Music
by Henning Ohlenbusch | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
How are music scenes born? How does a school of artists form? From collaboration and proximity, I think. We live in a valley. The walls of the teeny mountains keep us all close together. Put a bunch of friendly musicians in a room with some instruments and they will...
by Tom Mahnken | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
When I owned a recording studio in Northampton, I really got to see just how much music is around this valley. I could have stayed open 24/7 and never run out of clients—without taking away business from any other studio! We saw everything from Gobblehoof and...
by Ed Vadas | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
I believe that if I were to become a player in today's Valley scene… I would limit myself to playing in my garage or room. I feel sorry for all the people who are really trying to get their thing going… because there are so little places to go, and for...
by David Lenson | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
Here's a tawdry little tale: the tip bucket is on the side table, and after a few bucks have been dunked, the blind guy comes up to it. We've been watching him for weeks, suspecting he may be making withdrawals rather than deposits. We end the song and the...
by Ray Mason | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
Some humorous observations on being a 58-year old independent musician in the Valley (or anywhere for that matter). Requirements include:1) Putting out your own CDs and sitting at the kitchen table (preferably at 2 a.m.) stuffing envelopes with discs one at a time...
by Matthew Hebert | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
The Valley just lost a key member of its music scene when Bruce Tull decided to move back home to Oklahoma. Bruce was a vital part of the late Scud Mountain Boys as well as Lo fine and my band Haunt. He has also produced and played on countless local records. He will...
by L. Smith | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
Somehow, during the Loud Music Festival, my bass went missing. Lost or stolen—who knows? It was one of those confusing and blurry load-outs from the Baystate. One bandmate had a bad back, and the others were off flirting or getting the last, last call for...
by Mark Sheehan | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
I put together an annual show called The Happy Valley Showdown. It was an introdution of the up-and-coming garage bands loosely disguised as a Battle of the Indie Bands to get people out on a series of Sunday Nights in the dead of winter. I wanted to bridge the gap...
by Thane Thomsen | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
Picture this: A row of over 100 policemen in full riot gear lined up inside the high chain linked fence of Westover Air Force Base; outside the fence, a row of about 100 demonstrators sitting cross-legged, waiting to be arrested; also outside the fence and beyond the...
by Mark Alan Miller | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
The crazy, sincere, lovely, misaligned and blessed thing about being a "music professional" in the Pioneer Valley has to be, for me, the diversity of music. Where, outside of a major city (with all the negatives that go along with being in a major city,...
by Lisa Palumbo | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
I've participated in the Northampton music scene as a public school music teacher, a shape-note singer, fronting my own band when feeling bold enough to play my own tunes, a brief member of the Holyoke Civic Symphony (on clarinet), most recently, dressed in a red...
by Brian Marchese | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
Thane Thomsen and I witnessed time doubling up on itself. While some of the previous musical generations will always grumble, "It ain't like it was," I count myself among those who are psyched about the scene whenever it renews itself. Before the Sierra...
by Erica Wheeler | Sep 25, 2008 | Music
When I was a budding songwriter in the late '80s, I considered the Iron Horse my graduate school. Putting implicit trust in Jordi Herold's opinion of whom to catch, I was fortunate enough to see people like Lucinda Willams, Shawn Colvin, Suzanne Vega and Mary...
by Advocate staff | Oct 2, 2008 | Music
Lonesome BrothersThe Last CD(Captivating Music)Don't let the fancy-pants packaging fool you—the seventh Lonesome Brothers album is another tasty helping of twangy, down-home goodness. The Last CD once again features Ray Mason and Jim Armenti sharing...
by John Allen | Oct 2, 2008 | Music
The BBB's were born in a former drug-drop biker hangout known as Knightly's Pub in Easthampton. It had been taken over by a jolly giant known as "Big Marty." He had hands the size of pizzas and a big face with a permanent grin. Marty was a generous,...
by Gary Carra | Oct 2, 2008 | Music
It worked for Streisand. And goodness knows Cher has gotten more than her share of mileage out of a seemingly endless string of "farewell" engagements.But seriously, Lonesome Brothers, is your latest release, The Last CD, truly the proverbial studio swan...
