On a blustery night in Albany, when the veil between worlds still hung thin from Halloween’s passing, two bands conjured a spectacle of sound and spirit that could wake even the sleepiest mortal soul. Such was the case on November 6th, 2025, when Guthrie/Bell Productions brought an evening of avant-garde rock, accordions, eyeliner, and ecstatic abandon to Lark Hall. With Bella’s Bartok and Dust Bowl Faeries sharing the stage, the rallying cry to “Make Albany Weird Again” was not just a slogan, but a lived enchantment.
The first incantation of the night came from the Dust Bowl Faeries, an ensemble that hails from the misty corners of the Hudson Valley. Led by the faerie queen herself, Ryder Cooley, and accompanied by her taxidermy spirit guide, Hazel the Ram, the group bathed the room in heavy crimson light and mystery. They were a trio of woodland phantoms channeling tales of lost souls and carnival dreams.
Joined by Jon B. Woodin, the rocket faerie on guitar, and Jude Roberts, the hobbit faerie on bass, Cooley wove a set that was both eerie and enchanting. Her accordion breathed life into dark cabaret and gothic polka melodies, each tune flickering like candlelight between laughter and lament. Songs such as “Beloved Monster,” “Ghostly Gloom,” and “Demon Spell” cast a spell of their own, luring even the skeptical into the Faerie Ring.
Between the music, Hazel the Ram watched from the stage, glass-eyed and silent, as if guarding the portal they’d opened as the band drifted through “Endlessness,” “Witches Swing,” and “Covid Mask.” The deadpan faces and ethereal wings suggested this was no act, merely the Faeries being their truest, strangest selves. By the time they reached “The Challenging,” “Faerie Underground,” and “Zebra,” the crowd were transfixed believers, if only for a night, in the strange magic of music that refuses to fit into any world but its own. Then it was time for Bella’s Bartok to get weird, too.
When Bella’s Bartok took the stage at Lark Hall, it was as though the dream had burst into Technicolor. The Northampton, Massachusetts collective, clad in face paint, glitter, and wild abandon, radiated the chaotic joy of a traveling circus that had finally found its tent full of kindred spirits. Frontman Asher Putnum, the band’s charismatic ringmaster, announced with a grin that “according to the state of Massachusetts, I am legally blind, so come closer so I can see your faces.” It was an invitation not just to proximity, but to communion. The crowd obeyed and nearly had their faces melted right off.
Launching into “Tooth and Claw” and “Sass,” followed by a delirious “Science!”, the band unleashed their signature sonic storm. Inspired by an eclectic mix of oddball bands like The Mother’s of Invention and Frank Zappa, System of a Down and Mr. Bungle, their recipe is a heady blend of klezmer, punk, cabaret, and pure madness. Each song was a spell of defiance and joy. Bella’s Bartok has long been the beating heart of the “foot-stomping freak-folk” world and that was especially true as tunes like “Goblin Song,” “Mountain King,” and “Satan’s Song” turned the room into a jubilant dance inferno, while “Mother” and “Mama,” dedicated tenderly to their bassist’s mom in attendance, revealed the band’s deep humanity beneath the makeup.
Between songs, Asher reflected fondly on the city and its revitalized venues, praising Lark Hall’s beauty and the Albany scene’s resilient weirdness before the band plunged headlong back into the frenzy with “Drown,” “Brick by Brick,” and “Fantasy.” By the time they reached their set closer “Sense,” the hall was a fevered blur of motion, a joyous rebellion against inhibition. The encore, “Aching Bones,” pushed the celebration beyond the stage as Asher leapt into the audience to dance among the very people who had given the night its heartbeat.
Though Halloween had already passed, the freaks were out in force and the spirits of revelry lingered on yet another magical night at Lark Hall. In an era when conformity so often drowns creativity, Guthrie/Bell Productions once again proved that it’s not the size of the crowd that defines a show, but its spirit. This gathering of kindred souls, musicians, misfits, and magic-seekers alike, was proof that live music still holds the power to transform and transcend. An unforgettable combination of sight and sound, if you ever have the opportunity to see Bella’s Bartok or Dust Bowl Faeries, don’t hesitate. For those seeking another taste of the enchantment, Bella’s Bartok will return soon, performing at UNIHOG in Hoosick Falls, NY on November 15th, followed by several December shows across Massachusetts before closing out the year with a New Year’s Eve celebration at The Stone Church in Brattleboro, Vermont. Until then, may the faeries dance in your dreams, and may your heart keep time to the beat of Bella’s Bartok.
Bella’s Bartok | November 6, 2025 | Lark Hall | Albany NY
Setlist: Tooth and Claw, Sass, Science! Goblin Song, Mountain King, Satan’s Song, Eat You Up, The Strange Ones, Mother, Mama, Drown, Brick by Brick, Fantasy, Sense
Encore: Aching Bones
Dust Bowl Faeries | November 6, 2025 | Lark Hall | Albany NY
Setlist: Beloved Monster, Ghostly Gloom, Demon Spell, Fluorescent, Gone Wrong, Bad Bun, Endlessness, Hurricane, Skins, Dustbowl, Witches Swing, Faerie Underground, Covid Mask, The Changeling, Campfire, Cyanide, Afterball, Cuckoo, Dona Gato, Zebra.
→ Continue reading at NYS Music
