Top local band of 2022: dblgoer!!

Posted on February 10, 2023 by Times Boredom

That’s right Capital Regioneers, our favorite band this year is a well known duo of hardcore scene vets called dblgoer! Though they’ve only been around a couple of years, they’ve played their way into our hearts and pants.

dblgoer in their natural state: performing at a Superdark show at Desperate Annie’s in Saratoga Springs

dblgoer (or doublebasslifegrowingbrighter as it’s pronounced in ancient algebraic where it they hail from) is made up of Matt Heuston (aka Matth also of Glitter of Cohoes, Che Guevara T-Shirt, Friends of the Library, Catacomb Gypsy Vagina, and Lack of) on guitar, highly processed vocals and pedals and John Olander (of the Sugar Hold, Handsome Faces, Che Guevara T-Shirt, and THE Latent) on percussion and various electronics and pedals. This super experienced post-rock duo has graced stages from Albany to Troy, from Saratoga Springs to… Troy!

While it’s true they haven’t been on tour yet and keep recording, mixing, rerecording, remixing, and unrecording their as yet to be released single/album… tracks? they’ve certainly made astonishing inroads with fans and readers of Times Boredomland, who have voted the newcomers to the top spot in the first year they’re eligible for the list!

An image as mysterious as the band and their highly original eclectic post music that came from their bandcamp page

Being new gives dblgoer an incredible opportunity to define and redefine themselves as they see fit, as all that anyone really knows is they’re a couple of gingers that’ve been in a dozen local bands that have now found their own unique voice as a highly popular highly anticipated duo showcasing both of their many idiosyncratic talents.

In addition to also, having won this honor surprised no one moreso than dblgoer themselves. While their shows have been well attended, they didn’t realize the dizzying heights of popularity they’d risen to within their brief period bombarding the scene with many gigs within a small period of time. To show their appreciation, they agreed not only to answer our survey questions but also to pose for glamor photos (below):

Interestingly enough this number one slot came with cash prize money. Unfortunately, Times Boredom required a professional electronic press kit (epk) to collect this prize. And although dblgoer did produce an epk, it did not contain any pictures of the band members without instruments staring blankly at the camera or looking away thoughfully. Since said photo is a requirement for a pro epk, dblgoer did not receive any of the cash. Here is the photo they submitted instead.

TimesBoredom: Congratulations on being in Times Boredom’s Top 10 local bands! Honestly, how much of an honor is this for you?

Matt Heuston aka matth: It’s the most we could’ve hoped for

TB: Did you release any music in 2022?

matth: No, but there were some live things on youtube. WE did some demos, but held off on doing anything with them.

TB: What was your favorite show that you played in 2022?

matth: Maybe our Desperate Annie’s show with sky furrows, because Sky Furrows is great. But all the DA shows were fun to play, owing to the sound of the room and the people that come out for Super DArk Mondays .

TB: Who was YOUR favorite local band in 2022?

matth: Ice Queen, hands down.

In case anyone is unaware, the whole purpose of this silly top ten list in the vast sea of unnecessary and useless lists of ‘best’ things (it used to be called the ‘worst’ list but then we found that people were using it in their press kits and we didn’t want them to have to write ‘worst’ and then explain the irony or whatever) is to promote and bring all viewers and readers to the music. So thanks to dblgoer, everyone that voted in our top local bands survey and not only all the terrific bands that made the list but every other band that we like, love, and hate in equal measure (some more so than others) that didn’t make the list but were voted for. Please go visit each and or all of them on bandcamp or better yet the next time they play live in a club near you:
dblgoer
100 Psychic Dreams
Haunted Cat
architrave
haley moley
sky furrows
the abyssmals (now with 2 S’s!)
the sugar hold
madeline darby
bruiser and bicycle
jason martin
sinkcharmer
lemon of choice
ice queen
merci van
william hale
brent gorton
Stephen Gaylord/Gay Tastee
Laveda
blood blood blood
prom sex
zombie giuliani
schenectavoidz
swamp baby
sime gezus
connor armbruster
battleaxxxx
broken links report broken links visit broken links tell us about your broken links have fun dancing without broken links

More fun with 100 Psychic Dreams

Posted on February 9, 2023 by Times Boredom

So in addition to all the ‘in addition to’ stuff we wrote about 100 Psychic Dreams in our earlier article, Superdark superstar of the Psychic Dream Waves Shane Sanchez responded to our survey questions.

