NYS Music 202​2

Category: Beyond NYS

  • Midnight. Blue, Musical Mosaics, Perception Records: Adam Deitch Weighs In

    Midnight. Blue recently connected the lines between a diverse selection of shooting star quality musical talent working today in order to create the perfect constellation of sound in Perception Records‘ first album, Celebration of the Midnight. Blue album release and launch of Perception Records will be held September 1, 2022 at the Bluebird Theatre in Denver, Colorado. Drummer Adam Deitch took time with NYS Music contributor Em Walis to discuss what makes a good studio experience.

    Midnight Blue took musical ingredients from across the diverse offerings of the Denver music scene. Each componant melted into a record with a new take on Neo-Soul, R&B and funk. The sound of each artist is distinct, without overpowering the others. Like a good ensemble movie, plenty of space was provided in exactly the right places. The pristine execution which occurred between musicians friendly with each other outside of the studio allowed for an immersive listening experience.

    Breathe by Midnight. Blue

    Familiar Faces

    Musicians that contributed to the Midnight. Blue studio sessions include: Lyle Divinsky (vocals – formerly of The Motet), Eric Benny Bloom (trumpet – Lettuce), Josh Fairman – (bass – Sunsquabi), Adam Deitch (drums – Lettuce), Ian Gilley (keys – Recess), Jake Jay.Greens Leventhal (guitar – Perception Records), Halle Tomlinson (vocals – The Voice), and G. Finesse (vocals – Black Eagle Society).

    “We have a bond as musicians and as friends also.”

    Adam Deitch

    “It’s when you’re a musician, you do things called recording sessions, yeah. session or other people’s sessions for this thing or a session for a rapper sessions for a guitar player. So you know, I’m also a session musician, but it has to be with the right like minded people and good people, and you know, it’s gotta be worth it. It’s really not that often that I get called to do a session for somebody’s record, and I love doing it, especially if I like the music. This was a nice throwback to I guess, more, really the 70s and 80s early 90s.”

    Some members of Midnight. Blue once called the areas in and around New York home. Common ground in Education, cutting teeth in performing and culture surrounding music in a place as special as New York arguably provided an unconscious undercurrent for cohesion between the diverse styles of each artist.

    The trust in those enlisted to contribute went as far as songs by players being brought in for the record.

    “We’re really comfortable with Josh Pearman, the producer of the record. Jake knew that and and wascool enough to ask me to bring in some songs that I wrote, and not just play drums and that’s how that song Let Me In came about.”

    The creative trust in the group extended through the depths of songwriting and collaborative solutions in one instance of lost lyrics.

    That was something that I recorded myself played every instrument and wrote the lyrics and sang on it. So I had the demo, but I hate the sound of my singing voice. So I never played it for anybody, it just sits there. Then for some reason, I thought oh, this is a great song that I would love to have somebody that has a great voice sing, you know? [Lyle] sure does. He showed up, and I had lost the lyrics. The lyrics were gone. So we had to like pick out the lyrics from the demo. And I was mumbling on the demo. It’s hard.

    Lyle ended up having to write a bunch of lyrics that were lost in the recording. It ended up being a collaboration that I’m glad happened because Lyle added some lyrics that probably made better sense of what I had there first.

    Familiar Places

    Denver has been named current basecamp for the contributing artists. Recording close to home at a familiar studio created a comfortable atmosphere to produce creative work, without the typical distractions of a “home office” remote recording style many artists had to endure during shutdown.

    “We all did it in Denver. We did the recording session right by Red Rocks. It’s called Stanhope and it’s a really cool studio and we’ve all recorded there over the past 15 years. Jake was there he was very quiet and very, very humble and chill and Josh did most of the talking about what he needed for his track. They had already discussed what was needed and, so I just came in and over the course of two or three days, I’d knock out the record.”

    Adam Deitch

    Some members of Midnight. Blue once called the areas in and around New York home. Common ground in Education, cutting teeth in performing and culture surrounding music in a place as special as New York arguably provided an unconscious undercurrent for cohesion between the diverse styles of each artist.

    Feeling comfortable in the environment during creative work could be as important as the people involved.

    “Stanhope is one of the best studios in Denver. It’s small. It’s cool. It’s got a basketball hoop outside. I love that basketball. You know, it’s nice to take a break. There used to be an alpac farm. You can see some alpacas and that’s cool. I think I wrote a song called llamas next door. I didn’t even know that they were alpacas and not llamas. So that’s cool about that place and it’s been a family for a while and it’s not corporate at all. It’s owned by a friend of ours, Joel and so you feel really comfortable there. There are sort of no rules besides just make good music and have fun.”

    Mental Mosaic

    “Small colored pieces of hard materials such as stone, tile or glass. Display arranging together small colored pieces of heart. The walls and vaults are decorated by marble and Mosaic. Okay, so it’s different, different materials that create one, one piece.

    Yes. Definitely a collection of different musicians that that are from the Denver seeing that kick. Benny Blum and drew Sayers. Ian and and Josh, and a lot of great players that got together and even though we’re not in bands together. We’ve all played with each other, we all know each other. So, it just really happened and the sound of the band, even though it’s with a bunch of so called session, guys or whatever. It has that feel.”

