The Genesee Chorale is opening its 2024 Fall Season and is looking for a few good singers.
The Chorale held its opening rehearsal on Monday at St. James.
For more information on joining, click here.
Photos by Howard Owens.
On a cooler rainy September Friday night, it didn’t stop anyone from dancing and grooving to T-Pain, who opened for Pitbull at Darien Lake Amphitheater.
A sold-out 22,000 plus crowd packed the venue to greatest hits by both performers including a few dressed up Pitbull outfits.
In two years, the Songbirds, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band, has gone from playing for a couple of dozen people at a block party in Batavia to headlining at some of Western New York's top music venues.
On Monday, they closed out, as headliners, the Oakfield Labor Daze Music & Food Festival, drawing, likely, in the area of hundreds of fans for a three-hour set of all the best of Fleetwood Mac along with some deep tracks.
Previously: It's more than just ‘Rumours’ that Songbirds pay tribute to Fleetwood Mac
Photos by Howard Owens.
After the parade, on a beautiful blue-sky Labor Day, the third and final day of the music portion of the Oakfield Labor Daze Music & Food Festival opened with power trio Salvatore, an Albion-based band, followed by Elvis impersonator Terry Buchwald.
Photos by Howard Owens.
Sunday night's headliner, Nerds Gone Wild -- perhaps Western New York's most popular cover band -- thrilled all their fans who turned out in Triangle Park for their headlining performance on the second day of the Oakfield Labor Daze Music & Food Festival.
While waiting for the band make its grand entrance, one woman from Arizona approached a reporter and praised the festival. She couldn't believe all the music was free. And she loved all the food options. She said she extended her vacation an extra week just to see Nerds in Oakfield.
Photos by Howard Owens.
Hazzard County, a Buffalo-based country music band, got a late start due to heavy rain, lightning, and thunder but still put on an all-out performance for music fans Sunday in Oakfield.
Photos by Howard Owens.
The Eaglez, an Eagles tribute band, performed Sunday afternoon at the Oakfield Labor Daze Music and Food Festival.
The band's set was cut about 20 minutes short by a torrential downpour.
Photos by Howard Owens.
On Saturday at Labor Daze in Triangle Park in Oakfield, Mayday Buffalo was the afternoon band, and Dave Viterna Group was the headliner for the night.
The rest of this weekend's lineup:
On Sunday:
On Monday:
The Labor Daze Parade is at 10 a.m. on Monday
Photos by Howard Owens
Genesee Ted kicked off three days of live music in Oakfield for the Labor Daze Music & Food Festival.
Also on Saturday, Mayday from 4 to 7 p.m. and Dave Viterna Group from 7 to 10 p.m.
On Sunday:
On Monday:
The Labor Daze Parade is at 10 a.m. on Monday
Photos by Howard Owens
One of Batavia's most accomplished bands, The Bluesway Band, packed the house on Friday in Jackson Square for a night of classic rock and blues-based rock.
Photos by Howard Owens
As part of the weekly summer concert series in Jackson Square, the OHMS band took to the stage Friday evening and drew a couple hundred people to downtown Batavia for an evening of entertainment.
The six-piece band, consisting of music artists from around Genesee County, was enjoyed by many followers dancing in their seat and around the venue.
Next up in the concert series from 7 to 9 p.m. is Old Hippies on Aug. 23, and it concludes with the Bluesway Band on Aug. 30.
It was a big night at Batavia Downs on Friday for fans of masterful lead singers.
Teo hitmaker from the 70s and 80s took the stage in separate sets.
Jason Scheff, former lead singer of Chicago performed first, followed by Tommy DeCarlo, former lead singer of Boston.
It made for a summer night for some of classic rocks biggest hits.
When New Kids On The Block reunited in 2007, it was fair to wonder if the boy band would have more than just a brief second chapter.
After all, it had been 13-plus years since the five vocalists --Donnie Wahlberg, Joe McIntyre, Jordan Knight, Joe Knight, and Danny Wood – had enjoyed an initial run in which they sold some 80 million copies of its four albums worldwide -- with the 1988 album “Hangin’ Tough” and 1990’s “Step By Step” leading the way.
The guys were now in their 30s, and their teen fans of the 1990s were now well into adulthood. Had the fans moved on? Would the songs New Kids On The Block sang in their teens still resonate when performed by a group whose members were starting to approach middle age?
As it turned out, the reunited group’s first tour in fall 2008 was an all-out success, and since then the New Kids’ popularity has endured. This summer sees the group once again headlining outdoor amphitheaters that hold upwards of 20,000 people as they tour behind their third post-reunion album, “Still Kids.”
So back in 2007 did McIntyre envision a scenario where in 2024 New Kids On The Block would still be major stars and looking at what should be continued success for years to come?
“Uh, no,” McIntyre said in a late-June phone interview. “I think If you asked any of us that 15 years later since we got back together, 16 years later, it's (pause), it's breathtaking. It definitely gives you pause. You're obviously very grateful. At the sametime, on the day-to-day, I know how much we believe, you know what I mean, and we have this concoction of personalities and desires and drive.
