In no particular order and assembled for reasons no loftier than your enjoyment plus the Crawler’s pressing need to hurry over to the holiday party before the open bar closes… here are your 2014 Nightcrawler Notable Awards:
The You Never Sausage A Festival Award: Thomas Kielbania, Jr.
He may best be known for pounding the skins for veteran Valley party band Orange Crush, but in 2014, Thomas Kielbania, Jr. undertook an endeavor he believes he was made for. Or was that named for?
“My name’s Tom Kielbania,” the driving force behind the resurrected Chicopee Kielbasa Festival explained. “I’ve been called Tommy Kielbasa my whole life, so perhaps it was my destiny?”
That, plus the timing was right, as the City’s other festival of note, Fest of All, decided to leave its established spring/summer slot for fall. With the gaping hole in the local entertainment lineup — coupled with his personal passion for the event he attended annually as a child — Kielbania re-launched The Chicopee Kielbasa Fest in May of 2014, re-linking the city with the historic event for the first time since 1997.
“My mom would be so proud of her boy,” added Alex Johnson, whose band Colorway performed last year on a weekend bill that included Heart Tribute Band Crazy On You, American Led Zeppelin, Trailer Park and the reunion of the STP-leaning Wicked Garden. “One of my fondest memories is being tall enough to watch kielbasa we’d get from the local Fall River butcher simmering in a frying pan, picturing in my mind how much I’d be able to get away with eating without my mom getting mad,” Johnson said.
According to Kielbania, the 2014 Kielbasa Fest drew more than 20,000 people to Chicopee’s Szot Park. That’s a number he’s looking to more than double when he extends the event to five days around Memorial Day weekend in 2015. For more information on discounts on advance tix, kindly point your browser to k-fest.com.
The Learn Your Three Rs Award: Too many to list
The Crawler isn’t sure if they were reunited and it felt so good, but at least Electrik Blue & The Kozmik Truth, Wicked Garden, Split Shift and Medicated Savage were among the area acts that returned in 2014. While most appeared to be one-offs, all of the above have never said never and Medicated is confirmed to play HOTHFEST at Holyoke’s Waterfront Jan. 10-11.
The second R — “resurrected,” goes to Noho’s One Bar & Grill (onebarandgrill) for quelling concerns that the sale of the former Tully O’Reillys/The Elevens earlier this year could mean silence in what was a sonic sanctuary for local live music. Since purchasing the venue this summer, new owners Matt Gibbs and Lauren Pomponio have increasingly infused their entertainment calendar with live bands, and they played a prominent role in Noho’s First Night.
The last R — re-naming: In a “bold, anti-marketing move, we decided to effectively undo any brand recognition built in our 13 years of School for the Dead by changing our name to Gentle Hen,” band member Henning Ohlenbusch declared earlier this year. Guess the fans were game for the change, as Gentle Hen (gentlehen.com) landed a coveted slot on the David Bowie tribute night bill at the Iron Horse Jan. 8, which also includes Lord Russ, Wishbone Zoe and Rusty Belle, to name a choice few.
The Savage Love Award: Tom Savage & The Savage Brothers Band
New England’s first family of party rock passed a musical milestone and mourned the loss of a founding member in 2014. This past June, the brothers celebrated three decades of sibling revelry. On Dec. 21, singer/saxophonist Tom Savage lost his battle with cancer. The beloved band manager and South Windsor, Conn. middle school music teacher was 52.•
Send correspondence to Nightcrawler, P.O. box 427, Somers, CT 06071; fax to (860) 394-4262 or email garycarra@aol.com.
