by | Dec 16, 2021 3:26 pm | Comments (11)
Courtney Luciana Photos
Rapper Dustystaystrue back at Barnard Thursday after a national tour.
Five hundred students gathered in the courtyard of Barnard Environmental Science and Technology School roared with excitement Thursday morning as Dustystaytrue’s “Never Change” blared from the speakers — and the rising rapper himself arrived on scene.
by | Dec 16, 2021 9:25 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Sketch Tha Cataclysm
Four indie hip hop acts connected with the New Haven-based Fake Four record label made good on Cafe Nine’s nickname of the musicians’ living room by holding a show Wednesday night that felt personal and familiar, even as the acts themselves hailed from as close as the Elm City, and as far away as Dallas.
by | Dec 15, 2021 9:31 am | Comments (0)
Before the electric guitars, before the bass, before even the drums, vocalist and guitarist Travis Shettel of the beloved Boston-based emo band Piebald opened the band’s set Tuesday night Space Ballroom alone, with a quiet rendition of Mel Tormé’s and Bob Wells’s classic “The Christmas Song.” It was a small moment of calm in a night filled with raging rock. But in the sincerity of its emotions, and its connection with the audience, it fit right in.
Continue reading ‘Three Bands Rock The Holidays At Space Ballroom’
by | Dec 14, 2021 9:14 am | Comments (3)
From the start of Junk, the debut album from The Problem With Kids Today, it’s all wrong, and that’s what makes it right. Four chops from an electric guitar at the beginning of the first song, “You’re In Love With Junk,” are supposed to set the tempo, but they don’t. The drums insist on a faster tempo, the guitar falling in. What follows is just over two minutes of building mayhem, as a heavy riff gives way to barking vocals. It’s pure party. But there’s something else going on, too.
Continue reading ‘The Problem With Kids Today Bottles The Energy On "Junk"’
by | Dec 13, 2021 9:14 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photos
The Hulls
Celebrating tens: That is what a slew of local music fans did this past Friday night at The State House for the 10th anniversary of Deck the Hulls, the annual holiday fundraiser event hosted by local punk legends The Hulls.
The tradition began at Rudy’s and proceeded to Three Sheets. It ended up this year at the State Street club, where the band was joined by two always-ready-to-party New Haven bands, The Simulators and The Right Offs, to raise money and collect food for a good cause while also gathering friends to get the holidays off to a spirited start.
Monetary donations as well as canned goods were accepted at the door for CT Foodshare (formerly know as CT Food Bank) while Christmas music played overhead and attendees greeted each other after a year off due to Covid closures.
First to the stage was The Simulators, six members strong and ready to get the audience good and warm. A fun and feisty set of rocking reggae-ska-punk felt like a party that welcomed any and all to attend. Guitarists Kevin MacKenzie and Julian Wahlberg traded off vocals and riffs while Frederic Anthony and Zachary Yost kept the beat tight on drums and bass and Cody Freedom and Brian Koopman shared saxophone duties. Together they melded into a smooth sweet sound that got the steadily building crowd to move around, though MacKenzie also egged the crowd on by telling them to “shake your booties.”
MacKenzie also thanked The Hulls for “putting this on,” to which Wahlberg countered with “you just thanked yourself, I think” — in reference to MacKenzie being a member of The Hulls as well. The crowd laughed, loving every minute of this set, which Wahlberg had mentioned earlier marked the band’s first show at The State House. And the celebration had only just begun.
“Good evening. We’re The Right Offs. How you doing?” said Maxwell Omer, guitarist and vocalist of the hard rocking trio, rounded out by Than Rolnick on bass and vocals and Robert Breychak on drums. The band immediately exploded into a stellar set of beloved originals that felt fresh and new again, complemented by a couple of holiday tunes that sparkled with the band’s indelible sound.
Omer mentioned he was having a “hard time getting into the Christmas spirit,” but you would have never known that given the way he stomped and strutted through Chuck Berry’s “Run, Run Rudolph.” The band was joined on bells by The Simulators’ Cody Freedom, dressed in an elf hat and holiday sweater, adding a healthy dose of cheer to an already super-fun tune.
