I had a great time seeing music Saturday evening at the Railyard Yoga Studio as part of the Art Hop. The show was set to go from 6-8pm and I had to work until 5:30. I stopped home quickly then walked farther and farther and farther down Battery St until I finally found the studio. It really was in the rail yard by the waterfront.
The first song the band played after I arrived was Only Love Can Break Your Heart. They took a trip through the Blue Bayou then played an Elliot Smith song that I did not know. I’ll Follow The Sun was next then played a gorgeous version of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Nothing Compares To You was wonderful then they played a really cool version of God Only Knows. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down was fun then Johnnie soared on Old Man. They returned to the Beatles for Nowhere Man then played a lovely version of Bowie’s Starman. She’s Leaving Home sounded sweet then they rocked out a bit with Roy Orbison’s You Got It.
They took a short break, even through it was getting close to 8, but came back for a few more. Surfer Girl was easy to spot as was Love Me Tender. Mancini’s Charade followed and had a nice feel to it then they wrapped up the night with Somewhere Over The Rainbow. I love their sound and always feel so happy when they play.
There was another singer on after, but it had been a long day and a long night before, so I took the blissful walk home.
The Ramparts, Sad Turtle, Caroline O’Connor, The Canteens, The Mountain Says No, Kat Wright and the Indomitable Soul Band, Zeus Springsteen, and Heavy Plains at the South End Art Hop September 9, 2016
I had great time seeing music Friday night at the Art Hop. There were a ton of great bands playing, and I knew I could not catch them all, but had a few that I thought I really wanted to see. Most ended up playing in the same place. I knew where most of the bands would play but was not sure when they would go on, despite putting a little effort into researching times. I knew I wanted to catch Sad Turtle and they were playing around 6 at the Green Door showcase, but most of the rest of the times were a mystery.
I got out of work, did a quick stop at home, grabbed a half of a sandwich to eat and took the long fast walk to the south end of Burlington. The show location was listed as 4 Howard St and it only took a bit of walking around, and listening, to find the alley behind the building where the show happened. I walked in and The Ramparts were on and playing a groovy tune. I think I completely missed the first song and walked in on the end of the song that mentions without warning. As I settled in they began Spaceship and I recognized it immediately from last Wednesday. I happily settled into the groove and loved it much more than before. The next song had a nice refrain of always be giving and seemed to be about destiny. Since there were lots of bands playing all the sets were short. They wrapped up their fun dancey grooving rock set by being joined by Sareet Rosenstein for a fun cover of Your Love by The Outfield.
During the set break I chatted with some friends and noted the board that listed the bands who would play and their set times. Almost every band that I wanted to see would be right in that alley, so that made it easy.
The set break was fairly quick and soon Sad Turtle took the stage. I had never seen the band but knew most of the players. They play all instrumentals and have some cool grooves punctuated by some rocking guitar and sharp drumming. Lead by the keyboard player, who’s name eludes me, they have an indie rock jam jazz sort of sound and have a nice flow to the music. Jake Styles bass keeps a nice groove while the keys flow along and Justus Gaston rocks out a bit on guitar and the super fun to watch Jeremy Gartner hits each drum beat with dramatic flair. The songs all have fun titles such as The Words Are Colliding And George Is Getting Upset and Detective Norman, and Bidets And Confused. A couple of the songs had some solid rock and roll moments and I enjoyed the six songs that they played. I will have to check them out again soon.
During the set break I wandered through some of the nearby buildings and saw a ton of fantastic paintings and other forms of art. We have a lot of talent in our town.
Up next, Caroline Marie took the stage and played a solo set of electric guitar, her lovely voice, and looped songs. Her music has an elegant style and a beautiful flow. The songs tend to start a bit simple and get more complex as she adds the earlier parts of the song into the loop. By the end of the first song, True, she had such a full sounding song going she put down the guitar and played a gorgeous sax solo into the mix. It sounded fantastic. The second song was similar without the sax and had a refrain of feel my strength. Since the whole show was running 30 minutes late she was going to stop there but they said she could play another one. She triggered a backing track with her on bass and Jane Boxall Percussion on drums and played guitar and sang over it. Fly is such a cool song and sounded great.
