Aqueous has announced one last final appearance before year’s end and the band is making the very most of it. The Buffalo natives have just announced the inaugural The Great Flamingle which is scheduled to take place Saturday, September 3 at the outdoor lot stage at Jack Rabbit in the band’s hometown. The event, with music, vendors and other experiences curated by the band will mark the last full band show on record for 2022, with keyboardist David Loss set to take paternity leave shortly.
The Great Flamingle will feature two sets from Aqueous as well as performances from lespecialand The Talking Dead Heads, plus supporting acts from fellow locals Space Junk and Tortoise Forest on an outdoor lot stage.
This is something we’ve wanted to do forever…We’re all very excited to throw a unique, AQ-curated experience from the music, the vendors, the fan experiences, and beyond! We’re looking forward to building on The Great Flamingle in the years to come, too.
~ Aqueous guitarist Mike Gantzer
Tickets for The Great Flamingle, this last scheduled Aqueous gig of 2022, are on sale now here with both VIP and general admission options available. VIP ticket holders will have access to an intimate indoor performance along with a meet and greet with Aqueous plus complimentary food and two drinks from the Jack Rabbit Kitchen and Bar.
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.
Jason Wolfman Martin- Test Singles EP
At 7 P.M., the entire Test Signals EP will be played over the air. Jason Wolfman Martin is an artist/musician/curator, active from 1989 to now, with three decades of LPs, CDs, and tapes under his belt. He hasn’t made music in over seven years, and this new EP serves as his comeback.
Shane Guerrette- “Lost Without”
Luminous Crush- “Binary Star”
Luminous Crush is made up of Laura Molinelli and Ben Campbell, who make a wide variety of music spanning multiple genres like bluegrass, country, indie, and psychedelic.
MuMu, from Harlem, is a singer/songwriter who writes songs based on the guidance she received listening to spangled pop stars to feel less alone living in a home rife with addiction and mental illness.
The new single “Wrapped Up” is about the overturning of Roe v. Wade which makes the right to an abortion constitutional. This essential procedure is now illegal for many people across the United States. The song retells the real stories of three women who faced the challenges of unplanned pregnancy and expresses how important the right to choose is, and the detrimental effects of those rights being taken away.
MuMu wrote an essay talking about the single, and how important it is.
Abortions have always existed and always will. They are part of our human herstory. There is written documentation of different abortion methods used all over the world. Archeologists have discovered instruments used to perform abortions that date back hundreds of years. Limiting abortion access does not prevent abortions from happening, it prevents them from being safe. An abortion is not an easy choice to make, but it’s an impossible choice to make for a stranger. And if we take away the right to safe reproductive care, people will suffer. People will die.
MuMu
“Wrapped Up” explains what it feels like to go through an abortion for those who have never gone through it. The song is groovy and slow, and her vocals are reminiscent of Alanis Morissette. There are a lot of emotional and powerful lyrics like “He took her hand/And swore a lie/Until she opened up her thighs/When she went to the doctor/People screamed and rocks were thrown/They wanted a child/To have a child of her own.”
The chorus is fiery and emotional as she sings “All the fear you give/And all the faith you hold Is heavy on her heavy heart of gold/All your virtue and strong beliefs WRAPPED UP in her destiny.” The rest of the song talks about the trauma an abortion can cause and the family struggles that come after it.
Overall, the new single is well thought out, emotional, and backed with groovy guitars and MuMu’s sultry voice to speak about the ongoing struggle with the government handling women’s rights issues.
The Ajkun Ballet Theatre performs Don Quixote – a Spanish celebration of love and laughter in a breathtaking ballet on Friday, August 12 at 7:30pm at The Egg in Albany.
Don Quixote
The Ajkun Ballet Theatre (AjkunBT) is a New York City based professional company presenting classical and contemporary ballets in the Greater New York area, throughout the USA and internationally. Every summer, dancers from 135 countries have travelled to Albany for this experience and many have become employed in over 150 dance companies, worldwide.
The ballet Don Quixote is based on Miguel de Cervantes’s novel “Don Quixote de la Mancha” (1605 and 1615) with music by Leon Minkus and was originally choreographed in 1869. It won global popularity with the verson of Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1980.
Company Artists Kylie Brown (Mercedes), Telmen Munkherdene (Espada), Areum Jeong (Dulcinea), Ariel Corrêa (Gamache), Ergys Jake (Don Quixote), the Ajkun Ballet Theatre’s corps de ballet and talented emerging artists from all over the world perform in the show.
