NYS Music 202​1

Category: Alternative/Indie

  • New York Series: Lou Reed “Coney Island Baby”

    Coney Island Baby is an album of love songs. In 1975, Lou Reed was recording it as a follow-up to the baffling Metal Machine Music. Coming from that formless and seemingly random experiment in noise exploration—which he did because he felt like it—this record was Reed’s response to some industry pressure, along with his reminder that he was talented as they come. It was borne from necessity as Reed found himself in a difficult position at the time. His career was in jeopardy for lack of new, accessible music, and his finances were suffering. 

    Coney Island Baby
    RCA/RCA • 1976/2021

    So, Coney Island Baby was the rock record he needed. The title track, also titled “Coney Island Baby,” is a breezy, stroll of a song. Thematically, the lyrics muse about the power of love to wash away insecurity and provide a sense of stability in life’s unpredictable moments. The “glory of love” is Reed’s religion. It’s been said that his muse for much of the album was his girlfriend at the time, a trans woman named Rachel Humphreys, whom he mentions by name along with his local childhood school. 

    “You know, man, when I was a young man in high school, you believe in or not—I wanted to play football for the coach.” Reed is right, his listeners would probably not believe it. But, he drives this memory home by mentioning it a few times. Football stars were supposedly strong, brave and popular. No one is immune to wanting to feel that way in high school, even Reed. He repeats this, giving listeners an insight into one of his main desires growing up: to be noticed. 

    Coney Island Baby
    Reed and Rachel Humphreys
    Mick Rock

    This entire monologue is backed by a steady 4/4 beat with only a few chord changes and a couple of members of Reed’s rotating band for the record. After each verse in which he describes feeling trapped or oppressed by his environment, the song opens into a chorus with Reed repeating “glory of love.” Whereas the verses describe different situations in which he’s felt uncomfortable emotions, even hate, during life—it’s love that saves him from falling. It’s also the promise of love from a “princess on the hill” that fills his desire for acceptance.

    Lou Reed may have wanted to be on his high school football team. Or maybe not. But what is true, and fascinating, is that from this song we can imagine that Reed has faced the struggle to be embraced at points in his life, and has consistently found answers in love—a deeply human experience that unites us all. 

    “Coney Island Baby” lyrics

    You know, man, when I was a young man in high school
    You believe in or not I wanted to play football for the coach
    And all those older guys
    They said he was mean and cruel, but you know
    Wanted to play football for the coach
    They said I was to little too light weight to play line-backer
    So I say I’m playing right-end
    Wanted to play football for the coach
    Cause, you know some day, man
    You gotta stand up straight unless you’re gonna fall
    Then you’re gone to die
    And the straightest dude
    I ever knew was standing right for me all the time
    So I had to play football for the coach
    And I wanted to play football for the coach

    When you’re all alone and lonely
    In your midnight hour
    And you find that your soul
    It’s been up for sale

    And you begin to think ’bout
    All the things that you’ve done
    And you begin to hate
    Just ’bout everything

    But remember the princess who lived on the hill
    Who loved you even though she knew you was wrong
    And right now she just might come shining through

    And the -Glory of love, glory of love
    Glory of love, just might come through

    And all your two-bit friends
    Have gone and ripped you off
    They’re talking behind your back saying, man
    You’re never going to be no human being
    And you start thinking again
    ’bout all those things that you’ve done
    And who it was and what it was
    And all the different things you made every different scene

    Ahhh, but remember that the city is a funny place
    Something like a circus or a sewer
    And just remember different people have peculiar tastes
    And the –

    Glory of love, the glory of love
    The glory of love, might see you through
    Yeah, but now, now
    Glory of love, the glory of love
    The glory of love, might see you through
    Glory of love, ah, huh, huh, the glory of love
    Glory of love, glory of love
    Glory of love, now, glory of love, now
    Glory of love, now, now, now, glory of love
    Glory of love, give it to me now, glory of love see you through
    Oh, my Coney Island baby, now
    (I’m a Coney Island baby, now)
    I’d like to send this one out for Lou and Rachel
    And all the kids at P.S. 192
    Coney Island baby
    Man, I’d swear, I’d give the whole thing up for you

  • Sarah King Dishes Out Five Wonderfully Uneasy Pieces with The Hour

    Singer-songwriter Sarah King has released her debut EP, The Hour, a splendid, soulful voyage to the darkest corners of Americana.  It’s the perfect showcase for her show-stopping vocals and gothic bluesy story songs, something made all the better by the smartly minimalist arrangements conjured by co-producers, Simone Felice and David Baron (The Lumineers, Bat for Lashes, Jade Bird, Felice Brothers).

