NYS Music 2023

Category: Capital Region

  • An Interview with Saliyah Itoka, Queens-born Trinidadian and West African Singer-Songwriter

    Saliyah Itoka is a singer and a songwriter and a model, and if you watch her perform, you’ll realize she does have a plan to kill everyone in the room.

    Saliyah Itoka

    One of the best things about my gig here is that, by default, I have to expose myself to every type of music. I have to challenge myself, because it’s easy to ask a rocker what kinds of strings they use if you’re into electric guitars. But it’s a challenge to run across a singer/songwriter that’s out of your depth.

    I connect with Saliyah and we discuss our best cocktail mixes.

    Liam Sweeny: I’m listening to What You Doing, the video on Youtube. I love your style, it’s great. A sense I get from you by your lyrics is that you’re a strong, confident woman and you are in absolute command of what’s around you and what’s in your world. How much of what we see of you as a performer and how much is actually you?

    Saliyah Itoka: What my audience sees from me as a performer is actually all me. I’m still learning to be comfortable as a performer and that comes from the type of shows I do. And it comes from reading the room and being confident that I can command the room. But everytime you see me hit the stage; I’m aiming to be the best.

    LS: I’m learning about you from listening to your videos. You’re a singer/songwriter, and I’ve heard plenty of them, but I’ve not heard anyone bringing what you’re bringing. I fully admit this is me; I’m a rock guy. So let me ask simpler questions due to my own personal lack of depth. When and how did you get started singing and writing songs?

    SI: I started singing when I was 3 years old, and I started writing songs at 11 years old. I’ve always loved to write and I’ve always been fascinated with how my favorite artists wrote their songs. I used to open the CD and read the paper insert and see how the lyrics were formatted and I would write them out myself. I studied artists like Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, and Sade in regards to their writing and composition. As far as singers, I listened to a variety of artists growing  up but I’ve always gravitated towards R&B and the artists that I idolized for singing were Toni Braxton, Aaliyah, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and Tamia.

    LS: Some people have an aim, or an inner vision with what they want to create or produce and they’re never there yet, stuck in a home studio with every instrument on earth. Then there are people who just pick and grin and smile and will pick and grin forever. Do you have a vision for what you write now and what you want to write?

    SI: It depends on a few factors. Sometimes, I’ll get a random line or melody that pops into my head and I’ll write it down quickly so I can build on it later. Other times, it depends on the track that I’m given or the vibe I get from the track. And there are instances where the vision of what I want to write about will just appear and I  just follow its course until its completion.

    LS: Music transcends our differences and puts our hearts in the hearts of others, and that is an amazing property. But music doesn’t exist in a vacuum. None of our lived experiences are the same. As a black woman in America, you have to share your experience to audiences that won’t get it. How do you try to reach them? Do you try?

    SI: I believe that being and staying authentic to your true self is how you reach greater audiences. And I also believe that being open to having those conversations and asking the questions is how we reach understanding. As a black woman in America, I want to be able to express my experience in the way that I have lived in and hope for it to be a roadmap or even a glimpse into understanding who I am as an artist as well as a human being.

    LS: You were nominated for the 2022 Listen Up awards. As I write this, the 2023 awards are coming. By the time you get this, you might be twice-nominated, or you might be a winner. This is a fan awards thing; we don’t vote for anything. Do you have something to say to the fans? Do you want to nominate anybody?

    SI: To my fans, I just want to say thank you for all of the support. It’s heartwarming to be a consideration for a nomination. I appreciate everyone who has taken the time out to listen to my music and have followed my journey and I can’t wait for you all to see what I have in store. As far as me nominating anybody, there are so many people that I can see being nominated. There are a lot of artists who are really stepping out of their comfort zone and really showing their talents from the 518.

    LS: You are also a model on top of being a singer/songwriter. I love it when people have some other cool thing on top of being a musician. I figure you have more to pull from. We are getting out of an age where modeling was abusive on women in the sense of body image. How do we reform the modeling industry? Any ways that aren’t easily seen?

