NYS Music 202​0

Blog

  • Annual Montréal Jazz Festival Will Be Broadcast Virtually

    The annual Festival International de Jazz de Montréal will take place virtually from June 27-30 due to the ongoing threat of the COVID-19 virus.

    Annual Montréal Jazz Festival
    Photo by Victor Diaz Lamich/Courtesy of Festival International de Jazz de Montreal

    Le Festival International de Jazz de Montréal is an annual event and draws millions of visitors to the city of Québec each Summer. It holds the Guiness World Record for largest jazz festival. Unfortunately, the festival cannot be held in person this year; however, recordings of live performances will be available for free online. Thanks to support from TD Bank Group and Rio Tinto as well as public partnerships with the Government of Canada, the Government of Québec, and the City of Montréal, the Montréal Jazz Festival will reach more than ever before.

    In order to keep everything up to the Festival’s standards, all performances will be filmed with high-quality production value in a specially made studio in Montreal’s L’Astral catered specifically for these online performances. Director Maxime Théoret-Bissonnette will manage these recordings and ensure that they will be of the highest quality. These live recordings will be free to view for anyone anywhere, making the Festival more accessible than it has ever been. If you can’t catch the performances live, they will be available for free on demand afterwards as well.

    The Festival will kick off on Canadian Multicultural Day, June 27, with a lineup that will showcase Canada’s rich and diverse talent. The show will begin with the Apéros SAQ, a mix of live performances from some of the Festival’s favorite artists. Up next are the Sessions TD and Rhymes Rio Tinto, sessions that will be enjoyable for all fans. The Festival will also showcase recordings of performances from past Festivals. The opening night will finish with the Fin de Soirée Loto-Québec, a virtual party for everyone who wants to join.

    Annual Montréal Jazz Festival
    Photo courtesy of Festival International de Jazz de Montreal

    The Festival will continue for three more days and wraps up on June 30. Although the full schedule has yet to be announced, the lineup includes the top local luminaries and artists of the city. Some notable performers who will be featured are Charlotte Cardin, Jean-Michael Blais, The Barr Brothers, Dominique Fils-Aimée, Elisapie, Jordan Officer, and many more. 

    The Festival’s General Manager Jacques K. Primeau expresses that it is extremely important for the Festival’s team “to bring the jazz Festival to the people.” He also expressed that the Festival “is thrilled to be able to offer an innovative solution to get the music out to the fans” even with such difficult challenges. 

    The Festival is only taking place thanks to the leadership of Primeau and Laurent Saulnier, the Festival’s team, the artists, and the Festival’s generous sponsors. Primeau remarks that “#JazzTogether is truly a community and a family affair” even in the hardest of times.

  • Disney+ Releases Trailer for Hamilton

    Disney + has just released their trailer for Hamilton: An American Musical which will be available for streaming on July 3.

    hamilton trailer

    First produced Off-Broadway at the Public Theater in 2015, Hamilton then moved to the Richard Rogers Theater on Broadway later that year. The show’s music, lyrics, and book were written by the musical’s star, Lin Manuel-Miranda based off of Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton is most famous for presenting America as it was in the 1700s, but in today’s light. Every character save King George is played by a BIPOC to highlight the diversity of America today.

    Hamilton took Broadway by storm and the hype has not yet let down. Due to the show’s popularity, tickets continue to be expensive: at one point, a premium seat went for $1,150. However, the show is famous for their memorable lottery, the #Ham4Ham, when lucky winners are given front row tickets for only $10, or one Hamilton. Fans have been anticipating the release of this recording for years, as Lin Manuel-Miranda confirmed that the show would be recorded in a tweet in 2016. The release of this high-quality recording makes Broadway more accessible to people who cannot experience it live for themselves.

    Hamilton was nominated for a record-breaking 16 Tony awards, and won 11 in total, including best musical, best book, and best score, as well as Leslie Odom Jr. (Aaron Burr) winning best actor, Daveed Diggs (Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson) awarded best featured actor, and Renée Elise Goldsberry (Angelica Schuyler) receiving the Tony for best featured actress. Many other members of the cast were nominated for Tonys, and they can all be seen in the original Broadway cast recording on July 3. 

    This is Lin Manuel-Miranda’s second Broadway show. In The Heights, a story about a predominately Hispanic neighborhood community living in Washington Heights, had its Broadway debut in 2008 also at the Richard Rogers Theater and was nominated for 13 Tonys and won 4, including best musical. In the Heights has just been adapted into a feature film as well, with Anthony Ramos (who plays John Laurens/Philip Hamilton in Hamilton), playing the lead role of Usnavi. In the Height, previously scheduled for release June 2020, will now be released on June 18, 2021.

