DATC Media Company

06/16/2024

What you missed this week from DATC Media Company
June 9th - June 15th 2024

🎙️ Dropped Among This Crowd Episode 260: Alright Solmates, it's time for Sara J's recap of the inaugural Summer Camp Presents: Solshine; A Music & Arts Reverie

Alright Solmates, it's time for Sara J's recap of this year's inaugural Summer Camp Music Festival: Solshine Reverie! This episode also features a conversation with Sasha Savinov from Grateful Gnomads (and Solshine Camp Counselor) bringing you an even more in-depth rundown of all the happenings over the four nights of music, art, & gratitude at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe, IL.

* New podcast intro and outro music courtesy of Mosey Beat . Check them out at https://www.moseybeat.com *

💻 Check out the exclusive article of Sara J’s conversation with Rory & Luke over on Patreon! Patreon.com/datcemediacompany

💛 One Show At a Time, A Yellow Balloon Experience Episode #150 Phil S.

This week we talk to Phil S. who celebrated 21 years a few days ago. Phil’s story is incredible, he talks about his intense decline into his addiction resulting in incarceration and then recovery. Phil now lives a wonder and wild life with his dog Patty who spends more time on the ski slopes and at concerts than most of us!

👉🏼Starting this week, DATC Media Company has begun releasing new digital content, written articles, and special photo series across all of the company’s public facing platforms. Take a scroll through our Facebook & Instagram pages at all the awesome content that's already dropped!

We will continue to focus on the core themes of the company; music, community and Umphrey's McGee while beginning to expand our media offerings to involve more interaction with other bands & musicians, and also creating more opportunities and spaces for fans to connect, share their stories, and exchange ideas!

Exciting things are coming for DATC Media and we’re thrilled to have you along with us on this journey!

Join the amazing community of music loving fanatics over on Patreon, and check out the growing library of exclusive live music coverage!

If you’d like to donate directly to DATC Media, write to [email protected]⠀

📖Join our Summer Book Club!

The team has been hard at work brainstorming fun, exclusive content for our amazing Patreon subscribers! Keep your eyes peeled because we’ll be rolling out those efforts soon, including a summer reading club!! The first book we’ll be reading, Questlove's “Music is History” Stay tuned, lots more details will be coming soon!

* You must be a paid tier member to participate. If you need help upgrading your tier or subscribing, let us know! *

🪩 Does your band have a gig coming up? Need help with promo, ticket sales, coverage or day of organization? Sara J Presents would love to help make your show a success, while your focus stays where it belongs... on playing music!

📢 Is your small business looking to advertise? DATC Media would love to help you get the word out, with multiple ways to reach your perfect music loving clientele!
Find everything at datcmediacompany.com

06/15/2024

Looking forward to giving this a listen ...

(Update: Sweet groove, nice musical adventure, check it out!)

Thanx, Bill Evans, for allowing me to play on your song, Ilha Grande. Check it out. It’s available now.
https://orcd.co/roadtoilhagrande

06/15/2024

You know how it is when you start something new, whatever it is. In the beginning, there's a lot of wondering, "Am I doing the right thing?" Over and over again. As we work to expand and grow at DATC Media, we've been beset with those kind of questions.

Then today happened.

We decided to feature Buffalo-based guitarist Mike Gantzer (Aqueous, Death Kings, temporarily Spafford) in our first-ever written weekly news roundup across our platforms. Then, going through the podcast archive a while ago, Sara J discovered that on this very day, three years ago, Mike Gantzer was the special guest on Dropped Among This Crowd Podcast Episode 154, which we're delighted to share again and announce:

Henceforth at DATC Media Company, June 15 shall be celebrated as Mike Gantzer Day!

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLk7uXghgEs

Tune in this week to hear my conversation with Aqueous + Death Kings guitarist and vocalist, Mike Gantzer. Mike and I talk about a whole bunch of topics like...

06/15/2024

Celebrate the Fourth of July with DATC Media Company!

We're working on plans to bring you live fan-focused pre- and post-concert coverage during the Umphrey's McGee Summer Tour run, kicking off July 4th for four nights through New England and Upstate NY. Stay tuned for details!

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/15/2024

In the Spotlight: Eclectic Music News

Welcome to a weekly roundup of music-related news tidbits that caught our attention, which we'll publish on Saturdays.

Hats Off to Guitar Heroes: Guitarist Mike Gantzer (Aqueous, Death Kings, pictured with the latter) answered the emergency call from Spafford to keep their spring tour on the road, filling in for Brian Moss, who continues to recuperate from the serious van wreck the band experienced in March, when they were rear-ended at high speed. Mad love to you, Mike! And ongoing well wishes to Brian as he heals. The band plays the Colony Woodstock NY tonight and their album, "Live Wax, Vol. 3," is in pre-order mode.

