This past Friday, December 29, punk-rock icon, singer-songwriter, poet, artist, and New York Times Bestselling author Patti Smith graced the stage at the Brooklyn Steel for two nights. Patti returned for her birthday show, this time commemorating turning 77. Fans from all generations came to see Patti’s incredible, lively performance at Brooklyn’s intimate, 1800-capacity venue.
Patti Smith, photographed by Sarah Hyun
Patti Smith, though raised in South Jersey, moved to NYC at the ripe age of 21 to study art and poetry. Her bestselling novel, Just Kids, which details her experience living in NYC, brought a new wave of people—especially younger ones—to Patti’s fanbase and show. Although Patti is not currently touring, she frequently returns to NYC to play with her band which consists of Lenny Kaye, Jay Dee Daugherty, Tony Shanahan, and Jackson Frederick Smith (her son!).
Patti Smith, photographed by Sarah Hyun
Patti opened the night with an extraordinary rendition of “So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star.” Scaling around the stage with incredible ease and her nimble dance moves, Patti made the crowd go wild with her performance. Her silver braids almost seemed to glow under the stage lights, drawing all eyes to her throughout the whole concert. One fan screamed, “I love you Patti! I’m your number one fan!”
After playing “Free Money,” Patti stopped and began conversing with the crowd about how confusing TV remotes are. “It’s unbelievable right? You need one to put the TV on, the other for volume, and the other to get the Netflix or whatever you want on. It’s taken me hours just to get the TV on.” A fan screamed “Happy Birthday!” where Patti responded with, “Not yet! Don’t age me any faster than I am.”
Ending the night on a powerful note, Patti played “Because the Night” and “People Have the Power,” where she brought out her daughter Jesse Paris Smith and her high school friend Laura to sing. Patti Smith is truly legendary, and her show was nothing short of that.
On Thursday, Dec 28, Dogs In a Pile took center stage at Sony Hall, just a stone’s throw away from Madison Square Garden, where Phish kicked off their much anticipated four-night New Year’s Eve Run. Branded as “The Dog Pound” by the band themselves, fervent fans flocked to the venue, securing their spots before Phish even finished their encore. The eclectic crowd, covered in classic Phish donut wear, Aztec patterns, and tie-dye attire, brought an energy that permeated the air.
Having traversed the entire country on a busy fall tour, Dogs In A Pile had recently graced various New York venues, from Lafayette to Trumansburg, and Williamsburg. Smiles were seen all around as Keyboard player Jeremy Kaplan kicked off the night with a solo opening number, a classical-sounding ballad that set the tone for the night—soon joined by Jimmy Law (guitar and vocals), Joe Babick (drums and vocals), Sam Lucid (Bass), and Brian Murray (guitar and vocals).
Taking the stage shortly after midnight, fans were jumping, jiving throughout the venue from the rails to the back. Dogs In A Pile’s unique sound is a harmonious blend of the unfamiliar and the strangely familiar. Elements of funk, jazz, and classic psychedelic rock ring out, and their songs are carefully constructed, invoking a circus of sound and feeling. The show was complemented by vibrant lighting, captivating The Dog Pound until the wee hours of the morning, almost reaching 4 AM.
A special moment came when the band paid homage to the maestros themselves. The iconic notes of “Harry Hood” rang out, showcasing the band’s technical prowess and precision. With an encore of their popular song “Truck Rum”, the evening winded down and fans retreated home just before sunrise. The echoes of this night continued to reverberate. Dogs in A Pile kept the Phish party alive and elevated it to new heights- a testament to the band’s overall aura and momentum.
For fans in Saratoga Springs, Dogs In A Pile will be at Putnam Palace on 12/30 & 12/31 for what’s sure to be an incredible New Year’s Eve celebration!
