TR3 has announced it will go back on the road early next year to support their new studio album Watch It, due January 19. The tour is coming to Hudson Falls on Jan. 21, and NYC on Jan. 27.
Photo Credit: Stephan Pruitt Photography.
Fronted by two-time GRAMMY nominee and Dave Matthews collaborator Tim Reynolds, the acclaimed trio promises a jam-packed season ahead with expanded tour dates and the arrival of Watch It. With a career spanning more than four decades, sonic innovator Tim Reynolds is praised as one of the most adept and unrivaled instrumentalists ever. With many contributions to the American music canon, he continues to demonstrate masterful command of melody and timing, improvisational prowess, and great guitar virtuosity, shown in both his role as lead guitarist of Dave Matthews Band and frontman of TR3.
Founded in the mid-1980s, the trio welcomed Dan Martier and Mick Vaughn on drums and bass, respectively, in 2007 and now remains a fixture in the international jam scene. On the heels of its 2019 studio album, The Sea Versus the Mountain, and 2022 live release Wild in the Sky, the group will soon unveil a fresh batch of songs written and arranged during the pandemic. The highly anticipated collection features ten mostly instrumental tracks that see the trio in its most perceptive, harmonious, and imaginative form yet. Watch It, a striking tapestry of funk, jazz, and rock varieties, boasts innovative arrangements that both defy classification and invoke boundless musical curiosity.
For more information on Tim Reynolds and TR3, visit here.
Marco Benevento has announced a new double album, Barn Burner: Live at Levon’s, to be released March 29, 2024 via Royal Potato Family.
Recorded earlier this year live with his band featuring bassist Karina Rykman and drummer Chris Corsico over a two night, sold out run on January 13-14, 2023 at Levon Helm Studios in the keyboardist’s adopted hometown of Woodstock, the exhilarating 13-track set spans Benevento’s career with tracks from across his eight studio albums, as well as a cover of Bob Dylan & The Band’s “This Wheels On Fire” with special guest Scott Metzger on guitar.
Benevento will celebrate its release with a return to Levon’s aka The Barn for a two-night stand on March 29-30, 2024. Tickets go on-sale this Friday, November 17 at 10am ET.
Our shows at Levon’s barn are always among my favorites. I can literally walk to the gig from my house, but even more important, the vibes are amazing. The staff, the sound, the intimacy and energy of the audience, and of course, Levon’s spirit burning bright inside those four walls, is like nowhere else in the world. After several years of playing there, it seemed like the right time to multitrack the shows and pick my favorites for official release. We were on fire both nights. Karina and Chris sound so, so good playing these tunes! I think our fans will love having a document of the band at this point in our history.
Marco Benevento
Benevento has spent less time touring over the past year to instead focus on several studio projects. He’s recorded with Mark Ronson, Black Thought, El Michels Affair, Clairo, Roge, Molly Lewis and even a posthumous collaboration with Bernie Worrell, while he’s also deep into tracking his ninth album inspired by his favorite Italian movie score composers.
photo by Rachel Brennecke
With his own band, he’s pivoted to inviting fans to destination performances in the Hudson Valley, including his festival Follow The Arrow in Accord, NY, as well as, reoccurring two nights stands at Levon Helm Studios. A cornerstone of the reinvigorated and flourishing arts and music scene in and around Woodstock, NY, Benevento most recently headlined a benefit, Stop Woodstock National LLC, raising funds for the Woodstock Land Conservancy in its efforts to halt the construction of a golf course and luxury condominium complex on 625-plus acres of pristine, untouched forest.
After the pandemic, we made a decision to slow things down a bit on the touring front. There’s been lots of opportunities to work on recording projects and record artists at my studio, Fred Short Recording, while getting to spend a little more time with my family. It’s so beautiful up in the Catskills, so we’re playing more shows around these parts and inviting our fans come up to hang with us in the country!
Marco Benevento
Marco Benevento Barn Burner: Live At Levon’s is available now for pre-order/save on 2-LP, 180-gram classic black vinyl and digital formats here.
