Boots n’ Shorts

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Jan 262012
 
botsnshorts

Genres: Bluegrass / Jam / Americana
Label: Red Bandit

Artist Bio

Boots n’ Shorts carries on the tradition of old-time music while making it relevant to a modern audience. Meeting at the crossroads of mountain music and the merry pranksters, they introduce new sounds to old-timers and old sounds to new-timers. Blending backgrounds in bluegrass, folk, old-time, jazz, blues, and psychedelic rock,BnS has a large repertoire of original music, classics, and traditional tunes. They have performed live on Bill Knowlton’s Bluegrass Ramble on WCNY 91.3fm, & have been featured on WAER 88.3fm’s Common Threads with Larry Hoyt.

More About Boots n’ Shorts

It all started back in the summer of 2005, when Mike Mawhinney and Kevin Morel decided that they had a common vision that playing music for folks who like to dance is a good time, and if they could get the occasional free draft, well, that would be nice, too. Kevin was always a jam band fan, & Mike was more into the old time bluegrass sound, but they both agreed that acoustic instruments were the way to go, because they could be played anywhere, & at that time they could just as likely be playing on a park bench or outside of a bar as they would be on a stage. One of their favorite haunts was Old City Hall in Oswego, NY,who had the best open mic in the area every Tuesday, & the crowds would come to call for them by name. With Mike on mandolin and Kevin on the acoustic guitar, they developed a natural sound that could take the listener from a mellow sea shanty to a barn burning breakdown in no time.

It was later that year they decided that some folks would appreciate having a few of their songs on cds to listen to at home, so they gathered together some of their original material & started recording. Kevin met Jason Borisoff at Onondaga Community College & decided to ask for him to contribute some free labor in the way of laying some bass riffs on the recording. It went so well that he decided to join the crew & pretty soon free drinks turned into paying gigs & the guys used the money to buy some mics & stands & PA gear to liven up the shows a bit. Being that Jason was a music major at OCC, Mike & Kev soon discovered he was awesome on the lead guitar, so they put him on guitar & went bassless for a little while. They played at Half Penny Pub and The Bull and Bear Pub in downtown Syracuse, NY, The Autumn Cafe in Oneonta, NY, Sterling Stage, The Bluergrass festival, May Memorial, and the Westcott Community Center, to name a few.

Aaron Chamberlain was an accomplished singer-songwriter who, after touring the Northeast extensively, had been a part of the Austin, Texas music scene before returning home to Upstate New York. In the meantime he had mastered several instruments, one of which was the upright bass, with which he decided to offer his services in hopes of finding some people to play with. The BnS trio, as it was, was attentively looking out for just this kind of person, and after getting in touch & practicing for a few weeks, they hit it off & would soon be out playing agan, hitting up Mezzanotte’s in Syracuse, NY, Walter’s Cafe in Fayetteville, NY, The Palisades in Rome, NY, The Pourhouse in Trumansburg, NY, & the Syracuse Suds Factory in Armory Square in Syracuse, NY.

Andrea Asprelli was born in Colorado & went to college in Massachusetts. After college, she spent a year abroad & became interested in American Folk Music. Having been trained in classical violin since she was a young child, she decided to learn about the Irish & Appalacian fiddle traditions & would come back to the states well versed in the old time style. She would soon find a job in Syracuse, NY, where she began looking around for people that were interested in playing folk music. It just so happened that the Boots n’ Shorts guys were looking for a fiddle player & her style was perfect for the band. Finally, the sound was complete & the summer of 2008 would be spent practicing & playing out at places like The Westcott Theater, String Fling at Sterling Stage, The Hannibal Hoedown, Maxie’s Supper Club in Ithaca, NY, and Bill Knowlton’s Bluegrass Ramble Picnic in Little York, NY.

Nowadays the guys & gal are happy to complete their fourth album, Static on the Airwaves & starting to plan for next summer. They’re always looking for new places to play & are all about good music, happy people, & the great stories yet untold.

