Groovespot (more properly groove spot) is a disco funk band based in Richmond, Virginia. Founded in 1997 by Greg Hill and Thomas Young, the band became one of central Virginia's most popular acts selling out shows in nightclubs and festivals.
The original band comprised Sean Shields, Chris Perkins, Steve Bider, David Allam along with Greg Hill and Young. By 1998, the group was headlining local festivals such as Friday Cheers, Innsbrook, and First Fridays in Roanoke. Additionally, they were support artists for national acts such as Average White Band, Jefferson Starship, Tower of Power, Parliament, 10000 Maniacs, KC and the Sunshine Band, and Eddie Money.
In 1999, the band added new members Chris Leitch, formerly of Mercury Records Recording Artists Fighting Gravity, Stefan Demetriadis, formerly of Mojo Records artists The Ernies, Scott Frock (Trumpet for Daelfalio Marsalies, Sturgill Simpson, Nathaniel Ratliff) and new singer and local music legend, Barbara Wills. 2000, saw the addition of Dave Triplet and Chuck Harrell. As of 2006, David Sullivan and Sara Leitch handle the vocal duties with new drummer, Keith Cable. Saxophonist Steve Kraus joined the Band in 2008. After a spell without shows, Thomas Young continued with the band. As performer and manager. Several fundraisers were done and performances for Non profits to include REAL LIFE. GrooveSpot is currently working on a new single to be released in the summer of 2021.
In 2004, they acted as the backing band for American Idol reject, William Hung, as he performed his version of "She Bangs". [1]
Budgie were a Welsh heavy metal band from Cardiff. They are described by author Garry Sharpe-Young as one of the earliest heavy metal bands and a seminal influence to many acts of that scene, with fast, heavy rock (an influence on the new wave of British heavy metal and acts such as Metallica being played as early as 1971. The band has been noted as "among the heaviest metal of its day".
The Dream Syndicate is an American alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1981 to 1989, and reunited since 2012. The band is associated with neo-psychedelia and the Paisley Underground music movement; of the bands in that movement, according to the Los Angeles Times, the Dream Syndicate "rocked with the highest degree of unbridled passion and conviction." Though never commercially successful, the band met with considerable acclaim, especially for its songwriting and guitar playing. Bandleader Steve Wynn reformed the band in 2012, and a fifth studio album was released in February 2017.
The music of Indiana was strongly influenced by a large number of German and Irish immigrants who arrived in the 1830s. A prime example is "I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen" written by Thomas Westendorf, from Hendricks County, Indiana, in 1875.
Virginia's musical contribution to American culture has been diverse, and includes Piedmont blues, jazz, folk, brass, hip-hop, and rock and roll bands, as well as the founding origins of country music in the Bristol sessions by Appalachian Virginians.
The Reading and Leeds Festivals are a pair of annual music festivals that take place in Reading and Leeds in England. The events take place simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend, sharing the same bill. The Reading Festival is held at Little John's Farm on Richfield Avenue in central Reading, near the Caversham Bridge. The Leeds event is held in Bramham Park, near Wetherby, the grounds of a historic house. Campsites are available at both sites and weekend tickets include camping. Day tickets are also sold.
Testament is an American thrash metal band from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1983 under the name Legacy, the band's current lineup comprises guitarists Eric Peterson and Alex Skolnick, lead vocalist Chuck Billy, drummer Gene Hoglan, and bassist Steve Di Giorgio. Testament has experienced many lineup changes over the years, with Peterson being the only remaining original member, though they have since been rejoined by one of its co-founders Skolnick, who was out of the band from 1992 to 2005. Billy replaced original singer Steve "Zetro" Souza in 1986, prior to the recording of their first studio album, The Legacy, and has been a member of the band since. He and Peterson are the only members to appear on all of Testament's studio albums.
Fuji Rock Festival is an annual rock festival held in Naeba Ski Resort, in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. The three-day event, organized by Smash Japan, features more than 200 Japanese and international musicians, making it the largest outdoor music event in Japan. In 2005, more than 100,000 people attended the festival.
The Hackensaw Boys are a string band based in central Virginia that formed in 1999. The band has drawn on many musical influences and are "[k]nown best for rowdy, energetic live shows." They have performed at Bonnaroo, Lockn', FloydFest, and the All Good Music Festival. The band tours continuously and claims twenty or more current and former members. The current four-piece lineup contains only one original member, David Sickmen, who rejoined the group in 2012.
Richmond Raceway (RR) is a 0.75 miles (1.21 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Known as "America's premier short track", it has formerly hosted such illustrious events as the IROC series, Denny Hamlin Short Track Showdown, and the USAC sprint car series. Due to Richmond Raceway's unique "D" shape which allows drivers to reach high speeds, Richmond has long been known as a short track that races like a superspeedway. With its multiple racing grooves, and proclivity for contact Richmond is a favorite among NASCAR drivers and fans.