Barn Burner: Live At Levon’s Track Listing
1. Coyote Hearing 2. Let It Slide 3. I Can’t See The Light 4. Follow The Arrow 5. Send It On A Rocket 6. Atari 7. Oh Baby Can’t You See 8. Do You Want Some Magic 9. Bus Ride 10. This Wheels On Fire 11. You Must Be A Lion 12. Heartbeats 13. At The Show
Seven-time GRAMMY Award-winning singer/songwriter Alanis Morissette has announced 31 North America shows for The Triple Moon Tour, with stops in Wantagh and Bethel. This new tour will feature special guest Rock and Roll Hall of Fame icon Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, along with support from Morgan Wade.
Since 1995, Alanis Morissette has been one of the most influential singer-songwriter-musicians in contemporary music. Her deeply expressive music and performances have earned vast critical praise and seven Grammy awards. Morissette’s 1995 debut, “Jagged Little Pill,” was followed by nine more eclectic and acclaimed albums. She has contributed musically to theatrical releases and has acted on the big and small screen.
Outside of entertainment, she is an avid supporter of female empowerment, as well as spiritual, psychological, and physical wellness. In 2001, Alanis was awarded the Global Tolerance Award by the Friends of the United Nations for her contributions to promoting tolerance through the arts. In 2016, Alanis launched Conversation with Alanis Morissette, a monthly podcast that features conversations with a variety of revered authors, doctors, educators, and therapists, covering a wide range of psychosocial topics extending from spirituality to developmentalism to art.
On December 5, 2019, “Jagged Little Pill” the musical made its Broadway debut at the Broadhurst Theatre in New York City. The show was nominated for fifteen Tony Awards and won 2 Tony Awards at the 2021 ceremony. In July of 2020, Alanis released her ninth studio album, Such Pretty Forks In The Road, to rave reviews. In August of 2021, Alanis kicked off her sold out world tour celebrating 25 years of Jagged Little Pill. The tour became the #1 female-fronted tour from 2021 and also one of the Top Worldwide Tours of 2021 selling over 500,000 tickets. Alanis also stars in Fox’s sitcom, “The Great North,” which is set to return for season 4 in 2024.
To celebrate the upcoming holiday season, Morissette released a new Christmas single on November 3. The track “Last Christmas” is a part of an EP featuring previously released Alanis holiday covers of John Lennon & Yoko Ono’s “Happy Xmas (War is Over)”, William Chatterton Dix’s “What child is this?”, and Katherine Kennicott Davis’ “Little Drummer Boy”. All four covers are available on a limited edition red and green 10’ vinyl as well as all streaming platforms.
Joan Jett grew up during a time when rock ‘n’ roll was off limits to girls and women, but as a teenager, she promptly blew the door to the boys’ club right off its hinges. After forming her band the Blackhearts in 1979, with whom Jett has become a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, she has had eight platinum and gold albums and nine Top 40 singles, including the classics “Bad Reputation,” “I Love Rock ‘N’ Roll,” “I Hate Myself For Loving You,” and “Crimson and Clover.”
With a career that has spanned music, film, television, Broadway, and humanitarianism, Joan Jett remains a potent force and inspiration to generations of fans worldwide. As a producer, she has overseen seminal albums by Bikini Kill, and the Germs’ LA punk masterpiece ‘GI.’
Jett and Kenny Laguna (her longtime producer and music partner) co-founded Blackheart Records from the trunk of Kenny’s Cadillac after rejections from no less than 23 labels. 40 years later, Blackheart is a thriving entertainment company producing music, film and television, and continues to champion emerging bands. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts continue to tour the world with headlining shows alongside fellow rock legends like The Who, Green Day, Heart, and Foo Fighters. ‘Bad Reputation,’ a documentary about Jett’s life, premiered to critical acclaim at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Following up on the bands 2022 release Changeup, their first-ever acoustic album, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts EP Mindsets will be a RSD First vinyl release on 11/24. Mindsets is available to stream now.
“I am inspired and heartened and feel giddy inside to be going on this upcoming summer tour with Joan and Morgan and all our teams,” Morissette said. “Can’t wait to see you, can’t wait to perform!”