…And here they are!

Times Boredom (TB): Congratulations on being in Times Boredom’s Top 10 local bands! Honestly, how much of an honor is this for you?

Here’s our man, 100 Psychic Dreams in the bricks behind him. Sometimes theyre red, sometimes they’re, um, brick.

100PsychicDreams — hereinafter referred to as ‘1PD’ and yes we think that’s funny /Shane Sanchez: It’s a real shocker!!

TB: Did you release any music in 2022?

1PD: Only a couple of collaborations. Mostly played shows and promoted my 2021 release Bronze Stroker

TB: What was your favorite show that you played in 2022?

1PD: The Sime Gezus album release for sure! Awesome producer showcase with Albany artists PJ Katz, Big Malk, Mitochi, Devin B & myself and killer performances by Sime, JB!!, Juice Mega and Grimewav. What a night!

TB: Who was YOUR favorite local band in 2022?

1PD: I’m gushing all over Prom Sex right now.

TB: Do you have any plans for 2023?

1PD: Lots of collaborations! Excited about my work with Jason Martin, a handful of hip hop artists, working on new Bloodx3 and my second album is almost complete!

And for extra fun (and extra super fucking awesome seriously here ppl you know this is THE SHIT) here’s the collaboration from the superspooky ‘Do the Fright Thing Volume 8’ with 100 Psychic Dreams and Jason ‘Wolfman’ Martin (take a listen… if you liked this article, 100 Psychic Dreams, or anything Times Boredom does in general you should absolutely have a listen to this mindblowingly cool collab between two of our favorite people in the local music scene!:

Top 10 local Capital Region of NY bands of 2022, Part 4: Architrave

Posted on February 7, 2023 by Times Boredom

It’s no surprise that Architrave has once again made the Times Boredom top ten! The power couple duo of Jennifer Maher Coleman and Paul Coleman topped our chart in 2020 with their album ‘This Perfect Day’. In addition Architrave, like most of the other projects heralded by one or more of the Colemans, has a constant presence of laudation here at Times Boredom.

And since we’ve said pretty much everything we can about them, thankfully, they answered some of our questions for this award:

TB: Congratulations on being in Times Boredom’s Top 10 local bands! Honestly, how much of an honor is this for you?

Jennifer Maher Coleman: Always thrilled to be acknowledged by the TB. Please see the attached photo of us victoriously high-fiving upon hearing the news!

TB: Have you released any music in 2022?

JMC: We released a single and video for the song “Lorem Ipsum,” the first single from our forthcoming album (working title: “Out of My Mind and Into Yours”) and contributed a cover of the Fine Grain song “Missing Adult” to the locals-covering-locals compilation “Reproduce This.”

TB: What was your favorite show that you played in 2022?

JMC: Our favorite show was definitely a Halloween event at Radio Bean/The Lamp Shop in Burlington along with Roost.world and many other electronic artists. It featured several stages around the venue, allowing for a smooth, seamless transition between acts and escalated into a fantastic dance party.

TB: Who was YOUR favorite local band in 2022?

JMC: We were very inspired by 100 Psychic Dreams’ beat-making.

TB: Do you have any plans for 2023?

JC: Plans for 2023 – The album is finished, we just expect to be tweaking and mixing for a while longer and making a video to coincide with its release, hopefully this spring.

Top 10 local Capital Region of NY bands of 2022, Part 7: The Abyssmals

Posted on January 30, 2023 by Times Boredom

Seriously Idk who made this image (and I know I should as the ‘image caption guy’ but this is the history of rock and roll in a grain of sand. So fucking cool!

