FMP 024 – Bridget Law and Tierro Lee
World’s Finest
The Domino Room-February 17th, 2017
Last Friday at the Domino Room in downtown Bend, Oregon, we were able to catch Leftover Salmon’s opener, World’s Finest. Featuring an electric banjo, saxophone, and vintage guitar, they had a rustic and organic vibe. Blending elements of ska, bluegrass and reggae, they were able to touch on several familiar sounds while adding their own character and a bit of a twist.
Juggling genres and different styles, it was obvious the group drew inspiration from assorted backgrounds. There were many moments of feel-good-bluegrass easily associated with Portland and The Pacific Northwest. Both upbeat and rock influenced it reminded me of groups like Fruition. Other times they would tone things down and switch over to reggae and ska. Some highlights included “Rub-a-dub” reggae and well timed breakdowns to group acapellas. With flexible musicianship, they were able to showcase a few covers as well. My favorite was their funky-bluegrass cover of “Pick Up the Pieces” by Average White Band. The nostalgia of the song, accompanied with their provocative saxophone, was a great way to close out the set.
Full of fun energy and a feel good vibe, World’s Finest had very personable crowd interaction and seemed to thoroughly enjoy their time on the stage.
Check out the links below for music and more on the World’s Finest!
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong
The Volcanic Pub Theater-February 12th, 2017
Wildly entertaining, eccentric and funk-nasty. The words that come to mind after last nights show at The Volcanic Theater in Bend, Oregon. I knew to expect some funk with an East Coast jam band influence. What I didn’t expect was a roller coaster of spacey interludes, mambo break-beats, and jazz waltz noodling. And yes, of course there was always a sneaky funk breakdown to tie it all together. On point transitions and tight coordination amongst the group allowed for fresh switch ups and genre blending. It’s hard to explain exactly how I would classify their style, but just take my word for it, you don’t want to miss them live. Its beautiful, musical madness at its finest. With a packed house on a Sunday night, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong definitely have a following and were a perfect fit for the wacky Bend crowd, looking to get the most out of their Sunday night.
It’s rare that you come across such an animated front-man as lead singer and guitarist Greg Ormont. Sporting pajama pants and a frizzy Afro, I’m pretty sure he never blinked. His wide array of facial expressions were both engrossing and humorous. My initial hesitation slowly grew into captivation and it became hard to look away. Incredibly skilled guitarist Jeremy Schon really took it to the next level. It was clear that this type of seasoned musicianship demanded a bigger stage. With a calm, natural presence on stage, Ben Carrey laid down filthy, funk bass lines to back the group. Drummer, Alex Petropulos playfully transitioned between different tempos, genres and moods with ease. All together, this group was a tight knit team. Their raw and playful energy on stage really reflected their confidence to push their music to new boundaries.
This group is big news and word is spreading fast. They had so much support that they were able to fund their new studio album “Pizazz” through contributions from their followers. It should be releasing sometime this Fall. Also, make sure and check out their new live album “The Great Outdoors Jam” coming out February 17th!! For those of you out in Colorado, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong will be playing at Red Rocks, August 13th with Moe and Twiddle!
Written by Greg Powell
Photography by Molly Buckiewicz
For more info on upcoming tour schedule, music and the band check out the links below!!
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Sonic Bloom 2016
Sonic Bloom 2016 has a stacked lineup producing incredible performances too numerous to describe here. It is safe to say, “SonicBloom has become one of the best electronic music festivals in North America!” It is worth noting the international talent attracted to the base of the Colorado Rockies to share their vision, talent and art. To see the full lineup click here.
The mindfulness and vision to attract the top talent from across the globe, must be recognized and commended. The three official stages vibrated with historic house music. This festival is the nexus of the Colorado electronic music scene. The location is perched atop a beautiful space of land with the foothills of the Rockies to the west and windmill filled fields that go on to meet the eastern horizon. The festival has succeeded at curating a fertile ground for the world-wide cutting edge of musical maneuvering.