One of Nashville’s fastest-rising and most critically acclaimed young stars, Morgan Wade released her much-anticipated sophomore album, Psychopath, Aug. 25 via Sony Music Nashville. Possessed with a raw and unflinching voice anchored by a perfect tinge of twang; the rare ability to pen honest portraits of some of life’s most precious, painful, and unpredictable moments; and an onstage vulnerability that so seamlessly breaks down the wall between fan and artist, Wade has quickly made her mark on the country music scene — and the music world at large. Her stunning 2021 debut album, Reckless, was hailed as a critical triumph; it topped Rolling Stone’s Best Country and Americana Albums of 2021. In 2022, Wade was nominated as the Emerging Act of the Year at the Americana Music Honors & Awards. Followed by 2023, when Wade was nominated for New Female Artist of the Year by the Academy of Country Music and performed at major-market festivals including Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits.
While Reckless, and particularly its momentous lead single “Wilder Days,” busted down the doors and introduced Wade to a wider listenership, Psychopath is an astounding follow-up statement: the 13-track LP was crafted with the help of some of Nashville’s most extraordinary musical talents, from A-list songwriters (Julia Michaels, Natalie Hemby, Liz Rose, Lori McKenna) to studio musicians as well as Wade’s longtime producer Sadler Vaden. Most excitingly, Psychopath finds Wade peeling back layers of her psyche like never before. “I realized the more authentic you are and the more you pour yourself into your songs, and most importantly if you’re being honest, people will connect to that,” Wade says.
THE TRIPLE MOON TOUR DATES:
Featuring special guest Joan Jett & the Blackhearts and support from Morgan Wade
Sun Jun 09 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
Wed Jun 12 – Austin, TX – Moody Center
Fri Jun 14 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion
Sun Jun 16 – Houston, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Presented by Huntsman
Wed Jun 19 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre*
Thu Jun 20 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre*
Sat Jun 22 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheater
Sun Jun 23 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
Wed Jun 26 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
Thu Jun 27 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
Sat Jun 29 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
Fri Jul 05 – Bethel, NY – Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
Sat Jul 06 – Hartford, CT – Xfinity Theatre
Tue Jul 09 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
Wed Jul 10 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
Tue Jul 13 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage
Tue Jul 16 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
Wed Jul 17 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
Tue Jul 23 – Maryland Heights, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
Wed Jul 24 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
Sat Jul 27 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center
Sun Jul 28 – Milwaukee, WI – American Family Insurance Amphitheater
Wed Jul 31 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena
Thu Aug 01 – Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
Sat Aug 03 – Auburn, WA – White River Amphitheatre
Sun Aug 04 – Portland, OR – Moda Center
Wed Aug 07 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
Thu Aug 08 – Palm Springs, CA – Acrisure Arena
Fri Aug 10 – Inglewood, CA – Kia Forum
*With support from Joan Jett and the Blackhearts only
Tickets will be available starting with a Citi presale (details below) beginning on Tuesday, November 14. Additionally, fans can sign up for Morissette’s mailing list by Wednesday, November 15 to get first access to presale tickets. More presales will run throughout the week ahead of the general on-sale beginning on Friday, November 17 at 10 am at alanis.com.
Citi is the official card of the Triple Moon Tour. Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets beginning on Tuesday, November 14 at 10 am until Thursday, November 16 at 10 pm through the Citi Entertainment program. For complete presale details visit this website.
The tour will also offer a variety of different VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level. For more information, visit alanis.com.
The ARChive of Contemporary Music based in NYC is currently in its 39th year of operation, housing the largest popular music collection in the world. The institution has announced it urgently seeks a new permanent home, facing an uncertain future.
Some of the 18,000 recordingsin the Keith Richards Blues Collection.
Founded by current director B. George and the late David Wheeler in 1985, the ARC contains more than three million sound recordings, which is 90+ million songs. Each recording is preserved in all known formats, with 700,000 records being electronically cataloged, and 400,000 digitized. ARC also houses more than three million pieces of material including photographs, videos, DVDs, books, magazines, press kits, sheet music, ephemera, and memorabilia. The collection is extremely rare and valuable, and without proper funding, these collections could disappear forever.
