Paul McMahon is a legendary singer-songwriter from Woodstock. His sometimes mindblowing lyrics weave the tale of a Goddess in all worshipper’s journey through time. Rarely venturing far from Woodstock, he completed his first tour of 4 cities just before Covid’s appearance in 2020. It was organized by GoodFlavor tapes who also recorded an album slated for release in the near future. A survivor of the No Wave scene, he played in Daily Life with Barbara Ess and Glenn Branca. He has released ten albums and played at the Metropolitan Museum, CBGB’s, Knitting Factory, Tinker Street Cafe, the Lake, BSP, the Colony, Zadocks, SXSW and the Kitchen. He was the first to book the Knitting Factory in the 80s, started the Dharmaware Cafe, an acoustic music venue in the 90s and since 2007 runs the Mothership, an ‘Everything Center’ in Woodstock.
McMahon performs solo with an acoustic guitar. He also often performs with Eva Bublick. In addition he performs as the Rock’n’Roll Therapist, making up instant songs to cure people’s problems.
Morgan O’Kane plays the banjo as if his life depended on it, (as it has on many occasion) with an intensity that evokes a redeeming kind of sadness that will resonate with anyone ready to give it the space. Songs of heart break, hard traveling, and the love of friends, songs about the on going war humans wage against themselves and the earth. Originally from Virginia Morgan fell in love with playing music while living in nyc as a means to channel and express long years of travel and loss, fine tuning his unique style on the streets and subways. Ezekiel Healy (the bogs) joined Morgan whilst making his first album 9 lives in 2009, bringing his unique style of slide guitar to accompany and enrich the one man band sound. Healy, also from Virginia, self tought with a history of street performing, plays a national slide guitar more akin to Indian ragas then to blues, but with no less soul, adding an other world quality to the already out of this world sound of O’kane’s banjo, howling, and drum. Currently Morgan O’Kane performs most often solo or with Ezekiel Healy, and on occasion with Mississippi fiddler Ferd Moyes ( hackensaw boys, Ferd band) who has accompanied him from the beginning, recording on all three albums. The trio have toured extensively around the world over the past decade, at times joined by J.R. Hankins on flugelhorn, Liam Crill on spoons, Hayden Cummings on base, and Leyla McCalla on cello.
Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn lives in Brooklyn, New York, where she works as a song writer, performer, producer and mom. In a constant dedication to expanding her tender repertoire of American folk songs into a larger context, her recordings seek to find the magical amity between explorative percussion, orchestral sounds and elements of rock and popular music.
Since starting out in the late 1990’s, she has released over a dozen solo and collaborative recordings on various independent labels including K Records, Kill Rock Stars, Absolute Magnitude Recordings, Double Double Whammy and 7e.p., and toured solo and with countless iterations of her own band in concert halls, music clubs and punk basements all across North America, Japan and Europe.
Recent releases include 2018’s ‘Understanding’ and 2020’s 20th anniversary reissue of her first full length record ‘You Think It’s Like This But Really It’s Like This’. The deluxe double LP features a full covers record with contributions from over 20 artists including Y La Bamba, Palehound, Mount Eerie and Flock of Dimes.
Mirah has dedicated her creative process to investigating the complicated intersections within communities large and small, believing that with deeper understanding of each other, the seeds of a more generous and less violent world are planted.
“Mirah propels her magical, three-dimensional spaces with her clear beacon of a voice and instrumentation that slips from whisper-in-your-ear intimacy to rushing, tumbling aural avalanches.” -New York Press
The full-length debut from Miles Francis, Good Man is a work of gorgeous paradox: a nuanced exploration of masculinity and all its trappings, presented in a sound that’s joyfully unfettered. As the New York City-bred singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist reveals, the album’s endless complexity emerged from a period of unexpected and life-changing transformation. “Over the last few years I’d written all these songs interrogating manhood and male nature, but it took quarantine to really focus on what the songs were saying altogether,” Francis recalls. “The album became about showing a man going through a complete unraveling of their conditioning, and by the time I’d finished working on it I’d started to identify as non-binary.”