This version of Don Quixote, which was choregraphed by Chiara Ajkun, focused on dancing and infused with the vibrancy of Spain. The music filled with sounds of guitars and tambourines, the dancing of flirtatious gypsies and toreadors. The redesign of Don Quixote represented Chiara Ajkun’s belief that to offer access to the theater for all with in mind that today’s audience is worldly, educated, and well-travelled.
The performers are also outstanding in the play. Momoko Burbine (Kitri) has been with the Ajkun Ballet company since 2012, when she joined the corps de ballet from her native Osaka, Japan. Momoko quicky rose for the astonishing petite allegro and romantic finesses. Basilio is also performed by an electrifying dancer, Kelvis Tafaj, who presents elegant charisma from his energy, physicality, gravity-defying leaps. Tafaj joined the Ajkun Ballet in 2014 from Tropojë, Albania, and performed Ajkun’s works throughout Italy, the UK, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia.
On June 3, Brooklyn-based emo band, Stay Inside, released their newest work and 5-track EP, Blight, via No Sleep Records.
Stay Inside consists of Bryn Nieboer (vocals/bass), Chris Johns (guitar/backing vocals), Chris Lawless (guitar/backing vocals), and Vishnu Anantha on drums. Blight is the band’s newest release since their critically acclaimed 2020 album, Viewing.
Jon Markson of Drug Church and Koyo returns on production for the Blight EP which showcases a more intense side of the emo Brooklyn band. Although only totaling five songs, the lyrics and carefully executed instrumentation put the release on a caliber of its own.
The opening track, “Eraser,” starts slowly, with an emotional rhythm and vocals to draw you in before an intense build with drums and guitar. “Hollow,” plays with a unique beat and engaging message, with the lyrics “so I just sit there with my arms wide / I think I used up all my good lies / Oh god you started losing everything before you try to tell yourself to stop.” The EP was written while NYC was experiencing intense lockdown, and it fully represents the extreme feelings of the time.
Other tracks, such as “Fracture” and “Spore” are great additions to the EP, bringing even more depth and experimentation to the work with addictive drums and melodies. Stay Inside is surely growing and expanding with this most recent EP, Blight.
This summer, the post-hardcore band perform at the Saint Vitus Bar in Brooklyn on July 22. Be sure to keep up with the band on Instagram here and Twitter here, and take a listen to some more of their music, available below.
Bryant Park Picnic Performances continues August 12th with New York City Opera’s condensed version of Verdi’s classic, La traviata. The performance will last two hours with one 15-minute intermission. Bryant Park will continue to monitor and follow updated New York City and New York State COVID-19 guidelines throughout the summer, as necessary.
Photo Credit :Michael Cooper
On Friday, August 12th at 7pm, Bryant Park Picnic Performances presents an abridged adaptation of Verdi’s classic that inspired Moulin Rouge. The show has instantly recognizable tunes famously featured in Pretty Woman. La traviata tells the story of the tragic love between the courtesan Violetta and the romantic Alfredo Germont. Playing out against the hypocrisy of upper-class fashionable society, Alfredo and Violetta’s love threatens to shame his family.
‘The People’s Opera’ is thrilled to return to our summer home at Bryant Park, where we can continue our mission of free performances for New York audiences.
– Michael Capasso, General Director of New York City Opera
The 2022 Picnic Performances season is possible due to the generous support of Bank of America. “Bank of America is a long-standing supporter of the arts because we believe that a thriving arts and cultural community benefits both society and the economy,” said José Tavarez, President, Bank of America New York City. “So we are thrilled to once again sponsor Picnic Performances and combine our commitment to the arts with our partnership with Bryant Park. Together we’re helping New York City’s iconic cultural scene to thrive, while promoting green spaces and providing free access to live New York City music, dance and theater.”
On Friday, September 2nd, the performance Lucia di Lammermoor emerges. The story concerns fragile Lucy Ashton (Lucia) caught in a feud between her family. The setting takes place in the Lammermuir Hills of Scotland (Lammermoor) in the 17th century. Think Romeo and Juliet, but set in Scotland.
