The Best of UpstateLIVE 2012

Looking back on 2012, UpstateLIVE has grown exponentially, expanding our staff across New YorkState, including a partnership with the Bandier Program at SyracuseUniversity, and in the process we have covered some amazing shows. The writing and photography staff at UpstateLIVE saw a combined 250+ shows, as well as a couple dozen festivals around the country, and even a festival in Indonesia. This list represents our take on the Best of Live Music in 2012 spanning the country through our musical travels and all across Upstate New York. With categories of Best Show, Best Upstate Show, Best Festival, Best Upstate Festival, Best Album and Best Upstate Album, you’ll find a wide-range of musical interests and tastes, as well as some familiar names for Upstate New Yorkers.

In a nutshell – Phish at SPAC looks to be the Best Upstate Show(s) while Catskill Chill and moe.down got the most love for Best Upstate Festival. Three bands – Jimkata, Timbre Coup and Eastbound Jesus were tops in voting for Best Upstate Album of the Year. Read on to see what else made the list from our writers, photographers and staff…

Herby One – Publisher, Baldwinsville, NY

Best Show: Phish at StarLake, Burgettstown, PA, June 23^rd

Best Upstate Show: MaxCreek, WaterStreetMusic Hall, Rochester, February 4^th

Best Festival: Maine Lobster Festival

Best Upstate Festival: Grassroots Festival, Trumansburg, NY, July 19^th-22^nd

Best Album: Cabinet – Eleven

Best Upstate Album: Big Leg Emma – Revival

photo by Andy Hill

Pete Mason – Online Editor/Lead Writer, Albany, NY

Best Show: Phish at SPAC, July 8^th

Best Upstate Show: John Prine and Lucinda Williams, Palace Theater, Albany, NY, August 17^th

Best Festival: Bear Creek Music and Arts Festival, November 8^th-11^th

Best Upstate Festival: Backwoods Pondfest, Peru, NY, August 17^th-18^th

Best Album: Strangefolk: Live at the Capitol Theater

Best Upstate Album:  tie: Jimkata – Die Digital // Soul Risin – Rise and Fall

photo by Matthew Balch

Sue Rice – Staff Writer, Albany, NY 

Best Show: Trey Anastasio Band, House of Blues, Boston, MA, October 27^th

Best Upstate Show: The Punch Brothers at The Egg, September 30th

Best Festival: Catskill Chill, Camp Minglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th

Best Upstate Festival: Catskill Chill Catskill Chill, Camp Minglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th

Best Album: Mumford & Sons Babel

Best Upstate Album: Eastbound Jesus – Holy Smokes

photo by Nicholas Fitanides

Melissa Walker, Staff Writer, Marketing/Publicity Utica, NY

Best Show: NY Banjo Summit, State Theater, Ithaca, NY, November 2nd

Best Upstate Show: tie – Moho Collective at the Utica Greens Festival, September 15th // Rawson at the KirklandArtsCenter. November 4th

Best Festival: Utica Music and Arts Festival, September 13^th-15^th

Best Upstate Festival: Fiddler’s Picnic, June 8^th-10^th, Marion, NY

Best Album: tie – Thunder Body’s Radioactive // Digital Mosaic Foundation, Do Right

Best Upstate Album: The Rusty Doves –Live–

photo by Sara Tiberio

Jenni Rose Wilson, Contributing Writer, Albany, NY

Best Show: STS9, Best Buy Theatre, NYC, November 10^th

Best Upstate Show: Keller Williams, Upstate Concert Hall, September 21^st

Best Festival: Catskill Chill, Camp Minglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th

Best Upstate Festival: Catskill Chill, Camp Minglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th

Best Album: Medeski Martin and Wood- Free Magic

Best Upstate Album: Timbre Coup- Knuckles and Valleys

photo by Andy Hill

Lindsay Jones, Contributing Writer, Utica, NY

Best Show you attended – Phish Dicks 9/1/12

Best Upstate Show: tie – Jimkata & Floodwood at Saranac Thursdays, Utica, NY, August 9^th // Lucid at Duo, Saratoga, NY, July 7^th

Best Festival: moe.down XIII, Turin, NY, August 10^th-12^th

Best Upstate Festival: moe.down XIII, Turin, NY, August 10^th-12^th

Best Album: Grace Potter and the Nocturnals – The Lion, The Beast & the Beat

Best Upstate Album: The Felice Brothers – God Bless you Amigo

photo by Sara Tiberio

Lori Ann Christina – Contributing Writer, Clifton Park, NY

Best Show: Bob Weir Solo Acoustic, Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield, MA, April 29^th

