Punk rock collective Gogol Bordello will perform two New York regional shows this week, at Empire Live in Albany on Tuesday, September 14 and Higher Ground in Burlington, Vermont on Wednesday, September 15 The Burlington show replaces a Montreal date, which was previously postponed due to new COVID-19 protocols.
Formed on the Lower East Side in 1999, Gogol Bordello’s boundary-breaking combination of punk-rock, cabaret and Romani musical traditions is truly unlike anything out there. Anchored by Ukranian frontman Eugene Hutz, members of the always-evolving collective hail from around the world. In a handwritten mission statement on their website, Hutz writes: “From where we stand, it is clear that world’s cultures contain material for endless art-possibilities, and new mind-stretching combinations, raw joy and survival energy.” This mission has led them to receive critical acclaim and fans across the world, with former Village Voice Chief Music Critic Robert Christgau calling them “The world’s most visionary band.”
Gogol Bordello are known for their dramatic performances, which they describe as a mix of “music, theatre, chaos and sorcery.” Although they have not released a new album since 2017s Seekers and Finders, Gogol Bordello have remained a consistent touring act. The band averages 200+ shows a year, and has supported diverse bands from Flogging Molly to Cake. Their most recent single, an Adrian Sherwood remix of their song “Lifers,” dropped back in April. Sherwood offers clean, electronic production, grounding the maniacal rawness that has become Gogol Bordello’s hallmark. They are currently recording the album’s follow-up.
The new Burlington date will complete the Northeastern leg of Gogol Bordello’s Lifers 2021 tour. The band is no stranger to Higher Ground, where they most recently played in 2020, describing it as an “all time fav.” Attendees will have to provide proof of full vaccination, or a negative COVID test from the past 72 hours paired with a photo ID, aligning with Higher Ground’s policy. To purchase tickets, visit here.
Long Beach, CA rapper Ray Vaughn, has shared a new 3-song EP, “Peer Pressure.” The release follows Vaughn’s recent signing to Top Dawg Entertainment, which represents acts like Kendrick Lamar, Isaiah Rashad and SZA.
In a press release, TDE said the EP serves as an “appetizer for the full feast ahead.” TDE first signed Vaughn in 2020, but “Peer Pressure” marks his introductory release on the label. The album announcement comes at a transitional time for TDE, after flagship artist Kendrick Lamar announced his departure from the label days earlier.
The three tracks on “Peer Pressure” focus on Vaughn’s lyricism, giving him an opportunity to tell his story. On opener “Not Allowed,” Vaughn lays out his success– money, Givenchy, women– not as possibility, but destiny. Repeating “Ain’t no way I’m gon’ die broke,” over breakneck production from Tariq Beats, the track feels at home with early work by label-mates ScHoolboy Q or Jay Rock.
The following two tracks don’t quite meet the pace set by “Not Allowed.” “Top Shottas” slows things down a bit, offering a digestible and titular hook, but far less sonic intrigue.“Tap,” the final track, comes accompanied by a cinematic, visceral visual that expands the experience of the track. “Tap” stays in the ears mainly with its mesmerizing beat, adorned with echoing strings and twinkling piano riffs. Vaughn knows this when he slyly spits “I hear the beat and sprinkle crack on it.”
The most interesting moments on the project appear when Vaughn explores the duality of his experience; watching the effects of police violence and drugs perpetually harm those around him, regardless of his success, then fade into just another cause for action. On “Not Allowed,” he spits: “Fuck a t-shirt, turn you to a trending topic/ Check my peephole ‘cause the devil always knockin.” A perfectly produced knock on the door ends the verse. It sounds so realistic one can’t be blamed for pulling off their headphones and checking their own front door for police, opps, or whatever new demons might be at the door today.
Though these first tracks are far from revolutionary, Vaughn’s insightful eye into his past and present will fit right in with the introspective class of hip-hop/R&B talent TDE is known for. The “appetizer” may not be filling, but isn’t that the point? Ray Vaughn certainly leaves enough on the table to warrant excitement for dinner.
A new album from Smithsonian Folkways challenges the historical conception that New York was the sole epicenter of the 1960s folk revival. The Village Out West: The Lost Tapes of Alan Oakes compiles extensive field recordings from the revival’s burgeoning center in Northern and Central California, all carefully taped by autodidact documentarian Alan Oakes.
The vibrancy and creativity of the 1960s folk scene in New York has been well-documented. From the epicenter of Greenwich Village, where Bob Dylan and Joan Baez rose to prominence, to Upstate’s lasting legacy of Woodstock ‘69, folk music has deep roots on the East Coast, and the 1960s revival would inspire generations of artists to come. But on the other side of the country, an equally spirited musical movement was occurring in the San Francisco Bay Area, where traditional musicians came together, and up-and-comers learned from their techniques while establishing their own legacies.