Through a generous donation of facilities by André Balazs, the collection has been safe and in storage for nearly three years. Collecting and cataloging have continued, but strict zoning laws prevent ARC’s expansion and public access. The ARC has received an anonymous donation of one million dollars to help the institution move out of its current Hudson Valley space, but more is very urgently needed.
The initial donations provide the first step in constructing a new facility that will allow students, educators, historians, musicians, authors, journalists as well as fans, and the general public access to it. The donations will also help the expansion of educational programming, community gatherings, listening events, and more, making ARC’s ultimate goal of the creation of The Center for Popular Music in New York happen.
Andy Rourke of the Smiths at ARC looking at Smiths LPs he’s never seen.
Collections that are currently at risk include Keith Richards’ Blues Collection, one of the most extensive collections of blues and R&B recordings in the world, funded by Richards for more than 16 years, as well as their Zero Freitas Brazilian Music Collection which has made ARC home to the largest collection of Brazilian music outside of Brazil. Others include The Jeep Holland Collection, which contains more than 125,000 classic rock and pop recordings and over 2500 signed albums from the likes of the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, and Sex Pistols, and the Jonathan Demme Haitian Music Collection contains ARC board member Jonathan Demme’s personal collection of Haitian albums.
The ARChive is also home to massive collections of mint or sealed recordings from the estates of Richard W. Zirinsky Jr., Mark Steven Jacobson, Malcom Forbes, and many others. ARC maintains leading collections of Broadway, African, Punk, Jazz, C&W, Folk, Hip-Hop, and Experimental recordings. Artists and music critics like John Rockwell, Jerry Bock, David Byrne, and Jon Pareles have trusted ARC to preserve their recordings, books, and papers.
For more information about The ARChive of Contemporary Music, visit here.
The titans of American classic rock ZZ TOP and Lynyrd Skynyrd have announced 36 additional appearances of their joint co-headlining tour – The Sharp Dressed Simple Man Tour. The tour is set to stop four times in New York, including Syracuse, Bethel, Wantagh, and Darien Center.
ZZ TOP, known for their beards, hotrod cars, spinning guitars, and that magic keychain, and Lynyrd Skynyrd, known for their critically acclaimed album Pronounced Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd, have put their musical talents together for an unforgettable show performing across the United States, now with even more dates, so you have no excuse to miss it.
It was in 1969 Houston when ZZ TOP coalesced from the core of two rival bands, Billy Gibbons’ Moving Sidewalks and Frank Beard and Dusty Hill’s American Blues. ZZ Top‘s 1973 album release, Tres Hombres, catapulted them to national attention with the hit “La Grange,” which is still one of the band’s signature pieces today. Eliminator, their 1983 album was something of a paradigm shift for ZZ TOP.
Their blues roots skew was intact but their high-tech-age trappings were added to the mix that soon found a visual outlet with such tracks as “Sharp Dressed Man” and “Legs” on the nascent MTV. It was one of the record industry’s first albums to have been certified Diamond, far beyond Gold and Platinum, a reflection of sales exceeding ten million units.
As a touring outfit, they have performed before millions of fans over four continents and have been the subject of their own Grammy-nominated documentary titled That Little Ol’ Band From Texas. The band’s line-up of the bearded Gibbons and Hill and Beard, who ironically is clean-shaven, remained intact for more than 50 years. When Dusty temporarily departed the tour in the summer of 2021, Elwood Francis entered the picture accepting the directive from Dusty to be the perfect choice to stand in on the bass guitar and now handles the low-end duties for the band for the present as well as into the future.
The elements that keep ZZ TOP fresh can be summed up in the three words of the band’s internal mantra: “Tone, Taste, and Tenacity.” As genuine roots performers, they have few peers. Their influences are both the originators of the form – Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Jimmy Reed, et al – as well as the British blues rocker Jimi Hendrix who emerged generations before ZZ’s ascendance.