During the set break I saw even more art and was even more impressed by the talent in this town.
The Canteens were up next and played some ethereal soft rock songs about whiskey and other things. With Justine Poole on acoustic guitar & vocals & drums, Kelsey Ackerman on violin & vocals, and Michael Sheerin on cello their sound was almost country or Americana but not quite either. Soft rock does not quite describe it either since the sound is mellow and quiet but the songs have a huge strength to them. I really enjoyed listening to the five songs they played. The third song opened with Ackerman playing something in a box that sounded like chimes before the song went into a heavy rocking section and they added a little bit of Chim Chim Cher-ee towards the end. They finished the set with a song about following the rain which had a driving rock ending. I definitely need to check into them soon.
In the next break I ventured into the bar area and said hi to Matthew Stephen Perry. I got a small easy to drink beverage and headed back to the alley quickly.
With a nice dark alley and eerie lighting The Mountain Says No took the stage with a roar. They opened with a killer version of The Bomb. They shifted into the moody and intense Be Like Ryan then went back to full on rock for Restaurant. They rocked another newer one that I don’t fully know yet, but really like, then kept it hard and heavy with You Say You’re Alive. Ricky The Rider kept the party going then they eased up a bit for Blanket’s Fine. They came back at full force for I Know Right and called it a night. They are such a fantastic band and that was another legendary show.
I knew Kat Wright & The Indomitable Soul Band were on behind the Maltex building so I ducked out of the alley, walked down Howard and across Pine st, which had been turned into a pedestrian zone, and without entering the packed tent, caught a song and a half from the band. I was pretty close to the stage and the sound was surprisingly good considering the speakers were not facing me. The band sounded great as they played a smooth easy song that had the refrain of who’s your fool. The song had a long couple of endings and was expertly played.
I headed back to the alley, thinking I had plenty of time. Apparently the set break was super short and I walked in on the last note of the first Zeus Springsteen song. Rats. I settled in as the rock trio made up of singer drummer David Evan, guitarist Chris Farnsworth and bassist Josh Shedaker rocked as hard as Mountain. All of the songs are well written and have a unique flow and are really good. I’m just getting to know them. I loved the first fours songs I saw and loved the fifth, Lights Of Montreal, even more. They wrapped the set with TV On The Radio’s Wolf Like Me and I was happy.
I knew Heavy Plains were playing at Speaking Volumes at some point but did not know when. After Zeus I raced over, and they were on the stage. I walked up fairly close as the band, who were playing in a garage door, looked out at the audience that was shrouded in the darkness of the night. With a brand new rhythm section they had a bit of a different sound, but still brought some rock and roll firepower. I did not recognize any of the 5 songs that I caught but there was some blistering rock and roll and it was so great to see Luke Awtry play some super lead guitar. Hopefully, they will start playing a bunch of shows soon and I’ll really begin to catch their new vibe.
It wasn’t super late at that point, but I had to be at work super early the next day, so I took the long walk home. Despite all the intense rock and roll that I heard all evening, the super bouncy Spaceship ran through my head as I bounded home. That sound is surprisingly addictive.
