W♥M

01/24/2025

Minneapolis: February 23 to February 25, 2025

01/23/2025

Sierra Spirit Interview

Tour Dates

Jan 24, 2025 MGM Music Hall Boston, MA

Jan 25, 2025 The Met Philadelphia, PA

Jan 26, 2025 The Anthem Washington, DC

Jan 28, 2025 Beacon Theatre New York, NY

Jan 29, 2025 Count Basie Center Red Bank, NJ

Jan 31, 2025 Massey Hall Toronto, ON

Feb 1, 2025 Masonic Temple Detroit, MI

Feb 2, 2025 The Chicago Theatre Chicago, IL

Feb 3, 2025 State Theatre Minneapolis, MN

Feb 6, 2025 Keller Auditorium Portland, OR

Feb 7, 2025 The Moore Theatre

Feb 8, 2025 Centre for Performing Arts Vancouver, BC

Feb 10, 2025 Fox Theater Oakland, CA

Feb 13, 2025 Yaamava' Theater Highland, CA

Feb 14, 2025 Orpheum Theatre Los Angeles, CA

Feb 15, 2025 Harrah's Resort SoCal Valley Center, CA

Feb 17, 2025 Delta Hall Salt Lake City, UT

Feb 18, 2025 Temple Hoyne Buell Denver, CO

Feb 20, 2025 ACL Live Austin, TX

Feb 21, 2025 Majestic Theatre Dallas, TX

Feb 23, 2025 Coca-Cola Roxy Atlanta, GA

Feb 24, 2025 Ryman Auditorium Nashville, TN

Vuart

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Sierra Spirit

Sierra Spirit, the solo project of Native American artist Sierra Spirit Kihega, to open. Her debut EP coin toss is out now on Giant Music. …

We got a chance to interview singer/songwriter Sierra Spirit as she begins a tour, opening for David Gray on his North American leg.

Originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma and part of the Otoe-Missouria tribe and the Keetoowah Band of Cherokees, she is currently living in Connecticut, and was nice enough to take a few questions before hitting the road.

W♥M: How are you doing today?

Sierra: Great! Shipping off tomorrow.

W♥M: This is your maiden voyage. You’re opening for David Gray, starting in Boston tomorrow. How does that feel?

Sierra: That feels crazy. I feel like I’m dreaming. I feel like it’s not going to hit until I see that room for the first time because I’ve never been in any of these venues we are about to play.

W♥M: You're supporting your EP, cointoss, and to me it seems like a poignant title for a debut album. Is that what it felt like going into the project?

Sierra: Yeah, definitely. It was such a strange chance at fate that I somehow ended up at all these right places at the right time.

I had a friend in college who did a thing that I thought was funny. Anytime they would see a penny face-down they’d flip it face up for the next person to find. And I thought that was a real fun disruption of fate.

W♥M: You have a beautiful singing voice and I feel the human voice is the hardest instrument to play. Is that something you’ve been working on or is it something that comes naturally?

Sierra: It’s always something I’ve loved. The funny thing is: My entire life I planned to become a doctor, and I did three years of bio/pre-medical. And it had always been my outlet and release to sing and play music. It was what I did to find comfort and de-stress. And it’s really cool, like my creature comforts became my entire world.

W♥M: You currently live in Connecticut. Did you feel like you had to move away to write about your time growing up in Oklahoma?

Sierra: I think so. I grew up in the same place my entire life. I felt like I was at that angsty age. Getting away is different and I miss the strangest things. I miss driving the same route that I thought was so boring from my mom’s house to my dad’s house. And I got to a point where I started to write about things I hadn’t unpacked. I wrote about the passing of my grandmother and I don’t think I could have written about that there.

W♥M: I really like the visual you’ve told in prior interviews of you and your grandma driving around, and her with a cup of black coffee in her hand, telling you stories. Is there a specific characteristic of hers that you try to carry forward?

Sierra: She was an incredible storyteller. She could make nothing into the most enthralling story. I remember hanging on every word she said, even about the most mundane things, and I was: “Wow, I want to be able to do that.”

W♥M: You’ve said in interviews that you grew up listening to Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton. If an opportunity arose, would you like to cover either of them and which song?

Sierra: Oooh… If I had to pick a Johnny Cash song… It’s so hard... It might be “Folsom Prison Blues” because my first CD of my own was a copy of Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison. The first vinyl I ever had too.

W♥M: Native Americans are finding more and more ways to tell their own stories to a larger audience. How important is it to you to have this opportunity on the tour to share your story?

Sierra: It’s so important. A lot of times when people don’t fully understand the culture it’s not even their own fault. It’s just that information isn’t accessible. And like I said, it’s really cool for me to get to do this and show people what a current and present depiction of Native people are. We are far more similar than they think. I am just a living, breathing person finding my way through like anybody else.

