The 2015 Dewey Beach Music Conference was a completely epic experience in so many ways. The 14th annual music conference began on Thursday, September 24th and continued on through Sunday, September 27th concluding with the farewell breakfast held at Jimmy’s Grille for all the badge holders.

The conference kicked off Thursday with a VIP party at the Rusty Rudder, the main venue for DBMC. Badge holders were treated to free appetizers and drinks from sponsors like Jim Beam, Svedka, and Patron. Conference newcomers like NOHC and Noah Guthrie had outstanding performances inside the Rusty Rudder Thursday night and conference vet Joey Ditullio played an energized set to an excited crowd.

I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to speak with Noah Guthrie about his performance, his time on Glee, and his original music. Guthrie’s claim to fame began when he posted a cover of LMFAO’s “Sexy And You Know It” and it received over eight million views in a week. He’s currently up to over 23 million views.

“It was a new time in my life and it was really cool, but so by surprise,” Guthrie explained about how quickly his LMFAO cover blew up in a week. The plan with his management at the time was to post covers because “no one was looking up Noah Guthrie originals, because I didn’t have any of my originals up yet.”

Guthrie completed an arrangement of a blues riff and before you know it, the acoustic singer/songwriter became widely popular for his blues version of the “Sexy And You Know It” record. When the video was first released on his YouTube channel, he was a little worried that he was going to become “that guy”, but quickly realized “it hasn’t pigeonholed me into this one person.”

Besides the covers that Guthrie posts online, his debut album, Among The Wildest Things, is out now. If you have not heard his original material, head on over to his website to purchase the record. Guthrie says, “what’s most consistent with the style that I’m doing now and then, there’s a song on there called ‘My Favorite Kind’, ‘Adore’, and ‘Be With You’ and all of them are love songs in their own way. It’s kind of always been my thing whether they’re happy or they’re sad…”

Guthrie suggests tracks “My Favorite Kind” and “Death of Me” for a good representations of his sound. “My Favorite Kind” has the singer/songwriter and folk vibe and the “Death of Me” has more of a soulful sound.

Noah Guthrie with Ian Guthrie on drums

“Part of it came out of really wanting to get the original music that I’ve been working on for two years prior out there finally and part of it came out needing to get that out,” Guthrie explained. The cover of “Sexy And I Know It” definitely brought him a clamoring of attention for his amazing performance, but he also had people asking about original music as well. “When ‘Sexy And I Know It’ happened we really kicked it into high gear. Always when you finish an album, you hear different things. I love it, I’m very happy with how it came out. The producer who I worked with was really good.”

Among The Wildest Things is a mix of several different genres from singer/songwriter, rock, soul, to folk,.“It’s hard for me to pigeonhole myself into one genre,” Guthrie stated.  Fans can expect some new material released by Guthrie probably sometime next year he mentioned.

The up and coming country music star and daughter of actress Andie McDowell, Rainey Qualley, debuted her performance at Dewey Beach Music Conference on Friday night to a packed house. She also played the Artists’ Party on Friday at Ivy prior to the evening’s showcases beginning and wowed the crowd.

“This year has been incredible. It’s definitely been a big growth for me as an artist. Getting to sign with Cingle [Records] has been such a dream; I’ve wanted to be a recording artist for as long as I can remember, so getting the chance to write songs, record them, and release them has been amazing. I’ve been lucky enough to that they’ve led to some other great things. Opening up for Loretta Lynn, Hank Jr, and doing more and more shows,” Rainey explained.

Her debut EP, Turn Down The Lights, was released in January 2015. Qualley as received a positive reaction from the country music industry, and she’s currently working on new material.

“We released the first set of songs a couple months back. The single, ‘Me And Johnny Cash’ has been working its way up the charts, so that’s been exciting to see,” Qualley exclaimed. “We’re recording five more songs next month and I’m continuing to write and grow as an artist.”

Qualley is still deciding on whether the new material is going to be a new EP, full LP, “it kind of just depends on the songs turn out.”