    Midnight. Blue and the story behind its conception felt similar to that of a mosaic. Familiar faces. Familiar places. Trusting individuality. Thoughtful composition uniquely assembled with intention allowed for simultaneous awareness of the beauty of each part as well as the product as a whole. A mosaic’s journey could be thought of in a similar way to a record for a non touring collective. The action could be considered the process of creation and after the release has been celebrated, the legacy will reside in the company it provides to those in possession over a long period of time.

    Considerations were taken by contributors to the Midnight. Blue album in regards to what it meant to be a peice of a mosaic.

    “What I want to do is switch my mindset from what I want and what I think is perfect. Finding out what they want that’s the most important thing that you know, someone that is hiring you to perform on their record. He wants to give them what they what they want from you and a lot of the times they just want what you would do, you know, like give me that Deitch shit.”

    Perspective

    Excitement for records, especially in genres that define themselves through attendance of upcoming events might not give a record with only one show scheduled a chance. There might not initially feel like a ton of excitement in listening to something carefully constructed in a controlled space and lacking the fond memories of times with friend associated with a live recording. The tracks might not feel enticing because every time the song is visited, it will be the same version, lasting the same amount of time with the same features.

    “The collaboration. I love the vibe. It was so, fresh and what I think it’ll really open up how we kind of get pigeonholed when when you play a certain type of music of how how far the derivatives can go. It seems like this is just something that hopefully it’ll help be a little eye opening and broadening for some folks.”

    Uncertainty

    With uncertainty comes excitement. It could be asserted that there is more certainty, and therefore less excitement with an exclusive relationship with consuming exclusively live music. The notion of more certainty and less excitement goes for the culture which surrounds exclusive live music as well. The usual suspects will be riding the rail. Noah Ray will be doing something extremely nice for another fan, and each song will be a slightly different length with perhaps a slightly varying pace.

    “I love that kind of music and even though it’s like hardcore funk, hip hop, you know, like, yeah, so, you know, we’re not really like, get credit. We don’t we’re not really getting the neo soul scene”

    When keeping the musical company constant, suddenly a slew of new variables for experiences begin to present themselves. Not knowing how our relationship to the same songs and lyrics might change invites a leap of faith when connecting with certain tracks. The impactful nature music has on our entire executive function, memory and mood can create bridges to both wonderful and horrible places. Should we begin associating a record with a home, a person or a moment in time, the familiarity can instantly transport us back to the associations and feelings.

    Excitement in Unexpected Places

    Forming emotional bonds with a beautifully studio-tracked musical journey means not being able to discard live recordings of a favorite song because we were not there or distasteful experience on that certain day at that certain place. The one record is it and especially with a moody low-key feel like the one from Midnight. Blue, meaningful associations are bound to form. If a favorite song plays and desire to listen in the company of a certain someone start to form, it will be difficult to shift it to another person in the future. Hopefully that connection continues to reward with a warm uplift with every listen.

    Naming Purpose

    It might be interesting to consider the types of music consumed and what powers it could provide for us in the future.

    Try looking at live music like the medicine. The guaranteed silver lining. If we are feeling sad and need a boost from people we know we will see and songs we know we will dance to, perhaps we could put on a song from a live show we loved and buy tickets for something coming up.

    The studio record could be though of like the bit of artwork in our parent’s bathroom. It is consistent. It is in the same spot with the same colors. Some days we might notice the way it catches the light at a certain time of day and give it more attention. Other times, it is just there in the bathroom like always. The importance might only be realized when it is time to take that artwork down and all of the times it has kept us company in our most private moments, never judging if you forgot to brush your teeth or why you took solace by its side to cry in privacy.

    Potential In The Unknown

    A studio record like the one from Midnight. Blue holds a pleasant consistency yielding prosperous longevity. It could be put on when having a dashing new acquaintance over for dinner, or fill the space between turns in a boardgames played with friends or family. It is complex enough for a private meditative escape from reality. It might not provide the same high as pressing “confirm” for flights booked to attend that show in that cool place to hear that song played a new way and possibly with a record breaking length of jam. It will keep you company in the quiet times. It will yield no emotional rollercoasters due to permit revocations and festival postponements. Midnight. Blue will provide a positive stability and present its meaning as we make our way through this journey called life.

  • Interpol And Spoon Launch Co-headlining Tour In Asbury Park

    In a double bill for the ages, Matador Records label mates Interpol and Spoon joined forces for their first show on the “Lights, Camera, Factions” tour on Thursday, August 25 at The Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, NJ.

    Paul Banks of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger

    Post-punk outfit Interpol, formed at New York University in 1997, have recently released their seventh studio album The Other Side of Make-Believe, which was produced by the legendary duo of Flood & Moulder at Battery Studio in London. Indie rockers Spoon, the 1993 brainchild of front man Britt Daniel and drummer Jim Eno (the band’s only consistent members), are touring in support of their latest album Lucifer on the Sofa, recorded in their hometown of Austin, Texas.