Produced by Francis and recorded in their longtime studio (located in the basement of the Greenwich Village building they grew up in), Good Man arrives as the most visionary and elaborately realized output yet from a polymathic artist known for collaborating with the likes of Angélique Kidjo, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, and Arcade Fire’s Will Butler. In dreaming up the album’s kaleidoscopic sound, Francis embraced an experimental process that involved elegantly merging their most formative influences. “I grew up with boy-band posters from floor to ceiling in my bedroom, and that music very much dominated my life when I was young,” they point out. “Later on I studied Afrobeat music and started playing with different groups in that world, which helped me to get to a place where I could be totally free in my musical expression. With this album I finally got to the point of bringing together these two worlds that made me who I am, even though they may seem unrelated.” Also naming shapeshifters like Prince and David Bowie among their essential touchstones, Francis ultimately alchemized those inspirations into a highly percussive form of art-pop, both lavishly orchestrated and visceral in impact.
Mainly recorded in solitude but featuring several guest musicians on strings, shekeres, background vocals, and horns, Good Man takes its title from a spellbinding piece of avant-pop encompassing many of the album’s central themes (e.g., prototypically male impulses and anxieties, the gulf between one’s true nature and meticulously curated presentation). “That song came from conversations I’d had with men in my life who identify as progressive-minded, but who seemed to have some blind spots around the #MeToo movement,” says Francis. “I heard people bemoaning cancel culture or saying things like ‘You can’t even put your arm around a woman anymore’—which is so ridiculously shortsighted. The genesis of all these songs was that question of what it truly means to be a good man.”
Throughout Good Man, Francis matches their incisive observation with a direct outpouring of feeling and, in many cases, fantastically offbeat humor. On the album’s effervescent lead single “Service,” they deliver a groove-heavy and pitch-perfect send-up of the over-the-top obsequiousness that pervades countless classic boy-band songs (“There’s this very impulsive offering of help and support, in a way that makes you wonder if there’s some other motive that’s not named in the lyrics,” Francis notes). Another track examining what they refer to as “the male anxious impulse,” “Popular” unfolds in frenetic rhythms and radiant background vocals courtesy of Lizzie Loveless and Lou Tides (aka Lizzie and Teeny Lieberson, formerly of TEEN). “Everyone indulges in having an ego and wanting to be recognized, but men seem particularly bent on the power element—whether it’s taking up space in a room or leading a country,” says Francis.
An album rooted in intense self-reflection, Good Man also includes such moments as “Let Me Cry,” a deeply personal number illuminating Francis’s poetic sensibilities as a lyricist (“Indoctrinated against moving his hips/For fear that it could attract another man’s lips”). “As a kid I was really out there and just fully myself, but over time there was this boxing-in that started happening from all different directions,” says Francis. “‘Let Me Cry’ is about asking, ‘Can you break out of this box, and find your way back to that inner child again?’” One of Good Man’s most confessional tracks, “Rainjacket” channels the quiet anguish and subtle power in accepting your own vulnerability. “It’s about dealing with your life in a real way, instead of just pushing forward and telling yourself everything’s fine,” says Francis. “It’s that moment of admitting, ‘No, you’re not fine—go see a therapist, work some shit out.’” And on “Don’t Fight Anymore,” Good Man closes out with a raw and revelatory expression of surrender. “That song still pulls at me whenever I listen to it,” says Francis. “It’s about breaking down and begging for some sort of answer to all these questions, and then finally releasing the baggage and really looking at yourself for the first time. It’s incredibly sad in a lot of ways, but it’s also hopeful—like an awakening, or the ultimate letting go.”
As an artist indelibly informed by the kinetic energy and eclecticism of New York City, Francis drew immense inspiration from their hometown in the making of Good Man. “The 2020 protest movement renewed my focus on what I stand for as a white, male-passing person, artist, and New Yorker. The most direct way I could be of help was to get a drum and go out to marches to keep a beat for protest leaders,” says Francis, who assisted a friend in the founding of Musicians United, a New York-based collective that supplies musicians for organizers. “In the beginning, the goal was to incorporate anti-racist work into my life, but the experiences I had and the people I met—particularly through the Black Trans Liberation/Stonewall Protests movement, led by Qween Jean and Joel Rivera—ended up giving me a new mirror to see myself in, to help me work to break free of my conditioning and truly find myself under the umbrellas of queerness and nonbinaryness.”
