NYS Music 202​1

Category: Capital Region

  • Jackson Browne and James Taylor delight and Excite at SPAC

    Thousands of fans packed the beautiful grounds of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) in Saratoga Springs on a spectacular August evening to listen to the familiar and steady voices of James Taylor and Jackson Browne.

    Jackson Browne got the evening started, singing a mix of his classic songs. If you closed your eyes during the performance, you’d be hard-pressed to know that it was not the Jackson of one of his early albums. Fans enthusiastically greeted each song, many singing along with the familiar lyrics. The audience erupted in cheers when Jackson brought out James Taylor to accompany him on a few songs. He mentioned that knowing this tour was on the horizon made the last year and a half more bearable. Both performers mentioned how much fun they’ve been having on this tour, so much so that they have added 18 new dates.

    Jackson Browne James Taylor
    Jackson Browne at SPAC

    After a short break, James Taylor‘s set began with images and videos playing on a gigantic fretboard above the stage. Pictures of James throughout his career, fans at different James Taylor shows, and videos of fans playing some of James’ songs warmed up the enthusiastic crowd. As the darkened stage lit up, James emerged in his trademark cap and jacket and performed songs from his massive songbook.

    Jackson Browne James Taylor
    James Taylor at SPAC

    The crowd didn’t hesitate to call out requests, and James interacted with the crowd to set up his next selection. “It’s funny you should mention North Carolina,” before segueing into “Copperline,” a song about the area he grew up in. As a James, I was happy to hear “Sweet Baby James” make the setlist. The songs served as a lullaby of sorts to me and transported me back to my youth. Jackson Browne joined Taylor for an encore of “Take it Easy,” and James ended the night with “You Can Close Your Eyes,” a duet with his son Henry

    The tour continues in the northeast with one more show in New York at the Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater, and two shows in New Jersey before heading south and west in the fall.

    James Taylor Setlist: Country Road, Never Die Young, Copperline, That’s Why I’m Here, Mexico, You Make It Easy, Line ‘Em Up, Steamroller Blues, Easy as Rollin’ Off a Log (Johnnie ‘Scat’ Davis cover), Sweet Baby James, Fire and Rain, Carolina in My Mind, Shower the People, How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)

    Encore: Shed a Little Light, Take It Easy (with Jackson Browne), You’ve Got a Friend, You Can Close Your Eyes (with Henry Taylor)

    • Jackson Browne James Taylor
    • Jackson Browne James Taylor
    • Jackson Browne James Taylor
    • Jackson Browne James Taylor
    • Jackson Browne James Taylor

  • This Week’s EQXposure Features Paul Moody, The William Deuel Band, 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 Paul Moody, the William Deuel Band and many more!

    Paul moody

    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.

    Paul Moody

    Folk singer-songwriter Paul Moody is a recent Woodstock transplant from Chicago, who also performs under the name Moody Jr. His upcoming album Songs From Youth, out this October, is preceded by the contemplative, personal single “Breaking Into Cars.”

    Moody’s music is immersive and ambient, with detailed soundscapes you can almost meditate to. The best example is “All I Had Was You,” his most-played song on Spotify with almost 500K streams.

    The William Deuel Band

    Formed in Saratoga Springs in 2018, The William Deuel Band is a unique amalgamation of the Rolling Stones and Nirvana, with some country and blues thrown in for good measure. Their newest full-length effort, Moment in Time, features frontman William Deuel, drummer Chris Reed, Jr., and bassists Jason Brown and Ethan Henderson. Highlights include “Ballroom Bananas” and “Can’t Wait on Sunday.”

    The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

    “Situational Comedy” is the final track on The Great Pacific Garbage Patch’s debut album, You’ve Changed. Despite its title evoking images of Michael Scott or Leslie Knope causing hilarious hijinks at their workplace, this pop punk tune is bleak and anxious, referencing The Truman Show and a self-conscious feeling of being watched by an audience: “And it’s been a good run / I just hope that I could give the people what they want.” The Albany trio is made up of drummer Jordan Demarest, bassist Dan Haggerty and lead singer and guitarist Will Kachidurian.

    You’ve Changed by The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

  • In Focus: Lindsey Stirling at SPAC

    On August 16, 2021, Lindsey Stirling graced Saratoga Performing Arts Center with an incredible performance. From daredevil aerial spinning to intricate choreography, her show is one for the ages. Sterling said during her set that she always imagined herself becoming what she is today, a badass playing violin and dancing to dubstep, wearing the most fantastical costumes.