    Britt Daniel of Spoon | Photo by Michael Dinger

    With a glorious sunset sky as the natural background to their set, Spoon took to the stage a few ticks past 7:00 pm. Their opening number was “Held,” a cover by Smog (the alias of enigmatic singer/songwriter Bill Callahan), which also serves as the introductory song to their most recent studio release, the aforementioned Lucifer on the Sofa. Spoon would go on to perform a second cover near the halfway point of their 18-song set, John Lennon’s “Isolation,” taken from his first post-Beatles album released in 1970.

    The Stone Pony Summer Stage | Photo by Michael Dinger
    Jim Eno of Spoon | Photo by Michael Dinger

    The remainder of the quintet’s 75-minute set would be split up amongst their celebrated discography, with at least one offering from eight of their ten studio albums. Spoon fans eager to hear their new material in a live setting would also not disappointed, as they were treated to three tracks from Lucifer on the Sofa, including “Wild,” “My Babe” and “The Hardest Cut.” Albeit for some technical difficulties with Daniel’s guitar pedals late in their set, Spoon’s performance was filled with the high energy, crowd-engaging experience that you can always count on them to deliver.

    Britt Daniel of Spoon | Photo by Michael Dinger

    After a 30-minute turnover of the stage, and nightfall having settled over the beach boardwalk venue, the trio comprised of Paul Banks (lead vocals, guitar), Daniel Kessler (guitar) and Sam Fogarino (drums) unassumingly appeared in the dark shadows of the stage. Accompanied by a touring bassist and keyboardist, the set’s opening number was “Untitled,” taken from 2002’s critically acclaimed debut album Turn On the Bright Lights, written specifically to open the band’s live shows.

    Paul Banks of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger
    Daniel Kessler of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger
    Sam Fogarino of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger

    Sharply attired in tailored suits, the band was often immersed in a deluge of smoke haze, heavily backlit with dramatic strobe lights, which made for a visually stunning experience. Like Spoon before them, Interpol’s 15-song set would also bestow upon their fans a representative sampling of their impressive music catalog, with the exception of 2010’s self-titled release, their fourth album overall.

    Paul Banks of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger
    Daniel Kessler of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger

    A third of Interpol’s set was composed of songs from this year’s The Other Side of Make-Believe, namely “Fables,” “Toni,” “Something Changed,” “Gran Hotel” and “Into The Night.” However, the clear highlights of their 70-minute act included “Obstacle 1,” the second single from Turn On the Bright Lights and “Rest My Chemistry,” from 2007’s Our Love to Admire, which would see many of the nearly 3,000 fans light up the night with their raised cell phones to capture this fan favorite. As the show closed shortly after 10:00 pm with another one of Interpol’s biggest hits, “Slow Hands” from their sophomore album Antics (2004), my only regret is that it all happened too quickly.

    Paul Banks of Interpol | Photo by Michael Dinger

    Interpol and Spoon’s 18-date “Lights, Camera, Factions” tour will conclude mid-September in Portland, Oregon with a pair of shows at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

    Spoon Setlist: Held (Smog cover) > The Fitted Shirt > Wild > My Mathematical Mind > Do I Have to Talk You Into It > The Way We Get By > The Underdog > My Babe > I Summon You > Got Nuffin > Isolation (John Lennon cover) > The Hardest Cut > Inside Out > I Turn My Camera On > Don’t You Evah > Do You > Jonathon Fisk > Rent I Pay

    Interpol Setlist: Untitled > Narc > Fables > Evil > Pioneer to the Falls > Toni > Something Changed > Obstacle 1 > Gran Hotel > All the Rage Back Home > Rest My Chemistry > Into the Night > The New > The Rover > Slow Hands

    Spoon

    Interpol

  • Consider the Source Announced Fall Tour And Opeth Cover Video

    Sci-fi Middle Eastern fusion prog rockers Consider the Source announced their fall “Maxx Power Tour” and released a cover video of Opeth’s “Death Whispered a Lullaby”.

    Maxx Power Tour

    Consider the Source is a Sci-fi fusion trio blends progressive rock and improvisatory jazz, soaked in Indian and Middle Eastern styles. Their latest electric album, You Are Literally a Metaphor, reaches a peak of their fifteen-year musical journey. It includes he same fury and dazzling virtuosity of their previous work, Metaphor is also a portrait of three musicians reaching new levels of maturity.

    Consider the Source

    The “Maxx Power Tour” will be their return to a fully electric performance since they performed a hybrid acoustic electric tour with their “Hybrid Vol. 1: Such As A Mule”. From the bluesy swing of “When You’ve Loved and Lost Like Frankie Has” to the ethereal electro-synths of “Sketches From a Blind Man”, they continue to infuse minimalist pop, progressive metal, and freewheeling improvisation in their omnivorous musicality.

    Three of Metaphor’s nine songs are Eastern European traditionals. Bassist John Ferrara’s new Taurus bass pedals and guitarist Gabriel Marin’s new custom Vigier double-neck guitar add new dimensions to the band’s already diverse sound.

