More Music Less Violence will partnering with C.R.E.A.T.E. Community Studios on Sunday March, 27 from 4 pm to 8 pm at the S.E.A.T. Center in Schenectady.
C.R.E.A.T.E. is known to assist in the pursuit of social change, personal growth and communication. Therefore, they are collaborating with More Music Less Violence which is an organization focused on building up a new era of musicians through non violent expressions. To start the night off, Billy Floyd, host of “Who’s On The News” podcast will be in attendance to speak. Subsequently, there will be a night full of music from Sibie Lavoz, Dev Rosario, ‘92, Quav13, Shanyia Monaee, Aari, Mandella Eskia, Bez Aloha and Rell Dolo.
Photo Credit: Eddie Quinn Photography
Those in attendance will get the opportunity to create tie dye fabric squares, which will eventually be put together for a community quilt that supports the purpose of the event. To further advocate for human rights and equality, Rae Frasier, creator of the Art Mon3y brand, will construct a live painting session in accordance with the message of the event.
Jennifer Lawrence, S.E.A.T. CEO and founder, and Emmanuel McCall, S.E.A.T. recruitment coordinator, will share the mission of their organization, their efforts to provide hope for the youth and connect them to employment opportunities.
Mfalme (Don X) Sikivu, CEO and Founder of UFD (Ujamaa Fraternal Dynasty) will also be in attendance to discuss his own successes and failures throughout his life. Although Sikivu was once incarcerated, he managed to come back stronger and create his own organization for people aged 15 to 22 who wish to better themselves and the community.
To learn more about More Music Less Violence and this weekend’s upcoming event visit their instagram page.
After winning female artists of the year at the American Country Music Awards this past month, Carly Pearce headed to Albany to perform at The Egg to give a heartfelt and award-winning performance on Friday, March 18.
Hannah Ellis opened up the show with her guitarist Kevin Monahan where they sang her first hit single “US” and a cover of The Band Perry’s fire starting song, “Better Dig Two” which got the crowd stopping their feet back to their southern roots while singing along. The set list consisted of nine songs with three being covers.
Carly Pearce, left and Hannah Ellis, right
The lights dimmed low while the fog began to emerge out onto the stage and just when Carly’s band finished setting up, she strutted onto the stage in her vibrant red outfit and glitter boots. Without hesitation she opened up her show with the first song off her current album 29: Written In Stone, “Diamondback.”
The songs were uplifting everyone in their own way. As you looked around the venue you could see the hand on the heart swaying motion and the hand in the air emphasizing the heartbreaking words Carly sang that touched the individual. Heading into the fourth song on her 29 album she paused to explain to the crowd the meaning behind her album and how the order of the songs were intentional in order to tell the story of her life.
Halfway through the show it was time for the track named after the album “29” and this was where the crowd began showing its vulnerability and intimacy. As Carly explained the meaning behind the song and how she came from a line of very strong women in her family, so she didn’t want to shy away from the truth and embarrassment she felt during the emotional year of her marriage. A women in the crowd made a cheers to all the women in the room prior to the start of the song and everyone followed her as well as Carly.
There was an instant connection with this shows crowd and Carly Pearce. She brought two girls to the stage who held a sign up about their troubles and Carly didn’t let them go unnoticed or unheard as she talked to them on the stage about the struggles a lot of women face.
As the last song of the show began to be strummed and the cords of “Every Little Thing” began, the crowd stood up and swayed along feeling every soft lyric Carly sang. All a sudden at the half way mark of the heartfelt song they stopped and switch the beat to “Hide The Wine” a song from her first album that led to the crowd to begin jumping up in down at their seats to the all too familiar girl power song.
Waving goodbye to her fans as they stood and cheered for her, Carly left everyone with an adreanline rush. As the fans headed out of the venue the singing didn’t stop, a few women walked down the stairway singing the last song “Hide The Wine” lyrics and cheering.
Brooklyn native, Darro, has returned with his newest single ‘Phoning In’. The pop punk track features artist Michael Meaney.
