Albany’s Young Culture is known for their pop-punk sound but they fully embrace the pop side on their new single, “I’ll Be There.” While drums and guitar are still present on the track, this song is primed for Top 40 with a boy bander-esque dance routine in the accompanying music video.
Despite the music video’s washed-out aesthetic, “I’ll Be There” sounds vibrant and ready-made for summer. Referencing another summer anthem, Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds,” the pre-chorus goes: “Just like the song says, every little thing is gonna be alright.” Whether in relation to the pandemic, current civil unrest, or life in general, the song’s message is reassuring for many reasons. “We’re happy to put out good vibes and hope you enjoy watching it as much as we did making it,” said lead singer, Alex Magnan. Enjoy listening below.
Listen to Young Culture Here.
In addition to the new music video, Young Culture launched “I’ll Be There”-themed merchandise. Over $1,600 of the total proceeds are going to the Albany and Louisville Community Bail Funds. The shirts depicted the Bob Marley quote and an image from the music video. They are now completely sold out. “We’ve been sitting on this simple song for a while and didn’t know that putting it out right now would give it a whole new meaning for us,” Magnan told Broadway World.
Founded by school friends Magnan and Gabe Pietrafesa, with Troy Burchett joining later on, Young Culture released their label debut EP in 2019, entitled, (This Is) Heaven. The pop-punk EP reached #22 on the New Artist chart and and #53 on the Indie chart, and maintains a sizeable Spotify presence. One of the songs, “Drift,” was co-produced by Sam Guaiana, as well as Derek DiScanio of fellow pop-punk Albany band, State Champs.
Scotia Freedom Park’s Quarantunes Series kicked off on Friday, June 20 with a performance from American Idol finalist Madison VanDenburg. The summer concert series, normally held in person, is now streaming online for free from the Freedom Park Quarantune Studio. Through the end of August, new concerts will go up on YouTube and Facebook at 7:00 p.m. each Wednesday and Saturday. Concerts will also be aired live on Spectrum channel 1302 and Fios channel 37.
The Quarantune Series is dedicated to the Class of 2020. The series’ headliner, Madison VanDenburg, is a recent Shaker High School graduate who progressed to the top 3 of American Idol’s season 17 last year. Some of her notable performances on the show include covers of Dan + Shay’s “Speechless,” Adele’s “All I Ask,” and Lady Gaga’s “Shallow” from A Star Is Born. VanDenburg’s new song “Reason” was released to Spotify and Apple Music on June 19, a day before her Quarantune concert.
Other Quarantune Series performers include Celtic quartet Screaming Orphans, local rock duo Sirsy, bluegrass band Skeeter Creek, the Capital District Youth Pipe Band, and more. This season’s lineup is especially diverse, encompassing artists of all ages and genres.
This season’s sponsors include Berkshire Farm Center, GoToScotia.com, Scotia-Glenville Dental Center, Marshall & Sterling Insurance, and the park’s neighboring Jumpin’ Jack’s Drive-In. Each individual concert is also sponsored by a different local business, such as Stewart’s Shops and Scotia Cinema. While the concerts are completely free, Freedom Park is still accepting donations online via Venmo and Paypal.
Quarantune Series T-shirts are also available on their website in unisex sizes from S to XL, featuring the season’s lineup with the slogan “The Season That Almost Wasn’t.”
Check out this stream and more through our series NY Stream and Support, where you’ll discover artists around the Empire State streaming nightly, and ways to support musicians and charitable groups close to home!
When you think of bands like Butthole Surfers, Hoobastank, Limp Bizkit, Barenaked Ladies, and Hootie & The Blowfish, what stands out is the unique and nearly absurd names these groups have. (When Limp Bizkit first came on the scene in the late 90s, the band name was a slight hurdle before getting to their music.) These band names are part of the inspiration for MY FAKE BAND, a music inspired card game that captures the absurdity surrounding band names and song titles.
Combining easy gameplay with the natural comedy that accompanies some band names & song titles, MY FAKE BAND has launched an official Kickstarter campaign, giving backers an opportunity to own a copy of the game before public release.
The music scene has forever been a lawless wasteland of endless bands who rise and fall much like the tide. There are a few things that all bands have in common, such as the process of choosing band names and song titles. Have you ever asked yourself how do they came up with their name, and what does it all mean? MY FAKE BAND takes the guesswork out of the equation with 150 fake band cards and 150 genre cards. During gameplay, you and your crew will produce endless hit song titles based on over 20,000 band and genre combinations drawn from the deck.
