(Writer: Doug Quimby)

Formula 5 has announced that they will be going on hiatus. For the past seven years they’ve been touring, and have established a great fanbase and made themselves at home in the jam scene. It’s sad to see these guys stop playing when they all have so much talent and they put on such amazing shows. Whether it was a small bar in Lake George, or a bigger venue like the Palace Theatre, F5 put their everything into their music and their immense passion for what they do has always been obvious. While this comes as a sad shock to many, below I’ve listed the dates and locations of their final shows before the hiatus so all of you can make sure to see this great band one more time. Or four.

(Photo: Frankie Cavone)

Final Shows:

• March 29th at Putnam Place in Saratoga, NY
• June 7th at Disc Jam Music Festival in Stephentown, NY
• June 29th at Beanstalk Music Festival in Rancho Del Rio, CO
• July 12th at Rock the Dock Music Festival in Lake George, NY

Statements From the Band:

Greg Marek:

“This coming October will mark ten years since I met my dear friend, Bill Shattuck, one fateful night outside the TUC in Albany. Looking back now this night dramatically changed my life, undoubtedly for the better. This one night fertilized the seed that would soon grow to be the miraculous, living, breathing entity that is, Formula 5.”

“Formula 5 has played nearly 500 gigs, released 3 studio albums, 2 live albums, been to Colorado 5 times and have played in 25 states. We played the historic Palace Theatre in our hometown of Albany and have been broken down in nearly 20% of the continental U.S.. We have approximately 5,672,423 miles under our belt and million more smiles we have seen glimmer. Playing music for you all has been, and is, the most soulfully rewarding experience we could have ever imagined. Never in our wildest dreams would a freshly 21 yr old have pictured all this. I thank you, truly, for all the love we have received.”

(Photo: Frankie Cavone)

“After playing with Bill for a short time we eventually brought in Mike McDonald on keys. I give Mike full credit, and blame, for the amazing experiences and shenanigans to come. Mike taught us how to grind. He taught us how to work. He got out there and got us gigs gorilla warfare style. Mike’s ambition, drive, addiction and love for this band is how this all started. Thank you Mike, for being so fucking anal sometimes. It worked.”

“When Joe joined in 2012, the “real” F5 was born. Little did I know this punk kid would be my running mate for the rest of my life. Baby boy Davis up there just rawly murduring guitar. So much unharnessed talent we all had. 2012-13 were the learning years, and had some of the best laughs for sure. Any extended time period with Bill will leave you crying and gasping for air.”

“January 2014 Bill stepped back and James stepped in. Bill now is happily married with a gorgeous girl and new baby boy.James Woods and all of his essence would curve F5 in a new direction leading to many steps forward and many many more gigs. We hammered these years. Mike pushing us all the way. Through late night practices and learning sections of songs like “Excalibur” Mike inherently was teaching us how to focus, practice and become better musicians. These days refined us. Pushed us. Made us much much better. Summer of 2015 Mike married his loving Wife, Amy, in a farm in CNY. Joe played acoustic at the ceremony. It was a gorgeous and happy day for all. Mike and Amy now have a beautiful son, Hudson, who is going to be one hell of an athlete, person, and hopefully musician like his daddy.”

(Photo: Frankie Cavone)

“With Mikes new life underway he proudly passed the torch of all his hard work to my main man Matty Nude.Matthew Richards is the most unique person this world has ever known. He is my friend, and one of the most naturally musically talented and hard working artistic individuals I have ever had the pleasure of sharing time with. Let alone be blessed to create music with such a rare and mystical creature. Matt brought out our inner weird. Our dark sides. We wrote more music than ever before, many songs from Matt’s fingertips. He pushed this band sideways and miles higher. Kids a stud. Also loves birds. Ask him he’ll yap all day about birds. He even wrote some songs for birds. We played one a few times. The Matt Richards era of Formula 5 has most definitely been the most serious. Musically, touring, professionally, business wise, all facets of F5 are on all cylinders. I think we played somewhere around 250 gigs with Matt. Holy shit.”

“As I slowly digress, I return to my original statement. This coming October will mark ten years since I met my dear friend, Bill Shattuck, one fateful night, outside TUC in Albany. Ten years is a long time. This band has been my entire 20’s. That’s a pretty rad way to spend the last decade if you ask me. I’ve had more laughs than I can count, more memories, experiences, met the coolest people on the planet and expressed my inner creativity on a platform for all to see and absorb.”

“Thank you all. For everything. ”
“-G”

Joe Davis:

“To say it’s been a fun ride is an understatement. I’ve grown into adulthood with this band over the past 7 years, and through growth I’ve learned and experienced so many things. I’ve played historic venues and brightened the faces of crowds of hundreds and thousands of people, from Campaign Rallies for Bernie to our own festival in Lake George. I’ll never forget the stories and memories that have been forged on this long journey. I love the dudes in the band even more than I did 3-5 years ago, these guys are my lifelong friends and family.”

“In late 2011, after a few phone calls and hang outs with Mike McDonald, I hopped on board with Formula 5 and never looked back. Something I’ll never regret. The years that followed were some of the best times of my life and the worst times of my life. With the passing of my best friend, to the passing of my Father and Uncle, the band was the constant thing that pushed me forward. The dream continued on and was strengthened in a way by these emotions. The band gave me an outlet to express my grief and the boys lifted me up every step of the way.”

(Photo: Frankie Cavone)

“The band continued to succeed and we started traveling farther and farther away from home. We were excited for the adventure, to see the country and grow the brand. Some of the craziest memories occurred on these trips, some hilarious, some not so fun. As the band started to grow our obligation to the “behind the scenes” stuff, for lack of a better term, grew in part. This was something I knew would happen all along, and it was something I took pride in at first. However somewhere along the line I lost focus and the stress of promotion, attendance numbers, money started to pile up. Simply put, it became more work to me than something that brought me joy.”

“To be clear, when we hit the stage I’m all in and all of that goes away and I’m taken to that place (insert Bittersweet Motel gif here), but only for the length of our set time that given night. And I realized that maybe this lifestyle isn’t for me. Recently I realized that this band has occupied what has been the entirety of my twenties. As I near 30, I see a lot of the experiences some of my other friends and family members have had slipping away from me. I will miss touring and playing but definitely look forward to forging a new life and solidifying my relationship with my love Libby Grant.”

“To everyone behind the scenes that’s made this thing work for so long. Pete, Matt K, Matt McLaren, Patti, all of our parents, Frankie, Doug, Greg Bell, the list goes on and on. My deepest gratitude goes out to all of you.To the fans and friends I’ve made along the way I love you and I’ll still be around so let’s hang. But for now I’m out! Peace.”

Matt Richards:

“It is an incredible feeling. That I got to bring my microkorg from my basment learning what it was, to a bowling alley in my hometown, to my college town bars, to bigger venues in Albany, to 25 states, and eventually—set it up at Palace Theatre. Despite the circumstances, I am nothing but thankful for these experiences. I love all my gear but my microkorg is extra special to me. Excited for the possibilities of the future.”

“I do not see this as a time to sit and sulk, but to be inspired by my life’s experiences and accomplishments to seek further down the road on my musical journey in life. Hope to see you in my travels.”

(Photo: Frankie Cavone)