You would be hard-pressed to find a band with more style, swagger, and attitude than THE ONLY BAND THAT EVER MATTERED. If you were lucky enough to catch an Abyssmals show in 2022 or any of the previous 6 or 7 years they’ve been playing the Capital Region you were simultaneously jived, hipped, and made obsolete as they kidnapped you in their psychedelic time machine. This hypothetical time machine would make a quick stop during the 90s – but no time for Newcombe’s antics – forego the 80s, and straight back to the 60s, where they probably could have given the Stones a tip or two on how to stay cool.

The Abysmal’s full length “Gospels, Hymns and Other Trash!” released in 2019

While a local favorite these psychedelic ghouls have been expanding their reach internationally AND have had music featured on several TV shows on network TV and streaming platforms. Their debut full-band album, ‘Gospels, Hymns and Other Trash!’ was released in April 2019. They released their most recent single, “Let’s Forget”, in 2020.

Their next show is on Valentine’s Day at No Fun in Troy (presented by ‘Hey Greasy!’) with Vinyl Williams and Hospital Corners. More information on the band can be found on their website.

-Terry Chagrin

Top 10 local Capital Region of NY bands of 2022, Part 8:The Sugar Hold

Posted on January 29, 2023 by Times Boredom

The Sugar Hold burst onto the scene like a bat out of a volcano with a mug of beer in one hand and (of course) a cheeseburger in the other! The relatively new local band is known for their hard partying ways (https://timesboredom.com/2022/10/01/from-now-on-by-order-of-the-city-of-troy-chamber-of-commerce-the-sugar-hold-will-only-be-allowed-to-play-weddings-dances-quinceaneras-and-other-festive-occasions/), their indie surf rock brand of music, and their funny off the wall songs and lyrics. And although they’ve only been around for a few years, they’ve already made a big name for themselves.

The last 2 singles they’ve released have been the campy Halloween track ‘Werewolf, Baby!’ for the ‘Do the Fright Thing’ Halloween comp and, the song they’re most famous for; “Cheesburger”. Cheeseburger’s a danceable partying track that sounds like it comes from a lost age of innocence when rock and roll was super fun, before it got all serious and John Lenon was like ‘this is ART MAN!’. To exponentially increase the party vibe and show how intensely serious they are about the party and the fun they’re joined by local high harmony trio Hold on Honeys for backing vocals that remind you of the doo wops on Monster Mash. And the song is truly about how great, cheap, convenient and what a delicious snack a cheeseburger is. Get me one too!

In addition to being one of the top ten local bands in the area, The Sugar Hold were the first group on the top ten to respond to our request for an interview.

TB: Congratulations on being in Times Boredom’s Top 10 local bands! Honestly, how much of an honor is this for you?

Mikey Baish (for the Sugar Hold):
What an honor!

TB: Did you release any music in 2022?

Sugar Hold: We released our live special “DOPE” on 4/20. This was a full set recorded LIVE at the Jive Hive Live. We released our song “Cheeseburger” ft. Hold on Honeys from that session as a single. Then in October we wrote and recorded a song for the Super Dark Halloween compilation called “Werewolf, Baby!”

Right now we are working on our first real record. We are working with David Rockower aka The Duke Western and it’s been a pleasure so far. We hope to have that out on 4/20 (put it in your calendars) this year as a follow up to DOPE.

TB: What was your favorite show that you played in 2022?

Sugar Hold: For our favorite show it’s a tie between the set we did at Brown’s Brewing Malt Room for Bacchanalia (with our gals the Honeys, E-Block, and best bud/official Sugar Boy Rhoseway) and the Wild in the Trees Skate & Music Fest. WITT was cold as hell, but it was cool to see the “high ollie” contest going on during our set.

TB: Who was YOUR favorite local band in 2022?

MB: I (MIkey) am gonna have to ask the guys each of their favorite bands, but I ALWAYS say dblgoer and BIG Maybe. Dan says Brule County Bad Boys (how could I forget them?!), Matt says Battleaxe and Pencildive

TB: What was your favorite show that you played in 2022?