Setlist: G Song, Tillie, Feel Like A Stranger, Look Johnny II, You Didn’t Hear It From Me, Let U Go, Go Set > Gumball, Spun > Drums > Harry Hood, Craig and Pat, Appleseed, Linus and Lucy
27 years ago, webcam technology experts EarthCam unveiled their first live stream of the famous Times Square celebrations and ball drop. Fast forward to 2023, EarthCam has announced they are continuing their live streams, using cutting-edge networks of webcams to deliver real-time coverage of festivities and fireworks around the world.
Celebrations start in New Zealand at 6:00 a.m. EST on December 31st. Subsequently, viewers will have the opportunity to see dozens of locations ring in the New Year, including Taiwan, Puerto Rico, Corning, NY, Sicily, Wales, and Alaska. Back in Times Square, EarthCam will be providing multiple live camera perspectives, covering the entirety of the festivities in uncut and unfiltered 4K quality live streams.
EarthCam is the global leader in providing live camera technology, content, and services. Founded in 1996, EarthCam provides live-streaming video, time-lapse construction cameras, and reality capture solutions for corporate and government clients. They lead the industry with the highest resolution imagery available, including the world’s first outdoor gigapixel panorama camera system. EarthCam has documented over a trillion dollars of construction projects around the world.
The Webby Award-winning company hosts many highly trafficked tourism cams, with views of popular locations and landmarks such as Times Square, World Trade Center, Statue of Liberty, Miami Beach, Bourbon Street, Temple Bar in Dublin, Jerusalem’s Western Wall, CN Tower and Abbey Road Crossing in London.
EarthCam has experienced a remarkable expansion in 2023, documenting amazing construction projects globally, including the reconstruction of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine. EarthCam was also chosen to document the crucial emergency repair and reopening of the I-95 bridge in Philadelphia and the I-10 in Los Angeles. Also in 2023, they premiered a new platform to better serve hundreds of news media professionals who feature its live-streaming content every day. Media Priority Access is an unprecedented success in its first year, increasing EarthCam’s media exposure by 260% and earning tens of thousands of media mentions.
For more information and to tune into the live stream, visit here.
Performance Space New York has announced they are presenting artist, composer, and choreographer Richard Kennedy’s Hybrid Peasant from Jan. 11 – 13 at 8:30 p.m.
Combining opera, dance theater, poetry, sketch, and slapstick comedy to create its speculative hyper-reality, Hybrid Peasant, a three-act performance, is another explosive disruption of opera’s formalism from the interdisciplinary artist with a long history of engaging and subverting the classical. It delves deep into the landscape of the “Nightmerican dream,” experienced through the lives of “the housed citizens of Hirth.”
The story unfolds in an exaggerated past-future version of Richard Kennedy’s hometown of Middletown, Ohio. With references and points of departure ranging from Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring to SNL’sWeekend Update, the artist shapes a funhouse portrait of contemporary America’s polarized realities. A call to action, Hybrid Peasant urges us to ascend collectively by nourishing each other, forging a path toward liberation.
Richard Kennedy’s multidisciplinary practice is interested in relationships and navigating sexuality as it occurs at the intersection of class, race, and gender. Considering opera through a language of the African American experience, Kennedy disrupts the tradition of Western theatre to generate new participatory modes of viewership.
This piece is really about the hybrid; an access to high and low has produced a sense, in the opera world, of both access from my experiences and training and career, while also being treated as a peasant. I want to continue to explore opera through this hybrid balance to call more attention to the ways we troll ourselves as a society—to acknowledge the past in the present, and question if this is what we want our future to be.
Richard Kennedy
Over the last 40 years, Performance Space has been propelling cultural, theoretical, and political discourse forward. Founded in 1980, it became a haven for many queen and radical voices. Their focus has been not just on presenting boundary-breaking work but on restructuring their organization towards prioritizing equity and access. Qorks that have dissolved the borders of performance art, dance, theater, music, visual art, poetry and prose, ritual, nightlife, food, film, and technology are presented here.