Produced by Kris Crummett, who has also worked with artists like Dance Gavin Dance and Sleeping With Sirens, ‘Phoning In’ embodies the anxiety of an ending relationship. Darro brings his personal experiences into the writing process, but still allows Michael Meaney to incorporate his own technique.
By incorporating early 2000’s inspired pop punk with electric instrumentals, this relatable single is the perfect addition to your breakup playlist. The deep Paramore influence brings listeners back to their most juvenile breakup to reminisce on the final moments of an ill-fated relationship.
Darro’s 2020 album, Song of Recovery, has received praise and critical acclaim from the likes of Billboard and Medium, as well as ranking #11 on the iTunes Rock Album chart.
Fans can expect Darro’s next album, Accidents, to drop this coming Fall. He will also be going on tour this July and fans can keep up with all his activities here.
Gary Numan stopped by the Town Ballroom in Buffalo on March 12th. Best known from his 1970’s and early 1980’s hits “Are ‘Friends’ Electric?” and “Cars“, Numan is still going strong in support of his newest album Intruder, his 21st solo record.
Though he played a good amount off of his new science fiction soundtrack about the impending climate catastrophe, he also included a good mix of his material throughout the years. Gary still has some dates in America before heading back overseas to continue his world tour.
Gary Numan – Town Ballroom, Buffalo – March 12, 2022
Setlist: Intruder, Metal, The Promise, The Gift, Everything Comes Down to This, Films, Ghost Nation, Love Hurt Bleed, Pray for the Pain You Serve, Bed of Thorns, Down in the Park, Cars, Here in the Black, The Chosen, My Name Is Ruin, A Prayer for the Unborn
Encore: Me! I Disconnect From You, Are ‘Friends’ Electric?
The Bob Stump Band will perform at Caffe Lena on March 31st at 7 PM. Hailing from the Hudson Valley, the band plays a plethora of genres including blues-jazz, folk, bluegrass, country, and rock. The performance will be a euphonic mixture of sounds as the band traverses through genres. For this reason, the event will have a song for everyone.
Leading the band is a singer-songwriter and guitarist Bob Stump. He is joined by Ernie Sites, a former rodeo cowboy from Idaho. He has traveled the United States writing and performing songs, poems, and stories. Lastly, Roy Coates plays the bass, however, he also has experience playing the tuba on big stages such as Carnegie Hall and Yankee Stadium. The three share a love for bluegrass and folk, and their love shines through during their performances.
The Bob Stump Band
Caffe Lena, the venue at which the band is set to perform at, has an extensive history. Located in Saratoga Springs and founded in 1960, the venue has been hosting live music events for over sixty years. Most notably, Caffe Lena hosts a plethora of rising folk and indie performers. In fact, the venue hosted Bob Dylan for two historic nights in 1961, a year before the release of his debut album.
Tickets for the event start at $10 and are available on Eventbrite. For those unable to attend in person, a live stream will also be hosted. Tickets for the live stream start at $5 and give you access to the live stream’s VOD (video on demand) for a week.
The festival is one of the largest free blues events in the Northeast. It is an annual three-day event that showcases regional and national artists from all different types of genres. The mission of the festival is to protect and promote blues music and culture. It entertains but also educates the role of blues in the development of popular music in the US and around the world.
The NYS Blues Festival, photo by Troxler Multimedia.
Philadelphia’s own The Disco Biscuits have announced the return of their two-day City Bisco festival. The mini-fest is scheduled for the weekend of Saturday, June 18 and Sunday, June 19 and will once again be held at TD Pavillion at the Mann. This will be the fifth installment of City Bisco and it marks the 10-year anniversary of the festival since its inception in 2012.
This year’s bill also features performances from electronic duo Bob Moses, renowned DJ Shiba San and moe. It’s a promising sign for the jamband mainstay as it marks another scheduled gig for the band as guitarist Chuck Garvey continues to rehabilitate from a recent stroke. moe. is also slated to perform at their own Summer Camp music festival in Chillicothe, IL from May 27-29.
Other acts scheduled this year include fellow electronica icons The New Deal, TAUK, LP Giobbi and Township Rebellion with the Disco Biscuits capping off each night with two sets of music.
