Photos & Videos: Looking Inside Dead & Company’s Tour Debut
Load remaining images Last Friday, Dead & Company made their summer tour debut at the PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte, NC. The band has seemingly captured the Deadhead spirit by the horns, kindling an enthusiasm for the Grateful Dead’s music in a new and exciting way. With new band members John Mayer and Oteil Burbridge fitting in perfectly, longtime contributor Jeff Chimenti holding things down on the organs, and original members Bill Kreutzmann, Bob Weir and Mickey Hart tying the band into the legacy, there’s only a bright road ahead.The band continually showed their enthusiasm between last fall and this summer, with Bob Weir even talking about the band carrying on the torch when he’s unable. From start to finish, Dead & Company was locked in, bringing the Charlotte crowd to new heights on classics like “Estimated Prophet” and “Eyes Of The World.” Check out clips of both below. The band had also said they were planning to debut new music throughout the summer. They got out a couple new ones at their warm-up free performance at The Fillmore in San Francisco, CA, and continued the trend with a debut of “Liberty” in Charlotte, NC. Who knows what other new songs are on the horizon?When Dead & Company hit Bonnaroo tonight, expect some big things! Check out full audio, the setlist, and a gallery all below.Setlist: Dead & Company at PNC Music Pavilion, Charlotte, NC – 6/10/16Set I: The Music Never Stopped bw, Cold Rain & Snow jm, Friend Of The Devil bw jm, They Love Each Other jm, Liberty bw, Cassidy bw, The Promised Land bwSet II: Eyes of the World bw > Deal jm > Estimated Prophet bw > Drums/ Space > Feel Like A Stranger bw > Black Peter bw > Turn On Your Lovelight bw Check out a full gallery of images below, courtesy of Ellison White Photography.
There was never any doubt that Adam Deitch is a musical mastermind, but today we’ve learned that he was a child prodigy as well! The Lettuce and Break Science drummer has shared with us some home video footage that we just couldn’t keep to ourselves. In the video, Deitch takes the mic and lays down vocals on a funky rendition of the Michael Jackson classic, “Billie Jean.”He’s also only eight years old in the clip. And he nails it!Don’t believe us? Watch the video, streaming below.Fast forward just a few years, and Deitch has earned himself the reputation as one of the baddest drummers around. He’ll take to the pocket for a series of Sounds Like A Party tour dates with Lettuce throughout the fall, which kicks off TONIGHT in New Haven, CT and carries the band through to the end of 2016. They’ll be hitting great spots like Catskill Chill, Bear Creek Bayou, Suwannee Hulaween, two nights at NYC’s PlayStation Theater, Dominican Holidaze, Jam Cruise, and more. Check out the full schedule below!Lettuce Tour Schedule:9.20 – New Haven, CT9.21 – Providence, RI9.22 – Buffalo, NY9.23 – Pittsburgh, PA9.24 – Lakewood, PA9.28 – Charlotte, NC9.29 – Birmingham, AL9.30 – New Orleans, LA10.1 – New Orleans, LA10.4 – Memphis, TN10.5 – Knoxville, TN10.6 – Columbia, SC10.7 – Corolla, NC10.8 – Wilmington, NC10.11 – Lafayette, IN10.12 – Urbana, IL10.13 – St. Louis, MO10.14 – Kansas City, MO10.15 – Denver, CO10.26 – Baltimore, MD10.27 – Charlottesville, VA10.28 – Asheville, NC10.29 – Live Oak, FL11.2 – San Antonio, TX11.3 – Houston, TX11.4 – Dallas, TX11.5 – Austin, TX11.6 – Tulsa, OK11.9 – Louisville, KY11.11 – New York, NY11.12 – New York, NY11.26 – San Francisco, CA12.1 – Pantanal, Dominican Republic12.30 – Portland, ME12.31 – Boston, MAYou can also catch other members of Lettuce, including bassist Jesus Coomes, guitarist Adam Smirnoff, keyboardist Neal Evans, trumpeter Eric Bloom, and saxophonist Ryan Zoidis, at the second annual Brooklyn Comes Alive on October 22nd. With 50+ musicians including members of Dead & Co., The Disco Biscuits, Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, The String Cheese Incident, Dopapod, and more, fans will have the opportunity to see their favorite musicians play in completely new, unique collaborations alongside some of the greatest. More details here.
