The Professor continued...
ifornia” and their night-finisher, Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” Another new one was part of the duo’s tribute to John Prine, as they unveiled “Lake Marie” following their take on “Spanish Pipedream.” And they did another highlight that I always look forward to, Lauren’s potent voice on Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit!” McGarvey’s in Altoona has begun presenting acoustic entertainment that same weekend, and I saw Walkney frontman Derek Mrdjenovich there as he performed solo acoustic. Derek did many of his original songs through the night to a receptive audience of fans and friends. Derek mixed a number of new songs with tunes from his “Oh No” EP. Some of his songs included “Unhappy,” “I Always Wanted You” and “Medicine.” Derek channeled various emotions through his voice, ranging from delicate to intense, and cheers of approval from the assembled onlookers grew as the night progressed.
Derek Mrdjenovich of Walkney
Frank Conrad of the Snipped And “dadcore” punk-rocking dads The Snipped ushered in Father’s Day by anchoring their second annual Father’s Day Bash at McGarvey’s. This triple-bill kicked off with Pittsburgh-based punk trio The New 52. Singer and lead guitarist Brian, bassist Wes and drummer Greg generated high-octane, melody-geared punk rock original songs to set the tone of the night. Among their songs were “Welcome to Suburbia” and the fast and frantic “Drunk Again”; the group also did a version of Green Day’s “One of My Lies.” Altoona’s X’s For Eyes followed with their high-velocity brand of punk rock. Singers and guitarists Tom Noel and Tim Mort, bassist Oob and drummer Justin Fair fired through original tunes old and new, including songs from their latest recording “Everything’s Falling Apart” such as “I Don’t Wanna Wait,” plus newer songs such as “814” and “Shut Your Mouth,” the short and sweet “FU” and more. Happy to be back on a live stage, X’s For Eyes made it count, throwing
full vigor and intensity into their performance. Introducing new bass player Frank Conrad, The Snipped finished the night with their mix of new and established “dadcore” original tunes plus a couple of amped-up covers. Frank, singer and guitarist Mike Wax, lead guitarist Jeff Reid and drummer Justin Burket fired up the audience with numerous new numbers plus songs from their “#dadcore” CD such as “Walk Away,” “Hand That Feeds,” “All We Know,” “Bus,” “Friday Night” and “Along These Streets.” They also gave punk rock reboots to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” and Genesis’ “Invisible Touch.” The Snipped gave away several “dadcore” dad-themed prizes to audience members, including outdoor coolers and a home repair store gift card; and they welcomed former Flannels frontman John Brehm up to help on backing vocals during their encore. To the online music front…One of my favorite summer events in recent years has been the annual Smoked Country Jam Bluegrass Festival, a fundraiser for the Lupus Foundation held every June at the Quiet Oaks Campground near Cross Fork (north continued on page 17....
Echo Valley - Smoked Country Jam Solstice
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Pennsylvania Musician Magazine
July, 2020