    Lindsey Stirling
    Photo by Zach Culver

    Lindsey’s Artemis Tour, named after her latest album release, is just as outrageously out of this world as any of her work. Every few songs a video would come up on the massive LED screen behind her playing a fable of sorts, usually incredibly strong and uplifting, inner beauty and strength being a key point in all her messages. She dives deep into each genre of… well, everything she gets into. Her music ranges from heavy dubstep to classical and back to pop, and her stage performances always have incredible themes.

    Lindsey Stirling

    Artemis is very much an album based in ancient fantasy. The videos between songs showed Lindsey Stirling in full costume in the middle of the woods, bow in hand, among her clan of pre/post-apocalyptic hunters. As she dove into her other albums, her costumes and themes changed with them. A Choose Your Own Pirate Adventure got the crowd cheering as the fair maiden and her crew acted out insanely hilarious and amazing choreography.

    Lindsey Stirling

    The Artemis Tour takes Lindsey out west for a handful of shows before a five-month hiatus. In late February 2022, she begins her World Tour of the same name beginning in Sydney, Australia and ending in Kiev, Ukraine.

    Setlist: Artemis, Til the Lights Goes Out, Darkside, Shatter Me, Masquerade, Master of Tides, Love Goes On and On, Crystallize, Married Life > Once Upon a Dream > A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes / You’ve Got a Friend in Me, Between Twilight, Sleepwalking, The Arena / Underground, Roundtable Rival / Don’t Let This Feeling Fade, First Light, Mirage

  • Hall and Oates are “Back Together Again” at SPAC

    Rescheduled from 2020, Daryl Hall and John Oates had been waiting to get their tour on the road for almost as long as we’ve been waiting to see them again. On Sunday, August 15th, they arrived with some 13,000 fans at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, one of the biggest crowds this venue has seen in some time. English band Squeeze opened the show.

    hall and oates
    Photo by Zach Culver

    The duo came out, clad in their best rocker gear, followed by their band. Starting out with the classic “Maneater” the crowd was in from the start. They ripped through a few of their oldies before Daryl moved over to his grand piano for “Sara’s Smile.” After tearing up the crowd’s heartstrings he moved back over to center stage with his counter-part. The whole band came in strong for “Back Together Again,” surely being a very meaningful track for them after this past year.

    hall and oates

    30 minutes before their slotted end time they left the stage, leaving the crowd hungry for more. Little did they know what they were in for. Hall and Oates came back on stage for a four song encore, starting with “Rich Girl” and flowing into “Kiss on My List,” “Private Eyes,” and lastly, “You Make My Dreams.”

    hall and oates

    The duo headed west after Saratoga and the next time they will be near New York State will be September 18th at the Merriweather Pavilion in Columbia, MD and Foxwoods Casino in Mashantucket, CT to close their tour on December 3rd and 4th.

    Setlist: Maneater, Out Of Touch, Method of Modern Love, Say It Isn’t So, You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ (Barry Mann cover), She’s Gone, Sara Smile, Is It a Star, Back Together Again, I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do),

    Encore: Rich Girl, Kiss On My List, Private Eyes, You Make My Dreams

  • This Week’s EQXposure Features Kimberly Hawkey, Canella 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 Kimberly Hawkey, Canella and many more!

    Canella

    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.

    Kimberly Hawkey

    Kimberly Hawkey’s album We the Nighthawks is begging to be adapted as a musical. Combining jazz, folk and Broadway influences, each of its 13 tracks tells a stage-ready story ripped from the Great American Songbook. The album’s title track, a melancholy piano ballad, is a love letter to the insomniacs and night owls staying up while the rest of the world sleeps. Hawkey is also the lead singer of NYC swing sextet, The Swingaroos. This Tuesday, August 17, you can catch her performing at The Linda, WAMC’s performing arts studio.

    We the Nighthawks by Kimberly Hawkey

    Custom, center

    Canella

    Canella is a new project from former members of Albany band Waitress. On “Quiet Love,” lead singer Juliana Castrillon shares her experience with homelessness and finding her way back: “I won’t miss the times before, I was locked right out the door.” The video, directed by El Modernist lead singer Will Fredette, showcases Castrillon’s journey, from waiting at a bus stop with a suitcase to experiencing happiness and safety again.

    Bathrobe Robots

    Bathrobe Robots is a sibling duo made up of Devon and Linnea Seegers. Their Facebook bio reads “Sibling robots crash landed in the desolate countryside of upstate New York, and decided to make some music.” Their glitchy, politically-charged, Grimes-channeling single “Speak Now” encourages listeners to make a difference by using their voices.

