{"id":53903,"date":"2024-04-12T08:50:19","date_gmt":"2024-04-12T12:50:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=53903"},"modified":"2024-04-12T08:50:20","modified_gmt":"2024-04-12T12:50:20","slug":"on-stage-veteran-performers-to-perform-this-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=53903","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: Veteran performers to perform this weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"

Walter Salas-Humara<\/p><\/div>\n

Three veteran musicians \u2013 each with more than 40-year careers in the New York music scene \u2013 will be performing in the area this weekend.<\/p>\n

Walter Salas-Humara will be performing a solo acoustic show on April 12 at Stone Garden Estate (4097 Wren Road, Thomasville, 717-870-9568) and then will be playing a concert with his band The Silos on April 13 at WaR3house 3, 100 Park Avenue, Swarthmore, 3dwarehouse.sketchup.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

James Mastro, whose career dates back to mid-1980s with The Bongos, will open with an acoustic set and then play as a member of Alejandro Escoveda\u2019s band in a show at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com<\/a>)\u00a0on April 12.<\/p>\n

Michael Gira and his band SWANS will be playing a show at Union Transfer (1026 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, 215-232-2100, www.utphilly.com<\/a>) on April 13.<\/p>\n

Salas-Humara is to the Silos what Trent Reznor is to Nine Inch Nails or David Thomas is to Pere Ubu — musicians who carry the band name and bands with revolving lineups. The current edition of the Silos features Konrad Meissner on drums, Rod Hohl on guitar, Caitlyn Oliver-Gans on bass and Bruce Martin on keyboards and bass and supporting vocals and Salas-Humara doing lead vocals and lead guitar.<\/p>\n

The Silos were voted the Best New American Band in the\u00a0Rolling Stone\u00a0Critics Poll of 1987.<\/p>\n

The world of popular music in America also has its share of trends — New Wave synth-pop, world-beat fusion, etc. — but it also has its staples such as the Blasters, Los Lobos and the Silos — bands that are always there to fill the listener’s need for reliable, no-frills, down-to-earth rock tunes.<\/p>\n

Salas-Humara put the Silos together in the mid-1980s after fronting the Vulgar Boatmen for a few years. He has been the lone continuing thread in the Silos over the band’s long career.<\/p>\n

Salas-Humara, who began his musical career as a drummer, has played an amazing array of venues in the Philadelphia area, including the Chestnut Cabaret, Tin Angel, The Point, Revival, Bishop’s Collar, J.C. Dobbs, Ambler Cabaret, World Caf\u00e9 Live, North Star, Pontiac, 23 East Cabaret, Khyber Pass.<\/p>\n

This weekend, he will add two new venues to the list.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m doing an acoustic set Friday at a listening room in Lancaster,\u201d said Salas-Humara, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon. \u201cThen, I\u2019ll have a show with the band on Saturday in Swarthmore.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been playing a lot of gigs. And I\u2019ve been doing a lot of paintings. I\u2019m a partner in an art gallery in New York. I\u2019ve also been doing a bunch of writing.<\/p>\n

\u201cNext year will be the 40th anniversary of the Silos\u2019 first album so I\u2019ll have some kind of record release for that \u2013 but I\u2019m not planning a big tour. I have some shows planned for Europe \u2013 Austria, Germany, Switzerland.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have a lot of stuff that has been recorded. So, I\u2019ll definitely put something out next year.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Silos\u2019 debut album was \u201cAbout Her Steps\u201d in 1985. The band\u2019s most recent LP is \u201cFamily,\u201d which was their 18th, was released in 2022.<\/p>\n

