Photos: Frankie Cavone

Organ Fairchild and Glass Pony played the show of the weekend in Albany, NY at Lark Hall both with stellar sets and even a full band sit in at the end of the night. This was the first time Organ Fairchild has played the Capital Region and definitely left a great impression on music goers.

The crowd was festive with most people on their feet the whole night. Glass Pony got the music started with what was one of their best shows to date at the relatively new venue. They quickly got started with “Mortimer” which blended right into “Bottom of the Ocean” a song written by Eddie Hotaling about experiences and feelings from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The highlight of the set came early with a top-shelf version of “Grover’s Mill 1938.” Once they broke into the jam part of the song, you could see the crowd turn and really show their love. With Pink Floyd esque/”What’s The Use”(Phish) spacey harmonies provided by lead guitarist Greg Pittz, the “woo’s” started to come out. This was a significant moment for the band, showing how much they are in sync with each other and the potential for growth within their already masterfully crafted songs.  The group comprised of Eddie Hotaling, Greg Pittz, Chanda Dewey and bass player extraordinaire Jeff Picarazzi closed out their set with a fun “Something Good”/”Kitty” sandwich sending it out on a high note.’

Up next, Buffalo based Organ Fairchild dialed up the same energy but with funk grooves and instrumental songs that had even the shyest of shy folks bouncing around. Without seeing this band before, right off the bat it was very apparent that these were seasoned musicians that come to find out have been playing together for decades. Their music is smart and forces you to want to really listen to the melodies provided by Joe Bellanti, Corey Kertzie and Dave Ruch, not just bob your head. A prime example of this was with Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song.” Ruch perfectly translates Marleys beautiful voice into his guitar melodies which came off very emotional and hit home for a lot of people in Lark Hall that night. It didn’t matter that they didn’t sing one bit. They are really onto something with not only the talent but chances taken on the stage.

Just when you thought, “how can it get any better than this?” Well, Organ Fairchild upped their cool-factor in the Capital Region by not only inviting up all of Glass Pony to sit-in, but played one of their songs too! The multi-song sit-in started with the Grateful Dead’s “Brown Eyed Women” which segued into Glass Pony’s “Northbound.” After some jamming on the Glass Pony original, the full stage of musician’s busted into “Mr. Charlie” which the bands did not discuss prior and happened completely on the spot and finally segued back into “Northbound.”

We were blown away by what was the show of the weekend in the Capital Region and hope to see more friendly collaboration between the acts or even on the same bills elsewhere. Check out a full gallery and setlists from Lark Hall in Albany, NY over the weekend below:

Setlists:

Glass Pony: Mortimer > Bottom of the Ocean, Bootstraw, Grover’s Mill 1938, Original Soul, Spotlights, Sonder > Doppler, Something Good > Kitty > Something Good

Organ Fairchild: Amateur Night at the Apollo, Bobby Pins, Don’t Want You No More > Leisure Suit, Dylan St. James, West LA Fadeaway, Chameloneous Monk, Redemption Song, Brown Eyed Women > Northbound > Mr. Charlie > North Bound