The “self-appointed sonic Boswell” of the 1960s California folk revival, Alan Oakes was born in Fresno in 1940. After his death in 2019, his wife Marnie Oakes connected with album co-producer Deborah Robins and shared she planned to discard some of his unknown archives of recordings. Robin’s desire to properly preserve the collection, an invaluable window into the early days of the folk reemergence, resulted in the creation of the album.
Oakes recordings, taken from over 60 open reels made between 1960 and 1975, capture the enthusiasm and palpable excitement of the early movement. The recordings span a variety of venues: storied festivals like the Jabberwock and Berkeley Folk Music Festival, clubs like The Cabale and the Blind Lemon, and many workshops, interviews and intimate house concerts.
The two-CD set features never-before-heard live performances from legendary musician Doc Watson, whose distinctive flatpicking technique on acoustic guitar helped shape the sound of bluegrass, country and folk during the 60s. A live recording of classic tune “Billy in the Lowground,” finds Watson joined by lifelong fiddle master Hank Bradley and banjoist Rick Shubb, whose “Shubb capo,” which features an adjustable clamp, is still a top-stelling capo style today.
Via Smithsonian Folkways
The eclectic combination of musicians at the peak of their craft, frequently documented in New York, was also a key aspect of the Bay Area musical community. Just as important was the influence, inspiration and integration of traditional masters with up-and-coming musicians of the time, like Kathy & Carol. The Vista, California duo began singing together in high school in the early 1960s, and claimed Baez as a central influence. Their haunting harmonies reflect the way the folk movement spread from coast to coast, rooted in shared love for classic Americana techniques.
The album, co-produced by Deborah Robins, Henry H. Sapoznik, and Jeff Place, will be accompanied by an 80-page booklet containing essays from all three producers, as well as extensive biographies of the featured performers and the historic time period they shared. The full album will be released on September 24th, but a preview of 4 selected songs is available now for streaming:
Experimental music & spoken word collaboration Vapor Vespers have returned with a new double-sided single. The two tracks, “Sex” and “You Changed,” each come with an accompanying video.
Vapor Vespers is the transcontinental brainchild of New York multi-instrumentalist Sal Cataldi (also known as Spaghetti Eastern Music) and Alaskan playwright, actor and slam poet Marc Muro. The pair, whose musical and personal relationship dates back to their teen years in Queens, New York, first bonded over boundary-pushing musicians like Sun Ra and Frank Zappa. The pair have also cited artists like Miles Davis as inspiration, alongside spoken-word icons like John Cooper Clarke and poet Charles Bukowski.
Their mesmerizing blend of hazy electro-funk and searing, lyrical poetry garnered critical acclaim on their 2020 debut album, One Act Sonix. On the new singles they maintain the momentum of that unique fusion, offering a sneak preview to their sophomore album, set for release in winter 2021.
On “Sex,” set over a menacing slow-jam of drums and electro funk, Muro’s echoing voice builds a string of metaphors for sex; a “time bomb under your seat and a dog sleeping at your feet,” “the tip love leaves after good service,” a “really good episode of Gilligan’s island.” The mixture of humor and great existential depth in the lyrics is hypnotic, especially over Cataldi’s instrumental, which sounds as if Predator had a penchant for Frank Zappa. The video for the song compiles black-and-white clips of sensual moments– kisses, embraces, flirtatious laughs and states of undress–which slowly come into neon color.
“You Changed,” ups the tempo from the start. The galloping beat is supplemented by competing yet harmonious lead electric guitars and a perfectly placed clavinet. The angsty, manic lyrics are a rant against a friend who has not only changed, but seems to have become too good for Muro. “You used to be nice, you used to be normal, you used to be my friend, then you suddenly changed…” Muro anxiously laments. However, the song is far from sorry for itself. Muro’s lyrics comically recognize the way that an urge for notoriety and identity can breed ridiculousness. In frustration, Muro calls out: “You wanted to be interesting, so you rented a wolf, had your elbows pierced, bought a stuffed owl, and went to the opera dressed as a music!” The accompanying music video, which uses black-and-white footage transitioning into neon as well, puts that personal hedonism on sly display.
Both tracks were mixed and mastered by Cataldi out of studios in Long Island and West Saugerties, New York. To listen to more, visit vaporvespers.bandcamp.com or Vapor Vesper’s Spotify page.
Denise Parent, the beloved Hudson Valley guitarist known for her work with Grateful Dead cover band The Deadbeats and Brown Eyed Women, has released her first album of original music, The Songs In My Heart.
