Nightcrawler
‘E’-asy Come.. ‘E’-asy Go: The Big E’s final weekend and more
Still haven’t secured your Maine baked spud or lobster-laden Mac N’ Cheese from the New Hampshire building? Better hurry. Its almost time to shepherd the Clydesdales back into the trailers and put the burlap sacks of the Giant Slide in mothballs. But that...
Nightcrawler: Ringo’s son assumes throne for The Who
The Who certainly aren’t kids anymore, but the iconic British rockers proved more than alright as they absolutely tore through a 21-tune, hit-laden set before a capacity crowd at Mohegan Sun (mohegansun.com) late last month. Catalog spanning radio staples like “I...
Nightcrawler: Panic Room
Panic! at the Disco ushering in new era of arena rockers; Dio-alum laden Last In Line headline ‘Hump Day’ show in Holyoke It’s a frequent exchange between those who once swung Bics to-and-fro during power ballads and teased their hair so high they...
Nightcrawler: Going Gentle Into That Good Night
After more than two decades delivering the music news in print, Nightcrawler moves online Editor’s Note: Scene stalwart Gary Carra’s Nightcrawler column has long been a fixture at the Valley Advocate — a history that goes back, as he explains here, to the bygone era...
Nightcrawler: Country First
This week, a few of the Valley’s more notable country boys will slap on their Stetsons and give the scene a swift, cowboy boot to the posterior. First out of the gate: on Friday Jan. 13, Trailer Trash will serve up heaping portions of modern country rock at Holyoke’s...
Nightcrawler: It’s Not Yuuuge – It’s Jewmongous
Sean Altman was best known as a member of the a capella singing group Rockapella, which had a recurring role on the PBS television show Where In The World Is Carmen San Diego? from 1991 to 1995. Since then, based on Altman’s website, he’s been mugging with former...
Nightcrawler: Saying Adios to ‘El Tony’ Cruz Reyes
Longtime radio personality Mike “Haze” DeJesus’s tale of his first meeting with Springfield-area rockers Hypnotic Kick smacks of a tacky joke set up. “Eighteen years ago, three Puerto Rican gents and an Irish lad walked into the radio station,” he recalled. “I was a...
Nightcrawler: Talkin’ Turkey
Thanksgiving Eve is roundly considered one of the busiest bar days of the year. True to form, this Wednesday, Nov. 23, finds the Valley circuit smattered with live entertainment offerings.Country rockers Trailer Trash will be holding court at Chicopee’s Maximum...
Nightcrawler: Kiss and Time
Can you rock and roll all night and still be home for the 11 o’clock news? The Crawler did — just a couple of Saturdays ago at Mohegan Sun. KISS may be known for their outlandish make-up, ghoulish antics, and fist-pumping anthems. But behind all the greasepaint, the...
Nightcrawler: Last (Friday) Impressions
Most people get paid on it. A few don’t eat meat on it. Ice Cube makes movies about it. Some thank God for it. Others create restaurant chains derived from that acronym … But that’s the last Friday reference, promise. And speaking of last Fridays:...
Emo Core
He has played multiple instruments, in multiple bands, for multiple decades. The sum total of all these multiples? Scene stalwart Henning Ohlenbusch has played with or supported acts of almost every genre in his prolific career. Rock, pop, surf, psychedelic… You...
Nightcrawler: The Big E … DM
Any calendar will tell you Sept. 22, is the official date of the fall equinox — which is fine, for those astronomically-correct types. But this year, I prefer to think of the solstice as happening on Oct. 2 when the Big E in West Springfield hosts an EDM concert...
Nightcrawler: Weather or Not
Could you be… won’t you be… my neighbor? It’s an indelible marriage of image and song performed daily by Fred Rogers on Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood as he shed his business casual attire and slipped into his favorite sweater and sneaks. He was an...
Nightcrawler: VIP, Yeah, You Know Me
He is certainly a scene fixture, clocking more than his share of road miles and hours packed in vans. But let’s face it: the guy’s named after a luxury vehicle, not to mention immensely talented. So why wouldn’t a talent buyer tap the Valley’s...
Nightcrawler: Eric Gaffney Plays Free Saturday Show in Florence
Seba-(no)-dough Show Eric Gaffney says sayonara to summer with free Florence show Sebadoh co-founder Eric Gaffney rounds out the Acoustic Saturday Summer Series at JJ’s Tavern in Florence this Saturday, Aug. 27. “I recorded two full-length records in a six...
