Celebrating 10 years since his first release Enter the Void in 2012, Joey Bada$$ performed at House of Blues San Diego on July 27. With a double decker venue, open house bar and mosh pit, House of Blues held a great environment for the show.
Joey was born and raised in Brooklyn and a member of the hip hop collective, releasing 3 mixtapes along with various solos. With his debut album 1999, produced at age 17, Badas$$ finally got the recognition he deserved in June 2012.
Joey’s opener Capella Grey set the tone for the crowd and left them begging for more prior to Joey Bada$$’s set.
It was a big night not only for Joey but for his fans and their excitement to the new album release 2000. The album set the bar and exceeded all expectations since the last release back in 2017. Including hits such as “Brand New 911” and “Written in the Stars” along with many others.
Joey noted it had been 5 years since his last release and performed some of his greatest hits “Devasted” and “Temptation” from ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$, released in 2017. During the show he stated “I had a kid, a babygirl,” and shared how his daughter Indigo Rain has become a huge part of his life outside of making music, and played a role in such a big comeback.
With 10 years under his belt and many more to come Joey continues to bring his own groove to rap and the hip hop community.
Legendary Burlington, VT bar and music venue Nectar’s is officially in a new hands thanks to a recent change in ownership. ElmThreeProductions founder Edward Maier, along with an investor group who shares a passion for music, have purchased Nectar’s with plans to not only preserve the history of this local landmark but also update the capabilities of the venue to current technology standards.
Under the new ownership Nectar’s and it’s connecting space Metronome will maintain its reputation for booking local, regional, and national musical acts. The technology upgrades are set to include new lighting, 4K streaming capabilities and a podcast studio partnering with Osiris Media.
Maier and ElmThreeProductions are teaming up with Matt Kolinski, founder and agent at Omni Arts Group, who has an extensive history in the jam world, having worked with artists like Goose and Spafford previously. This merger will reestablish the Nectar’s Presents entity and bring in their talent buying, promotions, and management clients. Nectar’s Presents will now expand into a talent buying and management branch focused on emerging musicians as well as promoting musical acts in venues throughout the region.
Brett Fairbrother, former manager or Strangefolk, RAQ, guest service director of the Capitol Theater in Port Chester and talent buyer for Garcia’s bar, will also oversee the talent buying for Nectar’s and Metronome, further strengthening the venue’s musical ties.
As a huge supporter of live music and Phish fan, I couldn’t think of a better venue to co-own, while leveraging the name for a new talent management agency with Matt Kolinski. Nectar’s and Metronome have been a staple in my life for catching a show and discovering artists.
Ed Maier, managing partner for Nectar’s and Nectar’s Presents
The talent management arm under the Nectar’s Presents umbrella will be called APON Artists and will include musicians from both the Omni Arts Group and A.F.T Artist rosters as well.
ElmThree Productions is the creator of the “Jams on The Sand” for Asbury Park’s Convention Hall and has established itself as an independent promoter for venues such as Asbury Park, NJ’s The Stone Pony, Wonder Bar, The Saint and Atlantic City’s Bourbon Room (Formerly House of Blues Atlantic City).
Phish continued their Summer 2022 tour as they rolled into Columbia, Maryland for a weekend run at Merriweather Post Pavilion (MPP)
Fans got their first look at the venues upgrades from the renovations in 2018. The raised canopy and improved sound system is a major upgrade if you’re on the lawn, the sightlines in the pavillion have also improved. They have also added a “Skylawn” if you’re looking for an almost pavilion like lawn experience, if you can manage to get in there early. The one thing they forgot to improve were the bathrooms, as the wait could take a good 30 minutes.
A bit light on the improv, Phish leaned on a mix of classics along with some surprises deep from their catalog for the first night of the run on a beautiful, but hot, Maryland summer night. The night started off with “Sand” to get things cooking. Next was an always welcomed “If I Could”, before throwing things back into high gear for the heart of the set with “Buried Alive”, “Set Your Soul Free” and “Llama”. Next Page took over with a “Halfway to the Moon” as the sun set. The song featured some improv for the first time in the song’s history as the jam melted into “Shafty.”