Shows

02/04/12 Sat Oswego Music Hall Oswego, NY
02/19/12 Sun Liverpool Public Library Liverpool, NY
03/10/12 Sat Bull and Bear Pub Syracuse, NY
03/17/12 Sat Quaker Steak and Lube Syracuse, NY

For more info please visit www.bootsnshorts.com

 Posted by Kristen at 2:07 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

Jimkata

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Jan 222012
 
Penguins

jimkata

  Jimkata is a four piece electro-rock band based out of Ithaca, New York. Known for combining raw guitar power with industrial blasts of synthesizers and drum machines, Jimkata is an example of the modern lengths that a quartet can reach without leaving their rock roots. Described as “one of the best up and coming bands” by jambase.com members Evan Friedell (guitar/vocals), Aaron Gorsch (guitar/synth), Dave Rossi (bass) and Packy Lunn (drums) have forged a truly unique and appealing sound through high quality, in depth studio albums and their notoriously explosive live rock shows.

With three years of touring under their belts Jimkata released their highly anticipated third record Ghosts and Killers in September 2010 via free download at their websitejimkata.com. Released almost a year to date after 2009′s full length Burn My Money, Ghosts and Killers is a concise six-track EP comprised of road tested fan favorites that can easily be listened to twice in a row. While Burn My Money projects a unique charm that comfortably splits the listeners’ concentration between thoughtful lyrics, catchy hooks and “in your face” composition, Ghosts and Killers cuts right to the heart of what Jimkata’s self-titled electro rock sound. “Jimkata’s lyrics delve deep into emotionally dense aspects of the American human experience, but whether it be love, death, or merely just grasping for the remaining breaths of life to prevent our unfortunately imminent social and economic collapse, Jimkata keeps reminding us that life is too important to be taken seriously” (lostinsound.org).

Smoothly transcending the gap between studio songwriters and touring musicians, Jimkata is quickly growing a loyal fan base across the country. Sponsored by Brewery Ommegang, Jimkata thrives in taking studio written electro rock hits and creating a unique and unpredictable set list every night they are on the road. Highlights from past summer festival seasons include Camp Bisco, Fingerlakes Grassroots Festival, Up North Festival, Starscape Festival, Great Blue Heron Festival and the Watkins Glen International Raceway. They have also been honored to share the stage with many other acts including Snoop Dogg, Umphrey’s McGee, Bob Weir and RatDog, The Disco Biscuits and The Wailers among many others.

As described by lostinsound.org, Jimkata is “what this generation needs more of, a band with a fresh sound that’s influenced by great music, with an honest and positive perspective about our place in society.”

 Shows

02/01/12 Wed The Westcott Theater Syracuse, NY
02/02/12 Thu Dubland Underground Rochester, NY
02/03/12 Fri The Oneonta Theatre Oneonta, NY
02/04/12 Sat Putnam Den Saratoga Springs, NY
02/08/12 Wed The Pickle Barrel Killington, VT
02/09/12 Thu The Spot Underground Providence, RI
02/10/12 Fri Sully’s Pub Hartford, CT

*show info powered by Jambase.com

 Posted by Kristen at 9:00 pm  Tagged with: , , , , ,

Cabinet

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Jan 172012
 
Cabinet

When it comes to the music of Cabinet, the essential bywords are soul, simplicity, and serious musicianship. In concert, the combination of these qualities invariably yields an experience that is so celebratory and moving that the very word

Cabinet

Cabinet takes on a new, vivid meaning for anyone in the audience. An inclusive and engaging energy is the uniting through-line as Cabinet weaves bluegrass, country and folk influences to powerful effect. Tight dynamics punctuate gorgeous, soaring harmonies as down-to-earth rhythm and lyrics give way to dreamy jams that are the musical equivalent of the backroad scenic route. But this impressive result is no accident. Pappy Biondo [banjo, vocals], J.P. Biondo [mandolin, vocals], Mickey Coviello [acoustic guitar, vocals], Dylan Skursky [electric bass, double bass], Todd Kopec [fiddle, vocals], and Jami Novak [drums, percussion], all love and live music. They each have a nuanced approach and posses broad talents in their own rights. But the passionate, affirming, and joyous musical world that they create together is Cabinet.

Now listeners that haven’t experienced the Cabinet experience in person will no longer be left out, thanks to a live album, THIS IS CABINET – SET I, out on Ropeadope Records. The tracks are culled from concerts in Cabinet’s homebase of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, as well as from shows in Erie and Cleveland, both popular stops on Cabinet’s touring routes.