Nightcrawler: Rock the Boot
Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Thomas Delmer “Artimus” Pyle comes to the Valley this Saturday, Aug. 20. He’ll be performing with his Artimus Pyle Band and their “ultimate tribute to Ronnie Van Zandt’s Lynyrd Skynyrd” as part of the Rock The Boot Music Fest,...
Nightcrawler: It’s Been Awhile
Five years ago, homegrown rocker and country boy Aaron Lewis was teed off about the impending consolidation of his children’s school. True to form, he swiftly rose above the rhetoric to form his own nonprofit, the It Takes A Community Foundation, and reopened...
Nightcrawler: Root Effect
Musician and artist Wendell Rheinheimer, the owner of Moonlight Designs screenprinting in Easthampton, has been doing a little moonlighting of his own in recent months. The fruits of a new collaborative effort with his partner, organic vegetable farmer Shana Totino,...
Nightcrawler: Give ‘Em The Slip
Slip-not seeks new skin beater; Splitshift, FNB celebrate sonic milestone Local tribute band Slip-not will be marching to the beat of a different drummer — er, clown? — if they can find the right basher to fill the oversized shoes of departing Joshua Keller....
Nightcrawler: The Name Game
SWMRS boasts unique punk pedigree What’s in a name? The members of SWMRS are barely in their 20s and can already claim quite a lot. Reportedly inspired by watching Jack Black and his homage to headbanging — the film School of Rock — together in...
Nightcrawler: (Sex) Change-Up
Pocketful of Sexchange reunites scene staples The Pixies’ Frank Black famously referenced them as a “dangerously untethered band specializing in abandon and dementia.” They’ve also shared stages with area upstarts The Unband and Fountains of...
Nightcrawler: (Holly) Miranda Writes
Carrots enhance the eyesight. Spinach helps you grow big and strong. And cranberries … make you rock?”It’s how I learned to play guitar back when I was 14,” explains the 33-year-old singer-songwriter Holly Miranda. “I was on a...
Nightcrawler: Who’s rocking the stage at this weekend’s International Food Fest
By Gary Carra In 2014, Thomas Kielbania Jr. revived Chicopee’s storied Kielbasa Festival after a nearly two-decade hiatus. Now, he’s reinventing it – and renaming it, and relocating it – to West Springfield, for what’s shaping up to be a...
Nightcrawler: Noho’s Betsy-Dawn Williams releases international rockabilly record; free, family concerts kick off in West Springfield
By Gary Carra Forget about the unemployment rates and bleak economic forecasts from the usual cast of politicos and pundits. Northampton’s Betsy-Dawn Williams says she has proof positive it’s a bull market out there. “I’ve just been signed for...
Nightcrawler: Vampire Diaries
An interview with Joe Perry, Aerosmith vet and member of the Johnny Depp-led band Hollywood Vampires Gary Carra: Joe – big fan. I’ve been kicking around Western Mass for a quarter-century now, either playing music or writing music, so of course I’ve come across...
Nightcrawler: ‘Hole’-d Up
Sutherland swaps silver screen for six-string; Gartska jams with guitar gods… briefly He was a “Lost Boy.” A “Young Gun.” One of “A Few Good Men” to enjoy a three decade career on both the silver and small screens alike. But...
Nightcrawler: Decade-dence, 90s pop, 80s rock and Guns N bobbleheads
Better call Mr. Peabody and Sherman. Looks like someone’s gotten a hold of the Wayback Machine.First stop: Foxwoods Resort Casino’s Grand Theater this Friday, April 29. Not only will female hip-hop heavyweights Salt-n-Pepa be there, but so will literal heavyweight Biz...
Nightcrawler: Mercury Rising Queen For A Night in Springfield; Foxwoods’ Battle Of The Bands Seeks Combatants
By Gary Carra There’s been a growing trend in tribute circles over the past decade. While the songs remain the same for bands like Zep-licators Get The Led Out (coming to Holyoke’s Mountain Park Aug. 5) and Billy Joel recreators Big Shot, the need to physically look...
Nightcrawler: Kobra Kai Ready for a Body Bag? 80s cover kings strike Whiskerz, but then what? Outer Stylie Puzzle
A little more than a month ago, the Valley’s own Jon Donais arrived in Chile, Santiago. He had flown in with his present band, hardcore heroes Anthrax, along with headliners Iron Maiden on “Ed Force One” — an aircraft infamous in aviational circles for both its “Book...
Nightcrawler: A Not-So-Bright Idea, Matthew Larsen, Mitchells go back to the Dark ages; Green River Festival
Everyone wants to be a Renaissance man, in a Renaissance band … or at very least, ensconced in a scene or city that has been awarded the “Renaissance” brand.But Matthew Larsen is kicking it old school — back to the “dark” ages, one could say.Back in 2006 while still...