    As for their new cover music video, Opeth is one of the few bands who influenced the three of Consider the Source individually during our adolescent years and later collectively as a group.

    They write extended compositions that are emotionally dark and brilliantly tie together sections of extreme heaviness with mellow acoustic passages. Their top-notch production, tight rhythms and catchy melodies have become something we strive for in our own original music. We’ve wanted to cover one of their songs for a long time but couldn’t pick just one favorite. We hope you enjoy our interpretation of “Death Whispered A Lullaby” with a couple of our favorite riffs added in at the end from “Closure” and “Deliverance”.

    Consider the Source

    FULL SCHEDULE:

    09.02  Millersville, PA – Phantom Power *
    09.03  Stuart, VA – Front Porch Fest
    10.13  Baltimore, MD – The 8×10 **
    10.14  Abingdon, VA – Between the Vines
    10.15  Pamplin, VA – Fly High CROPtober Fest
    11.04  Portland, ME – Bayside Bowl
    11.05  Hartford, CT – Arch Street Tavern ***
    11.10  Saratoga Springs, NY – Putnam Place
    11.11  Burlington, VT – Nectar’s
    11.12  Asbury Park, NJ – Wonder Bar ****
    11.17  Sellersville, PA – Sellersville Theater *
    11.18  Pembroke, MA – Soundcheck Studios *****
    11.19  Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Made ****
    12.01  Charlottesville, VA – The Southern
    12.02  Asheville, NC – Asheville Music Hall
    12.03  Charlotte, NC – Heist Brewery and Barrel Arts
    12.08  Atlanta, GA – Smith’s Olde Bar
    12.09  Raleigh, NC – The Pour House Music Hall
    * w/ Chestnut Grove
    ** w/ Seven Teller
    *** w/ The Mushroom Cloud
    **** w/ Baked Shrimp
    ***** w/ Bella’s Bartok

  • Cowbell King Corky Laing’s Climb to the Top of the Rock Mountain Told in New Memoir

    What’s the most eardrum pummeling cowbell moment in rock? Thanks to that famous Saturday Night Live sketch, you might think it’s Blue Oyster Cult’s “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper.” But for my money, it’s the cowbell count-off pounded out by Corky Laing in the rock classic whose saucy lyrics he also penned: Mountain’s “Mississippi Queen.” The tale of how that song came to be and many more hilarious and harrowing anecdotes from his long and winding career are told in his eminently readable memoir, Letters to Sarah.

    Corky Laing provides hilarious and harrowing anecdotes from his long and winding career

    Co-written with longtime manager and partner Tuija Takala, Letters to Sarah is a rock autobiography with a difference. In addition to Corky’s exceptionally honest recollections of his highs and lows, there are excerpts from the dozens of letters that he wrote to his mom, Sarah, between 1963 and her death in 1998. These were a way for Corky to keep in touch with his family and try to make sense of his life, while he was away furiously touring and recording for years on end.

    Raised with triplet brothers and a sister in Montreal, the sports-loving Laing would first become enamored with the drums when he saw the hyperbolic jazz great Gene Krupa, on TV. Laing would then forsake his and every Canadian’s first love, hockey, for music because, as he quips, “the drums don’t hit back!” His first public performance was an impromptu one backing the famous vocal group, The Ink Spots. In short order, he would be engaged in regular gigs and drum battles, just like his idol Krupa.

    Embed from Getty Images

    In 1965 at age 17, he and his band, B+3, would be in New York playing at the famed Peppermint Lounge. At another gig around that time in the Hamptons, he became acquainted with his guitar partner-to-be in Mountain, Leslie West, then playing in The Vagrants. Summer residencies in Nantucket over the next couple of years brought him into contact with a crew of writers who would inspire his interest in literature. Nantucket is where he would come up with the gem, “Mississippi Queen.” Forced to take a long drum-solo during a power outage at a gig and witnessed the seductive dancing of a friend’s Southern-bred girlfriend. Laing’s passion made him start singing what would become the opening lines of his most famous tune – “Mississippi Queen, you know what I mean?”

    When he returned to Canada, he got to know luminaries like The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Cream and The Who since his band opened for them at venues like the Montreal Forum. By 1969, his band evolved to a more progressive sound and was renamed, Energy. During another opening slot, he got to know Miles Davis’ great drummer Tony Williams, someone who would later refer him to Jack Bruce that
    would put another milestone band on his resume.

    Embed from Getty Images

    Corky and Energy came into the orbit of Felix Pappalardi (the producer of Cream and bassist, founder and producer of Mountain) while playing at the World’s Fair, Expo ‘67 in Montreal. Felix was interested in producing the band and especially intrigued by Corky’s drumming and lyrical input. After Mountain’s debut at Woodstock, Pappalardi lured Laing away from Energy to join what was to become one of the hardest working (and partying) proto-metal bands.