Cabinet is a band that has outgrown any “regional favorite” tag and has progressed to a broader fanbase, all while retaining their signature sound. The band self-released a debut album, “Cabinet,” before signing with Ropeadope, which took notice and re-released that album digitally.

Cabinet formed in 2006, bringing together players from various musical and personal backgrounds. Some of the members are barely old enough to drink legally, but their thirst for older music is unquenchable. Whether its rustic “American Beauty”-era Grateful Dead or old-timey bluegrass, Cabinet has digested it all. But that is not to say that Cabinet recreates older styles. No, this is music that might have its roots in the past, but it is current and vibrant, with a sense of celebrating the now.

Cabinet plays Red Square in Albany, NY on Thursday February 9, 2012

 

Shows

02/09/12 Red Square Albany, NY
02/10/12 Abilene Rochester, NY
02/11/12 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland, OH
02/15/12 Red Square Burlington, VT
02/16/12 The Shaskeen Manchester, NH
02/17/12 Theodore’s Springfield, MA
02/18/12 Will Rogers at Saranac Lake Saranac Lake,NY

 Posted by Kristen at 6:18 pm  Tagged with: , , , ,

The Devil Makes Three

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Jan 112012
 
Punky Bluegrass All Stars ~ The Devil Makes Three

 

With a slightly punky perspective on vintage American blues, The Devil Makes Three is a breath of fresh musical air on its eponymous Milan debut. Laced with elements of ragtime, country, folk and rockabilly, the critically praised, drummer-less trio – consisting of guitarist/frontman Pete Bernhard, stand-up bassist Lucia Turino and guitarist Cooper McBean – brings forth a genuine approach to acoustic music that is deeply steeped in rhythm.

Punky Bluegrass All Stars ~ The Devil Makes Three

With the goal of being “an acoustic band but to play our shows like a rock show,” the band changed notions of what acoustic music could be. “A lot of it is really calm, and performances are sort of a ‘sit down, don’t talk, don’t move’ kind of an event. Thinking back to the old blues, ragtime and jug band music, it was house music, party music. That was what we wanted to do. And there really aren’t any other bands doing that.”

 

That festive spirit carries forth to the live favorite “Old Number Seven,” a blistering homage to Jack Daniels Whiskey. “I didn’t set out to write about a particular product, but it just came to me. I had the chord progression, and the next thing you know I was singing.” More cerebral, but no less celebratory is the upbeat “Beneath the Piano.” Written about a New Year’s Party he attended back east, Pete says, “A bunch of people just wound up getting totally wasted and passing out under the piano. And I was one of those people. So that gave the chorus its life.”

While McBean takes inspiration from folk fixture The Reverend Gary Davis, Doc Watson and axe-wielding guitar gods The Fucking Champs, and Turino counts Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, The Pixies and Gillian Welch, Bernhard was heavily swayed by the art of Lightnin’ Hopkins, the aforementioned Dylan, Tom Waits and Robert Johnson. The end result is genuine blues music that thrives as much in a live setting as it does on The Devil Makes Three.

Proof that mayhem can be found without a drummer, Bernhard adds, “Our thinking is, ‘Let’s get people to have a good time and get together and go crazy.’ And they should treat seeing us like going to a punk rock show, even though it’s something that sounds considerably different.”

This trio rarely visits us in the North East and to our delight they will be stompin and mashin in our neck of the woods come February. Come and get your boogie on at these venus in our area!

 

Shows 

Tuesday February 14th, 2012 Higher Ground 1214 Williston Road, Burlington, VT w/ Brown Bird 
Wednesday February 15th, 2012 The Haunt 702 Willow Avenue, Ithica, NY w/ Brown Bird
Thursday February 16th, 2012 Horseshoe Tavern 370 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON

 Posted by Kristen at 12:43 pm  Tagged with: , , ,

EOTO: A Vicious Bass Onslaught

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Apr 152011
 
EOTO @ Sonic Bloom

Dubstep has arrived. It’s in the clubs. It’s on TV, insidiously creeping into commercials and terrorizing radio waves around the world; from Berlin to New York City and everywhere in between, Dubstep is a force to be reckoned with. The once-underground phenomenon crossed the pond and went mainstream. Thanks to its growing popularity, amateur producers just flip on their low frequency oscillators and take a nap. Drab and derivative, the genre has been co-opted by DJs simply regurgitating the work of others. There is one act, though, that has been leading the way and setting the standard for live performance Dubstep/Electro/House for over five relentless years. One force that does it live.