In bringing Good Man to life, Francis worked in close collaboration with filmmaker/photographer Charles Billot to create such striking visuals as the album’s surreal cover art (a wonderfully warped photo that features their mother and father alongside their own doubled image). “The cover is what made me realize what this album’s really about,” says Francis. “It’s the idea of one person embodying all different types of people, and the idea that we don’t exist in a vacuum: we’re created by our families and our trauma and the whole world around us.” Equal parts playful and unsettling, that photo also echoes the palpable sense of abandon that Francis brought to every element of Good Man. “When I’m in my studio, it feels like being completely free of the outside world, free of gender, free of everything except me,” says Francis. “I feel like I’m finally figuring out how to take that freedom beyond my musical expression and bring it into every aspect of my life. That’s what led me to nonbinaryness, and now I want to share that feeling with everybody.”
Mario is a musical polyglot inspired by a diverse array of traditions. As a child he gained formative instruction from his father – flamenco guitarist Reynaldo Rincon – and sang with the New York Boys Choir backing up Stevie Wonder and Al Green among others. Mario holds a BMus from SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Music, has studied bluegrass guitar with grammy-nominee Michael Daves and flamenco cante in Spain with Rocio Marquez. Today Mario sings professionally with Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana and his father’s company, Romeria Flamenca. He also performs original music with his folk quartet, Steamboats.
Magic Sandwich it’s a mental creation developed by renowned and respected artist Guido Colzani. Colzani’s alter-ego melts humor, technology and fantasy with songs, manufacturing a unique live performance. Created in 2020, Magic Sandwich released 5 (five) singles. Spanish, English & Italian, installed by factory default, are the languages that M-S uses to communicate. Future plans for M-S are coming, closing his first period; a last single is going to be released by the end of April 2022. Now M-S is working on a new record with an estimated release date for 2022 Christmas Eve.
Mac $ Cheeze Balkan Power Trio is an acoustic group specializing in traditional and modern village and urban folk music from the southern Balkans.
Their repertoire features music from Macedonia, Serbia, Albania, Bulgaria, Greek, and Turkey and is strongly influenced by Roma and Ottoman cultures and traditions. This music is typically performed for social-cultural occasions such as weddings, holidays and annual village festivals celebrating the seasons.
Tim Allen (saxophone), Matthew “Max” Fass (accordion) and Johanna Dun (percussion) bring an ancient-modern musical synthesis from the regions where East and West overlap and present it in their own style to audiences throughout the Hudson Valley and beyond.
Kendra McKinley is a singer-songwriter whose music bursts with vibrance, sensuality and wit. Her lush blend of chamber pop, jazz, and soul draws from a deep well of inspiration. Whether she’s performing solo with a guitar and loop pedal or dancing with a full live band Kendra’s confident, honeyed voice indulges all who hear it.
Joey Eppard is a true musical triple threat. An accomplished vocalist, a brilliant songwriter and an innovative master of his own finger style approach to guitar playing. He is the driving force behind the Hudson Valley based rock band, “3,” as well as a renowned solo performer, often leaving his audiences shocked that so much sound can emanate from a single human being. During his career, he has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Japan, garnering a reputation for intense and passionate live performances that often leave his guitar with nary a string.
Joey has toured and performed with the likes of Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Coheed and Cambria, Opeth, Atreyu, Within Temptation, Between the Buried and Me, Cynic, Scorpions, Heart, George Clinton & P-Funk, Little Feat, Aztec Two-Step, Todd Rungren, Orleans and many more! Joey is also a member of the band DRUGS with members of P-Funk, and an original member of Travis Stever’s Fire Duece. In recent times Joey has been singing lead in a Steely Dan tribute with the legendary Jerry Marotta (Peter Gabriel etc) and many other fine musicians. Joey also does a number of other tribute projects (Beatles, Traffic) with the grammy winning producer and engineer Scott Petito.
Joey burst on the Woodstock scene in the early 90s as a talented kid who turned a lot of heads. In a few short years he was playing the Main Stage at Woodstock ’94 under the management of the infamous Michael Lang. In 1998 “3” signed its first major label deal with Universal. As fate would have it their first record would not be released however, until 1999 on Planet Noise Records. After several more “3” releases with the Kinston based Label (Summer Camp Nightmare, Half Life & Wake Pig) as well as a solo effort (Been to the Future), Joey and “3” went on to sign with Metalblade Records who promptly rereleased Wake Pig. The boys followed up that release with their most well-known album, The End Is Begun. The band toured often and developed a reputation as one of the best live bands out there. They continued with Metalblade releasing Revisions and then their most critically acclaimed album, 2011’s The Ghost You Gave to Me.