Colorado voters are about to get a dose of awesomeness, as Dave Matthews will team up with Vice Presidential candidate Tim Kaine to perform a “Get Out The Vote” concert. Slated for Monday, October 10th (Columbus Day), the concert will take place at the National Western Complex Stadium Arena during the day time, with doors opening at 10:30 a.m. MT. Tickets to the concert are free, albeit limited. All you have to do is RSVP at this link here, and then show up early enough to snag a coveted seat in the venue.Kaine is a well-known music lover and performer, having shown off his skills on the harmonica, and he has jammed with Dave Matthews Band‘s Boyd Tinsley in the past, so it’ll be interesting to see if Kaine dusts off his harmonica for a few tunes with Matthews. Matthews himself has a long history of supporting political candidates, having played previous events for Bernie Sanders, Barack Obama, John Kerry, and more over the course of his career. Matthews has never been shy about his politics, and it seems that he is now putting all of his energy behind getting Hillary Clinton elected (or just simply stopping Donald Trump).
It had all the makings of an incredible celebration.After HeadCount‘s noble and tireless efforts to register voters and engage the electorate in the political process throughout the circus that was the 2016 election season, the polls were closed, and their work was finally done–at least for the time being.All that was left to do was sit back and watch the results of this monumental election roll in, and the HeadCount team had put together an appropriately monumental “soundtrack” for the historic evening. Billed as “Soundtrack To History”, the election night party was set to mix the pride of electing a new President with the familiar excitement of live musical improvisation: As a projection screen on Brooklyn Bowl‘s stage (and TVs throughout the venue) showed ongoing election coverage, a massive, star-studded Everyone Orchestra lineup would play two all-improv sets of music. Marc Brownstein and Aron Magner (The Disco Biscuits), Steve Kimock, Mihali Savoulidis (Twiddle), Vinnie Amico (moe.), Jay Jennings and Chris Bullock (Snarky Puppy), Jeremy Salken (Big Gigantic), Natalie Cressman (Trey Anastasio Band), former The Motet frontman Jans Ingber, Karina Rykman, and unannounced special guest Robert Randolph served up two sets of incredible improv–the sort of special performance that stays with you, that inspires the feelings of appreciation, awe, and elation that live music enthusiasts constantly chase.But on this night, the crowd was not buzzing with the fervor that this kind of celebration should have evoked–and it was no mystery as to why. While the band wailed away, the crowd grew increasingly distracted by the elephant in the room: despite virtually every early media source pointing toward an easy Hillary Clinton victory, controversial Republican nominee Donald Trump had taken the lead. As contested states continued to go in Trump’s favor, a palpable air of dread began to permeate the audience. Gradually, the crowd in front of the stage began to thin, and the crowds around the TVs in the front of the house steadily grew, fixated on the incoming poll numbers in stunned silence.By the time the band finished their second set and began to take their bows, the outcome that virtually no one expected was slowly but surely becoming a reality. Donald Trump was going to win. The crowd was in a state of disbelief as HeadCount founder Andy Bernstein stepped onstage to address the audience, himself visibly surprised by the outcome. “We all came in here having no idea what the night was going to be like…We’re all going to remember this night for the rest of our lives. And whatever you think of what happened, we had beautiful, powerful music and we were all here together.”At the time, these words rolled off my back without sinking in. The utterly astounding turn of events that we had just seen unfold had descended on me like a thick fog. I love and fully appreciate the unifying powers of music–more than most, even, I would venture to say. But on this night, that sentiment did little to console me. We, as a country, had just elected President Donald Trump. This man that has consistently horrified us for over a year was going to be the leader of the free world. The crowd thinned slowly, many in attendance reluctant to leave this small bubble of like-minded music folk and walk out the door into the real life.It wasn’t until I woke up this morning that I was able to truly appreciate what Andy had said. Despite the crushing blow of watching the one thing we thought could never