Latest news with #I'monFire
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Vermont musician Reid Parsons' long road to debut album culminates with Burlington concert
Reid Parsons is a perfectionist. That explains in part why the 32-year-old Vermont musician took so many years before releasing their debut full-length album, 'Back to Back.' 'I have high expectations for myself in general,' Parsons, who uses they/she pronouns, told the Burlington Free Press in a recent conversation over coffee at Scout in Burlington. The long road to 'Back to Back' has to do with more than a desire to make everything perfect. It represents Parsons' resistance to what society expects, and to embrace creativity. 'Art is one of the things I struggle the most with, and (with) being a musician,' said Parsons, who celebrates the release of 'Back to Back' with a June 12 concert at Foam Brewers in Burlington. 'I feel like it would be easier to do literally anything else. It's like my fight against the extremely strong pull of the tide.' Parsons grew up in Moretown, and their father and grandmother were both musicians. Parsons took part in the renowned music program at Harwood Union High School, noting that 'all the stuff I care about' artistically was prevalent in the Mad River Valley. 'I just got very lucky,' Parsons said. They went from Harwood to Harvard, studying anthropology and music at one of the nation's most prestigious universities. The music program was classical-heavy and 'super-challenging,' Parsons said, but they did learn about string arrangements, complex horn parts and the importance of musical layers and textures, all of which came into play for 'Back to Back.' Parsons created most of the material for the album during the COVID-19 lockdown. They missed performing with other musicians, so working on songs by playing guitar, keyboards and saxophone made it feel like a band. They also did so much alone because they were still developing as an artist. 'I just wanted to see what I could make on my own,' Parsons said. 'I didn't want to have other people's energy, positive or negative, influence my work.' Parsons even avoided listening to other music during the four-year process of making 'Back to Back.' COVID made Parsons realize it was time to carpe diem to make a full-length album. 'It was for many people a wake-up call about our mortality,' they said of those dark days of 2020. Parsons recorded a couple of mini-albums over the years, including one resulting from winning a singer-songwriter competition. That EP, Parsons said, sounded 'fast and nervous.' They wanted 'Back to Back' to feel more wide-open and self-assured. 'I like lush layers,' Parsons said. 'I am obsessed with musical texture.' The new album displays Parsons' near-flawless, alternately delicate yet firm voice placed over tasteful guitar, evocative trumpet notes and punchy percussion, particularly on the lead title track. Their original songs (plus a smoky cover of Bruce Springsteen's 'I'm on Fire') are easygoing but inspired, full of momentum. Some tracks, like 'Get Out of Bed,' jump with a bluesy push. 'Show Me You Love Me' shimmers with simmering soul. Parsons worked on 'Back to Back' with engineer Ben Collette at Tank Recording Studio in Burlington. Musicians including drummer Russ Lawton, electric guitarists Steve Simollardes and Ian Mack, cellist Emily Taubl, trumpet player Connor Young, saxophonist Avery Cooper and pedal-steel guitarist Brett Lanier perform on the album, with Parsons on vocals, piano and acoustic guitar. Being a musician is 'a really weird profession,' Parsons said, as vulnerable songs created privately suddenly become very public. 'It's really scary releasing this.' Parsons is happy with the result. 'I'm just very proud that I did it,' they said. That pride has a lot to do with Parsons' desire to find a better work-life balance and to fight the pull of society. Parsons ran the Intervale Food Hub during the pandemic and now works as business manager at the Institute for Agroecology at the University of Vermont. The day jobs (nearly half of Parsons' paychecks) helped pay for the album. Parsons sees 'Back to Back' as a significant effort toward making creativity the dominant part of their life. The reason to record 'Back to Back' is basic: 'Because I'm an artist and I want to make art,' they said. Parsons said mainstream society has rewarded them and pays the bills. Now it's time to 'pull the music into the forefront,' they said. 'I wanted to tip the scales to the creative side,' Parsons said. 'I needed to inject that into me, invest in my own artistry.' They did just that and now feel better prepared to make future recordings. 'It feels like a huge thing to have gotten that out of the way,' said Parsons, who hopes to use 'Back to Back' as a springboard to go on tour and become a self-sustaining musician. Parsons played the songs from 'Back to Back' at a recent rehearsal with the musicians who will perform as their backing band for the Foam Brewers show. 'It was so (expletive) cool to hear,' they said, as hidden qualities of the songs emerged. 'It was like this wave of euphoria.' WHAT: Reid Parsons album-release concert WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday, June 12 WHERE: Foam Brewers, Burlington INFORMATION: Free. Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@ This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Vermont musician Reid Parsons celebrates album with Burlington show
New York Post
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
N.J. bar cancels Springsteen cover band over rocker's anti-Trump comments: ‘won't stand for his bulls—'