#Seaba
#SouthEndArtHop
The Ramparts and Zeus Springsteen at The Monkey House September 7, 2016
I had a great time seeing music last Wednesday at The Monkey House. Earlier in the day I walked downtown to WBKM and set up my radio show for that Thursday. I walked back home, hung out for a while and just before 8 walked to Winooski. I got in and settled and chatted a bit, but soon it was time for The Ramparts to play. They opened with a slow searing stomping song and we were off. They moved to a dance rock sound for a song about Heaven then played a fun song called Spaceship. It sounded nice enough, and had a nice groove, but didn’t really blow me away. More on that later. They kept up the fun party rock with songs about a drop in the bucket and a son of a gun. They played their version of a country song that had a bit of a Walk On The Wild Side vibe. Another slow searing rocker came without warning. They asked for a volunteer from the audience, and skipped over Chris Farnsworth who had his hand up first, and wisely chose the woman who had been standing near the stage for the whole show who looked like she was anticipating something and coincidentally knew all the lyrics. The band played a fun version of The Outfield’s Your Love and she sounded great singing with them. The Straw Man followed and had a Floyd vibe, think Time or Breathe. They played an old song that said it all rolls on and had a bit of a Tragically Hip vibe, then played a rocker that had a bit of a Hip vibe too. They brought the woman back to the stage for a fun version of Head Over Heels and called it a night. They were a fun band and I enjoyed them
The set break was not long and soon it was time for my second time seeing Zeus Springsteen. They opened with a song that started slow then blasted into the stratosphere then eased off at the end. They played a super heavy version of Lights Of Montreal then Josh Shedaker sang a fun indie rocker cover that I did not know. They kept the show rocking hard and fast with Your Funeral and David Evan was just a madman playing the drums, and singing. They said things were going to get weird for a bit and played a super heavy Tomorrow Never Knows. They played another original rocker that mixed slow and fast parts expertly and followed with the super fun Jody Is A Robot. They brought all of their power and glory to a ripping Madman Across The Water then rocked hard on Rental. They capped the night with a blistering cover of TV On The Radio’s Wolf Like Me.
I said a couple of quick goodbyes and took the long walk home. It was my second time seeing Zeus and now have them in the see whenever you can file.
Radio Show 174 Thursday September 8, 2016 9-11pm Eastern US Time 107.1 FM and WBKM.ORG
Tonight’s local music radio show on WBKM will go as follows:
Song before: I Don’t Know How To Love Him – Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
Intro
From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds Of Burlington. I want to thank Higher Ground for sponsoring the station. They’ve got The English Beat and Of Montreal in town this week, among others. There has been a ton of great music played in town in the last few weeks and I will highlight a lot of it tonight. Let’s begin with an artist who played around town a couple of years ago, including a rock show at the Fletcher Free Library, who finally released some of her songs.
1.) High And Mighty – S.e. Ward
2.) The Worst Part – Bethany Conner Music
3.) The Birds Of Parks Slope – Eastern Mountain Time
4.) Pas d’sa Faute – Francesca Blanchard
Francesca put on a great show at Summervale a couple of weeks ago. She will be at Spruce Peak on October 1st if you want to check her out live. Great song from Sean Hood‘s band. Bethany is a young singer songwriter with lots of promise. Yea, I finally have some of S.e. Ward’s music to play. Yea. This next singer will stop by the studio and play for us live in a couple of weeks, when he gets back from Iceland.
5.) Endless War – Jeremy Gilchrist – Singer-Songwriter
6.) Happy Birthday Harry – Hana Zara
7.) More Than Gold – Ryan Fauber and Samara Lark Brown
8.) Brother Of Mine – Mike Brewster Music
I want to thank Mike for sending that song to me. I want to send that one out to my brother Ken and to everyone’s brother, whether it’s a brother by blood or a bond that is formed. Great song from Ryan and Samara. I am still thrilled about seeing Hana a couple of weeks ago at Light Club Lamp Shop. Sadly true song from Jeremy Gilchrist. OK, last week I played the last song on Lendway‘s Giant Places album so now it’s time to start a new album to play song by song, week after week, until all the songs are played. This next album has some great songs and intriguing music. The album is called Song For My Double and the band is Invisible Homes.
9.) :Little Song – Invisible Homes
10.) Ladybug – Ninja Custodian
11.) Pitseleh – Milton Busker
12.) She Has Your Name – Phil Yates & The Affiliates
Phil Yates and the band played a cool show last week at Switchback Brewing Company. I’m loving Milton’s new album You Are What You Pretend To Be. With all the new music I’m playing tonight, I had to toss in the Ninja classic. Great song from Homes. This next band shut down a section of Main St on Sunday and threw a giant party.