Sugar Hold: As far as gigs go, ideally we’d like to scale down to one per month. It’s just real tough to turn down some really awesome gigs that have been getting thrown our way. So far we have one of the bigger local festivals booked and look forward to being invited back to Bacchanalia and Wild in the Trees.

TB: Do you have any plans for 2023?

MB: We’re excited for 2023. I think it’s going to be a big year for The Sugar Hold!
Thanks for asking! I appreciate it!

Top 10 local Capital Region of NY bands of 2022, Part 9: Madeline Darby

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Times Boredom

Madeline Darby is one of the few, the proud, the super cool repeat offenders on the Times Boredom top 10 club, having been on our list back in 2020 for her terrific album ‘innovation’ (if you recall, there was something going on that year that caused us to have to rank bands by recordings alone given the difficulties there were with live performances…). And just as in 2020, we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention Ms. Darby’s incredibly pertinent contributions to the scene, both as a member of the Superdark Collective, Thinner Friends, and plenty of other collaborations with fellow local artists such as the recent single Sacred Gates with Jennifer Maher Coleman of Haley Moley, Architrave and the Honey DJ Collective (which you can listen to and download at https://madelinedarby.bandcamp.com/track/sacred-gates).

Recently released single collaboration between Madeline Darby and Jennifer Maher Coleman

In addition to all of these awesome things, Madeline Darby released a full album in 2022 that was an ENORMOUS critical success. Our friend and sometimes writer/editor for Times Boredom W.A. Wright wrote an aptly glowing review of the record (read it here: https://nippertown.com/2022/05/28/album-review-not-this-universe-the-origins-of-madeline-darby/), and if W.A. Wright says it’s good, well then we get off our couch and run out to buy it! Ok that’s not true, we don’t get off the couch but reading a review like that gets us straight to the bandcamp page where we made a purchase immediately. Isn’t technology wonderful? I mean time was you could go to a local record store and aks if they had local records on commission or something, and chances were you’d find one of your friends or a potential new friend doing the same thing. Then you could hang out with your friends at the record store, just chat and waste time on the weekend, and start coming to a consensus about how terrific not only the local music scene is right now but Madeline Darby specifically, how she’s exceeding our expectations and creating unpredictable ‘innovations’ in music and sound.

Madeline Darby’s latest album released in 2022, “Not this universe: The Origins of Madeline Darby”

(Forgive me for going off on a tangent about the ‘old days’, but it’s related in an obtuse way. Sort of. Keep reading, I’ll put it all together somehow!)

A lot of what we love and appreciate about Madeline Darby is her indefatigably (5$ word!) positive sense of community. What we and we think a lot of other people love about her is her support for everything that’s great about music and noise in the Capital District. And also as a ‘private citizen’ she’s always attending shows, being supportive, and always having plenty of positive things to say about our burgeoning little scene (especially in Troy), which is, as she put it, “HOT HOT HOT”! And not only is she doing short collaborations with other local artists but the album credits themself read like a top 50 list of all the great artists in the Capital REgion; Aunt Lonely, Goldeedust, NXNES, Zero Lee, 100 Psychic Dreams & Triya Love. And of course the Ballston Spa G.O.A.T. is here mixing and mastering like he does on SO many great local albums (in addition to his own) that you wonder when he has time to sleep… And not only does she list her collaborators and the indefatigable (careful now, not really using that word correctly and that’s gonna cost you in the final concluding paragraph) Paul Coleman but she even mentions and gives thanks to all the local places and even publications including ours truly little blog cottage operation!

Trust us, the love is mutual.

Unfortunately, we’ve heard that Madeline Darby is going on hiatus for awhile. In the meantime, a mysterious new stranger to the local music scene calling herself ‘Jane Woodshed’ has appeared and, if you (like us) just can’t wait for your next Madeline Darby fix, Jane Woodshed has many similarities and will most likely kick a ton of ass as well. Looking forward to hearing all of the many the new ‘innovations’ that Sarah Darby brings to the local music scene. Innovative, supportive, and HOT HOT HOT!