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)
Rochester twang bar king, Greg Townson, is back with another super fine collection of surf guitar instrumentals perfect for the hazy days of our post-COVID lockdown summer. Called Off and Running!(High Tide Recordings), it features a cast of stellar supporting musicians, including his bandmates from the world renowned Los Straitjackets and NRBQ. Expert players all, they jell together wonderfully to breathe new life into classics like “The Locomotion” and “Just One Look” and Townson’s authentically retro originals.
Greg has been making music most of his life, winning fans and making friends wherever he performs, from stages all across the United States to Europe, Scandinavia and beyond. In 1998, Townson formed The Hi-Risers, a trio that put the spotlight on his singing, guitar playing, production and songwriting talents. Since then, he has continued to record and tour prolifically with that band, issuing nine records to date. The band’s most recent release is the 45, Smooth Operator b/w Hot Banana, which came out last year on Hi-Tide Recordings.
2010 brought yet another dimension to Greg’s work when he was asked to join Los Straitjackets, the Mexican wrestling mask-wearing instrumental guitar greats. In 2012 he contributed songs to Jet Set, one of the strongest records in the band’s extensive catalog. He has since contributed his guitar and songwriting talents to five more of their releases. In 2015, Los Straitjackets and Townson teamed with legendary songwriter Nick Lowe. This dynamic union released several EP’s, toured the world and appeared on shows such as CBS This Morning and Late Night with Conan O’Brien.
As a continuation of his instrumental guitar work featured in Los Straitjackets, Greg teamed up with Hi-Tide Recordings for the Travelin’ Guitar series of his own guitar-based recording. 2017’s Travelin’ Guitar and its 2019 follow-up, More! Travelin’ Guitar, are now complemented by his latest, Off and Running!
The title track serves as a high-energy kick-off to the album. It boasts some cool stop-time drums, snapping leads and a very delicious ascending chordal bridge – a whole boatload of serious music, moods and fun clocking in at just shy of two minutes. Townson’s cover of the Jackie DeShannon-penned hit for The Searchers, “When You into The Room,” launches with a play on Ringo’s great intro drum beat from The Beatles’ “Ticket to Ride,” while his cover of the Little Eva then Grand Funk hit, “The Locomotion” is pure retro SoCal surf of the early 60s, something that could’ve come from the catalog of mighty The Ventures or The Trashmen.
Townson’s reimagining of Barbara Lewis’ 1963 R&B smash, “Hello Stranger” is one of my favorites and the most ambitious arrangements on the disc. It has an almost Space Age Bachelor pad vibe, with swirling organ and soft reeds (flutes and oboe?) that sound like a Brian Wilson Pet Sounds outtake. Spanish modes a la Los Straitjackets drive “Aztec,” while guesting background vocalists and a growly sax add pure fun to the straight-ahead surf of “Goin’ Wild” and “Go Go Power.”
On all these tracks, Townson is a master of taste, restraint and tone, the latter which must emanate from a garage-full of vintage gear and whole bunch of vintage vinyl digestion. The covers give you another reason to love these wonderful songs, and add Townson’s takes on them to your playlist. And his originals are all faithful to the era that he obviously loves – a gentler, kinder time when you could take on the world armed only with the sweet twang and reverbed roar of a Fender Strat and Twin Reverb.
KeyTracks: Off and Running!, When You Walk into The Room, The Locomotion, Hello Stranger
John Mayer just released his new solo record Sob Rock, produced by Don Was and released on Columbia Records and Tapes.
Mayer also announced a 2022 Sob Rock Tour starting at the Times Union Center in Albany, NY on February 17. This marks the fourth world tour he has started in the Capital Region of New York In 2015, he played his first Dead and Company Show there. In 2017, he started his Search for Everything Tour at the arena, and Mayer also started his last solo summer tour in Albany on July 19 2019.
John Mayer’s musical journey over the past twenty years is a classic rock and roll dream. Growing up, Mayer never had a doubt about what he wanted to be. His bedroom in the 1980s was adorned with Stevie Ray Vaughn posters. At this time, he was inspired by Buddy Guy’s “Damn Right I got the Blues.” Mayer is one of the last artists to amplify his sound to the masses through original radio and TV circuits, years before the social-media/stream world of exposure.