Afterwards was a take on The Brothers Johnson classic “Strawberry Letter 23”, which again, the band took the song out for an extended spin for the very first time. They made the perfect call to end the set with a Lizards, and not a person in the building disagreed with it.
The second set started out focusing more on the songs before loosening into a slippier fourth quarter. “First Tube” started the set off and had the venue pumping. Next up was a “Fuego” that included some of the better improv of the night. After was a solid combo of “Sigma Oasis” and “Prince Caspian.” The peak of the show was next with “Waves,” “Meastick” > “Simple. “
“Waves” was the another fantastic jam, and the “Meatstick” was one of the better versions they have played in some time. The band linked up like a funk Voltron and it felt like we were back in 1998. “Meatstick” oozed into a ‘Simple” that was sublime. Simple turned into “The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony,” which turned into a rocking “Suzy Greenberg” to wrap the set up. The encore started with a fun “Alumni Blues” > “Letter to Jimmy Page” > “Alumni Blues” and ended with a rocking “Character Zero.”
Knowing not to miss a Sunday show, Phish fans returned to MPP for a show with on-again, off-again rain throughout the day, best described as “alternately annoying, refreshing, fun, beautiful, obnoxious, baptizing, cleansing, cold, healing, and joyous” by phan @ZZBenz.
Set one began and ended with 15 minutes versions of “A Wave of Hope” and “Ghost,” respectively. Prior to “Ghost,” Mike Gordon Band’s “Mull” took a surprise turn as a jam vehicle, stretching out farther than many expected, and segued neatly into the Junta composition, “Foam.”
Prior to playing a Set two opening “Halley’s Comet,” Trey and Mike briefly teased “Those Were the Days” (All in the Family theme). A long-awaited “Tweezer” featured a jam on “All Along the Watchtower” before delving into a unique final seven minutes of improvisation. After a jump to “Wingsuit,” a little bit more “Tweezer” was played before working into “Birds of a Feather.” A rare second set “Taste” gave way to “What’s the Use?” which had Trey ‘holding the note’ in a “Divided Sky” manner. A combo of “The Howling” and “Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.” closed the set, with a three song encore of “Show of Life,” “Loving Cup” and “Tweezer Reprise” to wrap up another Sunday show at MPP.
Phish keep the tour moving to the beautiful Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, then Clarkston, MI at Pine Knob Music Center, before returning to the East Coast for three nights in Atlantic City over August 5-7.
Phish – Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD – Saturday, July 30, 2022
Soundcheck: My Soul, Fluffhead
Set 1: Sand, If I Could, Buried Alive > Set Your Soul Free > Llama, Halfway to the Moon -> Shafty, Strawberry Letter 23 -> The Lizards
Set 2: First Tube > Fuego > Sigma Oasis > Prince Caspian > Waves > Meatstick -> Simple > The Oh Kee Pa Ceremony > Suzy Greenberg
Encore: Alumni Blues > Letter to Jimmy Page > Alumni Blues > Character Zero
The jam out of Halfway to the Moon contained Shafty lyrics from Trey and Page and teases from Trey and Mike. Mike teased Miss You (Rolling Stones) in Strawberry Letter 23 and Flash Light in Character Zero.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA-N7BMMrjI
Phish – Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, MD – Sunday, July 31, 2022
Set 1: A Wave of Hope, Dogs Stole Things, AC/DC Bag > Sparkle > Back on the Train, Mull > Foam, Ghost
Set 2: Halley’s Comet > Tweezer > Wingsuit > Tweezer > Birds of a Feather, Joy > Taste > What’s the Use?, The Howling > Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.
Encore: Show of Life, Loving Cup > Tweezer Reprise
Mike teased Twenty Years Later in Ghost. Mike and Trey teased Those Were the Days before Halley’s Comet.
Petting Zoo is a pop-rock band from Norwalk, Connecticut and currently based out of New York City. Bandmates include Zack Ely, Bennett Newman, Colin Berger, Joe Wen, and DEEGAN.