Created by Never Played Out LLC, this game aims to capture the imagination of the music scene through their Kickstarter campaign by offering many unique and fun “Street Team Quests.” With quests ranging from tweeting @NPOgames your own fake band names to filming Dragonforce’s Through The Fire and Flames being sung karaoke style, there is a quest for everybody. Completing one or more quests gives you the ability to play a direct role in unlocking stretch goal features.
MY FAKE BAND is designed for 4-8 players for a 45+ minute game, and is recommended for ages 17+.
On June 26, 1995, Phish performed for the third time (and second as a headliner) at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Phish’s 1995 Summer Tour was into full swing by this point with the final 11 shows in the Northeast, four of which were in New York.
Back in 1995, reserved tickets for this performance at SPAC cost only $20. An “Acoustic Army” soundcheck with teases of “Shine” (six months and a day before “Shine” would debut on New Years Eve during “Fly Famous Mockingbird”), and Little Feat’s “Time Loves a Hero” reappeared for the first time since soundcheck on April 15, 1989.
A little Led Zeppelin could be found in “Possum” with a “Heartbreaker” tease, and in “You Enjoy Myself” containing a hint of “Immigrant Song.” The highlight of the show is surely a spacey and unfinishes “Down with Disease” that led into a monster “Free,” seen below.
The penultimate performance of The Meditations “Don’t You Want to Go?” was found in the first set, alongside a unique trio of “It’s Ice” > “Dog Faced Boy” > “Tela,” and the aforementioned “Possum.” Set 2 is a fiery one from the start, with a “Down with Disease” > “Free” that Phish.net calls “a multi-movement masterpiece.” A huge “You Enjoy Myself” (seen below) and “Sleeping Monkey” > “Rocky Top” encore are among the many highlights of this stand out show. It would take 9 years before Phish returned to SPAC, shows that stack up well against June 26, 1995. This show was released by Live Phish in 2017.
Soundcheck: Time Loves A Hero > Dog Log/Time Loves A Hero mashup, Nellie Kane, Santana Instrumental, Rocky Mountain Way
Set 1: My Friend, My Friend, Don’t You Want To Go?, Bathtub Gin, NICU > The Sloth, My Mind’s Got a Mind of its Own, It’s Ice > Dog Faced Boy > Tela > Possum
Set 2: Down with Disease [1] -> Free > Poor Heart > You Enjoy Myself, Strange Design > Run Like an Antelope
Encore: Sleeping Monkey > Rocky Top
[1] Unfinished. My Friend started with a Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 tease from Trey. Trey teased and quoted Long Tall Glasses in Bathtub Gin. Possum contained a Heartbreaker tease and YEM contained Immigrant Song teases from Trey. Down with Disease was unfinished.
One of WNY’s tightest and most eclectic rock groups is back with a new album release on July 3. Rochester based indie rock band, Animal Sounds, has a great discography already, with early material like “Ghosts” paving the way for their first full album, Ennui. It is important to take into context how the band’s music has matured over the past few years. Layers is a whole new beast, with intricately crafted structure and infinitely danceable tunes. Animal Sounds hasn’t compromised on what’s made them an indie staple in the area while continuing to grow.
The album’s opener, “Layers,” is a great exemplification of how the band can mend and bend the genre’s they write around. The core of the song is a dance-able, Young-the-Giant-type-groove complete with wobbly keys and deft guitar work. While the hook and the vocal performance are worthy of the spotlight, the guitar parts and drum feature early on showcase how technically sound their musicianship is. The song breaks out into a New Orleans style brass section before diversifying into a chill and bouncy bridge. The drop downs in the song really make the chorus hooks shine through. One track in, and the album already makes a strong impression.
“Rollin,” the second track, hits heavy with a bluesy, Steely-Dan-style guitar lick underneath reverb-soaked vocal ooh’s. Little hints of shoegazy, early Modest-Mouse-type guitar parts play beneath the verse lyrics. The bass thrusts the song onward into an energetic chorus. Again, the musicianship is stellar as the band navigates very tonally different verses and choruses without missing a beat.
The third track of the album is really a unique sound for the group, with a mix of their essential indie, along with a more twinkly guitar background- similar to some of the tones you’d expect to find on a math-rock album. Some of the guitar parts come off as math-inspired, but they never stray from being rhythmically accessible. The bass tone on this song hits heavy and offers more thickness while the drums provide a straightforward pulse.