They have sold hundreds of millions of records over the course of their career, have been officially designated as Heroes of The State of Texas, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (by Keith Richards, no less), and have been referenced in countless cartoons and sitcoms. They are true rock icons and, against all odds, they’re really just doing what they’ve always done.
As Lynyrd Skynyrd celebrates the 50 anniversary of the band’s critically acclaimed debut album Pronounced ‘Lĕh-‘nérd ‘Skin-‘nérd’, they resonate as deeply with their multi-generational fan base today as when they first emerged out of Jacksonville, Florida in 1973.
Few ensembles have had a deep impact in creating a lifestyle as Skynyrd has. The band travels forward with a primary mission of celebrating a legacy that honors all who have had a resonating contribution to the lives of hundreds of millions of fans globally. Former members Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington, Allen Collins, Steve Gaines, Ed King, Billy Powell, Bob Burns, and Leon Wilkeson alongside others will forever remain significant contributors to this indelible repertoire and the band’s colorful history.
Today, Lynyrd Skynyrd rocks on with a current line-up featuring Johnny Van Zant, Rickey Medlocke, Damon Johnson, Mark “Sparky” Matejka, Michael Cartellone, Keith Christopher, Peter Keys, Carol Chase and Stacy Michelle.
It’s about the legacy of Lynyrd Skynyrd, and what it stands for, what the fans are all about. There’s nothing like getting out there playing a great show with Skynyrd and seeing people love this music.
Van Zant
With a catalog of over 60 albums, billions of streams, and tens of millions of records sold, Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Lynyrd Skynyrd remains a cultural icon that appeals to all generations.
The artist pre-sale begins on Tuesday, October 31 at 10 AM, and will be available until 10 PM on Thursday, November 2. The public on-sale begins at 10 AM on Friday, November 3. For tickets, and select VIP packages, visit here.
LYNYRD SKYNYRD & ZZ TOP: THE SHARP-DRESSED SIMPLE MAN TOUR DATES:
3/08 Savannah, GA Enmarket Arena
3/09 Estero, FL Hertz Arena
3/14 Greenville, SC Bon Secours Wellness Arena
3/15 Knoxville, TN Thompson-Boiling Arena at Food City Ctr.
3/16 Columbia, SC Colonial Life Arena
3/22 Bossier City, LA Brookshire Grocery Arena
3/23 Southhaven, MS Landers Center
3/24 Macon, GA Macon Amphitheater
3/28 Lexington, KY Rupp Arena
3/29 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
3/30 Charleston, WV Charleston Coliseum
4/04 Biloxi, MS Mississippi Coast Coliseum
4/05 Tallahassee, FL Donald L. Tucker Civic Center
4/06 Huntsville, AL Propst Arena at the Von Braun Center
4/12 Evansville, IN Ford Center
4/13 Moline, IL Vibrant Arena
4/14 Green Bay, WI Resch Center
4/18 North Little Rock, AR Simmons Bank Arena
4/19 Lafayette, LA Cajundome
4/20 Corpus Christi, TX American Bank Center
8/09 Mount Pleasant, MI Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort #
8/15 Syracuse, NY Empower FCU Amphitheater at Lakeview
8/16 Bethel, NY Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
8/17 Mansfield, MA Xfinity Center
8/22 Wantagh, NY Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
8/23 Gilford, NH Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
8/24 Hartford, CT The Xfinity Theatre
9/05 Alpharetta, GA Ameris Bank Amphitheater
9/07 Virginia Beach, VA Veterans United Home Loans Amph. at Virginia Beach
9/08 Bristow, VA Jiffy Lube Live
9/12 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake Amphitheater
9/13 Clarkston, MI Pine Knob Music Theatre
9/14 Noblesville, IN Ruoff Music Center
9/19 Concord, CA Toyota Pavilion at Concord
9/21 Auburn, WA White River Amphitheater
9/22 Ridgefield, WA RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater
The Beacon Bonfire Music and Art Festival announced its return to the Hudson Valley region this fall, taking place on November 4 and 5 in Beacon. The festival emerged as a community gathering during the pandemic, and evolved into a multi-venue event, showcasing some of the region’s best music, art, and performance.