happen–the one thing many hoped and prayed would never happen–occur before our eyes, and despite the palpably distressed cloud that the results cast over the event, I had spent a historically upsetting evening watching incredible live music surrounded by great friends, all coping together. While no one is sure of the challenges we’ll face under this new regime, all is not lost. We can still create this magic. We can still strive to make the world a better, more positive place, even in the face of overwhelming negativity. Together, we can still do good. And that’s something we can all be thankful for.Below, you can watch full video of the “Soundtrack To History” Everyone Orchestra show below, courtesy of nugs.net, and view a full gallery of photos from the historic evening’s event courtesy of Andrew Scott Blackstein Photography. Load remaining images
Northampton, MA psych-fusion four-piece Mammal Dap has just released a brand new music video for their upcoming single. “I Want 2 Be Ur Friend”. Comprised of Killian Karlsson (guitar), Zack Cross (synths), Reed Sutherland (bass, synth bass), and Colin Jalbert (drums, samples), deftly weaves hypnotic beats with pumping bass lines, lush pads and soaring hooks. Check out the video for the catchy new tune below:Balancing a deep love of nostalgic tones with a digital-age sensibility, Mammal Dap’s sound evokes the aesthetics of artists like Bonobo, Flying Lotus and Tycho. Their energetic live shows and rigorous touring have elevated crowds from New England to New Orleans, leading them to share the stage with acclaimed acts including The Nth Power, Tauk, Marco Benevento and The Motet (whose guitarist, Ryan Jalbert, is Colin Jalbert’s brother).You can stream the band’s self-titled 2015 full-length debut below, via the band’s SoundCloud:Catch Mammal Dap at Hartford, CT’s Arch Street Tavern on March 3rd and Brattleboro, VT’s Metropolis on March 4th. For more information on upcoming dates and all things Mammal Dap, visit the band’s website.
The return of Jamiroquai is probably the best thing to happen in 2017 so far. Any bit of music we get from them is godsent. So far, Jay Kay & Co. have released two new tracks “Automaton” and “Cloud 9” – both are stellar additions to their already amazing library– from their forthcoming album Automaton due out March 31, 2017. The band has also been adding dates to an upcoming world tour, the first since 2014. While there are no plans to stop in the United States any time soon, we’re just excited that Jamiroquai is back making music together.With their tour starting this Spring, the band is currently in rehearsal, sharing a clip of “Emergency on Planet Earth” from their 1993 album. The future-funk outfit, mixing old school ties with new school vibes, seems to be just as excited as we are for what’s to come. Check it out:For a complete tour schedule, head to the band’s website.
Load remaining images Photo: Keith Griner After three eventful days of music on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, the final day of Summer Camp Music Festival lived up to all the hype. Of all the phenomenal and talented groups and artists that performed over the weekend, excitement for legendary Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh’s performance on Sunday was as palpable as the afternoon heat. His sets—and all the other Sunday sets—combined for a fantastic finish to another successful year at Three Sisters Park.World-class bassist Victor Wooten helped make this “Sunday funday,” playing a nature set, a trio set, and a VIP tent set. His nature set was perhaps one of the most unique and intimate of the day. Even as he subtly alternated between playing his bass and telling stories about nature, music, and life in his soothing speaking voice, the crowd remained equally engaged and entertained. He was accompanied by Bob Franceschini on saxophone, and the two made beautiful music together.Umphrey’s McGee played their traditional Sunday afternoon set, and after the dance parties on the preceding nights, this Sunday set was certainly more chill. Continuing a trend from those shows, this set also featured the live debuts of new songs off their recently released “new” new album, it’s you, “Xmas at Wartime” and “Push & Pull”. The majority of the set was sandwiched inside “Bridgeless”, with the band returning to the song for a triumphant finish.TAUK offered a great performance that included newer songs like “Ratchet” and “The Informant”. Despite the brutal heat, their daytime set brought a fairly massive crowd to the Starshine Stage, highlighting the band’s upward trajectory. They played another set later on in the VIP