April… ahhh we made it out of the dark, dismal winter!! I’m outside working on this article soaking up the sun! Winter always feels like it’s never going to end, but we pulled through once again. The music was popping this past month, just like the buds on the trees! So here we go!
My adventure started many moons ago with a trip up to Shermans Creek Inn for Slade Heller Acoustic solo show. Slade popped up on stages in front of me many times this month, but this was the first time I saw him play a full show by himself. Slade was playing a bar side show because during the week they usually don’t get much of a crowd, but Slade had the whole dining room packed. He’s so much fun and just an overall amazing guy. If you haven’t seen him yet.. trust me you will soon. He’s playing percussion for Hank the Buffalo, Ragged Grace, and The Night Howls, so with 3 projects all happening at once, he’s a busy guy! The Shermans Creek Inn also just opened their outside tent, so there are even more opportunities for music throughout the Spring and Summer, and there is NEVER a cover charge! If you haven’t made it up to the Creek yet, do yourself a favor and go check it out!
On a Friday my night started off early with a trip out to Hollywood Grantville for the last performance at Penn Draft House with DMC Duo. I was there in time to hear them play their original “Getaway”. It’s awesome to see how many streams these two are getting with their original music, and the playlists they are getting added to. If you’re looking for some new music to add to your playlist, look no further, stream DMC Duo today!
After their first set, I scooped up Cindy and we met up with Megan and her hubby Matt at Big Bottom Brewery in Dillsburg for some Jason Carst. In typical Rachel Rocks fashion, I made it for the end of the show, but we managed to sing and dance to a couple songs and snag some screen time on his livestream. He also had some guest singers up there, one of which was Megan herself!
Megan was having so much fun that we kidnapped her from her hubby, and we then zoomed off to Flinchy’s for the last set of Hank the Buffalo. Flinchy’s was of course packed! ItWe squeezed our way in and wiggled our way to the front, and before we knew it, Megan was singing with Hank the Buffalo too. It’s awesome to see how much braver Megan is out at shows! We are all family, and we love hearing and supporting each other, that’s what it’s all about!
On a Saturday night it was time to celebrate Scott Troup’s birthday. We decided to head down to Racehorse Tavern for Metal Gods and Shout at the Devil. Metal Gods are a Judas Priest tribute band. They sounded great and Don Hosler was filling in on drums. It was great to see him rocking out again. The headliner of the night was Shout at the Devil, a Motely Crue Tribute. It had been a super long time since I saw these guys, and they had the place rockin! It was awesome to be able to see full bands rockin’ people’s faces off. The Racehorse Tavern gets so many amazing bands, month after month. They also get some regional and national bands that are passing through the area. Keep an eye on their schedule in the PA Musician Magazine every month and make plans for your next night on the town.
On a Tuesday night we headed to Copper Pub for open mic hosted by Megan and Dave. I’m so happy they started doing open mics again. It was cool to see Dave’s son Grayson playing on stage. And the biggest surprise was Cindy’s brother, Roger Bowyer, had his wife Michelle sing with him, and Cindy had no idea that was going to happen. Not only did Michelle crush it, but Cindy was completely shocked! We also saw, Derek Avalon, Crash Acoustic, Dr. Nyce, Hank the Buffalo, and more!
Next up was the biggest central PA party of the year, the Central Pennsylvania Music Hall of Fame’s CPMA Awards show! Cindy and I got ourselves all dressed up for this special occasion. This year it was held at the American Music Theatre in Lancaster. I personally loved the venue this year. It was so much easier to move around and mingle before and after the show. There were also plenty of backdrops so everyone got their time to get their “Red Carpet” shots. They even had a concession stand with snacks! And plenty of beer lines. The theatre itself was also just gorgeous. The pre-awards show was as always, the biggest bummer, but at least this year the pre-awards people still had their chance to walk up to the stage to receive their award. The acts inducted into the Hall of Fame this year were: Soulville All-Stars, Mike Reid, The Jordan Brothers, The Innocence Mission, Anita Humes, and August Burns Red! For a hot-minute I even thought that August Burns Red was going to perform, but they had Ultraviolent cover one of their songs instead. They did a pretty good job, and at least I had the opportunity to head bang in my fancy dress! This year I also gave out the Best Male Vocalist award to my good friend, Dr. Nyce. It was a beautiful moment to get to present Dr. Nyce with his award. He has done so much in 2024, and he does have an awesome voice! For a full listing of all of the winners this year, check out the website, www.cpmhof.com. After the show, there was an After Party at The Village in Lancaster. It’s awesome to see The Village open and operational again! They did quite a few renovations, but overall the Village is still the Village! For the entertainment this year they had Bobby Gentilo host an open jam. Bobby did a great job, and if anyone wanted to play, he made sure to get them on stage. All of the music was great and had us all dancing the night away! I actually counted and I have 91 selfies from the CPMAs! HA! SELFIE TIME!!!