Photo Credit: Ryan Muir
Complete Bryant Park Picnic Performances:
July
July 15: Carnegie Hall Citywide: Squirrel Nut Zippers
July 22: Carnegie Hall Citywide: The Broadway Sinfonietta
July 23: Jazzmobile: Bobby Sanabria Multiverse Big Band
July 28: Ailey II Performance and Ailey Extension Dance Class
July 29: Carnegie Hall Citywide: The Hot Sardines Featuring Nellie McKay
Photo Credit: Ryan Muir
August
August 5: Greenwich House Music School: Mireya Ramos and Alea
August 12: New York City Opera: La traviata
August 19: Asian American Arts Alliance: Rafiq Bhatia and Ian Chang
August 26: Habibi Festival: Esraa Warda & The Châab Lab, Firas Zreik, Yacine Boularès, and AJOYO
August 29: The Town Hall: Eighth Blackbird Celebrates John Cage
September
September 2: New York City Opera: Lucia di Lammermoor
September 8: Steinway Artists Aaron Diehl and Orrin Evans
September 9: Classical Theatre of Harlem
September 16: Accordion Festival: Heart of Afghanistan and More
September 17: American Symphony Orchestra
For the additional information please visit the link here.
Art, in all its forms, is intended to inspire, challenge and broaden our minds. Whether a song, a painting, a NFT, or an interpretive dance, art is not intended to be comfortable, and if it is, it’s not doing its job. So when Roger Waters, co-founder and former member of Pink Floyd, arrived in Albany this week, he brought with him a performance that reaffirmed his status as an artist, while confronting the views of the audience in the process, sometimes to their discomfort but to great acclamation.
photo by Dave Decrescente
Appearing at a hazy MVP Arena on Wednesday, July 20 for a show two years in the planning – and more than half a century in the making – Waters performed a career-spanning show, featuring Pink Floyd classics, solo and new material amid an odyssey for the senses.
Those two years were such a span of time, that from when the This is Not a Drill Tour was announced in January 2020, the name of the Albany venue has changed from the Times Union Center to MVP Arena. The anticipation for fans – who represented a wide age-range as grandparents joined grandkids to see a legend perform – grew steadily as they awaited the show to go on, nearly two years to the date of the original show (July 25, 2020).
With announcements on the screen read aloud by a calming British voice, the audience was given 15, 10 and 5 minute warnings for when the show would begin. There was this courtesy to all in attendance, as well as a request to silence your cell phone, that were met with agreement from the crowd. Rousing applause and cheers overshadowed those rumblings when those in the crowd who were not interested in hearing Roger’s politics were advised to ‘fuck off to the bar right now,’ as the audience prepared themselves for a spectacle of the audio, visual and political varieties.
photo by Dave Decrescente
For this performance, the cross-shaped stage featured four quadrants of video screens displaying animation and early band images, so that every seat was a great seat and you could see the full show from any vantage point, amid a haze that hung in the air like London fog. Opening with “Comfortably Numb” as a video played across the screens with a dark, dystopian future city scape, the song reaching an emotional peak and the screens ascending, revealing the full band and offering Albany a rare performance in the round.
Performing this evening with Waters were Jon Carin (keys, guitar, vocals), Robert Walter (organ), Jonathan Wilson – (guitar, vocals), Gus Seyffert (bass, guitar), Dave Kilminster (guitar, vocals), Joey Waronker (drums, percussion), Seamus Blake (saxophone), Amanda Belair (vocals) and Shanay Johnson (vocals).
As the band was revealed, the 78 year old Waters showed off his vocal ability and on-stage agility as he moved from side to side and end to end of the arena, making sure no one was left out of seeing Roger close up. A trio of songs from The Wall were the first songs in full view of the audience – “Happiest Days of Our Lives,” “Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)” and “Another Brick in the Wall (Part 3).” “Powers That Be” followed as the first solo work of Waters, a track off his 1987 concept album, Radio K.A.O.S.
photo by Dave Decrescente
This is when, as if you hadn’t been given fair warning, Roger’s politics become their own feature of the show. If you somehow weren’t aware of where Roger stood on world issues beforehand, well, you were in for an education into the mind of the former Pink Floyd frontman.