    As for “Mississippi Queen,” Laing says he copped the groove from Levon Helm’s playing on The Band’s “Up on Cripple Creek,” a man he would become very close to during many visits to Woodstock to record at Levon’s legendary farm studio. When Laing was trying to come up with a good Southern town to name check in the lyrics, a friend suggested “Vicksburg” and Corky awarded him 10% of the publishing for the two syllables. The first person to hear “The Queen” outside of the band was Jimi Hendrix, who was working in an adjacent room at The Record Plant at the time of its recording. Interestingly, Laing would go on to earn a Gold Record for his contributions to the Woodstock ‘69 soundtrack, not with Mountain (N.D. Smart was Mountain’s drummer at that gig), but for Ten Years After’s “I’m Going Home.” It seems Laing was enlisted to overdub drums while at the Record Plant with Mountain because the drum mics were not working during the live recording of that particular song during TYA’s Woodstock set.


    The book has plenty of sex and drugs along with the rock-n-roll, something that, along with bad management, spelled the end to Mountain’s initial frenzied three-year run. After much promise, his next band, the super group West, Bruce & Laing, would also collapse after a brief two-album run, due largely to overindulgence. Laing also spends a good deal of time speaking of the brilliance and flaws of Pappalardi and his creative partnership with his wife, Gail Collins. Collins would contribute lyrics and album art to Mountain, but ultimately go on to shot and kill the bass player with a gun he bought her in the early 1980s.

    Corky would next hook up with the likes of Ian Hunter, Mick Ronson, Lee Michaels and Todd Rundgren to make a couple of albums in the singer-songwriter vein, music that was “very Springsteen” in his words, with only the first earning a release. He would go on to be a part of the legendary Lone Star Café scene in New York City backing the hilarious Texas bad boy singer turned novelist Kinky Friedman, who contributed the introduction to Laing’s memoir. For a while, Corky would cut his hair and join a promising new wave band, “The Mix.” Through a chance encounter on the beach near his Connecticut home with jazz guitarist Larry Coryell, he would be introduced to Buddhism. This would go a long way towards vanishing his demons. Laing’s up and down life would settle for a time when he accepted a job in music publishing with Warner-Chappell Music. He would then move on to even more success, and a “six figure salary,” as Vice President of A&R for Polygram Canada during the MTV era, until a merger put him back in the playing business.

    Embed from Getty Images


    Laing would finally get to play Woodstock in 1994. This was at the smaller Woodstock Reunion Concert at the original concert site, versus the grander Michael Laing-produced affair in Saugerties. At this gig, the Mountain lineup was West and former Hendrix bassist Noel Redding. This book and this chapter of Laing’s life comes to close with the passing of his mother in 1998, when he is back making music with Redding and a new guitarist, the Spin Doctors’ Eric Schenkman.


    As a musician, Laing was an indispensable ingredient in the success of Mountain, a band that paved the way for the metal we know today. He had a uniquely powerful style that drove the straight-ahead rock numbers like “Never in My Life” and “You Can’t Get Away.” It was one that matched the fuzz-leaden bass of Pappalardi and Leslie West’s searing blues run and thick power chording. He also had an unflagging stamina and an improviser’s heart. It was Corky’s pulse and dynamics which led the band through long extrapolations on classics like “Dreams of Milk & Honey,” from their album Flowers of Evil, and their unique version of “Stormy Monday,” captured on live album from the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.

    I saw Mountain several times during their early ‘70s glory days and my ribs are still quaking from Pappalardi’s sub-atomic bass and Laing’s double bass drum and cowbell combo. The last time I saw them was on August 11, 2001. It was at a free lunchtime concert in the plaza at World Trade Center so I couldn’t pass it up. My taste in music had certainly changed since the early ‘70s but, damn the hipsters
    and those who worship at the altar of Pitchfork, I still kind of loved Mountain. It was a beautiful day and band played energetically to a happy crowd of old and new fans. I even caught one of the drumsticks hurled by Laing into the crowd. Thirty days later, that stage would be the site of something very different – the smoldering wreckage from 9/11
    terror attack.

  • Vevo and Pusha T Present Live Performance Videos for ‘Dreaming of the Past’ and ‘Brambleton’

    Vevo, the world’s leading music video network, has announced Pusha T as the next artist in their Ctrl. series with performances of “Dreamin of the Past” and “Brambleton” from his critically-acclaimed album It’s Almost Dry. Pusha T has previously worked with Vevo for a “Vevo Presents” performance in 2011. In 2018 he gave Vevo an exclusive interview focusing on the making of his Grammy-nominated album called, “How The Purple Tape Shaped Daytona.”

    Pusha T gave a live video performance of his record “Brambleton”

    Vevo’s Ctrl series highlights the work of hard-hitting, cutting-edge musicians making an impact in today’s music scene – both emerging and established. These artists demand attention, and Vevo’s Ctrl shines a deserving spotlight. Pusha T’s performances follow sessions from Rick Ross, Common, Rapsody, Fat Joe, Jeezy, Jadakiss, Fabolous, A$AP Ferg and more.

    It’s Almost Dry arrives as the highly-anticipated follow up to 2018’s highly touted Daytona. In a recent interview with Charlamagne The God, Pusha explained, ”

    I had the best of both worlds in regards to production and in regards to two people that actually understand who I am and they like two different things from me that I feel are both really great…this body of work is untouchable because it doesn’t lean too heavy on either side…you get the whole spectrum. It’s my most well-rounded body of work.

