John Butler Trio in Central Park

Last week the John Butler Trio came to NYC to play at Central Park’s Summerstage Concert Series. Summerstage is a free series of concerts, plays, dance, and various other events. Central Park is the most notable venue, but the Summerstage series is active in parks across all 5 boroughs. The John Butler show was not free alas, as it was the big

John Butler Trio in Central Park

benefit show that raises money to fund the other summerstage events that occur througout the summer. The show cost 35 dollars,and it was well worth it! State Radio and Agnus & Julia Stone were the opening acts for the John Butler Trio, who have just recently released their 5th album, entitled April Uprising. For John Butler Trio fans, this is a long awaited album, with thought provoking songs like Revolution, and jammin’ songs like One Way Road and Don’t Wanna See Your Face, this album leaves nothing to be desired, except for maybe more songs.

The venue itself is laid out in typical outdoor concert style with a few exceptions; there are bleachers in the back and sides for those who do not want to stand, and they are close enough to the stage that there are no bad seats in the whole venue. They also bost some delcious eats such as new york style pizza, and asian inspired hot dogs. No outdoor show would be complete without something to wash that food down and quench that thirst. Beer and wine are for sale for very

Central Park Summer Stage

 reasonable NYC prices, (think 6 dollar beers) as well as bottle water and soda. The most impressive aspect of the whole show was that it was sold out and yet did not feel too crowded, which is a rarity at many venues in NYC.

Check out the lineup for this coming summer, because with bands like the Flaming Lips and Black Keys, these shows will run out of tickets fast and you might be stuck outside the gates listening and jammin’ out under the shade of some nice oak trees, which really ain’t so bad!

Jake Winstrom and The Tim Lee 3 in NYC

Jake playing at Piano's, 158 Ludlow Street.

 This past weekend I got the opportunity to see a good friend’s band here in NYC. My friend Jake came up from Knoxville to play with the Tim Lee 3 at Pianos, 158 Ludlow Street. This show was particularly ballin’ because I got to be on the guest list, which not only saved me some bucks but made me feel very cool! 

The Tim Lee 3 began cranking out some authentic Southern Rock sounds as soon as I arrived around 8pm. Their music is the quintessential rock you find in many bars in the southern part of the United States, and hearing it here in New York was a nice flashback to my time in college going out to bars to hear local music. Their stage presence was great. They are very engaging and you can tell they really enjoy being on stage and doing what they do best. 

After their hour-long set, they continued to remain on stage and Jake Winstrom stepped on stage to join them for another hour of indie/rock-n-roll music. All four of them have a great chemistry and it is evident in their stage presence. I have seen Jake play countless times, and the show is always good. Jake’s unique voice and his talent for song writing are the highlights of the show. I hope to see them again in NYC soon and encourage people to make it out to their next show. 

The links to both of their myspace pages are below. 

http://www.myspace.com/jakewinstrom 

http://www.myspace.com/timleemusic