According to Salas-Humara, \u201cThe Silos have morphed time and time again, expanding and expanding, not only the territory we cover, but the membership in our little community. The band is a \u2018Family\u2019 to me, hence the title of the new album. There are members all over the United States and in parts of Europe. This album was recorded in the Northeast, the Midwest, Texas and Germany, with members from all those regions dropping in on each other\u2019s tracks via our modern technology.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salas-Humara made it work.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast year, I tried to get everybody I knew around the world,\u201d said Salas-Humara. \u201cI couldn\u2019t go all the places, but I went everywhere I could \u2013 Chicago, Minnesota, Texas and even Germany.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still writing. I have a lot of brand-new stuff. I also have a lot of stuff I\u2019ve written over the last few years that I\u2019ve been saving for different reasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy last album before \u2018Family\u2019 was \u2018Florizona,\u2019 which was released in 2011. After that, I was trying to retire and just focus on being a painter. I did that for about five years and then started making music again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salas-Humara has the Silos on the road again. Fortunately, there will be two shows in this area.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese venues are new for me,\u201d said Salas-Humara. \u201cMy booking agent Katrina lives in Philadelphia so she picked these venues. Friday is solo and then the shows Saturday in Swarthmore and Sunday in Metuchen, New Jersey will be with the band.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for the Silos \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/Xzbp_v3Hc6c<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show on April 12 at Stone Garden Estate will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $25.<\/p>\n

The show on April 13 at WaR3house 3 will start at 7 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $25.<\/p>\n

\"\"

James Mastro<\/p><\/div>\n

Like Salas-Humara, Mastro\u2019s musical weekend will start with a solo acoustic set and then have a band show later on the same stage with Alejandro Escovedo.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlejandro and I have known each other for a long time \u2013 more so when I was working with Ian Hunter,\u201d said Mastro, during a phone interview Wednesday from a tour stop in Homer, New York.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis particular tour is running for five weeks but we\u2019re going to be running for the rest of the year, including opening for Jason Isbell in the fall.\u201d<\/p>\n

Co-incidentally, Salas-Humara\u00a0recorded two records with fellow songwriters Michael Hall\u00a0and\u00a0Alejandro Escovedo under the name the Setters in the mid-1990s.
\nMastro is touring in support of his new album, \u201cDawn of a New Error,\u201d which is his first solo album.<\/p>\n

Mastro, a Hoboken-based rock\/Americana singer-songwriter-guitarist\u00a0(formerly of The Bongos, Richard Lloyd Band, and the Health & Happiness Show) is set to release the album on February 21. The album marks Mastro’s return as a frontman, singer and songwriter.<\/p>\n

Featuring guest vocals by Ian Hunter and produced by Tony Shanahan \u2013 Patti Smith\u2019s bassist, co-producer and musical collaborator \u2013 the songs were recorded whenever Mastro and Shanahan found time to get together between other projects. It is a timely album that toes the line between twangy Americana and Art Rock.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is my first solo album,\u201d said Mastro. \u201cWith the Health & Happiness Show, I was the songwriter, but it was a democracy. Also, when writing for a band, you always have that in mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mastro has toured the world dozens of\u00a0times over as a supportive musician with some of the biggest and most critically acclaimed rock\u00a0and pop\u00a0artists ever to grace a stage including\u00a0Patti Smith,\u00a0Ian Hunter,\u00a0Judy Collins,\u00a0John Cale,\u00a0The Jayhawks,\u00a0Alejandro Escovedo,\u00a0Garland Jeffreys,\u00a0Jesse Malin,\u00a0and with\u00a0Robert Plant\u00a0as his musical director for a benefit concert for an artist they both admired immensely,\u00a0Love\u2019s Arthur Lee.<\/p>\n

\u201cDawn of a New Error\u201d\u00a0finds Mastro firmly in frontman territory, unleashing 11 brand-new, fiery\u00a0cuts that will make even the most\u00a0jaded music listener sit up and listen. What makes Mastro all the more impressive – band cred aside – is his arsenal of\u00a0sounds. Textural and otherworldly one minute and retro-rock the next, each track on his\u00a0MPress\u00a0debut\u00a0is a master class in crafting\u00a0timeless hooks, intelligent\u00a0lyrics, and kick-ass playing that any fan of Elvis Costello, Tom Petty, or Wilco will embrace.<\/p>\n

Produced by\u00a0Tony Shanahan\u00a0(Patti Smith\u2019s bassist, co-producer and musical collaborator) at Hobo Sound, the album was recorded and mixed by Grammy nominee\u00a0James\u00a0Frazee\u00a0(Patti Smith, Sharon Van Etten, Marshall Crenshaw),\u00a0and mastered by the legendary\u00a0Greg Calbi.<\/p>\n

