RAGIN' REVIEW: Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce (Baltimore, MD)

Check out the latest Ragin' Review of Umphrey's McGee with Lettuce at Pier Six Pavilion in Baltimore on Umphreak's Anonymous! Once again, this coverage is dedicated to my friend and UMAnon founder Jason Turngren. Get well soon Jason! \mm/

Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce - Pier Six Pavilion, 

Baltimore, MD (July 19, 2015)

CONFIRMED COVERAGE: Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce - Philadelphia

I am very happy to announce that I will now be covering Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce in Baltimore AND Philadelphia this weekend for Umphreak's Anonymous! I will be photographing and reviewing both shows, and I couldn't be more excited for each of them. Once again, I am dedicating my coverage this weekend to my friend Jason Turngren, who is still recovering from multiple brain aneurysms. Thank you Jason for creating a community of some of the best fans in the world! \mm/

7/18 Philadelphia, PA - River Stage on Penn's Landing

7/19 Baltimore, MD - Pier Six Pavilion

CONFIRMED COVERAGE: Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce

I am very pleased to announce that I have officially been confirmed to review and photograph Umphrey's McGee w/Lettuce at Pier Six Pavilion in Baltimore, MD on July 19 for Umphreak's Anonymous! This will be one of my first big shows to cover after my move to the Mid-Atlantic, and I couldn't be more excited! I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be confirmed for the Philly show the previous night as well. I will be dedicating this coverage to my friend and UmAnon founder/admin Jason Turngren, who is still in the hospital recovering from multiple brain aneurysms. Get well soon Jason! The world needs you back! In the meantime, Jason himself would consider it an insult if I did not continue to rage on!

2015 Tour Date Announcements

Lettuce - 1884 Lounge Recap

Although the venue made the decision to move the Lettuce show from the main room in Minglewood Hall to the more compact 1884 Lounge, the setting could not have been more perfect. The close proximity created a wild energy like none other, making for an incredibly funky Friday night in Memphis! Along with my photographer, Ellis Jones, I could not stop groovin' as the band tore up the stage. Following the show, we headed to Young Avenue Deli for an after party with Nashville funk quartet Backup Planet, and they absolutely tore it up! All in all, it was a wonderful night. Check out my review of the Lettuce show here on Live Music Daily, and be sure to check out the video I took of the first song of the encore below.

TONIGHT: Lettuce At Minglewood Hall + After Party

Tonight begins an absolutely incredible weekend of live music in Memphis, Tennessee. First, at Minglewood Hall, the funk jamband giant Lettuce will be throwing a Friday night rager, with Late Night Radio opening things up. Following the show, Whitney Production Company will be throwing an after party at Young Avenue Deli with Nashville's funk outlet Backup Planet providing the tunage til bar close. All of these acts are must-see and should account for one of the best nights of music in Memphis for the year.

Saturday and Sunday we have Widespread Panic rockin' the Orpheum Theatre, and Backup Planet will be throwing another after party on Saturday at The Brass Door.

See you guys out there, and happy ragin'!

Ragin' Randy - New Developments

Well, it's been 2 weeks since my last post, and what a hell of a 2 weeks it's been! First off, and most importantly, I am now the official Business Representative for my good friends and favorite local Memphis band Agori Tribe! I am beyond excited to be working with them, and we've already begun to set some big things in motion. Agori Tribe is my first official music client, so it is a learning experience for me, and they have never had a manager or anything like that, so it is a learning experience for them as well.

Aside from that, I have also begun working with Whitney Production Company, formed by my good friend Stephen Whitney. WPC is stepping into the Memphis music scene and participating in artist management, booking, promotion, publicity and event planning. My position with WPC for the time being is primarily the company's Publicist. I'll be putting together press releases for events, tours, albums, etc. My first big shot at the press releases was just sent out to media outlets this morning for some of the events discussed below.

I have also had another review published. This one was a review of Greensky Bluegrass at the 1884 Lounge in Memphis, and it was by far the best GSBG show I've ever seen! The next night, I got to meet the Dead Winter Carpenters at the grand reopening of Lafayette's Music Room, which was a great experience!

COMING UP, I will have perhaps the busiest music weekend I've ever had this weekend, October 17-19. Friday, October 17, Lettuce will be performing at Minglewood Hall, which I will be reviewing for Live Music Daily. Afterwards, Whitney Production Company is presenting an after party with Nashville experimental funk quartet Backup Planet at Young Avenue Deli. Saturday, October 18, Widespread Panic begins a 2-night run at the Orpheum Theatre, which I'll be reviewing for Grateful Music. WPC will again be presenting an after party with Backup Planet, but this time it is the OFFICIAL after party for the show, and it will be downtown at The Brass Door. Finally, Sunday, October 19, is Night 2 of WSP at the Orpheum.

Following those reviews, I have one more live concert review at the beginning of November, and then I will be slowing down on the concert reviews in order to concentrate on my new positions with Agori Tribe and Whitney Production Company. I will still be writing album reviews and other articles when I have time for Grateful Music and Live Music Daily. Here's to the next steps forward! Thanks so much to everyone for all the love and support.

July 22, 2014 Recap

With so much happening in the world of music and the world of Ragin' Randy yesterday, I figured a nice recap was in order. First, I had my first article published on Live For Live Music yesterday, a review of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers' upcoming album Hypnotic Eye.

Album Review: Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers - Hypnotic Eye (July 29, 2014) - Live For Live Music

Next, my review of The McLovins' show at Newby's on July 15, 2014 was published on Live Music Daily.

Concert Review: The McLovins - Newby's, Memphis, TN (July 15, 2014) - Live Music Daily

Links to both of these reviews, as well as all of my past reviews, will be held in the Album Reviews and Concert Reviews tabs of this site.

We were also lucky enough to have several tour date and festival lineup announcement yesterday. The big Fall Tour announcements came from Phish, Papadosio, Lettuce w/Exmag and Late Night Radio (special guests for some shows include Gramatik and Soulive) and Beats Antique w/Shpongle, Emancipator and Lafa Taylor, while the final festival lineup announcement for moe.down 15 was announced as well. These lineups are presented below. There is still plenty more to come from Ragin' Randy in the upcoming months, so please stay tuned, and thank you for your support!

             

Lettuce Announces Fall Tour Presented by Live For Live Music

Jamfunk mastermind Lettuce has announced a slew of fall tour dates, with some shows featuring Late Night Radio as the opener and some featuring Exmag as the opener. Also, a few dates include special guests Gramatik or Soulive. No matter which opener and/or special guests, this tour is bound to attract some attention, and with Live For Live Music behind it, the attendance should be massive making for a funky dance party!