By: Chris Rider
So here we are, 3 months into the Covid 19 Apocalypse, and things are starting to slowly open up. We all know by now how much a mess it has made of everything, including the music scene. I, like many people have watched live stream after live stream to try to support the musicians as best I can during all of this. To all of you out there playing live streams and doing anything you can to keep your music going, just know that I and everyone here at PA Musician appreciates you and all of your hard work.
Shortly before writing this article, we started going to “Green” which allowed smaller, mostly solo acoustic shows to ramp up so that’s what I’ve been able to cover with one exception. Definitely not the number of shows I’d been used to covering in a month’s time, so this article will be shorter than the norm…but I can’t even begin to express how much I’ve missed experiencing live music and hope to see it expand quickly & safely. I’ve even missed writing 🙂
So, to start things off, the first act I was lucky to cover was actually before the local counties started going “green” and letting people come out to enjoy live music. My friends up at Isle Of Que brewing in Selinsgrove (have I mentioned that their Animal 54 is just outstanding? I might have…) invited me up to cover their first live stream event. Jason Yoder started things off with his unique blend of covers and originals. Jason’s been in this article before, maybe a few times…I love getting to see how musicians progress over time, adding new music to their list, improving their skills, etc. Following Jason was Selinsgrove area based DMT Blues, consisting of Dan Montville on guitar & vocals, Mick Edinger on bass, and Todd Fogle on drums. I’d heard of these guys for a little while and was hoping to catch them soon. The words that came to mind while watching them were raw and gritty. Covering Jimi Hendrix, Muddy Waters, Rolling Stones, and many others; these guys bring a unique style to their music that I enjoyed every minute of.
My next trip out was to see Dave Gates play at Stoney Creek Inn in Dauphin. I’d only been to Stoney Creek once before, and both times now I’ve been very impressed with not only the food, but the service as well. If you get a chance, definitely get out there and check them out. I had watched several of Dave’s live stream events while holed up, so I was really looking forward to seeing him live. Dave plays a wide variety of covers, but does them all in his own style which is something I look for in covers. Dave also takes requests constantly from his fans and if it’s something he doesn’t know, he goes back and learns it and tweaks it into his own style. Over the last few months I’ve had the opportunity to talk to Dave on several occasions and am happy to have added him to my growing list of musician friends. I look forward to seeing more of him in the future.
I then made it out for my first trip to Cold Springs Inn to see Shrimp Ryan’s Jig Band. Justin and the boys brought their old time Appalachian irish jig tunes to the Yellow Breeches to a crowd that was there as much for them as they were just to happily get out of the house and enjoy some good company on the deck. Music on the deck at Cold Springs is a beautiful experience…it’s quiet and peaceful with the creek slowly moving by, sometimes with a canoe or kayak. It just made for a great, relaxing evening.
My next trip out was to the rooftop deck at Appalachian Brewing Company to see Shine Delphi. Being relatively new to IPA’s myself, I decided to try out one of theirs while I was there. I really enjoyed the Argyle Sweater IPA. Shine describes his music as Gypsy/Ragtime/Folk, but there’s honestly more to it that a simple man like me has trouble describing…but I do love listening to his music. It’s a mix of covers (in his own style) and originals, all of them entertaining and having a story to them. Shine also takes time between songs to talk about how he came up with a song, or maybe a story about his day, or just a joke with his infectious (non-Covid style!) laugh.
My final trip out for this article was a last minute trip to the Brewery at Hershey, again a first for me. By the way, try their Heffeweizen, pretty tasty indeed. This was my first time seeing Dave play, he’s a solo acoustic artist out of York County. Dave plays a wide variety of covers including classic rock, jam rock, alternative rock, etc. He put on a good show for a crowd that was happy to be enjoying the sunshine and beer or wine.
So…not my normal number of bands and shows for my article, but not much is normal right now I suppose. I’m looking forward to the next month and seeing (hopefully) a lot more live music. I also wanted to add this: If you don’t follow my photography page and you’re a musician, you might want to give me a follow as I’m working on a special announcement in the next few weeks that might interest more than a few of you once I get a few more details ironed out. That, and I enjoy getting more likes for my page 😉 Just a reminder: if you’ve got a show coming up that I should see, make sure to send me an invite, shoot me an email or a message, let me know about it. The majority of the shows that I go and shoot I find out about through invites from all of you or your friends. Hit me up on facebook: @chrisriderphotography or email: chrisriderphotography@gmail.com, stop me if you see me out & around and say hi. Until next month…go find some live music and give them and the venue your support. They all need it more now than ever before.