Presale tickets for the event will be available with the code CITYBISCO starting March 23 at 10 a.m. EST with the general on-sale beginning March 25 at 12 p.m. EST. Tickets can be purchased here.
San Francisco Bay Area drummer/musician Jay Lane gets antsy when he’s not on the road with one of the many bands of which he is a part. So it was not difficult to deduce that Lane, 57, had a tough time adapting to pandemic life, when the world shut down, venues closed their doors and bands put touring aside as we tried to get COVID-19 under control.
And just like so many other musicians trying to adapt to a temporary but new way of life, Lane had to figure out how to keep himself from going insane while essentially being in lockdown. Enter the Blue Bear School of Music, the Bay Area’s “preeminent school rock, blues, jazz, folk and pop music,” as described on its website. Lane, who is a member of Primus, Bob Weir and Wolf Brothers and countless other Grateful Dead associated acts, decided to put his expertise to use by providing online drumming lessons.
“I haven’t been involved in too much outreach or giving lessons in a long time,” Lane said in a recent telephone interview with NYS Music. “I’ve been doing this now for a few months and I love it. I actually used to take lessons as a child at Blue Bear. I felt I wanted to give back to kids and people of all ages.”
Currently, Lane said he is only giving online live video lessons, but said he has no idea what the future holds once COVID is in the rearview. Blue Bear, a nonprofit organization, was founded in 1971 by rock band Wolfgang & Strauss, two brothers who set up shop in San Francisco seeking to build lives. Currently, Blue Bear has about 850 enrollees each quarter, as it aims to help musicians of all skill levels find their calling.
Prior to his time at Blue Bear, Lane said he had never played in an ensemble before, and that experience gave him the desire to learn as many styles of drumming as he could. How else would he so easily transition to the hard psychedelic rock that Primus plays, to the experimental and free flowing sound that the Grateful Dead made famous?
“There’s nothing like the experience (of playing in an ensemble,” Lane said. “That’s what I did as a kid, oon Port Mason, the smell of the rehearsal room was palpable, especially with the other kids.”
Lane was ecstatic when discussing how the country has opened up recently, allowing for live music and other gatherings. Lane, who lives in a condo in the Bay Area, said he loved spending extended time with his family, but added that he was raised on the road, and at times he became very restless without the daily grind of getting ready to play a different show each night.
On March 30, Bob Weir and Wolf Bros bring their cowboy folk/americana act to the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse for an evening of new songs, and their unique take on the Grateful Dead’s repertoire. They follow up the Central New York show with a pair at Radio City Music Hall over April 2-3. These shows will feature several unannounced special guests, including The Wolfpack, which consists of a dedicated strings section.
Weir, who played rhythm guitar with the Dead for 50 years, formed Wolf Bros a few years back and added Lane rather quickly. Lane and Weir have extensive history together including stints together in RatDog and Furthur, just to name a few, and Lane said he looks up to Weir on many levels.
“Bob, he really likes to paint with a long brush,” Lane said with a chuckle. “He does so many things that are not considered the norm, like turning all the stage monitors down at his shows so that he can hear what the audience hears and adapt to it. He’s such a dear, sweet friend to me and he is incredibly generous. His big thing is to gain experience by playing with anyone he can. He’s toying with the idea of performing a concerto, or playing with a symphony, to understand that dynamic. The guy has done everything you can do in rock music, yet he’s still pushing forward toward new and exciting ideas and collaborations.”
Lane couldn’t speak more highly about Weir’s impact on him.
“He constantly challenged me to get better and change up my concepts,” Lane added.
As for returning to the road, Lane said he cannot wait to be doing what he does best, providing the backbeat for several bands.
“COVID felt like a real prison cell,” he said. “After a while I think I began learning to be OK with it, like everyone else, but it’s been hard to make music through all this. Now I just need to find my relevance, my purpose again.”
Lane said he has gotten much better providing lessons online, which was a struggle at first because he still prefers older technology in many ways.
If you’re interested in seeing Lane perform with Wolf Bros in Syracuse, tickets are still available.