W♥M: It seems like the television series Reservation Dogs is filmed and tells the story of the area you grew up in. Is that correct?

Sierra: Yeah, yeah! It is. And the writer and director, Sterlin Harjo, is a friend.

W♥M: How accurate is the depiction compared to your life growing up?

Sierra: It was such a cool thing to watch, and that is exactly what it’s like being at home. Like the sense of humor. Even between tribes, the customs and traditions are so different. It’s funny to see the inside jokes of the Native community being fed to a larger audience.

W♥M: Besides yourself, are there any Indigenous artists that you would like us to know about?

Sierra: Oh, my goodness, yeah. Kalyn Fay. She is a Cherokee/Muscogee singer/songwriter from Tulsa that I absolutely love.

SIERRA SPIRIT

photo by Pierce Pyrzenski

dave ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Posted at 07:23 PM in Dave, David Gray, Interview, Johnny Cash, Sierra Spirit, Vuart | Permalink | Comments (0)

Flashback: Converge at The Venue (15 April 2008)

“Lions for Lambs” 2008 Tour

Converge, The Red Chord, and Genghis Tron

dates w/ Baroness

3/30 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium

4/01 NYC, NY @ The Blender Theatre

4/02 Buffalo, NY @ Showplace Theatre

4/03 Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's Downunder

4/04 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick

4/05 Chicago, IL @ Reggies Rock Club

4/06 Chicago, IL @ Reggies Rock Club

4/07 Milwaukee, WI @ Richfield Chalet

4/08 Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club

4/09 Sioux Falls, SD @ Nutty's North

4/10 Iowa City, IA @ The Picador

4/11 Omaha, NE @ Sokol Underground

4/12 Lawrence, KS @ Bottleneck

4/13 Denver, CO @ Marquis Theatre

4/15 Boise, ID @ The Venue

4/16 Portland, OR @ Satyricon

4/18 Los Angeles, CA @ Knitting Factory

4/19 Pomona, CA @ Glasshouse

4/20 Tempe, AZ @ The Clubhouse Music Venue

dates w/ Coliseum

4/22 Austin, TX @ Red 7

4/23 Dallas, TX @ The Door

4/24 Houston, TX @ Red Room

4/25 New Orleans, LA @ The High Ground

4/26 St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre

4/27 Orlando, FL @ The Social

5/1 Baltimore, MD @ Otto Bar

5/2 Pittsburgh, PA @ The School

5/3 Philadelphia, PA @ Starlight Ballroom

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Converge

The main event, was Converge, however. Converge is the hardest band on Earth to photograph. Especially when the batteries in your camera are dying. Kurt came out before the rest of the band …

Baroness

Baroness, Bottleneck-Lawrence, $60 Like many shows, this has been re-scheduled a couple times due to the pandemic. We previously wrote: Don’t be put off by the seemingly steep door charge to this show, as each ticket also …

There was a time when W♥M covered metal, mostly thanks to a kid named Soup, out of Idaho. He covered the Converge tour in 2008. This is a metacore band from Massachusetts, formed in 1990… so they’ve been around for a long time.

At that time, they were signed to Epitaph Records with their last album No Heroes in 2006, and with a pending Axe to Fall to come out in 2009.

Typical of these metal shows, there are a lot of bands on the bill, almost like a traveling music festival. This also meant that each band probably had about 30-min sets, with the headliner getting 45 or 1 hour. The other bands on this particular show was The Red Chord, Genghis, Baroness, and Blacklisted.

Original report from Soup:

>>>

Epitaph was recently cool enough to stick me on their guest list to see one of my favorite live bands at the smallest all-ages venue in town. Needless to say, I was pretty stoked. Tonight, I was going to have my face melted by Converge, The Red Chord, Baroness, Genghis Tron, and Blacklisted.

Unfortunately, I showed up a half hour late, forgetting that this venue starts shows an hour earlier during the school year. So when I got there, Blacklisted was halfway through their set. The couple songs I caught were pretty much straight-up hardcore with a definite “Deathwish” edge to it. A fine opening to the night.

Genghis Tron hauled out their keyboards after that, along with a custom light setup. Their sound is sort of like what would happen if you mixed the typical Casio-core sound with a little bit of well-integrated trip-hop. There's no live drummer, but they have enough energy going between the three of them to easily make up for it. The house was already packed at this point, so I couldn't get any pictures, unfortunately.