Though Parent has been a songwriter and guitar player for the majority of her life, picking up a guitar for the first time at six years old, this is her first solo release. Parent wrote all songs herself.
All of the tracks capture the warm, full quality of a live album. Parent’s historic career of jamming with The Deadbeats and Brown Eyed Woman is apparent in her light style. Every instrument is apparent in its own uniqueness; the boxiness of the drums, the strummed acoustic guitar in comparison to soaring electric riffs. All of these songs beg to be heard in a smokey venue, where one can experience what decades of practice and natural talent look like.
Deadbeats band members Mike Johnson and Dan Gerken contributed to the album as well; Gerken engineered the project. Gerken also contributed guitars, bass guitar and keyboards, while Johnson played guitar on “Morning Sun” and “Get Over It”, songs the band have been playing together live for years.
Much of Parent’s music reflects on her own emotions, and the ways in which music has helped her speak to them. These really do feel like songs that live in her heart, little reminders of how to stay hopeful and loving through life’s many seasons. On the poignant and bluesy “Morning Sun,” Parent sings: “It’s so hard to feel it all the time/To wait it out just for a little shine.” The jaunty tempo sets the perfect tone for the mournful lyrics. Ultimately, as hard as it gets, the tune encourages one to just keep trucking along.
The album sends the message that for Parent, that shine has been music, and shine is something she’s keen on sharing. On “Hey Darlin,” a chugging minor-key groove, Parent seeks to bring love and happiness to the titular character. As a song that seeks to make someone move, the insane electric guitar breakdowns throughout surely help.
On album opener “Shangri-La,” Denise Parent tells the story of a family growing together over time, finding their own version of happiness and paradise together. The song echoes a statement by Parent from her press release: “I thank my musical mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters for inspiring me to create and to sing and to play my heart out. I thank every artist and thinker who ever made me think twice about something, and who opened my mind and my heart.” These musical family members allowed her to make that journey, complicated and never quite complete, to her own musical Shangri-La.
A musician who has made her career performing covers, Parent’s solo music reflects the way the simple art of music has allowed her expression for a wide range of deep emotions. From the joyful freedom and peace of “Shangri-La” to the jauntily mournful “Morning Sun,” to the it-gets-better anthem “Get Over It,” all the songs have a message of making it through. Things will get better, happiness will come again, and if you listen in, Parent’s music just may help guide you there.
Lake Street Dive performed for a sold-out crowd Sunday night at the Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, VT. The show marked their third date on a U.S. tour promoting their acclaimed new record Obviously.
Formed in 2004, Lake Street Dive first gained viral recognition after a series of sidewalk singing videos and a jazzy, lilting cover of “I Want You Back” by the Jackson 5, highlighting lead singer Rachael Pierce’s powerhouse voice.
The group has always incorporated aspects of jazz, pop, soul and R&B into their offbeat covers and originals, and on Obviously the blend has never sounded more seamless. With production from Grammy-winning hip-hop producer Mike Elizondo, each song delicately showcases each band members mind-blowing musical capability while keeping a brisk, light pace. Though the production quality is notable, the “magic in a bottle” the quartet captures live has energized their fan base for years. Sunday was far from the first time the band has drawn a crowd to Shelburne or Burlington.
Though Hurricane Henri’s clouds were especially menacing on the eve of the show, they didn’t stop attendees, lawn chairs in hand, from flocking to the outdoor venue. Canadian musician Allison Russell, who will open for LSD on a few tour dates, kicked the night off with songs from her latest album, Outside Child. Supported by Larissa Maestro on the cello and Mandy Fer, of the band Sway Wild on electric guitar, Russell’s mesmerizing voice anchored the opening set. A light rainfall at sunset got the crowd excited. Many shouldered on rain jackets and rushed to the stage to celebrate the imminent rainbow as Russell belted her soul out on “Nightflyer.”
As mentioned, Vermont is no stranger to a good LSD show. The excitement for their set was palpable as fans of all ages rushed the barrier, eagerly awaiting the group to step on stage. The bounce of Pierce’s red hair as she strutted onstage sent waves of cheers through the crowd, soon replaced by dancing as the band jumped onto the steppy, yacht-rock tempo of opener “Know That I Know.” Pierce’s unique and show stopping voice does front flips over the bands steady, physical grooves.
Leading into an older song, “Mistakes,” Pierce took the mic to speak about the band’s return to touring.
“We’re a little rusty, and we’re gonna have to make some mistakes,” she said. “But we have to play through the mistakes. You play through the mistakes because you don’t want to teach yourself to fear the mistakes.”
The statement felt deeply relatable and also ironic, as the group went on to play a harmonious, heart-pumping 19-song set. Lake Street Dive have been playing together for nearly two decades, and their musical bond and attunedeness to each other were apparent with every beat.