lounge that was equally as fun, and some of the coversthey included—Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and The Beatles‘ “Come Together”—saw drummer Isaac Teel deliver the soulful vocals that often go forgotten by fans due to the band’s instrumental repertoire. Besides laying down a mean beat, the guy has some serious pipes! One has to wonder if they will ever write any originals that aren’t instrumentals…The crown jewels of the day, and perhaps of the weekend, were the two full sets played by Phil Lesh & The Terrapin Family Band. Just two weeks ago it was announced that guitarist Eric Krasno would be joining Phil, and it proved to be a fantastic addition, adding his fierce guitar work and singing lead on “Brown Eyed Women”. Anders Beck of Greensky Bluegrass, who also played earlier in the day, brought his dobro to the stage next to join in on “Cassidy”.Phil’s second set saw even more surprise collaborators, as Al Schnier of moe. led the band through a groovy “Shakedown Street” on guitar and vocals. After well-played takes on classic staples like “St. Stephen” and “Terrapin Station”, their set-closing cover of Neil Young‘s “Rockin’ In The Free World” was an out-of-left-field surprise The tune was executed flawlessly by Phil, as he was able to summon some serious energy for the instantly-recognizable rock classic. A “Midnight Hour” encore with JJ Grey was a fun way to end Phil’s night. This was the first time that Lesh had played at Summer Camp, and hopefully, it won’t be the last.Of course, the metaphorical cherry on top was the final two-set moe. show that awaited after Phil and company finished. The band raged the Moonshine Stage as they do every year to close out the fest’s Sunday lineup. Some of their highlights included a fun cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Hey Hey What Can I Do”, a schizophrenic “Don’t Fuck With Flo”, and a fun “Lazarus.” The band spared no effort in exhilarating the crowd, and as they finished up their set at 2am, it was a sobering reminder that Summer Camp was finally coming to a close. Once again, Summer Camp showed why it is one of the best festivals in the country. Same time, same place…see you in 2019.Check out the photo gallery below, courtesy of Keith Griner.Summer Camp Music Festival | Sunday, May 27th, 2018 | Photos: Keith Griner
Load remaining images Setlist: Dead & Company | BB&T Pavilion | Camden, NJ | 6/2/17: Set One: Hell in a Bucket > It Hurts Me Too* > Cumberland Blues, Ship of Fools, Ramble on Rose, The Weight, The Music Never Stopped > Easy AnswersSet Two: Playing in the Band > Uncle John’s Band > The Other One^* Dead & Company debut^ The show was called off due to bad weatherDead & Company | BB&T Pavilion | Camden, NJ | 6/2/17 | Photos: Carol Spagnuola Photo: Carol Spagnuola Inclement weather forced Dead & Company to call off their show in the middle of the second set on Saturday night. The band was working its way through “The Other One” at Camden, NJ’s BB&T Pavilion when heavy rains paused—and then outright ended—the night’s performance.Saturday’s show marked the second concert of a two-night run at the New Jersey venue, which is located in the suburbs of nearby Philadelphia. While the show never got through its second stanza, the first set was not without its highlights. After coming out the gate strong with “Hell In A Bucket,” guitarist John Mayer led the way as the band offered up its first-ever rendition of the Tampa Red blues standard “It Hurts Me Too”.Dead & Company – “It Hurts Me Too” (Tampa Red cover)[Video: rdeal1999]The blues debut then gave way to the bluegrass of “Cumberland Blues” before moving on to a “Ship Of Fools”that took things down a notch. Next up was a delightful “Ramble On Rose” that preceded an equally enjoyable cover of The Band classic “The Weight”. Finally the set wrapped up with a take on “The Music Never Stopped” that segued into the latter-day Grateful Dead number/RatDog staple “Easy Answers” (repeating a combo that closed out the band’s 12/1/17 gig in Dallas).Dead & Company – “The Weight” (The Band cover)[Video: rdeal1999]Set two started out strong with a jammed out “Playing In The Band” that slipped into a subdued “Uncle John’s Band” on its way to the unfinished “The Other One”. After briefly pausing the show due to increasingly nasty weather, the band and the venue finally called the performance off for good. If the setlist circulating on social media is any indication, the group intended to put “Lady With A Fan” > “Terrapin Station” in the middle of a “The Other One” sandwich, which almost certainly would have been crowd-pleaser. Less surprisingly, it looks like “One More Saturday Night” was the group’s planned encore.Dead & Company – “Playing In The Band” (start at around 9:00)[Video: Nugs.net]Dead & Company will continue their summer tour on Monday, June 4th when they take over the Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati. Photo: Carol Spagnuola Photo: Carol Spagnuola Photo: Carol Spagnuola