In 2002, he played at Onondaga County War Memorial on his first solo American tour the same fall Bob Weir and Jeff Chimenti’s Ratdog played Syracuse’s Landmark Theater down the street. 20 years later they are Mayer’s band mates with Oteil Burbridge, Bill Kreutzman, and Mickey Hart on tour as Dead and Company, with four dates in New York scheduled for this August.
Dead and Company Fall Tour opener Albany 2015
In between this time, Mayer’s life was a continuum of battle studies majoring in heartbreak warfare in cities like New York. Who says he can’t get stoned and call a girl he used to know? Halfway to the moon, his vocal cords needed a recharge, which led to him living off the grid in Montana. A poolside chance encounter with the Grateful Dead’s Althea on satellite radio helped Mayer carve out another new sound. He then debuted his psychedelic chops on solo albums Wildfire and Paradise Valley before joining Dead and Co.
Mayer kept his blues roots alive by inducting Stevie Ray Vaughn in to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Mayer and Gary Clark Jr helped pay musical tribute at the ceremony. Mayer also kept his English blues roots atone for performances with The Rolling Stones and joining Eric Clapton for his 70th birthday at Madison Square Garden. He reunited with producer and drummer Steve Jordan to help bring back the John Mayer Trio with Pino Palladino. Dont’t forget Pino’s groove on Don Henley’s 80’s anthem “Boys of Summer”. He recruited D’Angelo guitarist Isiah Sharkey for the his recent solo tours as well. Mayer also dabbled after midnight at the LOCKN festival with Lettuce for Jerry Garcia Band Tribute.
Mayer’s first record fresh off the heels of growing up, however, has an ironic connection to his most recent. Romanticizing years ago on the track “83” off Room for Squares with lyrics like Oh, if only my life was more like 1983. All these things would be more like they were at the start of me. I’d plot a course to the source of the purest little part of me.
John Mayer Search for Everything Tour Albany 2017
Sob Rock is a nod to this era of Mayer’s life experience until now, the simplicity of any given 1980s summer day before we all had to grow up. “Why you no love me?” Is a great example of this angle “They are the most brutal lyrics I’ve written. Musically you’re on a sailboat, but lyrically it’s intense. ‘Why you no love me?’ I’ve spoken those words in relationships and it is the child learning that language. Maybe it takes 43 years to ask it?”
The song’s lyrics, Hurt me once I let it be. Hurt me twice, you’re dead to me, Three times makes you family. Mayer reflects on these words about getting older, “Do not try and create bonds with scar tissue, there are people in our lives who have hurt us enough to join this legacy gang. As you’ get older you learn not to build relationships on the connective tissue of ‘sorry’ hangovers and morning afters. As you get older you say, ‘Be good to me from the start.’
Sometimes nothing feels better for someone than stitching up a wound they made. At 28, that felt like love times a thousand but when you get in your 40’s its sexy to hear someone say, “I would never do that to you” That’s the new language you become attracted to
John Mayer
Musically a Dire Straits tone is found on “Wild Blue” with chilly Knopfler-like vocals. “I’m walking through the wilderness and living off the loneliness. I found myself when I lost you.” Sob Rock is binge watching Stranger Things for its Eighties nostalgia with Carla Francesca in an October past. Mayer wants this album to create memories that you might not have actually had. Can you have memories of things that never happened to you? “For me, I can’t quite see the memory…I’m almost there…it’s my grandmother’s house and Gumby is on TV…is it a dream?…a memory?” Maybe its all a dream I’m having at seventeen, I don’t have tattoos and very soon mother will be calling me and saying come upstairs you got some work to do.
Additionally, two music videos released off the record, “Last Train Home” and “Shot in the Dark,” look like playbacks of recorded VHS tapes off an old Zenith console TV. We cast the same scenes in our social circles. His live performance on the tonight show with Isaiah Sharkey really shows the reflection on the stitches of old love from the road Now the road keeps rolling on forever and the years keep pulling us apart, if its on someone i blame both of us, it shouldn’t matter but it does
His experience with Dead and Company has affected the guitarist in that he wants to hear how the music has affected you. Where did it take you and what has it brought out personally? New York musicians like John McConnell, whose only rest in 20 years was for vocal chord treatment like Mayer, his song “When This, Then That” with the lyrics “So I’ll settle in and relax for a while, I’m a 40 something victim of comfort but I do it with style” is certainly a sound off the new light trail Mayer has bended for all to hike on. At this stage in his life John (Mayer) just wants to be a musical servant. “I’m only here for transportation.”
