Like any aspiring musician with a newly pressed studio effort, Shelburne Falls' Seth Glier has dreams of gold and platinum. He's just looking to obtain his precious metal without leaving a trace of a carbon footprint.
"There's so much waste that gets created on the road," explains the 20-year old multi-instrumentalist who has shared stages with John Mayer and Martin Sexton. "So I decided to go green with this current tour [in support of his Nov. 3 label debut, The Trouble With People], using all organic materials like hemp, bamboo and vegetable-based ink on tour merchandise, purchasing energy credits from TerraPass and traveling in a hybrid car."
The concept is catching on, he reports, with fans carpooling to his concerts and even organizing pre-show "planting parties" in which they plant trees in their own communities.
Glier glides into town this Saturday, Oct. 24 for an 8 p.m. Iron Horse engagement that amounts to a homecoming of sorts. "I first headlined there when I was 16," he says, "and even prior to that, I feel like I schooled myself in music by going there every night to see new bands when I was little."
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Meanwhile, as Glier attempts to simultaneously save the planet and kickstart a career, Orange Crush's Scott Lawson checked in to report that he is still in search of a suitable alter-ego for his band's impending WMAS Halloween Ball appearance this Saturday, Oct. 24 at the Northampton Clarion.
"I have been Axl Rose, LL Cool J and Billy Idol in years past," he says. "I'm thinking Glen Danzig this time, but [I'm] not sure if I'll have enough time to bulk up sufficiently." To see what he decides—or obtain more info on the show—kindly point your browser to ocrush.com
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In national news, the powers that be at the annual Rock N' Roll Fantasy Camp (rockcamp.com) have beefed up their 2009 crop of counselors by adding New England's own Meatloaf into the mix. The multi-platinum rock icon will be joined by Yes-man/guitarist Jon Anderson, Kiss' Ace Frehley and Bruce Kulick, bass-great Rudy Sarzo and a host of other notables from throughout the industry, each eager to share wares—and trade secrets—with the happy campers, including the "Headliners" (a premium Fantasy Camp package valued at $7,999), "Rockstars" ($3,999) and "Groupies" ($599). This year's camp runs from Nov. 12-22 and culminates with a live performance at the Whiskey A Go Go.
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Since we have permission to speak Frehley—(and the Crawler is a card-carrying member of the Kiss Army)—the "Space Ace" released what is roundly considered to be the magnum opus of his solo career with Anomaly last month. Granted, it had been nearly two decades since he released a studio effort, which is all the more reason Frehley's Anomaly—and its number 27 entry onto the Billboard charts—seemed a rock anomaly in and of itself.
The original Kiss axeman was bested by his former bandmates, who scored their highest debut in their nearly four decade-long career with Sonic Boom earlier this month. Heralded by fans as a classic return to the band's roots, Boom catapulted to number 2 on Billboard, perhaps gaining some upward momentum courtesy of the announcement that Kiss was nominated for the Rock 'N' Roll Hall of Fame a couple of weeks prior.
Yet another rock act of decades past revisited, Alice In Chains, churned out its first album in 14 years late last month. Playboy called it the band's Back In Black, and the hit single "Check My Brain" propelled it to Billboard's number 5—neatly nestled amongst Paramore, Mariah Carey and Barbra Streisand.
While Living Colour's first offering in six years, Chair In The Doorway, did not ascend beyond Billboard's number 159 spot, it is easily the most ambitious/musically adept offering of the recent recycled metal lot. The seminal '90s rockers are in town on Halloween night in support of hip-hop poet Saul Williams and his Oct. 31 Pearl Street play.
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. Box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 698-9373 or email garycarra@aol.com.
