrounds 11/1/20
Set 1:
Polluted Beauty
Gatsby The Great >Slippin’ In The Kitchen > Gatsby The Great
Buffalo jam stars moe. took to the stage in Yarmouth, Massachusetts on Cape Cod this past weekend for the middle two nights of their four-night New England run. Nearly seven months have passed since their last pre-Covid performance in Atlantic City, with a planned pair of drive-in shows in upstate New York unexpectedly cancelled mere days before the performance. It was clear early on that moe. was eager to shake the cobwebs off and play for a live audience.
The Yarmouth Drive-In, though spacious and very well organized, has the drawback of lacking a PA system, which seemed to sway some of the opinions of prospective attendees in the weeks leading up to the show. The venue used an FM transmitter to deliver sound to the patrons, who either used battery-powered radios or their own car radios to dance in their private cordoned-off suites.
In a few instances, moe. fans at Yarmouth were seen lugging in their own PA systems, which they would mic up to a radio and supply loud, clean sound to their neighbors. Security was ever-present, making sure people were following the mask mandate and other safety protocols, while maintaining a friendly rapport with the fans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuJHhNPCkAY
On night one, the boys took the stage promptly at 7 o’clock and opened with a speedy and energetic “Threw it all Away,” with their anthemic “Plane Crash” following close on its heels. Then, moe. went into some exploratory territory with “Skrunk,” featuring some pedalboard experimentation from guitarist Chuck Garvey (one fan described the computerized, robotic shredding as “connecting us to AOL” in a Facebook post.) He would return to use the effect sparingly throughout the two-night run, but brought it to the forefront here. They left “Skrunk” in the dust with a long, patient and smooth transition into their jam vehicle “Time Ed,” which is around the time the sound crew really dialed in bassist Rob Derhak’s vocals. They kept the energy high with “Akimbo,” segued into one of the new album’s songs, “Who You Callin’ Scared” and then closed out the first set of the weekend with Al’s ode to his late father, the epic two-parter “Downward Facing Dog.”
Set two opened with a drawn-out intro to the new track “Along For The Ride,” a protest song complete with E-drums and a funky bassline, which seems to be getting its feet under it more and more each time it’s played. This abruptly led into Annihilation Blues, a short and sweet rock tune from the No Guts, No Glory album, which took a surprising turn and featured a long, inventive outro jam that slowly morphed into the crowd-pleasing “Bring It Back Home.” “Mar De Ma,” Vinny’s instrumental number, led flawlessly into the iconic bassline of “Billy Goat” in yet another creative segue. They finished the second set with a pair of songs penned by guitarist Al Schnier, the history-inspired “Puebla” and the dark, heavy, strange fantasy tale that is “Bearsong” with an Iron Butterfly homage in between for the classic rock buffs in the crowd. For their encore (after a chorus of cheers and honking horns) moe. returned to the stage for a rendition of the triumphant “Happy Hour Hero” before bidding the crowd farewell for the night.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2naJUN5jYQ
While Night 1 had a creative setlist and some truly inspired segueways and jams, Night 2 showed a relentless side of moe. that can only emerge from months of quarantine. Nearly every single song transitioned into the next, either in the “no huddle” style of immediately diving into the next song, or with a long improvised jam that keeps the audience guessing, with only a single break between songs that occurred near the end of the first set. After opening with their flagship song, “Rebubula,” moe. played the traditional pairing of “Not Coming Down” and “Wormwood,” which bled into their first cover of the weekend, Pink Floyd’s rousing “Fearless” and then the reflective “Deep This Time.”
At this point, moe. stopped playing (for the only time the entire show) and Rob addressed the crowd with a brief speech in which he thanked the crowd for being there, expressing his solidarity. Shortly after, he plucked the opening notes of the Bush-era protest song “George” and the Yarmouth Drive-In briefly turned into a disco dance lot.
After a half hour set break, the temperature was dropping and occasional bursts of wind chilled the air. As some of the patrons added some extra layers and poured themselves another drink, moe. retook the stage for a fully segued set that deftly wove old classics and new additions to the moe. repertoire. Al started the set with a slow, bluesy lick, while the introduction to “Moth” was slowly solidified by his bandmates. “Moth” was left unfinished as they steered the soaring, uplifting “Moth” jam into the slap-happy, bass-heavy “LL3,” a new song written by Rob Derhak about his battle with oropharyngeal cancer. This version was livelier and heavier than previous versions, growing more and more energetic with each subsequent performance. They smoothly brought the tempo down and started teasing the harmonic intro of “Lazarus.” The song that has changed arrangements several times in the last decade and seems to have finally transformed back into the monstrous jam vehicle it once was.
They chased “Lazarus” with the mammoth instrumental “McBain,” which featured an expected “Walking On the Moon” tease (The Police) and a somewhat more predictable “Crosseyed and Painless” tease (Talking Heads) which has become a staple of performances of “McBain.” This was followed by another “no huddle,” this time into the Who’s classic hit “Pinball Wizard,” which has only been played seven times ever. Throwing yet another curveball our way, rather than ending “Pinball Wizard” and starting a new song to finish the set, moe. played a ripping, boisterous segue into the unfinished “Moth,” for one final singalong to close out the set. After a brief reading of the “al.nouncements,” they played a quick “Seat of my Pants” and “no huddled” once more into the bouncy, absurdist “Sensory Deprivation Bank” before finally calling it a night.