by James Heflin | Oct 2, 2008 | Music
Last week, we announced your picks for Grand Band Slam winners, and our editor’s picks. It’s a large and well-rounded crop of bands, if only a small portion of the Valley’s near-infinite roster. This week, you can see some 30 of those bands hit the...
by Sarah Gibbons | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
Apparently, a notable community sing took place in the 1920s, bringing Northamptonites together and forcing them to spill off the lawn of Forbes Library, onto West Street. While the takeover of a thoroughfare today, regardless of how good-spirited, might be treated as...
by Tony Vacca | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
I've been in the Valley for over three decades, and I've seen it transform from a group of quiet New England towns into a mecca of culture. It seems to me that the big attraction is the "everything is possible" vibe that this place has taken on. It...
by Kurt Fedora | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
Back in the early '90s, going on yet another shoestring van tour across the states, we [Gobblehoof] decided to supplement our meager earnings with some crappy merch, namely hand-dyed and silkscreened Ts. We dyed cheap T-shirts red and black, though the...
by Jose Ayerve | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
In the Spring of 2001, I initiated the First Annual Coaxial Music Festival in Northampton. I had officially been living in the area for about a year. I had moved here from my previous home, Portland, Maine. I wanted to bring bands together from both locations. I had a...
by Neal Robinson | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
As a result of working where I do [The Iron Horse], I am exposed, sometimes subjected, to many different types of live music. The result of seeing thousands of shows over a dozen years has left me a bit jaded (Wynton Marsalis again!?! Wasn't he just here?),...
by Amy Fairchild | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
I consider Northampton my musical home. When I left college in '89, it was to stop studying music and to start making it. My CD release party at the Iron Horse in 1994 is probably one of the best and most defining moments of my time there in the Valley. I had been...
by J. J. O'Connell | Oct 6, 2008 | Music
My professional life is paint by day, drum by night. We paint anything from million-dollar homes to low-income apartments, and I play in a few bands from the Valley (my all-time high was 7 bands at once-crazy). Last year, I was in Slaughterhouse Studios at night...
by Junko Suzuki | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
[Junko disclaims: "Sorry my English is messed up!"] I'm from Japan and my adventure started from 2000. I got a vision about my band Cyclub under the night sky in the beautiful woods in Massachusetts. I had been very sick by detoxification from medicine...
by Ras Jahn W. Bullock | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
I am a reggae musician. I run a recording studio called Caboose2Zion. I have played in Loose Caboose for 30 years. I also started a reggae festival in 1985. It is called the Charlemont Reggae Festival. This event always takes place on the first Saturday after Labor...
by F. Alex Johnson | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
Confidence. For a week now I've been trying to come up with a defining characteristic for the community I am part of. We don't really have a sound. We don't really have a dialect. We don't really have a dress code. We don't really have an overt...
by Rani Arbo | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
In the mid 1990s, I was working in Northampton as an editor, gigging with my band (Salamander Crossing, back then) on the weekends and playing old-time music in Pulaski Park on my lunch hours. My friend Paul Newlin often stole away from his Northampton office to...
by John O'Boyle | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
In my 20-plus years as a performer, I've seen some pretty interesting things. It's kind of funny-what really strikes me is not how much has changed, but how much has remained the same. Clubs, bands, booking agents, the crowds, etc. It's really not that...
by Evelyn Harris | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
Whenever I walk onto a stage or a pulpit, everyone knows its time to make music. Where my music lives is a sacred place for transforming lives and stations. Where my music takes me is a journey to purpose and power. I want you to come and go with me to that...
by Scott | Oct 7, 2008 | Music
I started out by hanging out with my friends who were in bands, helping them out as roadie, and eventually promoting music. Back in 1992 I was working as a stage manger at Katina's in Hadley. Dream Theater played there one night, James LaBrie, the singer at the...