    Hamilton will be available to stream on Disney+ on July 3.

  • Danish Punks Twin Dive Deliver New Track “Say His Name” in Honor of George Floyd

    Danish punk band Twin Dive have released a new track in remembrance of George Floyd, a recent victim of police brutality whos death has sparked protest and outrage worldwide. The energy and pure anger that shine through on this track perfectly captivate the strong emotions behind the Black Lives Matter movement.

    “Say His Name” is riddled with lyrics that target the systematic racism and oppression perpetuated by the American upper class. Much like the protests themselves, this song is a screaming demand for justice. In further support of the Black Lives Matter movement, Twin Dives will be donating 100% of the proceeds and royalties made from this release to the cause.

    Twin Dive is a duo from Denmark who, although formed only in 2018, have been grabbing attention in their respective music scenes. Blending the braggadocious nature of front men from the 70s punk scene with all the contained noise and distortion of the low-fi grunge era, Twin Dive are no stranger to taking political stances in their music.

    To find out more on the band make sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram to keep updated with their shenanigans.

  • Venues Vault: Breaking into the Concert Experience

    What lengths are you willing to go to keep your life’s work alive; will these adaptations muddle the concert experience forever.

    Devastation throughout the music industry has crippled artists and their mediums – Venues. Amid a global pandemic we are seemingly waiting – for venues to open, shows to begin and the concert experience to shapeshift into a safe, sustainable event. Nobody is sure what the final product will be, yet passion radiates. Through blooming efforts like the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) right here in New York, we have band together to save our industry and the concert experience as we knew it.

    Venues

    The Past: 

    Being elbow-to-rib is just part of the experience. Hours spent waiting in line that sparked anxious anticipation, or getting sucked into the stage by the crowd when the lights go dim, before the main act, cannot be replaced by live streams. Maybe you’re the one up front hanging over the barrier, screaming every lyric verbatim; maybe you’re setback, studying your favorite instrument or player; you’re moving around, dancing or moshing (respectfully of course); or you’re the type that hangs at the bar with friends, reminiscing how you’ve seen this particular band hundreds of times. All of these moving parts create energy.  

    When you walk into a venue it sets the mood, the crowd and band feeds off one another. From local dive bars and smaller venues, to theatres and arenas, stepping in pre-soundcheck has a therapeutic energy for performers, as does the commotion when the doors open. Artists paint backstages, leaving totems or memorabilia that builds a venue’s character. When those spaces are cut to half capacity, or less, that energy is depleted.

     Everyone’s safety and economic sustainability is paramount, but nobody is talking about sustaining these colorful parts of the canvas. Adapting is necessary. Yet, promoters, artists and venues are stuck in limbo. Letting go of the experience as we knew it remains untold.

    Music Canada sites 40% of concertgoers won’t return until six months after restrictions lifted.

    The Present:

    NIVA was created by Independent Venue Week, top venues and promoters across the nation, “to fight for the survival of independent venues, their employees, artists, fans and their communities,” (nivassoc.org). Sucking in 450 members across 43 states in the first three days, they are now pushing 2,000 members nationwide (50 States) for an endless-scrolling roster on their website. Founded by the industry’s best, NIVA states that 90 percent of independent venues will collapse if they don’t open this year. With rumours saying this lockdown can lead well into 2021, will we be able to recover.

    venues

    Capacity restrictions will limit venues’ revenue, and minimum thresholds vary. A Chicago study deemed a 12:1 ratio of economic impact among small venues (nivassoc.org). Twelve dollars of economic stimulus to hotels, restaurants and shops flooded in for every dollar spent inside the venue. Extrapolate that on a $50 ticket, or a night out for a group of excited fans. The impact is everything. 

    According to a USA Today article, Johns Hopkins Director of the Master of Bioethics degree program and Research Scholar, Travis Rieder,  said there’s serious doubt about live music returning before 2021 and “a shortage of test and lack of vaccine simply make things too risky.” Unfortunately, he continues that “the risk of those events as we would have done them in the past outweighs the benefit of doing them.” Masks, temperature checks and spacing restrictions may not be enough. Is your favorite band or venue worth the risk.

    With the music industry on the rise prior to COVID-19, Pollstar predicts a daunting $8.9 billion hit, should quarantine continue and venues remain dark. They go on to state “industry losses could total about $5.2 billion in just missed ticket sales alone,” and not to mention residual impacts on the economy and all of those employed in the box offices, concession stands, parking valet, and so on. 

