travel

2011 MassJazz Schedule Announced

MassJazz has released its annual schedule of jazz and blues festivals and outdoor concerts taking place in Massachusetts this summer and fall. The schedule includes a dozen outdoor jazz festivals across the Commonwealth, plus hundreds of outdoor concerts taking place in city parks and town squares, at museums and cultural venues, and at tourist spots around the state.

“Massachusetts has a lot to offer visitors, from our champion sports teams and our rich history to the stunning landscapes and abundance of cultural riches,” said Betsy Wall, executive director of the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism.  “It’s all here and the vibrant music scene – especially jazz and blues - is another great reason to spend time in the Commonwealth this summer. ”

The Massachusetts festival season kicks off with the Hoop City Jazz & Art Festival in Springfield on July 8-10 and ends with the Pittsfield Jazz Festival in western Massachusetts on October 7-20.  Wall pointed to the strong jazz presence across Massachusetts, with festivals or concerts taking place in every region of the state.

“For tourists who savor jazz and blues – two of America’s greatest art forms – Massachusetts has a terrific slate of festivals and outdoor events this season,” said MassJazz founder Michael P. Quinlin.  “And add to that the jazz clubs, campus events, and live jazz brunches at hotels and restaurants, and you have a music lover’s paradise.”

In July, MassJazz is issuing its 3rd annual MassJazz Travel Guide, a free 40-page magazine with jazz profiles, stories and listings on the state's vibrant jazz scene.  The Guide is available at jazz venues, tourism kiosks, and cultural sports around Massachusetts.

Formed in 2009, MassJazz promotes the state’s jazz scene year round to the travel industry, in concert with Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism and other partners.  For more details on jazz in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

Click here for Jazz Festivals | Click here for Outdoor Concert Series.

Chad Stokes of State Radio at the Fox Theatre

Z2 Entertainment is proud to present Chadwick Stokes at the Fox Theatre on Tuesday, September 20th.  Tickets go on sale Friday, June 24th for $17.00.

It takes a certain type of musician to hop freight trains and barrel across the vastness of North America with his brother and cousin.  Especially for an artist who, just years before, sold out Madison Square Garden for three consecutive nights. CHAD “CHADWICK” STOKES is anything but a typical rock star. So, there was the singer-guitarist for bands Dispatch and State Radio, wading across a river to escape the chasing railroad bulls and hanging in the different down and out jungles with other traveling folks. And in the end, after the three had finally reached the West Coast and were laying face down in the dirt at gunpoint care of the NSA, he says it was all well worth it.

“I had ridden the trains a little bit in the past for a day or two but I had never done it for weeks at a time,” Stokes says. “I discovered an America that I knew was out there but had limited experience with.  There's all kinds of people out on the rails:  people simply trying to get from point A to B, people running from whatever they left behind, people with nowhere else to go.  You get to see a part of America that only the trains go through -- remote stretches without any sign of mankind."  It was out on these long isolated stretches and in the inner city train yards that Stokes found the inspiration for his solo debut, titled SIMMERKANE II.

At a time when the term Indie-rock refers more to a guitar sound then doing anything truly independent, Stokes is an artist who has genuinely lived the credo. Unassisted by a major label, his band Dispatch arose from the college circuit to become an international musical phenomenon. With only a celebrated live show and a series of self-released albums the band was not only able to sell out Madison Square Garden several times but attract 110,000+ fans to a Boston concert.

While riding the rails, Stokes made a designated stop so his band, State Radio, could play an anti-war concert at the Denver Coliseum with Rage Against The Machine.  It is a DIY social consciousness that Stokes came to early in life - growing up as a pacifist, working in Zimbabwe after high school and eventually co-founding the Elias Fund, the Dispatch Foundation, and now Calling All Crows.  In 2008, Stokes was honored as Humanitarian of the Year at the Boston Music Awards.

Simmerkane II, a proper follow-up to the State Radio EP (Simmerkane I), is a marked evolution in the musician-songwriter’s creative journey. Produced by John Dragonetti (of The Submarines), the album features background vocals from Carly Simon, Matt Embree (Rx Bandits), The White Buffalo, Blake Hazard (The Submarines), and Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars. The sound is an engaging mix of Americana, country, folk and rock in the service of some undeniably evocative lyrics. The songs tell a loose narrative of travel, love and loss, like some re-imagined rock-n-roll odyssey.

Simmerkane II is an ambitious album about discovery, loss and moving on. What begun as a journey across an unseen America becomes a moving musical tribute to the resilience of the human heart. “The album was initially inspired by the freight train trip with my brother and that vast underworld that exists out there,” Stokes explains. “But then it’s also about growing up on the farm and losing loved ones; a young man learning about life.” In his spare time, Stokes can still be found hopping trains with his beloved travel companion, Lefty.

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Chadwick Stokes of State Radio & Dispatch

Fox Theatre

Tuesday, September 20th

Doors:  8:30 pm

Show Time:  9:00 pm

Jam In the Dam 2012 Festival Announced

All Good and Vision International present the return of Jam in the Dam: a multi-day, multi-room extravaganza held at the legendary Melkweg in Amsterdam, The Netherlands on March 14, 15 and 16, 2012.