Mastro\u00a0wrote and sang all the songs, along with playing all guitars and mandolin.\u00a0Shanahan\u00a0played bass, keyboards, and sang backing vocals.\u00a0 Noteworthy drummers are on the record include the late\u00a0Louie Appel (Southside Johnny), Brian Griffin\u00a0(Brandi Carlile, Black Crowes), Steve Goulding (The Mekons, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe),\u00a0and\u00a0Bill Dubrow\u00a0(Yoko Ono, Linda Thompson).<\/p>\n

\u201cDawn of a New Error\u201d was a long time in the making.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis album started probably 10 years ago,\u201d said Mastro. \u201cI never had the intention of making an album. My friend Tony Shanahan had just opened a studio in Weehawken and he wanted to test it. I wrote a song in 2010 and we did it there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was very busy with touring and Tony was very busy too. He\u2019d call me a day or two before and say come on over. So, I\u2019d have to write a song or finish one. No-one heard those songs until now.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring COVID, I looked at the songs and realized I had an album. I didn\u2019t seriously think about an album until COVID. I had 11 songs, and all are on the album. I was surprised at how cohesive the album was. I never realized it but there is definitely a lyrical thread going through \u2013 and a musical thread.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018My God\u2019 was the first song we recorded. It set the tone for the record \u2013 but not consciously. I had never written a song like that before. I wasn\u2019t sure if it was too preachy, too childlike or if it was going to piss people off. I sent Patti Smith the lyrics and asked if I was on the right track and she said yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for James Mastro \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/zmNbzZri3yE<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Sellersville Theater on April 12 will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $29.50 and $55.<\/p>\n

Other upcoming shows at the venue are Leo Kottke on April 13 and Ruen Brothers with Ric Robertson on April 14.<\/p>\n

In the animal world, swans do not go into hibernation for over a decade and then emerge for a whole new round of living. Such is not the case in the world of rock music. After 13 years in a cocoon, Swans emerged and came back to life healthier than anyone could imagine.<\/p>\n

Michael Gira put his band Swans to bed in 1997 and moved on to different musical projects \u2013 mainly forming the band Angels of Light and running his own Young God Records label.<\/p>\n

There was another short gap a few years back but now Swans are back kicking ass in their own unique way.<\/p>\n

SWANS released their 16th studio album, \u201cThe Beggar,\u201d on June 23, 2023. It was released by\u00a0Mute\u00a0and\u00a0Young God Records. The announcement of the album coincided with the release of its lead single, \u201cParadise Is Mine,\u201d as well as the announcement of a world tour.<\/p>\n

SWANS world tour brings the band to Philly on April 13 for a show at Union Transfer (1026 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, 215-232-2100, www.utphilly.com<\/a>) on April 13.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Beggar\u201d\u00a0was preceded and\u00a0funded\u00a0by the acoustic demo album\u00a0\u201cIs There Really a Mind?\u201d The demo album consisted of\u00a0acoustic\u00a0renditions of many of the album’s then-unfinished tracks, primarily recorded by Gira alone at his home studio.<\/p>\n

According to Gira, \u201cWe did live recordings to fund the studio album. We made handmade CDs of live recordings or new songs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Beggar\u201d continues SWANS uncompromising take on music.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what Michael Gira has to say about it: \u201cAfter numerous pandemic-induced cancellations of tours for the previous SWANS album leaving meaning, and an apparent bottomless pit of waiting, waiting, waiting, and the strange disorientation that came with this sudden but interminable forced isolation I decided it was time to write songs for a new SWANS album and forget about everything else.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey came relatively easily, always informed by the suspicion that these could be my last. When I finally was able to travel, songs in hand, to Berlin to work with my friends recording this record, the feeling was akin to the moment in The Wizard of Oz when the film changes from Black and White to Color. Now I\u2019m feeling quite optimistic. My favorite color is pink. I hope you enjoy the album!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Beggar\u201d was released on double vinyl in a brown chipboard sleeve with a download card for accessing an additional 44 minutes of music (also included on the album’s CD version), as a double-CD in a brown chipboard digi-pack, as well as digitally.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Beggar\u201d was recorded and mixed at Candy Bomber Studio, Berlin, engineered by Ingo Krauss and mastered by Doug Henderson at Micro-Moose, Berlin. The album was written and produced by Gira and features contributions from recent and former Swans, members of Angels of Light, as well as Guest Swan Ben Frost.<\/p>\n