  • Donny Skipper Releases New Single “She Farts Just Like Her Daddy”

    Independent comedy musician Donny Skipper has released a new single and music video for “She Farts Just Like Her Daddy.” With two albums already streaming and a third in the works, Skipper has been putting in the work. This latest track is based on the recent arrival of his baby, a daughter named Donna Skipper who farts so much he had to write her this song.

    donny skipper - she farts just like her daddy

    Originally born and raised in Saskatchewan, Canada, Skipper moved to Syracuse about 10 years ago where he was a delivery driver at Syracuse University. He later moved to Cohoes to pursue his career as a musician and TikTok star. That leads to now where he has released his latest song “She Farts Just Like Her Daddy”.

    The music video was to accompany the song was made with Skipper’s neighbor Montrese as the star. It was filmed at random farms in Halfmoon and the crew were asked to leave a few properties by angry farmers but regardless of that fact they still got everything needed. The video is directed and edited by Donny Skipper himself. 

    The lead up to this release was accompanied by a series of videos posted on TikTok involving a high end baby crib called the Snoo. In the skit like videos, Donny Skipper tells the story of a fussy baby only put to sleep by the Snoo. Except after only a little while with peaceful sleep, the crib was stolen while he was away from the apartment. In the resolution of the conflict it is revealed that Montrese, Skipper’s neighbor, had stolen the crib in order to gain the starring role in the “She Farts Just Like Her Daddy” music video.

    Feel free to find Donny Skipper on TikTok or Instagram @DonnySkipper. To listen to this single and his previous two albums visit Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, or wherever you listen to music. 

  • The Park Theater Announces “The Park Presents” 2021/22 Season

    Beginning in September 2021, the Park Theater Foundation will begin its flagship series, “The Park Presents,” featuring a diverse lineup of national and international musicians from genres including folk, Americana, zydeco, jazz, classical and more.

    The Park Presents

    The Park Theater, located in Glens Falls, is known as the “newest premier venue” in the area and has a passion for sharing quality and affordable musical entertainment and educational opportunities. The building was established as a movie theatre in 1911, subsequently closing in 1935. Revived in the mid-2000s, The Park Theater reopened its doors with a new vitality for providing a stage for music and arts performance in 2018.

    The Park was shut down for eight months following the COVID-19 pandemic and returned in a small scale to present “Dinner & A Movie: ‘A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood‘” in November 2020. “The Park Presents” introduces the full-force comeback of the theater!

    We have been hard at work on this schedule and are beyond excited to welcome live music back to our stage and guests to our seats.

    Chris Ristau, Excecutive Director

    On September 10, guitarist Ariel Posen will be the first to take the stage for “The Park Presents” season. This season will also feature The Gibson Brothers, the Villalobos Brothers, The Small Glories, The Jason Anick Acoustic Trio, and many more.

    In addition to music concerts, the 2021/22 season will feature a variety of other programs including “Tribute Band Rewind,” “Live & Local,” “Comedy After Dark” and “Third Thursday Jazz.”  

    The Park Presents

    Tickets for the 2021/22 season will be on sale beginning August 6th, 2021. For the full performance listing or to purchase tickets, visit www.parktheatergf.com.

    Check out the full schedule below:

    Park Theater Upcoming Events 2021

    August 12 @ 6:30 pm – Summerland Music Society: Chamber Music

    September 10 @ 7:00 pm – Ariel Posen (Americana, R&B, Beatles-inspired pop)

    September 15 @ 6:30 pm – Rochmon Record Club Listening Party: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young’s “Deja Vu”

    September 18 @ 7:00 pm – Jason Anick Acoustic Trio (Bluegrass, Jazz)

    October 2 @ 7:00 pm – Misty Mountain Hop (Led Zeppelin Tribute)

    October 8 @ 7:00 pm – Cold Chocolate (Americana, Funk, Folk, Bluegrass)

    October 22 @ 6:30 pm – Fort Vine (Indie-Folk)

    October 27 @ 6:30 pm – Rochmon Record Club Listening Party: The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”

    October 29 @ 6:30 pm – The Gibson Brothers (Classic Rock, Country)

    November 4 @ 7:30 pm – Billy Wylder (Jazz, Folk)

    November 6 @ 7:00 pm – High Noon: A Tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd and Southern Rock

    November 11 @ 7:00 pm – The Small Glories (Americana UK Roots)

    November 20 @ 6:30 pm – Villalobos Brothers (Contemporary Mexican Music)