by Jim Neill | Oct 8, 2008 | Music
I love the face time with the "talent," walking artists over to WRSI for in-studios; getting a chance to banter a bit. I'm no longer starstruck after all these years, but it's still somehow exciting to meet these people who have woven through my life...
by Gary Carra | Oct 9, 2008 | Music
Far be it from the Nightcrawler to over-scrutinize& but with the upcoming election, heightened security and all, is this really the best time for Ireland's Mark Geary to be shipping his Opium stateside?Considering the fact that the poppy-inspired title has...
by Ella Longpre | Oct 9, 2008 | Music
It's not often that a resident of Pittsfield's Irish sister city, Ballina, wins Ireland's version of American Idol—so when Liam Geddes, the 17-year-old sensation who makes Donny Osmond look like Jack Palance, came out on top in Irish Idol, he chose...
by Valley Advocate Staff | Oct 9, 2008 | Music
The Valley Advocate thanks the many bands, businesses and Valley music fans for making this year's Grand Band Slam one of the biggest and most successful ever. The all-day, all-night event included over thirty bands on three stages, many of whom had just won this...
by Gary Carra | Oct 16, 2008 | Music
Are New York's The Spring Standards the new standard in DIY business practices? To all outward appearances. Without the aid of a publisher or label, the harmony-heavy indie/folk-rockers have achieved more than many of their well-financed counterparts—opening...
by Advocate staff | Oct 16, 2008 | Music
CantripPiping the Fish(Mischief Records)The word "cantrip" refers to both a magical spell and a deception. It's also the name of a Scottish quartet whose new album will make you think someone must have cast a spell to keep this superb band from garnering...
by Matthew Dube | Oct 16, 2008 | Music
Springfield rock outfit Watcher describes Into the Woods, the band's soon-to-be-released debut, as a mirror reflecting the nature of the group. "It's diverse, which reflects who we are as a band," explains drummer "Rudy" Karen Renaud....
by Kendra Thurlow | Oct 16, 2008 | Music
Singer/songwriter Justin Levinson was introduced to music at an early age by his father, a popular Vermont music teacher. After enjoying regional success during high school with his band Subside, Levinson went on to earn his bachelor's degree in composition from...
by Matthew Dube | Oct 16, 2008 | Music
For Springfield rock band Flock and Field, playing shows in Northampton was like being a youngster transplanted to a new town. "We felt like the new kid in school who doesn't know his place," says guitarist, singer, and main songwriter D.A. Bassett....
by Gary Carra | Oct 23, 2008 | Music
Hard to believe it's that time again. But here they come—an assorted mix of kooks masquerading as things they are not in the never-ending quest for bags of loot. Nothing like Election Day in America.The more local promoter Joel Jizzol thought about it, the...
by Kendra Thurlow | Oct 23, 2008 | Music
School Street Bistro, dubbed "the Place to Be" and located in the heart of Westfield, is an upscale eatery offering lunch Monday through Friday, dinner seven nights per week, and live music Friday through Sunday. Although the bistro just welcomed new owners,...
by Tom Sturm | Oct 23, 2008 | Music
Walking into the Blue House Cafe in Haydenville is one of the most genuine (well, except for the free wi-fi) old New England experiences one can have in the Valley. It has a vibe somewhere between that of a Vermont sugarhouse and the legendary Alice's Restaurant,...
by Advocate staff | Oct 23, 2008 | Music
High PlacesHigh Places(Thrill Jockey)All bets are off when the debut from this duo starts. Sounds sizzle and wiggle like a sonic heat haze. Hand claps, insectoid rattlings, hypnotic drones, artfully minced melodic patterns and sandblasted string samples accumulate in...
by Kendra Thurlow | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
The Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield opened its doors for business on September 28, 1903, with a performance of the operetta Robin Hood by the Bostonians, a prominent touring group of the day. The 810-seat theater was designed by prolific architect J.B....
by James Heflin | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
Perhaps it reveals the number of years on my clock, but I was nonetheless thrilled that Island Records just re-released expanded versions of three of the most important albums of my youth: U2's Boy, October and War. The albums, all released in the early '80s,...