Bob Weir & Wolf Bros Spring Tour Mar. 9 – Ryman Auditorium – Nashville, Tenn. Mar. 10 – Orpheum Theatre – Memphis, Tenn. Mar. 14 – Orpheum Theatre – Wichita, Kan. Mar. 15 – Arvest Bank Theatre at The Midland – Kansas City, Mo. Mar. 17 – Riverside Theater – Milwaukee, Wis. Mar. 18 – Chicago Theatre – Chicago, Ill. Mar.19 – Brown County Music Center – Nashville, Ind. Mar. 21– Palace Theatre – Columbus, Ohio Mar. 24 – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium– Asheville, N.C. Mar. 25 – Tivoli Theatre – Chattanooga, Tenn. Mar. 26 – Durham Performing Arts Center – Durham, N.C. Mar. 29 – Roxian Theatre – Pittsburgh, Pa. Mar. 30 – Landmark Theatre – Syracuse, N.Y. April 2-3 – Radio City Music Hall – NYC
The Clearwater Festival, held at Croton Park in Croton, NY, will not take place in 2022 as the event undergoes a re-envisioning process to help create a festival the Clearwater organization can sustain into the future.
The festival began in the 1960s as a small “folk picnic” by Pete and Toshi Seeger to help raise funds for the building of the sloop Clearwater. The festival has since grown to be one of the country’s oldest and largest annual music and environmental festivals. Its award-winning Zero Waste program has also been a model for many festivals around the country.
The Clearwater Festival.
Clearwater Festival usually takes place on Father’s Day weekend. Over the years, it has been staffed by a team of volunteers, and it has become the organization’s way of reaching out to others. It helps bring together community, celebration, education, and activism for the protection of the Hudson River.
The pandemic has affected the festival due to the severe reduction of cash flow usually brought in by the event. The organization did not have enough cash to begin planning and production for a 2022 Clearwater Festival, so therefore there will not be a festival this summer. Although there were two virtual events in 2020 and 2021, online event participation has gone down as more things are moving in-person, so a virtual option is not viable.
Hopefully, the new re-envisioning process will bring the festival back in person for years to come.
Arcade Fire wrapped up an invigorating four-night residency at NYC’s, Bowery Ballroom, on Monday night. The shows come as the band is gearing up to release WE, their sixth studio LP and second from Columbia Records. After a one-off show at Toulouse Theatre in New Orleans on March 14th, Arcade Fire released the first single from the new album, Lightning I, II. The two-part song first features an anthemic ballad with singer Win Butler’s signature voice over soothing guitar and piano chords before picking up the pace into a classic Arcade Fire rock song.
Arcade Fire, Bowery Ballroom 3/20/22. Photo by David Reichmann
On Friday, March 18th, Arcade Fire began the day by announcing a surprise show that night at Bowery Ballroom. Wristbands would be given out at the door on a first come, first served basis after making a “pay-what-you-can” donation to the Plus1 Ukraine Relief Fund. Fans flocked over to Delancey Street and within a couple of hours the show was sold-out. On Saturday morning the pattern was repeated for a second show at Bowery Ballroom; again selling out within a couple hours.
On Sunday, in anticipation of a third night (given the empty day on Bowery Ballroom’s calendar) well over 100 people wrapped around the corner waiting for wristbands. However, a mysterious sign appeared on the venue door and Arcade Fire posted an Instagram message saying that “No wristbands will be available at the door tonight. Keep an eye here for pickup locations.” With many fans having driven and flown into Manhattan, there was sudden confusion and furious speculation about potential pickup locations. The drama was fueled even further when the band posted an even more cryptic message on Twitter claiming “It’s a nice day to go to the park.” Suddenly, the geography of lower Manhattan and the path of least resistance to every park within several miles of Bowery Ballroom were being scouted.
Photo on the entrance to Bowery Ballroom, Sunday March 20th.