The sound systems are tuned to the valley and can bump through the entire festival grounds. The security is appropriately staffed and energetically aligned. The friendly faces can be found throughout the campgrounds, stages, in swinging hammocks, in high fiveing security guards, or the dancing chefs who happily serve nourishing food at reasonable prices. The ice, in high demand in the hot sun is the only noticeably overpriced product at $1/lb. The showers run at full capacity as people line up for their chance to clean off that layer of accumulated dust and dirt that is kicked up from all of the movement. The sunny and beautiful weather also brings with it the dryness enabling the dirt to turn to dust. The wind is welcome and the stream is an oasis for people looking to take a dip and cool off.
The unofficial or ‘renegade’ stages include tipis and camp sites stacked with speakers and subs. The colorful crowd and the apex of art have arrived to create an immersive experience that people are willing to dedicate four days to. Some of the crowd has traveled from across the continent to enjoy the this dreamed up reality.
This festival has become a small close nit group of people who are looking out for one another to form a utopic village for just under a week. The production continues after the last set as everything needs to return to its original order; stages must come down, lasers, lights, projectors, sound & lighting boards, 1,000’s of yards of electric wiring, speakers, microphones, instruments, and framework to name a few. The thankless work of setting up all of the stages and hauling in the gear was executed with time to spare and enough technology to entertain even the most avid of festival goers.
People in their ‘A-Game’ costumes come energetically into the festival entrance in groups. Everyone has made 10+ new friends and friendly neighbors. The exchange of ideas, paints, music and visual art permeate the mind of every attendee. One cannot help but be inspired by something of unique beauty.
Day in the Life; at Sonic Bloom:
Winds whip down the hills and across the plains. Dust moves in a hurried Eastwood direction. Every walk of electronic culture strolls through the grounds interacting with experiences, sonic vibrations and frequencies across the perceptible spectrum. Cars have been rolling in for over 12 hours at a steady pace filling up the campgrounds. The lucky and wise are nestled among the 6′ shrubbery whose neighbors are bushes and trees. My neighbors on the other hand-made the pilgrimage to SonicBloom from Louisiana. A tightly packed vehicle of four young energetic and enthusiastic beautiful artistic human beings. As a group, it does not seem possible to gather so many like-minded humans in a place to enjoy and thrive in a collaborative environment.
Friendly staff greet the goers. The hippy chicks and the electric glowers.
From the lighting to the sound, from the stages to the camp ground, there are smiles to go around. With the hammocks from Yammocks, and the beats from the peeps the festi is full of fun-loving music geeks.
Three stages of stacked sets featuring some of the top electronic acts from around the world. American electronic music lovers treat this event as an annual pilgrimage to discover and reunite with the music, people and source of creative energy that is the foundation of a festival. Creativity flows from the ornately decorated stages and sublimely composed tracks that suddenly take hold of the listeners and create a simultaneous bodily expression of enjoyment including but not limited to twerking, spinning, jumping, dropping, exploding or floating.
The breeze kicked up into a howl for Nightmares on Wax’s last song featuring one of the most recognizable guitar riffs around. The high energy Bonobo set was filled with masterfully woven bass lines pulsing through the night. The crowd can be heard cheering for miles.
The late night stages rage like there is no finality to human diurnality. The artists continue to stoke the flaming crowd into the next adventure and from one set to the next. The solitude of night embraced with the warmth of bass and faces.With the evolution of the performances, the pulse of the festival was amplified and magnified by the exemplified beat technique. The audible entertainment abruptly ended, with a slow retreating high pass filter that faded out for 15 min or more notifying the audience that the silent disco was starting. With headphones on, the party rolls on…
The nexus of Colorado electronic music counter-culture is here; at Sonic Bloom, on the beautiful property at Humming Bird Ranch.
Arise 2014 Video
Official FreioMusic Arise Festival 2014 Video
Arise Festival 2014 in Loveland, Colorado. Freio Music’s talented team captures the cultural gathering with energy with style. Arise Festival features artists from across the musical spectrum. Share it. Enjoy it. See you next year!