    Sonically, this album was a change of pace for Pusha T. He experimented by combining his luxury rap style with contemporary melodies and flows, with features from Don Tolliver, Lil Uzi Vert and Kid Cudi. Nothwithstanding, It’s Almost Dry still provided some of what made Daytona such an excellent album. Records like “Dreaming of the Past” — where Pusha T blends his eccentric drug kingpin persona with real life anecdotes — are now a staple of his discography and the Kanye West assisted song is one of the highlights of the album. Whereas “Brambleton” sees Pusha T get a bit more personal, with stories of his days in Virginia and addressing figures from his past.

    We was out in Brambleton after Pooh got hit Club Entourage in that new drop six

    – Pusha T

    My brand is all about creating masterpieces,” Pusha recently told Complex.

    This is a legacy thing with me. This is all about being great. This is the realest real estate in hip-hop, and I’m the Martin Scorsese of it.

  • In Focus: Rage Against The Machine at Madison Square Garden

    On Aug. 8th Rage Against the Machine (RATM) played the first of five, sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden (MSG). This was the 15th stop of their “public service announcement” tour. The reunion tour has 51 shows throughout 12 countries and 40 different cities. They were accompanied by Run The Jewels (RTJ). RTJ is a hip hop duo consisting of Brooklyn based rapper/producer El-P and Atlanta based rapper Killer Mike.

    Originally announced in 2019, and postponed several times due to the COVID pandemic, this tour marked the band’s first time playing together in 11 years. New Yorkers were clearly excited for their return as all five nights are sold out. The bands politically charged messages throughout their songs feel as relevant today as they did when they were first released decades ago. The energy in the arena was through the roof. Although frontman Zack de la Rocha had to perform the show sitting down due to a leg injury he sustained on the second stop of this tour, his passion and excitement were on full display.

    Also outspoken about their political views, Run the Jewels is a perfect match as an opening act for RATM. They opened the show with “Call Ticketron” which appropriately has an opening verse of “run the jewels live at the garden”. They made sure to let us know they’ve been waiting years for that moment, and it set the tone for an explosive set. The chemistry between Killer Mike and EL-P on stage is incredible to see live.

    Rage Against The Machine – Madison Square Garden – Aug. 8, 2022
    Bombtrack, People of the Sun, Bulls on Parade, Bullet in the head, Revolver (intro only), Testify, Take The Power Back, Wake Up, Guerilla Radio, Down Rodeo, Know Your Enemy, Calm Like a Bomb > Sleep Now in The Fire, Born of a Broken Man, War Within a Breath, The Ghost of Tom Joad (Bruce Springsteen cover), Freedom > Township Rebellion > Killing in the Name

    Run The Jewels – Madison Square Garden – Aug. 8, 2022
    Call Ticketron, Yankee and the Brave (ep.4), Close Your Eyes (And Count to Fuck), Ooh La La (with Greg Nice), Blockbuster Night Part 1, Oh My Darling Don’t Cry, Legend Has it, Stay Gold > Don’t Get Captured, Ju$t, Walking in the Snow, A Few Words for the Firing Squad (Radiation)

  • In Focus: Lotus Brings the Groove to The Bourbon Room

    After the first night of Phish’s three-night run in Atlantic City concluded, the line outside of The Bourbon Room (a former House of Blues) started forming, with fans eagerly waiting for Lotus. The show proved to be energetic and full of ridiculous jams, heavy bass lines, and non stop dancing. The band debuted a new song “Tar Pits” and encored with “Gilded Age.”

    Set: Wax, Spaghetti, Sunrain, Greet The Mind, Wooly Mammoth, Tar Pits, Spiritualize, Automatic, Neon Tubes, Flower Sermon, Sunrain

    Encore: Gilded Age

  • Phish Strikes It Big In Atlantic City Once Again

    After three successful shows here last year, Phish and its summer tour returned to Atlantic City over the weekend of August 5-7. Night one of the three-show run went off without a hitch, with a setlist full of classic tunes mixed with newer jam vehicles. With the stage set up right between the legendary Atlantic City Boardwalk and the ocean itself, each set, and even the encore, had some decidedly shore-like vibes.

    The night began with the venerable “Chalkdust Torture” in the opening spot, with its customary high-energy thrust to get things started. A sudden shift to “Wilson” followed, eliciting cries of the same from beach folk throughout. Things then got decidedly funky with the next clean segue into the all-too-appropriate “Sand,” with Mike Gordon leading the rhythmic charge on bass. The opening set also featured a moody “Theme From The Bottom” with its aquatic undertones only adding to an already picturesque setting.

    The first set’s closing sequence was one to behold, starting with a “Sigma Oasis” that yielded a mesmerizing jam that saw the song get stretched out further than it ever has before. Eventually, the familiar opening chords to “Cities” took form and Phish launched into this always welcome cover song. The set then came to a close with a brief but euphoric “More.”