Born and raised in Norwalk, Petting Zoo released their first single “Lovin’ Yourself” in 2018. They released their first self-titled EP in late 2020 and have been releasing subsequent singles in 2021. Recently, they are coming back with new songs and lively performances.
Zack Ely is the vocal and rhythm guitar whose favorite ice cream is Ben & Jerry’s Half Baked. Joe Wen plays electric guitar and bass in the band and Colin Berger is the drummer. Bennett Newman plays bass and electric guitar who is a Black Raspberry ice cream lover. And DEEGAN sang and helped produce the tracks.
Growing up on Coldplay, Maroon 5, Green Day, the Beatles, Bob Marley, the Police, U2, Petting Zoo have firmly established themselves as purveyors of bright, chart-friendly indie-pop. They are also suckers for contemporary Top 40 and pop/hip hop.
Their new song “Food” came out on July 15 which is a song filled with summer vibe. The finger-popping bass backs the song while the refreshing vocal with simple guitar chorus and sand hammer created a feeling of drinking iced juice. The speed change and the following sound design in the middle of the song created a sense of running into the sea and diving into it.
Petting Zoo
The passion for the food is the inspiration of the newly released song “Food.” Zack is known to devour chocolate and/or chicken parm sandwiches like his life depends on it, which is the origin of him to write a song about food. The members agreed that “Food” doesn’t even have to be a love song since Zack could genuinely just be talking about the entity of food itself.
They had wonderful performance in Bowery Ballroom on June 10 and will show up more frequently in July which including the show in Red Lion on July 23, Bitter End on July 30, and opened for the 502s at the Bayley Beach Summer Concert Series on July 31. More upcoming shows can be found here.
Phish tour rolled on from Bethel to Hartford on Sunday, July 24, as thousands of fans flocked to Central CT with the mantra ‘Never Miss a Sunday Show’ proving true once again.
The first set began with “Cars Trucks Buses,’ a nod to the Traffic that surrounded the former Meadows Music Theatre. A surprise Big Boat track ‘Breath and Burning’ followed in the two-slot, taking more of a stroll that fans may have expected. The sustained energy from the next four tunes – “The Final Hurrah,” “Free,” “Yarmouth Road,” and “Plasma” – made way for thr highlight of the set, a 17 minute-plus “Sigma Oasis” that before closing with “Limb x Limb” and “Sand.”
Set two was a tale of two halves. The first half of “A Wave of Hope” > “A Song I Heard the Ocean Sing” > “Blaze On” clocked in at a combined 55 minutes, with the first two songs blasting off with heavy Type II improvisation and magnificent drumming from Jon Fishman who propelled the band through the jam. The second half of the set kept the energy going with “The Wedge,” “Farmhouse,” “Backwards Down the Number Line” all of which on paper may seem like a snoozfest but when the heat is set so high, a cool down is in order. Yet the heat was ramped up again to close the set with “Character Zero” and a rare “Tube” > “First Tube” encore.
Phish rolls into Jones Beach on Tuesday and Wednesday for the first time since 2013
The Mann Center in Philadelphia hosted Phish for two steamy nights of music over Tuesday and Wednesday, July 19-20, including a space-themed “Tweezer”-fest on night one of the run.
Opening up Tuesday’s show were a trio of space songs, “Space Oddity,” “Martian Monster” and “Halley’s Comet,” perhaps inspired by new photos from the James Webb Space Telescope. A second set “Tweezer” segued freely in and out of “Cities,” “Passing Through,” Hendrix’s “Izabella” (which seems to be firmly in the rotation once again), “Mercury” and “Piper.” Trey Anastasio seemed to quote Lou Reed and Velvet Underground’s “I’m Waiting for the Man” during “Character Zero.”
Wednesday night, an appropriate “Steam” opened the night, given the steamy temperatures at showtime hovering around 90 degrees. A surprising “AC/DC Bag” opened the second set, with a nonstop segue threough “Soul Planet” > “Simple” -> “Light” -> “Party Time” with a romantic encore of “Waste” and “Loving Cup”.