by Gary Carra | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
It's not exactly a night at the Apollo. But it will feature the Berklee-hatched trio Apollo Sunshine at the famed Iron Horse Music Hall. Even though said Sunshine band has burst onto the international scene with the recent release of Shall Noise Upon—a...
by Advocate Staff | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
FredrikNa Na Ni(Kora)Fredrik's debut is a tasty blend of cello, guitars and keyboard with some surprises here and there (like accordion, and drums that churn in the background instead of thumping up front). Other percussion bobs and weaves subtly, as bells round...
by James Heflin | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
The word "eroica" is Italian for "heroic," and the three women of the Eroica Trio have proven fairly heroic themselves—they're Grammy winners, and they've even got their own Grand Marnier-based cocktail. The much-praised piano trio...
by Matthew Dube | Oct 30, 2008 | Music
The members of Thrillpillow figured out early in the band's existence that they didn't need more than a few scant seconds to get their point across. The Valley quartet has built its foundation on a repertoire of sub-two-minute tunes that are more emotive sonic...
by Valley Advocate Staff | Nov 6, 2008 | Music
The JimeRockabilly Beat(Rockabilly Music)Rockabilly may seem like just another half-dead genre, a relic of the age of pompadours and Bel Airs. In the right hands, of course, old genres stay vibrant and manage to sound contemporary and old-fashioned at the same time....
by by Sarah Gibbons | Nov 6, 2008 | Music
Jim White has eyebrows for days. Dark, soulful, brooding eyebrows. So it makes sense that from him comes a mixture of deep, plunking strings, drippy harmonica and easy steel guitar. He sounds like a mix between David Byrne and Neil Young, and White's Southern...
by Gary Carra | Nov 6, 2008 | Music
They've got more hooks than your dad's tacklebox. More harmonies than the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Set your stop watches to three minutes and 30 seconds, because the Poppies are coming, the Poppies.No, not those poppies. In fact, the opium-bearing poppy plant...
by Matthew Dube | Nov 6, 2008 | Music
Some bands are carefully constructed, forged by combining years of experience, planning and development. Others are formed on a whim: instant band, just add water. Or alcohol, as the case may be. Rabbit Rabbit is a testament to the latter template.It began at a house...
by Jamila Gorejeff | Nov 13, 2008 | Music
Blues/folk rocker Toshi Reagon and slam poet Staceyann Chin team up to benefit the Institute for the Musical Arts in Goshen this week. Both artists, who live in Brooklyn, New York, profess to have gained great strength from the women in their families. Reagon's...
by Matthew Dube | Nov 13, 2008 | Music
Eric Cunha is not a megalomaniac. Yes, his band is named after him; but unlike artists like Bon Jovi, Van Halen or Dio, who conceitedly gave their rock outfits their own surnames, someone else is to thank—or blame—for coining his group's moniker,...
by Advocate staff | Nov 13, 2008 | Music
Blitzen TrapperFurr(Sub Pop)Blitzen Trapper's fourth full-length ditches the genre-hopping mix-tape approach of previous albums and settles into the realm of damaged pop. The band spins yarns of rambling killers, moon-walking cowboys and lovelorn wolves, laying...
by Tom Sturm | Nov 13, 2008 | Music
Though Daddy's Junky Music is a chain, like Friendly's or Boston Market, it's distinctly New England, and each location comes with its own personable, locally-attuned staff who, for the most part, are attentive and know what they're talking about....
by Kendra Thurlow | Nov 13, 2008 | Music
On most Thursday nights, patrons and passersby can hear the unmistakable sounds of jazz wafting out of Sam's Pizza, one of the newer businesses to acquire a Main Street, Northampton address (and perhaps one of the few who've demonstrated staying power thus...
by James Heflin | Nov 20, 2008 | Music
Just to clear this up: Mississippi Jon Short seems to be neither from Mississippi nor particularly short. It's also clear that the accidentally perfect imprecision of prewar Delta blues can't really be replicated, no matter one's provenance or...