I did, however, manage to make it up toward the front for Baroness, who managed to cement their place as one of my new favorite bands. They have a definite old-school vibe going on, with a lot of that classic British guitar crunch, and vaguely Maiden-esque riffage and the most melodic vocals of the night. But they do this all without sounding like any sort of throwback, and without coming off “too prog.” And, well, they completely slayed. This is one of those bands who, unless they break up or somehow put out a string of really terrible albums, is going to be huge, soon.

After them was The Red Chord. Quick confession: I have never liked The Red Chord. For some reason, they just never did much for me. Maybe it's because there are breakdowns where the guitar solos are supposed to be, and their songs are all itching for some crazy atonal death metal style guitar solos. But regardless, they put on an awesome live show that their recordings could never do justice. They have a lot of the kind of energy that can only really be communicated live. And damn, they communicate it well!

The main event, was Converge, however. Converge is the hardest band on Earth to photograph. Especially when the batteries in your camera are dying. Kurt came out before the rest of the band and played the opening riff of “Plagues” from the band's most recent album, No Heroes (I somehow managed to get a picture of this happening despite being smashed between about eight dudes who were all about twice my size at the time). The band came out and proceeded to melt face with an assortment of newer songs (“Plagues,” “No Heroes”), classics and fan favorites (“Concubine” and “Last Light” - which may be the most memorable singalong in heavy music - respectively), and some more obscure tracks (including “Locust Reign” from the Agoraphobic Nosebleed split LP). The band was in top form, and the crowd responded accordingly, many of them blatantly violating the venue's “no stage diving” rule and some of the gutsier ones even taking dives off the PA.

This tour is still going, and I'd definitely recommend checking it out. Baroness is going to be on the tour until the April 20th show, after which Coliseum (also an excellent band) will be taking their place.

Weekend Gamer: Pillars of Eternity

Pillars of Eternity: Collector’s Edition

Details

Play as any one of six races: Human, Aumaua, Dwarf, Elf, Godlike and Orlan.

Utilize five core skills to overcome any situation: Stealth, Athletics, Lore, Mechanics and Survival.

Deep character customization: Build a character as one of eleven classes such as Barbarian, Chanter, Cipher, Druid, Fighter, Monk, Paladin, Priest, Ranger, Rogue and Wizard.

Sculpt your own story: Side with various factions using a reputation system, where your actions and choices have far reaching consequences.

Explore a rich and diverse world: Beautiful pre-rendered environments laced with an engaging story and characters bring the world to life.

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Pillars of Eternity

I am loving the RPG game Pillars of Eternity, which just came out yesterday. Since I'm a big fan of Black Isle's Icewind Dale and Baldur's Gate, I felt right at home with Pillars. This game plays like ..…

Back in late October, I started re-playing the original Pillars of Eternity with the intention of beating it. I did technically “rolled credits”, but it wasn’t an ending that I wanted. So I restarted the game to beat it properly, because I was going to skip over Dragon Age: The Veilguard. Originally excited for the game, but after seeing all the negative reviews, I’ve decided to not play it at all.

To be fair, not all the reviews were negative. All the positive reviews are from people who weren’t fans or didn’t play previous Dragon Age games. All the original Dragon Age fans absolutely hated The Veilguard. They said it’s an OK game, but it’s doesn’t deserve the Dragon Age name.

Anyway, back to Pillars of Eternity, you might remember that I first bought the game in March 2015, and did put in some hours into the game. I got to the third (and final) act of the game, but for whatever reason, I never finished the game. I think, perhaps, I got stuck and didn’t know where to go next.

Continuing the game save that I started in 2015 was not possible, because I have very poor memory and didn’t know what was going on. So, I had to restart the game with a new character build.

I have to say that the game aged very well. It’s still a very good game, especially because the graphics look so good! I put in another 40 hours and now I’m starting Act III, about the same spot where I left off in my original game. This time, however, I also bought the two expansions: The Winter March I and II, so before I finish the game, I will start the Winter March.

Also, I wasn’t one of the Kickstarter that helped launch Pillars of Eternity, but I did end up buying a used copy of Collector’s Edition (this was only available to backers). The big box didn’t really have anything that amazing: a DVD of the game, a “cloth” map, an instruction manual, and an apology letter from the developers saying the DVD will be sent later. I did research and found out that I was missing a thank you postcard, a patch, a mousepad, and a guidebook. I didn’t really mind it, because I only paid $25 for the Collector’s Box. I might try and track down that guidebook later.

Anyway, I stopped playing Pillars when I came down to Jacksonville, simply because my save files are on my desktop computer in Minneapolis, because I was playing it on Xbox App. I’ve already put in 112 hours into the game, I feel like I’ve beaten the game, my character is God-like… I think I can put a pin in it and can rate the game highly recommended for fans of top-down role-playing games.

