Blog

  • 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. 

  • Allman Betts Band Debut at Brooklyn Bowl on this day in 2019

    On Wednesday March 27, 2019 – 50 years to the day of the formation of The Allman Brothers Band, The Allman Betts Band made their debut at Brooklyn Bowl in New York City and they certainly did not disappoint.

    Allman Betts Band

    Allman Betts Band consists of Devon Allman, Duane Betts and Berry Oakley Jr., (you can probably figure out who their Father’s are), guitarist Johnny Stachela, drummers Jon Lum and R. Scott Bryan and keyboardist John Ginty. Devon and Duane have been playing together for over 30 years and both have solo albums, and the other members of the band are definitely top notch musicians. Any Allman Brothers super fan like myself will certainly enjoy this group.

    Allman Betts Band

    The setlist was a mix of new music from the band’s debut album Down To The River, solo cuts from both Devon and Duan’s solo albums. Of course there were also a few Allman Brothers classics like Elizabeth Reed, Blue Sky and Dreams. There was even a cover of Prince’s Purple Rain featuring country singer and Brooklyn born Jessica Lynn. You can see the full setlist below.

    Allman Betts Band

    On April 9, 2021 the group will finally hit the road again and start their Spring tour at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, Az continuing through the midwest for 15 dates.  After that they will continue for 12 more show in May and June mostly in the south.  You can see all of the upcoming tour dates here.  They also have a follow up album to Down To The River called Bless Your Heart which was released last summer.  Due to Covid19 the band was unable to tour last year but now many states are easing restrictions and it appears that live music is finally making a come back. 

    Setlist: All Night, Melodies Are Memories, Blue Sky (Allman Brothers cover), Left My Heart In Memphis (Royal Southern Brotherhood cover), Taking Time (Duane Betts cover), In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (Allman Brothers cover), Multi-Colored Lady (Greg Allman cover), Seven Turns (Allman Brothers cover), Mahalo (Devon Allman’s Honeytribe cover), Purple Rain (Prince cover with Jessica Lynn), Dreams (Allman Brothers cover), Good Ol Days, Shakedown Street (Grateful Dead cover)

  • The Orchestra Now (TŌN) to livestream Two Concerts

    The Orchestra Now, aka TŌN, will be conducting two shows to livestream on April 10 and May 1. With 72 young musicians from 14 different countries, The Orchestra Now seeks to make symphonic music relevant today.

    The Orchestra Now
    Photo Credit: David DeNee

    Conductor, educator, and music historian Leon Botstein founded TŌN in 2015. This graduate program at Bard College has grown exponentially and has undoubtedly begun to leave its mark. The concerts are free, with a suggested donation of $25-50.

    On April 10, Leon Botstein leads TŌN in Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony and Berstein’s Serenade. This performance will feature violinist Zongheng Zhang also. The program additionally will have the work of Ácana from Tania León and Stravinsky’s Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments, performed alongside pianist Blair McMillen. RSVP here for a direct link to the livestream on the day of the concert.

    On May 1, the show is dedicated to the memory of Stuart Strizler-Levine, a beloved Bard faculty member since 1964. Leon Botstein will conduct the Orchestra in the first of two concerts in the Beethoven tribute. This first program will present the composer’s 5th and 7th Symphonies in addition to his Triple Concerto for violin, cello, and piano. This start to the Belated Beethoven Birthday Celebration will feature violinist Adele Anthony, cellist Peter Wiley, and pianist Shai Wosner. RSVP here for a direct link to the Livestream on the day of the concert. This commemoration will continue on May 8.

    The Orchestra Now
    Photo Credit: Matt Dine

    Members of The Orchestra Now are hand-picked from the world’s leading conservatories. With The Orchestra Now offering onstage introductions and demonstrations, writing concert notes, and having one-on-one discussions with patrons, TŌN musicians can further share their unique visions.