“Blue on Burgundy” yields a nice, solid dream-pop feel that remains energetic but gives the album a great dynamic arc. The guitar compositions and their harmonies are so well written and performed here, hitting that perfect point where the guitars meld together and sound like one single instrument. The band’s foray into more jam-type music here (as well as at various other points in the album) pays off in a big way. The solo sections never hang on too long, and what’s being played never comes off as inarticulate or ‘noodly.’
Lastly, “The Feeling” brings the album out on a heavy note. The baritone guitar licks match the bass to create a really thick sound. A theme throughout this album has to be the thickness of the low end. It lends to bouncier drums and allows the guitar and vocals to sit well. The mixing holds up really well and offers plenty of easter eggs worthy of searching for indulging numerous listens. A true dance album with wonderfully designed tones and mixes, Layers is a perfect album for summer playlists and heavy listening. Animal Sounds will be doing a live-stream show on July 3rd, to benefit a local Rochester venue, Photo City. Check out the event here, and catch Animal Sounds live on release day!
Animal Sounds is comprised of Erick Gordon (vocals), Shawn Brogan (guitar), Alex Brophy (guitar), Zach Jonas (bass), and Angel Figueroa (drums).
Brooklyn-based indie rock band, The Next Great American Novelist (aka NGAN), share their new single, “Drag,” from their upcoming sophomore record, Careless Moon. Written before the pandemic and a better-late-than never Civil Rights revolution took the main stage of society. The new single, “Drag,” works to show that there was never a comfortable or correct “normal” in life when times were “precedented,” fully working for everyone.
Songwriter Sean Cahill explains the new single, saying:
I love New York City, though, some days it feels like a dysfunctional landscape of ill-routine. Living here, you realize you’re functionally necessary but of small significance or importance within the larger enterprise. I’m immersed in a series of habits: standing in line, getting on a train, heading to work, buying coffee, buying booze… Are these choices I want to make or am I just keeping the machine going.
Cahill was on the verge of ending his The Next Great American Novelist project before it really even got off the ground. He recalls his experience saying:
I was working in life insurance, and I had a gig at some small venue in Bushwick. I almost didn’t do it because I was so depressed from my living situation and work. I knew nobody, and my girlfriend didn’t show up. I played the show solo, and I was so over everything. I just didn’t give a shit, so I was very open and honest on stage. And this guy who was super shy came up to me afterwards and was like, ‘Hey, I really like your music. I’m a sound engineer, you should come by my studio,’ and gave me his card.
That shy fan was Justin Helm, an engineer at New York’s The Cutting Room. Cahill later stopped by the studio and met the in-house producer, who happened to be Cummings. The two quickly hit it off, connecting over a love of The Beatles and Dirty Projectors. With Helm co-producing and engineering, Cummings would go on to co-produce and play onI’ll See You in the Art You Love, Cahill’s partially crowd-funded debut as The Next Great American Novelist.
It wasn’t long before the pair went from friends to true creative collaborators. As soon as Art You Love was completed, they started approaching a few dozen bedroom demos Cahill had written. Eventually, Cummings expressed a not-so-secret desire to join NGAN, and Cahill was happy to welcome him to the foil. From that moment, the band’s trajectory dramatically changed.
Cahill had never fostered a strong ambition to take his music beyond a personal escape. He’d studied classical guitar in college, but left the program when the criticism and perfection of academia began to suck the fun out of the art. Now with Cummings to play off of, Cahill was rediscovering the joys that attracted him to writing and performing in the first place. The duo have applied creative efforts outside the band as well, writing jingles for everything from Swedish Fish to dog medication.
More than ever, Cahill wanted NGAN to become a band people brought their friends to come see live. United, Cahill and Cummings set to work creating new songs that would “make sense live.” It all came together in the studio with drummer Danny Sher of Horse Torso (his outfit with Baroness bassist Nick Jost) laying down the rhythm live to tape as they built towards their new record, Careless Moon.