The four men of Phish returned to Madison Square Garden, their live music home base, to begin another four night run to close out another successful year. It was already their eighth visit in 2023 and their nice-round-number eightieth of their career. It all started with a show almost exactly 29 years prior, with their first traditional four-nighter 25 years ago.
Needless to say, the band felt right at home on the Midtown Manhattan stage. There’s really no need to warm up to the room that plays like their living room, and their comfort was evident from note one. The final shows of the year began with “No Men in No Men’s Land,” with the nod and wink appropriate lyric, “You’re happy that we’re here.” which received a huge roar from the anticipatory crowd. The band found room to let loose as a unit right away, with Mike Gordon’s bass driving the early action.
From there the set would take a sharp nostalgic turn, diving deep into the bands early catalog. Classic Phish fare from the irreverent barbershop-esque “Halley’s Comet,” to some of their earliest “hits” like “Sample in a Jar” and “Bouncing Around the Room” provided the crowd a trip down memory lane. Solid takes on other favorites “Runaway Jim,” “Axilla Part II,” and Son Seals’ “Funky Bitch” set the table for a strong finish.
Sticking to the early material, “Bathtub Gin” would provide the first real fireworks of this New Year’s celebration. Gordon once again pushed the agenda in the early going as the rest of the band remained within “Gin’s” lines. Page McConnell flinched first, moving to his clavinet while Trey Anastatio added sustained wails on guitar. McConell dug into some of his weirder tones and the whole thing got a bit dissonant. John Fishman pushed it forward with a marching beat and eventually locked into a dark groove with Gordon. The dark turned bright in a flash as Anastatio discovered a happy rocking theme that brought the whole thing back into the “Bathtub” to wrap it up neatly.
“Ghost” would top off the set with some more interesting improvisation, all four members combining to find an interesting theme. They quickly worked it to a peak which they sustained at for an incredible high energy workout. Gordon mixed in some “No Men’s” lyrics into the chaos but it all settled back into the “Ghost” groove as the first set of the run came to a close.
“The Howling” got things started in set two, as howling sounds bounced around the room, echoing in surround sound.
“A Wave of Hope” followed, and started innocently enough. The band coasted along for a little bit until you could almost hear the safety line being cut. The whole band dropped any semblance of a connection to the source material, diving into the deep end into a slow ooze. From there they entered mind meld territory, flipping from theme to theme without cue and without hesitation, like it was scripted. The pace quickened, slowed and sped up again. Dark, bright, rocking, cosmic, it was a journey and the map was being drawn in real time. The stage was surrounded by points of white light in a spastic swirl as Anastatio carried the final segment into bliss territory. They found their way to a slick transition into “Rift,” one of a few solid segues on the night.
A quasi-classic “Mike’s Song” > “Simple” segment gave the set more solid anchors to hang some cred on. Gordon played around with the rocking groove as the lights rode the deep end waves, undulating high above. As a counterpoint to the one-ness found throughout “A Wave of Hope,” in “Mike’s” the band fractured, fragmenting and deconstructing pieces of the jam. It got heavy and industrial, but never lost the underlying groove. It roared up to an unusual “Mike’s Song” peak that had hints of “Tweezer Reprise” hidden just beneath the surface.
The ensuing “Simple” again provided a contrast, staying spacey and ambient for most of it’s runtime. And as that time ran low, it transitioned excellently into a rocking “Blaze On” set closer, which featured solid in-the-pocket jamming from the whole unit.
Between new songs, old songs, and a full smattering of influences on display, Phish was setting the table nicely as they invited their fans into their home away from home to celebrate another year in the books. But with a long four-song encore that had multiple “ok now it’s over” moments, they were the hosts who couldn’t let their guests leave without a few proper good-byes. They welcome another party in the next three nights at the Garden. Shows 81 through 83 and year 2024 await. But who’s counting?