  • NYS Music’s March Madness 2021: The Finals

    What the f*ck is up Denny’s? The Finals are here. NYS Music’s March Madness is about to get rowdy. One on one with Baked Shrimp, Long Island against Organ Fairchild, Buffalo – These bands are ready, and hungry, for the NYS March Madness crown.

    the finals

    Since 2015, New York State Music has crafted a March Madness bracket delving into the musical harbors of our great state. As fans and musicians ourselves, we spotlight the great talent across New York in friendly competition and discovery. Its fury never loses sight of the underdog, a headliner’s humble beginnings, new musical discovery and rolling with the punches in our ever-changing industry.


    VOTE IN THE FINALS

    BAKED SHRIMP vs. ORGAN FAIRCHILD


    March Madness Jamcast
    Check out more Jamcast on NYS Music after the final four

    JamCast is a streaming platform that provides a unique experience using live, pre-recorded, archived audio & video performances, podcasting, vlogs, blogs, and more. JamCast has been centered around creating a digital network for musicians, promoters, and venues. It was designed to serve as a resource for all facets of the music industry. By offering weekly series, digital events, festivals, podcasts, archives, and more. An online resource and database for all music industry professionals.


    Elite 8 Balbert
    March Madness 2021 Balbert Marketing Region:

    Baked Shrimp – Long Island, New York.

    Welcome to the Finals.

    Jared Cowen – Guitar/Vox – Scott Reill – Bass/Vox  – Jager Soss – Drums/Vox

    “An impressive musical and technical feat from start to finish. The opening track, “The Vision That I Can See,” is a jaw-dropping epic that really showcases the prowess of this band” – Baked Shrimp ‘Bubble Suit’

    “Pig Hearts and Mechanical Parts” was released March 12, and is the single off of Baked Shrimp‘s second studio album Conscious, set for release on March 26th, 2021. The new single features Nick Rufolo on saxophone, trumpet, and keyboards. The track also features Jager Soss on percussion. 

    Chuck DeFilippo: What does New York State Music mean to you?

    Baked Shrimp:

    New York is home to us, always has been and always will be.

    When we’re not playing  Long Island we’re in Albany or Syracuse or New Paltz, and all around the state. We’ve  met so many amazing musicians and people from all over this state that have a real  passion for what they’re doing. Anytime we revisit a city in New York we always know  we can count on seeing a bunch of familiar faces who we’ve met on the road and have  become friends with over time. We’re lucky enough to be able to host our first multi night, multi-band outdoor music event in our home state this Summer (LonCon), and we  just can’t wait to see so many of our close friends come from their individual parts of the  state and meet in one central location. It’s going to be two incredible nights for the New  York Music community. 

    CD: Any bands or new listening discovered from NYS Music March Madness series?

    Oh man well we have to give a shout out to all of our friends in Glass Pony, Specialists,  Hilltop, and Ampevene, all who we’ve played with and wish all of them could have won  the competition. Check each one of these out if you haven’t yet. 

    CD: Favorite COVID activity, hobby. Since you have all this free time not gigging?

    Baked Shrimp actually had a busy COVID year. When things were really bad and  locked down from March through June of last year, we recorded and released “Bubble Suit,” which was all done from our own individual bedrooms and cars. Self-recorded,  produced, everything, so that was a huge undertaking. Then when were able to get  back in the studio we finished up the Conscious sessions from Summer through Fall.

    And mid-December through mid-January we did some intense practices 20+ hours per week just working on listening exercises, new material, vocal warmups, and also  preparing for the Live for Lon stream, which was probably the biggest task as a band we ever took on by ourselves. So we found ways through all the mayhem going on to still  play music together whether if it’s in the same room with masks on or sending files back  and forth to one another over Google Drive. 

    March Madness Lark hall
    March Madness 2021 Lark Hall Region: Albany’s mid-size music venue.

    Organ Fairchild – Buffalo, New York.

    Welcome to the Finals.

    Joe Bellanti – organ, keys – Corey Kertzie – drums – Dave Ruch – guitar 

    Organ Fairchild is a musical party that won’t quit. Take your old-school organ trio (organ, guitar and drums), add dance-heavy grooves and adventurous jamming, and shake vigorously. Enjoy all night long. 