Nightcrawler: Miracle Men, Legion reunites; Valley Talent Showcase in full swing
By all accounts, regional college rockers Miracle Legion had a miraculous 13-year run, scoring rave reviews and even regular rotation flirtations with MTV back in the heyday. In 1996, however, they released a disc the band now affectionately refers to as their “swan...
Nightcrawler: Home Bodies
Eclectic sextet Bella’s Bartok reports that they drastically changed up their recording style for the new full-length Change Yer Life, the completion of which they will celebrate this Saturday, March 26 at Pearl Street.They’ve cut out the middle men and,...
Nightcrawler: Storm Front, New England notables converge on Max Cap; is Tony Sitler about to rock with AC/DC?
A “Perfect Storm” is slated to touch down at Chicopee’s Maximum Capacity this Saturday, March 19. Sorry, Walmart, but there will be no need for folks to stock up on water, batteries, flashlights,Vaseline or whatever else all those alarmist types go scurrying around...
Nightcrawler: Leppard Spotting
The Hysteria On The High Seas luxury liner had already left port when Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott came up mute — a case of laryngitis leaving him unable to take the mic for his boatload of fans. Luckily, crewmate Andrew Freeman was equal to the task. The Valley...
Nightcrawler: Bluesman Group Therapy, musicians reflect on the passing of Ed Vadas, Shea’s back
Tom Mahnken never performed with noted bluesman Ed Vadas & his Fabulous Heavyweights. And, truth be told, he ended up doing just fine with his own Trailer Park band. But on the eve of Vadas’ passing Feb. 18, the Trailer Park frontman fondly recalls his brief...
Nightcrawler: Holyoke’s Waterfront set for a rebirth?, Sage King’s debut album
The future of Holyoke’s Waterfront Tavern seemed murky at best a few months ago. Just when it appeared the historic venue would be pulling the plug altogether, rumors of a strategic alliance began to swirl. Last week, however, Donald Robert of Maximum Capacity...
Lazer-like Focus: 99.3 FM’s Leslie speaks Stern, sweets, and cheap cologne
Between corporate takeovers, format changes and, quite literally, the omnipresent threat of satellites looming overhead, the average life expectancy of local radio stations these days seems to only slightly exceed that of say, a Betta fish. Set that gloomy backdrop to...
Nightcrawler: Ashes To Ashes, Dust to (Ziggy Star) dust
As evidenced by the recent, massive outpouring by fans and contemporaries alike, David Robert Jones — better known as David Bowie — touched generations the world over. In fact, some would go so far to say that the Starman may have even possessed intergalactic...
Nightcrawler: Troubled Water(front)?
With some 30 heavy bands hailing from the world over, Hothfest 2016 organizers decided to jump ship on their originally scheduled venue. At the time, the future of Holyoke’s Waterfront Tavern was just too uncertain. “It’s Jamie Cross’ show, and with the future of the...
Nightcrawler: Crushing It
Lori McKenna hit the musical trifecta earlier this month with a song she penned for the group Little Big Town. “Girl Crush” premiered at number one on Billboard’s Hot Country 100 back in December of 2014. Last month, it won “Song of the Year” at the 49th annual...
Nightcrawler: Mass Appeal
Gathering of the Vibes founder Ken Hayes recently announced that after achieving 20 years and record breaking attendance this past summer, he has decided to take 2016 off. “This is not the end my friends,” he wrote in an open, online letter to the Vibe Tribe. “It’s...
Nightcrawler: Zullo Nation, reggae rockers unite to pay homage to The Alchemystics’ Demse Zullo
By definition, alchemy is a medieval chemical science and speculative philosophy aiming to achieve the transmutation of base metals into gold. Whether it be with the band the Alchemystics band he co-founded back in 2003, the band Bay Rd he inspired while working at...
Nightcrawler: Fade to Black(out)
What was supposed to be a triumphant new chapter in a prolific career turned tragic. Then a tribute. For more than two decades, Keith Hopkinson’s howl could be heard soaring over such circuit regulars as The Smacktones and Black Cat Frenzy. On Friday, Nov. 20, his...
Nightcrawler: Green for the Blues, a benefit for Ed Vadas, catching up with the Yardbirds
Myelodysplastic syndrome — commonly referred to as MDS — is literally bad to the bone. It affects bone marrow resulting in an inadequate supply of healthy white and red blood cells in the process. Scene stalwart Ed Vadas is presently combatting said condition....