13.) Starman – Madila
14.) Live A Certain Life – Marco Benevento
15.) Kaleidoscope – Arc Iris
16.) Give Me All Your Love – Madaila
You just have to love Madaila for pulling off such cool shows. Great song too. Iris played Sunday night as part of the festival, but played upstairs at Club Metronome. They played Joni Mitchell’s album Blue, so they did not play that song. Hopefully, they will come back and play it for us soon. Marco and his band played on Main St and played that song from his new album The Story Of Fred Short. Hmmmm, Madaila. I want to thank Bobby Hackney Jr.for inviting me, and most of Burlington’s musicians and artists, to his birthday party recently.
17.) Black And Red – ROUGH FRANCIS
18.) Living Arrangements – The Red Summer Sun
19.) The Wolves Are Coming – Suburban Samurai
20.) Casanova With A K – Better Things
It was cool to see Sun, Samurai and Better at 242 Main recently. All three rocked hard. Hmmm, Rough Francis. I saw a band (Zeus Springsteen) that evolved out of this next band do this next song last night at The Monkey House.
21. Lights Of Montreal – Lobot
22.) Bidets And Confused – Sad Turtle
23.) Bird On The Sea – The New Siberians
24.) Such A Scene – Wood Coats
I want to thank David Anderson for turning me on to Coats. Another great new song from the Siberians. Turtle have a new album coming soon, and it sounds like it could be very good. It was so cool to see Zeus play the Lobot song. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we?
Outro
Songs after: Crucifix Corner – Fish
Superstar – I Don’t Know How To Love Him – Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
The Crucifixion – I Don’t Know How To Love Him – Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
John Nineteen Forty-One – I Don’t Know How To Love Him – Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack
He’s Dying – Children in Paradise
Madaila on Main St with Marco Benevento and Lady Lamb – and Lux Deluxe and Arc Iris at Club Metronome September 4 2016
I had a great time seeing music Sunday evening on Main st and at Club Metronome. As soon as I got out of work I headed downtown. I walked down a packed Church St and found the entrance to the show. They had blocked off Main st between Church and S Winooski ave and put up a stage. I arrived just before 5 but Marco Benevento was already on stage jamming out with a bass player and drummer. He sang and played keys and they played some happy grooves that seemed constantly ascending. They played a few cool songs then did all of side two of the new album The Story of Fred Short. The band rocked nicely and were lots of fun. They followed with a fun instrumental then closed the night with Bus Ride and At The Show.
After a short break, with the sound filled out by DJ Disco Phantom, Lady Lamb took the stage. She sang and played some intense electric guitar riffs and was joined by a bass player who added some keys, and a drummer. The indie rock sound was full of angst and passion and kept moving in ways that I had to work to keep up with. I did not know any of her songs but greatly enjoyed all of them. There were several moments of serious rock and roll and her set blew me away.
After that I headed up to the WBKM to load some files into my folder and hung out with another station DJ named Jordan. His brother D was there too and we chatted about music and listened to Madaila as they took the stage. They sounded great and played mostly original songs. I finally had to head back to the crowd but by the time I got there, the band was playing a Whitney Houston song, so I had to go take a walk for a while.
After a bit, I headed up to Metronome and caught the end of the set by Lux Deluxe. They had a smooth easy pop/rock sound. Most of the songs got into a groove and stayed there with minimal and subtle changes. They played really well and a couple of the songs had nice hooks. The singer joined the drummer for one song that rocked a percussive groove as the bass player drove the song forward, the guitar player added some quick riffs and the keyboard player filled the sound. The five or six songs that I caught were pretty cool.
There was a long set break then Arc Iris hit the stage. They played as a trio with Jocie Adams on vocals and a little bit of electric guitar, Zach Tenorio on keys and Ray Belli on drums. They played Joni Mitchell’s Blue album in the context of their cool sound. Ray looked like he was eternally challenged or having a great time as they worked out the constantly changing songs. I’m not sure if they played the album as a prog jazz masterpiece or a jazzy prog masterpiece but the show had magnificently challenging elements of both styles and kept me captivated. I loved the show note for note, but as I had to work in the morning, when the last one faded out I headed down the stairs and took the easy walk home.