    November 30 @ 6:30 pm – Rochmon Record Club Listening Party: Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours”

    December 3 @ 7:00 pm – Saints in the City: A Bruce Springsteen Tribute Band

    December 10 @ 7:00 pm – Soggy Po Boys (Music of New Orleans)

    December 29 @ 6:30 pm – Rochmon Record Club Listening Party: Doobie Brothers’ “The Captain and Me”

    Ariel Posen’s Recent Release with Cory Wong

  • In Focus: Capital Region Artist Freedom Stratton Sets The Stage For Ginuwine Performance at Empire State Plaza

    Wednesday, August 4 kicked off the Capital Concert Series at the Empire State Plaza in Albany and it did not disappoint with headlining act 90s favorite R&B singer, Ginuwine and opening act Freedom Stratton.

    freedom stratton ginuwine

    Gracing the Albany stage for the first time in 25 years, Ginuwine kept the crowd dancing and smiling with hits like “In Those Jeans” and “Pony.” While a large crowd was drawn to the Plaza with the chance to see an old school performance on a warm summer night, they had the perfect warm-up in the form of an opening act that came across as an artist with years in the business.

    Setting off the night of dancing was a young local artist Freedom Stratton. Popping onto the stage with an energy that reached beyond his stature, his vocals and movements took up the massive staging area. Slated to do two 10-minute sets, Stratton focused on his newly released singles. During the first set, listeners got to hear Stratton’s singles ‘Ray Banz’ and ‘Prophecy’, which gave them a taste of Stratton’s clever lyrical power.

    freedom stratton

    Born and raised in Albany, Freedom Stratton very recently celebrated his 21st birthday only days before the performance but is no stranger to the struggle and beauty of making music in the 518. At an early age, Stratton fell in love with musical theater, which led to his participation in high school plays, studying modern dance at Berkshire Ballet, and also a slew of performances in community productions across the Capital Region.

    ginuwine

    During the second set, he got the crowd dancing to more r&b/pop inspired singles ‘Tell Me What You Need’ and ‘New Things’. The audience bounced and grooved along all the way until Ginuwine took the stage. After Stratton’s second performance NYS Music had a chance to sit down with the budding artist.

    NYS Music: What started your career in music?

    Freedom: About three years ago I started working with BChaps. Then I had this idea to get a bunch of artists together for an album called “The Future” and it broke over 400,000 streams in less than a year. Then I knew.

    NYS Music: What sets you apart from other artists?

    Freedom: The drive. The drive to know that nothing is going to happen without you doing something to make it happen.

    NYS Music: Do you have a dream collaborator and why? 

    Freedom: Anderson Paak. Oooh. He’s spicy. He’s spicy right there. I feel like that’s one of the most influential people to me in the music industry. It’s like that newer version of the old school.

    NYS Music: Do you have any music that you often listen to these days? And who are the musicians that inspired you?

    Freedom: Jason Derulo, gotta throw him in there. Ariana Grande. Justin Bieber, I ain’t gonna lie. I really mess with pop, like Dua Lipa. It’s the kind of music that I’m pushing for. More mainstream but at the same time they can make a heartbreak song, or a happy song, or a love song. I just love the diversity pop brings.

    NYS Music: How would you like to see music help the community? 

    Freedom: Bringing people back together, you feel me? People are literally scared to be around each other. Music can bring us back together.

    Things shifted in 2018 though once it became clear to Stratton that pop stardom would achieve his goal of leaving “a legacy. Something that will carry on forever and be able to touch people for generations”. Stratton began working with local music producer, Brian Chiappinelli(B.Chaps) to capture music that makes people happy. All the hard work has already begun to pay off. Just last year Stratton released his first full-length studio album dubbed “The Future”. With a loaded roster of other 518 artists, Stratton pushed himself out of his typical style comfort zone. Not only did the success of the album cause him to release a deluxe version that included a whopping thirty songs but “The Future” was also picked up for distribution by record label Rexius Records in Sweden.

    Already back in the studio, Stratton has 2 singles set to be released this month. ‘First Love’ with Kortnee Simmons is dropping on Empire Media on August 13 and ‘For The Summer’ with B. Chaps and Money Montage is dropping on Foundation Media on August 20.

    Freedom Stratton is available on all major streaming platforms (iTunes, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Spotify, and Google Play).

    The Capital Concert Series at the Empire State Plaza continues this week with LIT.

    Photos of Freedom Stratton and Ginuwine courtesy of Mirth Films.

