What is fair to say and what is hyperbole? Is it overstating things to say the Grateful Dead have become so much more than just their music? They define pieces of us. Times with friends. Discovery. They have become an institution reaching further than just recordings of their shows. But no matter what, for all of us, it still starts there; with the music. The music was and is a driving force in us. But since it has ended, and it has ended, what we are left with are new branches growing from roots sewn in the 60’s.

Freekbass, hailed by the legendary Bootsy Collins as “the new spiritual warrior for the funk,” has served up his new album All The Way This. All The Way That. on the exciting new Color Red imprint out now. He is taking the new album on tour kicking off with the opening performance at the Cincinnati Reds’ game on August 5th.

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass keeps the lineup announcements rolling this week. Through their traditional “artist medley” teases, fans were treated to a sneak-peek audio clip of unannounced artists on HSB’s social media accounts earlier in the week. Today, HSB revealed ten new artists who will join the twenty previously announced artists for the festival in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park this October 4-6.

Corey Kilgannon has released the track "As Above, So Below" in anticipation of the upcoming August 23rd release of his album by the same name. Arguably the most politically charged album of his discography yet, Kilgannon unabashedly addresses a variety of human issues: depression, oppression, feminism, social justices, LGBQT, racism, and many other cultural topics.

photo credit: Derek Hudson

The Cabot Theater in Beverly MA will be screening Jimi Hendrix's "Electric Church" on August 10th at 8pm.

This film is a documentary of Jimi Hendrix's final USA Festival Appearance of his "Cry of Love Tour" and takes place at The Atlanta International Pop Festival over the weekend of July 4th, 1970.

Amazingly the video of this concert performance sat forgotten and undeveloped for nearly 40 years in cameraman Steve Rash's barn.