Of the many fabled rappers that have hailed from Brooklyn, AZ might be the most overlooked. When great Brooklyn emcees are the topic, the usual suspects are The Notorious B.I.G., Jay- Z, Big daddy Kane, amongst others. Rarely is AZ ever brought up and that is seemingly how he prefers it, having given himself the moniker “AZ Quiet Money.”
AZ — whose rise to notoriety came from his classic guest-verse on Nas’ magnum opus debut-LP, Illmatic — has mastered a rare skill in a profession that is filled with ubiquity and hubris. The art of playing the background and biting your time. It also helps that as a famed lyricist, AZ has laurels to rest on.
Which is why it comes as no surprise to see the “Sugar Hill” rapper tease the sequel to his platinum-selling debut, Doe or Die,on his own accord. In an Instagram post which features a teenage picture of AZ and Nas, the caption reads “We been cooking up since 94 & We still cooking.,, Doe or Die 2 Coming soon!”
Although talks of a sequel to his debut can be traced as far back as 2015 (the album’s twentieth anniversary), there seems to be a re-invigoration from the “Mo Money, Mo Murder” rapper, having released a new record — “Found My Niche” — and an accompanying music video earlier this year.
A return album would be AZ’s first since 2009’s, Legendary. The “Firm” rapper (along with close associate, Nas) has gained a reputation for a specific style of rap. While gangster and mafioso Hip Hop ruled the mid-1990’s, AZ’s claim to fame was that while he was from the areas where great dangers lied, his records weren’t always in first person and oftentimes portrayed stories from the neighborhood. In addition, AZ’s knowledge of self and higher learning has always made him a favorite among hip hop connoisseurs, making a possible release to Doe or Die 2,much anticipated.
Nightcap at Wits’ End has been out for a month, and the buzz behind Garcia Peoples latest release is well justified. Named one of the fall’s most anticipated albums by Uproxx, and “their most focused and engaging work to date” by AllMusic has put the New Jersey band on the radar of Rolling Stone and live music afficianados in New York City. The group’s grand psychedelic sound and penchant for improv when live carries through on Nightcap at Wits’ End, an ambitious effort that delivers from start to finish.
Artwork by D.Norsen
There is an actual Wits End Tavern on the NY/NJ border in Unionville, NY near Black Dirt Studios where Garcia Peoples recorded their last two albums, Cosmic Cash and One Step Behind. The nightcap offered on their new release is more than a pre-bedtime listen – the experimental weirdness of “Fire of the Now” and the early Genesis mixed with psychedelia of “Gliding Through” are meant to provoke the listener early on into continuing the journey of Nightcap at Wits’ End.
Tom Malach and Danny Arakaki formed the band in New Jersey, slowly solidifying the lineup with Danny’s brother Cesar (drums) and Derek Spaldo (bass) joining the two guitarists in mid-2016. Having since relocated to New York, they have added Pat Gubler (keys) and Andy Cush (bass) with Spaldo shifting to vocals and guitar, making a trio of guitarists at the center of Garcia Peoples‘ sound. Nightcap is the first time the six have recorded together in the studio, the result being a transference of the live experience to the studio album.
In discussing Nightcap with NYS Music, Spaldo revisited One Step Behind, with its 30-minute title track making for a one of a kind album.
One Step Behind is certainly a unique type of record – primarily one long piece of music with multiple movements. We’ve played that entire piece live, even drawing it out to about 50 minutes of non-stop music. But Nightcap at Wits’ End feels like a solid snapshot of “here’s what you might get at a Garcia Peoples show”: high energy, hard-rocking tunes, with a tempting taste of our improvisational flair.
I like to think of Nightcap as the record where all six of us let our musicianship really soar in a “balls to the wall” kind of way. When we were recording it, there was a strong sense of being in the groove. There was even an improvisational nature in the way that the songs were created. We really put a lot of ourselves into the making of it.
Derek Spaldo, Garcia Peoples
Nightcap is indeed a full album where the musicianship shines, particularly on the second side, where one finds songs interconnected as they flow from one to the next. This effort mirrors the live experience of seeing Garcia Peoples, while offering early Pink Floyd influences heard on “Crown of Thought” and the seamless segue into the 1:36 of “Sound Controls Time.”