Not surprisingly, Gira\u2019s new work is loud, brutal \u2013 lyrically and musically \u2013 and not fodder for casual listeners. And Gira has made a point to stress that this is another part of the evolution of SWANS and, unlike what is put forth by a lot of old rock bands, not just another regrouping of artists to cash in on a name.<\/p>\n

Gira said, \u201cFrom 2010-2018, we had a very set group lineup that lasted a long time. Then, I decided it was time to have a revolving door.\u201d<\/p>\n

The touring line-up of SWANS comprises:<\/p>\n

Michael Gira \u2013 Vocals, words, acoustic guitar, production. Gira started Swans in NYC in 1982 and has been the primary songwriter, singer and producer throughout the years. During the Swans hiatus (1999 \u2013 2010), he released several albums by and toured with a group called Angels of Light. Gira recently published a book of his short stories, journals, and words for music, called The Knot. He lives in New Mexico.<\/p>\n

Kristof Hahn \u2013 Lap steel, various guitars, vocals. Kristof first joined Swans in 1989 and was a principal contributor to Angels of Light, and a core Swans member 2010 \u2013 2017. Kristof\u2019s other musical ventures have included the Rock \u2018n\u2019 Roll Noir band Les Hommes Sauvages and Kool Kings (with Alex Chilton). When not making music Kristof translates books. He lives in Berlin, Germany.<\/p>\n

Larry Mullins – Drums, vibes, orchestral percussion, Mellotron, various keyboards, backing vocals. Larry is a trained symphonic percussionist. He played through the \u201890s with Iggy Pop and later with The Stooges. He played with Swans in the late \u201890s and was a main contributor to Angels of Light. His current main job is playing drums with The Bad Seeds. Larry lives in Berlin, Germany.<\/p>\n

Dana Schechter \u2013 Bass guitar, lap steel, keyboards, vocals, piano. Dana played bass in and was a core member of Angels of Light. She subsequently released music and toured as Bee and Flower. Her current band is the power-duo, Insect Ark. Dana is an animator and designer in the film industry and currently lives in Berlin, Germany.<\/p>\n

Christopher Pravdica – Bass guitar, sounds, keyboards, vocals. Chris played bass as a core Swans member in 2010 \u2013 2017. Chris has played with the bands, The Gunga Din, Flux Information Sciences, Xiu Xiu, Yonatan Gat\u2019s Medicine Singers and has a project of his own called We Owe. Chris is a sound designer and lives in Brooklyn, NY.<\/p>\n

Phil Puleo \u2013 Drums, percussion, vocals, piano, exotic wind instruments. Phil played drums with Swans in the late \u201890s and was a core member in Swans 2010 \u2013 2017 and contributed to Angels of Light. Phil\u2019s early NYC musical venture was Cop Shoot Cop and has since played with Human Impact, among others. Phil is an extremely talented illustrator and lives in Chicago, IL.<\/p>\n

Gira compared the live show to the recorded product \u2013 \u201cThe music (on stage) doesn\u2019t resemble the record. We don\u2019t try to replicate the record. It\u2019s a starting point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for SWANS \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/YqGQh6264L8<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Union Transfer on April 13 will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $32 and $38.<\/p>\n

The Keswick Theater will have a great twin bill on April 12 with Judith Hill opening for JJ Grey & Mofro.<\/p>\n

Hill has a very impressive music CV.<\/p>\n

She is a singer-songwriter from Los Angeles, who has provided backing vocals for such artists as\u00a0Michael Jackson,\u00a0Prince, and\u00a0Josh Groban. In 2009, Hill was chosen as Jackson’s duet partner for the song \u201cI Just Can’t Stop Loving You\u201d during his\u00a0\u201cThis Is It\u201d\u00a0rehearsals. After Jackson’s death in 2009, she, along with the rest of the\u00a0\u201cThis Is It\u201d\u00a0cast members, performed at\u00a0Jackson’s memorial service\u00a0and attracted global attention when she sang the lead on the song \u201cHeal the World.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hill’s rise to fame is recounted in\u00a0\u201c20 Feet from Stardom,\u201d a documentary film that tells the untold story of the backup singers behind some of the \u201cgreatest musical legends of the 21st century.\u201d She is also a featured artist on the film’s soundtrack. She won the\u00a0Grammy Award for Best Music Film\u00a0for her performance in this film.<\/p>\n