Imagery included BIPOC victims of police violence – not just in America, but in England, Africa, Turkey, and around the world. During “The Bravery of Being Out of Range,” the voice and floating head of Ronald Reagan appeared on the screen, giving his farewell address to the nation in 1989, with the words WAR CRIMINAL beneath his image along with 30,000 Guatamalans killed referring to those of Mayan descent who were killed during his presidency through efforts to expand democracy in Latin America. By now, Roger had shifted to the piano as Reagan’s head was burned into the minds of those in attendance, and rightly so given his hatred for Reagan and Margaret Thatcher and whose policies the song criticizes. Not to leave the Gipper alone, Presidents Bush (both), Clinton, Obama and Trump are all featured as well with WAR CRIMINAL below their image for various military action and drone strikes taken during each presidency. Biden was featured last and while his presidency is just one and a half years old, WAR CRIMINAL appeared again, with ‘just getting started’ below, which was met with an uneasy applause from the audience.
https://youtu.be/C6bNEPF9EKU?t=1223
Roger spoke to the audience as he sat at the piano, thanking everyone who kept their tickets from the initial date in 2020. The first portion of “The Bar,” an unreleased song that was written during the pandemic followed, with a similar sound to “Nobody Home” from The Wall. Here, imagery was displayed of the Lakota Indian tribe and their protest against a uranium mine in the Black Hills of North Dakota. These were not light images to see, yet showing the resolve of the Lakota people in the face of overwhelming odds and power, both remarkable and inspiring.
Nothing, however, prepares you for the sheer amount of reading involved in a full Roger Waters concert experience. Instead of a professor giving you a pre-reading assignment before class, Waters puts the text on the screen, leading your eyes to dart from the screen to the band, and back again, knowing that this captive audience is laser focused on the center of the room. All of the text is no doubt informative and sheds some light into the mind of Roger Waters, yet at times feels like being stuck in a car with a podcast where you can’t change the channel.
The second side of Wish You Were Here took center stage as the set moved into its second half, starting with “Have a Cigar,” as early Pink Floyd photos were displayed on the screens; “Wish you Were Here,” as Roger spoke of Syd Barrett stories and images appeared above, and the finally, the latter portions of “Shine On You Crazy Diamond.” As sheep, pigs and dogs appeared on the screen, the show entered the Animals era, including Tweets featuring the recent opinions of the US Supreme Court while the band performed “Sheep” to the loudest cheers of the set thus far.
photo by Dave Decrescente
After a 20-minute intermission, a flying pig was released – roughly the size of a compact car and soaring over the crowd – circling the arena and drawing attention away from Roger and the band as they took the stage and moved into The Wall’s “In the Flesh (Part 2)” and bringing along the full experience of The Wall, short of the actual wall being torn down. Banners dropped down featuring marching hammers, a red hue about the stage and Waters in a full dictator-tilt as he tore through Pink’s speech from the film, before moving into “Run Like Hell” as the pig continued to circle the stage above the crowd.
Two tracks from 2017’s Is This the Life We Really Want?, “Déjà Vu” and the title track followed, with a theme of human rights flashing on screen, along with specific rights for Yeminis, Palestinians, women and those without equal rights in the world.
The coins of “Money” could be heard next as the Dark Side of the Moon era was given center stage.. With screens showing faces of humanity and scenes from global protests, “Us and Them” felt more like “Us versus Them,” particularly those most vulnerable among the ‘Us,’ indiginous peoples from around the world. “Brain Damage” and “Eclipse” would follow, with a rainbow forming on the screens while a triangular prism of lasers surrounded the stage end to end, providing a full Dark Side of the Moon album cover effect.
photo by Dave Decrescente
Waters’ encore began with one of his last songs for Pink Floyd, “Two Suns in the Sunset,” which references nuclear holocaust, and was connected to the Doomsday Clock. A second portion of “The Bar” followed, with the band crowding around Waters at the piano, as they brought acoustic instruments in preparation for a walk around the perimeter of the stage as “Outside the Wall,” the final track on The Wall closed the show. With Waters standing on the stage at the end to a standing ovation, his bid farewell with a simple message: Peace.
When taken together, Roger Waters’ live performance coupled with the knowledge he seeks to impart on his audience is a vivid spectacle of the highest order. Taken separately, both fall on deaf ears and the message is lost. Waters continues to examine the uncomfortable realities of life through his music, one for the benefit of his audiences for the past 54 years and counting.
Roger Waters’ “This is Not a Drill” Tour arrives at Long Island’s UBS Arena at Belmont Park on August 13, followed by two nights at Madison Square Garden on August 30 & 31. All tour dates can be found here.