Drawing on 1960s era psychedelic music frames Nightcap, and influences the band without emulating them outright.
Blossom Toes, Jefferson Airplane, The Turtles, and Mighty Baby are some bands that come to mind. Our whole ethos of having super open-ended jamming, taking things way out sonically, is certainly inspired by the late 60s psychedelic movement.
Though from a songwriting POV, I feel that our collective inspiration works more as an accumulation of influences that seep into our creativity through osmosis. I wouldn’t necessarily say that we deliberately set out to imitate our influences. Though having a common frame of reference is always useful in the development stage when trying to convey what the vibe of a song should feel like, what the arrangements should be like, etc.
Derek Spaldo, Garcia Peoples
A majority of Nightcap at Wits’ End was recorded earlier in 2019, just after finishing a tour, adding to the comfort in switching from the road to the studio.
Most of the basic tracks were recorded with the six of us playing live in the room together, so there is that kinetic interplay that one can hear on the record. I think recording as live as possible is the best way to go for us; the way we play off each other is so in-the-moment and essential.
Derek Spaldo, Garcia Peoples
Whether you catch the Doors vibe of “Altered Place,” find yourself lost in the seven-minute acoustic-prog journey “Painting a Vision that Carries,” or fall into “(Our Life Could be your Van)” – harboring a long spacey beginning that picks up steam, traveling through valleys on an instrumental vision quest – Nightcap at Wits’ End is an album that puts Garcia Peoples in the spotlight and on a pedestal as we patiently look forward to what comes next.
The Hold Steady will host their annual Massive Nights 2020 livestream celebration on December 3-5. Brooklyn Bowl will livestream the event to showcase The Hold Steady’s music and allow viewers to enjoy the show from the comfort of their own homes. Music kicks off on December 3 and 4 at 9 p.m. and on December 5 at 5 p.m.
The Hold Steady plan to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their fifth studio album, Heaven Is Whenever with a special double-album reissue set to release on November 27. The limited-edition vinyl and CD of Heaven Is Whenever Deluxe Edition will include nine unreleased bonus songs and liner notes by Drive-By Truckers co-founder and singer/songwriter/guitarist Patterson Hood. As a bonus, the digital version of the deluxe album will include six unreleased songs. Fans can pre-order the limited-edition album on the THS website.
Photo by Lee Allen Photography
On May 4, 2010, The Hold Steady released Heaven Is Whenever. making it their first release since the departure of keyboardist Franz Nicolay on January 20, 2010. The album debuted in the top 5 on Billboard’s “Top Alternative Albums” chart and made a top 10 debut on Billboard’s “Top Rock Albums.”
Everyone seems to have an opinion about our fifth album. Here in 2020, we’re very proud of Heaven Is Whenever. It’s the sound of a band pushing through difficult times by making music about that very struggle. It acknowledges suffering as part of human life. And with all the extra songs that we recorded beyond the album tracks, it’s a testament to the band’s willingness to show up and try to work through uncertainty. Happy 10 years to Heaven Is Whenever
Order of Operations, a Brooklyn-based synth-pop project released their cover of “Psycho Killer.” This is the first to be shared off of their upcoming Talking Heads covers EP. It is the solo project of musician and producer Alain Paradis. This is the first recorded output from Paradis since 2014. The EP, Love Me Til My Heart Stops, is available November 19.
Order Of Operations is the solo project of Brooklyn musician Alain Paradis. The group spans the spectrum of future-looking indie — from austere cold wave, to noisy post-punk & dream pop, to Big Chair-style synth ballads in search of a John Hughes film.
The group debuted with 2014’s EP Constrvctive Delusions. Love Me Til My Heart Stops marks his second release, as he works towards his next original music venture. Alain Paradis lives in Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY with his synths and his regal-looking Persian cat Zoe.
Photo Cred: Brennan Michalowski
There’s a symmetry present in Order Of Operations reimagining the music of Talking Heads in 2020. Caught up in a cacophony of crises, NYC has begun to mirror the rumbling streets of the late 1970s that Byrne and company first crawled up from the cracks of. Alain Paradis sends a bright and lucid current through these songs, replacing irony with something that feels more like empathy. Additionally, the skittish no-wave originals are remade into evocative synth-pop anthems, spun through a kaleidoscope of chillwave and bedroom pop influences, until they seem to exist in their own unique time and space.