Nightcrawler: You Might Have Heard of Him
Oklahoma-based singer-songwriter John Moreland stops by Noho’s Parlor Room this Friday, Nov. 13, in support of his latest sonic labor of love. The new disc is called High on Tulsa Heat, and its arrival earlier this year was eagerly anticipated thanks in great part to...
Nightcrawler: Out of the Shadows
Springfield-based metal-meisters Shadows Fall have had the hardcore community scratching its collective, shoulder-length locks-laden heads in recent months. Shortly after announcing an “indefinite hiatus,” frontman Brian Fair clarified that the sonic suspension may...Jones strips down; Pomeroy and Laine; Halloween shows
While new wave icon Howard Jones’ Nov. 4 Iron Horse show will be engaging, it will not be Engage, the crowd-funded multimedia project he recently performed in London, LA, and New York that includes interactive smartphone apps for audience members, specially...
Live Hive: Christine Ohlman’s in town
She’s spent many a Saturday night in New York City. Kinda comes with the turf when you sing lead vocals in the Saturday Night Live Band as Christine Ohlman did in the ’90s — an honor that literally gave her a front row seat to Sinead O’Connor’s papal paper rip and...
Nightcrawler: Are You Lonesome Tonight?
Were it not for the marking of a certain sonic milestone, The Lonesome Brothers’ appearance at the Iron Horse this weekend couldn’t be more business as usual. Another weekend, some original tunes from their catalog of more than 100, another venue. “Basically, the gist...
Nightcrawler: Don’t Worry; Be Hoppy, band brewfests, Frehley manages to one-up the blood moon
Fans of suds ’n’ sounds will find no shortage of occurrences in which to quench their multi-sensory cravings this weekend. On Saturday, Oct. 10, at the King Phillips Stockade at 1200 West Columbus Ave., in Springfield, Log Cabin/Delaney House and Samuel Adams will...
Nightcrawler: Media Darlings, Darlingside celebrates latest sonic labor of love; Gates open for Holyoke performers
Bay State quartet Darlingside have become veritable media darlings in their just over half a decade of existence. Their lush, harmony-laden amalgam of indie folk rock garners kudos as steadily and readily as “Dump Trump’’ petition signatures at a Cinco De Mayo party....
Nightcrawler: Getting Benched, rockers unite for rail trail and Alzheimer’s benefit, Kansas’ David Ragsdale
Most folks remember Gary Biardi as a man whose love of the outdoors was rivaled only by his passion for music. This Sunday, Sept. 27, no less than two dozen of the Valley’s most local notables — including Mark Schwaber, Alex Meisner, J.J. O’Connell, and Jeff Turcotte...
Nightcrawler: ‘Color’ By Numbers
There may be record sunshine outside this September, but inside the area music circuit, the forecast is for winds of change. Not the least of which can be found in Colorway, a fairly new vehicle for the words and music of scene stalwart Alex Johnson. The band will be...
Nightcrawler: Gathering Steam, Steampunk-fueled festivities and Salloom’s streak of no-dough shows
Dennis Miller has a great line concerning the masses and social media: “Never have lives so less lived been so well chronicled.” While that idea is equal parts funny and true, the first annual Springfield Steampunk Festival was conceived in precisely the inverse...
Nightcralwer: Pamper the Band
Bands and eight balls. How cliche can you get? But egg ball? Do tell, Rubblebucket! “It’s basically a combination of dodgeball and volleyball,” the band explains of their favorite downtime game in the premiere webisode of Pamper The Band. And that’s exactly the type...
Nightcralwer: King for a Day
Since he’s a lifelong Valley resident — not to mention a veritable scene stalwart — one would think Jeff King would know his way around the area by now. The Crawler caught up with the journeyman musician to inquire about his recent radio appearance, however, and it...
Nightcrawler: Apple Jame pairs a picnic with high-caliber acts; MTrain tour permanents derailed
The Apple Jam Roots Music Festival stems from what was once little more than a backyard picnic on a family property. On the back of the sonic spread that accompanied the annual Russell-based shindig, however, Apple has blossomed into a coveted festival stop for many a...
Nightcrawler: Giving Them the Slip
Several songs into their Aug. 2 Hartford, Connecticut concert, the nu-metal shock rockers of Slipknot had a choice to make. Their bassist, Alessandro “Vman” Venturella, had just collapsed due to an “unknown medical emergency” (later to be diagnosed as severe...
Nightcrawler: Springfield Jazz & Roots Festival; rockers support ‘Nellie’s Knockers’
She married into the first family of jazz, forever linking her to the Big Easy. In recent years, however, Kristin Neville says that she has reconnected with Basketball City U.S.A. And when community leader Evan Plotkin informed her that Springfield’s Hoop City...E-Edition
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