Truck Festival is an annual independent music festival in Oxfordshire, England. It had a record amount of tickets sold in 2019 with 25 thousand people attending. This is for the whole weekend of campers, with an additional 10 thousand people on the independent days. It was started in 1998 by the Bennett family, who decided that mainstream festivals such as Glastonbury had become too commercial and predictable. It is held in July at Hill Farm in Steventon, which lies between Abingdon, Didcot and Wantage. The festival also gave birth to the Truck Records label in 1999.
The Ernies were a popular American alternative rock/ska punk band from Richmond, Virginia. They released two albums on an independent label before signing to Mojo Records and releasing their third album entitled Meson Ray.
The Latitude Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Henham Park, near Southwold, Suffolk, England. It was first held in July 2006 and has been held every year since, apart from 2020, when it was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic of that year. The festival includes a comprehensive bill of musicians, bands and artists across four stages - the Obelisk Arena, the BBC Sounds Arena, the Sunrise Arena and the Lake Stage. The festival also comprises elements of theatre, art, comedy, cabaret, poetry, politics, dance and literature.
Christopher Aaron Hornbrook is an American drummer and a founding member of Metalcore/Post-hardcore band, Poison the Well. He also is working with Dhani Harrison and Killer Be Killed and The Black Queen singer, Greg Puciato.
Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival was a four-day music festival held in early June at Mulberry Mountain near Ozark, Arkansas. The festival was held annually from 2004 through 2015. Named for the Wakarusa River, the festival was first held at Clinton State Park immediately outside of Lawrence, Kansas. It moved to its new location, just outside Fort Smith and Fayetteville, Arkansas in 2009. The festival is known for an eclectic mix of music and has featured artists like Grammy award winners the Black Keys, The Flaming Lips, Wilco, and Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Activities other than music included disc golf, yoga, hiking, and swimming in the Mulberry River.
Diversafest(Dfest), Oklahoma's Music Conference and Festival, was an annual live event that showcased independent and emerging artists and hosted educational music industry panels and a tradeshow. Dfest took place the last weekend in July in the historic Blue Dome District of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The music conference and festival had the purpose of promoting and empowering emerging artists from around the United States. By 2008, Dfest had grown to include more than 140 bands performing on over 10 stages in downtown Tulsa and featuring music industry panels, clinics and a tradeshow during the days at the host conference hotel. Attendance over the two-day event in 2009, was nearly 70,000. However, the 2010 festival was cancelled.
Gregory Frank "Greg" Raposo is an American rock'n'roll singer and actor. Raposo initially came to fame in the early 2000s as a member of the boy band Dream Street, but has subsequently branched out into a solo career as a rock singer. His self-titled debut solo album Greg Raposo was released in 2003 and charted at #40 on the Independent Albums Chart in its opening week; 2012 release Loss Love Life was released independently and did not chart.
High Sierra Music Festival is a multi-day music festival held in Quincy, California, United States, a mountainous area about 80 miles northwest of Reno, Nevada.
Rockbot is an American music group from Richmond, Virginia, with a sound self-defined as "Atari rock", combining synth pop, video game sound effects, and heavy metal music. As bassist Jonathan Sullivan, formerly with the group Jack's Mannequin, and guitarist Clark Fraley joined together to form the band, they wished to feature a female singer, and were introduced to New York-based Apollo Smile. Reinforced by Bryan Stiglich on drums, Adam Thomas on Moog synthesizer, and guitarist Steve Burner, Rockbot went on to record debut extended play Joystick in 2002. In 2003, Smile departed the band and was replaced with Kelli Hoosack. That year, they released their first full-length, Atari Rock. In January 2004, Laura Thomas took the vocal role and also added keyboards.
Calling Festival was an annual music festival, formerly held in Hyde Park, London, from 2006 until 2012, and from 2013 in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London. In September 2013, Hard Rock International announced that they would no longer be sponsoring the festival; however the event returned in 2014 and 2015 under the name Calling Festival at the Clapham Common.
Lockn' Festival, formerly known as Interlocken Music Festival, is an annual four-day music festival held at Oak Ridge Farm in Arrington, Virginia. The festival focuses primarily on jam bands and other music improvisation acts. Its inaugural event took place September 5–8, 2013, drew nearly 25,000 fans and featured notable groups such as Furthur, Trey Anastasio Band, Gov't Mule, Widespread Panic featuring John Fogerty, The String Cheese Incident featuring Zac Brown, and The Black Crowes.