Oct 29 : "Prosperous Sun" - Bad Galaxy (Brooklyn)

New Music / Freshly Written and Recently Released (Album Release was Oct 13!)

There are good times, there are bad times, there are times of hope when all can turn out well ... or not. This is all part of life.

On my recent visit to Muchmore's in Williamsburg, I saw Brooklyn outfit "Bad Galaxy". Bad Galaxy is a solo act by Alex Pastuhov. This was Night 2 of the Rocker Stalker Festival. In addition, this night was the release of Bad Galaxy's new album, also titled "Bad Galaxy". It has ten tracks!

The second song that Alex played at the show is also the second song on the album. It's "Prosperous Sun". As his show progressed, I was struck by the sense of life's precariousness and by his embracing of the bad in life as well as the good.

There's a feeling in the songs that he is hoping for the best, and really wants the best in spite of all odds, but is aware that things can go off the rails, and, regardless of how things turn out, is celebrating the pluses as well as the minuses in life and is moving forward. Not all artists talk about embracing the bad along with the good.

AND / OR

When I heard Alex singing the songs at Muchmore's, they sounded like they pretty much related to personal experiences. After I got home and started listening in depth to the music he has on line, I'm thinking that some of these songs could be metaphors for things more macro, such as the economic marginalization of whole segments of our society.

It seems that money or the economy is a component, either major or minor, in a lot of the writing. Or the economy on a large scale has in some part brought the characters in the songs to the dilemmas in which they find themselves. And, if we do look at it in a macro sense, there are outcomes maybe not as positive as in the personal.

WARNING: In the Bad Galaxy World there is little if no hope for economic relief. It seems that the music offers only suspicion and little hope for society as a whole, but it does offer optimism and plenty of idealism about individuals' ability to deal with their personal interactions, as the only thing that we can hold on to in these times. So we've gotta do it; it's the only way to cope with the larger picture.

"Prosperous Sun" is a powerful song. Take a minute to listen:

So here is the click if you want to read the lyrics while you hear the song: Read the lyrics as you listen (CLICK HERE). Or, if you just want to hear the song, click below::::

Bad Galaxy doesn't have any other shows coming up soon, but here's the click to the Bad Galaxy Facebook page where you can keep a watch for the next show: Bad Galaxy on Facebook (CLICK HERE).

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2/11/18 ::::: UPDATE ::: OOPS OOPS ::: The above music has disappeared! It seems that the band has removed that track from their web presence.

Oct 15 : "Solution Not Pollution" - NCM (Brooklyn)

New Music / Freshly Written and Recently Released (March 27)

I've noticed more of a connection between the worlds of music and politics over the last couple years, first in 2016 where I saw fundraisers for Bernie and now, after the election, where there are protests against Donald Trump's agenda. Sometimes the protest is in the form of fundraisers for organizations doing work on issues hurt by Trump's agenda and sometimes it is in the form of the lyrics themselves. One example of the latter is in the song "Solution Pollution" by Brooklyn band "NCM".

On Friday night after work I headed over to Muchmore's in Williamsburg and saw NCM do their wild and raw garage rock, opening up the evening for what was Night 2 of the Rocker Stalker Festival. It was my first time seeing NCM.

"Solution Pollution" not only calls out Donald Trump for his lies and other bad things that come out of his mouth, but also calls on all of us to respect one another and work together and resist attempts that would be made to divide us. For, as the song says,
"Cause if you don't they'll divide us up
ANd take this country down"

To HEAR the song while actually READing the lyrics, here is the click to the song's page. "Solution Not Pollution" by NCM (CLICK HERE).

NCM doesn't list any other shows coming up soon in NYC or Philly, so here is the click to their Facebook page where you can keep an eye on them. NCM on Facebook (CLICK HERE).

Oct 08 : "These People". - Aunt Sis (Asheville)

Heard a lot of good music in the last several weeks. Another band of note is "Aunt Sis" from Asheville. I heard them play at Alphaville.

Here is "These People", the second track on their album of the same name, issued in the Spring of 2016.

Aunt Sis doesn't show any trips back up North any time soon, but they've got a lot of good music on line. Here is the click to their Bandcamp page: Aunt Sis on Bandcamp (CLICK HERE).