Artists strive to develop, grow, evolve. Blacktop Mojo’s latest release, Static, is certainly a product of that ethic. A 4 song EP that it is a get in your car, roll down the windows, crank it up, and drive recording. With their first three albums laying the groundwork, Static represents a defining moment in this East Texas based band’s career.
Blacktop Mojo
Issued as an EP, it equates more to a perfect album side. The bond between the songs begs for it to be played in its entirety. No singling out a song or two, you need to play them all. On first listen, I was so hooked that I played the EP through a second and third time before taking a breath. Simply put, this is a rocker. Raw, hard and an unfiltered.
Statoc = Blacktop Mojo
Twist the antenna around
Is there something wrong
There’s nothing but white noise now
The signal’s gone
“Signals Gone” – Blacktop Mojo
Blacktop Mojo has set a high watermark for future projects. If you are new to the band, what a place to start. For those those who have been in the know, Static will live at the top of the collection.
Legendary art-rock group The Residents has released their latest single “DIE! DIE! DIE!” featuring Black Francis of the Pixies. Their upcoming album, METAL, MEAT & BONE is based on newly discovered recordings of Alvin Snow (a.k.a. Dyin’ Dog) and includes 10 Dyin’ Dog Demos, 10 interpretations of the demos by The Residents, and six new works inspired by Dyin’ Dog.
The Residents have been regarded as icons in the world of experimental music for almost fifty years. In addition to their groundbreaking work in the areas of trance, world fusion, electronica, punk, industrial and lounge music, the group has also been credited with being among the originators of performance art and music video, with their videos included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
To know the story of Alvin Snow a.k.a. Dyin’ Dog, one must enter the world of an outsider turned bluesman. Born on Friday, January 13, 1939, Alvin Snow was abandoned on the steps of an orphanage. Snow created his own reality from the fragments of life drifting through his consciousness. He endured thoughts that were lined with the feeling life’s out to get him. This explains Snow’s unspoken rage and overpowering air of entitlement that allowed him to evade lawyers, angry victims, and the police. Lurking in the dark creases of his mind was a beast that haunted his every being.
The penetrating sounds of a jukebox pouring out of a small Mississippi town’s bar suddenly stopped him dead in his tracks one day. “Who’s Been Talking” sung by Howlin’ Wolf left Snow mesmerized and an overwhelming epiphany came over him. He began to devour every song recorded by Howlin’ Wolf and became interested in The Blues ever since.
Alvin Snow needed to come up with a stage name and everyone agreed Alvin Snow just wasn’t it. It took some thinking on his part to match the perfect name to his ruffled voice, and even more blemished character. A hospital bed fell on and crushed his dog which give him the inspiration to come up with the name Dyin’ Dog. Before the debut performance of his 10-recorded demos on January 13, 1976, Snow vanished and was never to be heard from again. In September 2019, the Dyin’ Dog Demos were extraordinarily released as a Box Set. The Residents bring these long-lost songs to fans worldwide with the release of METAL, MEAT & BONE on July 10, 2020.
The 4th Annual Flyday Music Festival will postpone until September, and once again return to the Blackthorne Resort in the Northern Catskill Mountains. Taking place over the course of three days from September 10 – 13, this year festival attendees can expect music from all different types of genres including rock, jam bands, soul, R&B and so much more.
With over twenty acts already scheduled to perform headliners include Lespecial, returning favorites The Magnetic Pull, Hartley’s Encore, plus first-timers Consider The Source, Schleigho, Now vs Now led by Jason Lindner (keyboardist on David Bowie’s final album Blackstar as well as a member of Meshell Ndegeocello’s touring band), Jonathan Scales Fourchestra, Expansion Project, Space Junk Is Forever, Muscle Tough, Cats Under Stars featuring Adam Czolowski, Acoustic Trauma, bassist Nigel Felony (of Floodwood), The Mark Basil Band, Level:Memory and K-Weef.
Sun Colored Chair is set to host the first annual Flyday Open MicNight on Thursday in the Phoenix Pub at Blackthorne Resort, in addition to being part of the festival lineup. Other acts are set to be added to the lineup via the website at later dates.
Originally scheduled in May, the spring festival was moved to September in response to the COVID-19. As of now tickets sales are set at 250 this time to allow for 6 feet of social distancing. Additional ticket sales will happen at the door if there is a lift in the gathering bans. Tickets are available for purchase here.