With some of the hardest driving beats around, guitar licks that sailed into the stratosphere, and lyrical songs like “Fire in the Theater” and “Post Bone Savvy,” the Right Offs’ set felt almost celebratory and definitively anthemic. The band mentioned recently on social media that they have only a couple shows left before they take a break. I suggest getting to one of those if you too are feeling the need to be rescued from the holiday blues.
The Hulls came to the stage decked out in holiday attire. Guitarist and vocalist Jess Corbett had on a colorful tree-studded suit, bassist John Meah wore a Santa hat and sweater, drummer Robert Breychak (fresh off his explosive set with The Right Offs) also sported a Santa hat, and guitarist and vocalist Kevin MacKenzie was decked out in a full Santa suit. Smiling and laughing from the get-go, with audience members shouting out to them even before a note was played — “watch what you wish for,” MacKenzie yelled back as requests were being made — the band immediately cemented the holiday tone even for those of us not quite there yet by beginning the set with Darlene Love’s “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home).” Freedom, now dressed as an elf, joined the Hulls on saxophone for this one and came back to play bells on a few other songs, including Wham’s “Last Christmas,” which in their hands became a pulse-pounding punk rock proclamation of loss.
The band added its own spin to a multitude of classics, such as Tom Petty’s “Christmas All Over Again,” Jose Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad,” and The Kinks’ “Father Christmas.” They also sang originals, including a holiday song called “Christmas Time on the Picket Line,” which Corbett said he wrote years ago for union members; he added to not forget those out there on the lines right now.
For that one the Hulls were joined by Michael Cooper, who also delivered a spirited performance of The Ramones’ “Merry Christmas,” dressed as his alter ego from The Hymans, a local Ramones cover band that includes members of The Hulls. A well-known local artist as well as performer, Cooper made the flyer for this show and has made them for the band for years.
The crowd got crazy in on the action during “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” sung in the style of Bruce Springsteen’s cover of the song, singing and dancing along, and many kept going for the next one, Midge Ure’s and Bob Geldof’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
By the time the Hulls got to its last song, a riotous punk version of “Auld Lang Syne,” the crowd was deep in party mode and deeply appreciative. While the night had been a joyous respite from the recent ills of the week, it also did what the best shows often do: instilled a sense of community and hopefulness that could be carried away beyond that evening.
“Here’s to a better year next year,” said MacKenzie. “If we all stick together, we can do it.”
by | Dec 7, 2021 9:32 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Conor Perreault, part of the Volume Two collective that runs Never Ending Books, was seated at an organ in the State Street space. He let out a long, low bass note from the instrument’s foot pedals.
“You’re all set,” said Tim, a musician who was setting up a laptop rig. “Get a brick.”
Perreault left the room for the yard behind Never Ending Books, and in fact returned with a brick, which he placed on the pedal. The sound went on and on.
“Fantastic,” Tim said.
Continue reading ‘Going For The Big Ohm At Never Ending Books Drone Workshop’
by | Dec 6, 2021 1:23 pm | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Stewart and Taylor.
The Wandering, an event organized by artists Anika Stewart and Elizabeth LaCroix Taylor, turned Bregamos Community Theater into an arts bazaar, music venue, and burlesque stage all at once on Saturday night.
by | Dec 6, 2021 12:46 pm | Comments (0)
A trickle of excited conversation ran through the audience Friday night just before Lioness took the stage. For serious devotees of live music, of jazz, of Firehouse 12 as a storied listening and recording room, the thrill of attendance cannot be taken for granted, now that audiences and fans worldwide have learned what it’s like to not have it available. As for me, I had the time to unhurriedly grab another glass of water, and fetch a better pair of headphones before the band hit, maybe even crank the heat up a notch. I was watching live, from home — even though pandemic restrictions have been lifted.
Continue reading ‘Lioness Brings Collective Joy To Crown Street’
by | Dec 3, 2021 9:27 am | Comments (1)
Maya McFadden Photos
The city’s annual tree-lighting on the New Haven Green brought “the holiday spirit back” one colorful bulb at a time.