A number of Hill’s original ballads, including \u201cDesperation,\u201d were featured in the 2012\u00a0Spike Lee\u00a0film\u00a0\u201cRed Hook Summer<\/a>.\u201d In March 2013, Hill became a contestant during the\u00a0fourth season\u00a0of\u00a0The Voice. Hill opened for\u00a0Josh Groban\u00a0during the third leg of his\u00a0All That Echoes World Tour\u00a0(North America) in Fall 2013. She also performed two duets with him in his set for \u201cThe Prayer\u201d and \u201cRemember When It Rained\u201d (which was released as a single). She also toured with\u00a0John Legend\u00a0on the UK leg of his\u00a0\u201c#AllOfMe\u201d\u00a0tour in fall 2014.<\/p>\n

Now, Hill is touring in support of her fifth album, \u201cLetters From A Black Widow,\u201d which is set for release later this month via Regime Music Group. The 12-track record presents a riveting story from private pain to communal transcendence \u2013 her most soul-bearing work to date. The announcement comes with the release of her new single and lyric video for \u201cFlame\u201d out now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been touring for close to a month now,\u201d said Hill, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from a tour stop in New York. \u201cThe album comes out April 26.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll be touring throughout the rest of the year. We joined JJ Grey with some of the things we\u2019ve been doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hill and her family band will tour extensively in support of the new music. Her North American tour kicked off on January 27 in Sanibel, Florida at Big Arts Sanibel and includes 19 spring dates supporting JJ Grey & Mofro.<\/p>\n

\u201cIi started recording the new album\u00a0 a couple years ago \u2013 in 2021,\u201d said Hill. \u201cThe songs were all written in 2021. I started in my home studio. I brought in the musicians and we did the tracking. I didn\u2019t really write a bunch of songs. I just wrote these songs because they work together.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the standout tracks is \u201cFlame,\u201d which showcases powerful vocal and incendiary musical arrangements from Hill. Lyrically, the new song stares down darkness and pain with a telling revelation about her inner reserves:\u00a0Give me chaos and give me pain\/but you can never kill my flame.<\/p>\n

According to Hill, \u201cI am more resilient than I thought I was. After every blow that knocks me to the ground, I discover an inner power that emerges stronger and more defiant than before. Like iron and steel, my core has become impenetrable. On my darkest days, I plug into the amp and hear the throbbing pulse of the guitar like a surge of energy reviving my spirit. I am convinced that I will never be defeated.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the best ones is \u2018Black Widow,\u2019 which was written first \u2013 coming out of a sense of triumph. It deals with aspects \u2013 shame then triumph.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLetters From A Black Widow\u201d\u00a0follows Hill\u2019s 2021 release,\u00a0\u201cBaby, I\u2019m Hollywood!,\u201d which garnered widespread critical acclaim and was described by SPIN as \u201ca funk-rock-soul scorcher.\u201d If that album offered a rowdy coming-of-age tale of a mixed-race child of bohemian California,\u00a0\u201cLetters from a Black Widow\u201d\u00a0is a formidable battle cry \u2013 an album-length soul\/funk\/gospel passion play that\u2019s spectacularly written, arranged, and performed by Hill.<\/p>\n