New Wave of British Heavy Metal band Raven were no strangers to playing Halloween shows in the New York City area – their first American gig ever had been just over 4 years to the day, October 30, 1982, when they opened for Riot and Anvil in Staten Island at the ‘Halloween Headbangers’ Ball.’
Raven hail from Newcastle, in England, and their first three albums – Rock Until You Drop (1981), Wiped Out (1982) and All For One (1983) – still stand as ahead-of-their-timel classics, raw, fast real metal records, all hailed being massively influential to the thrash metal scene in the later 80s.
The band – made up of brothers John and Mark Gallagher on bass/vocals and guitar, and hockey-helmeted Rob ‘Wacko’ Hunter on drums – had also made significant headway in the USA in the early/mid-80s, first with a New York/New Jersey-area late 1982 tour with Anvil, and then the legendary ‘Kill Em All For One’ US tour in 1983, where the band had crossed the States with opening band Metallica, bringing underground metal to all corners of America.
By the time of their 1984 ‘Live at the Inferno’ US tour (with New York’s own Anthrax as support band), the band were signed to legendary NY/NJ metal indie label Megaforce Records, and big enough to sell out Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan, where they headlined in August 1984 with Metallica and Anthrax opening – a show which resulted in Raven (by this time New York State residents, living in Cortland, NY) being signed to major label Atlantic Records.
John & Mark Gallagher – photo by George Putt
Opinions differ on whether the band’s Atlantic Records output advanced their career, or damaged it. The 1985 album, ‘Stay Hard’, certainly raised the band’s profile outside the metal underground, especially via the MTV video for the single “On & On”, but their hardcore metal demographic scoffed at the less-thrashing sound of Stay Hard, and the rear-cover photo of the band looking more airbrushed and cleaned-up, as opposed to their more street-level, rough-hewn image of yore.
Their underground credibility was further damaged by the early 1986 LP The Pack Is Back, on which producer Eddie Kramer gave them a more slick, polished sound, and the band dabbled with guitar synths and a more commercial sound. The band’s slicker sound on TBIB, combined with a frankly ill-advised album cover, featuring the costumed band bursting out of sports lockers, damaged their standing with the growing thrash metal audience, yet was still too heavy to appeal to the Ratt and Motley Crue demographic.
Raven bassist/vocalist John Gallagher – photo by Sean McFerran
In Summer 1986 the band righted the ship with the ‘Raven Mad’ EP, a welcome, raw return to form after the woefully overproduced and unusually weak The Pack is Back LP. This Halloween 1986 gig was the final date of the ‘Mad’ tour, after which they went upstate to make follow-up album Life’s A Bitch.
First band Never More did not impress: strange, horror-themed costumes and warbling vocals, terrible stuff. Second band Liege Lord were much better, Iron Maiden-stye metal, fast and powerful.
Raven guitarist Mark Gallagher – photo by Sean McFerran
Raven, however, were on total form this night and erased any concerns that the TPIB record had changed their high-intensity metal assault. L’Amour was pretty packed, and the set-list was fantastic – the band hit the stage with the All For One-era classic “Hung, Drawn & Quartered”, high-speed and raging, straight into the then-recent “Stay Hard,” heaver live than he recorded version. The set featured more stuff (5 songs) from the great ‘All For One’ than any other album, three tunes each from ‘Mad’ and ‘Rock Until You Drop’ (including the classic 1980 debut 7” single “I Don’t Need Your Money”), a couple from “Stay Hard” (the title track and the “hit”, “On & On”) and only one from The Pack Is Back: “Young Blood” which sounded much heavier live than on the record.
The only album they skipped was ‘Wiped Out,’ which is the only remotely negative thing I can say about this amazing show. Early in the gig John Gallagher’s wireless mike packed it in, and he played most of the show singing at a mike stand, which gave it a cool ‘early Raven’ vibe. The encore included a cover of the Status Quo song “Big Fat Mama” which, because we are in America, almost no one recognized, and they finished with the classic “Hell Patrol” from the first LP, with the band virtually destroying the stage at the end, Wacko tearing his drum set to pieces, and John Gallagher hanging over the crowd from ceiling pipes. Truly, the band erased any fears that The Pack Is Back had turned them into lightweights. A tremendous show.