    The answer is NOTHING. Nothing will stop us from preserving our life’s work, the concert experience, our art, and all the pieces that work together to keep it alive. 

    On Thursday, June 18, NIVA made an official statement urging for federal help:

    We, the undersigned artists, respectfully submit this letter in support of NIVA’s request for federal assistance for independent music venues and promoters across the United States.

    Artists’ Letter To Congress – NIVA

    This is no petty petition. Industry giants, artists and celebrities wave an official SOS including: Joel, Eilish, Seinfeld, Gaga, Letterman, Goldberg, Iver, Lauper, Plant, Nelson, Aoki, Mayer, Leno, Weir, Watts…

    The irony in their signatures – it merits no value when we are all on lockdown. Something super-fan would unassumingly die for is now a cry for help, for congress to help kickstart the industry back to the creative and thriving outlet it once was, pre COVID-19.

    We will continue to fight, support and be the voice for all artists, venues and industry mediums that are struggling. Stay tuned for ‘The Vault,” featuring venue and artist specific coverage on this topic. Please contact NYS Music so your voice can be heard.

    #SaveOurStages

  • Interview: Lexi Mariah Releases New Single “SOURPATCH”

    21 year-old pop artist Lexi Mariah has released her new single “SOURPATCH.” Mariah’s music represents emotions of ambition and enthusiasm that are filled with exhilarating sounds of pop.

    Music has always been a big part of the pop artist’s life from playing the piano at seven years old to learning how to play ukulele, guitar, and bass all on her own. Ever since Mariah first performed on stage, she discovered her passion for music and began pursuing her music career. She’s been writing her own songs at eight years old and enjoys performing at local bars, and open mics. 

    lexi mariah

    Artists such as Cher Lloyd, Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor, and Alessia Cara have inspired Mariah’s style. Her music incorporates pop elements but isn’t “afraid to be experimental” she says, looking to incorporate other genres into her music. 

    Her latest single “SOURPATCH” takes a powerful approach and communicates a different message from her previous singles. Mariah says that the song is about “the two different sides of someone’s personality, finding the fine line between the nice and the nasty side.” Her other songs such as “Strange” illustrate the pain and sorrow in losing someone, while “Oh Boy” conveys confidence and perseverance. 

    As for now, Lexi Mariah has been advocating for the Black Lives Matter Movement and is continuing to write her own songs while quarantining. She hopes to get back to the studio to record music and go on tour once the lockdown is over.

    Lexi Mariah describes what she wants her music to represent:

    I want a wide range of people of all ages to be able to listen to my music and enjoy it. I want to spread positivity and make uplifting bold empowering music.

  • Woodstock 50 Takes Previous Investor to Court Again

    In August of 2019, a huge festival celebrating the 50th anniversary of the original Woodstock was supposed to be held. The event’s lineup included artists such as Jay-Z, Miley Cyrus, The Killers, Imagine Dragons, and more. Although it was extremely hyped, the festival was cancelled less than a month before its scheduled date due to multiple issues which were prompted after Dentsu, one of the festival’s investors, pulled out of the event. Now, Woodstock is taking Dentsu back to court and demanding that they be refunded for the company’s fraudulent actions.

    Woodstock 50 court
    Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/Shutterstock (10160758ad) Woodstock co-producer and co-founder, Michael Lang, participates in the Woodstock 50 lineup announcement at Electric Lady Studios, in New York Woodstock 50 Lineup Announcement, New York, USA – 19 Mar 2019

    On April 29 2019, Dentsu announced that the event was cancelled altogether, claiming that the reason was due to doubts regarding the festival’s ability to host a safe event for artists and customers alike, as an administrator of New York’s Schuyler County reported that the tickets could not be sold because Woodstock had failed to get a mass gathering permit from the Department of Health. Despite this, the New York State Department of Health announced that the “cancellation announcement [was] not a result of the permit application pending with the Department,” admitting that “The Department was surprised to learn of [the] decision to cancel the event.”

    Woodstock still assured fans that the festival would go according to plan without Dentsu, and on May 6, co-creator of Woodstock Michael Lang claims that Dentsu “illegally swept approximately $17 million from the festival bank account” and tried to persuade artists into dropping out of the festival. Woodstock asked for a court order shortly after demanding that Dentsu refund the festival the $17.8 million. Dentsu disputed their claims, and the Supreme Court of New York’s order on May 15 said that although Dentsu could not cancel Woodstock 50, they owed the festival nothing.