Catch Phish in Bethel this weekend, then Hartford and Jones Beach next week!
Phish – The Mann Center, Philadelphia, PA – Tuesday, July 21
Set 1: Space Oddity, Martian Monster, Halley’s Comet > Stash, The Moma Dance > Gotta Jibboo, Shade, The Old Home Place, Walls of the Cave
Set 2: More > Tweezer -> Cities -> Tweezer -> Passing Through > Izabella > Tweezer > Mercury > Piper > Tweezer > Also Sprach Zarathustra > Character Zero
Encore: Drift While You’re Sleeping > Tweezer Reprise
Space Oddity was played for the first time since July 28, 2017 (154 shows). The third Tweezer contained teases of Izabella and Cissy Strut. Trey teased Dave’s Energy Guide in Piper. Also Sprach Zarathustra included Space Oddity quotes from Trey and Martian Monster quotes from Trey and Page. Trey quoted I’m Waiting for the Man in Character Zero.
Phish – The Mann Center, Philadelphia, PA – Wednesday, July 20
Set 1: Steam > Runaway Jim, Tela, Kill Devil Falls, Theme From the Bottom, Birds of a Feather, I Didn’t Know, Funky Bitch, Split Open and Melt
Set 2: AC/DC Bag > Soul Planet > Simple -> Light -> Party Time, Lonely Trip, David Bowie
Encore: Waste > Loving Cup
Runaway Jim contained a Nellie Kane tease by Trey. David Bowie featured an In Memory of Elizabeth Reed tease by Trey.
Phishâs summer tour opening run at Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts was a heater to get the band on the road again after a month or so off. The former “Great Woods” has seen many Phish shows – 19 as of Friday, July 15 – and drew a New England crowd and many more to get summer started.
On Thursday, Phish dove in right away with “Ghost” and a “Set Your Soul Free” wedged in between before playing “The Wedge.” The second set opened with an unfinished “Chalkdust Torture” that segued into “Plasma” and “Weekpaug Groove,” which made Friday night interesting when they opened the second set with “Mike’s Song.” A deep trio of “Prince Caspian” > “Backwards Down the Number Line” > “Bug” provided quality jams, with a big “Sand” to end the set.
Friday night, the band was on fire out of the gate with “46 Days,” a big “Everything’s Alright” moving into “Rift” and a “Maze” > “Bathtub Gin” > “Rock n Roll” segue that was a powerful end to the first frame. Set 2 started with “Mike’s Song” but when they finished up “I Am Hydrogen,” Trey Anastasio quickly moved into a heavy “Carini” which slowly gave birth to “Blaze On.” The non-stop segues continued with “Golden Age” > “The Howling” > “A Wave of Hope” > “Harry Hood” provided an equally energetic ending as Set 1. A three-song encore of “Bouncing Around the Room,” “NICU” and “Slave to the Traffic Light” closed the night as everyone headed north to Bangor, Maine for the next show.
Phish – The Xfinity Center, Mansfield, MA – Thursday July 14
Soundcheck: Jam -> Plasma
Set 1: Ghost -> Set Your Soul Free -> Ghost, The Wedge, Mound, Mountains in the Mist, Back on the Train > Ruby Waves, I Been Around, Tube > About to Run
Set 2: Chalk Dust Torture[1] -> Plasma -> Weekapaug Groove -> Saw It Again -> Prince Caspian > Backwards Down the Number Line > Bug > Sand
Encore: Punch You in the Eye > Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.
[1] Unfinished; Chalk Dust Torture was unfinished. Trey teased Tweezer Reprise in Weekapaug.
Phish – The Xfinity Center, Mansfield, MA – Friday, July 15
Soundcheck: Jam
Set 1: 46 Days, Water in the Sky, Everything’s Right -> Rift, Wolfman’s Brother, Maze > Bathtub Gin > Rock and Roll
Set 2: Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Carini -> Blaze On -> Golden Age > The Howling > A Wave of Hope > Harry Hood
Encore: Bouncing Around the Room, NICU > Slave to the Traffic Light
God knows we all love a good gimmick. Especially when it wildly exceeds our expectations and produces something that is profoundly eye-opening, or in this case, ear-opening! Such is the case with Uncaged, an album of much-loved rock covers, rendered in a supremely deep and darkly delicious heavy metal style, by Milwaukee-based lap steel slasher, Sean Williamson, aka Velocihamster.