Radio Show 177 Thursday September 29, 2016 9-11pm Eastern US Time 107.1 FM and WBKM.ORG Leave a comment
http://wbkm.org/
I just got back from my local music radio show on 107.1FM WBKM.org. It went as flollows:
Songs lined up before the show
Golden Blunders – The Posies
Marching Bands Of Manhattan – Death Cab For Cutie
Uh-Oh – Slowdim
When You Were Mind – The Church Band
Sparks – The Color Exchange
Satellite – Guster
She’s Leaving Home – Silver Bridget
Sweet Dreams – Bethany Conner
recording begins
Song before: Things Change – Black Rabbit
promo
Intro
From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds Of Burlington. I want to begin by thanking Higher Ground for sponsoring us here at WBKM. There are a ton of bands playing around tonight and over the weekend. Let’s begin with a singer who is playing a show at the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center in Stowe on Saturday.
1.) Le Blues – Francesca Blanchard
2.) Wanderer – Francesca Blanchard
3.) Mon Ange – Francesca Blanchard
Francesca will also play on Tuesday at Signal Kitchen so there are lots of ways to experience her music this week. This next singer will return to Radio Bean on Sunday.
4.) Vulture – Rorie Kelly
5.) Clocks On The Wall – Jeremy Gilchrist – Singer-Songwriter
6.) Sunbeam – Split Tongue Crow
7.) The Worst Part – Bethany Conner Music
Bethany played a tremendous show at Light Club Lamp Shop on Tuesday and I’m so glad I was there. Cool song from the Rutland band. I love that Jeremy Gilchrist song. He will be at Radio Bean on Sunday too. OK, let’s play the next song from Song For My Double.
8.) This Machine – Invisible Homes
9.) Phones – Violet Ultraviolet
10.) Arkansas Sheriff – Lake Superior
11.) Circle K – The New Siberians
Another great new song from the Siberians Black, Blue and White album. Cool rocker from LS. Cool new song from VU’s new Pop City album. I love that Woody Guthrie reference. This next singer is at Light Club Lamp Shop tonight.
12.) Dogs At The Door – Milton Busker
13.) Gettin High – Heavy Plains
14.) MSP2 – ROUGH FRANCIS
15.) Politicians In My Eyes – Death World Wide
Death played a show that was live on Facebook earlier today. They just played DC with Francis. This song makes me think of the debate on Monday where there was a Presidential candidate and some guy who kept saying look at me. Please choose wisely when voting. Francis played at Higher Ground tonight. Plains were at The Monkey House tonight. I should have been at all of those shows, and doing this radio show. That Milton song seemed a little appropriate tonight. This next band are at Foam Brewers tomorrow.
16.) Trans Am – Barbacoa
17.) It’s Just A Ride – Bill Hicks
18.) Round Sum – Cave Bees
19.) Nowhere Feels Like Home – Fire The Cannons
20.) Popular Crowd – SWALE
That was a fun rocking set with a little life commentary from Bill. This next set has a theme. Any guesses?
21.) Shooting Starlight – Rue M.
22.) Dora Marr – Queen Tangerine
23.) Star – The New Siberians
24.) Under Bright Stars – Alice Austin
Great songs from Alice and a cool song from the Siberians first album. Rue will be playing the election night party in November. This next singer just posted a cool old video from 1991. We rocked a lot back then too.
25.) Naked Garden – Peg Tassey MUSIC
26.) Hold Me Tight – The Decentz
27.) Way Down Hadestown – Anais Mitchell
28.) Basalt Anchor – Vedora
Great song from Caroline Marie. Anais is at Higher Ground tomorrow. Classic rock from the first two. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we? See ya, ta ta….
29.) Sayonara – Black Rabbit
outro
promo
Song after: Poet’s Moon – Fish
recording ends
lined up after:
Strontium Burning – TILT
Usual Plays In Heaven/Be Kind Ant Talk To Me – Active Heed
Coming Down Again – Waylon Speed!