    The second set saw the jam button still very much in the “on” position, with stalwarts like “Soul Planet,” with its ocean-filled lyrics, and “Down With Disease” prominently involved. And nestled in between the start and finish of “Disease” was the aptly-titled “Ruby Waves.” This newer addition to the Phish catalog, pulled from guitarist’s Trey Anastasio’s ever-expanding solo material, continues to explore new roads and push boundaries of live improvisation.

    The second set came to a close with a pairing of Phish heavy hitters. “Story Of The Ghost” featured its traditional roundhouse punch of rock, this time with some serious “No Quarter” teases thrown in for good measure. “Harry Hood” then tied a bow on the set, with a brilliant jam that patiently built to an especially joyous peak. A “Sleeping Monkey” that certainly “took it on down the shore” served as a more than fitting encore selection before a surprising, but explosive, “Free” served as one last final jam to whet the collective appetite for what’s sure to be another two nights of incredible music.

    Setlists via Phish.net

    Phish Atlantic City Beach – Atlantic City, NJ 8/5/22

    Set 1: Chalkdust Torture->Wilson > Sand > Plasma, Theme From The Bottom > Back On The Train, Sigma Oasis->Cities > More

    Set 2: Axilla (Part II) > Soul Planet >Down With Disease > Ruby Waves > Down With Disease> Ghost> Harry Hood

    Encore: Sleeping Monkey > Free

    Soul Planet contained a tease of Dave’s Energy Guide from Trey and a tease of Dog Log from Mike. Trey teased Midnight Rider in the first Down with Disease and No Quarter in Ghost. Shipwreck was quoted in Sleeping Monkey. Mike teased Dave’s Energy Guide in Free.

    Saturday night’s show in Atlantic City may not have had as many aquatic themes as its predecessor, but the jams continued to be rich and plentiful. The opening set began in fairly tame fashion with a straightforward “46 Days” that steered right into “The Moma Dance” in its familiar two-spot in the lineup. “Olivia’s Pool,” aka “Shafty” before “Shafty,” then made another rare appearance, only the third one since being revived at Alpine Valley in 2019 after a near 22-year shelving.

    A first set “Bathtub Gin” finally offered some of the first real intensive jams of the evening, with Page McConnell throwing down vigorously on both the baby grand and electric pianos. Fittingly, Phish then dusted off another number, this time it was Page’s “Heavy Rotation” from his self-titled 2007 album. It was the first one performed in more than seven years and only the second one ever. And instead of ending the first set in typical fashion, Phish tacked on a rip roaring cover of David Bowie’s “Moonage Daydream,” with Trey Anastasio unleashing a bevvy of musical peaks with his soloing efforts.

    Saturday’s second set started with some Atlantic City fireworks in the background and maintained that explosive demeanor throughout, starting with a set opening “No Men In No Man’s Land.” The ensuing jam then progressed into a “Tweezer” that almost felt expected at that point, with the second set staple offering another ample platform for improv. Another second set favorite in “Simple” was played to perfection and later transitioned into a “Backwards Down The Number Line” that had the entire beach kicking up sand in various directions.

    The set then closed with another pairing of Phish classics. “Golgi Apparatus” featured a stretched out and somewhat different ending, showing the band continue to rework songs that have long been established. “Slave To The Traffic Light” then brought another complete second set to an end before an encore of “A Life Beyond The Dream” > “Tweezer Reprise,” ironically the same exact encore of last year’s middle night, sent everyone on their way along the Atlantic City Boardwalk.

    Phish Atlantic City Beach – Atlantic City, NJ 8/6/22

    Set 1: 46 Days > The Moma Dance, Olivia’s Pool > My Soul, 555 > NICU > Bathtub Gin, Heavy Rotation > Character Zero, Moonage Daydream

    Set 2: No Men In No Man’s Land > Tweezer, Set Your Soul Free > Simple > Backwards Down The Number Line > Golgi Apparatus > Slave To The Traffic Light

    Encore: A Life Beyond The Dream, Tweezer Reprise

    Trey teased Norwegian Wood in 555. Heavy Rotation was performed for the first time since July 22, 2015 (253 shows). Trey teased Under Pressure in Simple. During the soundcheck, Beth was briefly sung by Trey and Knuckle Bone Broth Avenue contained Shipwreck quotes as well as If I Only Had A Brain teases from Trey and Mike.

    With one night left to play, Phish treated Atlantic City to a customarily thorough and enjoyable Sunday show. “Wolfman’s Brother” kicked things off, the first time its done so for a show since 2016, and the band instantly got locked back in with another groove-centric jam. This carried right over in the “Tube” that followed and wasted no time finding a path all its own courtesy of a jam that changed both keys and moods. An opening set “Fluffhead” was well received as Phish navigated their way through this vintage tune with relative ease. “Gumbo” found a nice home towards the end of the set which came to a rousing finish thanks to “Carini” and another breakneck jam created in its wake.