Mark Gallagher on the floor – photo by George Putt
Three and a half decades later, the band is still going strong, with a new drummer and a killer 2020 album, Metal City. All hail Raven!
Raven at L’Amour, Brooklyn, NY, October 31, 1986
Setlist: Hung, Drawn & Quartered/Stay Hard/Gimme Just A Little/All For One/Young Blood/Mark Gallagher Solo/Speed Of The Reflex/I Don’t Need Your Money/Rock Until You Drop/John Gallagher solo/On & On/Seek & Destroy/Break The Chain/Mind Over Metal. Encores: Do or Die [w/ drum solo]/Big Fat Mama/Hell Patrol.
Ok Cowgirl, the lofi indie rock project of Leah Lavigne, a Brooklyn-based multi-instrumentalist has released their debut single “Get Gone.” The song describes the desire to abandon younger insecurities with appearances, wealth, and beauty. It could also be described as an unimpressed response to a superficial culture.
They discussed the various topics associated with the track, speaking about radical-self acceptance, beauty standards, and capitalistic norms. Lavigne said, “At a certain point I knew I needed to let these emotions be what they were. I needed to stop filtering them and stop judging myself for feeling these things.”
Look At My Record praised Lavigne’s “powerful and domineering vocals” of song, and mentioned her strong expression of the frustration with our current cultural values. They also described it as “descending into a fuzz-laden abyss” and finally being able to release the pent-up emotion. Ok Cowgirl has an artistry that goes into the idea of the musician and the role we provide to this world, especially with our modern challenges.
This project also represented a major change for Leah Lavigne. Her earlier solo career up consisted of a more softer energy. People would come up to her in shows and say that she was their favorite sad girl. The Detroit native realized there was so much more to her style and has expanded her lane. Lavigne used to play the piano and switched her focus towards the electric guitar.
Since the summer of 2018, Lavigne performs alongside long-time collaborator and percussionist Matt Birkenholz, bassist Jase Hottenroth, and lead guitarist Jake Sabinsky. They have been noted for their lyrically-driven rock tinged sound, with a soft synth and melodic, angsty influence.
Their new single will surely not disappoint fans of the Brookyln-based group. Their follow up single, “Don’t Go,” will also be out on November 20. “Get Gone” is out now on Spotify, Bandcamp, and Soundcloud.
In preparation for a new EP in 2021, Brooklyn group Fake Dad have released a new single to close out the year. Andrea de Varona and Josh Ford found inspiration for their single “Breakfast in New York,” from a very interesting and unusual source.
The song is a mid-tempo electronic/R&B track, inspired by a knock off Jurassic Park ride in the middle country. “Fake Dad” used that exact backdrop for another music video, bringing a new inspiration to the duo. When de Varona and Ford wrote the song, they were fixated on the idea that the things we wish we could change is exactly what make our lives meaningful.
The Brooklyn duo, Andrea de Varona and Josh Ford, have made music in their tiny studio apartment since 2018. The duo had designated their roles within the band and have worked with a variety of up and coming artists. Andrea and Josh come from different musical backgrounds, but they do share a common goal. That goal is to create something that understands the listener. Both Andrea and Josh wanted to create music that comforted people, especially if the listener had a rough day in life.
“Fake Dad” has received many plaudits from media outlets. The Wild Honey Pie wrote, “Fake Dad take listeners on a trip down memory lane — but it feels closer to a cautionary tale than a fond retelling.”
EARMILK felt “Fake Dad” knew how to express their concepts with their single “Summer Hill.” EARMILK wrote “I tend to reject the saying, “Life is hard.” Not because it is not, but because it glosses over the very real hardships and struggles that so many of us face, tying it up with a bow in just three short words. I do not want to gloss over it. I want to dig deep and uncover what makes the simple act of existing so challenging for all of us. Fake Dad, comprised of Andrea de Varona and Josh Ford, sonically and visually conceptualize all of these ideas.”
“Fake Dad” looks to comfort and share their conceptual ideas with listeners, and their new single will surely do that. “Breakfast in New York” is out now on Spotify. To check out more of “Fake Dad” and their work, visit their Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, or Instagram page.