While Hill played many of the instruments \u2013 including electric guitar, which she taught herself to play since her last studio release \u2013 this project is not a strictly solo endeavor. It\u2019s built on the unshakable musical foundation she has enjoyed for most of her life: Hill\u2019s band includes her parents, bassist Robert \u201cPeewee\u201d Hill and keyboardist Michiko Hill.\u00a0She\u2019s also joined by John Staten (drums and percussion), Daniel Chae (strings) and a group of friends, who contribute background vocals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been on the road for most of this year,\u201d said Hill. \u201cI haven\u2019t started to write again yet. But I\u2019m ready to start writing again soon.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have five more shows left with JJ \u2013 one week. It\u2019s my first time playing with him. We got booked together because we have the same management. Later, my band and I are doing a European tour. It will be a mix of festivals and club shows.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are able to play all the songs from the new album live. The set list varies from night to night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Judith Hill — https:\/\/youtu.be\/4gjuJuBWEzg<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Renowned singer, songwriter and artist\u00a0JJ\u00a0Grey\u00a0is celebrating the release of his highly anticipated new Alligator Records album,\u00a0\u201cOlustee\u201d \u2013 his first self-produced album and his first release in nine years.<\/p>\n

The North Florida-born and bred\u00a0Grey\u00a0sings his personal stories with universal themes of redemption, rebirth, hard luck, and inner peace. With his music,\u00a0Grey\u00a0also celebrates good times with lifelong friends, oftentimes mixing the carnal with the cerebral in the very same song. Fueled by his vividly detailed, timeless originals spun from his own life and experiences in the Northern Florida swampland,\u00a0Grey\u2019s gritty baritone drips with honest passion and testifies with a preacher\u2019s foot-pounding fervor.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, songwriting ain\u2019t easy \u2013 because I\u2019m lazy,\u201d said Grey, during an interview in 2005. \u201cIf I was diligent about it, it would probably be easy. When it rains it pours. Sometimes, I\u2019ll write 10 new songs all at once. Other times, it will be nothing for months.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think music is a byproduct of life \u2013 not the other way around. I want my songs to be real and to deal with real life the way we live it here. I don\u2019t want to forget about what I almost forgot. The things my grandfather knew and taught me can stand the test of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

On \u201cOlustee,\u201d Grey has found songs that can stand the test of time.<\/p>\n

According to\u00a0Grey, \u201cThe best songs I\u2019ve ever written, I never wrote. They wrote themselves. The best show I ever played, played itself and had little to do with me or talent. To me, those things come from the power of an honest moment, and I guess I\u2019m trying to live in that power and not force life to cough up what I want.\u201d<\/p>\n

With\u00a0\u201cOlustee,\u201d Grey\u00a0has once again pushed the boundaries of his own creative musical, lyrical and vocal talents, delivering an album that is destined to become a stone-cold classic. Many of the songs are steeped in the mythical Southern stories of his ancestral Florida home and filled with people from his life. The songs overflow with the sights and sounds of the region as told through the eyes of a poet and sung with pure, unvarnished soul.<\/p>\n

Grey\u00a0made his recording debut in 2001 with\u00a0\u201cBlackwater,\u201d following up in 2004 with\u00a0\u201cLochloosa.\u201d Both albums were released on the Fog City label under the name Mofro, a moniker the young Grey\u00a0chose to describe his music and sound while still working his day job at a lumberyard. He has since used the word to name his band of world-class players.<\/p>\n

In 2007, Grey\u00a0signed with Alligator Records and released a string of five popular and successful albums: 2007\u2019s\u00a0\u201cCountry Ghetto,\u201d 2008\u2019s\u00a0\u201cOrange Blossoms,\u201d 2010\u2019s\u00a0\u201cGeorgia Warhorse,\u201d 2011\u2019s live CD\/DVD\u00a0\u201cBrighter Days\u201d\u00a0and 2013\u2019s\u00a0\u201cThis River.\u201d \u201cOl\u2019 Glory\u201d\u00a0was released on the Provogue label in 2015.<\/p>\n

Video link for JJ Grey — https:\/\/youtu.be\/qNJEqf-CsLY<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Keswick Theater on April 12 will start at 7:30 p.m.<\/p>\n

Ticket prices start at $39.50.<\/p>\n

On April 17, World Caf\u00e9 Live (3025 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, www.worldcafelive.com<\/a>), singer, songwriter, and storyteller,\u00a0Arielle Silver, will return to Pennsylvania for a concert at World Caf\u00e9 Live (3025 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, www.worldcafelive.com<\/a>).\u00a0She will be playing selections from her latest LP, Watershed<\/a>, and choice cuts from her discography.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was born on the Gulf of Mexico in Fort Myers, Florida and raised in the mid-Atlantic,\u201d said Silver, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from her home in Burbank, Califiornia.<\/p>\n