Album art by Steven Bossler
For those not in the know, the lap steel guitar, also known as Hawaiian guitar, is a steel stringed guitar, sans pedals and frets, that is played with a slide in an open tuning while laid across a player’s lap. It was an outgrowth of Hawaii’s popular slack-key guitar style, which was incredibly popular in the earliest decades of the record industry. Like the traditional guitar, the lap steel would become electrified in the 1930s and eventually be employed in other musical styles – jazz, blues, gospel and especially country and Western swing. While not as popular or utilized as its cousins the traditional pedal steel or dobro, the lap steel has been a standout instrument in the hands of artists of the past like Roy Smeck and modern era ones like L.A. session ace and Jackson Browne sideman David Lindley.
In Williamson’s hands, the lap steel is another animal all together. It’s a roaring, screaming beast, an instrument of melodic assault and chordal crunch that brings to the ears a virtuosity that is way more Van Halen (Sean taps his ass off here too) than Bob Willis and The Texas Playboys.
Williamson has super-charged his lap steel with EMG humbucker-styled pickups, the kind favored by Judas Priest’s K.K Dowling, Primus’ Les Claypool, Metallica’s James Hetfield and dozens of other metal mavens. His sound is thick, lush, layered and fuzzy, with his instrument further empowered with everything from distortion and chorus pedals to wah wah and harmonizer.
Photo by Greg Vorobiov
My favorite tracks are the instrumentals. His mysterioso take on Led Zeppelin’s Middle Eastern-y “In the Evening,” his jam on Edgar Winter’s “Frankenstein” and his uber dirty, nasty interpretation of the Sneaker Pimp’s “6 Underground.” Williamson does the Beastie Boys proud with his wanky, wah wah driven cover of “Gratitude,” one for which he also provides the appropriately juvenile sounding vox (that’s a compliment, Sean!)
Another highlight is the album opener, a super-caffeinated version of Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades,” with a guest vocal by Alice Cooper bassist and Beasto Blanco frontman Chuck Garric. Williamson also admirably covers of classics like Santo & Johnny’s “Sleepwalk” and AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck.” And while a lot of this is shred-centric, Williamson never loses sight of the melodies that have made these songs so memorable.
Uncaged is an album that will delight metal and classic rock lovers by breathing new life into songs you have heard hundreds of times before. But it does something even bigger. It uncages a sleep instrument in music’s arsenal and lets it roar and thrive in new avenues and genres of sound.
Peter Hook & The Light embark on a cross-continental journey that takes them across the United States and Canada in August and September 2022 for their biggest and most extensive trek to date, “Joy Division: A Celebration.” The North American tour launches August 11th in Toronto.
Since announcing the tour last summer both Chicago shows at Metro are sold-out and joining as special guests will be El Ten Eleven in Chicago (both shows), Boston, Silver Springs, MD, Philadelphia, New York, San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
“So yeah, from that point of view, it’s actually nice to bring the two albums together [live]: you can see the contrast quite vividly when we play them. I do get some very almost teary moments. It has been quite interesting because Closer really does have a big effect on people, from an emotional point of view. Unknown Pleasures is very aggressive, it’s very punky, so live, it really rocks. Whereas Closer is almost the exact opposite: it’s very melancholic. It draws you in, and I must admit not only does it get a very emotional response from us while playing it, but you get an emotional response from the audience.”
Around twenty-six dates overall, the tour takes place across five weeks. The band returns to some venues and debuts at others to perform Joy Division’s seminal two albums Unknown Pleasures and Closer in full.