Key Tracks: Why You No Love Me?, Wild Blue, All I Want is to Be with You
John Mayer 2022 Sob Rock Tour Dates tickets go on sale Friday, July 23 at 11 am ET at JohnMayer.com.
Feb. 17 – Albany, NY – Times Union Center Feb. 18 – Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center Feb. 20 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden Feb. 23 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena Feb. 25 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena Feb. 27 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena March 1 – Belmont Park, NY – UBS Arena March 4 – Boston, MA – TD Garden March 11 – Las Vegas, NV – Grand Garden Arena March 13 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum March 15 – Los Angeles, CA – Forum March 18 – San Francisco, CA – Chase Center March 22 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena March 25 – Salt Lake City, UT – Vivint Arena March 27 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena April 2 – Sunrise, FL – BB&T Center April 5 – Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena April 8 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena April 11 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center April 13 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena April 20 – Austin, TX – Moody Center April 23 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center April 24 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center April 28 – Chicago, IL – United Center
Togs, a new band formed in Brooklyn, are self-releasing their debut EP More of Your Favorites today. Set to a groove-laced indie rock jam, a cyclist out for a cruise gets mugged and chases his attackers into a twisted disco nightmare. The release is accompanied by the adventurous music video for lead single “Disco Ball Shoes”.
“Disco Ball Shoes” via YouTube
After first coming together in 2018, Togs found a new stride while living through the pandemic by playing socially-distant shows from their stoop in Bedford-Stuyvesant. The stoop was upgraded to an outdoor, backyard venue where full-day shows became regular programming. Back in May, Togs headlined a party for a full-house and played the final version of More of Your Favorites for the first time. The band has natural chemistry and were noticeably “at-home” playing in front of friends, family, and strangers who heard the music from the street.
More of Your Favorites Cover Art, Designed by Graci Mills
Specializing in “angular music suitable for aqua-aerobics, wave simulation, and so much more,” the original 4-piece lineup consists of Graci Mills on guitar and keys, Colin Vallee on guitar and vocals, Abbie Krinsky on drums and vocals, and Justin Birmingham on bass and vocals. New member Tony Catalano joined the group in 2021 to round out the live show on guitar and effects.
You can see Togs this Friday, July 16th, headlining a release party at Gold Sounds in Bushwick with support from Night Coast and Plastic Hag. You can find the EP on their BandCamp or Spotify pages.
Togs Headlining the Doomyard, 5/22/2021 – Photo By: BuscarPhoto
Check out more photos from May’s Doomyard show below and keep your eyes peeled for more shows to come this summer.
Based in Bovina, NY, Esquela released their fifth studio album A Sign From God on June 25th. The album features 10 tracks, produced by Eric “Roscoe” Ambel, and was recorded entirely remotely throughout the COVID-19 pandemic which prevented members from getting together to record during the Spring and Summer of 2020.
Esquela, via bandsintown.com
Over the course of several months, Finn wrote all the songs on the record, except the final track, “Wait For Me” which utilized a poem by Konstantin Simonov and was arranged musically by Becca Frame and Brian Shafer. He then sent bits of songs to Roscoe, involving Keith Christopher on bass, Brian Shafer on guitar, Becca Frame on vocals and Matt Woodin on guitars and mandolin, and Mike Ricciardi on drums with the audio engineering accompaniment of Jeff Stachyra. Their individual parts were woven together by their brilliant engineer, spinning a 70’s style overdub in a completely remote 2020 world.
Once the reality of COVID 19 hit us, nobody knew what was going to happen and for how long our normal routines would be disrupted. Since I was homebound for the duration – I decided that I should get my home recording studio up and running again. After weeks of technical frustration– I was finally able to get my home setup cobbled together with a Universal Audio Apollo interface and my MacBook, using Protools recording software.
Bandleader John “Chico” Finn
Amidst a race war and global pandemic, the album captures the cultural conversation surrounding the time, including addressing sensitive topics that unfolded during the year like racism, sexual assault and climate change. The first track on the album, which premiered ahead of the others, addresses climate change and humanity’s impact on Earth. “Not In My Backyard” was inspired by a conversation that transpired between Finn and a friend about fracking in West Virginia. Between the rhythmic guitar riffs and pulsing drum beat, a larger message lies at the core of the song.