  • This Week’s EQXposure Features Caity Gallagher, Joseph Beaty 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 Caity Gallagher, Joseph Beaty and many more!

    Caity Gallagher

    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.


    Caity Gallagher

    With its calming piano and breezy vocals, singer-songwriter Caity Gallagher’s single “Give It All” would fit right in at the Lilith Fair. Equal parts Fiona Apple and Sarah McLachlan, the song is about hesitance in starting a new relationship: “What’s holding me down? What happened to the lightness I thought I’d found?” Gallagher and her band, collectively known as Caity and the Gallaghers, are playing at The Linda on Thursday, August 12.

    Joseph Beaty

    Joseph Beaty’s latest album Rust, You Can Leave Me Now is available for pre-order. The Adirondack musician and producer creates a gloomy atmosphere on its singles, the industrial “Thick of Things” and the grungy “Still Forming,” which he acknowledges in the Bandcamp notes:

    [This album] is the embodiment of 2020. Things in my life (in all our lives) were put in perspective and it was time to remove the negative bits. This record was my catharsis, my therapy. It is gritty, unsafe, and dark. No sense in sugar-coating it. You will hear many lyrics talk about knocking the rust out. This therapy experiment helped me arrive as a new, more focused person for 2021.

    El Modernist

    Albany band El Modernist gives us a geometry lesson on new wave song “Lines.” Its talk-singing style hearkens back to the early 1980s, when Blondie and Talking Heads flirted with spoken word and early rap.

  • Lecco Morris and Friends Announce Live Premiere of “We The Nighthawks”

    Schenectady native and artistic producer Lecco Morris along with fellow New Yorkers, singer Kimberly Hawkey and lyricist Justin K. Rivers, have announced the live premiere of their thirteen-track album We the Nighthawks. Occurring on August 17 at The Linda in Albany at 8 p.m., the audience will be treated to performances that pull many genres including art song, jazz, musical theatre, and America.

    lecco morris

    Released earlier this year in May, the album captures within Hawkey’s crystalline and sometimes haunting voice what makes us all human – “life, love, and loss”. Recorded at Dreamland Studios in upstate New York with an impressive full orchestra of twenty musicians, the album has a solid foundation behind it. Despite covid putting the album on a brief hold, each musician showed up on recording day after receiving the required negative COVID test to enter the studio. Bringing a plethora of experience to the team is Grammy-nominated Assaf Gleizner as musical director, and seven-time Grammy-winning producer, Joel Moss. Moss’s impressive client list includes the late Ray Charles, Stephen Sondheim, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tony Bennett, Johnny Cash, and many more during a career in the music industry that has spanned over fifty years.

    Moss was at first skeptical about undertaking the indie record at first saying, “My first listening of these Morris/Rivers compositions was a simple piano/vocal recording.  The fact that its simplicity featured the brilliant playing of Assaf Gleizner and the angelic voice of Kimberly Hawkey was not wasted on my ready-to-be-unexcited ears. I was immediately captivated, and rather than quickly scanning, tune to tune, I listened intently, top to bottom…twice.”  

    While We the Nighthawks might be Morris’s first full-length studio album that he composed, it is only a small fraction of musical experience this pianist has under his belt. Growing up in western New York, Morris was “born in the theater” due to his father Philip Morris’s positions at the Arts Council for Chautauqua County and The Reg Lenna Center for the Arts in Jamestown. While Morris did not participate in the theater directly, it was the springboard for future artistic endeavors. Since the tender age of 3, Lecco Morris has been perfecting his piano skills before turning to create music in his early teens.

    During Morris’s senior year is when his music career took off. While entering his senior year of high school, Morris was given special permission to attend college-level classes at SUNY Schenectady School of Music. The stellar programming prepared Morris for a heavy curriculum that he later took renowned NYU Steinhardt where he obtained his degree in Music Theory and Composition. Morris also credits SUNY Schenectady School of Music for the ability to overcome the creative challenges faced trying to compose an album during the midst of a pandemic.

    “The program’s music fundamentals – particularly theory and aural skills – were so thorough that I tested out of an entire year and a half of required credits at NYU’s music theory and composition program, affording me space in my schedule to explore more advanced musical coursework.”

    Morris has since participated in many different art forms including acting, improv poetry, touring theater pieces but never straying far from his love for music. Fans can stay tuned for more stunning creative alchemy from Morris, Rivers, and Hawkey for their upcoming holiday album “A New Noel”, set to be released November this year, and a sophomore studio album.

    Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased here.

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