\u201cI lived with my family in northwestern New Jersey. It was out in the country \u2013 a very nurturing place. Since then, I\u2019ve lived in a lot of other places including Chestertown, Maryland and Lancaster. I live right in the heart of the city of Lancaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Silver is performing shows in support of her new album, \u201cWatershed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wrote the songs in 2021 during quarantine,\u201d said Silver. \u201cI did a lot of creative things in 2020 and 2021. At the start of 2021, I started talking to my producer Shane Alexander. I started to get it together in early 2022 and did pre-production for a couple months. I recorded the basic tracks in spring and summer that year. We cut it at Shane\u2019s studio Buddahland. Later, I added background vocals and pedal steel. Jesse Siebenberg, who played lap steel and pedal steel, is amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexander used a core band of accomplished musicians \u2013 Darby Orr on bass and keyboards, Jesse Siebenberg on slide and steel guitars, Denny Weston Jr on drums and percussion, Rob Hodges on cello and Justine Bennett on backing vocals.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn pre-production, we weeded the songs,\u201d said Silver. \u201cWe recorded 10 songs and used all 10. In 2023, we finished mixing and mastering the album and then October 6 was the release date.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conceived in the quiet of the pandemic quarantine, \u201cWatershed<\/a>\u201d takes its title from that watershed moment and the woodsy and watery places where the story-songs are set.<\/p>\n

\u201cSubconsciously, I was trying to home in on the essence of the time,\u201d said Silver, who holds degrees in Psychology from Brandeis University; Clarinet and Songwriting from Berklee College of Music; and an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles,\u00a0with a primary focus on Creative Nonfiction, and secondary foci in Fiction and Literary Translation.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the songs on the album were written during the pandemic.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlso, \u2018Watershed\u2019 has stories behind watery places I have lived \u2013 Florida, Maryland, Walden Pond. A lot of them reference the place. I think about places a lot when I\u2019m writing. A lot of my childhood homes were located near water.\u201d<\/p>\n

With accolades in numerous songwriting contests, including Second Place in the International Acoustic Music Awards, songs from\u00a0\u201cWatershed\u201d\u00a0have been heard on\u00a0The Bluegrass Situation,\u00a0Americana UK, and LA tastemaker station 88.5FM The SoCal Sound.<\/p>\n

Not only is Silver an acclaimed singer-songwriter with a string of four previous albums under her belt \u2013 most recently 2020\u2019s\u00a0\u201cA Thousand Tiny Touches,\u201d\u00a0she is also a Creative Writing Professor at Antioch University, the founder of Bhavana Flow Yoga Studio and she serves as the President of FAR-West (folk Alliance Region West) where she promotes the work of artists, songwriters, producers and more, across traditional, contemporary and multicultural folk music, dance, storytelling and performing arts.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was back east in November,\u201d said Silver. \u201cThe album had just come out. It was a week after the album release show at Hotel Caf\u00e9 in Hollywood.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis time back east, I\u2019m just doing solo shows. \u201cI\u2019m playing some tracks from \u2018A Thousand Tiny Touches\u2019 but I\u2019m focusing mostly on the songs from \u2018Watershed.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Arielle Silver \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/mDq-vqWiH4Q<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at World Caf\u00e9 Live on April 12 will start at 8 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets are $20.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Mystery of Edwin Drood,\u201d which is running now through April 21 at the Candlelight\u00a0Theater (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware,\u00a0302- 475-2313, www.<\/a>candlelight<\/a>theatredelaware.org<\/a>), is definitely a mystery.<\/p>\n

The cast for the show includes many Candlelight veterans including Anthony Connell (Phillip Baz, Bazzard), Dan Healy (James Throttle), Julia Kershetsky (Alice Nutting, Edwin Drood), Sarah Mackus (Beatrice), Constance Clay Pelesh (Princess Puffer, Angela Prysock), Samantha Ricchiuti (Florence Gill), Shaun Yates (Nick Cricker) and Victoria Healy (Ensemble).<\/p>\n