Best Upstate Show: tie – Jackie Greene, Club Helsinki, HudsonNY, October 27^th // Warren Haynes, The Egg, Albany, NY, October 13th

Best Album: Chris Robinson Brotherhood The Magic Door

Best Upstate Album: The Nellies – The Nellies

photo by Tom Sinkora

Chris McMullen, Contributing Writer, Oneonta, NY

Best Show: tie – Phish at DCU, Worcester, MA, June 8^th // STS9 at Fox Theater, Oakland, CA, April 21st

Best Upstate Show: Ott & The All Seeing I. The Westcott Theater; Syracuse, NY October 7th

Best Festival: Electric Forest; Rothbury, MI, June 28^th-July 1^st

Best Upstate Festival: Catskill Chill, CampMinglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th (Honorable mentions to Harvest Fest & Psybient Soire)

Best Album: tie – Doomtree – No Kings // Caravan Palace – Panic

Best Upstate Album: Jimkata – Die Digital

photo by OTT

Quinn Donnell, Contributing Writer from Bandier Program at Syracuse University

Best Show: Vampire Weekend at Pitchfork Music Festival Chicago, July 15^th

Best Upstate Show: Dum Dum Girls at Schine Underground, Syracuse University, October 11^th

Best Festival: Pitchfork Music Festival, Chicago, July 13^th-15^th

Best Album: Michael Kiwanuka—Home Again

Best Upstate Album: Dumb Talk—Dumb Talk

photo by Quinn Donnell

Lauren Lagowski, Contributing Writer, Buffalo, NY

Best Show: Radiohead, Blossom Music Center Cuyahoga Falls, OH, June 6^th

Best Upstate Show: The Wood Brothers, The Tralf Buffalo, NY, June 24^th

Best Festival: Purple Pig Music Festival, Naples, NY, September 28-30

Best Upstate Festival: Purple Pig Music Festival, Naples, NY, September 28-30

Best Album: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – Here

Best Upstate Album: Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad – Country

Tabitha Clancy, Staff Writer, Schenectady, NY

Best Show: Railroad Earth with Cornmeal, Best Buy Theater, NYC, February 25^th

Best Upstate Show: Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble with Mumford and Sons, The Barn, Woodstock, NY, March 10^th

Best Festival: Hangtown Halloween Ball, Placerville, CA Octobver 26^th-28^th

Best Upstate Festival: The Mighty HighMountain Fest, Tuxedo, NY May 18^th-20^th

Best Album: Mumford and Sons – Babel

Best Upstate Album: Eastbound Jesus – Holy Smokes

photo by EastBound Jesus

Mary Morgan Craig, Contributing Writer from the Bandier Program at Syracuse University

Best Show: Regina Spektor, Orpheum Theater, Boston, MA, March 10^th

Best Upstate Show: Gramatik, Westcott Theater, Syracuse NY, October 13^th

Best Festival: Identity Festival, Comcast Center, Mansfield, MA, July 26^th

Best Album: Frank Ocean – Channel Orange

Best Upstate Album: (Lake Placid native) Lana Del Rey – Born to Die

photo via Lana Del Rey

Greg Jackson, Senior Writer, Syracuse, NY

Best Upstate Festival: Fox Fest, Syracuse, NY, August 5^th-6^th

Best Upstate Album: Mark Doyle and The Maniacs – Pushin’

Photo by Juan Junco

Lenny Stubbe, Contributing Writer and Resident Taper, Buffalo, NY

Best Show: Phish at StarLake, Burgettstown, PA, June 23^rd

Best Upstate Show: Phish at SPAC, July 8^th

Best Album: Mickey Hart Band: Mysterium Tremendum

Best Upstate Album: moe. – Whatever Happened to the LaLa’s

photo by Andy Hill

Gauraa Shekhar, Contributing Writer from the Bandier Program at Syracuse University

Best Show: Local Natives, Bowery Ballroom, Brooklyn, NY, October 18th

Best Upstate Show: Fiona Apple, State Theater, Ithaca, NY, June 19th

Best Festival: Java Rockin’land – July 6^th-8^th, Jakarta, Indonesia

Best Album: Fiona Apple’s The Idler Wheel Is Wiser Than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More Than Ropes Will Ever Do