I will started playing Pillars of Eternity 2 soon-ish.

P.S. GOG, for some reason, is not tracking my achievements for Pillars of Eternity for the GOG version.

Yours,

Weekend Gamer
[email protected]

01/22/2025

Minneapolis: February 22, 2025

Jerry Seinfeld / Jim Gaffigan at T-Mobile Center, Kansas City MO (2025-01-18)

JERRY SEINFELD TOUR DATES

Jan 24 Hollywood, FL Hard Rock Live
Jan 25 Hollywood, FL Hard Rock Live
Jan 31 Ft. Myers, FL Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall at FSW (Early & Late)
Feb 1 Orlando, FL Dr. Phillips Center (E/L)
Feb 21 Rockford, IL Coronado Theatre
Feb 22 Springfield, MO Juanita K. Hammons Hall (E/L)
Feb 23 Vancouver, British Columbia, Just For Laughs, Queen Elizabeth Theatre (E/L)
Mar 7 Monterey, CA Golden State Theatre (E/L)
Mar 8 Rancho Mirage, CA Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage
Mar 14 Beaver Creek, CO Vilar Perf. Arts Center (E/L)
Mar 15 Aspen, CO 2025 Aspen Laugh Festival at the Wheeler Opera House (E/L)
Mar 20 Toledo, OH Huntington Center
Mar 21 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
Mar 22 Charlotte, NC Spectrum Center
Mar 27 San Diego, CA Pechanga Arena
Mar 28 Phoenix, AZ Footprint Center
Apr 10 Pittsburg, PA Benedum Center (E/L)
Apr 18 Topeka, KS Topeka Performing Arts Center
Apr 19 Wichita, KS Century II Performing Arts (E/L)
Apr 25 Abbotsford, BC, Abbotsford Centre
Apr 26 Victoria, BC, Save On Foods Memorial Centre
May 2 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace
May 3 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace
May 15 Richmond, VA Altria Theater
May 16 Columbia, SC Township Auditorium
May 29 Grand Forks, ND Chester Fritz Auditorium
May 30 Madison, WI Overture Hall (E/L)
Jul 26 Ledyard, CT Premier Theater at Foxwoods
Aug 8 Gilford, NH BankNH Pavilion
Aug 9 Bridgeport, CT Hartford HealthCare Amph.
Sep 5 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace
Sep 6 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace
Sep 26 Lincoln, CA The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino Resort
Oct 10 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace
Oct 11 Las Vegas, NV Colosseum at Caesars Palace

JIM GAFFIGAN TOUR DATES

Jan 30 Will Rogers Auditorium Fort Worth, TX
Jan 31 Will Rogers Auditorium Fort Worth, TX
Feb 1 Will Rogers Auditorium (Early & Late)
Feb 5 Durham Performing Arts Center Durham, NC
Feb 6 Durham Performing Arts Center Durham, NC
Feb 7 Durham Performing Arts Center Durham, NC
Feb 8 Durham Performing Arts Center (E/L)
Feb 19 BJCC Concert Hall Birmingham, AL
Feb 20 Smoothie King Center New Orleans, LA %
Feb 21 FedExForum Memphis, TN %
Feb 22 Route 66 Casino Albuquerque, NM
Feb 26 Orpheum Theatre Minneapolis, MN
Feb 27 Orpheum Theatre Minneapolis, MN
Feb 28 Orpheum Theatre Minneapolis, MN
Mar 1 Orpheum Theatre Minneapolis, MN (E/L)
Mar 2 Rupp Arena Lexington, KY
Mar 3 RiverPark Center Owensboro, KY
Mar 4 Knoxville Civic Auditorium Knoxville, TN
Mar 5 Memorial Auditorium Chattanooga, TN
Mar 20 Huntington Center Toledo, OH *
Mar 21 Nationwide Arena Columbus, OH *
Mar 22 Spectrum Center Charlotte, NC *
Mar 27 Pechanga Arena San Diego, CA *
Mar 28 Footprint Center Phoenix, AZ *
Mar 29 Thunder Valley Casino Lincoln, CA
Apr 3 Queen Elizabeth Theatre Vancouver, BC
Apr 4 Queen Elizabeth Theatre Vancouver, BC
Apr 5 Queen Elizabeth Theatre Vancouver, BC
Apr 9 Riverside Theatre Milwaukee, WI
Apr 10 Riverside Theater Milwaukee, WI
Apr 11 Riverside Theater Milwaukee, WI
Apr 12 Riverside Theater Milwaukee, WI (E/L)
Apr 13 Riverside Theater Milwaukee, WI
Apr 25 KeyBank State Theatre Cleveland, OH
Apr 26 KeyBank State Theatre Cleveland, OH
Apr 27 KeyBank State Theatre Cleveland, OH
May 1 Peace Center Greenville, SC
May 2 Peace Center Greenville, SC
May 3 North Charleston PAC North Charleston, SC
May 4 North Charleston PAC North Charleston, SC
May 15 Taft Theatre Cincinnati, OH
May 16 Taft Theatre Cincinnati, OH (E/L)
May 17 Taft Theatre Cincinnati, OH (E/L)
May 18 Taft Theatre Cincinnati, OH
May 28 Wynn Encore Theater Las Vegas, NV
May 29 Wynn Encore Theater Las Vegas, NV
May 30 Wynn Encore Theater Las Vegas, NV
May 31 Wynn Encore Theater Las Vegas, NV
Jun 6 Foxwoods Resort Casino Mashantucket, CT
Jun 7 Foxwoods Casino Mashantucket, CT (E/L)
Jul 17 Van Andel Arena Grand Rapids, MI
Jul 18 AMSOIL Arena Duluth, MN
Jul 19 Assiniboine Park Winnipeg, MB #
Jul 20 Kinsmen Park Edmonton, AB #
Oct 2 Clowes Memorial Hall Indianapolis, IN
Oct 3 Clowes Memorial Hall Indianapolis, IN
Oct 4 Clowes Memorial Hall Indianapolis, IN (E/L)
Oct 5 Clowes Memorial Hall Indianapolis, IN

