The Dave Wilson Quartet actually has five guys if you count John Mayer’s percussionist Lenny Castro on half the tracks. When Even Goes East takes its title from the days Wilson was a New York City cab driver and the Manhattan grid had—and still has—the even-numbered streets, indeed, going east, and the odd-numbered streets going west. Saxophonist-Composer-Producer Wilson writes four of 10 but the six covers are the news.

His Trap Poems won’t be out until April 3 but you can “Chill” to its first single below. Rutgers grad/New Brunswick resident David Aaron Greenberg is what’s known as a “multidisciplinary artist” as he’s a vocalist, poet, painter, composer, art critic, curator, guitarist and art gallery owner who knew and worked with the legendary Newark poet-revolutionary Allen Ginsberg [1926-1997].

Thirty-Seven years after the self-titled debut of Ocean County metal band Skid Row in 1989, bassist Rachel Bolan will be declaring himself Gargoyle Of The Garden State when his solo debut is released June 12 by earMUSIC.  Nick Raskullnecz, who produced the last Skid Row album—2022’s The Gang’s All Here—will once again be at the helm.

Hoboken’s Tammy Faye Starlite and Richard Barone of The Bongos co-hosted “Jilith Fair:  Loving Jill Sobule” last month at City Winery in New York City on what would have been the late singer’s 67^th birthday.

“This is not a contest or a gimmick,” says the press release for Skid Row’s international vocalist hunt. “It’s a genuine search for the right voice, presence and authenticity to carry Skid Row forward.”

When Stefani M.C. Janelli writes about any band, we listen. She’s got good ears. Thus, we were hipped to P-Funk North, a band out of North Plainfield in Somerset County that fuses reggae, funk and rock’n’roll in a fun-filled, freewheeling festival of freaky alternative pop-musik. They’ve been around for 13 years as started by bassist-vocalist Dave Sloyan.

Singer-Songwriter-Drummer Noah Rauchwerk is swimming in Shark River as Wormy. Shark River singles “Cocaine Bear,” “27 Days” and “Give Up” precede “I Hate You,” a song he wrote “about conflicting feelings of jealousy and love for your successful friends,” he admits. “I wrote it in a patch when Nick [Carpenter of Medium Build] and I had grown apart and I missed him a lot but also wanted to be in his shoes. Nick and I made this music video as a nod to one of my favorite books and movies, Stephen King’s Misery.  Everything you’re watching is completely true and actually happened.” 

Giz Mutlu is a fifth-grader in the Bloomfield Public Schools. She’s also an accomplished bebop pianist. At 10, she became the youngest musician to ever perform at Dizzy’s Club within Lincoln Center in New York City. She’s an honor student, who, at six, joined Jazz House Kids, one of the nation’s leading jazz education organizations. Now 11, she performs in the group Chica Power and has collaborated with such renowned stars as Angelique Kidjo and Michelle Rosewoman.

The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company –with the cooperation of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) and the Newark Museum—will mount a free Dragon Procession downtown Newark from NJPAC on Center Street, through Military Park, to the Newark Museum on Washington Street via Halsey and Broad Streets on February 14 from noon to 1:00 p.m. in celebration of The Year Of The Horse.

The New Jersey Hall of Fame at American Dream on Route 3 in East Rutherford will host an event celebrating 40 years of 2013 NJHOF inductee Whitney Houston on February 7.

No need for any of my words here.

Southside Johnny’s retirement hasn’t slowed down the Asbury Juke Lead Guitarist Glenn Alexander. In fact, he’s been busier than ever. He stings those strings to shred with his Shadowland band that’s punched up bigtime with The Asbury Juke Horn Section. He also performs as a duo with singer-songwriter Oria. His penchant for peppering his presentation with jazz-rock fusion, Southern Rock, Hard Americana, Asbury Park-styled rock’n’soul and what we like to call Instant Classic Rock is mesmerizing, satisfying and fully entertaining. In other words, you can feel it in your gut.

Perhaps because he’s new to podcasting, composer-performer-producer Ben Vaughn, born in Camden County 71 years ago, should bring a new perspective to his “Straight From The Hat” podcast. He’s been a radio host but now, every other Thursday night, he’ll delve into his own personal history by having his co-host, Laura Pochodylo, reach into a big hat and pull out names. No pre-planning, no rehearsing, each name will be someone or some band that Vaughn has either met, collaborated, partnered and/or jammed with.

Vocalist-Guitarist Edgar Echeverria, drummer Jasmine De Leon, guitarist Eliel Esquivel and bassist Jeremy Mendoza—known collectively as Poloroids—are serious about representing their Hudson County heritage.  As Edgar recently told The Jersey Sound, “all of us grew up in Hudson County and come from a Latino background. For us, that’s always been important to represent.  Hudson County, its culture, and its people, are a huge influence.”

 The last time we wrote about Asbury Park’s dt’s was in 2024 when they busted out their “Cherry.” It was a sublime piece of pulsating power pop that had David Cacciatore and Tom Losito hardening the pop into a punch.

Rutgers grad/Paramus native Jake Thistle recently announced the following…

“As most of you know, I’ve been having a blast recording the new record, and with that release on the horizon, my management and I were looking for some fun ways to introduce the music to a bigger audience. So, I’m excited to announce that I’ll be part of the upcoming season of American Idol on ABC-TV! Was an honor to head down to Nashville and play for the great team they have along with a lot of other singer/songwriters. The season premieres on January 26th.”

The news from Jerry Vivino hit hard: “With a heavy heart I am sad to announce the passing of my brother and everybody's favorite uncle, Floyd Vivino. After a 2 and a half year battle with ongoing health issues his curtain peacefully closed at 6:05pm on Thursday January 22nd. Rest in peace big brother. You will be missed, but always remembered by friends, family and your loving fans.... 10/19/1951 - 01/22/2026

There’s no argument that Bucky Pizzarelli—born in Paterson 100 years ago—was one of the greatest guitarists of all-time. Recently, at the Morris Museum in Morristown, his son, bassist  Martin Pizzarelli, his trio, and guest soloists, paid tribute to the man who in his long career collaborated with Les Paul, Tony Bennett, Paul McCartney, Aretha Franklin and Sarah Vaughan before becoming a fine-art painter.

When Mike Delevante’s solid solo project, Summer Days, came out last year, it raised eyebrows as it was released only digitally. After all, Mike and his brother Bob are Americana legends.  As The Delevantes, they had the first #1 on the fledgling Gavin Americana Charts in 1995 with their Long About That Time debut—produced by E Street bassist Garry Tallent—for the prestigious Rounder label out of Massachusetts. The Brothers, now in Tennessee, came out of Rutherford (Bergen County), and formed The Delevantes in Hoboken.

The fifth annual edition of Princeton’s popular free multi-genre Porchfest will take place Saturday, April 25, at noon for five hours on multiple porches all over town with sets of live music. Performers do 45-minute sets. Applications to participate are being accepted now until February 12.