    “Jan. 2021 marks the release of single, “Seepin’,” from long-time Buffalo jam band veterans Organ Fairchild. Members have a history on the jam scene dating back 40 years.”

    Chuck DeFilippo: What does New York State Music mean to you?

    Joe Bellanti: NYS Music – the Buffalo scene in particular – means the world to me – some of my greatest moments have come from being a part of it – certainly my very best friends. Too many incredible moments to even try to pick out one or 2 of the best.

    Interesting question, as one of the other “hats” I wear as a full-time musician and performer is researching and performing old 19th-century traditional music from New York State! So NYS Music means a lot of different things to me, but in terms of the current music community, we are very fortunate here in Buffalo to have a rabid fan base of live music lovers who always come out to support our shows. The level of musicianship here if off the charts as well, and pretty much everyone involved in the local music scene is really supportive of each other. It’s a great place to be.

    Dave Ruch – Guitar

    LISTEN to Organ Fairchild’s debut single below, from the forthcoming May 2021 album release! Mastered by Alan Evans of Soulive.

    CD: Anything in the works for the band?

    Two CDs in 2021 and hopefully a summer and fall of outdoor shows

    Also – we will probably hit Denny’s at some point – I’m pretty sure we are the only band in the competition where all the members would qualify for the senior discount

    Joe Bellanti

    DR: Is Denny’s still even a thing?!


    Creative Concerts
    Central New York promoters Creative Concerts bring fans together in the final four

    March Madness would not be possible without our sponsors:

    Central New York promoters Creative Concerts bring together fans at venues, stretching from Albany to Rochester and Syracuse to Utica. Lark Hall is the soon to open mid-sized venue in Albany that will host bands of all sizes, events and more. If you need to market your show, event, band or brand, Rochester’s Balbert Marketing has you covered. Need merchandise?

    Homegrown Eastern New York’s 518 Prints makes quality goods for local, regional and national bands or tours. High Peaks Event Production is a team with years of experience, aiding in all your stage, lighting and sound demands. JamCast proves high quality streams for bands, podcasts and much more. Between these companies, bands will find a great deal of what they need, and support businesses from across New York and the Northeast.

    518 Prints
    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is High-Peaks-Event-Production-768x219.jpg
    the finals
    Polls are now closed! Check back on Tuesday, March 30 to find out the winner of NYS Music’s 2021 March Madness!

    NYS Music’s March Madness Round One

    March Madness Round Two

    Round Three: The Sweet 16

    Round 4: The Elite 8

    Round 5: The Final Four

    THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING NYS MUSIC AS YOUR #1 MUSIC SOURCE.

    final four nys music
  • #IggyStrong Fundraiser Auction Features Items from Phish, Goose, The Disco Biscuits and More


    For the second time this year, the jam industry is rallying around Chris Friday, a Burlington-based music industry figure. Earlier this year, Friday received the devastating news that his 11-year-old son, Iggy, contracted Acute Lymphoid Leukemia. This week, several notable bands and artists once again donated a multitude of unique merchandise for auction. The #IggyStrong auction runs from July 7th – 11th 5 PM ET. 

    #IggyStrong

    Highlights include: 

    – The Bernie Donut Dress from Jon Fishman PLUS an Original Jon Fishman Dress, worn from 1998-2011

    – Kaoss Pad Used By Trey During the Baker’s Dozen 

    – (4) GA weekend passes for Suwannee Hulaween

    – (2) VIP passes to Hogs for the Cause + a 2 night stay at the Troubador in New Orleans

    – (5) pairs of tickets to any show at White Oak Music Hall

    – Personalized and signed poster from Saving Abel + tickets to any show + a phone call with lead singer, Jared

    – Private performance by Soule Monde (Ray and Russ of TAB)

    – A Colorado package from STS9 – including 2 tix to each show (7/23-25) plus merch bundle

    Iggy is an eleven year old battling Leukemia in Burlington, Vermont. His father, Chris Friday, is very well known in the music community. He was the tour manager for Mike Gordon, warehouse manager for Phish, former production manager at Higher Ground, and the singer for Touchpants. The auction in support of Iggy is being organized by Cate Esser (Booking Agent, Promoter) and Danny Bennett (Higher Ground. Production and Stage Mgt. – Gov’t Mule, Mike Gordon, GPN). The benefit auction  will include donations from over 20 nationwide touring artists, venues, and photographers. 