Continue reading ‘Annual Green Treelighting Features Tunes, Toys, Donkey, & Kid Vaxxes’
by | Dec 3, 2021 9:19 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photos
Ch’Varda gets the party started .
The State House was the setting Thursday night for the first of seven Hip Hop for the Homeless shows, an annual live event created by Hartford’s Joey Batts to raise money, food, and clothing for those in need throughout Connecticut.
Continue reading ‘Hip Hop For The Homeless Begins Year Eight’
by | Dec 1, 2021 9:02 am | Comments (0)
Widerschall and Brooks.
“God Cried: Arson!” — the opening track from One Eye Is The Sun, One Eye Is The Moon, by Vaca Sagrada — starts with a splash of horns, guitar, bass and drums setting up an easy, bluesy swing. It all feels breezy, almost happy-go-lucky. it doesn’t prepare the listener for what the singer sings: “When God made the world he used a compass and a square / A compass and a square and he made the earth, fire and air / then he made water / Mankind disappointed God tipped his giant cup / spilled all the water down / and he drowned them.” The horns respond to those unspooling lines with a few descending riffs, almost as if they’re chuckling, shrugging their shoulders. Oh, well!
Continue reading ‘Local Duo Vaca Sagrada Brings Desert Heat In December On New Album’
by | Nov 29, 2021 9:17 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Kid Sistr.
An all-ages matinee show on Sunday at the Space Ballroom — one of the only clubs left in the area that does all-ages shows — proved to be ground zero for young rockers in the greater New Haven area, as three bands ramped up the energy to end the holiday weekend with a bang.
Continue reading ‘Three Bands Give Thanks For Rock At All-Ages Space Ballroom Show’
by | Nov 26, 2021 9:23 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photos
Phat A$tronaut.
Five years ago, musicians Mark Lyon and chad browne-springer met up at a D’Angelo tribute gig, and shortly thereafter a band, Phat A$tronaut, was born. On Wednesday night that band came together with two other New Haven-based acts to celebrate its fifth anniversary with a pre-Thanksgiving show that had been an annual event up until last year’s Covid-19 shutdowns.
Continue reading ‘Phat A$tronaut Turns 5, WEAREBISON Debuts At State House’
by | Nov 24, 2021 8:13 am | Comments (3)
Brian Slattery Photos
It wasn’t even 9 p.m. yet Tuesday, but Cafe Nine was already full of people. Some had come to hear New Haven-born drummer Ryan Sands and members of the house band play for the first New Haven Jazz Underground live session since the Covid-19 pandemic began. But many more had come to play with Sands, as the evening promised not only a hot set from the featured performer, but an open set to follow, and the kind of music making that brings a community together.
Continue reading ‘Jazz Jam Sessions Swing Back To State And Crown’
by | Nov 23, 2021 9:05 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
As the band warmed up behind him, Manny James checked the microphone, then slid into a swinging version of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” to warm up the audience.
James wasn’t really at Bregamos Theater on Blatchley Avenue as a performer on Sunday afternoon. He was there as a teacher — and as a student.
Continue reading ‘Manny James Cultivates Next Generation Of Musicians’
by | Nov 15, 2021 9:22 am | Comments (0)
New Haven-based rockers Chaser Eight premiered a new music video that tackled a serious subject at The State House on Friday night while also giving live music fans a serious dose of hard hitting rock ‘n’ roll as they headlined a three-band bill that also included the fast and furious trio The Problem With Kids Today and the dreamy pop rock group The Sparkle and Fade.
Continue reading ‘Chaser Eight Premieres Video With a Message’
by | Nov 15, 2021 9:20 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photo
Rachel Sumner flashed a broad smile from the Cafe Nine stage. “I’m so excited that we get to have the show that wasn’t,” she said to the full house that had come to hear her, a Boston-based musician, perform, with New Haven-based acts Mercy Choir and Lys Guillorn supporting. The show had been originally scheduled at Cafe Nine for April 2020. On Saturday night, it happened at last.