Phish – Madison Square Garden – Thursday, December 28, 2023
Set 1: No Men In No Man’s Land, Halley’s Comet, Sample in a Jar, Runaway Jim, Bouncing Around the Room, Axilla (Part II) > Funky Bitch, Bathtub Gin > Ghost
Set 2: The Howling > A Wave of Hope -> Rift > Mike’s Song > Simple > Blaze On
Encore: mercy, The Squirming Coil, Weekapaug Groove > Say It To Me S.A.N.T.O.S.
Trey teased San-Ho Zay in No Men In No Men’s Land. Mike quoted No Men In No Men’s Land during Ghost. Mike’s Song contained sound effects used earlier in the show during The Howling.
NYC native and “troubadour piano man” Craig Greenberg has released his new soulful track “Song of December,” encompassing the feelings that come with the creative process and pushing forward.
Over the past 15+ years, Craig Greenberg has been a staple on the New York City music scene, capturing and building on the spirited ivory traditions of greats like Billy Joel, Ben Folds, and Randy Newman with sparkling, soulful new musical twists, a larger than life personality and his insightful, dramatic sense of storytelling. He has independently released five albums (his most recent EP, Between the Sea and the Sky, released in Dec 2022), and has performed upwards of 1000 shows from New York to Israel, since his start playing in bars while living in Chile, and later Spain, in the early 2000s.
He has received praise in American Songwriter, the Huffington Post, and Relix Magazine, and has been played on radio stations all around the country and internationally. In 2021, his song “Oh Caroline” was placed in the semifinals of the International Song Competition and his music video for “Between the Sea and the Sky” received a Europe Music Video Award in March 2023, and placed finalist in the Around International Film Festival (Paris) in June 2023. He has performed with esteemed musicians such as Jackson Browne, Chris Barron (Spin Doctors), Jane Wiedlin (the Go Go’s), Louise Goffin, and Jerry Joseph.
“Song of December” is a layered track that brings the listener on a journey, with his iconic piano and booming percussions. “It’s a song about the struggle of the creative process, and about finding inspiration to push through that struggle. It’s about looking back at the challenges of the year and looking toward a brighter tomorrow, so it is indeed a hopeful song,” he said. He started writing the song back in 2017 and finally finished it just in time for December.
Greenberg lays all his emotion out in this track, bringing in a multitude of instruments that play together in perfect harmony. With intricate lyrics and soulful vocals, he paints the picture of his struggles with being creative but knows, in the end, everything is going to be okay.
Jazz WaHi has announced a full day of free events in Washington Heights on New Year’s Eve and Day, featuring family-friendly events and various musicians.
Jazz WaHi is a nonprofit organization promoting jazz performance and music education in Washington Heights. Their mission is to connect jazz musicians with an audience of jazz lovers, expanding it through accessible performances and educational opportunities. Washington Heights jazz musicians/educators Louise Rogers and Mark Kross founded Jazz WaHi in 2014.
Every year, Jazz WaHi puts on several events including the Washington Heights Jazz Festival, Jazz WaHi for Kids concert, The Jazz Vocal Series, and the Weekly Jazz Jam.
New Year’s Schedule
New Year’s Eve
Noon – 2: Hot Club Jazz (a la Django Reinhardt) at La CreParis on 187 with Ollie Soikkeli and Brad Brose.
3-3:45: an interactive, participatory performance for kids, focusing on the trumpet. The event will encourage the children to sing and dance, featuring Shareef Clayton, Louise Rogers, and Mark Kross at Le Cheile Upstairs.
5:30-6:30 pm: Making Space for Serenity at St. Frances Cabrini Shrine solo piano with Alec Castro.
6-8 pm: 181 Cabrini with flutist KAT modiano and bassist Maksim Perepilca.
7-9 pm: Jazz and Blues at Kismat with John Albin, Pete Venzel, Adam Asarnow, Rick Strong, and Jeff Potter.
9:30-midnight: Latin Jazz Party at Northend Food Court on Broadway.
New Year’s Day
Noon – 2: New Year’s Day Brunch at Le Cheile with Emiko Hayashi and Steve Marks.