Though founding member Mike “McDuck” Olsen departed the band after 17 years this May, the music feels anything but lacking. Touring keyboardist Akie Bermiss, who officially joined the band in 2017, is the perfect foil to Pierce’s vocals, apparent on the soaring and playful duet “Same Old News.” As both a keyboardist and vocalist, Bermiss is as versatile as he is singular.
Performing “Alone Again,” a Bermiss release with Greg Mayo, his vivid scenes and casually bleak humor are an exciting contrast to an initially mourning piano riff. The line “I’m learning how to microbrew” struck a chord in craft-beer heavy VT. “He knows his audience,” a woman laughed to her friend as they swayed to the beat.
Bassist Bridget Kearney, a commanding force within the band from the start, inarguably showed her prowess, absolutely shredding an upright bass as nimbly as an electric guitar. On standout performance of “Neighbor Song,” a track from Lake Street Dive’s 2010 self-titled project, Kearney’s gentle performance was expressive and haunting, psychically in tune with Pierce’s lilting cabaret-style performance.
After the emotional “Nobody’s Stopping You Now,” the band came together at the center of the stage and performed three quieter numbers, “Stop Crying,” “Feels Like The Last Time,” and “Neighbor Song,” every one of them to lush harmonies. In moments like these, it’s clear how the band can combine and defy genres so smoothly; they have the skill to do so.
After closing their main set with the arena-worthy crowd favorite “Good Kisser,” the band happily came on for a 2-song encore. They performed Obviously’s stunning closer “Sarah,” the complex harmonies of which could comfortably fit over a full symphony. As the band closed with a cover of The Beatles’ classic “Don’t Let Me Down,” a full moon peeked out from behind the clouds.
Lake Street Dive’s Sunday show captured what makes them so great: their playfulness and skill, their eclectic interest in genre-bending rhythms and the pure joy they capture in so many of their songs. One could even say the band captured what’s so great about live music in general – a band and their audience, grooving together in heartbreak, happiness or healing over the same beat.
Brooklyn-based collective Bad Business Club will release their latest album, Naked Neighbor, due out on August 13. The release date is fitting; the woozy, synth-fueled atmosphere of the project fits perfectly as the soundtrack to the hottest days of the summer.
A self-described “Nu-Disco collective with old-school Yacht Rock touches,” Bad Business Club stays true to luscious and intoxicating disco grooves from the onset of their sophomore album. At the heart of Naked Neighbor is contrast. The beats take you to the heat of a sequin-drenched island club, while the lyrics speak to the longing and loneliness of those late night periods walking home. Exploring their electronic side while embracing the classics of disco, Naked Neighbor settles into an utterly mesmerizing groove.
“Tired of Being Over You,” the most recent single off the album, captures that contrast perfectly in a reflection on past lovers. “I know I’ve waited for this night to come/ Don’t lay awake and wait up for my love,” vocalist Sam Behr wails over a Daft-Punk worthy beat. Her breathy yet smooth soprano is perfect compliment to the airy nature of the instrumental; even in its more melancholy moments, this album stays light on its feet.
Written over a weeklong songwriting session in Puerto Rico, lead songwriter Alex Van drew inspiration from time in PR’s El Yunque National Forest, where he felt both inspired by the lush exoticism of the space and contemplative of the idea of navigating a forest trail while washing away a lost love. The influence of this trip is clear throughout the album’s lyrics; on later standout “Casa Soleada,” the exaltant Eagles-do-disco beat provides the soundboard for the refrain: “Can’t wash you away.”
Bad Business Club emphasizes their nature as a collective, each contributing their own strengths while building a song together. Outside of the studio, the band hosts a podcast, “Imbibe the Vibe,” where each week they pair a cocktail with a new genre of music.
The band’s omnivorous tastes meld together on Naked Neighbor. Sneaky highlight “Too Hot To Handle (Prelude)” showcases this perfectly, mostly forgoing lyrics to incorporate vocals in a new way. Where grooves leaned acoustic on past Bad Business Club releases, on Naked Neighbor the synths are all the way up, the piano riffs are stadium-worthy, and huge production from Wiley makes every juicy note from Jim Cambell’s bass sound miles deep.
As we enter the first summer emerging from the pandemic and look towards an uncertain future, a mix of carefree fun and lonely pondering feels familiar. Naked Neighbor captures this and reflects it back; it’s both a tribute to classic disco and an album uniquely for the times at hand. No matter what, you won’t be able to stop dancing along.
Key Tracks: Tired of Being Over You, Casa Soleada, Too Hot To Handle (Prelude)
