Northern Current 2025 Line-up Playlist
LINEUP
Combo Chimbita
Columbia / New York, NY
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Chimbita formed in 2016 as a loose combination of friends and bandmates, many of whom had played together in other groups, all of whom were products of the Colombian diaspora who ended up as first generation New Yorkers making their way in the city’s fertile music scene. Through a year-long residency at Brooklyn’s iconic venue Barbès, an incubator for countless musical talents, the group’s sound evolved, mutated, and gradually came into focus. What had once been a casual jam session now clearly showed signs of real synergy, the kind of thing that demanded a dedicated approach to reveal where it would go. El Corredor Del Jaguar, an EP recorded in the infamous hangout known as El Bunker, was the result, and it showed the roots of all that would come ahead: the crackling rhythms of Dilemastronauta, Niño Lento’s razor sharp guitar, Prince of Queen’s cosmic synths, and above it all the mesmerizing vocals and propulsive guacharaca of Carolina Oliveros. 2017’s full length Abya Yala followed, with successive LPs dropping bi-annually after that (2019’s Ahomale and 2021’s Ire). Throughout it all, the band has toured relentlessly, developing a live show that is impossible to ignore. Whether it is the individual musicianship of the band, an evolving and intricate interplay of instrumentation that manages to be both tight and laser-focused as well as expansive and psychedelic, often in the space of a single song — or the shamanic intensity of Oliveros’s performance, always theatrical and fierce to the utmost, Combo Chimbita is forging their own unique musical path, one that is well worth following.
Jimkata
Ithaca, NY
Blurring the line between rock band and electronic act, Jimkata is onto an entirely new era on stage. Once again a quartet, the band has been proving that no songs from their extensive catalog is off limits. Described as “A hard hitting dance party with soaring guitar riffs and soul tickling lyrics,” Jimkata takes you on an emotional joyride before tucking you gently in to bed, still humming the words.
With a life long friendship at it’s core friends since middle school, Evan Friedell, Aaron Gorsch and Packy Lunn infuse Jimkata, with an adventurous musical streak & relatable lyrical themes. Adding Cooper Casterline into the mix holding down the low end has allowed the band to stretch the music out in a live setting. Mixed in with the modern sensibilities & hard driven indie rock are influences drawn from the likes of Motown, singer-songwriters & even old country songs, where storytelling & a quick turn of phrase share priorities with melody & the beat.
On the heals of their newest studio album effort “Running In Place” which releases in Sept 2024 the band has once again exemplified why they’re the best at what they do. With the most recent release they continue the successful building of a vibrant, grassroots fanbase and finds themselves all over the US supporting their most recent release.
Evolfo
Brooklyn, NY
Evolfo is the sound that breaks through the fuzz on the low end of your radio dial and echoes out the back door of a pink neon lit bar. Mainstays of Brooklyn's clubs and DIY spaces, as well as the finest basement venues coast to coast, Evolfo has cut adventurous tracks through the U.S., gaining initiates and devotees every time they cram onto a stage and deliver their live show. The band's sound melts down decades worth of eclectic and bizarro records and puts on display a house shaking mix of garage rock, psych, and soul. Like the faithful crate-diggers who have come before them, Evolfo mines the past for sounds and grooves that history left on the shelf. When they breathe their smoke into these forms, it produces something new.
Magnolia Boulevard
Lexington, KY
Magnolia Boulevard has blossomed through devastation since forming in 2017. In the beginning, front-woman Maggie Noelle played in a bluegrass band, although she’d been yearning for a creative outlet to let loose like her idols Bonnie Raitt and Susan Tedeschi. She met co-founder Ryan Allen and the vision was formed for a rock ‘n soul band tied to their Appalachian roots. Together, they pushed through the turmoil of COVID-19 that devastated the music industry, the sorrow following the death of their beloved drummer, and the joys of welcoming Maggie’s daughter into the world. Much like the band members of Magnolia Boulevard have endured the highs and lows of the past few years, so has their music. The band’s emphatic and empowering anthems of love, self-discovery, grief, and uncertainty serve as a lesson to us all about life’s unpredictable nature and how to better live in the moment so we can appreciate everything and everyone around us before they’re gone.
In the seven years since, Magnolia Boulevard has gone on to develop a close relationship with PRS Guitars Founder and CEO Paul Reed Smith (who helped to mix and master their 2024 EP Things Are Gonna Change) in addition to sharing stages with the likes of Blues Traveler, George Porter Jr., Marcus King, Neal Francis, North Mississippi Allstars, and Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band. The group has also been recognized for their excellence, winning the award for “Best Rock Band” at the Lexington Music Awards in 2018 and 2019 along with taking home first prize in the “On The Rise” band competition at Floydfest, one of the east coast’s biggest music festivals, in 2018.
Alongside Ryan (keys, vocals) and Maggie, the other members include Roddy Puckett (bass, vocals), Austin Lewis (lead guitar), and Brandon Johnson (drums). They’re spending 2025 releasing a new single every month, culminating into a full-length album due out this fall.
“All I can hope is that folks can relate to each song in their own way & can feel every ounce of love that we put into them. There’s nothing more that I’d personally like to accomplish with our music than to share space for people to bask in.” - Mag
Organ Fairchild
Buffalo, NY
Hailed as a“fast-rising NY band”by Live For Live Music, and a group that's“making waves in the scene"by JamBase, Organ Fairchild craft their organ-trio-meets-rock-band sound —described as“adventurous, vital and alive”by Glide Magazine —by synthesizing influences ranging from Soulive and Medeski Martin & Wood to The Grateful Dead, Steely Dan and the Meters.And when they're on stage completely captivating an audience without a bass player -and nobody singing -there is no confusing them for any other artist on today's scene. AsFunkCity.netwrites, “Get ready to be bowled over by this terrific trio -old school funk with new era notions of jam.”
Jackson & the Janks
New York City
Jackson and the Janks are a New York based rock and roll and rhythm and blues garage gospel band. Known to light up the floor with fresh and time honored dancin' music. Sacred steel lifting you up and bass saxophone holding it down.
You’re strolling down an alley in New Orleans or Brooklyn late at night and this sound jumps out at you - rock & roll, classic rhythm & blues, sung and played with verve, personality, and joy. The dance floor is full. You stroll in and hear sounds that wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the legendary Specialty Records of the 1950’s and ’60’s.
Jackson and the Janks have performed at the Brooklyn Folk Fest, Blackpot Festival (Louisiana), and Oldtone Festival (New York) and did a video session for tastemaker series GemsOnVHS and Jackson a solo session for Paste. Its residency on Fridays in Brooklyn (when they’re not on tour) packs the house week after week with fans and folks drawn in by the word-of-mouth buzz and the sound
Nubble
Saranac Lake, NY
Nubble is an alternative folk band based in Saranac Lake, the heart of the Adirondacks. Sometimes we get a little sad, but mostly we stay pretty happy.
Interactive Projections by
The Station ADK