    SI: I think we should understand that everyone is beautiful in their own way and that there is a market for everyone. I think that the flaws that each of us have make us unique and that not everyone is going to fit into the same category. With that said, there is a market out there for everyone and I believe that every single one should be showcased. It doesn’t matter what size or fit or shape you are, you are beautifully made. I feel that the stigma that a model should only look like this versus a model that looks like that puts unneeded pressure and unneeded expectations on the mind. We are all beautiful and we need to keep an open mind in the discussions of what beauty is because the definition is different for everyone.

    This article was originally featured on RadioRadioX

  • Cyote Announces Spring Live Dates And Earth Day Fundraiser

    Greene County-based multimedia artist and singer/songwriter Cyote has announced a batch of spring performance dates as well as an Earth Day fundraiser for the Coxsackie Community Garden on April 22nd at Ravish Liquors.

    Photo credit: Jenna Petrone.

    To help fund this year’s growing and maintenance supplies, Cyote (known to locals as Carter Lou McElroy) and Ravish’s Sarah Gray Miller will be donating all tip jar proceeds directly to the garden. 

    Cyote’s performance dates also include April 28th, May 5th and 20th at Ravish Liquors in addition to May 6th at Coxsackie’s The Grange, a 90-acre 1800’s farm estate, for their Spring Social and June 18th at Over Yondr Festival: a phone-free event where people can revel in live music without the constant pull of technology. 

    This month you can also check out Cyote’s mixed-media work in Friendly City Creative Club’s Trash Talk, an exhibition inspired by the city of Hudson’s iconic blue trash bags.Trash Talk artists were invited to create pieces that examine consumptive habits, and Cyote’s “emotional baggage” is a commentary on not only the volume of consumptive habits, but the bags themselves that bear the burden; on view now at 725 Warren Street Hudson, NY through May 11th. 

    Cyote Spring Dates

    4/22: Earth Day Fundraiser at Ravish Liquors, Coxsackie NY

    4/28: Coxsackie Block Party at Ravish Liquors, Coxsackie NY

    5/5: Ravish Liquors, Coxsackie NY

    5/6: The Grange Spring Social Coxsackie, NY

    5/20: Ravish Liquors, Coxsackie NY

    6/18: Over Yondr Festival Greenville, NY

  • The Parlor Announce 4th Dream-Pop LP “You Are Love And I Am You” 

    Upstate NY’s The Parlor have just announced their newest LP You Are Love And I Am You, a psychedelic dream-pop record about ecstatic realizations associated with what some call the mystical experience, unitive consciousness, or loving presence.

    In celebration to the release on May 19th, they will also be hosting an album release show May 20th at Indian Ladder Cidery & Brewery’s Upper Biergarten. 

    You Are Love And I Am You is like a dream-pop relief compared to their more recent release in 2018 titled Kiku which chronicled the experience of grief and loss. It is meant to be listened to as an album, front to back. There were many that influenced the making of this album, such as The Mamas and the Papas, Tame Impala, Broadcast, Warpaint, Mazzy Star, George Harrison, Velvet Underground, Khruangbin, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Len, Cults, and Fleetwood Mac. 

    The Parlor Announce 4th Dream-Pop LP “You Are Love And I Am You” 

    As a neo-psychedelic dream-pop project made by husband and wife Eric Krans and Jen O’Connor, The Parlor was named after a room in the 19th century farmhouse where they live, farm, and create. The multi-instrumentalist, producer-composers express some of the most powerful aspects of the human experience. Immersive sound scaping and aural synesthetic composition is the vessel through which they share their existence. 

    The Parlor Announce 4th Dream-Pop LP “You Are Love And I Am You” 

    The song that has been released as a tease for the album, “Underneath the Universe,” is an absolute hit. It is very reminiscent of Tame Impala, with pretty indie visuals in the video to accommodate the dreamy-like melodies in the song itself.