* = Co-headlining with Jerry Seinfeld
# = Co-headlining with John Mulaney
% = Co-Headlining with Sebastian Maniscalco

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Comedy

Veteran comedians and masters of making the ordinary seem hilarious, Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Gaffigan will be working together once again on a 10-arena tour in 2025 following the success of their first tour in 2023 and some touring together last year …

2025 might the banner year for arena shows, make that for comedy arena shows--

Forget the tiny, shoehorned comedy club, locally we already have dates from Sebastian Maniscalco, Martin Lawrence, We Them Ones, Matt Rife, and Nate Bargatze who will all play to giant-sized arena audiences. The new year got underway with a bang from the double-bill of Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Gaffigan.

Both are A-list veteran comedians who first combined forces in 2023, with the Kansas City date being the last of five shows together to begin this year (the duo reunites for another five shows together in mid-March). Thanks to a certain third-party ticket seller, we were surprised to land a last-minute, inexpensive lower-level seat directly across from the right side of the stage (we were equally [not] surprised to see their fees adding almost another 50%), so call this a fan-in-the-stands report.

The listed 7:30 start became actually 7:45p but from there, it was straight uninterrupted comedy without any break. The stage itself was simple and similar to what you’d see if any of the talent was playing a small club- a single mic stand, a stool with some beverage, and bare except for some footlights, with overhead screens reminding everyone this was in an arena, not a basement club.

The evening began with a wry and well-rehearsed fifteen-minute opening slot from Idaho-born comedian Ryan Hamilton, who has made appearances on the late-night talk show circuit and has a 2017 headlining special Happy Face, available on Netflix. Hamilton, like the main acts, specializes in observational humor, with a sarcastic and self-depreciating bend.

Dressed in a smart suit and delivering energetically with a wide smile, his topics and delivery could have convinced the crowd that he was Seinfeld’s young cousin and protege.

Once wrapped, Hamilton announced the two headliners and Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Gaffigan came out together to say hello to the crowd and riff on a few themes together. Gaffigan spoke of always wanting to experience the local cuisine; so, KC barbecue it was, with the pair going to Q39 beforehand (though Gaffigan also mentioned the Z-Man at Joe’s being one of the best sandwiches he’s ever had).

The pair riffed on the joy of joining forces, and even tried expediting the show, with each doing their act at the same time and talking over each other. Of course, the Chiefs and their post-season win earlier that afternoon was mentioned, eliciting obvious cheers and applause.

===

From there, Seinfeld retreated backstage to allow Jim Gaffigan to do his co-headlining hour. Gaffigan has perfected his Midwestern ‘aw shucks’ lethargic dad routine with an inner voice that you can often hear out loud, since his beginnings in the early 1990s and even though he has a recent Hulu special, ‘The Skinny’ (his 11^th, out last November), the veteran comic clears his comedy slate following any material’s airing and comes back out with all-new jokes.

Topics included his five children, traveling with them as he plays shows around the world, airports, his wife being the true head of the family, collecting Bourbon as a hobby, what a suit jacket hides, mistake ordering on a phone, and dealing with his non-caring teenagers.

Gaffigan’s demeanor has always been friendly and relatable, and like most great observational comics, he turns the microbial detail, annoying occurrence, or typical scenario, into something we can all laugh at.