Friday everything was back to normal with a trip to Horn Pub for Hank the Buffalo. Hank plays every 1stFriday at the Horn Pub, and so far this year every Friday has been standing room only! They are definitely packing the place! Depending on the venue they’ve now permanently added Slade to the band. Did I mention, Slade can also play the drums! That guy is a beast! Hank the Buffalo has a different sized band based on the venue. Again, showing their professionalism and growth as a band, being able to flow freely between projects, and players, without missing a beat!
After their show we headed to Flinchy’s for the tail end of Jessica Batz. I’ve heard her play a few songs at people’s shows before, but this was my first full show. She had a decent crowd at Flinchy’s, and we were quickly singing along to her song selection, and having a great time! I always love seeing women who rock! Especially as a solo musician, there really aren’t that many in the area.
Saturday was a day of private parties. It kicked off up at Chad and Krissy’s for the dueiling guitars of Matt Jameson and Dave Gates. Growing up in a house with music all the time from Dad, I absolutely love these up close and personal house parties. Just watching musicians jam out and have fun is like my comfort food. Chad and Krissy are amazing hosts and have one heck of a decorated basement, showing just how much they get out there and support live music. They have way more memorabilia than I have. Seriously almost every square inch has something awesome and special!
After their first set I headed down to Ramona’s Basement, which Ramona happens to be our other writer, Eric Hoffman’s, doggie. His basement was nothing like I expected. It was so awesome! And he had Steel rockin’ in his basement!! Eric has invited me so many times, I’m so glad I finally made it. What an awesome experience with so many music lovers! Of course, Steel put on an amazing show and Wade kept the volumes bearable so we all weren’t deaf the next day. Eric also gave me a tour of his house, and I think it’s safe to say he might even have more memorabilia than Chad and Krissy. Eric had every room in house and pretty much every wall covered in something amazing. When I asked about one empty spot that I spotted, he said I need space so I can keep adding!! Ha! One way he added to his collection was going to Mom’s and helping us clear out some old PA Musician Magazine issues and goodies! Cleaning out Dad’s stuff wasn’t easy, but Mom is looking forward to her next chapter of life in a retirement community. I’m not ready to admit Mom is that old… but I guess it’s just another phase of life. I’m glad Eric got some cool stuff, because I know he will preserve it better than anyone!
Sunday Funday was a trip to Flinchy’s for Ragged Grace. They sometimes play as a 3-piece this day was just Slade and Rachael Thomas. Rachael and Slade make a crazy combo because they both play multiple instruments and they sing, so their versatility already makes them amazing! I’m so glad they recently started advertising so I saw their schedule and could make it out to see them. It was one heck of a show, and a great way to spend a Sunday.
After Ragged Grace we gathered up our musical crew, and sailed the 7 seas over to Underdogs on 22 for their Pirate Party.. When I first saw it advertised I thought they misspelled Private Party.. but alas me mateys, it was definitely a pirate party! Jason Carst was the captain of the ship and us pirates donned our tattoos, and raided the ship! Our swashbuckling was quickly out of control! But luckily we were thrown a life raft, so we could continue, just at a quieter level. What a fun idea to give a Sunday afternoon a theme!
Friday was a busy one; it all started with a trip to Beerded Goat to see Matt Jameson. The Beerded Goat was so busy there wasn’t a free table when we arrived. Lucky for us a table opened up quickly, and we could sit and enjoy some food and music! This kicked off Matt’s St. Patty’s Day craziness, so he had on a fancy hat for the occasion. He broke out his annual toasts, and a couple of fun St. Patty’s day tunes.
After his first set we headed up to Liquid Noise where it was supposed to be Crash & Cross, but unfortunately Cross was under the weather, so Crasher got Roger Bowyer to fill in for him last-minute. Even though they never played together before both guys quickly adjusted to playing together and jammed the night away!
After their show, the night was still young, so a group of us continued into Perry County to the Shermans Creek Inn for Vanishing Point. It was my first time hearing these guys, and they put on a great show! Most of their music was from the 70s to 90s, but they played a lot of my favorite, classic songs! We were quickly up dancing and having a great time. Frank was running sound and everything sounded great.
We kept things moving with our St. Patrick’s Day shenanigans and on Saturday we kicked things off early with a trip to Vineyards of Hershey for Megan and Dave. We dressed up in our full St. Patty’s Day gear, glitter and all! I was even wearing a tutu! Needless to say we put smiles on Megan and Dave’s faces when we came bursting in the door! Megan was playing her guitar again! I think I heard her play at least six songs on guitar! Hard work really pays off. So many good times with these two! We love singing along and getting this group rowdy. Haha!
Saturday night Cindy and I parted ways, and I continued on to the Horn Pub for Frenchie’s birthday, and more St. Patty’s Day craziness. Matt was dawning his kilt for this performance. And even painted his hair green! The shenanigans were definitely in full force. Matt even had a pot of gold with St. Patty’s Day fun to hand out and help people get all festive!
Sunday night the weekend continued when Matt hosted a special Open Jam at Blue Sky Tavern. I think everyone was pretty partied out by Sunday night, but Matt did have a few die hards show up: Justin Murphy Music, Phil Cannizzaro, Scott Crasher and Ricky. All of the musicians played a couple solo songs, but for the most part this night was a cool, laid-back jam. It was awesome watching so many musicians collaborating together and making music! Justin Murphy helped everyone through a bunch of Irish jigs to help keep the holiday flowing.