“The five of us all show up. So it's not a mystery as far as the day-to-day and the passion that's involved,” he said. “And you know, when something is this big for this long, for me, I get to a point where I can't keep trying to figure it out and just count my blessings and be of service…I think slowly but surely I'm at a point where I'm like hey man, I’ve just got a job to do and I'm lucky enough to have that job and I'm here to entertain the people and have a good time.”
The New Kids have certainly had quite the career. Liftoff came in 1988, when the teenage Tiffany, then at the peak of her “I Think We’re Alone Now” popularity, brought New Kids on the Block out on her Nation Area tour, putting the boys on stage in front of tens of thousands -- just when they’d released their second album “Hangin’ Tough.”
By the end of 1989, the singles “You Got It (The Right Stuff)” “I’ll Be Loving You (Forever)” and the song “Hangin’ Tough” had all topped the charts, and the New Kids were the biggest boy band going.
Another blockbuster album, “Step By Step,” followed, before the New Kids saw their fortunes wane with the 1994 album “Face The Music.” It failed to generate any hits and the group was now playing smaller venues. Following the tour, the group decided to call it a day.
Since reuniting, it’s become clear that the New Kids weren’t simply interested in taking a victory lap. They’ve toured consistently and have now released three studio albums -- “The Block” in 2008, “10” in 2013 and “Still Kids” earlier this year.
The latest album retains many of the musical trademarks of the early New Kids albums, with buoyant, danceable uptempo tracks like “Magic,” “Dance With You” and “Kids” having the familiar synthy gloss and strong pop melodies. The album also has its share of grooving ballads, including “Come Back,” “A Love Like This” and “Better Days.”
At the same time, McIntyre said some songs -- most notably “Stay,” a lush multi-faceted tune about staying -- or leaving -- long-time relationships -- pushed the group into new musical places with its instrumental breakdown.
The concerts New Kids on the Block are doing this summer will include upwards of five songs from “Still Kids,” as well as the expected hit songs from the group’s catalog.
“We you want to give the people what they want and then also mix it up for us to keep it fresh. So we’ve managed to do that,” McIntyre said. And yes, there will be dancing, although McIntyre noted the group has had to
make some adjustments now that they’re in their 50s.
“I think it's a balance,” he said. “We want to keep challenging ourselves, but we want to be appropriate for our age and not run around like chickens with their heads cut off like we used to. But let me tell you, it's a workout. It’s a workout every night, especially outside in summer. But it makes it kind of cathartic. It adds to the experience, but you know, we have our signature moves and we try to build a show that is about ovement and dance and connection. I think we do a decent job balancing that out.”
New Kids On The Block performs at Darien Lake Amphitheater on Thursday, August 22.
Five bands and punk rock fans gathered at Pavilion #2 in the Genesee County Park & Forest on Sunday for the Second Annual Punk Picnic, which featured five bands from Genesee County and Buffalo.
The bands were Privatized Air, Cowboy Vampires, Election Day, Space Cowboys, and Bastard Bastard Bastard.
Previously: 2nd Annual Punk Rock Picnic offers venue for music fans to hear original local music
Southern rock band 38 Special, as they did in 2022, once again packed the house at Batavia Downs on Friday evening.
Continuing the Friday night concert series in downtown Batavia was the Free Beer band that performed for a good crowd to captivate some music lovers for family and friends in Jackson Square.
When you find there isn't much of a punk rock scene in your hometown, you create your own. That's the DIY ethic of the punk movement, after all.
That's the inspiration behind the second annual Punk Rock Picnic on Sunday in Genesee County Park & Forest.
"We come from Batavia, and we don't really fit in the Rochester scene or the Buffalo scene," said Ronald Ratulowski, one of the organizers of the picnic. "I'm old enough to know we're not going to create a scene in Batavia so this our scene."
There will be five bands playing on Sunday, the two Ratulowski plays in, Cowboy Vampires and Election Day, plus two bands from Buffalo, Space Cowboys and Bastard Bastard Bastard, and a fifth band, Privatized Air.
"We've played with the bands in Buffalo and liked them and wanted them to join our party," Ratulowski said.
The picnic starts at 11 a.m. in Pavilion 2, with the first band taking the stage at 1 p.m. Each band will play an hour-long set.
Ratulowski and fellow Cowboy Vampire Chris Humel worked together to organize the event.
There aren't many venues in Batavia that book bands playing original music so this is a chance for people to come out to the park and hear local bands playing their own songs, Ratulowski said.
"They can hear music they might not otherwise hear," Ratulowski said.
Submitted photos from 2023.
Jason Aldean performed Thursday evening at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, starting out with one of his smash hits, "Burning It Down," and continuing with more of his hits throughout the evening.
All the performances were amazing, including openers Austin Snell, Chase Mathew, and Lauren Alaina, who all put on great shows. Each one played their top songs at a sold-out show enjoyed by all ages who attended.
Classic rock fans certainly got an earful at Batavia Downs on Friday night with what essentially a double headline of a Tom Petty tribute band and a Fleetwood Mac tribute band entertained an estimated 4,500 concertgoers.
Practically Petty took the stage at 6:30 p.m. with a near-note-perfect performance of classics from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, including a few deep tracks.
Then, Rumors ALT took the stage and delivered a satisfying dose of Fleetwood Mac hits.
Photos by Howard Owens
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