Continue reading ‘Rachel Sumner Headlines Cafe 9 Bill, After 19-Month Covid Postponement’
by | Nov 12, 2021 9:15 am | Comments (0)
It’s been a year, two years, that can feel like a decade. Do you need a good cry?
by | Nov 11, 2021 9:11 am | Comments (1)
Brian Slattery Photos
Before he sat behind the drums, Gil Hawkins, Jr. addressed the crowd at the Owl Shop from the microphone set up in the middle of the stage. “Wednesday night is jazz night at the Owl Shop. It’s been that way for years.” For the Hawkins Jazz Collective — this Wednesday made up of Hawkins on drums, Mike Godette on guitar, and Lou Bocciarelli on bass — “years” meant well over a decade, Covid-19 shutdown notwithstanding. As the group slid into its first tune, it created a sense less of normalcy (whatever that means anymore) than of timelessness.
Continue reading ‘Hawkins Jazz Collective Keeps Swinging At The Owl Shop’
by | Nov 10, 2021 8:42 am | Comments (1)
From seemingly all around the classroom at District Arts and Education on Tuesday evening came a series of meandering tones, a series of chirps and clicks. The sounds were coming from an open-source live-coding program called Estuary, and they were the result of musician Carl Testa feeding it a couple simple commands. He was about to demonstrate how people could use the program to make music together by coding in real time.
The demonstration opened up possibilities for gaining confidence in learning how to code. It also suggested compelling questions about what music composition is when the software makes some of the decisions.
Continue reading ‘When Software Meets Songwriting: Musician Cracks The Code’
by | Nov 8, 2021 9:04 am | Comments (1)
Leigh Busby Photo
The ceremony for the Arts Council of Greater New Haven’s 41st annual arts awards returned to being an in-person event on Friday, as people gathered at the John Lyman Center for the Performing Arts at Southern Connecticut State University to honor several of New Haven’s artist educators: Miguel Gaspar Benitez, James and Tia Russell Brockington, Allen “Dooley‑O” Jackson, Linda Lindroth, Patrick Smith, and Bill Brown and Sally Hill.
by | Nov 8, 2021 8:44 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photo
Peasant.
On a day that included a bomb threat at Yale and the first big burst of cold weather, Cafe Nine found a way to make everyone feel safe, warm, and blissed out with not only a three-act late night rock ‘n’ roll bill, but also a rooftop happy hour performance preceding it.
by | Nov 5, 2021 8:47 am | Comments (0)
“Let all the fruits fall down,” a chorus intones. Then a firm piano chord, and a strong voice sings: “Moving through the orchard / you strode through the grove / arms grabbed apples of the sun / trunks were strong, you thought ‘love.’” Something in the voice suggests an emotional complexity, signaled by a single bell. “Came back next spring,” the singer continues. “stripped the branches clean / Earth there for you to devour or protect / you come off gentle, wind up mean.” The song picks up momentum until it hits the chorus, lush with strings, pounding drums, hands clapping. It’s the arrival of a new collaboration of talents that already encompasses New Haven, New York, and Australia, and promises more.
Continue reading ‘Musical Project Grows From Global Connections’
by | Nov 4, 2021 8:12 am | Comments (0)
Brian Slattery Photos
Blvck Hippie.
Josh Shaw of Blvck Hippie was on tour from Memphis, but had nothing but praise for the two New Haven acts — Glambat and Mightymoonchew — who had preceded him on the stage at Cafe Nine on Wednesday night. He declared himself maybe a little intimidated. “Why did both bands have to sing so good?” the headliner said. “I’m a little self-conscious now.” He was paying the same respects to his openers as they’d paid to him, in a night filled with music that was both personal and partylike.
Continue reading ‘Three Bands Make Room For Everyone At Cafe Nine’
by | Nov 1, 2021 10:17 am | Comments (0)
Karen Ponzio Photos
Light Upon Blight
Best Video brought back one of its most anticipated annual events on Saturday night: the Light Upon Blight live scoring of a horror film, and this year’s choice — the 1932 classic Vampyr — provided ample spooky and surreal images to inspire four musicians to create a matching soundtrack that suited the mood.