    The Parlor Announce 4th Dream-Pop LP “You Are Love And I Am You” 

    The band stated, “Things got gloomy for us while touring on the Kiku record. Playing songs about trauma on a nightly basis, and the grueling nature of touring just sort of wore us down. (Jenn Pelly wrote an incredible piece for Pitchfork that relays a lot of what we experienced). Together these experiences ushered us deeper down a dark tapering claustrophobic tunnel with only a pinhole exit. We squeezed through somehow, thanks to meditative practice and sharing our deepest vulnerabilities with each other.”

    During the pandemic, additional darkness ensued, but there was only one way out and it was through. We found a deepened sense of presence that felt sacred. By accepting the seemingly unacceptable we were paradoxically filled with awe and wonder. Living was imbued again with light, love and gratitude. That’s the experience this album captures. Us finding ourselves again. The heart of this album is the enigmatic realization that we are and always have been the universe experiencing itself. We exist as manifestations of the universe just as everything else. And when we allow ourselves to be whole and unique, we express the universe in hi-fidelity authenticity. Something about holding that in imagination produces a sense of reverence and a desire to sing and share.

    “We got into Carl Jung, archetypal symbolism, alchemy, medieval Christian mysticism, Taoism, Sufism and found hundreds of esoteric philosophical characters that seem to be sharing similar mystical experiences of their own. This album is for them. Our new long dead friends. And everyone we ever met or wished upon. You shaped us. And to anyone out there who has had, or who hopes to have, a mystical experience in their lives that orients them toward abiding presence, awe and wonder, and gratitude for all existence. We celebrate you as us. Everything and nothing is one shining-forth ineffable non-dual eminence. Like dust in the light // Both the dark and bright.” 

    To pre-order You Are Love And I Am You, click the link here. 

    For more by The Parlor, click the link here. 

  • In This Moment And Motionless In White Announce “The Dark Horizon Tour”, Buffalo & Albany Dates

    In This Moment and hard rock giants Motionless In White have announced an epic co-headline run across North America this summer featuring special guests Fit For A King and From Ashes To New.

    in the moment motionless in white

    “The Dark Horizon Tour” will see the two bands alternating closing sets each night and performing at arenas and amphitheaters across the country, starting in Connecticut and Buffalo in early July, and a finale on August 19th at MVP Arena in Albany.

    Since coming to life in 2005, In This Moment have presided over a diehard fan base under the watch of “mother” figure, frontwoman and New York native Maria Brink—joined by co-founder and lead guitarist Chris Howorth, bassist Travis Johnson, guitarist Randy Weitzel, and Kent Dimmel. As millions convened upon the group’s otherworldly and unforgettable concerts, they quietly emerged as one of the most influential and impactful bands of the 21st century. 

    To date, in addition to the Gold-selling album, Blood, the quintet has garnered six Gold and Platinum singles, followed by a trifecta of Top 25 entries on the Billboard Top 200 with Black Widow and Ritual. With a total stream tally well past 200 million as of 2020, Ritual elevated them to new creative and critical peaks as well. 

    Between selling out headline tours coast-to-coast, the group performed in arenas everywhere alongside Disturbed and appeared at countless festivals from Rockville to Sonic Temple. 

    Along the way, they assembled their seventh full-length, the aptly titled Mother with longtime trusted collaborator Kevin Churko. Whereas Ritual hinted at a bluesy sonic sorcery, Mother breathes the activating mantra of an unbreakable spell, commenced on first single “The In-Between.” 

    In 2022, the band released Blood 1983, a reimagined EP commemorating the ten-year anniversary of Blood, and most recently had their song “I Would Die For You” appear on the soundtrack for John Wick: Chapter 4. 

    Motionless In White harnessed the power of an unholy union between industrial metal dissonance, spellbinding gothic pop bombast, and big screen-worthy iconography to emerge as 21st century rock’s most iconoclastic and cinematic force. Climbing out of the shadows of the rustbelt in Scranton, PA, the group have tirelessly earned the undying allegiance of a devout worldwide audience one record at a time. 