Celebrating music in an intimate atmosphere, the sixth edition of Jam in the Dam features the music of moe., Mike Gordon (of Phish), Dark Star Orchestra (continuing the Grateful Dead concert experience) , Lotus and Keller Williams. Each artist will play extended sets all three nights in one of the two concert halls, all under one roof.  With this conjunction of musical stars, mind-blowing collaborations are just the beginning.

The music runs from 8:00 pm to 2:30 am.  This schedule allows fans to enjoy the wonders of Amsterdam by day and rock out by night. The city's rich cultural offerings include famous museums and art galleries such as the Van Gogh and Rijksmuseum; cozy pubs and café terraces; open-air markets and trendy boutiques; and of course the legendary coffee shops. This unique opportunity to combine the exploration of a world-class European city with the expansion of musical horizons is what makes Jam in the Dam an experience not to be missed.

Tickets are available starting March 24 at http://jaminthedam.missiontix.com at $225 Early Bird pricing, saving $60 off of the gate. In Europe, tickets will go on sale soon at http://www.ticketmaster.nl, and will be priced at 170 Euro for Early Bird.  Single night tickets are available in Europe for 60 Euro.

Travel packages including special perks will be available from CID Entertainment, including options for installment payments. Complete Jam in the Dam festival information and travel support is available online:

http://www.JamInTheDam.com - Official Website
http://www.facebook.com/JamInTheDam - Official Facebook Page

Pitchfork Music Festival 2010 Sunday Sold Out! Festival Announces Green Initiatives

Sunday single-day tickets to the Pitchfork Music Festival (PMF), held at Chicago’s Union Park on July 16-July 18, have sold out, joining three-day passes on the roll-call of extinct opportunities. Saturday looks to be next on the list, as tickets vanish with palpable urgency. Be sure to get single-day passes for the Friday and Saturday festivities before it’s too late! Tickets can be purchased here.

In addition to providing a rewarding experience to music fans, PMF takes its responsibility to the environment seriously, and we encourage our audience, musicians, and vendors to do the same.  Last year, PMF recycled 46% of waste by weight (12 tons), and this year, the goal is to break 50%. Following are some steps we’re taking to ensure that our environmental “footprint” is as small as possible.

Recycling

Managing waste is a very important part of any large gathering, and PMF has put together a comprehensive recycling program to limit what we send to the landfill.  Our recycling crew works with all of our vendors to help them recycle as much as possible, but we need YOUR help as well!!

If you come to PMF, please recycle your plastic cups and bottles, along with any cans and paper you come across.  We will have more recycling receptacles than ever this year, and your participation is greatly appreciated!

Biking, Walking, and Public Transportation

We're happy to announce an enhanced bike parking area under the Chicago Reader's biker village brought to you by Clif Bar. Free, secure bicycle parking will be available at the south end of the festival site, which will help aid less traffic congestion. We encourage you to bike, walk, or take the bus or train to and from the festival.  For folks coming from the Chicago area, please visit the following to plan your trip: www.transitchicago.com, www.pacebus.com, www.metrarail.com

If you are traveling from outside Chicago, please consider using a bus or train for your journey:  www.amtrak.com, www.greyhound.com, www.megabus.com | Thank you for being responsible in planning your trip!

Sustainable Power

All power for the festival comes from biodiesel fuel, which is cleaner than normal diesel fuel and reduces demand for foreign (or Gulf of Mexico) oil.  For more information on this energy resource, please visit www.biodiesel.org.

Carbon Offsets

The nature of an international music festival creates the need for a LOT of travel.  All the plane, train, van, and car miles that bring bands and fans from around the globe contribute significantly to the pressing problem of climate change. One way to fight this is to purchase “carbon offsets” that help fund actual projects which reduce emissions causing climate change. Individuals, companies, and other groups can buy these carbon offsets.

We’ve researched different companies that do good work in the carbon offset market. TerraPass is one of the best companies out there; you can visit their website to calculate your travel emissions, and then buy reasonably priced offsets to cover your trip.  You can also see TerraPass’s past and present projects on their website.

PMF Artist Offsets

PMF is putting our money where our mouth is: This year, we are buying carbon offsets to cover the travel of all our musicians.  Please consider purchasing your own!

The 2010 Pitchfork Music Festival Lineup:

Friday

Modest Mouse

Broken Social Scene

Robyn

Liars

El-P

The Tallest Man on Earth

Sharon Van Etten

Saturday

LCD Soundsystem

Panda Bear

Wolf Parade

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Raekwon

Titus Andronicus

WHY?

Delorean

Real Estate

Bear In Heaven

Free Energy

The Smith Westerns

Dâm-Funk

Kurt Vile

Freddie Gibbs

Sonny & The Sunsets

Netherfriends

Sunday

Pavement

Big Boi

Major Lazer

St. Vincent

Lightning Bolt

Beach House

Girls

Sleigh Bells

Neon Indian

Cass McCombs

Here We Go Magic

Surfer Blood

Local Natives

Washed Out

Best Coast

Cave

Allá

Set times will be published mid-June.