Acoustic/singer-songwriter duo, Danielle & Jennifer, played a fun set at Jimmy’s on Friday evening and electro pop band, Revolution, I Love You at the Rudder on Saturday night. One of my favorites of weekend was the EDM/dance trio of NOHC based out of New York, NY. NOHC brought an awesome, high energy show that had the crowd dancing. They had three performances during the conference, one each evening, and definitely killed it during their Saturday performance.  

Conference regulars John Faye & Those Meddling Kids, Lovebettie, and Kid Felix were superb as usual. For each set, the bands had attentive, energized, and excited audiences waiting to rock out to some amazing music.

Dewey Beach Music Conference is an event for that showcases great talent, provides information from music industry veterans, and free live music to fans in a three-day event held annually. It’s definitely a weekend that you don’t want to miss in the future. Stay tuned for more features with DBMC bands that played this year.

As the third annual Liberty Music Fest came to an end on Sunday, it’s probably safe to say that music fans and artists alike walked away with something meaningful that came from this superlative and inspirational event.

Not only did spectators come to support the well known venue, Finnigan’s Wake, that has been more than a friendly face to the Philadelphia original music scene, but they also came to enjoy the insanely good talent that was performing. Both veterans and newcomers alike came together to show their support and devotion to creativity and life that is music.

The Festival actually kicked off last Wednesday and opening night was hosted by Gashouse Radio (online radio station that focuses solely on original music). They featured bands HypoDive out of New York and Survay Says! from New Jersey. Both put on a stellar performance and really kept up with the audience. It was clear that to these bands, it wasn’t just about putting on a good show but also just having a bad ass time and keeping things fun, for themselves and the audience.

Friday night when you walked into Finnigan’s, third night of the Fest, there wasn’t a stitch of the building that wasn’t filled with music. The lineups were set in 50 minute intervals so each band had enough time to put on their best. Notably, there was a man walking in the crowd dressed in 18th century military attire that definitely had raised some eyebrows but in good, “hmm..wonder what’s going to happen with that?” kind of way.

Kid Felix put on a hell of a show with their wild animation and liveliness on stage. Everyone watching was completely engulfed with the entire performance; hands up, feet moving and eyes on the stage. At one point lead singer, Jake Falana, took out his cell and started snapping shots of the audience (who were happy to oblige). There was a lot of jumping and moving around that seemed to be quite contagious. He even came down into the crowd and was dancing around with everyone. To wrap it all up, Falana hopped back up on stage and jumped clear over, or better said, onto the drummer which was not anticipated, but ended the set in good fun.

Upstairs on the second floor was Liz de Lise, who has a fantastic following in Philadelphia. This group was composed of two talented young women. One who plays the cello and the other, acoustic guitar. They opened up their set with the song “Strangers” and during the entire performance, the audience quietly sat and admired the light airy voice that was echoing the room. A sweet gesture that should be noted was when Jake Falana came up and adjusted the mic for the cellist since her hands were full. It was a positive reflection that upholds the community that is truly in the original music scene.

On the 4th floor the entire night was considered to be “Hip Hop Hall” and was booming with all the different root sounds of R&B, hip hop, soul and funky goodness. Good Girl was one group featured that consisted of four, multi-talented girls whose performance was harmonious and tightly choreographed. It was a very refreshing and exciting performance.

Toward the end of the night, the mystery man who looked like he just came home from the Revolutionary War was solved. He was in the band East of the West and each member was dressed alike. They have a very diversified, rhythmic sound that has hints of reggae/rock. This is extremely unique to the Philly scene.

So, to be said, the five days of awesome that just occurred at The Liberty Music Fest were more than just the elements of an extraordinary event. All the wonderful music, networking opportunities and memories that were made are sure to carry on to next year’s festival and those in the scene will be anticipating what is to sure to come.

Minshara Hangs at That Mag’s Radio Show

Minshara.  Music is probably the last thing that comes to mind when you hear the word, but the four-piece Harrisburg band of that name is slowly working toward making it a household name.

