Rock and Blues at the Center
On Saturday, September 20th, leading Polish-American rock bands will gather for the third time at the Polish-Slavic Center in Greenpoint at 177 Kent Street. This year, the festival format has been expanded to include blues bands, and the entire festival has been renamed the Greenpoint Blues – Rock Festival.
The first edition, showcasing rock artists under the name PSC Rock Festival, took place in the fall of 2023 and brought together outstanding performers, and the audience had a wonderful time throughout the evening. The same was true a year later at the 2nd PSC Rock Festival.
This year’s Greenpoint Blues – Rock Festival will feature the following bands: Johnny in Wonderland, Dzieci PRL-u, Sova, and NY Blues Rockets.
The band Johnny in Wonderland, formed over a decade ago, plays broadly defined rock with avant-garde elements. During the festival, the band will primarily perform their own original songs with a significant dose of improvisation. Johnny in Wonderland will feature Janusz Sokołowski (vocals and guitar), Krzysztof Bućko (bass guitar), and Tomek Urnat (drums).
Dzieci PRL-u is a rock band formed in 2010 in New York City. A true legend in the Polish community scene on the East Coast for nearly 16 years, the band has performed at numerous events. As their name suggests, Children of the Polish People’s Republic draws inspiration from the roots of contemporary Polish rock music, which emerged during the era when Poland was behind the Iron Curtain. The lineup for Dzieci PRL-u includes Dawid Czajka (vocals, bass guitar), Piotr Klassek (guitar), and Paweł “Mieczu” Bernasiuk (drums).
Sova was formed in 2019 in Philadelphia. The band plays rock combined with blues, punk and alternative, with sung poetry and sometimes even indie rock playing in the background. The band will perform at the Polish-Slavic Center with the following lineup: Wojtek Galadyk (vocals), Piotr Bernasiuk (guitar), Artur Siembab (bass guitar), and Paweł Bernasiuk (drums).
NY Blues Rockets is a blues band formed several years ago by Leszek Chalimoniuk, previously the leader of Manhattan Blues Connection for many years. Before moving to the United States in 1980, Leszek Chalimoniuk co-founded the Wrocław music scene, playing in bands such as Spisek, Romuald & Roman, and Porter Band. NY Blues Rockets performs classic blues, playing songs by Muddy Waters, B.B. King, and Howling Wolf, as well as their own compositions. During the NY Blues Rockets Festival, the band will perform with the following lineup: Leszek Chalimoniuk AKA Les Chalimon (drums), Seth Okrend (vocals and guitar), Keiji Yoshino (bass guitar) and Marc Lindahl (vocals and keyboards).
“I’m incredibly happy that, right after the vacation, we’re meeting, well-rested, for another regular music festival at the Polish-Slavic Center. This time, we’ve expanded the format a bit so that everyone who visits us will find music that suits them. Each year, the festival is different, and we open our stage to musicians representing various genres. We’re thrilled that more well-known bands will be performing. I invite you to reserve Saturday evening, September 20th, to join us for this beautiful event,” said Agnieszka Granatowska, Executive Director of the Polish-Slavic Center.
It’s a good thing the festival format has changed, and this year, both blues and rock bands will be performing on the guest stage at the Polish-Slavic Center, as these are closely related genres, and this will make the event more musically diverse,” said Marcin Żurawicz, co-organizer of the festival. What won’t change is the high musical standard of the event and the interesting bands, which should provide listeners with many positive emotions.
The festival will take place on September 20th at 177 Kent St., Brooklyn, NY. The event is scheduled to begin at 7:30 PM.
CPS PR