Weekend Recap: Palace Sessions and Empire Underground

Saturday April 13th was a hopping night in Downtown Albany. Please take note Rebecca Lobo of ESPN! Even the Monster Trucks including Grave Digger were tearing it up at the MVP Arena down the street.

It is rare that my 16 year old son Ian wants to do anything with his Dad these days but I (Rob Smittix) somehow convinced him to come out with me last Saturday. Ian brought along his girlfriend and we made our way to Downtown Albany.

Our first stop was Empire Underground and as we entered the building Joe Mansman and The Midnight Revival Band were finishing up their set. I didn’t even realize that they were on the bill and that the show was starting as early as it did but I’m glad we got to hear a little bit of the 2024 Extreme Music Awards Winners set.  My son and I wanted a beverage to quench our thirsts so I got myself a PBR and for him a Red Bull. It’s always nice to see the non-alcoholic options that are available in the club. I don’t usually buy energy drinks for my son because maybe it’ll stunt his growth but I figured maybe he could at least get an energy buzz for his first big rock and roll experience. We moved towards the stage and The Grandstand Jockeys came out swinging with their song “Better Days!” I was singing along to most of their set and I watched the reaction of the kids to see if they were digging it. When the Grandstand Jockeys got off of the stage my son mentioned that he really was impressed by Morgan Smith’s guitar skills. Ian has recently picked up the guitar himself and I just gave him my SG.

Peter Annello hit the stage next and he even brought along a familiar drummer to the local jazz scene Joe Barna. The kids really enjoyed Peter’s singing and made several mentions throughout the night about how great his voice was. Kids don’t hold back, they’re honest when it comes to their opinions, so that’s the best review one could actually receive. We then made our way over to the Palace Theatre a block away for Mirth Film’s Palace Sessions with the band Formula 5.

When we arrived it was the beginning of Formula 5’s second set. We ran into Frankie Cavone (Mirth Films) and I introduced him to my son and his girlfriend. Franke made it a point to tell Ian that his Dad is a legend. Thank you Frankie for that, I feel like my boy finally thinks I’m cool again, it’s been a while, lol. The 3 of us made our way to the balcony that overlooked the lobby and watched the show from above. Ian was not familiar with jam bands and wondered why they haven’t stopped after each song for applause. I filled him in and I also found that inquiry rather amusing. I’m so glad that the kids got to experience so much music in one night and not one of these bands sounded like the other. The crowd at the Palace was thick and full of dancing. As we were making our way out we said our goodbyes but we had to go back across the street to finish our action packed night of live music.

As we approached Empire Underground once again we got to hear the tail end of Nick Rossi, what a talented guy. My son smuggled in a soda from across the street and I got myself another PBR. It was finally time for tonight’s headliner Shayfer James. I have only started listening to Shayfer recently but I’ve become a fan really quickly. Shayfer started the evening off with “Weight Of The World,” which I thought was great because I already knew this song. Again I was late to the party, so many of the songs I was about to hear would be new to me. That however was not the case with the majority of the audience, who sang along to almost every lyric.

I was blown away by Shayfer James. If I had to compare him to anyone, it would be tough but I could almost say he was a mixture of Mischief Brew and Will Wood and the Tapeworms but also not that. What I can be certain of is that I became a huge fan after this live performance. I kept an eye of the kids to see if they were still into the vibe and they were moving along to the music the whole time. After the performance, we waited in a huge line to meet Shayfer. During our wait Ian got autographs from The Grandstand Jockeys and he grabbed some stickers that he later put on his SG. Ian and his girlfriend both introduced themselves and shook hands with Shayfer James and I purchased and autographed photo for Ian to help start his concert memorabilia collection!

Thank You ALBANY for having so MANY Options for ENTERTAINMENT!

All of these photos are from my cellphone.