Hall of Famer—both Rock and Rock and American Songwriter—John Oates is in Rochester tonight.
Oates, well known for his duo act with Daryl Hall, has performed for decades. Hall & Oates released 21 albums and sold over 80 million units. One of their memorable performances was at Live Aid in 1985 and on the song “We Are the World” with artists like Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, and Paul Simon.
In 1999, Oates launched his solo career, releasing seven albums. His music travels the genres of folk, rock and Americana music. After the pandemic, Oates and his wife, Aimee, created the “Oates Song Fest 7908,” a free concert to benefit Feeding America. With a stacked lineup including Dave Grohl, Gavin Degraw, Oates’ old duo partner, and many more, the concert funded 450,000 meals for the hungry.
Oates will likely bring his love for Americana and the blues to the stage at Kodak Hall.
Award-winning singer Liala Biali and her band will entertain Jazz Fest goers at Montage Music Hall. Biali is a Canadian songwriter and pianist who has played all over the world. Many of her albums are jazz, while others are more in-depth contemporary jazz or vocal jazz.
Biali has over 15,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Her most recent album, “Your Request,” has multiple songs with over 100,000 listens, and the song “My Funny Valentine” has more than 500,000 streams.
Backing Biali and her melodic voice are bassist Jeff Campbell, Christine Jensen on the saxophone, and drummer Ben Wittman.
Boston’s Twisted Pine started as a bluegrass band. It has now incorporated energetic rhythms and catchy songs.
The band’s 2020 album titled “Right Now” is labeled as Americana but has hints of all sorts of genres. Some reviewers have called Twisted Pine’s music progressive bluegrass while others call out the band’s instrumental mastery.
Twisted Pine’s music is expected to put audiences in a good mood. The band performs at the Little Theatre.
Hazmat Modine is an eight-part band that fuses genres—from folk and bluegrass to jazz. For over 25 years, the band has been playing original songs and touring with hits like “Bahamut.”
The band uses a mix of instruments including guitar, harmonica, trumpet, saxophone, and tuba. Band member Wade Schuman’s voice has the capacity to arouse emotion, keeping audiences riveted.
Hazmat Modine plays at the Rochester Regional Big Tent.
Millennial Territory Orchestra, led by Steven Bernstein, is a nine-person group. The group, also known as Bernstein’s MTO, plays music mainly from the jazz realm with odes to other genres as well.
The band is known for its improvisations of songs from artists like the Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love” and the Grateful Dead’s “Ripple.”
Bernstein’s MTO will entertain audiences at the Theater at Innovation Square.
For show times and ticket prices, see the full Jazz Fest schedule. For the Beacon’s Jazz Fest coverage, click here.
Charles Schaff is a Rochester Beacon intern, a rising junior at Ithaca College and a member of the Beacon Oasis Project’s inaugural cohort. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. Submissions to the Letters page should be sent to [email protected].