    Artists, Companies, and Donors involved in the Iggy Strong auction include Phish, Lake Street Dive, Lettuce, The Revivalists, Tank and the Bangas, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Spafford, Goose, Umphrey’s McGee, Moe., Lettuce, Higher Ground, Perpetual Groove, Gov’t Mule, Jen Hartswick, Hollaback Cards, Ryan Montbleau, Mule Bar, Purrple Alien, Burlington Bobcats, Morgan Eve Swain, Amanda Rose, and Liz Daino Photography.

    For more information on the Iggy Strong Auction visit the website. Those who wish to directly support the cause can donate using this link. 

  • Watch “moe.rons on parade”: a stop-motion Animation Featuring a LEGO moe. show

    Throughout the past year, we’ve all had more time on our hands. Some of us made sourdough and/or banana bread, we’ve worked on our houses, worked out, and made the best of the circumstances. One art teacher from Long Island, Brian Baker, came across LEGOs that a friend was looking to get rid of, combined his love for moe. and new found skills in stop-motion animation. The result is “moe.rons on parade,” capturing the spirit of a moe. show in LEGO form.

    moe lego

    Having taught art in K-12 in the Three Village School District in Stony Brook, NY, Baker, like every other art teacher across the country, was put in a tough position last spring – how to teach art online. With such a tactile and hands-on subject needing virtual or least socially distanced lessons, improvisation was needed. In the past year, Baker learned the art form of stop-motion animation, one that he will be bringing to his students after learning the basics at home.

    A 2003 graduate of Hartwick College where he majored in Fine Arts and played lacrosse, he’s been coaching junior high football and JV lacrosse at various schools on Long Island since he graduated college, recently and at various other schools for nearly 20 years.

    moe lego

    Baker first saw moe. at the Oneonta Fieldhouse on April 28, 2001, possibly the only time they’ve played the town. He had heard them a few years before and had a few albums. And having only seen a lot of Phish prior, it was time to diversify. 

    “moe.rons on parade” features “Four” and “32 Things” with Baker telling a short story of a young couple’s first experience at a moe. show through LEGO characters. The video shows quite the effort and love for the band on his part, one that will not only satisfy veteran moe. fans, but newcomers as well. 

    Pete Mason: What’s your teaching background and how did you start in on this moe. LEGO project?

    Brain Baker: This is my 14th and by far craziest year of teaching, and I think that helped generate this project. I am currently teaching 7th-9th grade and have anywhere between 15-20 kids in class and 1-10 kids remote on a Google meet at the same time. Trying to make things equitable has been a challenge. We have to make sure everyone has the same materials. On a normal year, I would have kids, be making clay boxes, cutting stencils for acid etching, creating stained glass mosaics, cutting glass bottles, weaving baskets, making jewelry and other hands on stuff. A lot of these things aren’t practical or safe for kids to use unsupervised at home. So we have had to get creative with what we can do. 

    Last March when schools started closing and throughout the summer, I really challenged myself to learn some new skills so when we came back to school I had some fresh and fun projects for kids to do. They deserve it. Their whole universe got totally upended last spring and they need some fun social things to get it back to normal. Also, I am not allowed to collect artwork from kids, just photos.  So how do we show off their work?  I learned a lot about the iMovie program and other animation software by putting together some short clips of student work.