While lead vocalist Aaron Miller and bassist Dan Lucas have known each other for over ten years, the current line-up didn’t come together until about a year and a half ago, with final piece and drummer Evan Kirkley rounding out the band.  Guitarist Mike Villegas had known the latter two for many years, but the three never thought to team up until running into each other at a concert.

“The band was kind of formed at a Circa Survive concert.  Literally, Dan and I were in the middle of trying to find members for this band and ran into Mike there and we (Aaron and Mike) had jammed together around 2005,” Miller recalls.

With the line-up complete and over a decade of combined musical experience ranging from progressive-rock, pop-punk, metal, jazz, and even country, the quartet needed a name.  The name itself, easily recognized by Trekkies, is based in sci-fi.

“It is taken from science fiction, but my understanding is that it has a basis in Latin and I thought it was a beautiful word and basically it means it supports life,” Dan Lucas, bassist and backing vocalist, explains. He adds, “The fact that it was unique and the whole concept of supporting life, we put our own spin on it.”

So what kind of sound can listeners expect from a band whose name is loosely tied to Star Trek?  While the members point to influences from The Mars Volta, Michael Jackson, Muse, Peter Gabriel, and The Used, overall they consider themselves, as Miller put it, “electronic pop-rock with a small touch of progressive styling.”

Don’t, however, categorize them yet. “We’re not a band that sticks to a certain scene or only one style of music.  We’re a band that appreciates high quality production, high quality sound and melody with high energy to it,” adds Lucas.

Currently, they have a five track EP available that they released in 2011.  Listeners can expect the first full-length album, IO,  to be released this summer.  The lead single is coming up on a release and the band will perform it on the Live at 5 Show on Radio 104.5 on Friday, April 4^th.  The band will also play an undisclosed Muse cover.

If you missed them at Dobbs this weekend, Minshara will be performing at Winterfest 2014 at The Abbey Bar in Harrisburg this Saturday, March 8^th.  Over a dozen bands including Kid Felix and Ducky and the Vintage will be there, making the event well worth a drive from Philadelphia. A portion of the ticket sales will go toward the fight against ALS. They’ll also be back in Philly on March 29th at the M Room.

Music videos will also be released along with the first two singles.  The lead single is “Into the Night”.

Friday night at the Hard Rock Café in Philadelphia played host to the “Who Do You Love… More?” show presented by Chill Moody.  Aptly named after the project put together by Chill, Beano and Hank McCoy for this show, the whole event had the theme of red carpets and roses.

Opening the show was rising hip pop act CJ & Evan who brought their energetic set of rhymes, party bars, and catchy choruses to the stage.  The beginning of their set brought the faithful forward to the stage and with the help of DJ Ricochet on the 1s and 2s, CJ & Evan got the crowd ready for what was one memorable night.

Next up was Jacqueline Constance who brought the full band, back up singers and soul to the stage.  By this time I was fighting my way to get a drink at the bar which had to have reached capacity in the sold out crowd.  By the time I got my beer Jacqueline and her band broke into a beautiful array of Lauryn Hill songs that had everyone on their feet.  With a mixture of covers and loop pedals she brought on stage to build the tracks, I was a little upset when her set ended and wanting a bit more. But, next up was Kid Felix ready to hit the audience with something they surely were not expecting.

Kid Felix took the stage with their Incubus/Johnny Craig-esque rock and roll that, although a little out of character for the bill, was accepted with rounds of applause and the ladies pushing forward to the front row. Jake Falana’s vocal prowess won over many of the R&B/Soul audience members that were new to the band.  With wailing choruses and dramatic stage presence, Kid Felix grabbed the attention of some very notable people as well as some new female fans.