The Good Kind of Snake Oil: Widespread Panic dropped their 13th studio album and the first in nine years, "Snake Oil King," after rolling out five of the six tunes before releasing the vinyl. The sixth song, "Small Town," is a vinyl exclusive. Overall, it plays to the mellow side, with lyrical reflection that comes with age - the whole "fine wine" thing.

Crossing the Pond: Apocalyptica is bringing their "Plays Metallica Vol. 2" tour to North America in February and March 2025. (It took enormous restraint to avoid using a load of exclamation points after that sentence.) The legendary Finnish quartet of classically-trained cellists has shown the world since 1993 that rock 'n' roll has no limits. We're counting the sleeps (238) until we see them at Boston's Orpheum Theatre.

In the WTAF?! Category: Four Tops lead singer Alexander Morris has sued a Michigan hospital for racial discrimination after he went to the emergency room with cardiac distress symptoms, according to multiple news reports. When he identified himself and expressed security concerns, a psychological examination was ordered and he wound up in a straitjacket, the suit alleges, because he wasn't believed. We offer a brief editorial to wrap up this news summary. Humans: Do better!

Mad Love! See you next Saturday!

📸: Nancy Weil, DATC Media Company
Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/15/2024

Hey, you! Yeah, you in the back and you in the middle and you in the front and you at the rail - we hope you're having a rocking weekend! And if your weekend is sucking for some reason, we hope a little Mad Love from DATC will make it better!

📸: Nancy Weil, DATC Media Company

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/14/2024

https://www.patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/14/2024

Happy Friday, Ragers! We know a lot of y'all are in Vail for the Umphrey's McGee show tonight, headed on to Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre tomorrow - rage (and rest!) extra for those of us who can't be there! We'll see you on the streams. Safe travels to all.

Those of us not in Colorado are keeping the sads away, trying not to feel all FOMO about not being on tour (the DATC team has got the shows covered!) by focusing on the content explosion underway in our offices. So far this week, we've debuted the "From the Vault" photo series, artist and fan versions, and the weekly column, "Ramble On," with the aim of publishing it around noon ET on Fridays. Next up, we'll be debuting a weekly roundup of music news and happenings tomorrow and we're going to lay some Monday Mojo on you, with a dose of love and joy to start every week. Stay tuned - there's a lot more free content on the way.

We're also working hard to create even more exclusive content for our Patreon subscribers - we'll be rolling out those efforts soon, including a book club this summer, starting with something from Questlove's growing music history canon. Let us know in the comments below if you have a preference between "Music Is History" and "Hip Hop Is History."

If you have story ideas, concert photos to share - we're particularly looking for crowd shots - or anything else on your mind about our content, reach out via a message here or email [email protected]. I am eager to meet all y'all!

Meanwhile, Rage On!

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/14/2024

Ramble On: A Weekly DATC Jam

We Hear You, Russell Allen
By Nancy Weil
DATC Staff Writer

His Symphony X bandmates exited stage right, leaving singer Russell Allen alone at the mic for a few minutes during the show late last month at Boston’s Paradise Rock Club.

Allen thanked everyone in the crowded room for coming out on a Wednesday to hear live music, celebrating the band's 30th anniversary, with Heathen opening. He didn’t get too far before someone yelled out “Play some music!”

“We will,” Allen promised, but he had something to say, so he asked the crowd to let him speak - these are difficult times for live music. He spoke of how joyous it was to be part of its salvation that night in “a proper rock club,” no less. Then he raised his cup in salute to the crowd for doing our part, as his mates rejoined him on stage where they completed the job of shredding the place.

I’ve been thinking a lot about what he said, especially as the team at DATC Media shifts into high gear to provide more content of all types, covering the music scene more broadly. We have so much planned, so many ideas bubbling up that we’re having to pace ourselves to keep from trying to do too much at once.

Our mission at DATC Media has always been to do our part as journalists to help live music thrive, especially in small and mid-size venues. Now, as we enter this era of the company’s expansion, we feel the added urgency of these times, with touring bands facing unprecedented pressures, compounded by rising prices and covid-related cancellations and postponements, which have become part of every-day existence for artists and fans alike.

One shared trait among hardcore live-music fans, genre independent, is that we understand the importance of merch to the whole enterprise and so tend to pick up even just a little something on our way out the door.

Which is how I wound up with two new T-shirts after the show to squeeze into already- packed drawers. But, well, it's Symphony X's 30th birthday and the Heathen “pile of skulls” tee just couldn’t be passed up (see the photo for proof).