===

Nothing more needs to be said about Jerry Seinfeld’s success- from his namesake sitcom (still in frequent syndication everywhere) to the web series ‘Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee’, to numerous books, stand-up specials, and even helming the recent Netflix comedy spoof film, Unfrosted (which also featured Gaffigan).

Seinfeld began his hour-long set okaying flash (and in fact, any) photography, then expanded on the ridiculousness of any phone photo or video clip being shown to anyone. His delivery was more animated than Gaffigan’s, veered more towards almost complaining, and there was some added hoarseness in his voice, when the joke arced to the punchline that changed his voice at a higher register.

Still, he’s the ringleader of exposing both the ‘obvious’ and the ‘nothing’, and making something out of both, that has made him the master of his craft and still the innovator that is imitated.

Other topics included streaming tv shows, his favorite commercial, traveling with his family (similar to Gaffigan), golf, mini-marts, coffee vs. tea, cemeteries, marriage and marathons. (we’re purposely not going to quote any of the jokes heard, as that would ruin things).

The trio joined together on stage for a final bow and to wave to the audience that was out the door by 10pm and on to an early night home, or next chapter out.

In terms of comedians, Jerry Seinfeld and Jim Gaffigan remain two titans in their field- both work ‘clean’ to accommodate all ages and backgrounds, and both expertly remark on the humor in daily occurrences that almost everyone can relate to. Either comic is generally worth seeing on their own, but when paired together (even in a booming arena), the show becomes a true comedy ‘must-see’.

(click on any image to enlarge and see in full)

John C ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥X / twitter.com ♥ bsky.ap

Posted at 12:52 AM in Comedy, Jerry Seinfeld, Jim Gaffigan, John, Kansas City, T-Mobile Center | Permalink | Comments (0)

01/21/2025

Minneapolis: February 20 to February 21, 2025

R.I.P. Garth Hudson (The Band)

(Read more Musicians who died in 2025)

R.I.P. Garth Hudson

The last ‘man’ from The Band has passed away--

The final remaining founder of the seminal group, Garth Hudson passed away at a Woodstock NY nursing home at the age of 87, confirmed by his friend and colleague, Jan Haust.

Beyond being the group’s organist, sax player, and often musical arranger, Hudson was also known for amassing various instruments and historical sheet music in multiple genres and was able to pick up almost any instrument with some level of expertise.

Additionally, he was the overseer of all the electronic and recording equipment in the famous pink ranch house in Saugerties, NY, where Bob Dylan and The Band recorded what would be known as The Basement Tapes, a prolific set of over 100 songs that would become iconic over the years. The Band’s singer and guitarist Robbie Robertson acknowledged Hudson as being “far and away the most advanced musician” not only in their group, but in rock n’ roll in general.

Canadian Eric Garth Hudson was born in Windsor, Ontario on August 2, 1937, the son of musically inclined parents, Fred and Olive, both active in their church, and a father who was a farmer turned World War I pilot as well.

Hudson would be classically trained, writing his first song at age eleven and playing with dance bands by the following year. Restless to break from the rigidity of classical, he dropped out of the University of Western Ontario, Hudson would join area group The Silhouettes (later Paul London and The Capers) eventually moving on to The Hawks, the backing band of Ronnie Hawkins which had already included fellow Canadians Robbie Robertson (guitar), Rick Danko (bass) and Richard Manuel (piano).and Arkansas drummer Levon Helm, completing the lineup of what would simply be soon called The Band.

The Hawks would leave their namesake leader in 1963 to tour on their own, and then were recruited to play with Bob Dylan, who tapped them as his backing group for his Blonde on Blonde record, and subsequent 1965 and 1966 (electric) folk rock tours.

Retreating to Woodstock and the pink house, the locals just knew them as “the band” which they decided to more formally adopt, they recorded their first album, “Music From Big Pink” which would be released in 1968. Songs like “The Weight,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and “Up on Cripple Creek” would eventually become Americana classics, all embellished by Hudson’s organ and little touches to make the sound bigger, and more unique.

Several albums would follow (as would internal strife, addictions, and typical group issues) and The Band would end its touring career with an all-star Thanksgiving 1976 concert in San Francisco that director Martin Scorsese documented to become perhaps the greatest concert film of all-time, The Last Waltz.

Hudson began session work after the group initially dissolved, guesting on albums and doing soundtrack work before the group reformed in 1983, but without Robertson, who was successfully launching his own solo career. Manuel would commit suicide in 1986, but The (reformed) Band continued into the 1990’s with its rotating members.

The Band was inducted into Canada’s Juno Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame five years later (plus a Lifetime Achievement Grammy for Hudson as shown above, in 2008), and Hudson remained on friendly terms with the others, guesting on their respective solo albums.