    With over half-a-billion cumulative streams and views to date, Motionless In White have notched four consecutive Top 5 debuts on the Billboard ‘Top Hard Rock Albums’ chart and ‘Top Rock Albums’ chart with Reincarnate, Graveyard Shift, Disguise , and their latest effort Scoring The End Of the World. The latter debuting at #12 on the Billboard 200 marking the band’s second biggest sales week ever. Scoring The End of the World is highlighted by the singles “Cyberhex,” which trended Top 10 on YouTube, and the follow-up “Masterpiece” which lit up streaming platforms and reached #1 at Active Rock radio becoming the band’s first chart-topper at the format. 

    Tickets are on sale now at In This Moment’s website.

    IN THIS MOMENT & MOTIONLESS IN WHITE 2023 TOUR DATES

    Jul-8 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Arena 

    Jul-9 – Buffalo, NY – Buffalo RiverWorks 

    Jul-11 – Charleston, WV – Charleston Civic Center Coliseum 

    Jul-13 – Cadott, WI – Rockfest* 

    Jul-14 – Grand Rapids, MI – Upheaval Festival* 

    Jul-15 – Mansfield, OH – Inkcarceration Festival 

    Jul-17 – East Moline, IL – The Rust Belt 

    Jul-18 – Des Moines, IA – Wells Fargo Arena 

    Jul-19 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford Premiere Center 

    Jul-21 – Casper, WY – Ford Wyoming Center 

    Jul-22 – Billings, MT – First Interstate Arena at MetraPark 

    Jul-23 – Missoula, MT – Big Sky Brewing Company 

    Jul-26 – Reno, NV – Grand Sierra Resort 

    Jul-27 – Paso Robles, CA – Vina Robles 

    Jul-29 – Flagstaff, AZ – Pepsi Amphitheater at Fort Tuthill Park 

    Jul-30 – Grand Junction, CO – Amphitheater at Las Colonias Park 

    Aug-1 – Wichita, KS – Hartman Arena 

    Aug-2 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion 

    Aug-4 – Council Bluffs, IA – KIWR’s Rockfest – Westfair Amphitheater 

    Aug-5 – Camdenton, MO – Ozarks Amphitheater 

    Aug-6 – Little Rock, AR – Simmons Bank Arena 

    Aug-8 – Memphis, TN – The Soundstage at Graceland 

    Aug-9 – Mobile, AL – Mobile Civic Center Arena 

    Aug-11 – Huntsville, AL – Propst Arena 

    Aug-12 – Asheville, NC – Harrah’s Cherokee Center 

    Aug-13 – Corbin, KY – Corbin Arena 

    Aug-15 – Evansville, IN – Ford Center 

    Aug-16 – Fort Wayne, IN – Allen County War Memorial Expo Center 

    Aug-18 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion 

    Aug-19 – Albany, NY – MVP Arena 

  • Gracies Paris Drops 80’s Inspired New Single “Fragile”

    Troy pop-rock natives Gracies Paris has released their newest single “Fragile”

    Gracie’s Paris is a hook-oriented, power pop-inspired rock band from the NY Capital Region. Originally formed as a trio in 2007, the original lineup included Carl Ferritto on guitar and lead vocals, Randy Rose on bass, and Eric Buechner on drums. The band went on hiatus in 2013 and reunited as a four-piece during COVID, adding lead guitarist Steve Hourigan to the original 3. Since mid-2022, Gracie’s Paris has focused on writing and recording.

    To keep listeners engaged, Gracies Paris like to change sound for each single. Despite the differences in inspirations, lyrics and genres, Gracies Paris manages to build a cohesive, yet intricately different soundscape for their fans.