A few minutes later, outside the club, Heathen guitarist Kyle Edissi pushed a heavy cart of gear along Commonwealth Avenue (Comm Ave, we locals call it), handling the loadout, ready to hit the road.

“Great show,” I said, from a few steps behind him.

He turned and smiled: “Yeah, it was!”

“Hit the merch table, picked up one of your skull shirts.”

Bigger smile: “Great! Thanks for paying for our gas.”

We exchanged a few more words and he said that, as a fan, he always hits merch on his way out of a show, helping his musical mates pay for their gas, too.

We’re all in this together, this effort to keep live music going, to help that which we all need so much - more than ever, it feels like - to thrive and grow.

We hope you’ll love the content we’re creating for you. We also hope you’ll suggest ideas for stories, columns, photos, show coverage, and also that you’ll contribute writing and photos, too.

Reach out with story ideas and tips to me at [email protected].

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/14/2024

The Joy of Music: A DATC Photo Series

Yesterday, we shared photos of bassist Ryan Stasik in his happy place. Today, we celebrate the joy writ large on the faces of fans. This was the scene at the Death Kings Sunday set, Summer Camp Music Festival 2022.

📷 Nancy Weil, DATC Media Company

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/13/2024

As you may have noticed, starting this week, DATC Media Company has begun releasing new digital content, written articles, and special photo series across all of the company’s public facing platforms.

We will continue to focus on the core themes of the company; music, community and Umphrey's McGee while beginning to expand our media offerings to involve more interaction with other bands & musicians, and also creating more opportunities and spaces for fans to connect, share their stories, and exchange ideas!

Exciting things are coming for DATC Media and we’re thrilled to have you along with us on this journey!

Join the amazing community of music loving fanatics over on Patreon, and check out the growing library of exclusive live music coverage!

👉 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

If you’d like to donate directly to DATC Media, write to [email protected]⠀

Mad Love! \mm/

06/13/2024

A local singer serenades our Providence, RI, bureau this afternoon.

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/13/2024

Happy Birthday, Charlie! Thanks for making the world a more rocking place!

STOP WHAT YOU’RE DOING RIGHT NOW‼️And wish our boy Charlie a very happy birthday 🎂

06/13/2024

The Joy of Music: A DATC Photo Series

We all know the feeling, the transcendence that takes over when we lock into a groove. Hundreds of people could be around us, but we might as well be alone, the music has soaked its way in and nothing else matters in that moment but feeling it.

Welcome to the debut of DATC Media Company's "The Joy of Music," an occasional photo series where we'll share images from those moments, with artists and fans whose facial expressions and body language show they are blissed out.

Choosing our first featured artist was tough - we've got so many photos of musicians and singers who are feeling it on stage. At least it seemed difficult until we came across these photos of Umphrey's McGee bassist Ryan Stasik. The shirtless pose cannot be denied, so we're delighted to kick off the series with these photos of Ryan, who always cheers us up. (Keep up the good work on your abs, dude!)

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany
To find out how you can support us directly, contact [email protected]

Mad love!

06/13/2024

The Queen of our scene, Kanika Moore, inspires us to be our best selves. Thank you, Kanika, for all your hard work.

📸 Nancy Weil, DATC Media Company

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/12/2024

Umphrey's McGee returns to the iconic Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre this weekend, a perfect time to debut the new DATC Media Company series “From the Vault”: DATC Photo Outtakes, No. 1.

Roaming the crowd all through the June 21-23 2019 shows, featuring the epic Led Zeppelin set on the last night, with Jason Bonham on drums (along with Kris!) and singer James Dylan, from Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience, who was born in South Bend, In.

What do you remember about those shows? "Ramble On" always comes to mind for us, but that's just the start of the memories (more in the cutlines for each photo) ...

Check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

06/12/2024

Going through the DATC photo vault, putting together a new feature we're debuting today, we came across this photo from the George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic One Nation Under a Groove 2019 Farewell Tour. The show was at the venue on Boston Harbor, now called Leader Bank Pavilion. Check out this lineup: Miss Velvet, Galactic, Dumpstaphunk, and Fishbone lit it up for George. We went to the meet-and-greet with him before the mini-funkfest and expressed skepticism he really was going to retire, he insisted he was going to, and for a little while he did. He was so fun to chat with for a few minutes, and he gives superior Mothership hugs. He's kept working because so many people are part of his musical enterprise and he's dedicated to them and their well-being, so back on the road he went. He's playing the Mountain Winery in Saratoga, Ca., tonight. One Nation Under a Groove: All in together to keep live music at small and midsize venues alive!

Stay tuned for the debut of our new photo feature, From the Vault ...

Meanwhile, check us out at Patreon 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

(Photo credit, Nancy Weil, DATC Media Company.)