    Now, over a year later, the Woodstock 50 organizers have officially filed a lawsuit against Dentsu for “sabotage” despite the previous court decision. The suit claims that Dentsu’s decision to pull out of the event had “nothing to do with any alleged breaches by Woodstock 50, but rather to avoid the potential that the Festival would not make money or not be as successful as they hoped” even though Dentsu claimed that the decision to leave the festival was because of the lack of a proper permit. The plaintiff states that Woodstock 50 is entitled to “tens of millions of dollars in compensatory and punitive damages” as a result of Dentsu’s fraudulent behavior. The suit alleges that it was Dentsu’s intention from the start to “kill the festival.”

  • Flashback: Grateful Dead perform their final NY shows at The Knick

    The writing was on the wall, and if 1994 didn’t confirm it, 1995 certainly did. And on June 21-22, the Grateful Dead performed their final shows in the state of New York at the Knickerbocker Arena (The Knick) in Albany.

    The Dead had performed over 300 shows in New York State alone since their first in 1967, but the last two in Albany would serve as a curtain call for a band that treated the state as a second home, musically speaking. After all the shows and runs at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, Fillmore East, Paradise Garden, Capitol Theatre, Nassau Coliseum, Rich Stadium, the Carrier Dome and more, and these would be the finale, even if it was not announced as such.

    jerry sundays
    via JerryGarcia.com

    The June 21st show would offer up the final “Row Jimmy,” “Man Smart, Woman Smarter,” “Supplication Jam” and “Morning Dew,” and what a “Morning Dew” this was. Fans were in tears as the ballad played, one fan saying “all difficulties disappeared for a few precious moments and we were all treated to a beautiful, final rendtion from the boys.” Listen or watch the full show below and judge for yourself.

    Grateful Dead – The Knick, Albany, NY – June 21, 1995

    Set 1: Hell In A Bucket, Loser, Take Me To The River, Row Jimmy, Broken Arrow, Promised Land

    Set 2: Scarlet Begonias-> Fire On The Mountain, Women Are Smarter, It’s All Too Much, Playin’ In The Band-> Drums-> Space-> Easy Answers-> Morning Dew

    Encore: U.S. Blues

    The next night would be the final show in Albany, at The Knick, and in New York State for that matter. The tour would head to Washington, D.C., Auburn Hills, MI, a few more stops in the Midwest before the final show at Soldier Field in Chicago, IL.

    via JerryGarcia.com

    This show features an incredible “Franklin’s Tower,” clocking in at 18 minutes, a near-record for its final version ever. The final “Help on the Way” and “Slipknot” preceded the set closing jam, as did an emotional “It Must Have Been the Roses.” Early in the second set, “Estimated Prophet” -> “Terrapin Station” combine for 30 minutes followed by 25 minutes of “Drums” and a “Silent Way” jam ahead in “Space.” Final versions of “All Along the Watchtower,” “Black Peter” show up later in the set, with an encore of “I Fought the Law” to close the run.

    The Grateful Dead made their mark on the Empire State through nearly 30 years of performances, one that lasts in every corner of the state to this day. Revisit those final shows, 25 years later.

    via gratefuldeadoftheday.com

    Setlist June 22, 1995

    Set 1: Touch Of Gray, Walkin’ Blues, It Must Have Been The Roses, When I Paint My Masterpiece, So Many Roads, The Music Never Stopped Help On The Way-> Slipknot!-> Franklin’s Tower

    Set 2: Samba In The Rain, Estimated Prophet-> Terrapin Station-> Drums-> Silent Way Jam-> Space-> All Along The Watchtower-> Black Peter-> Around & Around

    Encore: I Fought The Law

  • moe.ron Mondays to feature never before seen 2005 Portland shows

    The next two moe.ron Mondays on Nugs TV will feature a pair of shows from the State Theatre in Portland, Maine, which will also conclude the weekly streaming series.

    These two shows did not allow taping and served as record release shows for The Conch, one of moe.’s best-received albums, receiving 4/5 stars in Rolling Stone. The shows, seen for the first time, will offer a glimpse at a band 15 years into their career. Tune in at Nugs.TV

    moe.ron mondays portland
    moe. Summer 2005 tour poster by Emek

    Setlist, June 10, 2005
    Timmy Tucker, It, Lost Along the Way, Happy Hour Hero, McBain -> George, Tailspin, The Pit, Recreational Chemistry, She, The Road, Brent Black
    Encore: Wind It Up, Blue Jeans Pizza, Crab Eyes

    Poster by Marq Spusta

    Setlist, June 11, 2005
    Captain America, She, Wind It Up, The Road, The Pit, Kyle’s Song, 32 Things, Wake Up, St. Augustine, Head, George, Rebubula
    Encore: Plane Crash

    Watch and enjoy “MacIntyre Range,” featured on The Conch and inspired by the Adirondack Mountain range of the same name.