The cyber-kinetic bass juggernaut EOTO is Dubstep’s savior and innovator. Two twisted demons blasting razor-bass and shrapnel beats from coast to coast and beyond. Snarling and brutal, these psy-dub beat sorcerers create Dubstep from the ground up, night after night, using only real instruments and their sonic wizardry. No pre-programmed loops, no heavy samples snatched from other producers, Jason Hann and Michael Travis bring Dubstep to life in real time, and push the movement into unexplored territories. Their soul-shattering brand of lazerstep is as mesmerizing as it is evil.

Those who haven’t been exposed to the two-headed, buzzsaw-juggling behemoth best check their schedules. EOTO is in the process of throwing down an unprecedented 60 performances in 64 nights. There’s no break, there’s no solace, just a vicious bass onslaught from the South to the Rocky Mountains to the West Coast, and back across the Midwest. And that’s before festival season even kicks off. Beginning with Summer Camp, and running through Wakarusa, The Big Up, and Nateva in August, EOTO is already charting its course of summer destruction. You can bet they’re planning something perverse and especially warped for the season’s most anticipated gathering of subsonic junkies: Sonic Bloom Festival.

There is no stopping EOTO from spreading a near lethal dose of dance music to the masses. The duo just unleashed a FREE 10-track sampler from their 2011 Colorado tour on SoundCloud and is also expected to release the third rendition of their annual live tour compliation called “K-Turns and U-Turns” on May 17th (Album Art). The 39-song-collection was recorded live in 2010 with each disc meticulously mixed to flow like a live show.

To educate and prepare the unwitting masses for their awesome destructive power, EOTO just wrapped up filming for their soon to be released live DVD. Soon, the world will be able to witness these two dark ninjas maneuvering in precise symbiosis through technology, slaying crowds in high definition, and will understand that Travis and Hann have been, and always will be, true pioneers of Dubstep. Their debut concert DVD will capture their entirely original, completely improvised sonic assault. Beware of the release date, to be announced this summer.

For more information about EOTO or their spring/summer tour check out their website at www.eotomusic.com and don’t forget to check out their new ticketing service offering only $2 ticketing fees on all advance tickets.

Spring Tour 2011
4/15/2011     Port City Music Hall     Portland, ME
4/16/2011     Paradise Rock Club     Boston, MA
4/17/2011     Toad’s Place     New Haven, CT
4/18/2011     The Met     Pawtucket, RI
4/20/2011     Higher Ground     SO Burlington, VT
4/20/2011     Memorial Auditorium     Burlington, VT
4/21/2011     9:30 Club     Washington, DC
4/22/2011     Irving Plaza     New York, NY
4/23/2011     Washington Avenue Armory     Albany, NY
4/24/2011     Castaways     Ithaca, NY
4/26/2011     Town Ballroom     Buffalo, NY
4/27/2011     Blind Pig     Ann Arbor, MI
4/28/2011     Vogue Theatre     Indianapolis, IN
4/29/2011     Madison Theatre     Covington, KY
4/30/2011     Expo Five     Louisville, KY
5/1/2011     Newport Music Hall     Columbus, OH
5/2/2011     123 Pleasant Street     Morgantown, WV
5/3/2011     The Intersection     Grand Rapids, MI
5/4/2011     The Canopy Club     Urbana, IL
5/5/2011     Skyway Theatre     Minneapolis, MN
5/6/2011     The Portage Theater     Chicago, IL
5/7/2011     The Portage Theater     Chicago, IL
5/26/2011     Bella Music Festival     Geneva, MN
5/28/2011     B.O.M.B Fest @ Comcast Theatre     Hartford, CT
5/29/2011     Summer Camp Festival     Chillcothe, IL
6/2/2011     Wakarusa Music Festival     Ozark, AR
6/4/2011     Starscape Festival – Ft. Armistead Park     Baltimore, MD
6/25/2011     Sonic Bloom     Georgetown, CO
7/3/2011     Electric Forest     Rothbury, MI
7/15/2011     Motion Notion Festival     Edmonton, AB
7/30/2011     The Big Up     Ghent, NY

 Posted by scott at 6:25 am  Tagged with: ,
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