By the time KId Felix was done, the crowd began getting restless.  DJ Ricochet kept things moving, but with the packed room, this writer stepped out for a moment to catch some air.  At that moment I caught Chill and Beano discussing their entrance as they snuck in the front of Hard Rock toting full suits and roses in their hands.  Taking the stage with a full band performing the tracks originally created by the combo of Hank McCoy, Beano and Chill for the WDYLM album available on iTunes, the show began.  With Chill and Beano playing off each other on stage like they had been performing this record for years, they took the band and the record to a whole new level.  I cannot explain how talented the backing band was, which included dueling keyboards, a drummer, and guitarist.  They played the re-imagination of the album, a few Chill Moody singles and even dropped into “Poison” by Bell Biv Devoe which sold me, as if I wasn’t already.

It is beginning to look like Mr. Chill Moody is the holder of the Hip Hop crown in Philadelphia more and more.  He had two sold out shows (Trocadero) in less than a month, dropped EPs specifically for shows and recruited his own staff of talented artists to give them the opportunity they deserve.  Whether you like his music or not, you cannot deny that this guy does it BIG and tries to give everyone deserving a chance to share in his celebrity.  So…who do you love…more?

What do you get when throw a bunch of Philly Chivers in the TLA, with live rock music, DJs, and hip hop, on the weekend of Halloween?   One of the most epic events the eye has ever seen.

Being a writer and manager, I have been to MANY shows and when something special pops up that is more than just a music event I get really excited.  This show, orchestrated by up and coming promoter, manager, and Chive affiliate Nick Sylvia, and partners Edwin Ramirez,  Double V Bookings, Dennis Hamburg and Justin Wood made every cent of the ticket worth it!

First to hit the stage was Philly rock band Cold Roses who brought their blues-infused rock to a crowd of about 400 fully decked out Halloween Chivers.  After they set the tone for the night, host DJ Sev One, resident DJ at Parx Casino and Hip Hop DJ extraordinaire got the crowd shakin’ their booties like you would expect at a Chive event.

But I said there was more than music!  What a better way to get the crowd excited than to throw some semi-nude women on stage dancing Burlesque?  That’s right, the Pretty Poison Burlesque and Cabaret put a smile on everyone’s face with their classy-sexy performance.

Following the dirty dancing was Kid Felix, who I have seen a few times now. They bring it better and better each time. I have yet to describe the sound of Kid Felix, which is one of my favorite parts about them.  Plain and simple, they are show-stoppers.

Bringing it back to that classic rock sound was Stolen Rhodes.  I was not sure what was more epic with this band, their absolute prowess in their musicianship or the “long hair don’t care” attitude they brought to the stage. Frontman Matt Pillion was all over the stage playing bass and saxophone while his roaring vocals completed the old school rock wall of sound that engulfed the room.

Absolutely the best intro of the night goes to Black Stars, a band that incorporates elements of hip hop, hard rock and ska tempo to their show. By having bassist Freshy come out first to the stage in a Jason mask and upright bass dropping the line to a Black Sabbath song, the rest of the band members assembled on stage and began to rock. Maniac lead Nik Greeley put on one hell of a show while running all over the stage and jumping on the barrier to have the crowd sing along.

Closing the night was Hip Pop act CJ & Evan with DJ Sev One bringing that head nodding, hip shaking and feet moving music that they do so well.  With sing-along choruses brought by the immensely talent singer Evan Rotunno, the crowd was treated to a mix just right to get freaky one last time before the show ended.  Culminating in a costume contest and a happy audience, I am very excited to see what other shows these Chivers can bring to Philly. You can bet I will be attending again.

WANT FREE TICKETS?  That Mag is giving away 2 free tickets to the lucky person who shares this article, likes our Facebook page or ReTweets @ThatMusicMag during the That Mag radio show tomorrow at 7-9pm! Whether you come for the music, dancing, the partying, or the naked ladies, you will be sure to have one epic Halloween night.  Doors at 7pm, remember this show goes down on October 26th! Dress up and you could win some cash! Check out the event page on Facebook here. Tickets available here.

Silvertide was back in the house on the 9th for  a show at the sold-out TLA on South Street.  It was a packed house from the floor to the mezzanine.  The faithful were in full force to welcome their favorite sons home.

