Blueberry Jam Sessions: Sunday 11/22: Weeks Bay Plantation: Fairhope, AL August 12, 2015 11:58

Live & Listen is pleased to announce the details and lineup for our latest series of events, The Blueberry Jam Sessions. The Blueberry Jam Sessions will be held on Weeks Bay Plantation in Fairhope, Alabama on Sunday, October 18th and Sunday, November 22nd at 2:00PM. On Sunday, November 22nd, we are thrilled to welcome The Revivalists as our headlining act, as well as Earphunk, McLovins, and Maradeen. Each session will feature four bands, offering a wide variety of musical talent while crossing into multiple genres, creating the feel of a one-day music festival. Both events will benefit The WISP Foundation, aimed at raising awareness for safe and organic farming.

The Blueberry Jam Sessions will serve as our two initial events at Weeks Bay Plantation, with firm plans for a full weekend festival in 2016. General admission and VIP tickets for both events will go on sale on Friday, August 21st and can be purchased right here at liveandlisten.com. Kids 12 and under will be admitted for free.

Click Here: Purchase Tickets Now

Weeks Bay Plantation is currently home to LA Berry Farms, a pick-your-own blueberry farm where you can come enjoy a rejuvenating outdoor experience while nabbing some amazing little-blue-fruit packed with anti-oxidants and touted as one of the top ten healthiest foods we can eat. Not only are the berries 100% organic, they are grown with proprietary high nutritional methods. The results? Some of the sweetest, most delicious blueberries in the south.

-The Revivalists-

It’s actually surprising that when The Revivalists take the stage, the entire planet doesn't hear them playing--yes, their sound is that big. It’s not just because this band - who have performed everywhere across the country - has seven members and perform with a wide breadth on instruments. It is because there is so much passion spewing out of these guys that it’s completely impossible to ignore them.

After seven years of making music together, New Orleans rock hybrid The Revivalists (David Shaw - vocals, Zack Feinberg - guitar, Andrew Campanelli - drums, Ed Williams - pedal steel guitar, George Gekas - bass, Rob Ingraham - saxophone, and Michael Girardot - keyboards & trumpet) are set to deliver their latest studio album, Men Amongst Mountains. The forthcoming release, out on July 17, is an album about growth. It is appropriate, then, that the band set out to challenge itself while writing and recording their latest batch of music.

The Revivalists cloistered themselves within the intimate confines of Bogalusa, LA’s Studio in the Country for nearly two weeks while recording Men Amongst Mountains, taking advantage of the studio’s generous acoustics by setting up in a single room and recording to tape in an effort to induce a more performance-based sensibility. New Orleans’ Esplanade and Living Room Studios hosted the finishing touches to an album which leans first and foremost on capturing authentic moments in warm, rich tones and with a distinctly raw, old-world feel.

Mirroring the broader themes which connect the individual songs on the album, the recording and instrumentation on Men Amongst Mountains represents the next step in The Revivalists’ ever-evolving depth and maturity. Like the band’s vaunted live shows, Men Amongst Mountains can and will turn on a dime. The gentle gives way to the heavy, the acoustic to the orchestral. Despair becomes hope. Fire becomes light. At times, the obstacles and troubles in our lives can make the world seem impossibly, hopelessly big. Men Amongst Mountains, ultimately, is about the journey that makes us greater than the mountains standing in our way.

-Earphunk-

200 shows, three trips across the United States and appearances at Electric Forest Festival, Bear Creek Music and Art Festival, and Wakarusa Music Festival. It’s been a busy 24 months for Earphunk who have seen their efforts propel them from small club stages to packed clubs and theaters across the country. The New Orleans born-and-bred quintet shows no sign of letting off the gas, and now, with the band’s third studio album release of Sweet Nasty, the band has captured the energy that has won over a rapidly growing fanbase of loyal listeners.

Recorded at the storied Studio in the Country in rural Louisiana while on break between tour stints, Sweet Nasty is Earphunk’s boldest release to date. “When you hear the album it sounds like a live show, and that’s how it should feel,” explains lead guitarist Paul Provosty, who also handled mixing duties for the record. “We wanted it to sound big – a true representation of our live show.” The Studio’s hallowed halls provided the proper backdrop for the band’s uniquely organic balance of heavy-pocket funk and reckless prog-driven guitar explosions, or “prog-funk”, as the band refers to it.

The band’s early rehearsals saw Provosty, Mark Hempe (vocals/guitar), Michael Matthews (drums), Michael Comeaux (Bass), and Christian Galle (keyboards/organ) as college students around New Orleans and Baton Rouge, LA in 2009 — there were no expectations of national tours and sold out dates. But as things quickly progressed, the option to pursue a full-time career as musicians drove the band to hit the road. “After the first few tours, we were fully vested in this together,” Hempe muses, “and when people are coming to the shows, and appreciating what we’re doing, it gives us the drive to want to step up our game, to be as tight as we can be.”

