A night of music at EBC West
KRIS HARRIS
Special to The Leader
This past Saturday, Heavy Tides returned to EBC West, bringing special guest Lost & Adrift — and with GVK on the bill, excitement was in the air. The bar was packed and people had to find space on the stairs in order to see the incredible lineup.
Lost & Adrift, real name Donny Uccellini, from Selden, New York — a small suburb on Long Island — made his Fredonia debut that night. Beginning his set with a low electric hum from the help of his effect pedals, the solo acoustic act was greeted warmly by the crowd, and in return, he regularly expressed his gratitude throughout his performance. Uccellini invests all his time into this project; the effort put into each and every song is noticeable. Hopefully more will be heard from Lost & Adrift in the future.
Up next was Danny Palladino, under the moniker Heavy Tides, formerly known as Blue House. He graduated last year with a degree in music industry; during his time at Fredonia he was involved with several music-related groups on campus such as Much More Chill and the Music Industry Club. Before the show, Palladino spoke about his return to Fredonia and post-college life.
Palladino said that he felt déjà vu coming back into town, due to the fact that he has not been in Fredonia since graduation.
On his name change to Heavy Tides, Palladino said that it stemmed from legal issues, as a band from California already carried the name on several verified accounts. However, he was not discouraged:
“I had to use a name that was not taken and that was a nice representation of what I was going for,” he said. “Heavy Tides also stuck because it easy to say, easy to remember.”
Palladino actually brought Lost & Adrift along for the show on Saturday. The two groups met through mutual friends on Long Island, doing several open mic nights together and even going to New Jersey for a gig, at which they had a great time.
“We booked a lot of shows this summer on the island and the city,” Palladino said about the group. “We are both in the same headspace about where we want to be … we are recording a split together within in the next month.”
Although good things are happening for Palladino, he still misses Fredonia.
“You have your space here; you grow here; I grew a lot here,” he said. “Don’t take it for granted.”
For current Fredonia students, Palladino had a certain recommendation.
“You’re going to miss it a lot … [what] I highly recommended for anyone who graduates is to take a while at home, get adjusted, and then come back when you’re ready.”
From the set, students could tell that Palladino appreciated being back in Fredonia. Heavy Tides began with vocal howls in the microphone, which grabbed the audience’s attention. Somber and self-reflective, he alternated between acoustic and electric guitar, singing several original songs.
He finished the set with “Shelf,” a favorite of the audience who joined in during the opening lines. The tune details a relationship with a past lover, and flawlessly highlights Palladino’s vocals.
Rounding out the night was Fredonia favorite Gabby, Vaughn, and Kate, better known now as GVK. After some minor technical difficulties, the group was able to play with some new elements in their setup. Vaughn had a loop station, which provided some beatbox percussion — but the true surprise was the addition of Tyler James, a junior music industry major, who played keyboard.
Although usually a trio, James has been jamming with the group for its past few gigs. The keyboardist was extremely humble, downplaying his talents when highlighted by members of GVK. However, the addition of James was a lovely touch, his playing nimble. After the set, James said it was a great experience.
“They’re great people, helping me think creatively and move forward about music,” said James.
The set list was nice mix of old and new songs, including covers of ZAYN’s “PILLOWTALK,” T-Pain’s nostalgic “Buy U A Drank” and Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You.” The group ended its set with a stripped-down version of Gallant’s “Weight in Gold” that ended the event perfectly.
At the end of the night, the crowd was in good spirits as they had enjoyed an amazing night of music. You can find Lost & Adrift and Heavy Tides’ music on Bandcamp, while GVK has several videos highlighting the group’s covers on YouTube.