    I learned a lot about the imovie program this year. They say kids are really resilient which is true, they adapt to things very well. It was a real challenge figuring out all the technical things (lighting, camera angles, focus, computer skills) and I had quite a few mishaps along the way. But it was an awesome way to spend some time and I am looking forward to seeing people’s reactions. I am having a few friends over for an outdoor viewing on the projector Saturday night. I am also looking forward to showing my students the edited version. I shared all the different steps and clips with them along the way and they want to see the end result.

    moe lego

    PM: So it seems you’ve had some time on your hands. When did you start this project and what kickstarted the concept for you?

    BB: Well, as a dad of a 2 year old girl (Althea)  and a 4 year old boy (Frederick), time is something in short supply these days. They are “full speed ahead” kids.  Even though Covid cancelled my coaching gigs for a while, it has still been a busy year for my wife Liz and I trying to keep them active and engaged. Last March when everything started shutting down, I kept my sanity by getting us outside and building stuff. We started with a small kids train made from my old deck wood. Then we built a 9-hole mini golf course in the backyard. My son helped me through the whole thing.  And I did several other backyard recycling projects. But this project really was the perfect storm. I started teaching an animation class this year, and my friend’s kid really wanted a puppy. So his compromise was the play room was going to be the puppy room. The LEGOs have to go. 

    So I got a huge supply of LEGOs to play with. My son loves building things and mechanics, so he was instantly in love. And with the animation class we have already done a ton of drawing, so this will be a nice “mix it up” project for the fourth quarter. I mostly worked on this project at night after they were in bed or sometimes I would have them come down and play LEGOs with me during the day. With stop-motion, you generally use a remote shutter, so I was also able to include my 4 year old in some of the photo taking process. He helped build a few of the smaller pieces as well.  I started putting the stage together in the beginning of February and then began shooting photos later in the month. Once it got rolling I pretty much worked on it everyday until I was done for anywhere between 15 minutes and 7 hours. After I saw the band post the pics on their page I practically lived in the basement that weekend. 

    PM: How many hours did it take to complete the construction, prior to filming?

    BB: Building the stage and all the sets and characters took maybe 5 or 6 hours over the course of a week. The photos took a month and a half of many, many hours. I took somewhere around 30,000 photos.

    PM: Is this your first foray into stop-motion animation?

    BB: I did a short stop-motion a few years ago on powerpoint and my son and I made a police station getting smashed by the Incredible Hulk earlier in the winter, but this was my first real serious stop motion project. It was a huge learning experience.

    moe lego

    PM: Any fun Easter Eggs or tips of the hat that you worked in?

    BB: Yes. You’ll have to look. Lets just say there are some band references and funny characters.

    PM: What is your favorite moe. song and moe. experience?

    BB: Favorite song? That’s like picking a favorite kid! Let’s just say there are no moe. songs I don’t like. There are a few Grateful Dead ones I don’t enjoy, quite a few Phish songs I can’t stand, but I love moe. They play music exactly how I like music to be played. The diverse influences and song writing styles are awesome.  The first time I listened to them was NYE ’99. A buddy put on “Rebubula” and I said to myself “Yes….this is what I’m looking for in my life.” I think we listened to the No Doy album three or four times that night.  I went and picked up a few more albums and some shows on tape. The rest is history. I’ve only seen 60+ shows, but I listen to them more than anything else. I try to catch every live webcast or the old Facebook Live streams (remember those?). Big ups to the moe.stream team for setting up quality live show audio streams. 

    moe. fans are an awesome group of people. I have had some great conversations through the years, connected with cool people and shared tons of fun experiences. This is my 16 minute and 30 second thank you to them and the band.

  • “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)    

  • Phish Island Tour show featured on next Dinner and a Movie

    island tour
    Poster by Louis Arzonico

    March – it comes in like a lion and out like it’s been trampled by lambs and pecked by the dove. For Phish’s next installment of Dinner and a Movie, they’ll feature a show from the band’s famed April 1998 “Island Tour,” specifically April 4, 1998.

    The show at Providence Civic Center is a perfect sample of how the cow funk from Fall 1997 continued four months later in a fan favorite run of shows. Reportedly the hardest ticket of the run, this show features must hear versions of “2001,” “Brother,” and “Ghost,” not to mention the “Tweezer” show opener.