    Coming in at just under 3 and a half minutes,”Fragile” describes a failing relationship with a narcissist. This track is a high-energy bass driven song with an 80’s inspired feel. Despite the heavy topic, this track manages to hook itself into your brain, with an incredibly catchy chorus. Perfect for your commute to work, or reminiscing on past relationships, “Fragile” shows off the best of Gracies Paris unique vibe.

    Listen to “Fragile” here, out now on Spotify.

  • First Ever Lake George DJ Takeover Festival Set July 29 and 30.

    The inaugural Lake George DJ Takeover Festival is scheduled for July 29 and 30, as announced by event planning service All We Do Is Epic Dot Com. The inaugural festival will be held at the Barn at French Mountain, 1.5 miles south of the village of Lake George.

    Map of the festival location. Credit: Mark Brenneisen

    The inaugural Lake George DJ Takeover Festival will run from noon to 10 p.m., and feature 10 acres of countryside fields, a whole western town, and the beautiful skyline of French Mountain. Live DJ entertainment in all genres of music will be inside the 9,000-square-foot climate-controlled venue, and several vendors, food trucks, and activities including a cornhole tournament will be at the festival. DJs from Florida, NYC, Boston, Rhode Island, Maine, New Jersey, and all over New York State will appear at the event, to provide an experience like none other. Admission to the festival is exclusive to those 18 years of age and older.

    Mark Brenneisen, the organizer of the festival spoke about the event, saying, “We’re hoping for 1000 attendees the first year with this special blend of multiple music genres to attract more than just your typical EDM festivals which only play one type of music. That coupled with a nice mix of DJs from all over the East Coast and many local acts who have a following we should be able to reach our goal.” Brenneisen continued, “Food is available on demand on-site or pre-order for groups as well and multiple cash bars will also be around the property. If we reach our goal, weather-depending, we will be adding a third outdoor music area.” Mobile DJs will be spotlighted in this event as they usually would not get a chance to play at a festival in general, creating a “unique environment of music and fun.”

    Tickets to the inaugural Lake George DJ Takeover Festival are currently available at a reduced early bird rate. Visit here to purchase tickets and learn about the artists and even contact the venue directly.

    A video from a wedding, another special event the Barn at French Mountain hosts.

  • Move Music Festival Announces Return to Albany on April 29

    Move Music Festival has announced the 2023 return of the one day event in Albany, to be held on Saturday, April 29.

    The day will start at The Fuze Box with things kicking off at 12noon featuring performances by Black Belt Jones, Ike’s Wasted World, The Frozen Heads, and Trebled Youth.

    During the later afternoon, there will be performances showcasing the talent of a number of local solo artists at various locations on Lark Street and Madison Avenue.

    Move Music Festival will then complete a full day, 12 straight hours of music, with an evening show at Lark Hall, featuring 2023 NYS Music March Madness winners Seize Atlantis, as well as Embe Esti, and The Sugar Hold.

    Move Music Festival is sponsored by Albany Distilling Co., Nine Pin Cider Works, Everyday Art, Eden’s Rose Foundation, and Imprint Universe, without whom the event is able to make its triumphant return to Albany.

  • EQXposure Features Reese Fulmer, Modern Fools, and Northern Faces

    Each Sunday evening from 7-9 p.m. 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 Reese Fulmer, Modern Fools, and Northern Faces.

    Modern Fools on EQXposure.

    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.

    Modern Fools– “Misery”

    Modern Fools don’t fall into just one genre, creating music that can be classified as country, folk, alternative, or even indie. Last year they released the track “Misery,” tune into EQXposure on Sunday to hear it.

    Reese Fulmer – “Leaving a Dream”

    Reese Fulmer and his Carriage House Band are quickly rising stars in the Capital Region. Fulmer is a bit of an old soul, and his music is reminiscent of Justin Townes Earle, Jeffrey Foucault, John Prine, and Iron & Wine. He will be performing at the Hollow in Albany on April 22, and tickets are on sale here.

