The Old and the New

It is hard not to run into the dilemma of the old and the new in the NYC music scene. If a band is around for any period of time it is old. If a band is still playing after that initial flurry of activity, if it is around a year after that first batch of shows, they are old.

How could they not, considering the flow of talent passing through. It is not 1975 but still there are plenty of bands wanting to play. In fact, I would speculate that there are probably more bands out there now doing more styles of music through out the city and beyond.

So bands come and bands go and some will stay a little longer than others. The reasons for such things vary. That is not what I am pondering here. No what I am dealing with is what one should do in relation to such bands, the old and the new.

Two things run through my head. My passion for certain bands and my desire for new bands. And the dilemma is who do I go see? It is like that Robert Palmer tune, Rip Tide. “Torn between two loves, the old and the new”. Is it the band that I have seen twenty times over the past few years or the group that just finished a month long run at Arlene’s and might just be something to check out.

Will I go with the tried and true and know I will see a good show. Generally true. Or will I go check out the new act and maybe walk out thinking, Wow! It happens. Rarely. Sometimes it is the old act that makes me say,”Holy shit!” Such shows are worth the rest.

And at the end of the day I still do not have an answer to my dilemma.

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