JazzBuffalo has announced the 2024 Canterbury Woods Jazz Series, bringing three incredible concerts featuring award-winning jazz artists to the brand-new Canterbury Woods Performing Arts Center.
JazzBuffalo is the d.b.a. and brand name for the Greater Buffalo Jazz Society, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to building jazz awareness and jazz appreciation in the WNY area. The organization promotes jazz and builds audience appreciation for jazz through jazz news, live performances, concerts, festivals, jazz series, event calendaring, ticketing, hosting internationally recognized jazz musicians, and jazz education.
On February 14, 2024, the 2024 Canterbury Woods Jazz Series presents A Cole Porter Valentines featuring Konrad Paszkudski and Pasquale Grasso. After receiving his jazz piano education in his native Australia, Konrad Paszkudski relocated to the U.S. where he embarked on extensive tours alongside jazz legends such as trumpeter James Morrison and the John Pizzarelli Quartet. Within just four years, he led over 1,000 performances. Konrad will be joined by rising star jazz vocalist, Olivia Chindamo, one of the most promising young jazz vocalists in the jazz scene, celebrating their love for Cole Porter and the Great American Songbook.
Kathy Kosins, an ASCAP Award-winning vocalist, is delighted to present her highly acclaimed project, “The Ladies of Cool,” at the Canterbury Woods Performing Arts Center on Friday, March 22 at 7:30 PM. It is a contemporary homage to the iconic West Coast School of Cool, celebrating the timeless artistry of Anita O’Day, June Christy, Chris Connor, and Julie London. Kosins brings classic songs to life with her smoky vocals and clever arrangements, exuding glamour, sophistication, and a sense of cool. Kosins’ album of the same name received accolades from international media outlets such as the Huffington Post and All About Jazz.
Finally, the 2024 Canterbury Woods Jazz Series wraps up on April 21, 2024, with “El arte Del Bolero” featuring Miquel Zenón and Luis Podermo. Renowned jazz artist and 11-time GRAMMY Nominee Miguel Zenón, a recipient of prestigious Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellowships, will present his two albums dedicated to the cherished Latin American art form of bolero. He collaborates with and will appear with the virtuoso Venezuelan pianist, composer, arranger, and educator, Luis Perdomo, a GRAMMY Nominated jazz artist based in New York, and a longtime partner in their musical endeavor.
EDM artist DMVU and Toadface have teamed up to bring an innovative tour that had a special appearance at Buffalo Iron Works on December 16. The two producers performed all night at Buffalo Ironworks on the It’s Dangerous To Go Alone tour that included a surprise guest appearance for fans.
DMVU, Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
Local talent LURK3R and Thromb started off the night with their infused dubstep. They brought downtempo bass music to Ironworks while still supplying the audience with heavy mixes.
Toadface later took on the stage and immediately hit fans with his swampy bass lines. He performed various songs off of his EPs including “Seratonin Machinegun” and “Stone Monkey.” His growth over the past few years has allowed him to develop more into his sound.
Toadface, Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
Toadface messes with ambient mystical soundscapes that makes his production style unique. His fun toad visuals play into this as well giving a sense of funk into traditional dubstep. His ability to fuse in elements of trap music make these amphibious grooves have their own twist.
After, Denver based artist DMVU hit the stage and elevated even more on blending rap with dubstep. His love for hip-hop and rap shows through his innovative mixes. DMVU’s intro was full of lo-fi tunes and heavy sax, the vibes brought effortlessly to the crowd.
DMVU, Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
DMVU then began mixing his love of both old school and new school rap. There is something about hearing your favorite rappers over a chill bass beat that does something for the soul. He also mixed in some of his well-known songs into his set such as “Killa Sound.”
DMVU, Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
It’s Dangerous To Go Alone
The late night set is where these DJs really took it to the next level by performing together. In honor of their joint EP It’s Dangerous To Go Alone, both DMVU and Toadface joined on stage for an epic set. They played countless songs including, “Uncut Diamonds,” and “Jungle Dub.”