Fallen Brooklyn drill rapper-turned-superstar Pop Smoke had a career that was as short as it was promising. The slain rapper’s posthumous debut album — Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon— not only debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 (being certified platinum only one month after its release), but also accomplished the rare feat of having all 19 of its tracks simultaneously chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Spawning four RIAA certified platinum singles in “Mood Swings,” “For The Night,” “The Woo” and “Dior.”
The Canarsie, Brooklyn bred artist — whose death at only 20-years-old on February, 19 resulting from a botched robbery— was justly honored at the 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards. Migos stalwart, Quavo, led the tributes with a two-song performance of collaborations he shared with the late rapper. Beginning with “Shake the Room” off of Pop Smoke’s first project of 2020, Meet the Woo 2 and following up with “Aim for the Moon,” from his latest LP.
With adjustments made for COVID-19, the Atlanta emcee performed his portion of the records in a music video style setting, being placed in a white, futuristic, space-themed room, while images of the perished neophyte and his lyrics appeared in the background.
Despite no longer being among us, Pop Smoke’s presence in popular culture is unwavering, with the “Welcome to the Party” rapper also being awarded best new Hip Hop artist in his lone nomination of the night.
The success of his latest project has also proven to be a legacy booster as Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, recently reclaimed the top spot on the Billboard 200, three-months after its original release. And with a new music video for “Aim for the Moon” recently shared, it’s clear that new content for Pop Smoke is still in the works.
Brooklyn’s PEAK has announced the two-part “Live from the Studio” Sessions that will feature full sets from the band. The second and final session will air on December 5 at 8:15PM EST on their YouTube Channel and on Jamcast.
PEAK, a psychedelic indie funk outfit from Brooklyn features members of Turbine, Particle, Hayley Jane and The Primates, and Mick Taylor Band. The band has spent the majority of 2020 writing, rehearsing, and recording an album in their Brooklyn studio.
In October they invited videographer MKDevo and Lighting Designer Matt Calabrese to capture some of the magic that’s been going on.
Each performance will be a little over an hour in length and will feature familiar tunes, new originals and of course, some extremely healthy jams. Listen to the first session here or stream on YouTube below.
Fans are encourages to donate when possible, through Venmo @jeremy-hilliard1. Additionally, PEAK has just opened their online store, featuring a new t-shirt design, copies of Electric Bouquet, stickers and much more.
While waiting for PEAK “Live from the Studio” to arrive, check out PEAK’s performance at Opple Topple Festival from October 3, 2020.
CLAVVS have released a new single, “Dance in Place,” coming off of rave reviews from the release of their latest EP No Saviors in 2019. Along with an extended version of their EP released in February, CLAVVS are looking to capitalize on these releases with their brand new single. The single is also accompanied by a music video and was shot in their neighborhood in Brooklyn.
They made their own music video, looking to capture the strong presence of the sun and the vibrant colors of the autumn weather. Amber describes the video saying,“For the past few years I’ve been imagining visuals that capture my experience of moving through New York but with this fantastical element of suddenly connecting with strangers in some unexplainable moment of celebration.” Especially in the wake of the pandemic, Amber adds, “Having lived through Co-vid here, we both feel even more bound to this city and our neighbors. So, this video is a socially distant version of that daydream.”
The single represents the criticism of capitalism and “grind” culture. Amber described the song as a call for radical self-acceptance and finding joy in a joyless culture. “I wrote this song in February, so it was super weird when we were all kind of forced to closely examine those things in March,” she said. “We couldn’t have guessed how on-the-nose this song would feel now.” It features great production work and a very catchy hook. “We aren’t taking ourselves very seriously anymore,” said Graham. “We just want to have fun with our band.”
Going forward from their previous EP, the Brooklyn via Atlanta duo really wanted to challenge their sound. They have shifted from making disruptive pop songs to reflective music. The duo embraces their flaws to reinvent themselves. “The question became, how do we make CLAVVS songs that we can dance to and smile to?” Amber said. “We really wanted to challenge ourselves to make something we had never made before, something that, for a long time, didn’t feel at home to us. We didn’t know how to write happy songs that felt genuine.”
“Dance in Place” has strongly built on the success of their recent EP. The new song is out now on Spotify, Soundcloud, Bandcamp and various other platforms. Their new single is also accompanied by a music video, which is out now on YouTube.