The Candlelight Theatre provided some information with this message on its website and handout flyers \u2013<\/p>\n

\u201cTHE MYSTERY of EDWIN DROOD, based on Charles Dickens\u2019 final unfinished novel, is presented by a delightfully zany, vaudeville-type company at The Music Hall Royale.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe story features John Jasper, a Jekyll-and-Hyde choirmaster who is quite madly in love with the fair Miss Rosa Bud who is engaged to Jasper\u2019s nephew, young Edwin Drood. Drood disappears after dinner on a stormy night and is thought to have been murdered. If so, then whodunnit?<\/p>\n

\u201cYOU, the audience, must decide and vote.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust how many possible endings can there be? The secret is in the number of combinations made possible by three separate sets of roles chosen by you, the audience. The total? 480!<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich show will you see? You vote on the ending, so it\u2019s entirely up to you!\u201d<\/p>\n

As\u00a0\u201cDrood\u201d is\u00a0metatheatrical, the characters of the play\u00a0\u201cThe Mystery of Edwin Drood\u201d\u00a0are played by actors of the \u201cMusic Hall Royale,\u201d within the production.<\/p>\n

Metatheatre, and the closely related term\u00a0metadrama, describes the aspects of a\u00a0play\u00a0that draw attention to its nature as\u00a0drama\u00a0or\u00a0theatre, or to the circumstances of its performance.\u00a0\u201cBreaking the Fourth Wall\u201d\u00a0is an example of a metatheatrical device.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a murder mystery,\u201d said Connell. \u201cIt\u2019s a fun show with great audience participation. The audience votes on who they think murdered Edwin Drood.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are all sorts of clues throughout the play concerning who the murderer might be. Audience members take notes and play a role in the play\u2019s final stages.<\/p>\n

\u201cAudiences like it,\u201d said Connell. \u201cIt\u2019s something different \u2013 something interactive. Audiences always live murder mysteries. Personally, I like when actors can go into the audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Candlelight\u00a0Theatre is presenting \u201cThe Mystery of Edwin Drood\u201d now through April 21. Performances are Friday and Saturday evenings (doors 6 p.m.\/show, 8 p.m.) and Sunday afternoons (doors, 1 p.m.\/show, 3 p.m.). Tickets, which include dinner and show, are $63 for adults and $33 for children (ages 4-12).<\/p>\n

Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org<\/a>) is presenting The Ultimate Doors on April 13 and Susan Werner on April 14.<\/p>\n

This week, the Elkton Music Hall (107 North Street, Elkton, Maryland, www.elktonmusichall.com<\/a>) will host Chris Smither on April 12 and LaMP on April 13.<\/p>\n

Jamey\u2019s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985,www.jameyshouseofmusic.com<\/a>) will present The Porkroll Project and Roberto Morbioli on April 12 and The Dale Melton Trio on April 13.<\/p>\n

Jamey\u2019s features either \u201cJazz at Jamey\u2019s\u201d or \u201cAnything Goes\u201d on Thursdays featuring the Dave Reiter Trio and occasional guest musicians.<\/p>\n

\u201cJazz at Jamey\u2019s\u201d will be presented every second and fourth Thursday, and \u201cAnything Goes\u201d every first, third and fifth Thursday.<\/p>\n

Every Sunday, Jamey\u2019s presents \u201cSUNDAY BLUES BRUNCH & JAM\u201d featuring the Philly Blues Kings. On the second Sunday each month, the featured act is the Girke-Davis Project which features club owner Jamey Reilly, Roger Girke, Glenn Bickel, Fred Berman and Colgan-Davis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Three veteran musicians \u2013 each with more than 40-year careers in the New York music scene \u2013 will be performing in the area this weekend. Walter Salas-Humara will be performing a solo acoustic show on April 12 at Stone Garden Estate (4097 Wren Road, Thomasville, 717-870-9568) and then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53901,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8457],"tags":[7426,15569,15570],"class_list":["post-53903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-featured","tag-james-mastro","tag-walter-salas-humara"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=53903"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":53904,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53903\/revisions\/53904"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/53901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=53903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=53903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=53903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}