The Light Live At 02 Academy Leeds July 1, 2022 | Cr: Neil Chapman / Unholy Racket
Additionally, the tour will feature Joy Division rarities and an opening set of New Order material. The tour follows the debut UK dates for “Joy Division: A Celebration” which commemorates the 40th anniversary of Joy Division and Ian Curtis’ continuing influence.
“’Love Will Tear Us Apart’ is a masterpiece that has stood the test of decades, and is the perfect ending to a superb event…”
– Yorkshire Post
Returning for his ninth tour of the States with Peter Hook & The Light, Hooky comments: “Definitely one of the highlights/lowlights of my profession is the travelling. It was amazing what a blessing it was not to have to do it over lockdown but amazing again how soon you missed seeing all these wonderful places the world has to offer. You lot in America are so lucky to have such a varied and wonderful country. I can’t wait to get back there, and my mouth is watering at the thought of going to my first ‘Coffee Shop’ breakfast. I am easily pleased.”
The Light Live At O2 Academy Brixton July 10, 2022 | Cr: Richard Gray
The first few dates were originally scheduled for May 2020, but due to the pandemic have only just taken place in the UK and across France to great reviews and reactions from fans and critics alike to The Light’s dedication to and passion for the catalogue across what is a near three-hour show.
About the reaction on returning to live concerts, Hooky added; “The gigs so far have all been wonderful and the fans and the band have been wonderful too! It does nothing for my imposter syndrome; I am very grateful that we have all risen back to this after what we have been through these past few years. Thank you all. We have a lot to be thankful for. Ian Curtis R.I.P.”
Because of the Ian Curtis death, Joy Division had to cancel their US Tour. Thus, also resulting in the death of Joy Division itself. But, later on as a new trio, create with Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook, and Stephen Morris played as New Order and stopped through New York in 1981.
Peter Hook & The Light’s ‘Joy Division: A Celebration’ Tour Dates:
August 11 – The Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ONT
August 12 – The Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ONT
August 13 – Club Soda – Montreal, QC
August 15 – Royal Oak Music Theatre – Royal Oak, MI
August 16 – Variety Playhouse – Atlanta, GA
August 18 – First Avenue – Minneapolis, MN
August 19 – Metro – Chicago *SOLD OUT
August 20 – Metro – Chicago *SOLD OUT
August 22 – The Pabst Theatre – Milwaukee, WI
August 23 – Paradise Rock Club – Boston, MA
August 25 – The Fillmore Silver Spring – Silver Spring, MD
August 26 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA
August 27 – Terminal 5 – New York, NY
August 29 – The Van Buren – Phoenix, AZ
August 30 – Mohawk – Austin, TX
August 31 – Mohawk – Austin, TX
September 2 – House Of Blues Houston – Houston, TX
September 3 – House Of Blues Dallas – Dallas, TX
September 5 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO
September 6 – Humphreys Concerts by the Bay – San Diego, CA
September 8 – The Theatre At Ace Hotel – Los Angeles, CA
September 9 – The Theatre At Ace Hotel – Los Angeles, CA
September 10 – The Warfield – San Francisco, CA
September 12 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR
September 13 – The Showbox – Seattle, WA
September 14 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC
For more details and to purchase tickets, click the link here.
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 The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, Eastern Highs, Gracies Paris and many more.
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.
The Eastern Highs – “Redwood Trees” & “One More Star”
The Troy NY quartet The Eastern Highs produces a captivating soundscape which combines classic & modern sounds reminiscent of The Band, Wilco, Pink Floyd and Radiohead. Two songs will be featured this week on EQXposure, “Redwood Trees” & “One More Star.”
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch – “waiting”
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch features Jordan Demarest on drums, Dan Haggerty on bass, and Will Kachidurian on guitar and vocals, who call Albany home. Their newest song “waiting” will premiere on EQXposure, for now listen to Game of the Year Edition below.
Gracies Paris – “Baby Now”
On original power pop rock band from Albany, Gracies Paris is a hook-oriented group formed in 2007 featuring Carl Ferritto (vocal and guitar), Eric Buechner (drums), and Randy Rose (bass). Together, Gracie’s Paris will keep you yearning for more, as each new song pushes them in a different direction.
