guitar – Pigments of Sound Sensation

April 16, 2019April 17, 2019

Crazy On Moriah Formica

Moriah Formica, if you live in the good old 518 area, is not a new name. She is another one of the many extremely hard-working and talented superstars to find fame, be it local or international, on a reality television music competition show. She is what Adam Levine, front man for Maroon5, has called a “pint-size powerhouse” and what country superstar Blake Shelton once referred to as someone who received an extra dose of talent when God got distracted when He was sprinkling it onto people. It’s people like Moriah that make me joke that they need to save some talent for the rest of us.

Left to right: Nick Stamas (Guitar), Moriah Formica (Vocals, Guitar), Tony Tirino (Drums), Andrew Blowers (Bass). (f/2.8, 1/60, ISO 1600)

April 5, 2019April 5, 2019

The Secret Sisters: A Well-Kept Secret

Lydia & Laura Rogers make up the angelic country sister act, The Secret Sisters

It’s a little strange for me to write this entry. “How’s that?” you may find yourself asking to no one in particular. Well, that’s because the photo above was the only photo I took last night (04.04.19) at The Secret Sisters performance at The College of Saint Rose Massry Center for the Arts. Not only was it the only photo I took, but I took it with my cell phone. (*Collective gasp of astonishment*). You read correctly. One photo. With my cell phone. I can’t remember the last time I went to a concert just to listen to the music, and can’t remember not having to worry about catching the right shot.

Actually, I did just remember. It was Journey and Def Leppard last May. Although, if we’re being honest I did spend that entire show wishing I was taking photos and seeing all the amazing photos I could have been taking. Ahem. But that’s besides the point.

March 27, 2019April 4, 2019

Madison Vandenburg: America’s Next American Idol!?

Madison Vandenburg performs at Upstate Concert Hall with her guitarist Tom.

When it comes to reality TV shows, there’s no such thing as the binary. It’s never just as simple as “I watch it” or “I don’t watch it.” There are so many gradations that float in between “do” and “don’t.” There’s the guilty pleasure watchers. There’s the casual watchers, or the home-sick-in-bed watchers. You could be one of the watching religiously watchers and/or one of the live-tweeting commentating watchers. Or you could be like many and watch when a citizen of your locale becomes a focal point of the show. While I probably more closely fall into the “casual watcher” category, having turned these reality competition shows on and off for the past fifteen years or so, I know the latter category probably encompasses many citizens of New York’s Capital Region these past couple of years. I can’t even blame them with incredible talents such as Moriah Formica (The Voice, American Idol), Sawyer Fredericks (The Voice), and now most recently, the incredible Madison Vandenburg coming out of the woodwork. No, not coming out of the woodwork. Coming in like a Category 5 hurricane. Great talent isn’t such a bad thing to be known for, is it?