06/12/2024

Miss having a stub to reminisce about those emotional support tickets? No worries Stubforge has got you covered!

With realistic, replica tickets, printed on the same quality ticket stock with the same commercial ticket printers as venues and those giant ticketing guys use, the tickets you create and order will feel and look exactly the same as the original! 🎫

Replace those ticket stubs missing in your collection, give a unique gift or create one of a kind event invitations, the ideas are endless!!

Check out their easy to use DIY designer and take a peek at some of the tickets I’ve designed at https://stubforge.com/user/datc-media

06/12/2024

06/08/2024

What you missed this week from DATC Media Company : June 2nd - June 8th 2024

🎙️ Dropped Among This Crowd Episode 259: A conversation with Rory and Luke from lespecial at Summer Camp Music Festival

This week on the show host Sara J brings you her conversation with Luke and Rory backstage Saturday afternoon at Solshine Reverie right after they arrived at the festival grounds. This chat features all sorts of special guests, see if you can pick them all out 😉 The band’s newest release, the mashup EP, Sandwich Cage, is now available everywhere for your listening pleasure. 🥪

* New podcast intro and outro music courtesy of Mosey Beat . Check them out at https://www.moseybeat.com *

💻 Podcasts not your thing? Check out the exclusive article of Sara J’s conversation with Rory & Luke over on Patreon!

💛 One Show At a Time, A Yellow Balloon Experience Episode #149 Ross B.

This week’s episode is a special one - it’s our one-year anniversary! 🎉 Ross B., Ethnomusicologist and Program Director for the Divided Sky Foundation is our guest. He shares his story and talks about the Divided Sky Foundation, the treatment center, and their Ethos for recovery.

🧹 “I’m Cleaning out my Display Case...”
20% off store-wide with promo code “MADLOVE” Patreon subscribers don’t forget your additional savings code!

🎧 The final two parts of the exclusive mini-series “We’ve Come So Far” have dropped!! Join host Sara J as she chats with umphreak, artist, and director Pete Herzog about the House of UM, directing the 2023 rockumentary “Frame X Frame”, the Hurricane Ike show, our community, and a ton more in this two parter! Rage, Rest, and Repeat, or as Pete says “Eat, See the Sights, and then Get in Line”

🪩 Does your band have a gig coming up? Need help with promo, ticket sales, coverage or day of organization? Sara J Presents would love to help make your show a success, while your focus stays where it belongs... on playing music!

📢 Is your small business looking to advertise? DATC Media would love to help you get the word out, with multiple ways to reach your perfect music loving clientele!

Find everything at datcmediacompany.com 🤘

06/06/2024

Ross B., Ethnomusicologist and Director of "Doing Stuff" for the Divided Sky Foundation, is on this podcast. The episode is special—it's the one-year anniversary of the One Show at a Time—A Yellow Balloon Experience podcast!

Ross shares his story and then talks about the Foundation, the recovery center, and their Ethos for recovery.

https://the-much-obliged-podcast-a-yellow-balloon-experience.simplecast.com/episodes/episode-149-ross-b-fSGvR960

06/04/2024

Words by the incredible, newest addition to the team, Nancy Weil, who transcribed my Solshine Reverie podcast with lespecial's Luke and Rory.

Check it out 👉🏼 patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

Get more from DATC Media Company on Patreon

06/04/2024

06/02/2024

It’s always better with friends… 🧚

Summer Camp Music Festival
5/25/24
📸: Anna Kate Photography for DATC Media Company

05/31/2024

Does your band have a gig coming up?

Do you need help with promo, ticket sales, media coverage, or day of organization?

Sara J Presents (in conjunction with DATC Media Company ) would love to help make your show a success, while your focus stays where it belongs... on playing music! 🎶

Contact us to find out more 👉 https://datcmediacompany.com/sara-j-presents

05/29/2024

Happy one year anniversary to the newest show to join the DATC Media Company family, “One Show At a Time, A Yellow Balloon Experience 💛🎉🧁 Check out episodes anywhere you find podcasts! 🎧

05/28/2024

Subscribe to the "Little Gift" tier on Patreon and get the Winter/Spring 2024 issue for 1/2 price AND INSTANT ACCESS TO ALL PAST ISSUES OF CROOKED CONVERSATIONS FOR FREE!

Choose the annual payment option and get another $5 off making your first issue FREE!!

👉 https://www.patreon.com/Datcmediacompany

Check out DATC Media Company ’s shop on Patreon

05/27/2024

The Much Obliged - One Show At a Time, A Yellow Balloon Experience - table last night at Summer Camp Music Festival 💛🧚✨

📸: Anna Kate Photography for DATC Media Company