The festival will take place in 26 indoor and outdoor venues along Beacon’s Main Street. Beacon will host over 400 artists and musicians across over 20 genres, featuring performances from Matt Dickey Group, Ears With Eyes, Rose Stoller, Stephen Clair, Alex Harris, and more.
Photo Credit: Austin Ruffer @austininyourface
In addition to music, the Beacon Bonfire Music and Art Festival will host artistic exhibits from the Ethan Cohen Gallery, Ron English, Frank Hyder, Donna Mikkelson, and Emil Alzamora. Film screenings will take place later in the evening, with both short and feature length programming.
For the kiddie crowd, the festival will offer special kid-friendly programming, including interactive workshops, clay art exhibits, the Steamroller Large Scale Print, and more. Families can enjoy campfires, s’mores, and singalongs on and around Main Street. Children under 12 years old will have free access to the festival.
Photo Credit: Raymond A Wehrli @Zapalandrox
The festival is organized by actors and producers Christian Campbell and America Olivo, Kelly Ellenwood, producer Tim Parsaca, and composer Jeremy Schonfeld. Their aim is to platform regional and local artists in their community, while supporting local art initiatives and performers. All ticket revenue from the festival will go towards the performers.
Tickets, updates, and more information on the festival are available at BeaconBonfire.com.
With Halloween on the horizon, the KISS Army packed the Paramount Hudson Valley for their favorite spaceman, Ace Frehley, on Friday, October 27. Frehley, a New York native growing up in the Bronx, has added a string of tour dates ahead of releasing a brand new record in February.
Frehley’s band is composed of Ryan Cook on bass and Jeremy Asbrock on guitar. Asbrock and Cook are also in The Rock City Machine Co. alongside former Ace Frehley band member Philip Shouse. Rounding out Frehley’s band on the drums is Scot Coogan who is in his second stint with Frehley.
With the 93-year-old theater filling up with eager KISS and Ace Frehley maniacs, Black Dawn hit the stage. As Black Dawn plugged in, they powered through a metal set that was on the shorter side. With Black Dawn leaving via stage left, the middle band, Mainline jumped on stage to an enthusiastic crowd. Mainline features Anthony Schettino on bass, Johnny Iodice on lead vocals and guitar, Devin Reck on guitar, and Mason Servedio on drums. Mainline had a very memorable set as the talented musicians played all new material with the exception of Aerosmith’s “Toys In The Attic” as the final song.
The anticipation for Frehley came to a boiling point as his instrumental song, “Fractured Mirror” blasted through the speakers. “Fractured Mirror” segwayed right into 2001: A SpaceOdyssey’s theme song and the announcement of “You wanted him, well you got ‘em, from The Bronx, New York, Ace Frehley!”
In the blink of an eye, Peekskill immediately turned into “Detroit Rock City” for the remainder of the band’s 13-song set which included tracks from Frehley’s solo record as well as KISS classics.
Frehley’s band is extremely talented in that the three other members of the band sang vocals on at least one song during the set. Asbrock took over lead vocals during “Speedin’ Back to My Baby” which can be found off Frehley’s KISS: Ace Frehley record. Cook did his best Paul Stanley impersonation during “Detroit Rock City” and Coogan grooved on drums while belting out lyrics during “Love Gun.”
Halfway through the set, Frehley stopped to address the crowd and announce that his brand-new solo record was being released in February. The crowd, which was filled with Frehley’s “Rock Soldiers” all cheered as this would be the first record since Origins, Vol. 2 which was released back in 2020.
Throughout the show, the entire band was throwing guitar picks, bass picks, and drumsticks into the crowd. There were so many guitar picks thrown into the audience that it seemed like everyone could have gone home with at least one. Fans were reaching into the air, jumping and diving into the rows of seats to collect fallen, unclaimed picks.
During KISS’ heyday in the 1970s, they were known for their theatrics. From pyrotechnics to spitting out blood and rocket guitars, they all had different ways to wow an audience. Despite Frehley not being in KISS since his last show of the Reunion World Tour in 2002, the theatrical side of “Space Ace” hasn’t left.