Fans had begun to scatter around the Lower East Side once it became apparent that waiting at Bowery Ballroom was useless. A few hours later, five locations throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn were revealed on social media: Washington Square Park, Central Park Northwest, McCarren Park, Maria Hernandez Park, and Ft. Greene Park. Hundreds of Arcade Fire fans suddenly hopped in cars, on bikes, the subway, or flat-out sprinted down the streets to get their wristbands. NYS Music contributor David Reichmann and two of his friends drove to Bushwick and ran full speed through Maria Hernandez Park, managing to get the very last three wristbands in that location, also the last location to sell out. All that after 3 hours of scouring Twitter, Instagram, and Reddit trying to find clues and positioning themselves in the best spot for the location announcements.
For fans who made it inside on Sunday night, there was a collective sense of relief and excitement. They had arrived against all odds and were going to see their favorite band play one of the most unique shows of their career in a very intimate room. On every night of the run, Arcade Fire played a career spanning set, including new songs and cult favorites. At one point on Sunday, Win jumped down into the audience with his guitar, expertly catching his microphone tossed from the stage by his bandmates and handed it to a fan to act as his mobile mic stand while he played and sang amongst the crowd.
Later in the evening, Win dedicated “The Suburbs” to his brother and now former band mate Will: “This is for my beautiful brother Will.” After not appearing with the band for the New Orleans show or the first two nights at Bowery Ballroom, Will officially announced his departure from Arcade Fire via his Twitter. For these shows, and presumably the upcoming tour, Will is being replaced by Wolf Parade’s Dan Boeckner.
Win Butler of Arcade Fire, Bowery Ballroom 3/20/22. Photo by David Reichmann
On night one of the residency, fans heard classic Arcade Fire songs “Haiti,” “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains),” and “Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels).” During the encore, the band played the new singles “Lightning I, II” followed by hit songs “Rebellion (Lies)” and “Wake Up.” Night two featured many of the same classics in a different order with the addition of the title track from their previous LP, “Everything Now.” Night three highlight was the first performance on this cycle of the raging Funeral rager “Neighborhood #3 (Power Out).
On the final night, NYS Music contributor Joseph Buscarello managed to get inside. That night, already spoiled fans were treated to a special setlist. The main set contained the same mix of classics from the previous nights. After a short break, Mike Meyers made a surprise appearance onstage for a speech. After some comedic banter with the audience, the message took on a more serious tone as Meyers addressed the war in Ukraine. Reminiscing about his parents who “fought the fascists in WWII,” Meyers implored the audience to embrace democratic governments that strive for the common good and fight against evil and oppression in the world. Doing so, he explained, is the first step towards repelling the evil the Russian government has brought into Europe today.
Arcade Fire, Bowery Ballroom, 3/21/22 – Photos by Buscar Photo
After a thunderous applause, the encore continued with a monstrous “Wake Up” sing-along followed by the live debut of upcoming WE single “Unconditional I (Lookout Kid).” Before playing the new song for the first time, Win asked the crowd not to record the performance to “preserve the surprise for everyone else.” The crowd obliged and we have not yet seen any clips of the performance online.
To close the show, Win introduced David Byrne onto the stage for the last song of the night. Byrne has performed with the band many times throughout their career, but the buzz in the room skyrocketed when he walked to center stage. Win surrendered the stage to the Talking Heads frontman and joined the marching band on the main floor while Bowery staff began tossing dozens of small tambourines and maracas into the crowd. Armed with voices and instruments of peace, 500 sweaty people turned into a single band for a grand rendition of The Plastic Ono Band anthem “Give Peace A Chance.” Byrne did the scatting and we all sang the chorus over and over for a seemingly endless amount of time. Finally, just as the band did on the first night, the show ended with a musical procession out to the sidewalk and down into the Bowery subway station platform. Photos of the subway performance from night one are below from friend of NYS Music Will Oliver.
As of now, the band is idle with nothing officially on the radar. These four shows were a truly unique experience and NYS Music was so fortunate to be able to attend two of the nights. Arcade Fire will sell out dozens of arenas later this year, and while those shows will be spectacles, the intimate energy and passion on display inside Bowery Ballroom will not be matched. Fans who scoured Manhattan and Brooklyn for wristbands saw once-in-a-lifetime performances from one of the most successful indie rock bands of the last 20 years. Keep your eyes focused on the band’s social media as they gear up for this new album cycle. Check out the gallery below for more photos from night three from David Reichmann.