Finally, Monday came, the true St. Patrick’s Day! I didn’t have any plans and was hoping to get to bed early, but alas, a last minute show with Dr. Nyce at the Doyle Hotel popped up, and we just had to go! A whole group was there, and it was their 8th stop of the day… 13 hours of bar hopping and drinking! I’m so glad those days are over for me, but at least they did have a DD that was chauffeuring them all around. Dr. Nyce had a great crowd there for a last-minute show, and shenanigans were had by all! I even had a green “beer”.. (sprite and food coloring.)
The following Wednesday I stopped in for the tail end of Matt’s open mic at Blue Sky Tavern. I only made it there in time for the last few performances by: Derek Avalon, Rob Davis, a special duo of Colin Alvarez and Dave Gates, and Scott Crasher.
After a night of helping Mom I couldn’t resist and had to stop in and catch the last part of Hank the Buffalo at Sturges Speakeasy, I just couldn’t resist! Poor Stephen has been sick with the nasty cough for weeks, so he wasn’t there. Chris had help from Slade, Chuck, and Crasher, but you could tell Chris was missing his sidekick.
Cindy and I actually had a chill Friday and just headed out to Snitz Creek in Annville for her brother Roger Bowyer. The place was absolutely packed because of a special veterans gathering, but they were all engaged with the music and were amazed by Roger’s song choices. We also all got a special treat when Michelle got on that mic again and sang us a few songs! She’s soooo good! I can’t believe she’s been holding out on us all this time.
After another day of packing up Mom and going through my Dad’s belongings, I met Cindy at Stoney Creek for Megan and Dave’s last set. Megan and Dave got me smiling and singing along in no time. I am so blessed to have amazing friends! Packing up Dad’s stuff has not been easy on me.. it’s the closing of yet another chapter. Having a loved one die during crazy Covid rules was so strange, when you couldn’t have a proper funeral, etc.. it’s really hard to get closure. We had the big Memorial Celebration Party for Dad, but it still wasn’t the same. Even though it’s been 4 years, sorting through his stuff, and deciding what to do with it all, was something we avoided for way too long. I’m so glad I have so much of his music, and other mementos that remind me of Dad and all of his love he had for all of us.
After Megan and Dave we zoomed up to the Doyle Hotel for more Hank the Buffalo. This time Stephen was back, so the gang was all there! I’m so glad they let Hank the Buffalo play upstairs in the ballroom so there is plenty of room for dancing! Hank has become a staple to the Doyle Hotel and their regulars love them!
On a Tuesday night I zoomed up to Shermans Creek to hear the debut of their new house band, Zavala. I heard Lydia years ago, and it was awesome to see she was back. Zavala was on the cover last month, you can still read all about them on our website, www.pamusician.net. This was also Zavala’s first public show together, and they did an awesome job. Kevin Nelson really picked himself some amazing band mates. I was amazed by Tommy B’s drum skillz! That was my first time seeing him play drums, and his technique is something to marvel at! Shermans Creek was packed on a Tuesday for this debut show. It was awesome to see so many people supporting live music. I even got Zack to come out with me so he could eat some of Shermans Creek’s delicious wings! Good food, good times, and great music! Just three of the reasons why it’s so much fun going to Shermans Creek Inn. You’ll definitely be seeing more of Zavala in the near future. Keep an eye and ear out, you won’t be disappointed.
To end the month, I managed to snag a couple of Matt Jameson Live shows, one at the VFW in Marysville. Marysville VFW has a few weeks of amazing acoustic acts. If you want to go somewhere with delicious cheap food and drinks, the VFW is the place to go!
The last night out this month was a biggie and very emotional one, saying goodbye to Hook and Flask Still Works.. it’s been an amazing 5+ year run! I’ve seen so many different musicians grace their stage throughout the years. Even right after they opened during covid, in the freezing cold, they still had music out on the sidewalk! They went above and beyond constantly to support live music! This is a super hard hit to the music community, many musicians called this place home. Hook Was one of Matt’s very first shows in June of 2022! It was crazy to see Matt Jameson Live rock the stage one final time!
The Hook was packed full of people, so we took a break from the craziness and zoomed up and over the mountain to Shermans Creek Inn for Love Rocket! And more craziness These guys are such a blast to see and hear! They play all of your favorite 90s music. It’s almost like I just sat down in my first car, and popped a burned CD into the CD player and played all my favorites! Every song they play makes me yell, “Come on let’s go dance!”
Ahhh.. the end of an absolute crazy month of music. One other big ending for me, is the end of my position at BRP Entertainment. I was offered a job opportunity as an Operations Manager for Elite Experiences, so I had to resign as an Event Coordinator for BRP. You will still see me around as Rachel Rocks, so don’t dismay.. lol. And if you ever need a gigantic amazing place to stay for a huge family or corporate retreat let me know, I’m sure we have the perfect place!
If you see me Out and About please stop me and say Hi! If you’d like to read up on past adventures, they are all always online at www.pamusician.net. SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC!
