Blue Cadet-3: A Music Blog by Josh R.

            Great albums should leave lasting impressions, not only on those who listen as non-musicians, but also on the realm of music these albums occupy. In other words, a musical project should seek to leave some distinct mark on it's genre, to lay claim to some form of unique personality; this can often come in many forms, ranging from broad sound choices to subtle production techniques. This method for evaluating music seeks to make complacency the enemy, and forward movement the desired goal. This is not to say that all derivative albums are necessarily bad, as of course, outliers will always exist. Rather, the goal of an artist should, intrinsically, be to leave some reflection of their own condition, regardless of how relatable those emotions may or may not be. In music, this can be achieved in multiple ways, however I will focus on three aspects that I find particularly important when listening to music.      When considering what makes an album exceptional to me, I envi

  Caribbean Crisis are an extremely unique group based in Albany who play a heavy blend of Russian folk and American punk-rock. With ¾ of the band being comprised of international students, Carribean Crisis is a shining example of how a diverse group of people can come together to make something interesting. I sat down with Victor (vocals/guitar), Tia (drums), Ana (bass) and Dani (flute, who is currently residing in her home of Costa Rica and called in via Facetime). The band discusses new material, the deeper meaning behind their name, and their unique instrumentation.  RRX: How have you guys been?  AP : We definitely had our biggest gig, Rose Rock, coming up in April and it just got cancelled. And there was this amazing battle of the bands that we wanted to win, and we never got to play.  VD : It sucks that everything got cancelled, just before we graduated too so we’re not really playing together right now. On the upside, we just released a new single.  RRX: I was going to mention t

  (L-R: Zach Linart, John Lombardi, Nick Masucci) The Northway are an up-and-coming punk/progressive-rock band with an infectious energy and catchy songwriting skills. The band has been working on a second LP and wrote in to discuss their progress and other aspects of band life.  RRX: How are you guys doing as a band? I saw you play last at a local battle of the bands. What are your thoughts about shows mostly being canned/how are you coping with this? ZL: I feel we're doing as well as can. We are working toward getting the record out, and working out the logistics of everything. Not having shows has been able to allow me at least to reflect on taking our lifestyles for granted sometimes, and thinking about what it really takes to make those aspects of the industry thrive. NM: Covid has been hard on everyone, and we're doing the best we can. I really miss playing out and practicing with the guys. RRX: I’ve been following you guys and see that you’ve been working on a second LP

  (L-R: Nick Casa, Sam Quartin, Macky Bowman, Kendall Wind) The Bobby Lees are an uncompromising garage-rock/punk band from Woodstock, New York. In a recent socially distant interview, the band wrote in to describe their recording process, their new upcoming record, and some interesting encounters at shows. RRX: Obviously, everyone is still struggling in the time of COVID-19. For the past three issues, I’ve done interviews while bands are stuck in quarantine. What have you guys been doing to combat this and stay creative and positive towards your local underground scene?   SQ : We quarantined together the first couple weeks so we wrote a bunch of new stuff. Took lots of walks, cooked, puzzles, stayed pretty positive. We’re now trying to set up some outdoor shows at drive-ins/social distance shows with our friends bands so hopefully we can get those going soon.  MB: Drawing still lifes while sitting on the toilet so as to keep my mind sharp while supporting the scene of the underground