Roger Waters – MVP Arena – Albany, NY – July 20, 2022
Set 1: Comfortably Numb, The Happiest Days of Our Lives > Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 > Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3, The Powers That Be, The Bravery of Being Out of Range, The Bar, Have a Cigar, Wish You Were Here > Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX), Sheep
Set 2: In the Flesh > Run Like Hell, Déjà Vu, Is This the Life We Really Want?, Money > Us and Them > Any Colour You Like > Brain Damage > Eclipse
Encore: Two Suns in the Sunset, The Bar (Reprise), Outside the Wall
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.
American heavy metal band GWAR are pleased to announce the fall leg of “The Black Death Rager World Tour,” in support of their new album “The New Dark Ages”. The tour starts off September 10th in Alton, VA and runs through November 3rd in Baltimore, MD.
The band will vist Niagara Falls at Rapids Theater on October 22nd and New York City at Irving Plaza on October 31st.
The Black Death Rager World Tour
Prior to the Fall tour, GWAR are headed overseas on the European leg of “The Black Death Rager World Tour.” This run kicks off July 29th in Tilburg, NL and runs through August 18th in London, UK.
The new album The New Dark Ages chronicles GWAR’s adventures in the Duoverse, which will be out on CD and digital. The album and the show concepts are tied to a companion graphic novel, “GWAR In the Duoverse of Absurdity” released by Z2 Comics which depict the battle of the band with their evil twins and the specter of rogue technology as they were sucked off into an alternate univers.
“Long ago, GWAR broke the frame of what a rock concert can be. We’ve pushed the envelope of live performance for decades, but this time around, we wanted to do something different. This is the first GWAR show conceived to go along with a graphic novel and an album, all working together as one massive hunk of hot steaming shock rock performance ART! A can’t-miss cavalcade of chaos, a trash culture trilogy, a shocking extravaganza that will leave you utterly spent, soaking wet, and bawling uncontrollably. We’ve got the coolest storyline, unbelievable new characters, more blood, gore, and gags than ever before. Come, unload your worries, human scum, and let GWAR transport you to the Duoverse of absurdity just in time for the NEW DARK AGE!”
Berserker Blothar
“The Black Death Rager World Tour” With Light The Torch, Nekrogoblikon and Crobot
9/10 – Alton, VA @ Blue Ridge Rock Fest* 9/11 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl 9/13 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel 9/14 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue 9/15 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues 9/16 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr Smalls 9/17 – Chicago, IL @ Riot Fest* 9/19 – Tulsa, OK @ Cain’s Ballroom 9/20 – Little Rock, AR @ The Music Hall 9/21 – Columbia, MO @ Blue Note 9/23 – Louisville, KY @ Louder Than Life 9/25 – Lincoln, NE @ Bourbon Theatre 9/26 – Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater 9/27 – Casper, WY @ Gaslight Social Outdoors 9/28 – Billings, MT @ Pub Station Outdoors 9/30 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater 10/1 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo 10/3 – Vancouver, BC @ The Vogue# 10/4 – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory 10/6 – Boise, ID @ Revolution Concert House 10/7 – Sacramento, CA @ Aftershock* 10/8 – Ventura, CA @ Ventura Theater 10/9 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco 10/10 – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl 10/11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot 10/12 – Flagstaff, AZ @ Pepsi Amphitheater 10/14 – Dallas, TX @ Amplify 10/15 – Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live 10/16 – Austin, TX @ Empire Live 10/18 – Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl 10/19 – Orlando, FL @ The Beachum 10/20 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade 10/22 – Niagara Falls, NY @ Rapids Theater 10/23 – Detroit, MI @ The Crofoot 10/26 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave 10/28 – Worcester, MA @ The Palladium 10/29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall 10/30 – Richmond, VA @ The National 10/31 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza 11/2 – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix 11/3 – Baltimore, MD @ Soundstage *Festival #Without Light the Torch
In case you have yet to get your live-music fix this summer, Albany County offers ample opportunities for live music and entertainment for the rest of the summer season.
In addition to the region’s highly anticipated Alive at 5 concert series, and the incredible Empire State Plaza events here is a list of some fantastic talents coming to the area in the upcoming weeks. Highlights include a Motown Tribute from Garland Nelson’s Reflection, Get Up Jack, Doc Benson Band, Berkstar, and many more.
Albany County offers endless opportunities for some summertime entertainment, from local up-and-coming artists to fan-favorite bands and musicians. There is something for everyone this summer in Albany to check out and enjoy. For a full list of concerts in the Albany area, see below.