The night kicked off with the most buzz-worthy band on the local original rock scene, Kid Felix.  They opened up with one of their fan favorites, “Class Action Satisfaction”, followed up by their newer track, “Jericho”.  This was a tougher spot than Kid Felix is used to; they’re usually the headliners.  They’re also accustomed to playing more than seven songs.  Their crowd was in pockets throughout the floor section, so the infection took a song or two to spread.  But they delivered as they always do, and by mid-set they were in full- stride.  The normal smack to the senses had been delivered to the audience. And when they closed with “Once Upon a Genghis Khan” all eyes were onstage.

Lead singer Jake Falana had this to say, “At a show of that caliber, opening up feels just as good as headlining. Just getting to perform with artists like Silvertide is an incredible feeling in itself. I used to walk around the halls of Sterling High School singing songs like “Ain’t Coming Home”, “Foxhole Jesus Christ”, and “Devil’s Daughter”, so it was a bit of a surreal experience for me.”

Kid Felix wound up playing an encore show later that night at the TLA After Party at Dobbs on South St.  It came together on the fly when their manager Zac Tait joked with DVT’s Vince Volz to “clear off  (at Dobbs) the stage cause we’re playing at the after party.”

John and Brittany were the second act of the night.  They hit the stage with their standard riffs galore, keeping the energy level right where Kid Felix left it.  They deliver a consistent show every time, and this night was no exception.  This would seem less impressive if it wasn’t only the second show with their current rhythm section.  Bass player Mike O’Brien and drummer Terry Sharkey were recently added to the line-up. They played multiple tracks from their new EP Start Sinning like “Zzzzoloft”, “Start Sinning”, and my personal favorite “Dirty Little Magazine”.

John Faye opened up after the show, “This was definitely the biggest show that John & Brittany have done to date. The energy at the TLA was amazing and we really fed off of the crowd’s energy. It was also the first big show we have done with Mike O’Brien on bass and Terry Sharkey on drums, so that made it all the more exciting for us.”

And then, it was time for Silvertide to hit the stage.  The crowd murmured with excitement as the minutes between sets passed.  A cheer for a guitar check.  Another cheer for a drum roll.  And then the curtains went up, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.  A one, two, here we go! Back-up!  Back-up!  Back-up yeah!  Ain’t turning back…I ain’t coming home.”  Well-played fellas.  The crowd agreed.

The energy in the crowd was electric.  There were some people there who were meeting Silvertide for the first time.   They may have heard a song on the radio a few years back.  These people were introduced to Silvertide the live band; and its strong handshake.  Silvertide made their bones being an awesome live band, on top of all their talent.  So many bands are stuck with one or the other.  Great crowd interaction.  Great energy on-stage.  Great camaraderie between everyone.   There’s truly a trickle down effect from the way lead singer Walt Lafty interacts with the crowd, to the energy from lead guitarist Nick Perri, to bassist Brian Weaver, rhythm guitar Mark Melchiorre and drummer Kevin Frank.

A larger contingent of the crowd was like an old friend who you haven’t seen in awhile.  Excited to see you at first, then reminiscent of the good times the longer you talk.  I found myself up on the balcony to get a better view (and a faster drink).  Up there with me were people singing along with every word.  There was a great exchange; “I brought my rain to California, all the way from Philadelphia, PA.”

The show had a similar feeling for the band.  Drummer Kevin Frank had this to say about the atmosphere backstage, “This one (show) was more family members, friends, and sponsors that we hadn’t seen in awhile.  It almost felt like a high school reunion.  But our pre-show half hour rule kicked in.  We spent the half hour before our set together as a band, no matter what.  Just like we used to.”

The band decided to play the entire Show ‘n Tell album.  They threw in some b-sides and even “Adult Child,” which was only released on the Japanese version of Show ‘n Tell.   The crowd was happy with their extended set, because they were to make-up for lost time.

As the night came to an end, after the crowd roared for more, many conversations talked about the future.  Pockets of fans talked about how great the show was, but openly wondered what was next.  So what is next?  I could tell when I spoke to Kevin that he had heard this question a few hundred times already. He was diplomatic in his response, with a sense of quiet hope, “Right now we’re recording for the next two-three weeks with David Ivory.  We’re all good friends; he’s a great mentor.  We’re expecting to release a new EP sometime in late spring.  And we’re looking to play shows sometime later in the year.”

He continued, “But right now we’re five people doing five very different things.  We get together as friends.  We write music.  We’re going back to our roots; re-establishing the original flicker, the original flame.  Long term plans for Silvertide are temporarily on hold.   We are going to make the CD, re-connect with our fans.  If they like it, cool.  If they want us to play more shows, great we’ll do it.  Whatever falls into place, cool.”

Whatever is on the horizon for Silvertide looks promising, when using Saturday night as a barometer.  It was a great night for Philadelphia’s original rock scene.  New faces.  Known faces.  There’s a good amount of promise locally.  Silvertide deserves some of the credit for giving everyone else something to aspire too.  Here’s to them pushing their bar, and Philadelphia’s collective bar, even higher.

The MMRBQ is May 18th. Mark your calendars, tickets go on sale at noon today. One ticket and a full day to see six bands, not bad for only $50 (plus those fees, of course). The first four bands will be general admission, but the last two is assigned seating. Don’t worry, you still only need that one ticket.

This is a yearly tradition at the Susquehanna Bank Center and unlike some bands who roll into town on a Thursday night, this show is on a Saturday. You have no excuse- no work on Sunday and you still have Friday night to prep and relax before the big show. Check out the line-up:

Buckcherry– it’s their second time playing the MMRBQ and their new album, Confessions, is out on February 19th.

Kid Felix– come support this local band. They’re at Milkboy tonight if you’re one of the few who haven’t heard them before.

Cheap Trick– the band just announced new tour dates. They’ll be performing the Rock on The Range three-day festival in Ohio, along with some of the other 2013 MMRBQ bands. But no reason to go all the way up there when you can see them in your own back yard.

Device– the highly anticipated band from Disturbed’s David Draiman. Device is set to debut their new first single on February 19th with a full album release on April 9th.

After those four bands play, the assigned seating kicks in. Be there early, because headlining this year’s show are Soundgarden and Alice In Chains. Soundgarden’s latest album, King Animal, was released in November. Alice in Chains recently finished recording a new album. With no set release date, it will be out sometime in 2013.

Remember, tickets go on sale TODAY. Check out the WMMR website for info on how to pick them up.

Big announcement from WMMR just last night, Silvertide is back. They are playing a show on March 9th at the TLA sponsored by WMMR. They will be joined onstage by two, top-level, local acts John & Brittany and Kid Felix.

Silvertide’s full, original line-up will be onstage together in Philadelphia for the first time in long while. All members will be back in the area by early February. They are planning to play their entire Show and Tell album. The pieces are in place for something bigger than just the upcoming show. Soon afterward they will start writing new material and head back into the studio to reunite with producer David Ivory.

Over the past few years the members of the band have pursued different paths, but admitted that their greatest and most memorable musical moments were together in Silvertide.

John & Brittany are fresh off of Jaxon’s WMMR Mistletoe Jam on December 26th at the World Café Live. The band used this gig as an appropriate record release party for their new, full-length album Start Sinning, available at JohnBrittanyStore.com. This ten song album features tracks like “Dirty Little Magazine” and “Paper Planes.”

Kid Felix is continuing to build on momentum that has been growing rapidly this past year. They headlined the First Annual Liberty Music Fest at The Legendary Dobbs last August and released their new EP Young Luck. The band blew the doors off the TLA in October and just rung in the New Year as a part of Jaxon’s WMMR New Year’s Eve Bash at the Electric Factory (with local favorites Octane and Bong Hits for Jesus.)

Tickets for this show are on sale now. You can get them through several online locations such as TicketMaster, Live Nation, and the TLA.