    Northern Faces-“18”

    Northern Faces is a rock band formed in 2012 featuring Bryan Shortell and Marco Testa on vocals and guitars, and Matt Ippolito on bass. Their single “18” was released on March 17.

  • Adirondack Bluegrass Festival To Debut In Lake George in July

    Coming this July to the Lake George region, The Adirondack Bluegrass Festival has announced the launching of its inaugural event, held over July 1-2.

    adirondack bluegrass festival lake george festival

    This new annual event will be held at the Barn at French Mountain, just 2 miles south of the village of Lake George. The Adirondack Bluegrass Festival will encompass 10 acres of expansive countryside fields and the beautiful skyline of French Mountain.

    Live entertainment will be inside a 9,000 square foot finished barn and the grounds will be home to over a 100 vendors, food trucks and other activities, like our Cornhole Tournament, and Bounce Houses in the Kids Zone.

    There will be fun for all ages, and kids under 12 are free with a parent. The festival has many lodging options nearby with a campground, and hotels within walking distance, and even more options within a short drive. Onsite parking will be no charge.

    The Adirondack Bluegrass Festival’s mission is to help highlight the bands and musicians of the greater Adirondack area. This two day event will be centered around many local bands that play both traditional music, as well as modern contemporary bluegrass. The festival has brought together a great lineup of upstate’s finest bluegrass players including The Bands Cedar Ridge, the Hilltown Ramblers, Washington County Line, High Peaks Bluegrass Band, Adirondack Song Dogs, The Meat Chickens and the Soggy Derby Boys Band.

    Also, there will be many an impromptu jam to brighten your day as a picker or a spectator. The eclectic mix of vendors and activities will certainly provide a weekend of fun and enjoyment. Tickets start at $30 per day and are available now on the festivals website.

    For more information on the Adirondack Bluegrass Festival in Lake George, or to purchase tickets, please visit the festivals website.

  • No Fun: One Year and Counting of Something New in Troy

    When discussing the capital region’s vibrant post-COVID underground music scene, it’s impossible to ignore Troy’s No Fun. Founded in Dec. 2021 by August Rosa, originator of the Albany/Saratoga Springs craft beer business Pint Sized, the venue has quickly become a hotbed for DIY music in the capital area and greater northeast region.

    More than just a place, Rosa views it as a project and a springboard for creativity in the area. “I built it here so we could have new and different artists come through,” he said. “I’m trying to involve the folks that I think have their head in the same place that want to bring new, challenging different artists to the capital region.” While Rosa initially intended for No Fun to be an extension of his first enterprise, he’s enjoyed seeing the space take a life of its own.

    no fun troy
    Performance by Algonquin singers/drummers The Medicine Singers at No Fun in September. (Photo credit: Rudy Lu)

    Rosa fits the appearance of your prototypical mid-30s punk. He sports thick frame glasses and a brown beard, wearing a gray beanie, blue-yellow flannel, and gray jeans. Even though he scoffs a bit at his fashion sense, Rosa had an active eye for aesthetic when setting up the venue itself.

    Made for 200 people, No Fun is an artsy yet minimalistic space, with a checkerboard floor, walls of white sheet rock, and a modest yet decently sized stage area in the back, complete with a disco ball. The single bathroom specifically emits a punk aesthetic, featuring a crude black paint jump and walls covered by graffiti and posters for future No Fun shows. Aspiring for a genuine atmosphere, Rosa modeled the space with DIY venues of NYC in mind. “I want it to feel like you’re more at an art space or your friend’s apartment than a business,” he said. “I think that’s resonated, for sure.”

    While No Fun’s physical layout was very much intentional, Rosa feels its importance pales in comparison to the people actually occupying it. We’ve had packed houses on the regular here,” he said. “I think we’ve sold out about a dozen shows this year so far which is awesome.”

