WONDERWORKS CONTEST
Millvale Music Festival has partnered with WonderWorks Music & Arts Festival, taking place the weekend after #MMF23 May 27-28 just up the road at Hartwood Acres. WonderWorks' lineup of national and international acts is impressive (see below).
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Each day of WonderWorks will kick-off with Pittsburgh musical artists SELECTED FROM MMF's lineup. Research and discover these local gems with their music below and then vote for your favorites! Choose your TWO favorites to see them on the BIG STAGE of WonderWorks!
Voting Ends May 7th.
If you want to check out the bands before voting, their profiles and links are all underneath the contest poll.
DILISIO
DiLisio would be thrilled to perform at WonderWorks! Some of our favorite bands are already on the bill (Wilderado, The Blue Stones, Michigander, among others), and to be associated with nationally-touring acts that we admire would be an absolute dream. And need I mention it's happening in our hometown?! We are all born-and-bred Pittsburghers that would be honored to showcase our unique blend of garage/alt-blues rock 'n roll to our family and friends. Anyone that has seen us play live has always come away impressed, and you can trust that we'd be ready to rock out and make lots of potential new fans at WonderWorks.​
MATT OTIS AND THE SOUND
Matt Otis and the Sound are a folk-rock group based out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The group blends passionate string arrangements with unique vocal harmonies and catchy-hooks.
While touring both nationally and internationally the group is currently supporting their award winning new album “Here not Here” (2022).
It would be a dream come true to be a part of WonderWorks Festival for countless reasons. While performing in and around the Pittsburgh region this would be an incredible way of showcasing our music to a broader group of people while sharing our music with a festival consisting of amazing artists. The goal of our band has always been to create a positive space of artistry and love. WonderWorks Festival seems to embody both of these ideas by way of musical expression!
THE ROOF
The Roof is a four-piece band rocking tones across multiple genres including country, indie, alternate and psychedelic. Their humble beginnings started at Penn State Altoona in 2015 during their freshman year of college. Initially only friends with similar music taste, they went on to form a band with more serious intent. Their sound pulls from several eras and genres for inspiration, ranging from the Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, The Black Keys, Cage the Elephant, Lynard Skynard, and more. They have gained a dedicated following throughout Pennsylvania.
The Roof has had the pleasure of opening for many national acts such as The Brook And The Bluff, Snail Mail, Sam Burchfield, The Clarks, Rookie, and more. Their last two singles, Shangri La and Headstone, have both achieved over 100,000 listens since their release in September and December, respectively. They look forward to headlining Waynestock Outdoor Adventure and Music Festival,
featured in “The 29 Best Outdoor Festivals in 2023” this summer for the third time in a row.
Hozier, Mt. Joy, and The Head and the Heart have inspired The Roof since the beginning, and meeting them would wrap things up full circle. Performing with them would be a natural next step for the local band, and The Roof would love the opportunity to contribute to the WonderWorks Music and Arts Festival experience this spring!
KAHONE CONCEPT
Kahone Concept officially began in 1969, but the foundations of this Pittsburgh-based pop artist/producer were laid long before then. 56-year-old Ben Orrvick taught himself how to play a variety of instruments throughout his childhood, but as he’d struggled to find people to start a band with, he took matters into his own hands. Using a calculator (Texas Instruments TI-30XIIS) given to him by his high school, he began recording and producing tracks independently. Swearing he would never "make music with anybody but Mr. Wonderful (NBC's Shark Tank star Kevin O'Leary)" he decided to legally change his name to Ben Kahone, leaving his friends and family behind to pursue his artistic vision. (The author must mention he has not left anyone behind, and continues to have great relationships with friends and family, but he insisted it be included). Kahone's newest song "I Like You but Don’t Talk" continues the start of a new era for the pop artist and is now available worldwide (Except North Dakota, he insisted that it specifically not distributed to that region. When asked, he chose not to comment).
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I am ride or die for Pittsburgh. Seeing a big music festival in town is a great opportunity for the area. I feel like in general Pittsburgh is thought of as a B-market for most national acts, so it is often overlooked on tours. To have a music festival that is not only being talked about by local Pittsburghers, but people from all over in our city is freaking awesome. I would love to represent Pittsburgh and show them what has been going on right here in our local music scene. This year I am planning on releasing a song a month, and doing as many shows as possible. I am coming off the back of two shows, one at Mr. Smalls and one at Stage AE, and I think having the opportunity to play this festival will help keep momentum.
BLACK RIDGE
Our lineup consists of a lead singer, two guitars, bass, keyboard, saxophone and drums! Our shows are engaging, professional, family friendly and extremely energetic! We love to incorporate the audience by handing out percussion instruments, going "into" the crowd and singing together!
Our original songs, "Raw Power", "Stick it Out", "New Day" and "Celebration" are featured regularly on televised Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Penguins games. Radio airplay includes 102.5 WDVE, 105.9 The X, 99.7 The Rock Station, 94.3 Q94 and more! "You'll Never Stop This Machine" was used for the 2021-2022 NHL Playoffs on the nationally televised "Hockey Night in Canada". We released a new EP, titled "Raw Power" which is available on all major music streaming platforms.
We have headlined several local festivals but performing on the Wonderworks festival stage would be a dream come true! We want to represent Pittsburgh and show that music played with passion, energy and raw power will never die.