Careless Moon is about the relationship between romance and indifference. How it’s possible to see different concepts in the same symbol. One night, you could look at the moon and see an illuminating presence, brimming with light, offering clarity to a sky that is otherwise shrouded in darkness. The ridges of its surface appear as something familiar, a face, looking down and bringing you comfort. Other nights the moon can seem callous: an indifferent rock suspended unwillingly by gravity. You remember that the moon drifts from the earth by 3.8 cm each year, orbiting away from you as it barrels out into space. Your life changes but the moon doesn’t, each night you can find it waiting for you. When you realize that it has no attachment to you, it is frightening.
Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival announced it’s decision to cancel it’s 2020 festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival had previously planned to postpone their 2020 festival but decided to completely cancel it. Like many festivals out there right now, the priority of keeping people safe trumps the priority of the festival happening this year.
Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival was originally postponed to September 24-27 back in March. The festival was ultimately cancelled on June 24 via a statement made on their website. Their statement on their reasons behind cancelling the festival said, “Our annual time together on the Farm is nothing short of magical, but out of an abundance of caution and for the health and safety of all Bonnaroovians, artists, staff, partners and our community, this is a necessary reality. More information on lineup, camping and accommodations will be available at a later date.”
The festival will be offering for current ticket holders to either having their tickets roll over to the 2021 season or to get a refund on their tickets. Ticket holders will have to log into their Frontgate account and select the refund option starting on July 1, 2020 and will be able to request refunds until July 31, 2020. Ticket holders who don’t request a refund within this time will have their ticket automatically roll over to the 2021 festival. Ticket holders who purchased from Nashville Shuttle, Airport Shuttle, Hotel package, or purchased tickets through Lyte, Fevo, or Ticketmaster Resale, there will not be a rollover ticket option for 2021. Those ticket orders will be automatically refunded and will be issued to your original method of payment.
Although there will be no Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival this year, a weekend-long virtual festival will be taking place on the rescheduled Bonnaroo dates September 24-27, 2020. The virtual festival will include some of the staff’s favorite moments from past and present, along with some special surprises. There will be more details on this released on this virtual festival soon.
For more information on the Cancellation of the 2020 season and the virtual festival visit Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival’s website.
In the midst of a global pandemic, as well as coping with trials and tribulations of being a twenty something, Rochester native, Garrett Eckl of Your Name Here has released a full length album that was written and produced by himself. Graduation of the Apocalypse is Eckl’s second full length concept album, which covers topics such as relationship troubles, self worth and mental health – topics that relate to Eckl on a more personal level that compared to his prior album.
His vulnerability and advancement of his musical prowess has birthed the story of an immersive journey where two teens find themselves in the middle of an apocalyptic world that has been ravaged by an alien invasion/ virus. His use of music technologies, personal experiences and opinions on current world issues act as fuel to propel his story through highs and lows, like a true theatrical experience – something that Eckl said he really strived for on the album.
Eckl, who left his job at NASA to pursue music, recently moved to San Diego where he received bachelors in music recording technology. He has set his sights on a masters in computer music and intends to pursue academia. In an interview with NYS Music, he said recent life events pushed him to create a new album, namely his move to San Diego. His cross country move and relationship troubles have spilled onto the album, in the best way possible. He said the experience taught him that he needs to learn to let go of certain things in his life.
“The album is very cyclical in nature. The first song “Graduation Day” ends with me singing about not wanting to grow up and lose my youthfulness (“some kids live into their forties, some kids live until they’re married, some kids die on graduation day but I’m never gonna go that way”). That same verse is repeated at the end of the album in “Now I Know.” This signifies that despite everything the protagonist has been through, he still hasn’t become the jaded and boring person he feared he would become.”
The result of these revelations and life experiences is this: Sonically, this is what you get when you mix Ben Folds 5, Weezer and the play Dear Evan Hansen together. Listeners will feel an array of emotions, as one does in a play. There are tracks that are instrumentally uplifting and chipper, coupled with lyricism describing the complexity of love in relationships, like in “Graduation Day.” “Everyone Thinks You’re A Little Strange” is also a prime example of Eckl’s style – a huge sound consisting of string quartets, chanting choirs, dynamics and builds, highs and lows and stories that everyone can relate to.
But we’re also strung through songs that set the scene of how grim things are in this reality – i.e. “The Apocalypse.” This was a stand alone song that proves how Eckl is growing and learning. The song never speaks of the protagonists, says Eckl. “I wanted this album to be open to interpretation, but I wanted it to be very clear that this (song) was about the apocalypse.” In this track, Eckl is able to hold onto his style that sets him apart from others in the genre, but is able to create an intense tonal shift, all while using recognizable instrumentation and voicing that is seen throughout his other works. It’s an incredible feat and once again legitimizes this album as something that could easily be mistaken as an OST from a Broadway show.
