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Lost
in the Trees
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Lost
in the Trees
Eighth
Step at Proctor’s, Friday
Nothing makes us giddier than the start of a new music series.
The Eighth Step, the venerable institution familiar to Capital
Region music fans for 40-odd years, will venture into new
territory with this Friday’s launch of Indie 8th Step, a series
designed to spotlight younger acts on the fringe of contemporary
folk and acoustic music. And we couldn’t imagine a better
opener than Lost in the Trees. This North Carolina group,
led by composer Ari Picker, mix a somber folk vibe (Nick Drake,
Iron and Wine) with some deep classical chops on their latest
album, All Alone in an Empty House, which was rereleased
by indie giant Anti- last month. The strings here aren’t just
sonic window dressing: As NPR’s Bob Boilen put it, their music
is “orchestral folk where the ‘orchestral’ part isn’t an afterthought.”
(Sept. 24, 7:30 PM, $15, Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady,
434-1703)
Mike
Moreno Quintet
A
Place for Jazz, Friday
Capital Region jazz fans may recognize NYC guitarist Mike
Moreno for the work he did on hometown saxophonist Brian Patneaude’s
2009 album Riverview. International hip-hop fans may
recognize him for the work he did on Q-Tip’s celebrated The
Renaissance. Moreno’s list of collaborations is long and
diverse (Joshua Redman, Wynton Marsalis, John Ellis, etc.),
but it’s with his self-titled quintet that he best proves
why he was the deserving recipient of the largest scholarship
the New School ever gave a guitar player. The group will bring
a mixture of standards and Moreno’s original work. (Sept.
24, 8 PM, $15, Whisperdome, 1221 Wendell Ave., Schenectady,
393-4011)
Jess
Klein, Natalia Zukerman, Antje Duvekot
Caffe
Lena, Friday
If you want to find out what’s going on in the field of modern
female folk, this Friday’s show, which features three of that
scene’s brightest, should serve as an excellent primer. Rochester-born
Jess Klein is currently supporting a fine new album, Bound
to Love, which takes inspiration from her adopted home
of Austin, Texas. Manhattanite Natalia Zukerman brings an
urban background to her music; there are snatches of jazz
and blues in her genre-bending sound. And Philly-based Antje
Duvekot is a former John Lennon Songwriting Contest winner
whose latest record, The Near Demise of the Highwire Dancer,
was produced by folk great Richard Shindell. (Sept. 24,
8 PM, $18, 47 Phila St., Saratoga Springs, 583-0022)
Dark
Star Orchestra
Palace
Theatre, Saturday
Jerry Garcia is a very difficult act to follow. Just ask the
Grateful Dead, who, rather than attempt to replace him following
his death in 1995, simply opted to break up. Thankfully, Dead
reenactors Dark Star Orchestra weren’t forced to resort to
such finality when their last singer-guitarist departed the
band; they simply hired on Jeff Mattson of veteran Dead band
the Zen Tricksters (as well as a former band member of both
Phil Lesh and ’70s-era singer Donna Godchaux). Coupled with
the fact that the band has started occasionally playing their
own song orders, rather than their usual practice of performing
an entire Dead set list at each show, would suggest they’re
relishing their own flexibility—and that’s exactly how Jerry
would have wanted it. (Sept. 25, 7:30 PM, $31, 19 Clinton
Ave., Albany, 465-4663)
The
Nightlife
Valentine’s,
Saturday
“Puddles
of blood, ach- ing bodies or lasting brain damage” are some
of the possible outcomes of a Nightlife show—as the Schenectady
hardcore act have been nice enough to warn you. This may also
be why the Warped Tour vets were tapped to play Mötley Crüe’s
Crüefest last year; Vince Neil can’t afford another manslaughter
charge and young, big-talking three-guitar opening bands are
great legal cover when things turn lethal. The Nightlife will
have an upstate posse in tow when they come to Valentine’s,
supported by Tradewinds, Our Longest Hours, Par 6 and Life
Like This. Wear a helmet. (Sept. 25, 7 PM, $8, 17 New Scotland
Ave., Albany, 432-6572)
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| Also
Noted |
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| Ryan
Montbleau Band |
Two
acts celebrating the great tradition of playing
hollow wooden boxes with strings stretched across
them are here to kick off the fall folk season:
Tonight (Thursday), stripped-down British legends
Acoustic Strawbs open the doors of the
Eighth Step at Proctors ($26, 434-1703), and tomorrow
(Friday), the worldly group known as Acoustic
Eidolon bring new sounds to Old Songs (8 PM,
$20, 765-2815). . . . After a year that found
them playing alongside Martin Sexton and supporting
the Dave Matthews Band, Friday sees the return
of the ever-hard-working Ryan Montbleau Band
at Jillian’s (9 PM, $17, 432-1997). . . .
The Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary hosts an acoustic
benefit concert this Saturday featuring pop star
Moby, his co-conspirator and solo artist
Kelli Scarr, and the Mercury Rev Clear
Light Ensemble (5:30 PM, $35, 845-679-5955).
. . . Another famously bald performer, the one-woman
neo-soul army known as Meshell Ndegeocello,
will curate a night of music at Club Helsinki
Hudson Saturday evening, part of a benefit for
WXGC community radio (9PM, $18, 828-4800). . .
. The nifty double bill of Ani DiFranco
and Erin McKeown will play a sold-out show
at Skidmore’s Arthur Zankel Music Center on Sunday
(7 PM, 583-0022). . . . He was the 2009 Instrumentalist
of the Year winner at the Americana Music Awards,
but on Monday longtime sideman Gurf Morlix
puts his own songs on display for a show at Valentine’s
(8 PM, $10, 432-6572).
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