The State of Music Today

This is an excerpt from a longer essay that I thought would be suitable here, the rest of which is available at my other blog:

Music, as well, has hit a period of stagnancy. Though many argue that there are groups out there creating sounds that are both good and fresh, such music is not being heard by or broadcast to the mass market for the most part. Even if it was being put out there, there is a huge portion of the listening audience that prefers to hear the same songs and artists that have already been on the radio for many years. Of the list of the top 25 highest grossing tours of 2010, eleven of those acts have been performing for over twenty years (two more, the Dave Matthews Band and Tim McGraw, are also close to that mark, with the former having been formed in 1991 and the latter releasing his debut album in 1992). There are only four artists on the list who’ve debuted within the last three years:

February Shiver

I, for one, am sick and tired of being surrounded by snow. The plus side to being stuck at home all the time, however, is lots of new material at JohnnyMac Music. In addition to the tracks online, there are a wealth of potential rap backing tracks being compiled and prepared for collaborative efforts, anyone interested can feel free to contact me about hearing some samples. At this point, I'm going back to writing, waiting for this stuff to melt already, and contemplating a move to Chile. Average annual precipitation of 14mm? Yes, please.

The Space

Lots of exciting changes are going on at one of my favorite local CT venues, The Space. Aside from their snazzy new website, there's the brand new Outer Space venue, officially open this month. This second venue is right next door to the original Space, and boasts a beautiful sounding, intimate venue complete with a brand new bar. Their heralded open mic night has been transferred to the new venue as well, and now occurs every Wednesday night concurrent with a regular show at the other venue. It's nice to be able to move back and forth from one venue to the other and check out such a wide variety of talent in one night. So if you haven't been down to The Space in a while, you owe it to yourself to come check out the new set of twin venues.

Mr. Boston Debut/Blue Plate Christmas Party

Come see the debut of Mr. Boston, featuring members of Braving Dawn, Jo(h)n Squared & the Codeman himself! They'll be playing the best songs of the past few decades with a lot of surprises!

There are a bunch of drink specials going on at the Blue Plate this year and we can guarantee that you will eat, drink and be merry as we rock the face off of Christmas!

Josh A. EP Release - December 10th at Billings Forge

This December, local Hartford based artist Josh A. will be releasing his very first EP featuring some exciting new music. These brand new tracks bubble over with the creative energy and unique style that has become indicative of Josh's music, and are a treat for ears of all ages. Rich vocal harmonies drift hauntingly back and forth against an alluring backdrop of compelling synth soundscapes, though within each piece there is a clear central message of hope driving it forward. Preview the tracks now at http://josha.bandcamp.com/, then come out to hear them live and get your free copy on December 10th; just bring a flash drive or iPod with you and the EP is yours for free.

October 23rd and other stuff

I'm happy to announce that the first official mcgriz Productions show will be taking place October 23rd at The Blue Plate in Plainville, CT. The show will be featuring a variety of talented performers, and the night will be capped off by a very special reunion show by The Logan Groovers in honor of Fairfield U's alumni weekend. More details to follow shortly once the lineup is finalized.

In other news, this band is extremely worth checking out. They're a uk band known as Foals and they're my latest musical obsession.

Another Quickie

It's been a while since a blues band has really caught my ear, but Dudley Taft seriously made me sit up and take note. The guitar work is really stellar, and the vocals are delivered in a deep, scratchy voice that sounds like the vocal chords producing it were designed expressly for singing the blues. If you have 4 minutes available and any interest whatsoever in blues rock, listen to Long Way Down.