VIREO
vireo was born in 2015 out of band-lead Chris Beaulieu’s childhood home, the creative projection of eight years spent with a band that was due for, but never got, their big break. Frustrated and yearning to create art that was not only his own, but that enabled him to play with sounds, instrumentation, and lyricism that felt authentic to his musicality, Chris left his prior band arrangement in search of something like auteurship. But vireo is not a solo project; it is the sort of creative force that works from within, utilizing the talents of friends and pulling from soundscapes of the natural world with the mission of making something entirely new. Vireo has been on the Pittsburgh DIY scene for over 5 years, and the most recent installation of their live crew includes Chris Beaulieau, Anthony Capozzi, Matt Hochberg and Suzanne Gomes, with a host of other local artists lending their talents for studio recordings.
Quilting together homegrown recordings and a community of artists, vireo is rooted in and represents the community that makes it a whole. A mosaic of ruminations on the outside and inner world, Chris uses the sound/lyricism of vireo to explore and translate one’s bodily experience into a tangible, listenable, and freely-expressing project.
vireo's songs provide big hooks over ethereal soundscapes, and unique and energetic percussion makes them a great addition to any festival stage. Playing in their hometown of Pittsburgh is an honor no matter what but they would be especially pleased to share a Pittsburgh stage with so many esteemed musical guests and to participate in the magical weekend that WonderWorks Festival is creating!
LUKE AND THE SECOND COMING
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Some ideas were born for a different time. It took Luke Crouse ten years to get here. Luke and The Second Coming is an alternative rock band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Channelling the emotion and honesty of old school songwriters and the universal bombast of your favorite arena mainstays, L2C is finally in the right place at the right time. Ten years from the start, Luke teamed up with his good friend Ben France and other veterans of Pittsburgh music with eyes set on finding their place in the world. Some ideas were born for a different time. Prepare for The Second Coming.
PAGING DOCTOR MOON
Paging Doctor Moon is an indie-rock four piece band. Kirsten Heibert started recording professionally in 2018 in Brooklyn, NY, and brought the music back home in 2021. She found drummer Spencer Rakoczy in a DIY-storage unit studio, and Christian Hoffman through his work as a guitar technician. Derek Martin on bass is the newest bandmate - a former touring bandmate of Hoffman's. The project has exploded since the four came together.
Locally, they have played a handful of huge events, including Picklesburgh, Light Up Night, and Deutschtown Music Festival. They are honored to play their first Millvale Music Festival in May. The band is booked through November and will be going on their first tour in September to play Americanafest in Nashville.
The songwriting is what sets Paging Doctor Moon apart. Each player is unique in their own right, deeply understanding their artistic responsibility to serve the song first. Heibert writes to heal and provide a space of catharsis through music. She wholeheartedly believes that these are the right musicians to bring this music to a larger audience. Playing WonderWorks would be a gigantic accomplishment. Sharing the same space as such acclaimed international acts would be a dream come true.
MOONTOWN
THE MAPLEWAVES
The Maplewaves are Logan Stamm (guitar, fatar, vocals) Nathan Ritz (guitar, keys) and Harry Scarrott ( drums, percussion). Started over ten years ago in the far off land of Virginia the band relocated to Pittsburgh around 2016 and began work on their first full album Seeds That You've Sown. The album was recorded all in house and mixed by the band. The music of the band can go from hard ballads about life and love to dancey rhythms to get your body moving.
We would be honored to be picked for WonderWorks because we have loved the lineup and always support Pittsburgh music endeavors. Plus who doesn’t like to see a three piece rock it out?
PRINCESS NOSTALGIA
A one-woman show on and off the stage, Princess Nostalgia is a producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist who consistently defies convention while simultaneously bringing together familiar elements of pop, funk, and R&B from the last four decades. After her self-produced catalog landed her the mentorship of Grammy-Hall of Fame engineer Dave Hillis, the Princess removed all of her music from streaming services with the intent of remixing and remastering them. Within weeks of her first re-release, she attained 10,000 monthly Spotify listeners and international coverage in publications with 1 million+ monthly readers. Today, she prepares to step forward with the groovy and moody EP, NO GURU. Featuring contributions from Dave Hillis and Grammy-winning mastering engineer Emily Lazar, the project represents Princess Nostalgia’s most realized
work to date.
Funk music is one of my biggest influences, so naturally, I was at the Bootsy Collins show at Hartwood Acres back in 2015. Lo and behold, Mac Miller was standing in the crowd right next to me. He didn’t
seem too keen on being recognized, but he tolerated my excitement with grace. This is all to day that the opportunity to take the stage at Hartwood Acres would be a profound honor for me on multiple levels.
SEDONA
Youngstown-based Indie Rock band, Sedona, has been performing throughout Ohio and Pennsylvania for over three years. The group is fueled by a passion for music, has talented songwriting, and loves to entertain. Each member provides a unique style with inspirations from artists of every genre. They feature a variety of harmonies and instruments such as synths and a trumpet as well as the standard four-piece setup(lead guitar, rhythm, drums, and bass). With this drive and diversity, they provide a commanding stage presence and the ability to get a crowd excited and interacted. Their upbeat and catchy songs provide something to dance and sing along to and possess a summertime vibe that will get any listener hooked. With over ten thousand plays on Spotify and many shows under their belt, they come with experience and professionalism that can fit any venue/lineup. They just released an EP in February as well as high quality, eye catching merchandise. The group has broken several attendance records at venues around the Youngstown area and had their own EP release show with several hundred audience members. They can pull concertgoers throughout northeast Ohio that will be sure to expand the reach and attendance for the WonderWorks festival. Sedona has been looking for the opportunity to expand their audience and prove themselves as a band. They would appreciate the opportunity to perform at such an event with many other talented artists.