Years later, the unit’s tireless touring ethic continues to fortify their commitment. “It’s tough leaving New Orleans; this is our home. We don’t get much time back here now, but luckily as we’ve toured, fans have spread,” explains Provosty. “To do this right, you have to keep visiting every market every three or four months, and we’re committed to that. When the shows are selling out, we know our music is resonating. It’s just a matter of continuing to give this thing the room it needs to grow.”

Part of finding the room to grow is recognizing when to reach out to a few helping hands. Saxophonist and close friend Khris Royal (Rebelution, Dark Matter) had contributed his services to past Earphunk records, but for Sweet Nasty, the band was looking to create a larger section. “Everyone in New Orleans, they play with each other. Everyone sits in with one another. It’s a natural thing and that’s the vibe we wanted on the record,” says Provosty.

There are worse places to be than New Orleans when in need of a horn player, and the band had to look no further than Eric “Benny” Bloom (Lettuce, Pretty Lights). “We had been out on the road with Lettuce for a few dates in the Southeast and got to know the guys pretty well,” recalls Galle. “When Eric moved to New Orleans, it was a no brainer. We needed him on the record with Khris.” Bloom and Royal unite with the five-piece in stellar fashion, bringing a proper funk authenticity to high-energy tracks like the Zapp and Roger inspired “Phine” and foot stomping title track “Sweet Nasty.” As George Clinton once mused about the band – “Y’all ain’t your average white band!”

Although the album was recorded, the work was not yet complete. In an age where digital releases and distribution models leave artists with more questions than answers, the band sought for an alternative. The solution was found in a partnership with the emerging publisher platform BitTorrent Bundle. BitTorrent Inc, the company behind the revolutionary peer-to-peer protocol with over 170 million monthly users, describes Bundle as “a revolutionary file format that’s designed to restore digital media to its experiential core.” That’s precisely the type of treatment Earphunk was looking for with the release of Sweet Nasty, which will debut exclusively on BitTorrent Bundle on August 18th. The Sweet Nasty Bundle will be loaded up with exclusive videos, live sets, and artwork to accompany the new album to enrich the fans’ experience.

Sweet Nasty showcases an emerging band with something to prove; yet who are prepared, willing, and ready to define themselves as a premiere national act. And with it’s release locked and loaded, the next step is a familiar one for Earphunk. As the band loads the trailer for their next national trek to support the album’s release, dates and festivals are already being booked for 2015. There are no plans to deviate from this strategy; after all, it’s worked out thus far. “Our fans have done so much for us already on this journey,” explains Hempe. “We just feel beyond fortunate to have this audience and we’re just going to continue working how we’ve been working, so they can feel proud to support us.”

-McLovins-

McLovins specialize in the creation of dynamic and improvised sound, influenced by the members' disparate and eclectic musical influences. The band currently includes Jason Ott, Jake Huffman, Justin Berger and Atticus Kelly.

These young artists from Connecticut, embrace simultaneous and intricate improvisation with a more versatile front line in which all members are singing in four-part harmony, writing lyrics & music, as well as expounding on one another's musical ideas. Set list segues and fiery improvisations are a staple of the band's performances, keeping their audience always guessing what's coming next and wanting more!

In the short time the McLovins have been performing together, they have been invited to appear at an impressive number of well-established, as well as many new music festivals, and some of the most well respected venues in the North East. These guys are constantly writing & playing music, to continue to build on their own foundation, towards a long career of Original Rock Music to their growing fan base, of all ages.

-Maradeen-

Maradeen is an American rock band based out of Nashville, Tennessee. Founded by guitarist, Whit Murray, in the summer of 2014 with keyboardist, Kaitlyn Connor, and bassist, Sterling Miller, the band formed their initial roots as a high energy rock n roll quartet. With classical and jazz improvisation backgrounds they forged and evolved a unique and well-versed sound. In 2015 Tom Galloway moved to Nashville for songwriting and began collaborations with Murray. The band entered the analog studio "Welcome to 1979" in the spring of 2015 and recorded their first full-length LP entitled, "Mirage". The album features the initial hard-hitting rockers from the band's formative stage while revealing the new songwriting dynamic between Murray and Galloway.

Although the band was new to the scene at this time, the origins of Maradeen run deep. Murray played lead guitar for Galloway's band, Mama's Love, between the years of 2009-12. During this time they toured nationwide, developed a devoted fanbase, and recorded with renowned producers Tom Tapley and John Keane. Galloway continued fronting Mama's Love while Murray extended his education at The Berklee College of Music. Mama's Love had shared the stage with the progressive rock band, Afro, several times in the past which featured Connor on keys. Connor met Miller through the MTSU music program where Miller majored in audio engineering and played with bands Harrison Anvil and The Bourbon Barrel Band. Whit met Russ Garner, who was also a Berklee College graduate, at an open jam in Nashville one evening. Garner played with the Larry Mitchell Band which had also crossed paths with Mama's Love in the past. A long line of history, coincidence, and mutual passion brought together the group, and they continue to make strides as they climb the mountain of music.

Stay tuned to liveandlisten.com, as well as our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts for all future updates on The Blueberry Jam Sessions!