    sarah king
    photo by Arielle Thomas

    The tune that will likely command the most attention is her reinvention of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs.”  This take is as slow and minimal and softly acoustic as its gets – a thumb strummed solo guitar riding an E minor drone (sorry, Spinal Tap, this and not the D minor, is the saddest of keys/chords).  Even though this guitar and voice spotlight is swaddled in a cathedral’s worth of cavernous reverb, it retains a crispness and clarity, like all the tracks on this impeccably engineered collection.  This cover is further distinguished by the ghostly alternative melodies King conjures, she’s like a bebopper of acid folk.  There’s shades of Nick Drake, Alexi Murdoch and Blue-era Joni Mitchell in the quietude and Dolly Parton, one of her inspirations along with Adele and White Stripes, in the controlled country crack in King’s voice.

    The track “Poison” has a churchy gospel vibe.  Here Sarah King responds justifiably likewise to a cruel lover who can’t take what he dishes out (“I’m not bent, I’m not broken by your crimes. I gave you a taste of your medicine and you say I poisoned you”). Like many tunes on the album, there’s great texture here – tiny sonic delights barely audible in the mix like the ghostly roto-speaker electric guitar in this tune. 

    My personal favorite, “Nightstand,” hammers home the spooky soulful vibe. It’s a murder ballad driven by a swirly Rhodes piano, guitar crunch, Hammond organ wail, rich background vocals and gut-punch lyrics.  Case in point, the chorus:

    I was born with the cord wrapped around my neck
    It’s not something I could ever forget
    The world’s been trying to take me out since the day I first arrived
    There’s a darkness a-reaching for my hand
    I keep a gun in my nightstand
    Waiting for music to bury a body by

    The funereal shuffle of “Cold Hard Ground” brings to mind the artsy country blues of Wrecking Ball-era Emma Lou Harris.  It’s a minor blues articulated with a slurry snare-brushed beat, honey toned organ and minimalist piano. Co-producer David Baron, proprietor of Sun Mountain Studios in the Hudson Valley where the EP was recorded, is an analog synth collector.  He adds some very outta-space keyboard swirl and ambience here, along with (possibly) a mellotron-treated vocal chorus.  He’s a master of the less is more approach.

    sarah king
    photo by Christian James

    “Not Worthy the Whiskey” is a swaggering stomp-and-holler about making peace with your dark past.  The tune is propelled by percussive handclaps and stomps and boasts a whistling-down-the-alley intro ala Billy Joel’s “The Stranger.” It’s another deep blue lament, ones that floats in and out like a dream.

    Like much great music, King’s debut EP was born of loss.  In the press notes she says: “My dog died, my ex-husband died and my mama died too.  Life is too fucking short,  I’d just spent almost a year traveling in a tent away from my instruments and facing so much loss, I realized I never wanted to be away from music again.”

    King’s partnership with Felice came about when she sent him a shot-in-the-dark email containing a performance video of “Nightstand,” which to an invitation to record that tune and four more.  We are lucky that King found the strength to put her loss into such fresh, emotionally revealing, brave music.  And she’s lucky to have found, in Felice and Baron, producers who could bring her art to life is such a beautifully restrained and achingly gorgeous way.

    Key Tracks: Nightstand, War Pigs, Not Worth the Whiskey

  • This week’s EQXposure features NorthSideSound, Annie Scherer and more

    Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music from up and coming artists. Tune into WEQX.com this Sunday night to hear new music from Northsidesound, Annie Scherer and many more!

    Northsidesound

    WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to an ever-expanding listening audience. NYS Music brings you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.

    “Five” by Northsidesound out of Albany kicks off EQXposure on Sunday. Pearson says of the group, “The fastest and probably the worst comparison to make to describe their sound is to recall Sublime – however, that seems far too weak of a link to pin this band down. The vibe of tune “Five” is only similar, but the playing of all the musicians on the cut share a glimpse of things to to come. There seems to be nothing that these guys can’t achieve and this song is outstanding to say the least – fun, hip shaking, and some truly great guitar playing and melodies.”

    Annie Scherer‘s “ You know” is up later in the show. Annie is celebrating the release of her album Garden Bed, and her latest single “You Know,” which debuted on 102.7 FM WEQX this past Thursday, is a gorgeous piece of music. A slow jam that is magnetic and infectious, peering directly into the soul of the listener. Annie’s melody and lyrics are so deeply personal and direct, it’s as if she is singing directly to and about the listener. 