The bottom line is that energy is cheap right now…in order for the climate to improve will mean people will have to pay more for their energy source, and I am afraid it won’t happen anytime soon, sad to say.
John “Chico” Finn
Premiering as Esquela’s first album since 2017, the band chose to tackle pressing issues about the world, spreading a message while telling a narrative throughout each song. The last song, “Wait For Me,” has a more stripped sonic atmosphere with soft acoustic guitar and less processed vocals. The song tells the story of Konstantin Simonov and a poem he wrote as a homesick Russian soldier during World War II. Esquela uses the poem as a vessel to acknowledge racism in the deep South, much like the French village of Oradour Sur Glane destroyed by Nazis within the poem.
With Esquela, challenge brings creativity. The album is a true testament that challenge breeds creativity amidst the pandemic. Even prevented from taking a band photo all together for the cover art, they crafted a creative solution to replicate images of them in a fun illustration pictured below. While COVID-19 forced the members to send over the tracks individually, the cohesiveness of these tracks expands beyond Roscoe’s phenomenal work as a producer. These songs tell a narrative about what we need to change as a society in 2020 (and now, its roots have spread into 2021).
The album is now available on Bandcamp or Spotify, with a music video for “Not In My Backyard” on Youtube.
Robert Walter shares “Or Else” and “Franklin,” the first two songs from his Better Feathers series, in which the acclaimed keyboardist rolls out six new “digital 45s” via Royal Potato Family. Each release will feature two singles for a total of 12 tracks to be issued from now through October.
Rather than making the more obvious quiet, introspective music, the focus instead turned to my nostalgia for sweaty bars and crowded dance floors. Somewhere during the process, tracks began floating back and forth to friends like Stanton Moore (Galactic), Craig Brodhead (Turkuaz), Chris Stillwell (The Greyboy Allstars), Jake Najor, John Kimock and Mike Gordon (Phish) to add their own parts remotely.
Robert Walter
Written and recorded entirely from home during quarantine in 2020 and 2021, Robert immersed himself in the writing and recording process as a way to remain creative and fend off boredom while faced with a year of no live shows. According to Walter, the title Better Feathers comes from the idea of birds molting — shedding their old, worn-out feathers for new, better ones.
“Or Else,” is the first of the two tracks released in the series. The song features Robert Walter‘s frequent collaborator, New Orleans drummer Stanton Moore and Turkuaz guitarist Craig Brodhead. “It was influenced by early ’80s dance records by artists like Grace Jones and Chic,” says Walter. The clean melody is inspired by dub melodica explorations and the breakthrough work of Augustus Pablo to create “pure topical funk and summer vibes.” The tune was the first track Walter wrote and curated for the sessions.
Robert Walter – Photo by Julia Mordaunt
It was time to shift gears and think of the situation as a positive and not a negative; an unexpected abundance of time to emerge with something of value… The music is influenced by the methods. In the absence of working with a group, the focus turned to overdubbing layers of sound. Inspirations were found by digging into late 70s NYC dance music, dub reggae, archaic blues, Krautrock, jazz, and funk.
Robert Walter on his creative process during COVID-19 quarantining
The “b-side” is “Franklin” named after Walter‘s elementary school alongside memories of his younger self. Once again, Stanton Moore joins on drums, adding an especially spare and funky beat.
Photo by Rene Huemer via robertwalter.com
There was a certain time during the mid-’70s where it seemed like everything in pop culture was funky. Saturday morning cartoons, television commercials, and most of the music on the radio had absorbed (and sometimes bastardized) the sounds of James Brown, Sly Stone, and the Jackson 5
Robert Walker
Robert Walter’s BetterFeathers Digital 45 Release Schedule
The Better Feathers series continues in late July with the release of “Saucerman” featuring Phish bassist Mike Gordon and “Devices of Similar Size” with Stanton Moore once again on drums. Find the schedule below:
"Saucermen" (w/ Mike Gordon)
"Devices Of Similar Size" (w/ Stanton Moore)
Release Date: July 21, 2021
"Bloodstar" (w/ Craig Brodhead)
"Better Feathers" (w/ Stanton Moore)
Release Date: August 18, 2021
"Security" (w/ John Kimock)
"It's Not What's"
Release Date: September 1, 2021
"Wet From The Press" (w/ Jake Najor)
"Feeder, Doctor, Talker" (w/ Jake Najor & Chris Stillwell)
Release Date: September 22, 2021
"Hellhound" (w/ Chris Stillwell)
"Loomis"
Release Date: October 27, 2021
Until then, isten to and share “Franklin” and “Or Else” below on his Spotify as well as other streaming services accessible HERE
Alan Evans, a prolific musician from Buffalo, has just released a new album Love & Truth, with Crushed Velvet and the Velveteers, which he claims as his guitar player alter ego. The album is released by Vintage League Music, one of Evans’ endeavors that reflects his passion for Soul & Funk music.