Best Upstate Album: The Vanderbuilts – Miguel’s Orchard

Johnny Goff, Contributing Writer, Ithaca, NY

Best Show: Phish at Dicks, Denver, Colorado, September 1^st

Best Upstate Show: Phish at SPAC, July 7th

Best Festival: Grey Fox BlueGrass Festival, Oak Hill, NY, July 19^th-22^nd

Best Upstate Festival: Grassroots Festival, Trumansburg, NY, July 19^th-22^nd

Best Album: David Byrne & St. Vincent – Love This Giant

Best Upstate Album: Jimkata – Die Digital

photo by Sara Tiberio

Avery Galek, Contributing Writer, Oswego, NY

Best Show: The final Oak & Bone show, Badlands, Syracuse, June 9th

Best Upstate Show: Converge and Torche at Waterstreet Music Hall, Rochester, October 13^th

Best Festival: Seneca Waves Music and Arts Festival, August 11th

Best Upstate Festival: Sterling Stage Folk Fest, May 24^th-27^th

Best Album: The Melvins – Freak Puke

Best Upstate Album: Black Throat Wind – Between White Worlds

via SSG Music

Tim O’Shea, Contributing Writer, Morris Plains, NJ

Best Show: Phish at StarLake, Burgettstown, PA, June 23^rd

Best Upstate Show: Phish at SPAC, July 8^th

Best Festival: Gathering of the Vibes, Seaside, CT, July 19th-22nd

Best Upstate Festival: moe.down XIII, Turin, NY, August 10th-12th

Best Album: Ben Folds Five – The Sound of the Life of the Mind

Best Upstate Album: Timbre Coup – Knuckles and Valleys

photo by Andy Hill

Sara Tiberio, Staff Photographer and Contributing Writer, Rochester, NY

Best Show: Bon Iver at Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, NY, September 17th

Best Upstate Show: Rubblebucket at BoulderFest in Rochester, NY, July 21st

Best Upstate Festival: Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, June 22^nd-30th

Best Album: Animal Collective Centipede Hz

Best Upstate Album: tie – ThunderBody RadioActive // Mosaic Foundation Do Right

photo by Sara Tiberio

Jim Gilbert, Staff Photographer, Clifton Park, NY 

Best Show: Lamb of God/Hatebreed, Glens Falls Civic Center, November 15th

Best Upstate Show: The Viking, Upstate Concert Hall, January 7th

Best Festival: Q-Ruption at SPAC, September 1st

Best Upstate Festival: Q-Ruption at SPAC, September 1st

Best Album: Shadows Fall, Fire From the Sky

Best Upstate Album: Timbre Coup, Knuckles and Valleys

photo by Andy Hill

Chris DeCotis, Staff Photographer and Contributing Writer, Lansingburgh, NY

Best Show: Phish, Bader Field, Atlantic City, NJ, June 16th

Best Upstate Show: Excision at Upstate Concert Hall, March 26th

Best Album: Radio Music Society by Esperanza Spalding

Best Upstate Album: Rawtopsy by Animal Cracker

photo by Pete Mason

Amy Fischer, Contributing Writer and Street Teamer Extraordinaire, Albany, NY

Best Show: Phish at SPAC, July 6th

Best Upstate Show: Medeski Martin and Wood, MassryCenter at Saint Rose, October 1^st

Best Festival: Catskill Chill, CampMinglewood, Hancock, NY, September 7^th-9^th

Best Upstate Festival: Bellstock, Catskills, July 13^th-15^th

Best Album: Trey Anastasio Traveler

Best Upstate Album: Timbre Coup Knuckles and Valleys

photo by Chris De Cotis

Neil Benjamin, Jr., Contributing Writer, Syracuse, NY

Best Show: Phil Lesh and Friends at Levon Helm’s Barn, Woodstock, NY, June 17th

Best Upstate Show: Primus at the Landmark Theater, Syracuse, NY, May 20th

Best Festival: moe.down XIII, Turin, NY, August 10th-12th

Best Upstate Festival: Backwoods Pondfest, Peru, NY, August 17th-18th

Best Album: Rubblebucket Oversaturated EP

Kimberly Zesky, Contributing Writer, Saranac Lake, NY

Best Show: Beats Antique, Higher Ground, Burlington, VT, September 23rd

Best Upstate Show: Rubblebucket, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY, April

Best Festival: Wakarusa, Mulberry Mountain, Ozark, Arkansas, May 31st-June 3rd

Best Upstate Festival: Grassroots Festival, Trumansburg, NY, July 20th-22nd

Best Album: Mumford And Sons Babel

Best Upstate Album: Jimkata Die Digital