  • “Isolation: Concerts For No One” to feature Kitchen Dwellers, Andy Frasco, and Mihali

    Distrokid, a digital music distribution company, announces digital concert series, “Isolation: Concert for No One”. The series focuses on several artist traveling to idyllic natural destinations throughout the Untied States playing concerts to an empty crowd.

    isolation concerts

    The bands began their roundtrip around the Southeastern Untied States in the fall of 2020 with the goal of trip to document their experiences and perform empty concerts in scenic wilderness area. The featuring artists include Andy Frasco, Shawn Eckles, Kitchen Dwellers and Mihali from Twiddle. The groups all traveled together, not only growing closer but honing their music chops on the way. The goal of these concerts is to emphasize the importance of isolation and being out and nature, ideas brought to light because of the current global pandemic.

    We’re doing this to show people that isolation is needed. Sometimes we need to go outside of our comfort zones and go outside of what we know; we are trying to experience something together that we haven’t experienced in four months because we’ve been sitting in our houses.

    Andy Frasco, Musician

    Distrokid, in collaboration with Fans.Live, is hosting “Isolation: Concerts for No One” as a four episode concert series which filmed across the week-long caravan featuring sets from each act, never-before-seen collaborations, and behind-the-scenes footage. New episodes will air every Tuesday night beginning March 30 at 9 PM ET. Fans can purchase each episode for $10, or the full season for $30. Episodes will remain on demand through Sunday, May 25.

    STREAMING SCHEDULE:

    Episode 1: Lake Powell, AZ (March 30 @ 9PM ET)

    Episode 2: Monument Valley, UT (April 6 @ 9PM ET)

    Episode 3: Moab, UT (April 13 @ 9PM ET) 

    Episode 4: Boulder, CO (April 20 @ 9PM ET)    

  • White Cliffs Releases Brooklyn/Queens filmed Video for “Kick the Can”

    White Cliffs, a psych-electronic band based out of Brooklyn and masterminded by multi-instrumentalist Rafe Cohan, released a new music video for their song “Kick the Can” off their recently released debut EP Stockholm.

    White Cliffs video

    The White Cliffs music video debuted on VENTS Magazine website on March 23rd. The songs central focus is on growing old but a addressed in a playful manner which highlights Cohan’s musical and directorial talents.

    Cohan edited and directed the video, recording all over Rockaway Beach, Queens and Highland Park in New York City. It was shot on a vintage Super 8 film and developed by Mono No Aware in Downtown Brooklyn. Makeup artist Kate Browse help Cohan to achieve an old man look to go hand and hand with the song’s themes of ageing and the old school directorial methods.

    I shot this little video to give a visual element to the meaning of ‘Kick the Can.’ The song is about an old man who is realizing the beauty of mortality and aging. We will all be old one day, so I just wanted to poke fun at what I might be doing when I’m 80 or so.

    Rafe Cohan, Musician

    White Cliffs formed in Cohan’s home town of Brooklyn in 2017 after years of experimentation and attempting to find a sound that really spoke to Cohan. The result of this is the duality seen throughout much of White Cliffs work, the balance between the purist and the unconventional creator. Cohan’s first big break was securing a cross-country tour with Big Wild, among other acts like Elderbrook, STS9, in addition to a set at the Panorama Festival in New York City and debuting a four-person band at CRSSD Festival in San Diego.

    Stockholm EP featuring “Kick the Can ” is available on all streaming platforms.

  • This week’s EQXposure features Fine Grain, Joe Mansmen and many more

    Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music from up and coming artists. Tune into WEQX.com this Sunday night to hear new music from Fine Grain, Joe Mansmen and many more!

    fine grain

    WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to an ever-expanding listening audience. NYS Music brings you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.

    This week’s EQXposure starts with Cameron Clark’s “Martha and her Tin Soldier.” This incredible tune is full of clever twists and glitches. Super creative, it is as if St. Vincent went even deeper and stretched beyond the catchy ear worms to make some true art.

    Fine Grain are gearing up for the release of their brand new full length LP, Missing Adult on Thursday, March 25th. Mixed and recorded in Brunswick, NY, Fine Grain’s post-punk brilliance runs deep with exceptional songwriting and performances of every member of the band. Some musicians are simply meant to play together and it’s only that specific combination that makes the sound so pure and authentically them. Fine Grain is that band. “Missing Adult” is as exciting as it is cool. 