Down By The River/Like A Hurricane – Seth Yacovone Band
And You And I – Yes
Into The Void – Surf Sabbath
The Last Of The Unplucked Gems – The Tragically Hip
Carpet Of The Sun (live) – Renaissance
Breathing – Kate Bush
Stumble – Andriana Chobot
Morrigan – Children in Paradise
New Americana – Halsey
The Territory – Hana Zara
Flamenco – The Tragically Hip
Black 17 – The New Siberians
Cold Gin – Ace Frehley
Kill The King – Rainbow
Attack Of The Mad Axeman – Michael Schenker Group.
Springtime In Vienna – The Tragically Hip
Last American Right – The Cush
Margaret – Marillion
Block – The Church
Empire Of The Clouds – Iron Maiden
Butts Wigglin – The Tragically Hip
Megaphone – Joshua Glass Music
Radio Show 176 Thursday September 22, 2016 9-11pm Eastern US Time 107.1 FM and WBKM.ORG Leave a comment
http://wbkm.org/
I just got back from my local music radio show on WBKM 107.1FM. It stayed mellow for quite a while then rocked hard at the end. This is how it went.
Lined up before the show:
My Big Mouth – The Posies
Someday You Will Be Loved – Mercury Rev
All Lovers Are Deranged – David Gilmour
On The Air (live) – Peter Gabriel
Early Morning Dreams – Pete Townshend
Laurel Canyon – The Church Band
What I’m Trying To Say – Stars
recording begins
Song before: Atlantic City – Bruce Springsteen
promo
Intro
From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds of Burlington. I want to thank Higher Ground for sponsoring our station and for filling the waterfront with music last weekend. I had to work and pack on Saturday and on Sunday I took a bus to Atlantic City with my mother and brother. We had a great time walking the boardwalk and seeing the ocean. It made me think of this song.
1.) Shoreline In Jersey – Joe Adler
2.) Cloudy Mind – Joe Adler
3.) Can We Go There? – Bethany Conner Music
4.) Can You Love Me Too? – Bethany Conner
Bethany will be at Light Club Lamp Shop on Tuesday and has some cool songs. Joe has a great voice,, is a great guy, and writes great songs. Tonight’s theme was suggested by the next song on the Invisible Homes album. Here is the title song.
5.) Song For My Double – Invisible Homes
6.) Company She Keeps – Invisible Homes
7.) Shot In The Dark – Violet Ultraviolet
8.) Pop City – Violet Ultraviolet
VU will release their new album, Pop City, at The Monkey House on Saturday. Homes and Ryan Power will be playing too. Here is another great song from a local favorite.
9.) The Meanest Song I’ll Ever Write – Milton Busker
10.) Redemption On Pearl – Milton Busker
11.) Small Town Blues – Kelly Ravin
12.) Far Away And Gone – Kelly Ravin
Kelly has a new album coming out and he is releasing it Saturday at ArtsRiot. This next singer is returning to town to open the show.
13.) Good Thing – Maryse Smith
14.) Glory Bound – Maryse Smith
15.) Burn Burn Burn – Phil Yates & The Affiliates
16.) Burn It Down, Bernadette – Phil Yates and the Affiliates
Phil played at Sidebar this evening but I was too slow to make it. I’m sure I’ll catch him again soon. I love the new album called Black, Blue and White that this next band just released.
17.) Black 17 – The New Siberians
18.) Make It Work – The New Siberians
19.) Too Good – Black Rabbit
20.) The Invisibles – Black Rabbit
Lake Superior have a new album coming out Saturday and are releasing it at Positive Pie tomorrow in Montpelier. I could not track down any of their music, but Rabbit are opening the show, and I have lots of theirs. How much do you want to bet I can keep pulling out great new Siberians songs? Wow, I guess I walked through too many casinos in Atlantic City. OK, let’s keep rocking with a band who played GPN this weekend.
21.) Vestibule – Blue Button
22.) We’re Closed – Blue Button
23.) Kentucky Gunman Tells Coworker – Ninja Custodian
24.) That’s When I Reach For My Revolver – Ninja Custodian
Ninja rocked Burlington ridiculously hard for a few years. BB are rocking it hard now. So are this next band.