Bruce Springsteen just got cancelled — at the Jersey Shore. A tribute band dedicated to The Boss' music pulled the plug on a gig at a bar not far from his Garden State home after a dispute with its owner over the singer-songwriter's anti-Trump comments, according to a report. No Surrender, a 20-year-old nine-piece Springsteen cover band from New Jersey, was slated to play Riv's Toms River Hub on May 30th — until the 'I'm on Fire' singer kicked off his European tour packed with on-stage rants flaming President Trump, NJ Advance Media reported. Band leader Brad Hobicorn started receiving 'concerned texts' from bar owner Tony Rivoli shortly after Springsteen's comments went viral, according to the outlet. 3 No Surrender, a Springsteen cover band, was slated to perform at Riv's Tom's River Hub on May 30th until concerned texts from the bar's owner over Springsteen's anti-Trump comments. YouTube/No Surrender Band NJ By Sunday, Rivoli allegedly pulled the plug on the show that was booked 9 months in advance. He texted Hobicorn that the gig would be 'too risky at the moment,' citing the restaurant's conservative customer base, the outlet reported. 'Unfortunately it's just too much money I wanted to do the Springsteen tribute for that money in my social media team would have promoted it we would have done well but now because Bruce can't keep his mouth shut we're screwed,' Rivoli wrote in a text message to Hobicorn obtained by NJ Advance Media. Hobicorn offered to have his band play only classic-rock covers instead of Springsteen, but Rivoli balked at paying $2,500 for a classic-rock cover band, the outlet said. 3 Bar owner Tony Rivoli pulled the plug on the show, saying the gig would be 'too risky at the moment,' and cited his restaurant's conservative customer base. Google Maps In a message sent to the band's bassist, Guy Fleming, Rivoli wrote, 'Whenever the national anthem plays, my bar stands and is in total silence, that's our clientele. Toms River is red and won't stand for his bull—.' After Fleming posted about the situation on Facebook, Rivoli seemed to change his tune a bit — insisting he never cancelled the gig and had changed his mind. But the band decided it was too late for the bar owner to backtrack. 'This is not political for us at all,' Hobicorn told the outlet Thursday. 'We're just a cover band that's trying to make some money and people rely on it financially. We're the ones really getting hurt.' 'At that point, there were negative vibes about the whole thing,' Hobicorn said. 'There was definitely a safety concern,' he said. Rivoli, though, insisted the cover band could have played. 'As of (Wednesday), they could have played as No Surrender,' Rivoli told the outlet. 3 Springsteen lambasted Trump's administration as 'corrupt, incompetent and treasonous' while kicking off the European leg of his 'Land of Hope and Dreams' tour in Manchester, England, last week. Getty Images 'I think a lot of people of my base would not have came, but I could have been wrong. You know, who knows? You can't predict what people are going to do.' Toms River bar and restaurant joints have previously sparked backlash for their conservative slant. Aqua Blu Kitchen & Cocktails in Toms River put a hamburger on its menu dedicated to the right wing extremist group the 'Proud Boys' in January — leading to a massive online backlash and an apology from the owner. Springsteen — who was born in Long Branch and raised in Freehold — lambasted Trump's administration as 'corrupt, incompetent and treasonous' while kicking off the European leg of his 'Land of Hope and Dreams' tour in Manchester, England last week. Last Friday, Trump slammed the musician, calling him 'Highly Overrated' and 'dumb as a rock' for going 'to a Foreign Country to speak badly about the President of the United States.' 'Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he's not a talented guy — Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK, who fervently supported Crooked Joe Biden, a mentally incompetent FOOL, and our WORST EVER President, who came close to destroying our Country,' he posted to Truth Social. Instead of playing The Riv's Tom's River Hub, No Surrender will instead play Headliner Oasis in Neptune Township on May 30, according to the outlet.
Express Tribune
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Springsteen's seven lost albums set to see daylight
Springsteen is known for hits like Born in the USA and I'm on Fire. PHOTO: FILE Seven of Bruce Springsteen's albums will not be dancing in the dark for much longer. According to Guardian, this June, the veteran singer will release Tracks II: The Lost Albums, a massive box set of seven previously unreleased records spanning 1983 to 2018. The set, arriving on seven CDs (or nine vinyl discs), will include 83 songs, with a staggering 74 making their official debut. Described by Sony Music as "rich chapters" of Springsteen's career, the albums were largely completed and shelved until the pandemic gave Springsteen the time to revisit and finish them. "I've played this music to myself and often close friends for years now," he said. "I'm glad you'll get a chance to finally hear them." These aren't just b-sides or demos. Unlike 1998's Tracks, which gathered rarities, Tracks II includes full, cohesive albums that trace creative pivots and sonic experiments across decades. Among the highlights are the LA Garage Sessions 83, raw working tapes leading up to Born in the USA, arguably Springsteen's greatest, though choosing one is no small feat considering the artist's stellar discography. Also featured are the Streets of Philadelphia Sessions, a 1990s experiment in drum loops, synths, and hip-hop textures. Of the songs fans can anticipate to enjoy, there is Faithless, a moody soundtrack to a film that was never made; Somewhere North of Nashville, a pedal steel-soaked country detour from 1995; and Twilight Hours, a lush, orchestrated pop companion to Western Stars. Add Inyo to the mix, which is a collection of "border tales" with tracks like The Aztec Dance and Ciudad Juarez. Springsteen rounds it off with Perfect World, a compilation of collaborations with Joe Grushecky. The album is anchored by the fierce Rain in the River, which has already been released, and can be heard and loved on all streaming platforms. In a video trailer, Springsteen pushed back against the idea of a "lost" '90s. "I really, really was working the whole time," he said. Alongside the music, the box set includes a 100-page book with rare archival photos and liner notes for each album. A curated 20-song sampler will also be made available separately. Now 75, Springsteen shows no signs of slowing down. As he prepares for a European tour in May, he promises to keep playing "until the wheels come off." And with Tracks II, fans are finally invited into the decades of hidden work he's long held close.