Hudson released his first solo album "The Sea to the North" on the dubious day of Sept 11, 2001, and was already in financial straits by then, even already having sold his stake in the famous group to Robertson, so was bound to continuing to tour and record for income.

Other minor groups and session work followed, even forming a 12-piece band with his wife, along with more career accolades, and his final public performance was last April at a small Kingston NY house concert, surprising those gathered to play a Duke Ellington cover.

With his wife passing in 2022, Hudson left no immediate survivors.

The Band in 1970 (Garth Hudson is second in from the left)

John C ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ X / twitter.com

Posted at 04:59 PM in John, Musicians Who Died, News, RIP, The Band | Permalink | Comments (0)

R.I.P. John Sykes (Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, Blue Murder)

(Read more Musicians who died in 2025)

R.I.P. John Sykes

One of blues rock’s unsung, but no less accomplished guitar heroes, John Sykes, has passed away at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer. Sykes is best known for his work with band Tygers of Pan Tang, Thin Lizzy, Whitesnake, his own trio Blue Murder, and for his solo work.

The news broke via the guitarist’s Facebook page:

“It is with great sorrow we share that John Sykes has passed away after a hard fought battle with cancer. He will be remembered by many as a man with exceptional musical talent but for those who didn’t know him personally, he was a thoughtful, kind, and charismatic man whose presence lit up the room.

He certainly marched to the beat of his own drum and always pulled for the underdog,” it continued. “In his final days, he spoke of his sincere love and gratitude for his fans who stuck by him through all these years.

While the impact of his loss is profound and the mood somber, we hope the light of his memory will extinguish the shadow of his absence.”

John Sykes was born in Reading, Berkshire, UK on July 29, 1959, and initially took interest in guitar at age fourteen, when an uncle taught him a few Eric Clapton riffs and he would continue practicing them on an old nylon-stringed guitar, eventually joining a band called Streetfighter.

He would leave that band to join Tygers of Pan Tang, a Whitley Bay UK band that had become part of the so-called New Wave of British Heavy Metal, playing on their second and third albums, Spellbound and Crazy Nights, as their second guitarist before leaving to audition to play with Ozzy Osborne.

Sykes would connect with Thin Lizzy’s singer/guitarist Phil Lynott to collaborate on the single, “Please Don’t Leave Me” in 1982, and was asked to join the band soon after. Thin Lizzy would break up by 1983 (with Lynott passing away in 1986) and Sykes agreed to join David Coverdale in Whitesnake (after Coverdale’s talks with Michael Schenker and Adrian Vandenberg fell through).

Sykes played on most songs on the band’s arguably two best albums, “Slide It In" and the '1987' self-titled record (co-writing most on this one, which is still their best-selling) before tensions and delays found Coverdale firing everyone before the latter album’s release (and why the music videos show different personnel).

Sykes would go on to form Blue Murder with bassist Tony (The Firm) Franklin and drummer Carmine (Vanilla Fudge) Appice releasing two studio and one live album, before embarking on a solo career in the mid-90’s. Five albums would follow, and his last releases were two separate singles in 2021. Sykes leaves behind his three sons, James, John Jr, and Sean and his former wife.

courtesy Richard Aaron / Getty

John C ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ X / twitter.com

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01/20/2025

We♥KC! January 22-31, 2025 Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO)

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Natalie Jane

‘Natalie Jane’s first-ever North American headline run – is completely sold-out. She will be stopping by St Paul, at the Amsterdam Bar & Hall, on March 23, 2024. Jane recently shared her new single, “Tattoos”, a song... …

Read more Kansas City Music Guide.

It’s those dog days of winter, when you think it can’t get any colder and it seems easier to stay in, with a bowl of soup.

But streets have been cleared and more people staying in, means less traffic outside and hopefully better parking for any show. It also means the best NFL games of the season and playoff football in full effect, with the Chiefs hosting the AFC Championship on their quest for a historic three-peat. Good days to be a local sports fan.

As January ends, the current Broadway season continues with a recent Tony Award winner for Best Revival and a handful of interesting other shows. And anyone’s dry January concludes- cheers!

Let’s take look at the Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings for the upcoming week, from January 22^nd to 31st:

(ticket hyperlinks are embedded in each show’s headline)

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22

THURSDAY JANUARY 23

FRIDAY JANUARY 24

David Ramirez / Dylan LeBlanc, Jan 24, Knuckleheads, $25

Singer/songwriter David Ramirez has announced the March 21st release of All The Not So Gentle Reminders (Blue Corn Music), his most ambitious album to date, and is currently on a co-headlining US and UK/European tour. The twelve-song album, his sixth LP, is a creative revelation. “I love all the records I’ve made in the past,” says Ramirez. “But in making them, there was always the thought in the back of my mind of where and what it could get me… this time it was all about just the joy of making it, about having fun with it.”

Jan 24 Ramirez LeBlanc

Meanwhile, fellow singer/songwriter Dylan LeBlanc drew from his experience growing up as a poor kid in Louisiana on his fifth LP, Coyote (released last October on ATO Records). LeBlanc left his fans with a cliffhanger on the 2023 album’s final song, “The Outside,” which found Coyote and his girlfriend driving a stolen Camaro toward the Mexican border only to be stopped by a police roadblock. The song ends with our anti-hero grabbing his gun, unsure of his next move, his fate up in the air.

A deluxe version of the album including four additional songs, now picks up where the original LP left off. “I kind of [knew] this was going to be part of the plan,” LeBlanc says. “Just put out the rest of it and sort of tidy things up.”

The singer-guitarist grew up poor in Shreveport, LA, where he fell in with a tough crowd during his teenage years. LeBlanc himself could have easily drifted down a troubled path, but his love of music helped him avoid that. By age 20, LeBlanc had released his debut album, Pauper’s Dream. Then came two more albums and a move to ATO Records with the release of his 2019 album, Renegade.

Jan 24 Nat Jane

Natalie Jane, Jan 24, The Truman, $25

Continuing her 'Sick To My Stomach' Tour' which is named after her recent EP, released last September via Capitol Music Group/ 10K Projects. Her set will showcase everything fans have come to love about the New Jersey-raised, Los Angeles-based artist - her exhilarating vocal range, her evocative music choices, and her gift for making complex feelings feel relatable.

Natalie was one of 2023’s most viewed artists on TikTok in the U.S., landing at #2 on “The Hitmakers” year-end list. She’s racked up over 500 million combined global streams to date with hits like “AVA,” “Seven,” “Mentally Cheating,” “Do or Die,” and “Intrusive Thoughts” — all found on her debut EP, Where Am I?

SATURDAY JANUARY 25

Aerosmith w The Black Crowes, Jan 25 T-Mobile Center, CANCELED

SUNDAY JANUARY 26

MONDAY JANUARY 27

TUESDAY JANUARY 28

Parade (Broadway Touring), Jan 28-Feb 2, Kauffman Center, $61-$131

Jan 28 Parade

Landing in Kansas City is one of the most anticipated recent Broadway productions and the winner of the 2023 Tony Award® for Best Revival of a Musical, Parade. Leo and Lucille Frank are a newlywed Jewish couple struggling to make a life in the red hills of Georgia. When Leo is accused of an unspeakable crime, it propels them into an unimaginable test of faith, humanity, justice, and devotion. Riveting and gloriously hopeful, Parade reminds us that to love, we must truly see one another.

The New York Times said, “this revival, filled with deft flourishes by director Michael Arden, recalls an era of big casts, big stories, and big talent–a time when musicals actually felt like events. Entertainment Weekly called it “the most gorgeous production on Broadway. ” Time Out New York stated that “Parade will echo for a long time to come.”

Parade is directed by Tony Award® winner Michael Arden, with book by two-time Tony Award® winner, Pulitzer Prize winner, and Academy Award® winner Alfred Uhry, music and lyrics by three-time Tony Award® winner Jason Robert Brown, and co-conceived by 21-time Tony Award®-winning legend Harold Prince.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 29

THURSDAY JANUARY 30

FRIDAY JANUARY 31

Wayne Newton, Jan 31, Ameristar, $60-$80

Away from the desert and out on his “Up Close And Personal Tour”, Newton, a.k.a “The Midnight Idol,” a.k.a “Mr. Entertainment” has been entertaining folks for 60 years, earning his musical fame in 1963 with what would become his signature song, “Danke Schoen.” (Remember it in “Ferris Bueller” too?

Jan 31 Newton

Newton has released an amazing 165 albums and had several other hits across his career, including “Daddy, Don’t You Walk So Fast,” “Red Roses for a Blue Lady,” “At This Moment,” “The Letter,” and “Summer Wind.”

Fun fact is that he also plays 13 different instruments and has performed more than 25,000 shows in Las Vegas earning him the title of “Mr. Las Vegas”. Newton’s acting career has seen him appear in scores of tv shows and movies, including “Bonanza” and “The Lucy Show”, “Vegas Vacation,” “License to Kill,” “Sharknado: The 4th Awakens,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and most recently the comedy series “Hacks.”

National Touring act coming to Kansas City, Lawrence, KS, Topeka, KS, or vicinity? Let us know so we can spotlight the appearance-email [email protected]