We’ve all been in need of some new live music and thankfully The Mountain Carol has come to our rescue. Their latest offering, How The West Was Won, is a live album containing incredible versions of their previously released work. Around since 2017, they have established themselves in the past with their undeniably unique sound, a combination of psychedelic and atmospheric electro-pop with a low-fi sound that permeates throughout this live release. Oh, and just a dash of alien abductions.
This album was recorded live at Light Club Lamp Shop in Burlington and the band really uses the space to their advantage. The reverberation from Matt Hall’s percussion through the room adds an incredible depth to the overall sound as it blends with the ebb and flow of Charles Bruce’s incredible vocal talent. Charles’ cosmic keyboarding also balances perfectly with Austin Petrashune’s bouncy, spacey but laser-focused guitar playing. From the giddy opening track, “Under Neith” to “Essex Ferry,” the mountainous closer, this entire album is a sonic adventure.
On their Facebook page, The Mountain Carol boldly claims to be “quite possibly the most important band to emerge from the North Country New York music scene.” Having listened to How The West Was Won multiple times, one cannot dispute their claim. Throw this on when you’re socially distancing at your next campfire, driving home from a day hike in the Adirondacks or enjoying the evening on your porch. It is available to stream on BandCamp, Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play Music and YouTube.
Smithsonian Folkways has released an album of recordings from legendary bluegrass musician Doc Watson and fiddle player Gaither Carlton. The recordings on Watson and Carltoncome from two concerts in New York City in October 1962; one concert at the NYU School of Education and the other at Blind Lemon’s (a folk club in the West Village that was gone the next week).
In the early 1960s, Watson was playing rockabilly tunes on his electric guitar near his home in tiny Deep Gap, NC when he was discovered by folklorist Ralph Rinzler. Watson became known for his heartfelt, powerful singing and the distinctive sound of his acoustic guitar.
Ralph Rinzler set up the concerts as Watson’s debut in New York, but it was a young PeterSiegel, who recorded both concerts in New York. Siegel still lives in New York, and founded the Nonesuch Explorer Series. He went on to produce music with Watson, and other talented artists such as Paul Siebel, Tom Paxton, Roy Buchanan. Peter Siegel shared his thoughts on how Doc Watson influenced future guitarists:
Today there are all these great flatpicking guitarists we know about. Clarence White, Tony Rice, all kinds of people. Billy Strings too now. At that time, nobody had ever heard a folk guitar player play like that! In folk music, the guitar was an accompanying instrument, which was usually strummed in a specific way. So when Doc showed up, it blew my mind. It blew everyone’s mind!
The music that is played on these recordings is not the virtuosic guitar style Watson is known for. Throughout the album are songs like “Double File” and “He’s Coming to Us Dead” that are comprised of the fiddle, guitar, and banjo to demonstrate the roots of Scottish and Irish music.
Ella Joy Mier, under the moniker Iris Lune, delivers her debut album ‘Lovelosslovee,’ a poetic and sonic masterpiece that examines the seamless relationship between love and loss.
The Brooklyn native is a songwriter who came inter her own, via the folk music of her heritage, Israel. Bringing a contemporary take on the sounds she is familiar with, Mier showcases her ability to tie rich, sonic passages along with beautiful poetry and wordplay. She exhibits a palpable mystique focus but diverse mood board throughout.
After loosing her mother from a six year battle with cancer, Mier has been desperately trying to piece her life back together, trying to survive in a world without her mother’s physical presence. These songs take the audience through that emotional journey.
The project starts with a well thought-out drum intro, followed by a rumbling, synthesized bass line. Intertwined vocal melodies, textured guitar and well organized percussion hits are a constant throughout the albums track list. With a central theme of love and loss, the tracks on this album mend together creating an emotive and captive tapestry of sound. With a clear knowledge of radio friendly pop structures as well as dreampop-like instrumentation, Mier falls inter her own on this album, creating a space that she is clearly confident in.
The production lets her vocals shine and remain the focal point from song to song. The album being co-written and produced by Asher Kutz, is full of highs and lows along with dynamic songwriting. Lovelosslove fulfils Miers’ want to let us in briefly to the journey of the endless relationship between love and loss.
Buffalo Iron Works, in partnership with The Transit Drive-In in Lockport are bringing the “LIVE AT THE DRIVE” concert series to life. The concert series will be featuring many artists starting with Aqueous on Friday and Saturday, June 19 & 20.