    Joe Mansmen and the Midnight Revival have a new single “Renegade Love” that hits the airwaves one day before the release of their brand new LP Renegadez. Glam rock may have taken a nap, but Joe Mansmen and the Midnight Revival band has unleashed the beast that laid dormant in all the tight paints cut up t-shirts to revive a style that was everyone’s favorite even though the feared admitting the raw visceral attraction to the pleasing distorted guitars and massive beats.

  • Rochester Musicians Collaborate as The Ribbon Project – listen to the first single “Medicine”

    Like many musicians, Jason Pariseau has been writing a lot of music over the past year. And as some artists discover, what they write may not fit with their current group and they branch out from there. For Pariseau, this meant that while some songs fit the mold for his group Periodic Table of Elephants (PToE), some had an alternative/indie rock sound. Thus, The Ribbon Project was born.

    Pariseau wrote songs that were inspired by artists like The National, Bear’s Den, Novo Amor, and others, with “Medicine” the first of the new batch. Since the process to record these songs took a while due to the collaborative process, he decided to release these one-by-one, instead of waiting for an all at once EP release.

    the ribbon project

    With a small pile of acoustic folk songs and a great deal of potential for them, Pariseau took the idea to Josh Pettinger at Wicked Squid Studios. They talked about the best way to approach the project, and instead of trying to synthesize everything in the studio, Pettinger encouraged him to lean on the local music scene in Rochester. When Pariseau started reaching out, the response was overwhelmingly positive. 

    As an indie-acoustic project featuring various musicians from the Rochester area, The Ribbon Project features PToE drummer Sean Scanlon on all tracks. For “Medicine,” Jason and Sean are joined by Joel Boyer (banjo), Arjun Baxter (upright bass), Ian Downey (cello), and Darren DeWispelaere (trumpet).

    With the feedback received from the first song, Pariseau is looking to bring The Ribbon Project to a live audience sometime later this summer. Still, the group of musicians have not played together in person just yet.

    The way the first song came together far exceeded my expectations.  And, what has been an interesting approach is that at no time have all of these musicians been together to play the song.  Everything was done digitally by sharing tracks and ideas, then having each person come into the studio one-by-one to record their parts.  Once one person was done, I’d send the track to the next person, and they would add on their layers.  Each person building on the previous person’s track. It’s been a fantastic project.  The next song is about 50% done, and will include a different group of musicians. 

    While the next evolution of PToE will be a step back from 90s punk, and pay homage to other 90s bands like Hum, Failure and Our Lady Peace, The Ribbon Project will set forth on an indie route, adding to the rich music scene waiting to burst open once again in the Flower City.

    Catch Pariseau perform virtually at “Homegrown Presents: Going Green Party” streamed from Lovin’ Cup in Rochester. The stream kicks off at 2pm on Saturday, March 20th.

  • Fake Dad Announce Debut EP ‘Old Baby’

    Brooklyn duo Fake Dad return with their new EP Old Baby, and its final single “Listen.” The band is previewing the album on March 19th via Baby’s TV, a livestream series presented by Williamsburg venue Baby’s All Right.

    fake dad old baby

    Fake Dad, comprised of Andrea de Verona and Josh Ford, formed in early 2018. Their sound is defined by their signature butter-smooth R&B vocals combined with buzzing hip-hop and electro-pop textures that form a dizzying cocktail that always finds its groove. The band has three singles in preparation for their debut, “Summerhill”, “Breakfast in New York”, and their newest single “Listen”.

    Brooklyn-based electro-duo Fake Dad bring that same energy to their new single, “Breakfast in New York,” a bite of R&B-tinged bliss guaranteed to make your mouth water for a bacon, egg, and cheese from your bodega or deli of choice (for those of us outside The Big Apple, maybe an Egg McMuffin at the very least).

    The All Scene Eye

    Other song on the EP include “Pretty/Ugly” which sees the duo imagining themselves among the ranks of famous pop stars. The song “Knit Sweater” offers an innate comfortability, seeing the band reaching for something safe and whole. The newest single, “Listen”, is grounded in silky meditations offering a serene mood. The unique soundscape offered by this EP see the band meld these inflection points together for something both invigorating and comforting. The EP is an exciting a bold move for the promising duo.

    Tickets for the March 19th preview livestream are available here.

  • Imaginary People Release Raucous Single “Renegade”

    New York City’s post-punk, art-rock ensemble Imaginary People return with an irreverent, amphetamine-fueled new track “Renegade,” lifted from the band’s forthcoming album Alibi due later this year.

