New Conversations with Tom Constanten and Béla Fleck
Goose Launch Charity Auction for Brown University Students
Relix Daily
December 19, 2025
December 19, 2025
FEATURE
Tom Constanten has long embraced and embodied the artistic life. He was still a Las Vegas teenager when his passion for music prompted him to compose a series of classical pieces that were performed by a local orchestra. Then, even as he attended UC Berkeley on a science scholarship, he continued to explore avant garde music, which eventually yielded a European tutelage via Luciano Berio. A bit later, during a stint in the Air Force, he reconnected with former Berkeley roommate Phil Lesh, resulting in both studio appearances (Anthem of the Sun, Aoxomoxoa) and live gigs with the Grateful Dead from 1968 through 1970. He then took on new challenges, helping to develop the play Tarot and produce a film score for The Love Song of Charles Faberman. TC subsequently balanced creative explorations both as acomposer and performer, including his ongoing Dose Hermanos project with Bob Bralove, as well as stints with Jefferson Starship, Henry Kaiser, Jazz Is Dead, Terrapin Flyer and the Live Dead ‘69 ensemble.
NEWS
Last weekend, Goose hosted its elaborate holiday concerts at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R.I. The annual December event known as Goosemas came to an official close after its final staging on Saturday, the same day as the Brown University shooting, where two students were killed, and nine were injured when a gunman entered the campus’ School of Engineering. In response to the tragic events, which occurred less than two miles from the concert venue, Goose has launched a series of charity pushes to raise financial support for the victims and their families.
SPAGA, featuring The Disco Biscuits’ Aron Magner, Cover the Grateful Dead Songbook on SPAGA Plays Dead Exclusive Relix Record
SPAGA have joined forces once again for SPAGA Plays Dead, a new tribute project pressed in partnership with Relix. The Philadelphia-based jam powerhouse’s first full-length release since their 2019 self-titled debut reunites The Disco Biscuits’ keyboardist Aaron Magner, drummer Matt Scarano and upright bassist Jason Fraticelli for masterful takes on six classics and deep cuts from the Grateful Dead’s expansive catalog. The project will be available exclusively as a limited-edition LP from relix.shop.
FEATURE
Especially for a seasonal album, Jingle All the Way marked an important transitional moment for Béla Fleck & The Flecktones. A mix of vividly re-imagined Christmas classics, inspired instrumental arrangements and top-shelf medleys, the 16-track 2008 set turned out to be the bluegrass-fusion combo’s final LP with saxophonist Jeff Coffin, who spent a portion of that year subbing for LeRoi Moore following an ATV accident and eventually joined Dave Matthews Band on more regular basis after the musician’s passing.
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Celebrate six decades of the Grateful Dead with this archival-quality softcover special edition, filled with rare photographs, personal stories, and the energy that still unites generations of fans.
NEWS
On Thursday, Dec. 18, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ board of trustees voted to rename the cultural institution as the Trump-Kennedy Center. The long-looming rechristening arrives ten months after the President set his “flood the zone” legislative blitz on the world of the arts by overturning and stacking the board to install himself as chairman and enact his “Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”
RECAP
Yo La Tengo’s Hanukkah celebration continued on Thursday, Dec. 18, as the band presented the fifth performance in their eight-show residency at New York’s Bowery Ballroom. In keeping with the custom of the annual series that began in 2001, the trio delivered a set without any repeats from the first four shows, mining their expansive four-decade discography in the company of a surprise opener, comedy act and encore special guest.
RECAP
On Thursday evening, Dogs in a Pile kicked off the first in a four-night series of concerts at Ardmore Music Hall in Ardmore, Pa. The New Jersey natives delivered a two-set performance that was laden with holiday cheer, including a first-time cover of the 1980s new wave classic from The Waitresses, “Christmas Wrapping.” In addition to the previously mentioned cover, the band also integrated others’ material into their performance–originals from Paul McCartney, Cab Calloway, and Keith Mansfield.
WATCH
Business Insider has shared a new video on its official YouTube channel that delves into the monopoly on ticket pricing that has escalated costs and fueled a greedy secondary market. Titled “Why Ticketmaster’s Grip On Live Music Is So Expensive For Everyone,” the video pulls in perspectives from folks across the live music industry, working to explain why concertgoing has gotten so pricey, which reinforces the presumption that the system works against fans.
LISTEN
Bill Callahan has shared “Lonely City,” the second preview single from My Days of 58. Set to arrive on Feb. 27 via Drag City, the venerable singer-songwriter’s ninth solo studio album under his own name – and 20th including his releases as Smog – is billed as a “living room record,” and the latest advance captures that casual, off-the-cuff feeling with a naturally unfurling acoustic ramble. It’s matched with a music video from street photographer Daniel Arnold, who assembled a testament to the collective character of cityscapes from 15 years of his New York portraits.