Each song is unique and easily distinguishable. Everything sounds just as Your Name Here should sound, but each one feels like it’s own standalone story. String them together, and listeners will go on a personal, reflective journey as well as getting a taste of Eckl’s experience. It’s been exciting to run through each of the songs, and it’s been exciting to wait for each track, as Eckl has been releasing 1 song per week for the past few months. The last song of the album, set to be released July 5, is called “ Letter In A Locket”. We’ve made a playlist on Spotify of every released track, but listeners can find it on Apple Music and below via Youtube. Those who want to dive even deeper into the immersive world Eckl has created, can also look into the Alternate Reality Game (ARG) that he has made to coincide with the album. Find more information on his ARG, here.
Key Tracks: Graduation Day, Everyone Thinks You’re A Little Strange, The Apocalypse
This upcoming album will be their latest since Under the Lights which was released in 2017. The new album was recorded before the COVID-19 quarantine began, and although the band did not intend on fast tracking any songs from the album, they decided that releasing one song ahead of the rest would be a ray of light in this time of negativity and unrest. All four members of the band, who are quarantined in different parts of the country, decided unanimously to release “Good Days.”
Elliot Peck, who along with Grahame Lesh and Nathan Graham wrote the music and lyrics, says that the song’s chorus was stuck in his head even before he wrote the full tune. Peck states that his vision for the song “was of a small rustic cabin, where two people were sharing their time, and were happy enough with just each other’s company that they needed nothing else.” The image of a rustic cabin is present to the listener, as the song has a country notable feel to it. The song itself is extremely warm despite the fact that its message is somewhat somber.
“Good Days” is also about yearning. “We are a culture always in wanting,” explains Peck. Despite the fact that we always yearn for more in our present and future, “when we really think about our happiest times, it was the simplest ones, when the company of someone was all we needed.” The song is a nostalgic look on the singer’s past as they remember the “Good Days” when they were happiest.
The song’s release in our current time is coincidentally perfect as we remember the “Good Days” before everything in our world changed seemingly in the blink of an eye. Elliot says that “The tune was written and recorded before the pandemic changed everything about our current lives. It was written in a time of hugs and handshakes, communal joints and sipping van whiskey straight from the bottle, small rooms full of close friends and large festival grounds full of complete strangers, frequent flyers with rarely a home cooked meal.” The song is a perfect way to currently reminisce on the past while simultaneously looking forward to the future. Even when everything seems horrible, we can always celebrate the good days.
“Good Days” features Elliot Peck (vocals and acoustic guitar), Grahame Lesh (vocals, acoustic guitar, and 12 string guitar), Connor O’Sullivan (bass and mandolin), Nathan Graham (vocals, drums, and banjo), and Jason Crosby (piano). Lesh describes that Midnight North’s music tells their story, and that with their songs they hope to “transport you into [their] world for an hour or two.”
Midnight North is excited for the world to hear their “entire new album of fresh new music.” There is no confirmed release date for the new album, but Midnight North asks us to be patient as we wait for the album’s release ‘in the coming seasons.’
On Thursday June 25 at 8pm, heavy prog and future groove band lespecial will debut “Cheen Stream II,” featuring multi-angle video and a soundboard audio live set. Filmed at the band’s studio and music school The Music Cellar in Millerton, NY the performance will be streamed live on lespecial’s Facebook and YouTube.
“A lot of times in horror movies sequels don’t live up to the original. But the best ones expand on the lore and go deeper, introducing the makings of a franchise. I don’t know what that has to do with cheen stream II. But I do know that with the multi-angle video and soundboard audio, this will be a big step up from the first cheen stream. There will still be a level of in-studio casualness, but more bangers. Older songs we haven’t played in a while in a new setting, and some new music we’ve been working on. We’re excited to bring some music to people right now, in our home studio with some fresh production.”
Luke Bemand, bassist for lespecial
lespecial recently joined Royal Artist Group, whose roster includes DJ Logic, Ghost-Note, James Casey, Natalie Cressman and many more. If you’re looking to see lespecial live and in person, they will be performing a private drive-in show in the Glens Falls area this on Saturday, June 27. For details and information on tickets, please email claw@jamflowmgmt.com.