    The band found no reason to stray far from the classics in the second set, made evident with a traditional “Mike’s Groove” sequence that got everything started. A breath of “new” air was inserted with “A Wave Of New Hope” with this addition continuing to impress by producing one monstrous jam after another. A flawless “You Enjoy Myself” then followed, with yet another “second” jam following the vocal one, another sign of Phish continuing to tinker with the classics. An encore pairing of “Wading In the Velvet Sea” and “First Tube,” replete with Anastasio guitar theatrics, then closed out the second, and hopefully not the last, run for Phish on the beach of Atlantic City.

    Phish Atlantic City Beach – Atlantic City, NJ 8/7/22

    Set 1: Wolfman’s Brother, Tube, Mountains In The Mist, Ocelot > Fluffhead, Mecury > Gumbo > Carini

    Set 2: Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove, A Wave Of New Hope > You Enjoy Myself > Suzy Greenbeg

    Encore: Wading In the Velvet Sea, First Tube

    Trey teased Mr. P.C. in YEM.

    photo gallery by Filip Zalewski

  • In Focus: Phish Return to Blossom Music Center

    Phish played the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio on August 2, following a night off after a fantastic run in Maryland. The Blossom Music Center is a special place, a beautiful wooden, wedge-like structure nestled in the forests of Ohio. If you are from New York, I would highly recommend you make the trip if you have not yet, it’s certainly up there with the best sheds around. This was my first time there, but it certainly won’t be my last.

    The band started the night off with a nice acapella version of “Strawberry Fields Forever,” which they played for only the second time. “Crowd Control” was up next, and then a mid-set “Punch You In The Eye.” After this was a short “46 Days” before delighting the crowd with a “You Enjoy Myself.” They did a short vocal jam before dropping back into another second “YEM” jam, which the crowd ate up. Keeping the funk going, was a short “Tube” before slowing things down with a “Shade.” A gorgeous “Reba” was a perfect soundtrack to the color leaking from the sunset sky. They wrapped the set up with the staple set closer of “Cavern.”

    Phish has really been feeling “Free” this summer, and they opened up the second set with a monster 25-minute version. “Esther” was next, which they unfortunately struggled through due to Trey’s guitar being out of tune. “Blaze On” followed, the jam was on the shorter side, and then Trey started off “Scents and Subtle Sounds.” As they worked their way through the composition, the sound twice completely cut out for a few seconds. The band played through it and either didn’t notice or they tried to make it up with what was probably the jam of the night. This version was heavy on the dark funk, with a gorgeous ambient outro. Maybe it was a nod to the night being the 19th anniversary of the IT music festival from 2003, which was the band at their peak in ambient jamming, but probably not. A short but sweet “2001” got the whole place dancing, before a wild and beautifully cacophonous “Split Open and Melt” had some in the crowd staring at the stage in awe.

    It was amusing to see the confusion and then elation as the Page started up “Bathtub Gin” for the encore. Even though the band was a little bit short on time, they were able to cut out the fat and immediately get right to the good stuff as the jam matured into a some very opulent themes and textures before wrapping up the night.

    Phish Blossom Music Center – Cuyahoga Falls , OH 8/2/22

    setlist via Phish.net

    Soundcheck: Funky Bitch, My Soul, Crowd Control (this soundcheck is possibly incomplete)

    Set 1: Strawberry Fields Forever, Crowd Control, Punch You in the Eye > 46 Days > You Enjoy Myself, Tube > Shade, Reba, Cavern

    Set 2: Free > Esther > Blaze On > Scents and Subtle Sounds > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Split Open and Melt

    Encore: Bathtub Gin

    Strawberry Fields Forever was performed for the first time since July 22, 2017 (168 shows). Fish quoted Strawberry Fields Forever in the YEM vocal jam and in the jam that followed. Trey teased Also Sprach Zarathustra at the end of Gin.

  • WEQX Creates “Free-QX” Library

    Alternative station WEQX will be creating a “Free-QX” library outside the station, allowing the community to borrow the many records the station gets in every day.

    eqx

    102.7 WEQX has been on air since November 14, 1984. The independently owned radio station broadcasts out of a house in Manchester, Vermont. At 50,000 watts, it is the strongest commercial FM radio signal in southern Vermont, and reaches well into Upstate New York, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

    The idea came from Jeff Morad, who is the program director, Morning Show host, and host of the Jam N’ Toast specialty show.

    Free-QX came to me when I was driving around, and saw one of those little free libraries where people can take and leave books. I thought that this would also be fun with records. We have a lot of music that comes through EQX, and we are always dreaming up ways to connect with the local community.

    The Free-QX structure is outside the radio station, which has been at 161 Elm Street in the Historic Depot District since 1984. The official unveiling will be at EQX’s Parking Lot Party, from 4-7 P.M. on August 4, which took a several-year hiatus due to the pandemic.

    The structure will also have an inventive solar-powered fan system to help maintain the records, tapes, CDs, and more that may be shared. EQX is all about sharing music, so it was a perfect idea to implement.

    Some cool thing the station does is every Sunday on EQXposure they share new music from a variety of local artists and beyond to an ever-expanding audience. Make sure to tune in every Sunday from 7-9 P.M. to listen!