DMVU, Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
Their separate sounds are unique enough but when they come together it provides groovy dubs that are addicting to listen to. They somehow raised the bar even further when they brought out special guest Distinct Motive who had the crowd cheering with excitement when he played his hit “Shake Junt.” The rest of the night consisted of the DJs switching off and on from the decks.
Photo Credit: Maddie McCafferty
This night at Ironworks was one for the books. And more EDM nights are to come with Churma going to Luna Lounge December 29 and Rusko will be performing a NYE show at Town Ballroom. Get your tickets here.
Hudson Valley Live has announced their winter/spring 2024 lineup at The Local, Saugerties’ new year-round, multi-arts venue. The season features nearly 30 must-see events ranging from unforgettable concerts to thought-provoking conversations to family-friendly programs, all between January and June 2024.
Housed in a former Dutch chapel built in 1876, The Local is a space for arts, culture, and community under the guidance of Isabel Soffer and Danny Melnick, co-founders of Hudson Valley Live. The two Saugerties-based music producers and performing-arts professionals have each devoted more than 30 years to producing festivals, concerts, and curated arts experiences.
“After an exciting fall season, we’re returning in 2024 to celebrate an even wider variety of musical traditions and cutting-edge sounds, encouraging discovery through culture. We look forward to bringing even more people together through the arts, with diverse programs for people of all ages and interests right here in Saugerties,” said Isabel Soffer.
Danny and Isabel, photo by Dion Oguest.
Tickets go on sale January 9, with performances by singer-songwriter Tracy Bonham, who celebrates her birthday with a performance on March 16, New Orleans singer-songwriter Joy Clark (Feb. 1), five-time GRAMMY winner Cindy Cashdollar (Feb. 24), banjo extraordinaire Nora Brown (April 20), and more.
The Local will also continue to bring world-renowned global acts to the Hudson Valley, such as Firas Zreik, Palestinian-born, NY-based master of the kanun (Feb. 10); JigJam (March 12), an Irish-bluegrass quartet from Ireland; women-led Caña Dulce y Caña Brava (April 10) who perform music and dance from Veracruz, Mexico; and a rare appearance by Iran’s Persian classical music virtuoso Kayhan Kalhor (June 15), among others.
The Local is a place for community, and whether that’s through the performances we offer or through private events that take place here, we’re thrilled to be a cultural hub for all, right in the Hudson Valley. We’re so encouraged by the economic impact we’ve had here and look forward to engaging with local businesses even more as we expand.
Danny Melnick
The venue’s intimate space is the perfect setting for intriguing conversations, including Consider This, a new discussion series kicking off on March 19 with famed astronomer Bill Berman, who will shed light on the total solar eclipse in April, as well as three other celestial events. Later in the season, acclaimed neuroscientist Farzan Nadim discusses the biology of addiction.
Other new series’ at The Local in 2024 include two family-friendly programs, featuring a street-dance lesson led by teaching artists on the Flex’N style (Feb 4), and a found-object instrument workshop and performance with Dendê’s Brazilian Recycled Sounds (April 21). Barbès x Local, a collaboration with Barbès Brooklyn, one of NYC’s most beloved music clubs, comes to the venue, including psychedelic French-Latin fusion, Southern Appalachian banjo, and legendary global hybridists. Finally, In the Round continues this year, an acoustic series that is intimate, striking, and unforgettable.
For more information and to purchase tickets, visit here.
The Local’s confirmed January-June 2024 season lineup:
January
Fri., Jan. 12, 7 pm – John St. Jam: Erene Mastrangeli, Kurt & Cheryl, Abby Lappen, Bennett Harris, Matt Holloran, Jeff Entin & Bob Blum
Sun., Jan. 21, 6 pm – The Spontaneous World of Lonnie Holley
February
Thurs., Feb. 1, 7 pm – Songs of Peace & Love: Joy Clark