During “New York Groove,” Frehley brought out a guitar that lit up and flashed during the song. Once the guitar was brought out and Coogan pounded on the kick drum, fans immediately knew what song it was. “New York Groove” then transitioned into “Shock Me” off of KISS’ Love Gun. Frehley brought out his guitar that releases smoke and it was full steam ahead.
Even though the city of Peekskill was rather quiet on Friday evening, the rock and roll inside The Paramount was deafening. Despite Frehley not being in KISS for over 20 years, he still brings fans classic KISS songs that make audiences reminiscent of what was while also creating new memories for the newer generation of rock fans. The Peekskill crowd, which was full of fans of all ages piled out of the theater in awe after witnessing one of rock’s most influential guitarists of all time and went home knowing that they witnessed real live rock and roll.
Setlist: Rip It Out, Rocket Ride, Speedin’ Back to My Baby, Parasite, Rock Soldiers, Love Gun, Hard Times, Detroit Rock City, Emerald, New York Groove, Shock Me, Cold Gin, Deuce
New Paltz native Ryan Liberty Megan just released his chaotic video for his dreamy and melodic song “Sweep.”
The track hits your ears in all the right places with a groovy trumpet instrumental in the back as well as Ryan’s semi-raspy nostalgic voice. An alt-country track, “Sweep” is a song you can put on when you need a release, swaying back and forth to the guitars and harmonies dancing together in harmony.
Speaking of “Sweep,” Ryan Liberty Megan said “Imagine it like a phone call that’s being made to the most fragile part of you, giving you instructions on how to survive other humans, how to survive humanity. And in the end, the most important part of that advice or sage wisdom is to be able to just sweep it away. You need to be able to let things go.”
Ryan Liberty Megan is a New Paltz native, a doting father who gave up music to provide for his son, returning to music after about ten years, giving him that familiar relief. He started as a noise rock artist known for chaotic and rowdy shows, and turned the page into the simpler yet complex artist he is today. Reminiscent of acts such as Mr. Bungle, Ween, and Melvins, he transcends also into acts like Beck, Wilco, and The Flaming Lips.
Photo by Matthew Hersch.
The video accompanying “Sweep” is chaotic and brings the viewer on a journey. With a kaleidoscope of dark purples and lighter colors, the music video features Ryan singing the sweet tune, transitioning in and out of backgrounds that include things like dogs, horses, and the highway. The most intriguing part of the video is random trivia strewn throughout.
Some say things like “A snail can sleep for three years,” or “The eye makes movements 50 times every second.” About the video, Ryan said “I loaded this video with useless trivia, so no matter what, people will walk away with something they didn’t have before. My buddy owns a float spa, and he filmed me floating in a tank for some of this!”
The music video for “Sweep” by Ryan Liberty Megan is out now.
Dmitry Wild, a New York-based rock artist, released his newest track, “Rock N Roll Is My Business.” Following up to his 2022 album, Electric Souls, his newest track comes alongside a few recent singles.
Inspired by an experience at a business convention, Dmitry Wild penned “Rock N Roll Is My Business” in response to a question posed to the audience, “What is your business?”. Finding himself at odds with the businesspeople and conventiongoers, he was inspired by his own answer, “Rock N Roll Is My Business.”
Wild’s newest track exudes confidence, accompanied by ever-present horns and funky, layered vocals. He latches onto the classic rock-n-roll figurehead frame, and creates a Halloween-esque sound that solidifies his place in the rock-n-roll business.
“Rock N Roll Is My Business” released following Wild’s single, “Son of a Gun,” another funky rock track with a bright, eclectic music video alongside. In addition, he released “New York Stones” in July, a rock ballad dedicated to the city of New York. Wild sings, “No matter where we go, no matter what we do, New York is in our soul, the city that gave us rock and roll.”
Catch Dmitry Wild at his upcoming shows in New York. He will play Woodstock’s The Colony on October 28, as well as Freddy’s Bar in Brooklyn on November 5. Finally, he will make a stop at No Fun in Albany on December 21 to close out the year.