For the third year in a row, Bob Weir was at the annual NAMM Trade Show at the Anaheim Convention Center in southern California. On Thursday, he delivered a private performance alongside his Wolf Bros comrades, bassist Don Was and drummer Jay Lane.The Dead & Company guitarist/singer had been in attendance this time last year to accept the organization’s “Music for Life” award in addition to playing a small, private concert with Lane and a few other notable rock musicians. There were no awards to be handed out this year, but an abundance of Grateful Dead songs filled the air as fans were treated to an 11-song performance from Bobby and the boys.The performance took place at the D’Angelico Guitars’ booth 212AB and featured Weir showing off his brand new signature model from his preferred guitar brand with the “Deluxe Bob Weir Bedford.” The invite-only, 90-minute performance started with Weir, Was, and Lane dusting off Little Feat‘s “Easy To Slip”. Next up was “Only A River”, a folky ballad from Weir’s 2016 Blue Mountain solo album, followed by the trio returning to the Dead catalog for a wonderful, jam-filled rendition of “Jack Straw” with Weir and Lane trading off vocal duties throughout each verse. The band continued with Weir picking up that new electric guitar of his to start into a pretty impressive instrumental version of “Dark Star”, during which some gnarly amplification feedback forced Weir to even confusingly admit “That ain’t right” over the mic while he played.The band continued their nonstop flow of Dead material right into lovely renditions of “Bird Song”, “Lost Sailor”, and “Saint of Circumstance”. Next up was a nod to “The City of Angels” where they found themselves on Thursday with “West L.A. Fadeaway”, followed by “Easy Answers”, a tune originally released back in 1994 co-written by Weir, Robert Hunter, Dead pianist Vince Welnick, and RatDog co-founder Rob Wasserman. The band continued with the addition of a second drummer for a cover of Bob Dylan‘s “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall”. The small but passionate crowd could all be heard singing along as the band tore into “Not Fade Away” to close out the show.Earlier in the day on Thursday, Weir was one of the many notable rock artists named to appear on Don Felder’s forthcoming solo album, in addition to Slash, Mick Fleetwood, and Sammy Hagar, just to name a few. Bob Weir & Wolf Bros will start their recently-announced 2019 winter tour with a gig at The State Theatre of Ithaca in Ithaca, New York next month on February 28th.Setlist: Bob Weir & Wolf Bros | Anaheim Convention Center | Anaheim, CA | 1/24/2019Set: Easy To Slip (Bobby & The Midnights cover), Only A River, Jack Straw (Grateful Dead cover), Dark Star (Grateful Dead cover) > Bird Song (Jerry Garcia cover) > Lost Sailor (Grateful Dead cover) > Saint of Circumstance (Grateful Dead cover), West L.A. Fadeaway (Grateful Dead cover), East Answers (Rob Wasserman cover), A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall (Bob Dylan cover) > Not Fade Away (Buddy Holly cover)
Phil Lesh & Friends will take the Grate Room stage at Lesh’s Terrapin Crossroads venue in San Rafael, CA next Thursday, March 28th. Announced on Wednesday, Phil will be joined by Terrapin regulars Stu Allen, Mark Levy, and Grahame Lesh, as well as Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe guitarist DJ Williams, pianist John Medeski, and saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist Karl Denson himself.Related: Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe Releases First New Album In Five Years Lesh was at The Capitol Theatre this past weekend where he was joined by a mix of musical friends and fans in celebration of the former Grateful Dead bassist’s 79th birthday on Friday. Lesh and Denson are no strangers to performing with each other, as the two have done so numerous times in the recent past, including a pair of outdoor summer shows at Terrapin Crossroads last summer, and during Phil’s three-night Halloween run at The Capitol Theatre last October.Lesh and Medeski have also teamed up on numerous occasions, more recently during Phil’s special “Dead Blues” performances at Terrapin Crossroads last June.Fans can click here to purchase tickets to the March 28th concert, which are on sale now.