About the Pitchfork Music Festival:

The Pitchfork Music Festival celebrates its fifth anniversary this year at Union Park in Chicago. The three-day event will once again showcase a variety of cutting-edge, global performers on three stages in one of the most comfortable and positive festival environments in the country, all brought to fans at a fraction of the price of any other nationally renowned music festival. In previous years, the Pitchfork Music Festival has provided a diverse audience the opportunity to see performances by some of the world’s most innovative and flourishing young acts, often acting as a barometer for what will be popular in the coming years, while also presenting a wide range of internationally renowned and beloved acts.

An independently run, consistently sold-out event, the Pitchfork Music Festival attracts 50,000 fans of all ages from 45 states and 11 countries. In addition to presenting an outstanding musical line-up at a reasonable price, the festival also offers a vast array of other activities for attendees to enjoy. With 50 individual vendors, as well as specialty fairs, the fest not only supports local businesses and the local economy, but also promotes the Chicago arts community as a whole.

COACHELLA Announces 2010 Line-Up

The 11th COACHELLA VALLEY MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL will feature a mix of artists ranging from Pavement, Thom Yorke????, Vampire Weekend, Them Crooked Vultures, LCD Soundsystem, Phoenix, Tiësto, Faith No More, Deadmau5, David Guetta, MGMT and Public Image Limited.  Set for Friday, April 16, Saturday, April 17 and Sunday, April 18 at the beautiful Empire Polo Club in Indio, CA--the same grounds where COACHELLA debuted in 1999--the COACHELLA 2010 line-up will feature more than 130 acts.

This year’s COACHELLA will feature a variety of options to make the concert experience an enjoyable one.  In addition to expanded camping options--including car, RV and traditional tent camping-- COACHELLA will allow, for the first time, in-and-out privileges for all attendees.   Festival goers will once again have the ability to purchase 3-day festival tickets and various onsite camping options via an easy layaway payment plan.

For those looking to streamline the weekend’s experience, COACHELLA has teamed with Valley Music Travel to provide exclusive travel packages, local hotel shuttle transportation and private home rentals with VIP COACHELLA access.  For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit here.

FRIDAY APRIL 16:  Jay-Z, LCD Soundsystem, Them Crooked Vultures, Vampire Weekend, Deadmau5, Public Image Limited, The Specials, Grizzly Bear, Passion Pit, Echo and the Bunnymen, Benny Benassi, Fever Ray, Grace Jones, She & Him, Erol Alkan, The Avett Brothers, Calle 13, The Whitest Boy Alive, The Cribs, La Roux, Yeasayer, Lucero, DJ Lance Rock, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Proxy, Ra Ra Riot, Deer Tick, Wolfgang Gartner, Aeroplane, Iglu & Hartly, Sleigh Bells, P.O.S., Baroness, Hockey, Little Dragon, White Rabbits, Wale, Kate Miller-Heidke, As Tall as Lions, Jets Overhead, Alana Grace, Pablo Hassan.

SATURDAY, APRIL 17:  Muse, Faith No More, Tiësto, MGMT, David Guetta, The Dead Weather, Hot Chip, Devo, Coheed and Cambria, Kaskade, 2Many DJ's, Major Lazer, Dirty Projectors, Gossip, Z-Trip, The xx, John Waters, Les Claypool, The Raveonettes, Mew, Sia, Camera Obscura, Tokyo Police Club, Porcupine Tree, Old Crow Medicine Show, Aterciopalados, Bassnectar, Frightened Rabbit, Dirty South, Flying Lotus, Corinne Bailey Rae, Pretty Lights, Shooter Jennings, RX Bandits, The Almighty Defenders, Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeros, Craze & Klever, Zoe, The Temper Trap, Portugal. The Man, Band of Skulls, Girls, Beach House, Steel Train, Frank Turner.


SUNDAY, APRIL 18:  Gorillaz, Pavement, Thom Yorke????, Phoenix, Orbital, Spoon, Sly and the Family Stone, De La Soul, Julian Casablancas, Plastikman, Gary Numan, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Sunny Day Real Estate, Yo La Tengo, MUTEMATH, Deerhunter, Infected Mushroom, Club 75, Matt & Kim, The Big Pink, Gil Scott-Heron, King Khan and the Shrines, Florence and the Machine, Yann Tiersen, Little Boots, Miike Snow, Talvin Singh, Ceu, B.o.B., Babasonicos, Owen Pallett, The Glitch Mob, Mayer Hawthorne, Local Natives, Rusko, The Middle East, Hadouken!, The Soft Pack, Kevin Devine, Paparazzi, Delphic, One EskimO.

Tickets for COACHELLA go on sale Friday, January 22 at 10:00 AM at all Ticketmaster locations and www.coachella.com. Three-day weekend passes are $269.00, plus surcharges.  More details on layaway, camping options and up-to-the minute information, can be found at www.coachella.com.  COACHELLA 2010 sponsors include Heineken and PlayStation.

Wed Jun 19 22:33:20 2013