During the height of the COVID-19 shutdown, residents of Woodstock and surrounding burgs stayed sane, in large part, due to the efforts of Neil and Lexi Howard, the proprietors of the Colony Woodstock. While all other entertainment options seemed to be shuttered, Hudson Valley music-lovers could mask up and head to the new beer garden behind the legendary venue to eat, drink and hear great sounds – from both some national acts who were in performance cold storage due to the COVID shutdown and many fine local players.
So, it came as no surprise when the Colony opened its doors on October 22 to host a fundraising event for The Stop Woodstock National Coalition. This is a community-based group working with the Woodstock Land Conservancy to combat a proposed development that would wipe out 620+ acres of forest and wetlands with 191 housing units, a golf course and a helipad.
The sell-out event was headlined by Marco Benevento, the Woodstock keyboard wizard and multi-instrumentalist known for his work as a soloist, in his duo with Joe Russo and in collaboration with varied artists like Phish axe man Trey Anastasio, Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh, Tortoise’s John McEntire, drummers Billy Martin and Smashing Pumpkin’s Matt Chamberlin and many others.
Benevento gathered a flock of the area’s finest for a raucous evening of funk, psych and soul-inspired jamming all for a wonderful cause. The supporting line-up included but was not limited to drummers Aaron Johnston (Brazilian Girls), Bill Carbone (Max Creek) and Chris Consico, bassists Karina Rykman and Jeff Hill (Steve Earle), saxophonist Maria Christina Eisen, guitarist Danny Blume and singers Leslie Mendleson and Simi Stone.
The evening was kicked off with an eight-song set by singer-songwriter Kenny Roby. Roby’s first three numbers, with just acoustic guitar and voice, were obscured by the din of the packed house. Things kicked up several notches when he was joined by Johnston, Hill and Blume for a cover of “Street People” from legendary Woodstock songwriter Bobby Charles. Another highlight of his set was when Leslie Mendleson joined to belt out the lead vox on “I’m Gonna Leave You Behind.”
The night segued without break into Benevento’s set. He set things in motion with the bass and keyboard intro before kicking into trio hyper-drive with “At the End of the Beginning” from his 2022 disc Benevento. The youthful Consico laid down a thick Disco-meets-Bonham beat while Rykman kept it simple and in-the-pocket. The tune, as many in the evening, left plenty of space for Benevento’s inventive soloing on electro piano, organ and Mini-Moog. He also laid down lots of old school synth samples (was that a vintage Crumar sound, Marco?), with added echo, delay, phase and fuzz twisted out of an array of old stomp boxes.
The band next served up the title track from Marco’s 2019 release, “Let It Slide,” a toe-tapping stop-time pop funk crowd pleaser. On “Why You Gotta Throw It Away,” Benevento launched a solo that showcased the many influences he melds into a unified and distinctly original whole. There’s a heavy serving of New Orleans’ funk, some experimental jazz, Krautrock and psychedelics leanings and some jazzy flourishing arpeggios that make his sound like a paisley-stained Art Tatum.
The guest vocalist highlight of the night was Leslie Mendleson’s return to the stage for a take on Blondie’s “Heart of Glass.” Woodstock-reared singer Simi Stone also joined to add soul on a handful of tunes including “I Can’t Let You Go.” Benevento himself sang lead on perhaps the funkiest jam of the night, a cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Let’s Spend the Night Together.” The band riffed long and hard on this, with Marco rolling out more Louisiana keyboard hot sauce.
On the cover of “Come Together,” the assemblage sounded like “Low Spark of High Heeled Boys” era Traffic, with some fine Steve Cropper-inspired rhythmic soloing from guitarist Bloom and a biting tenor sax from Maria Christina Eisen. Another standout was the cover of the Gene McDaniel’s penned protest classic “Compared to What,” best known in its live rendition by soul jazzers Les McCann and Eddie Harris. This version had an early 1970’s Stones’ vibe of the ”Jamming with Edward” era, accented again by the broad, vintage Bobby Keyes yakety sax work.
For more info on Stop Woodstock National, visit their website.