    For the dinner portion of the evening, Chef Sara Bradley, the chef and proprietor at Louisville, KY’s The Freight House, has prepared a menu for the evening. She has recently received runner-up honors on Season 16 of Top Chef, and is also a Phish fan. Sara offers up recipes for Melty Grilled Cheese with Piquillo Pepper and Tomato Soup, and Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert. Find full recipes here.

    While the webcast is free, fans are encouraged to make donations through Phish’s The Waterwheel Foundation. The evening’s beneficiary will be Northeast Organic Farming Association, with donations being split between the New York and Rhode Island chapters. The Northeast Organic Farming Association an organization of farmers, consumers, gardeners and environmentalists working together to promote organic farming and organic land care practices resulting in a sustainable regional food system that’s ecologically sound, economically viable and socially just. For more information visit NOFA.org.

    Dinner and a Movie will air on Tuesday, March 30 at 8:30pm ET at webcast.livephish.com.

    island tour

    Island Tour Setlist courtesy of Phish.net

    April 4, 1998, Providence Civic Center, Providence, RI

    Soundcheck: Jam, Shafty, Roggae

    Set 1: Tweezer > Taste, Bouncing Around the Room, Funky Bitch, Ginseng Sullivan, Limb By Limb, Lawn Boy, Character Zero

    Set 2: Birds of a Feather > Also Sprach Zarathustra[1] > Brother[2], Ghost -> The Lizards, David Bowie

    Encore: Harry Hood

    [1] Unfinished.
    [2] With short instrumental reprise.

    2001 contained a Long Train Runnin’ tease from Trey and was unfinished. Brother included a brief Dave’s Energy Guide tease and was followed by a short instrumental reprise, which was announced as the “radio-friendly version.” Trey contrasted this with the normal version, which was deemed un-radio-friendly due to its length. Ghost, which Trey jokingly remarked was also not radio-friendly because it is long and slow, included an I Can’t Turn You Loose tease. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.


  • 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.

  • Vaporeyes channel ‘Clockwork Orange’ in new wacky video “Donye Wump”

    Syracuse’s Vaporeyes has released the video for “Donye Wump,” off their recently released album Cantrips. Having premiered on Friday, March 19th, the video was shot in the Salt City, as well as in and around band practice spaces.

    vaporeyes Donye Wump

    With a goal of creating a video that their fans and others used to their shenanigans wouldn’t expect, band member Jonas Reddy-Nicholson, shared insight on the video:

    We had an idea of a conflict happening in this video. The lyrics I wrote very much came from a place of inner conflict, wanting change, and “killing the past,” so Shannon (bass) wanted to play with the conflict idea as much as possible. But we kept the fight between ourselves and our “other” selves, or inner demons in the video so people didn’t think it was some statement or something. It’s not. We just had fun with it. The name of the song actually has nothing to do with anything. Sometimes we just really try to blur the line between goofy and serious/heartfelt. 

    Jonas Reddy-Nicholson

    “Donye Wump” was directed by Thomas Calandra of Synthesis Films (also a member of metal band Bleak), with Director of Photography Mark Kelley, both of whom entertained the band’s wacky ideas and kept Vaporeyes on track to finish the shoot in four days.

    When we came to them with the idea of a fight scene VS ourselves for the end of the song, we thought they would turn it down. But not only were they into it and knew how to make it work, they had some ideas of their own. Thomas asked how we felt about drawing inspiration from the goofy gang fight in Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange.”

    We were into it, so we all sat on the couch and watched the fight together the day before the fight scene shoot. We are so glad they were into the fight, and they really did a great job. That’s even Thomas getting the glass broken on his head in the beginning, per his insistence. (Movie prop bottle, don’t worry). 

    Jonas Reddy-Nicholson

    Vaporeyes recently made it to the Elite 8 of NYS Music’s March Madness. Check out more on them here and watch the video for “Donye Wump” below.