Daily Hampshire Gazette – The Beat Goes On: Friends and fellow musicians gather at the Iron Horse, an outdoor summer music series continues in Hatfield and more

When folk rockers Listen and singer-songwriter Grayson Ty When the two Valley-based artists come to the Iron Horse on June 28, they won’t just share a bill: They’ll be celebrating a reunion of sorts, looking back on the night just over eight years ago when they first met and also played at the Northampton club.

The connections go even deeper, because that night Ty met his wife Laura Buchanan, one of the three singers who form the heart of Eavesdrop.

The Iron Horse show, which begins at 7 p.m., will also showcase the power of singing. Eavesdrop is built around the harmonic contributions of Buchanan and fellow singers Kerrie Wert and Kara Wolf, while Ty brings a strong and versatile voice to his songs, reflecting his influences from folk, soul, pop and, more recently, country.

The artists will also present new material at the concert. Eavesdrop released a new EP called “Evergreen” in the spring with the support of several other musicians, on which they expanded their Americana sound to include elements of funk and R&B-inflected pop. The entire band will also be at the Iron Horse.

And Ty has just released a new EP, Bloodline, where he’s taken a slightly opposite tack, offering five songs with a distinct country/Americana vibe. “Distant Star,” a single from the CD, sounds like it came straight out of Nashville, with driving drums and bass and heavy, pounding guitar riffs.

In an email, Ty said the new songs delve deeper into his family’s lineage, “illuminating some of my Jewish roots and bringing to light stories about several notable ancestors along the way.”

In “Distant Star,” for example, he refers to a great-great-grandfather who “He ran away from home at 24 and buried his faith in the process / He set sail for Massachusetts / Headed for Boston ’cause he had a lot to prove… I’ve been trying to find a little bloodline / That I can hold on to.”

Ty’s new EP was recorded with a full band and he will bring them to his Iron Horse performance, where he and Buchanan, who recorded their own album “Sonaura” last year, will also sing some of the songs on that CD together.

Signature Sounds Presents, the production arm of the Northampton-based record label of the same name, has now ceded presentation of the Green River Festival to Ithaca-based DSP Shows. However, Signature is still presenting plenty of music, including an expanded edition of its Black Birch Vineyard Series from early July to early August.

The shows began in 2020 when indoor music could not take place due to the pandemic. They are held at Black Birch Vineyard in Hatfield and feature a range of predominantly acoustic artists and groups, and have grown somewhat in recent years.

This year’s lineup includes nine acts, including groundbreaking songwriters Loudon Wainwright III And Lori McKennaand Valley favorites The Sweetback Sisterswho we can assume will be more likely to draw from their extensive playlist of country songs – both their own and imaginative cover versions – than sing Christmas carols.

The first show of the series will take place on July 5th at 6:30 p.m. with folk veteran Livingston Taylorthe younger brother of James and a gifted songwriter and singer himself (and probably a better guitarist; he is a long-time teacher at the Berklee College of Music in Boston). The show will be opened by the singer and songwriter Peter Muller.

And on July 12, also at 6:30 p.m., Banjoist Nora Brown and violinist Stephanie Coleman Experience an evening of traditional American folk music and the sounds of the southern Appalachians.

Also pay attention to Mark Erellithe experienced singer-songwriter and accompanist for other players (such as Lori McKenna), who will play at Black Birch on July 19th, backed by some of New England’s finest string instruments.

Speaking of strings: The New Directions Cello Festival returns this weekend – June 28-30 – to the Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity in Florence. The annual series, which began in New York City in 1995, brings together cellists from many countries to exchange music and ideas, especially those who play outside the classical canon or who enjoy improvising.

The festival, which has been extended from two to three days this year, features workshops and jam sessions for cellists, as well as several public performances beginning at 7 p.m. on June 28 and 29 and at 3 p.m. on June 30.

The artists’ biographies are very different. The British-born Katharina Bentfor example, has played with pop artists as diverse as Joe Jackson, Kanye West and Rod Stewart, and she also specializes in Brazilian choro music, which she teaches at Berklee. She will play with Brazilian cellist and mandolinist on June 28 at 8 p.m. Ian Coury.

Also playing this evening at 9pm Empire Wildtwo cellists and a pianist who, according to the program notes, “incorporate pop, folk, Broadway and more into their songwriting and compositions.”

For further details on all artists and shows visit bombyx.live.

More music on tap

The Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center in Greenfield is kicking off a new monthly free concert series tonight at 5:30 p.m. with music inside the building while the Town Common features games, food trucks and other fun. The first artist is Sen Morimotoa Japanese-American singer, multi-instrumentalist and producer who mixes jazz, hip-hop productions and more.

Carrie Ferguson and the Grumpytime Club Band will play a free show at The Drake in Amherst on June 29 at 10:30 a.m. to kick off the Jones Library’s summer reading program for children. You can sign up for the program at the concert.

The Marigold Theater in Easthampton has a Ska and Punk Mini-Festival on 29 June at 19.30 with five bands, while Jazz is on the program on 30 June from 19.30 with Wanda Houston and the HBH Band And Jazz Jukebox.

The Iron Horse recently hosted Lez Zeppelin, an all-female Led Zeppelin tribute band. Now the Shea Theater in Turners Falls will give a hard rock salute with Four floorsa Zeppelin homage from Berkshire County.

CitySpace in Easthampton hosts RedFest2 on June 29th from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. with performances by eight bands from different genres.

Singer and songwriter influenced by folk, soul and jazz Amos Lee comes to Tree House Brewing in Deerfield on July 8th at 7pm

Electric accordionist Cory Pesaturo and pianist Near Sol will play at West Whately Chapel on July 10th at 7:30pm as part of Watermelon Wednesdays.

Hannah MohanCo-founder of the popular indie pop band And the Kids, released a new solo album this spring and will play songs from it on July 12 at 7 p.m. at the Iron Horse. The Northampton native Stefan Weinera queer indie folk singer-songwriter now living in New York, opens the show.

Steve Pfarrer can be reached at [email protected].