  • Discover Local Music With EQXposure Featured Artists

    WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to a ever-expanding listening audience. Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm on 102.7 FM, you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music to discover from up and coming artists. NYS Music will bring you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.

    discover eqxposure

    No More Death Stars – Before the World Ends

    No More Death Stars is an indie/punk band from Glens Falls. They are Kevin Cardinale, Gina DiNardo, Eric Rothstein, and Kevin Stephenson. However, singer Kevin C plays all the instruments on this song which he recorded over a 12 hour period while in quarantine. This video features friends who were asked to send in funny videos of themselves listening to the song and all the best clips were selected for the final product.

    Jesse Sample – Really Girl

    Jesse is from Schenectady and this represents another side of what he’s been doing. The song features Tim “The Witchdoctor” Brosnan from The 7th Squeeze and Stellar Young on drums, Colin Abele, former bassist of Black Mountain Symphony, on bass. It also showcases the vocal styling of Jesse’s old roommate’s dog, The Dude. And that Dude’s got some pipes.

    Tune in here on Jesse’s website

  • Grandmaster Flash’s “The Message” Still Provides Accurate Social Commentary 38 Years Later

    At some point in our lives, we have all heard the classic hip hop refrain from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, “Don’t push me ‘cause I’m close to the edge.” However, despite the funky bass line and infectious hook, “The Message” was written to give insight on the life of a young Grandmaster Melle Mel, who grew up in the Bronx during the ’60s and ‘70s, following the wake of the Civil Rights movement, an incredibly trying time for the impoverished black community. “The Message” has a place in history that is more than a reminder of the true roots of hip-hop, but rather a landmark of socially conscious rap. “The Message” was one of the first commercially successful rap songs providing heavy social commentary. At the time of its release, it stood out among other party tracks that were the hip-hop market at the time.

    The intro delivered by Duke Bootee sets the scene, “It’s like a jungle sometimes it makes me wonder how I keep from going under.” Comparing life in the inner city Bronx to life in a literal jungle reiterates the hardships faced by the black community, struggling for survival and contemplating the will and self-determination that urge for survival takes. Then, on the verse is Melle Mel depicting the struggles of a poor black man who is on his last ounce of hope after repeating a cycle of despair desperate to escape.

    Mel continues on the hook, “Don’t push me cause I’m close to the edge, I’m trying not to lose my head,” which encompasses the song’s central message: life in the inner city is hard and the stresses constantly build up. The hook almost sings as a warning to people unaware of the realities of street life, pleading people to not “push” you off the edge in a means to preserve your own mental sanity. Melle Mel’s verses continue to cover topics of poverty and homelessness due to mental illness with bars creating images of a “Crazy lady, livin’ in a bag eatin’ outta garbage pails” makes clear that Melle Mel was on the front lines of poverty in the 1970s. Mel also comments on the broken education system saying he “Got a bum education” and is under financial stress due to “double-digit inflation” which all feed into the power of the refrain.

    Grandmaster Flash

    Despite its release nearly 40 years ago, the song remains highly relevant in 2020’s social and political climate. The struggles detailed by Melle Mel are still issues faced by thousands who are stuck in the cycle of poverty perpetuated by systematic racism, un-equitable access, and crime. Many of the topics Mel rhymes about throughout “The Message” are the same themes present day artists such as Kendrick Lamar (AKA Cornrow Kenny) are bringing back to the focal point in the conscious hip hop movement.

    There is an almost predictable reemergence of these themes of depression and poverty expressed by the black community brought to light by artists generationally. The consistency of lyrical themes present in the late 1970s mirroring those of present day billboard topping singles reiterates the notion that not much has changed. Black America is still trying to survive in the metaphorical jungle Bootee sang about. 

    Over the past ten years, we have seen artists such as Kendrick Lamar, as mentioned earlier, releasing songs in a similar vein to “The Message.” Most notably, his 2012 critically acclaimed, Good Kid M.A.A.D. City, concept album which followed the life of a young Kendrick throughout his upbringing in Compton, CA. Throughout the album’s track list, Kendrick raps about several similar themes such as his struggles with poverty, crime, and depression. Whether cited as an influence or not, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “The Message” certainly paved the way for projects making social commentary accessible for the hip hop audience of today.  

    The next time you find yourself nodding your head to the beat of “The Message,” or saying “Don’t push me,” keep in mind the original focus of Grandmaster Flash and consider the blessing that music has the power to carry these messages through sound from generation to generation.