    Any music worth its salt will reflect the times it’s made in. It’ll absorb the atmosphere of everything around it, hold up a mirror to what’s happening in the lives of the people who made it and also the wider world outside.

    That’s exactly what Imaginary People aims to portray in Alibi, the band’s third full-length album. It is, as frontman Dylan Von Wagner, explains, a response to the cultural civil war that he sees unfolding all across the USA. That cultural dystopia bristles through Alibi’s 11 songs.

    The band – consisting of Mark Roth (guitar), Justin Repasky (keys/synth), Kolby Wade (drums), Bryan Percivall (bass/synth), and with additional synth work by Grant Zubritsky – have not just perfectly captured the times in which this record was written, but have managed to turn the nightmare of the modern world into something truly exquisite, pitting emotional vulnerability against an almost resigned stoicism.

    Just listen to the way that Von Wagner’s voice trembles on the albums opener “It’s Simple,” the tenderly mournful opener written minutes after the singer watched the gun massacre at Stoneman Douglas High School unfold on live television.

    Listen to the tentative fragility and dark romanticism of “Bronx Girl” and the jittery “Neon Age” which rails against a world in which people present a different version of their lives to society in order to impress them.

    “It’s a giant sh*t on Instagram,” Von Wagner says matter-of-factly. “I have no problem with people using it, but everybody’s just making up their life to be their own little movie, and I think it’s making a lot of people mentally ill.”

    While there are glimpses of light throughout the darkness that permeates every aspect of Alibi – one that captures the nature of what humanity has become – and while its songs do reflect the harsh, bleak reality of being alive – it also manages to exist on its own, and in its own terms.

    The official video for “Renegade,” directed by Dylan Von Wagner, is out today. Von Wagner says, “After spending two nights in jail for trespassing in an empty warehouse we found the ‘right’ one and performed an exorcism!”

    Alibi is being recorded by Phil Weinrobe (Nick Murphy, Pussy Riot, Stolen Jars) at Rivington 66 in the band’s home of New York City, as well as upstate with Eli Crews (Tuneyards, Deerhoof, Xylouris White) at Spillway Sound in the Catskills and mixed by Crews at Figure 8 in Brooklyn.

    Imaginary People have created an album that shimmers with a twisted beauty, which feeds off all of that disturbing substance and turns it into something both harrowing and beautiful.

    “Renegade” is now on all streaming platforms. The release follows up the album’s two pre-release singles, “Hometown” and “Crazy Eight.”

    “Hometown” was described by PopMatters as “landing somewhere between ’80s stadium rock (The Alarm, War-era U2) and latter day saints such as the War on Drugs.” Both songs are available now to listen and share on streaming services.

  • Sulene Releases Introspective “he•don•ic”

    On March 5th, South African-born, Brooklyn-based artist Sulene released her new EP, he•don•ic, on Trash Casual.

    Sulene

    The five songs on the EP dive deep into her struggles with alcohol addiction, depression, and hedonic pleasures, and finding a way out of these destructive cycles.

    Sulene’s dark lyricism is juxtaposed by dancey, sexy beats strewn with synth and guitar that she describes as a “gothic disco party.”

    This vulnerable-meets-underground club aesthetic is found on songs like “identity crisis” and “photo booth”, both questioning bad habits she’s encountered in her life.

    Written at the start of the pandemic, “diner coffee” brings a more slowed down, sullen moment to the record as Sulene states “I promise to be useful” – a nod towards needing to create while blocking out depression.

    For Sulene, writing he•don•ic was a painful and difficult process, but also one that allowed her to experiment with music in a new way.

    Exploring a darker side of her character and production, Sulene wrote, recorded, and produced the entire EP out of her apartment in Brooklyn, NY. She also delved into filming and editing her own music videos and artwork, giving a full 360-degree view of her newest art.

    Speaking on the release, Sulene stated:

    he•don•ic explores my relationship with hedonism and addiction. Lyrically it speaks an uncomfortable truth and sonically it makes me wanna be in the club; a contradiction I find intriguing.

    This is definitely a fair overview or the EP. Each song is introspective in its own way, with Sulene analyzing her habits and tendencies, as well as her mental state. Sulene is heavily critical of her relationships with others, and her indulgences and dependencies.

    At the same time, the pounding, synth-heavy beats remind the listener of going out at night and partying with friends at clubs. It is a truly interesting contradiction, especially now in a time when clubs have been completely empty for almost a year.

    With the release of the he•don•ic EP, Sulene has broken new ground as an artist, bringing an experimental and refreshing take on pop music. You can stream he•don•ic here now and purchase the EP on vinyl here.