Credits:
Produced by Freio Music
Directed by Joe Morahan & Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
DP by Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
Editing by Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
Time-Lapse Photography by
Melissa Harrison, Isaiah ‘Scott’ Brown, & Michael Morahan
Music by
Polish Ambassador
Arise Festival 2014 in Photos
Arise 2014
The 2nd Annual Arise Music Festival:
By the time the gates were finally open, the energy began to pick up. With the people came art, laughter, color and flavor. As the camping area began to fill up it was clear that this year was much larger than last. The same beautiful location shared by thousands of new attendees. With ‘dualing stages’, two stages set up right next to each other intended to minimize musical downtime, the music continued and the crowd stayed close. The electronic stage, Souls Rising, had a stacked lineup of talented young and established acts. The energy by Souls Rising stage kept a steady group of dancing bass faces content. While the Souls Rising stage was considerably smaller than the other two main musical stages, it was the destination for many festival goers and it delivered. The stage and surrounding area was decorated ornately from the lasers beaming around the ground to the CDs hanging reflectively from the trees.
Photo taken by Molly ‘Mojo’ Buckiewicz
This year’s attendance appeared to be at least double, possibly triple, the previous year’s attendance. The festival was prepared and there was ample water, food, and portable toilets. The vender village was one of a kind with an array of smells coming from the food stands, and an array of colors coming from the vender stands. Artists are now migrating to Arise festival from all over the USA, contributing to its colorful diversity. Arise is Colorado’s best and most diverse music festival.
Once again SunRise Ranch played the role of the gracious host and one can only hope that they received the support and recognition they deserve for sharing the incredible valley to all of us who attend. With out the support of SunRise Ranch this event would not be possible in its current form. The artists also deserve a huge shoutout for making the experience what it was, and sharing ideas, thoughts, and emotions through their sound and visions. Equally the fan, the festival goer, the music lover, the ‘escape the 9-5 artist’, anyone who attended a festival, deserves a huge thank you. With out listeners how could music work? It is you who make this possible and for that all of us here at FreioMusic, Thank You!
Immerse Yourself – Arise Festival – Loveland, CO
ARISE FESTIVAL 2013
“The music is like the fire …. and we all gather around it to warm our souls”
~ Paul Bassis, Producer of ARISE ~
A new festival has emerged onto the Colorado scene this summer. Backdropped by the serene beauty of the Rocky Mountains, Arise Festival has set its sights on being the very essence of a festival – co-creation, music, art, yoga, and community. Sunrise Ranch, an hour north of Denver, will provide the magical space for festival goers to explore and re-connect with nature and one another. The atmosphere is looking to come together seamlessly, complete with Hemp Village, Kids Village, Organic Food and Beverage Village, and hey, my fellow beer lovers, a Craft Beer and Wine Village!
The festival will also feature a selection of independent films including – Bidder 70, Chasing Water, Arise, and The Bloom. If that doesn’t expand your mind enough – check out the healing space, Temple of the Heart, on site. It will encompass activities like yoga, kirtan, meditation, and a healers tent to completely rejuvinate you- mind, body, and soul.
THE BASICS
WHAT TO BRING: face paint, headlamp, re-fillable water bottle, warm clothes for the CO nights
Aside from the perks… the music lineup is stacking up quite nicely to create an incredibly diverse world sound to fill up those Colorado mountains.
So who is playing you ask?
Freio Favorites:
We are very excited to be apart of this melding of art and community. Not convinced yet? Check out the music below…
But just you wait… the complete lineup so far includes:
STAY TUNED FOR THE ARISE FESTIVAL CONTEST
FOR 2 FREE TICKETS!!
The True Set
The True Set from Los Angeles
Freio Music is excited to present ‘The True Set’, inspired by Cold War Kids, Led Zeppelin, and Rumspringa. Their first instruments were played as kids in the kitchen, pots and pans! Creative from the beginning of their career, they use, adapt and thrive with the instruments available. This crew is ingenuitive and surprisingly good. Have a listen! In three words they describe their sound as, “Pure Genuine Rock” – Will age 24. This young band has the potential to grow and change their sound as they get their hands on new instruments and tools. Fly High, a must listen to song if you like overdrive vocals and indie rock.
U heard it first HEAR @freioMusic
More Info:
ReverbNation:
Youtube: