Quality events for this weekend

Friday May 26

Body Shine Vol. 13 at Fuze: House, disco, dance. A proper dance party.

Troy Night Out: Arts, music, food, drinks and more around Troy.

TGIF Yoga at Heartspace: Community class, In both Albany and Troy.

Troy Night Out with Graft Cider at SMCo.: Cider and tacos.

Mase, 112, Carl Thomas, Total, Black Rob at The Palace: Hip-hop reunion show.

Swarming Branch, Neighborhood of Make Believe, Full Body, Kvlt Ddy, Maud the Pyschic at River St Pub: Folk/rock/glam/prog/etc.

Maybird, Sun Parade, Cannon the Brave at The Hollow: Indie/pop/alt/psych.

Morgan O’Kane, Vic Thrill at The Half Moon: Alternative/punk/Americana.

Pop Culture Provocateurs Burlesque Revue at Fuze: Sampling of all the area’s burlesque talent.

Elysia Crampton and Russell E.L. Butler at EMPAC: Boundary pushing electronic music.

The Figgs at The Low Beat: Preparing for a tour in Japan.

Cretin Hop Saratoga Vol. 1 at Putnam Den: Rock and roll dance party.

Saturday May 27

Noah Kalina Photography Exhibit Opening Reception in Livingston Manor: Opening for “The Fog”.

The Figgs at The Low Beat: Preparing for a tour in Japan.

Collard City Growers Annual Plant Sale at The Sanctuary for Independent Media: Barters welcome.

Sunday May 28

MASS MoCA Building 6 Grand Opening: Expanding an already huge and great building.

All weekend

Art Omi: The sculpture fields are awesome.

Day trip to MASS MoCA: Pretty drive and a great museum.

The NYS Museum: Bunch of great exhibits and it’s right in your backyard.

Second-run movies at the Madison Theater: Only five bucks!

Movies at The Spectrum: First run, independent movies at a small centrally located theater.

Farmer’s Markets: Troy, Delmar, and Saratoga on Saturday, and Schenectady and Saratoga on Sunday.

Sylvan Esso at Jupiter Hall: Photos and Recap

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On Wednesday night, EQX put on the first big show that’s crossed my radar at Crossgates’ new venue, Jupiter Hall. Inside of Lucky Strike Social, which has a “gastro kitchen” restaurant, arcade, bowling alley, rec room featuring games like ping pong, corn hole, and pool, as well as a brand new 650 person music venue, Sylvan Esso and Lucy Dacus played to an enthusiastic, sold out crowd. With malls all over the country feeling the squeeze from online retailers, they’re scrambling to put music, carnivals, and more experience based offerings in these malls to bring in younger crowds, and to ultimately stay afloat.

Lucy Dacus opened the show, starting at exactly 8pm. As an opener for Sylvan Esso, Lucy Dacus was a great choice, as the full band delivered slow-burning indie rock songs with an admirable casualness. The crowd universally enjoyed Lucy’s big voice, and becuase of the slower cadence of Lucy’s music, those in attendance were sufficiently ready to jump around for the headliners. Sylvan Esso took the stage with force, playing a few loud, dancy songs to get the crowds blood pumping, and to set the tone for the rest of their set. They went through their catalog, performing songs new and old with more indie and minimal sensibilities alongside the big crowd pleasers.

Once the show came to a close, I had forgotten I’d been in the mall for a few hours. As weird as it felt to head into the mall at 8pm on a weeknight for a show, the venue itself it felt familiar. I’ve got a hunch it will become much less weird to head to Crossgates for a show if talent like this keep coming to town.

Elysia Crampton at EMPAC: Ticket Giveaway

Incredible electronic music producer Elysia Crampton is performing this Friday, May 26 at EMPAC. The wonderful folks at EMPAC have given me a pair of tickets to give away to a lucky reader. You can read their event description, enter the giveaway, and check out some of Elysia Crampton’s music below, as well as read reviews of Demon City from Pitchfork and Resident Advisor.

From EMPAC:

A force within Latinx culture and the rising genderqueer electronic aesthetic (alongside Arca, Lotic, Rabit, etc.), Elysia Crampton has described her style as “severo,” a word suggestive of the raw textures and violent juxtapositions she creates with source material ranging from American pop to cumbia, hip-hop, ratchet, and South American metal. A descendent of the Aymara people indigenous to Bolivia, Crampton made waves with last year’s Elysia Crampton Presents: Demon City. A sister piece to the theatrical production Dissolution of the Sovereign: A Timeslide into the Future, the album was written in the style of an epic poem, taking inspiration from the story of the Aymara revolutionary Bartolina Sisa, whose severed limbs were paraded through the Andes after her execution at the hands of Spanish colonists.

Continue reading…

Quality events for this weekend

Friday May 19

TGIF Yoga at Heartspace: Community class, In both Albany and Troy.

ill.Gates, Levitation Jones, Evac Protocol at River St Pub: Part of the Raging on the River series.

Sean Rowe at The Hangar: Sold out.

Kimono Dragons, Rechorduroys at Dinosaur BBQ: Surf/alt rock.

Cretin Hop at Fuze: Rock and roll/punk/new wave dance party.

Saturday May 20

Smorgasburg Upstate at the Hutton Brickyards: Opening weekend.

Freedom Fest at Upstate Concert Hall: Featuring Ramallah (Playing Blood For Blood Classics), Terror, 100 Demons, All Out War, Death Before Dishonor, Rude Awakening, Gods Hate, Concrete, Laid 2 Rest, Purgatory, Jagged Visions, and Zero Hour.

Michael Bisio Accortet at The Sanctuary for Independent Media: Celebrating 30+ years.

Real Estate at BSP: With Pelican Movement.

Emo Night at Fuze Box: Scream sing all those songs you used to be embarassed about loving.

Sunday May 21

Smorgasburg Upstate at the Hutton Brickyards: Opening weekend.

Iron Chic, After The Fall, Mikey Erg, Sink or Swim at Pauly’s: Punk/pop/etc.

All weekend

Art Omi: The sculpture fields are awesome.

Day trip to MASS MoCA: Pretty drive and a great museum.

The NYS Museum: Bunch of great exhibits and it’s right in your backyard.

Second-run movies at the Madison Theater: Only five bucks!

Movies at The Spectrum: First run, independent movies at a small centrally located theater.

Farmer’s Markets: Troy, Delmar, and Saratoga on Saturday, and Schenectady and Saratoga on Sunday.