Cyndi Dawson and Henry Seiz power the rock outfit The Cynz. Formed in 2010, The Cynz released a cover of “Tell That Girl To Shut Up” in February, with another single planned for this fall preceding their fifth album release. In June, Cyndi and Henry phoned our music reporter Bennett Kelly from a Sunday practice […]
Ben Kelly reports on music for New Brunswick Today. In 2022, he won the first place award for Best Arts & Entertainment Coverage for his coverage of the New Brunswick music scene, from the NJ Society of Professional Journalists.
NBT Music Spotlight: Dinosaur Eyelids
Dinosaur Eyelids is a hard-rock outfit formed in New Brunswick in 2009. They lived two blocks from the Court Tavern and made it their performance hub and practice space, catching the tail end of Bobby Albert’s ownership of the club. This year Dinosaur Eyelids released the full length album “The Last Beard,” recorded live at […]
NBT Music Spotlight: Gary Kaplan of RGD
Gary Kaplan is one-third of the rough and ready Highland Park rock group RGD. The band released their single “Turn On/Off” earlier this year, has a cover of Joy Division’s “Transmission” coming out in mid-July, and has an album release scheduled for the fall. Here, Gary looks back on New Brunswick’s 80s nightlife, the heights […]
NBT Music Spotlight: Cliff and Ivy
Cliff Livingston and Kara Thrasher-Livingston [stage name: Ivy Silence] have been making music together for forty years. First in the 80s New Brunswick punk scene with bands Warm Love, Lesser Koodoo, Moby Dick and others, and for the past ten-plus years as the goth rock duo of Cliff and Ivy. They’ve lived in Alaska since […]
NBT Music Spotlight: Eric Harrison
Eric Harrison is a singer-songwriter with roots in the 80s/90s New Brunswick scene and material that references it. He’s released over twenty singles since 2020, and a full length album in March titled “No Defenses.” He’s at pace for another album by the end of 2023/2024. He spoke with music reporter Ben Kelly by phone […]
NBT Music Spotlight: San Tropez
Frank Bridges, bassist in shoegaze band San Tropez, discusses the band’s January album “Maybe Tomorrow” on Mint 400 Records, talks about some of his older bands from the 90s like Duochrome, kiaro skuro and Frito-Lay, and does a deep dive into New Brunswick’s vinyl record scene of old, on a phone call with music reporter […]
Digging Through New Brunswick’s Vinyl Record Crates, Past and Present
Last year, vinyl records outsold the ancient “compact disc,” by the score of 41 million units sold to 33 million.Â