“3” went on a bit of a hiatus in 2014 when Joey’s family faced a triple whammy of health-related challenges. It began with his mother’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis, followed shortly thereafter by his young son Julian’s Autism diagnosis. The combination of two devastating blows to two of the most important people in Joey’s life was crushing to say the least. It was only a few months later when his wife Melissa was diagnosed with breast cancer, capping a difficult stretch that would limit the band’s output over the next few years. Music would have to take a back seat and Joey’s sole focus became doing all he could to save his family. Thankfully Melissa’s surgeries, treatments and recovery were a hard-fought success that brought the Eppards a newfound appreciation for the preciousness of life.
With his wife and son thriving, Joey began reconnecting with his musical talents, writing, and performing more often again. Despite the band’s lack of activity, fan Facebook group: Alien Angels continued to grow online, and the band was surprised to discover it had over 20,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Things began to fall into place and a 3-reunion show was planned for The Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, NY. It turned out to be the most successful headlining show of their career. People flew in from all corners of the country to be there. The energy and passion the crowd displayed was absolutely amazing.
In March of 2020, as the Covid Pandemic swept across the country many people were forced out of their usual routines and this was certainly the case for Joey. At the suggestion of his talented wife Melissa, they began planning “Staying In with Joey Eppard,” the first in a series of livestream concerts that continue monthly to this day. The concert was a great success and a much needed reprieve from the loneliness and disconnect many were feeling in the first weeks of the lockdown. The energy of that first performance gave rise to a renewed musical determination and Joey launched a Patreon to help keep his focus on music where it belongs. His supporters are privy to the early versions of his new material and can even help influence the direction projects move in. With many new songs written and awaiting mix down, Joey looks forward to completing his next masterpiece in the very near future.
Jocelyn Mackenzie is a Brooklyn-based musician, maker, and psychic medium. A synesthete since childhood, her spiritual awakening in the summer of 2019 opened the doorway to her communication with those in unseen realms. She uses her finely tuned empathic and intuitive senses to offer intimate readings, connecting her clients with departed loved ones, bolstering their inner intuitions, and offering them guidance on their personal and creative paths. Her clairaudient skills have informed her songwriting for decades – also an accomplished musician, she recently released her debut record PUSH on Ani DiFranco’s record label Righteous Babe. At her core, Mackenzie’s extra-sensory skills inform her creative expressions, integrating media and meaning to create work that is both sensual and personal.
With a shape-shifting sound that is at once personal and universal, Jocelyn Mackenzie creates intimate pop songs for a generation of seekers. She is a Brooklyn-based musician, maker, and psychic medium, best known as the singing drummer from Brooklyn’s indie-pop trio Pearl and the Beard. Jocelyn and the band boasted an extensive touring history across the US, UK, + Canada, sharing the stage with such noteworthy artists as Ani DiFranco, Lucius, Neko Case, Bastille, Iron & Wine, and more. She released her debut solo album PUSH on Righteous Babe Records in early 2021, which American Songwriter calls “unique and infectious.” PUSH was arranged entirely for string quartet and includes compositions from an all-star team of composers including Franz Nicolay (The Hold Steady), Adam Schatz (Sylvan Esso), and Emily Hope Price (Pearl and the Beard, Kishi Bashi). The PUSH legacy continues with remixes by Hit & Hope (featuring Chris “Woody” Wood of Bastille), Daron. and Charlie Hunter, Jenny Owen Youngs and many others. Jocelyn’s first solo EP “Unlovely” features a song co-written by Ani DiFranco. Her and her band’s music has been commissioned and synced for film, commercials, and television, including syncs in Hannah Gadsby’s Netflix show Douglas, and the film Hello, My Name is Doris directed by Michael Showalter, starring Sally Field. She has also written for theater in projects funded by the Jim Henson Foundation and appearing at the Park Avenue Armory. At her core, Mackenzie’s extra-sensory skills inform her creative expressions, integrating media and meaning to create work that is both sensual and personal.