Alan Evans is the multi-instrumentalist and co-founder of acclaimed band Soulive, that has been performing together since 1999. In Crushed Velvet and the Velveteers, Evans is able to focus on his guitar personality rather than being a drummer like in Soulive. His astounding talent is apparent in the new album Love & Truth, which evokes the classic 60s and 70s Soul & Funk sound of Memphis, Chicago, Detroit, and NYC.
The album features an all star line-up of acclaimed guest vocalists including Kim Dawson (Pimps of Joytime, Matador Soul Sounds), Saundra Williams (Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Saun & Starr), Lyle Divinsky (The Motet), Yanick (After Funk) and Brother GoodLove (Aztec Sun). Evans handles guitar, bass and drums with guests such as Darby Wolf & Neal Evans on keys and the horn section from the BT ALC Big Band.
Love & Truth is an album of outstanding musicianship, powerhouse vocal performances but most of all classic songwriting which oozes authentic soul. It encompasses quality funk music that is a blessing to all ears. The smooth guitar lines mixed with the classic drum rhythms makes it an unforgettable album guaranteed to soothe the soul. It blends a retro sound with a modern sensibility, strong songwriting and powerhouse vocals.
Love & Truth from Crushed Velvet and the Velveteers is available now at all good record stores, all digital streaming platforms and via the Vintage League Music.
Danger Ken! released their 10 track debut album, Up is Down, on May 7th. Aside from a few guest appearances on certain tracks, drums, keys, guitar, bass and vocals are a product of the album’s creator. A multi-talented instrumentalist and composer local to New York, it appears Dan Gerken’s musical alias, a play on his own name, is just as clever and catchy as his new music.
The opening song, Lagoon (Intro), creates an air of mystery as we unravel what’s to come. Free of lyrics, the song invites the listener to relish in the evolving peaceful synthesizers in the background. By contrast, the intro is followed by Jubilate which pushes back our preconceived notions about the album as a whole. Expanding instrumentation, Jubilate, accompanied by guest Andrew Chamberlaine (Mister F,Timbre Coup) brings a punchy retro-sounding electric guitar and pumping drums to get you moving.
Once lyrics emerge in the third track of the album, Astral Traveler, accompanied by guest instrumentalist Dave Berger (Groovestick), its evident no track is alike on this album that keeps you on your toes, switching from tracelike to groovy all in a matter of seconds. Through the diverse discography, there are staples to the album the listener can count on: catchy electric guitar lines, experimental ethereal synthesizer backgrounds, and unique layered vocals.
The psychedelic cover embodies the range of emotions the lister is drawn to feel while listening to this ever-changing musical soundscape. My ears were constantly attuned to the minute changes in instrumentation. While seemingly minimalistic standing on their own, individual loops placed over top one another allowed for a repetitive yet diverse music range across songs.
My personal favorite track, Time to Go, had notes parallel to 80s synthesizer and electric guitar parts with contrasting rock-like vocals bringing a 90s element. The cross-generational track’s beautiful smooth evolution of instrumentation, experimenting with both tempo and timbre, was both catchy and peaceful. The perfect song for a cross-country solo road trip or backyard concert, I was completely entranced, particularly by the thread of electric guitar that wove in and out of the piece.
A self proclaimed “byproduct of being home a lot the last year and having the studio here for the first time in my life,” Gerken’s vocals are passionate and personal, inviting experimental rock into an intimate atmosphere. I highly recommend giving it a listen, and feel confident in saying between the diverse genre shifts within the album, there is bound to be a favorite for everyone.
Streaming on Bandcamp and Spotify, the album is just waiting to be checked out!
When you search the words “Senior Living,” the very last thing you’d expect is a bunch of 20-somethings moshing in a damp basement. New Yorkers Zac Geddies, Gino Lopez and Brendan Snell intend to change that. The Albany-native band has announced that their debut LP album, Anniversaries, will be available starting June 25.
Formed in 2016, Senior Living was a passion project for Zackery Geddies (guitar/vocals) and Jeremy “Gino” Lopez (drums). Geddies and Lopez began booking local tours during semester breaks from college, making a name for themselves across the Northeast DIY music circuit. Brendan Snell (bassist) is a recent addition to the band and assisted on recording Anniversaries.
Senior Living’s music is best served cranked up loud, with a side of even louder. They have been described as a band that weaves together genres from ethereal shoegaze to punk with a tinge of modern dream-pop. The band’s chemistry, stage antics, and not to mention the blasting Roland Jazz Chorus amp, is guaranteed to fill the room with an immense pool of sound. They have a budding reputation as Albany’s loudest band, so be sure to bring earplugs!
Anniversaries album cover
Anniversaries, the bands debut full-length, tells the story of Geddies’s upbringing and how he experienced maneuvering through childhood with anxiety. The album explores the manic side of depression, the crippling feelings of stress, self-loathing, experiences in interracial relationships, and growing up a person of color in America.
It’s kind of a challenge to pinpoint exactly what led me down a path to music. I’d like to say that the music I’ve made is just my own attempt at coping with my mental health and the societal issues that affect me and the ones I love. Whatever it was that led me to the point where I want to pursue music, I’m glad I’ve found it, and I won’t be ready to give it up anytime soon.
Zac Geddies, founding member and guitarist
Geddies’s raw vocals tackles the serious themes with pure emotion. Two of the tracks are only about a minute long, just enough time for a short poetry excerpt. The LP has an eerie closer with back to back songs “Sourir” and “Everybody Dreams About Dying,” adding an element of the feelings of depression. Except, at the very end, Senior Living picks it back up with a guitar riff – a cliffhanger.
It seems Anniversaries is meant to be listened to in order, showing the progressions of emotion from elation, to self-doubt, to sadness, and back again.
Senior Living previously released “Dominick,” track seven on Anniversaries, as a demo on Bandcamp in March 2020. All proceeds from the single were donated to United Way COVID-19 relief and Meals on Wheels. As a teaser for the album drop, the band shared opening track “Carousel” with an accompanying video on June 21.
According to the band, all nine tracks were recorded in one day at a secret studio location in Oneonta. Each single is unique and can’t be contained under one genre, some songs are hardcore rebellion garage rock while others have a grungy get-in-your-feels type vibe. Though the tracklist is diverse, the album meshes really well.
Prior to Anniversaries, the band has dropped two short albums, two songs on The Paintbox Lace and three on 35mm.
The experience of writing and recording a whole album with close friends and collaborators in the studio led to a concentrated and compact album, and that chemistry can be felt throughout the tracklisting.
There’s no shortage of new releases coming out. After the musical drought of last year, it can be hard to separate the wheat from the chaff. One name that stands out from the crowd of artists launching new albums is John Hall.
The Grammy-winning musician from Ulster County is best known for his role in the band Orleans. Hall recorded the songs for this, this sixth solo album, prior to the pandemic, and had them mixed and finished remotely in the interim. The album, aptly named Reclaiming My Time, is exactly what one would expect of someone of Hall’s caliber.
Reclaiming My Time showcases Hall’s talent. There’s a surprising blend of toe-tappers, and no shortage of ballads. One moment you’ll be dusting off your dancing shoes for the island rhythms of “Islamorada” and the boogie-woogie beat of “All Up And Down From Here.” And the next you’ll be reeling from heart-wrenching ballads.
“Alone Too Long” came out as a single before the album. It was a personal message from John Hall to a friend who lost the love of his life. But the song has a more universal meaning after the social isolation we’ve all experienced during the past year. That message of finding courage to move forward after loss is contrasted by the nostalgic ballad “Another Sunset.” This one is a collaboration with country legend Steve Wariner, who also lends his vocals in this duet. Together these songs demonstrate the dual nature of grief – the longing to hold on and the need to adapt to change.
The collection wraps up with the heartfelt “Welcome Home” written for those who have served in the military. It’s a fitting tribute, well suited to the Memorial Day weekend release of Reclaiming My Time.