25.) Blind Pigs – ROUGH FRANCIS
26.) Comm To Space – Rough Francis
27.) Slut – Dirty Blondes
28.) Ornan – Dirty Blondes
No doubt about the title of that song or the name of the band. The Blondes always rock hard. So do Francis. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we?
Songs after: Childhood’s End – Fish
White Feather – Fish
recording ends
Lined up after:
Coming Down Again – Waylon Speed!
Silver And Gold – Waylon Speed
Dead Flowers – Bob Wagner and the Book ‘Em Blues Band
Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad? – Book ‘Em Blues Band
Yours Is No Disgrace – Yes
Starship Trooper – Yes
Black Boys On Mopeds – SWALE
The Next Instead – Swale
Hello Earth – Kate Bush
The Morning Fog – Kate Bush
Cascade – Andriana Chobot
Alone In The Night – Andrianna Chobot
Marco Polo – jane siberry
You Don’t Need – Jane Siberry
Fractured Mirror – Ace Frehley
Emerald – Ace Frehley
Mel’s Rockpile – Rush
Lakeside Park/Anthem – Rush
Red Barchetta – Rush
The Globe – Landlady
Above My Ground – Landlady
Provider – MIDLAKE BAND
Provider Reprise – Midlake
(Then Came The) Last Day Of May – Blue Oyster Cult
Last Day Of May – The Red Telephone
New York My Lovely – Joshua Glass Music
What’s In California? – Josh Glass
Phil Yates And The Affiliates at Switchback Brewery September 2, 2016
If you like a little danger with your rock and roll you should have seen Phil Yates & The Affiliates at Switchback Brewing Company last night. Anything could have happened. The crowd kept coming at the stage to try and hug Phil Yates mid song, gear was shoved out of the way and there was the endless requests for songs not on the set list. Despite the arduous conditions the band played it cool as they drove through a two-hour 27 song set. Phil sang and played electric guitar and was joined by the super-cool bass riff machine known as Raph Worrick, the super-small drum kit playing Jacob Blodgett, and the super lead guitar playing Kevin Stevens. The last member of the band to arrive walked in at 5:55 was set up by 6:00 and by 6:02 the band lit into opener Might As Well Settle. The fun and jangley pop song introduced the band to the room in a friendly way and the nice reception set the tone for the night. They played a lot of songs from both the Oh So Sour and No Need To Beg albums, played a few new songs and tossed in a couple of fun covers. I missed the second song but the neo-classic Grass Is Always Greener was an off set list audible call in the third spot. The easy to hum to She Has Your Name followed. They stayed with the first album for Pretty Girls then played another one that I missed. A cover of Camper Van Beethoven’s Take The Skinheads Bowling was super-fun. Could You Be The One rocked nicely and was followed by the Lizzie Borden inspired I Am A Hatchet. Up next they played Flicker then rocked out the newish My Favorite Bag. Due to the recent change of the calendar they rocked out a great version of Big Star’s September Gurls then found excitement in I’m Thrilled. They played another new one, maybe If Only I Was Lonely, then kicked it into high gear with Little French Earthquakes. I missed the title of the next one then they rocked out Ninjas Vs Zombies, which is one of my favorite songs. Co-Pilot followed and kept the place rocking. Up next was a really fun cover of a dB’s song that I did not know. Another new song called Send Him The Bill was fun then a couple of us sang along to Burn Burn Burn. As it was the beginning of the Friday Art Walk they had to pull out Masterpiece next. Meet Me Any Place was another fun cover and filled the required Replacements song quota for the evening. Three Cheers seemed appropriate in the bar setting. They followed with one I did not know, but liked, called California Song then ended the set with a rocking Burn It Down Bernadette. The band left the stage but since it’s almost Phil’s birthday, he stayed and closed the night with Cracker’s Happy Birthday To Me. It was a heck of a show, and despite the challenges, they played it like champ