Despite the lack of PA and the safety restrictions due to the pandemic, moe. made the best of an unfortunate situation and delivered two powerhouse performances that would please the most devoted fans and casual attendees alike. Hopefully they will continue playing shows with this model for as long as it’s necessary. The fans seemed respectful of the rules for the most part, the Yarmouth Drive-In seemed to have peoples’ safety in mind, and the band seemed overjoyed to be back on stage.
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.
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.
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.
Goose wrapped up a run of Drive-Ins around the Northeast with two nights at South Farms in Morris, CT. Over September 16 and 17, fans spaced out on individual grids to properly socially distance during the show. The remote location in Western Connecticut is conducive to limiting a large amount of fans from descending on the show, as we slowly recover from the industry wide live music shutdown.
With this past June’s Bingo Tour the last fresh Goose for hungry fans, they played two shows in Cape Cod at Yarmouth Drive-In prior to South Farms, and next plays Drive-In shows at Essex Junction, VT on October 2 and Swanzey, NH on October 3.
Having added percussionist Jeffrey Arevalo to the lineup in recent months, the five-piece group kicked off a funky night one with “Me and My Uncle,” a John Phillips tune popularized by the Grateful Dead.
Night two featured a handful of notable covers, include Rick Mitarotonda singing Jim James level vocals on My Morning Jacket’s “State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.) to close the first set. The second set kicked off with 25+ minutes of original “Indian River” -> “Crosseyed and Painless” by Talking Heads.
Setlist South Farms, CT, September 16, 2020
Set 1: Me and My Uncle (1), Flodown, Western Sun > Tumble, Jive II -> Jive Lee, Electric Avenue (2), Echo of a Rose (3)
Set 2: Travelers > White Lights > Bob Don > Madhuvan
Encore: Disco Inferno (4)
(1) John Phillips (2) Eddy Grant (3) W/ Vocal Ending (4) The Trammps
Setlist South Farms, CT, September 17, 2020
Set 1: Switchin’ (1) > Doc Brown, Wild Night (2), Elizabeth, Rosewood Heart, This Old Sea, State of the Art (3)
Set 2: Indian River -> Crosseyed and Painless (4), Lead The Way, So Ready, Arrow
Encore: Arcadia
(1) Wes Montgomery (2) Van Morrison (3) Jim James, FTP (4) Talking Heads Goose South Farms CT
Ruby Mack, a new all-female folk band, already makes waves and questions society as we know it with their debut album Devil Told Me, out on October 23.
Photo credit Gianna Colson
In their new album, feminist folk ensemble Ruby Mack turns a traditional bible story completely on its head. What if Eve had eaten the Garden of Eden’s forbidden fruit without shame and then shared her knowledge with the world? In Devil Told Me, Ruby Mack tell their story as direct descendants from that Eve.
Named after Massachuttes’ Pioneer Valley’s Ruby McIntosh Apple, Ruby Mack is made up of Emma Ayres (Vocals/guitar), Abbie Duquette (bass uke), Zoe Young (guitar/vocals), and Abs Kahler (fiddle). In their upcoming album, these strong musicians dig deeper into what it really means to be a woman, or even to reject this label. Devil Told Me closely examines several stories, mythologies, and societal norms that we have been taught to accept without question. These feminists will push social boundaries aside with the release of their album on October 23.
Ruby Mack’s music explores topics left unsaid in traditional folk music. The group tells in “Breadwinner” that they want to be the relationship’s provider as women. The softer “Milktooth” encourages listeners to become fully themselves despite rigid societal rules. The song expresses developing and growing up. “It’s about rejecting the ways in which we are initially told who we are and what we are” notes guitar-vocalist Ayres with the lyrics “Always fighting in this civil war/ Since the devil told me I was born a girl.”
Ruby Mack has come into their own in Massachusetts. “I definitely found my identity as a musician in this place,” Duquette expresses. “The support encouragement I found in the area made me feel like I too could be an artist.” The group has felt united with the music culture of the area. “There’s such an amazing culture of folk music in the valley”, says Kahler, “and we’ve been inspired by so many queer folk artists here.” The band claims their corner of Pioneer Valley, MA area as one of the strongest inspirations for Devil Told Me.
Photo credit Gianna Colson
Listeners can appreciate this album even more today while missing concerts due to COVID-19. The tracks were recorded in an old church, and each song has a strong live feel to it, demanding attention with its energy. Young explains that it was important for the album “to have that special magic of a collaborative performance,” and the result does not disappoint.
The four friends have passionately worked together to create something both beautiful and impactful, starring memorable harmonies and strings as well as poignant lyrics. Farce The Music released a single from the album, “Machine Man,” which is available now. Kahler calls it “an ode to the blue-collar workers, the skilled laborers, without whom the fabric of the lives we live would surely unravel.”