    In terms of promotion and planning of shows, Rosa describes No Fun as a team effort. Describing his noteworthy act booking efforts, he mentions hauls such as NYC noise rock band A Place To Bury Strangers and global acts such as Algeria’s Imarhan and an upcoming show featuring Australia’s Surprise Chef. There’s Shane Sanchez, the frontrunner of Super Dark Collective, a capital region promotion which hosts shows on the grittier and experimental side. Rosa also credits Sanchez as having “amplified the hip-hop angle” at No Fun.

    He additionally mentions bartender Shane Secor, the man behind promotion arm Hey Greasy!, shouting out his booking of Gibby Haynes from Butthole Surfers and his rock-and-roll and Rochester connections. Rosa also namedrops a couple peripheral figures such as Rachel Freeman, ex-runner of the Byrdhouse venue in Albany and current regional promoter through Byrdhouse Records. “I want to give massive credit to the team that I initially put in place here, and I’m so grateful that they’ve stuck around,” he said. “Between the people that were initially hired here, and the folks that evolved with it as it continued, the place wouldn’t be the same without them.”

    Despite the hindrances of an Omicron-delayed beginning for No Fun, Rosa has found nothing but joy in the project so far, delighting in memorable and unique performances at the venue. He reminisces on hosting prolific New Jersey indie pop group Pinegrove and organizing for an interesting collaboration between Algonquin singers/drummers the Medicine Singers and members of legendary noise rock band Swans. “I’m seeing more of people just coming out to stuff where they’re like, ‘I saw some weird band that No Fun booked, it’s probably gonna be cool, I don’t know much about the band,’” said Rosa.

    This same approach went into his program on Friday, March 3, a four-band showcase featuring some new and some native to the Capital District scene.

    Tonight isn’t a sellout, but the crowd is still significant and full of enthusiasm. Up first is Aaron Wilson, co-owner of Herbie’s Burgers on Lark Avenue and tonight, frontman of a folk rock four-piece. The guitarist has long auburn hair and dons a light beard and glasses, singing about beer and romance. The five-song set starts upbeat before becoming wistful for a couple tracks, closing out with an energetic and quick number backed by thwacking drums.

    Next is Binghamton dream pop act Pleasure Dome. They’re a six-piece with two keyboardists and one guitar, fronted by vocalist Cydney Edwards who softly sings over waves of reverb. Their six-track set ranges between slow, moody shoegaze and uptempo surf rock, featuring plaintive melodies. Their stage presence is expressive but not overzealous, inspiring dancing near the front of the crowd. “Tonight was really fun, but the venue is mislabeled because we had a good time,” said guitarist Brandon Musa after the performance.

    Third is Precious Metals, a local alt-rock band. Lead vocalist J. Lee White reminisces of glam with frizzy brown locks and a jean jacket over a tank top, singing in a shrieky falsetto that harkens of Journey’s Steve Perry and Geddy Lee of Rush. The four-piece mixes groovy, urgent originals with covers such as Jimmy Eat World’s “Sweetness,” building the excitement and motion from the show’s earlier half.

    Closing the night is singer-songwriter The Age, who steals the show. Age oscillates between blue-eyed soul and funk rock across his six song set, crooning Billboard-worthy melodies, dueling with his backing guitarist John Drabnik, interpolating Arctic Monkeys and the Outkast, and effortlessly engaging his audience. His four-man group’s musicianship is commendable and their enthusiasm is infectious, with the checkered tiles of No Fun becoming a dance floor by the second song. To finish, Age shreds the closing track in Purple Rain-esque fashion, capping off a magnetic performance.

    no fun troy
    The Age on March 3. (Photo credit: Kiki Vassilakis) The Age on March 3. (Photo credit: Kiki Vassilakis)

    The scene at No Fun as the night ended is exactly what the venue is about: an excited swarm of people having enjoyed a wide-ranged and impassioned show of regional music over the course of three hours. Nights like these prove just how much the No Fun mission can pay off.

    Rosa’s been patient, understanding that “just like anything, it takes time to develop your crowd, to have people feel comfortable to have them feel like the space is theirs.” If the space wasn’t theirs before, now it is.