The socially distanced concert series will be held at The Transit Drive-In and will feature two concerts a week through August. Future artists performing will be announced in the weeks to come. The concert series aims to have 16 shows in total. Thursday nights will feature a concert and movie combo night while Saturdays will host concerts in the afternoons between 2PM-5PM.
Aqueous will be starting off the concert series on June 19 & 20. They are a groove rock band that hails from Buffalo, NY. Aqueous is a locally famous band to the Buffalo area and have been involved in many live-stream shows since the halt on live shows due to COVID-19.
Tickets will be available for purchase though the Transit Drive-In website. Gates for the concert series will open at 1pm both days with the show starting at 2pm. GA tickets are $40 per person and VIP are $80 per person. VIP tickets will include a ticket to the show, a vehicle spot in the front two rows, and a limited edition poster. All ticketing will be through internet pre-sale only, and tickets need to be purchased for all occupants of each vehicle under one transaction. A minimum of two people per vehicle must be purchased, with a maximum of six people.
For more information visit Buffalo Iron Works website and The Transit Drive-In website.
Even though schools have been closed since March 16, the College of Saint Rose in Albany has given former season 18 American Idol contestant Julia Gargano and a small group of former classmates special permission to use the Hearst Center for Communications and Interactive Media, the Times Union recently reported.
From Staten Island, Gargano was a senior in the music-industry program at Saint Rose when the opportunity presented itself to travel to Brooklyn and perform in front of Idol producers. She continued on to impress all three judges, singing her way onto the show. Each week her performances were top notch until an unprecedented coronavirus pandemic caused the show to halt and send contestants home.
Idol production resumed from each of the contestants’ homes where Gargano sang her way into the top seven for the finale. Even though the singer-songwriter did not win she feels that Idol has impacted her career in ways that she did not imagine. Gratitude for how recent experiences have impacted her life has been Gargano’s outlook since the ending of the show.
Gargano told the Times Union “‘Idol’ totally lit this drive inside me, I’m in work-work-work mode. The show will really help me be my own artist, my own singer-songwriter.”
The show might be over but it is not the end of the road for Gargano’s music journey. Now a Saint Rose graduate, Gargano and four of her previous classmates are working on three singles that are set to be released on streaming services later in the year. For now check out Gargano’s original song ‘Growing Pains.
The Apollo Theater and Gibson have partnered together to bring music fans “Let’s Stay (In) Together: A Benefit To Support The Apollo”, a live streaming benefit concert. Airing June 4 at 7:30 PM ET, the concert will be free for views made possible through Apollo’s media partner Tidal. Originally planned for June 2, The Apollo decided to postpone the show and stand with others in the music industry to observe Blackout Tuesday.
This special event will feature performances by “Captain” Kirk Douglas of The Roots, Kool & The Gang, Gary Clark Jr, Robert Randolph, Ray Chew and many more artists. Not only will the artists perform songs from legends like B.B. King, Patti LaBelle and Stevie Wonder, the Apollo’s 86 year contribution to the arts and culture will be highlighted. Viewers will also witness poems and performances dedicated to the memory of those whose lives have been lost due to the Coronavirus Pandemic.
Proceeds are set to benefit an emergency relief fund to financially support the theater now and into the future once it had to cancel live events through the month of June due to the coronavirus pandemic. Portions of the funds will also be used for micro grants to support local merchants and businesses in the 125th Street neighborhood that Apollo Theater calls home.
By partnering with Gibson through the Gibson Gives foundation, this marks the beginning of a new partnership that in the future will include brand new show programming, music preservation, music education initiatives, and support established and emerging talent.
“Music has the incredible power to connect, transform and heal. We hope you will support the legendary Apollo Theater and join us for a special event featuring music that lifts our spirits, shapes our lives, and continues to unite us all.”
As we enter June, the fourth month where live music performances are postponed until it is deemed safe to have mass gatherings due to COVID-19, we take a look at the music venues across the state that are closed for now, but in the coming months will hopefully reopen.
Working with 13 photographers to document more than 60 venues in 20 cities across New York State, we present this monthly series that will look at the current conditions of these beloved venues. As they reopen, we will provide photo documentation recording the changes over time in all corners of the state.
Great thanks to all photographers and venues who take part in this series.
