originally published: 11/04/2025
Photo by Lara Callahan
(BLAIRSTOWN, NJ) -- On Thursday, November 13, 2025, Lily Vakili will perform at Marksboro Mills. The show launches her 2025 tour in support of the album Oceans of Kansas. Come on out for a night of raw storytelling, electric energy, and an unforgettable live performance. Showtime is 6:00pm.
Before the music kicks off, join Lily & Ruthie for a relaxed conversation and hangout on “The Art of Getting Things Done.” Lily is a mother of three, an attorney, a musician, singer-songwriter, and touring artist — someone who truly knows how to make things happen. Ruthie feels her self and others in our community can relate deeply to her spirit and drive, and they’re thrilled to welcome a night of both inspiration and artistry.
Lily Vakili doesn’t just perform—she ignites. A powerful songwriter and magnetic stage presence, Vakili draws from a life lived across continents and creative disciplines to deliver music that cuts deep. Her songs are bold, poetic, and unafraid—alive with emotion and urgency. Described as “compelling the way the first Patti Smith music gripped a listener” (Americana Highways), Vakili’s work moves between rock edge and lyrical confession, always with fearless authenticity.
This is an intimate community music experience — no tickets required, but registration helps them plan and guarantee your spot. Marksboro Mills is located at 1045 NJ-94 Marksboro (Frelinghuysen Township) in Blairstown, New Jersey.
The event is free, but a $20 donation is suggested to help support the artists and programming at Marksboro Mills.
Lily Vakili is, at her core, a storyteller.
A lifelong observer, chronicler, and creative force, she has spent decades gathering fragments of the world – memories, landscapes, voices, losses, joys – and transforming them into urgent, electric songs. On her new album Oceans of Kansas, Vakili offers her most intimate, collaborative, and expansive work yet: A collection shaped by years of lived experience, artistic risk, and restless curiosity. It's music born not of image or pretense, but of will – a record that embraces improvisation, vulnerability, and the raw pleasure of creation.
Vakili's journey to music has been anything but linear – shaped by what she calls "a life lived." Born in Honduras to a family of six, she was raised across Honduras, Florida, Thailand, Puerto Rico, and Iowa – absorbing pieces of each place, each culture, along the way. Her first language was Spanish; her father was an immigrant. This international, mixed upbringing shaped her voice, her worldview, and her lifelong search for connection.
Before she found her footing in music, Vakili built a life as a dancer, an actor, a lawyer, and a mother – gathering stories, learning to listen, and bearing witness to the complicated, often contradictory nature of being human. She was drawn to songwriting not by ambition or industry, but by a deep, undeniable need to give voice to the world around her and the one within. Over time, music became her creative home: A space where rawness and risk are not just welcome, but essential. The past decade has seen her channel that force through five studio albums – released both as a solo artist and with Vakili Band – each one experimenting with the wide, untamed possibilities of rock. "I love the serendipitous nature of art," Vakili says. "It's disruptive, it's intentional, it's an exertion of will."
That sense of purpose runs through every note of Oceans of Kansas, the most important record of her career to date – and a marked shift back from Vakili Band to Lily Vakili. These are, as she calls them, her "orphan songs": Melodies she couldn't let go of, lyrics that stayed with her long after others faded. "For whatever reason these stories didn't stick before, but I would not give up on them because I know they're compelling," she shares.
Oceans of Kansas was recorded at GRAMMY Award winning recording studio Second Take Sound in New York City, produced by Reed Turchi, who also co-produced 2024's Tannersville EP, and mastered by industry veteran Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound. Turchi also assembled the studio musicians for the album – many of whom have played together for years, and some of whom will now be joining Vakili on tour this fall. "Their ensemble approach to my songs turned out to be a natural fit, and one that allowed me to focus on my performance in a way that resulted in (what I think is) my strongest vocal work to date," Vakili says.
Working alongside Joseph Yount (drums), Seth Barden (bass), Eric Burns (guitar), and Reed Turchi (slide guitar), as well as special guests Dave Mann (flute, saxophone) and Chris St. Hilaire (piano, percussion), Vakili follows her last EP by leaning in like never before, creating what she describes as "music that feels like a friend" – tender, imperfect, fragile in the best way.
"I wanted this album to be more intimate, more vulnerable," she explains. "There's a lot more blues and balladry, more intentionality in the lyrics and variety in the musical format. I felt as if each member of the ensemble brought their artistry to this project, and I think that's part of what makes it so distinct – It's not one sound throughout. The 'glue' is the storyteller, but the stories are highly varied."
The album's title, Oceans of Kansas, is both literal and metaphorical – a nod to the prehistoric inland sea that once covered the Great Plains, and to Vakili's own understanding of life as layered, shifting, and filled with fossils of memory. It started with a moment on her most recent solo tour: Standing in the Sternberg Museum of Natural History in Hays, Kansas, where the remnants of that ancient ocean are on display, Vakili felt the weight and wonder of time collapse: "I understood something," she reflects. "I am the archivist, the amateur archaeologist, of my own life." The album draws on that revelation, honoring what's been unearthed, what's been lost, and what's still surfacing. As Vakili puts it, "Everything is fleeting, everything is here."
Sonically, Oceans of Kansas is as sweeping and unpredictable as its namesake: Blues-soaked guitar riffs crash against delicate ballads, fiery rock anthems surge alongside hushed, intimate confessionals and strikingly seductive Bossa Nova rhythms. Vakili's voice moves effortlessly between grit and grace, roaring with ferocity one moment and whispering with vulnerability the next.
The album opens with "Okoboji," a sly, feel-good, free-spirited celebration of sun, water, and the uninhibited joy of letting your guard down among friends. "It's open, and it's worth remembering and honoring that," Vakili says.
The piano-driven "Hold On They Say" finds her singing for dreamers and daydreamers alike, channeling her mother's advice into a heartfelt chorus filled with timeless truth: "Hold your dreams close, and don't let them slip away." Chris St. Hilaire's compelling piano solo adds a special depth to an already powerful track that hits hard and leaves a lasting mark. On "One Human Being," Vakili reflects on acts of kindness, resilience, and what it means to leave the world a little better than you found it – even when the results of those efforts may never be fully seen. Her voice finds an ideal counterpoint in Dave Mann's lively flute, his warm notes dancing playfully throughout the sultry, jazz-tinged track.
The gently intoxicating "April Fools" poses a deceptively simple but piercing question: Amidst life's endless obligations, can you still choose happiness? It's a soft moment of introspection and clarity, a smile-inducing embrace of the present without worry for the past or the future: "So let's be fools, my April flower, let's be fools full of desire. You are my old, you are my new, my everlasting April fool," Vakili sings hot on the mic, basking in a carefree moment of connection.
Vakili closes the album with "Tannersville," a dramatic anthem whose energy is immediately unleashed through a bold and brash guitar solo by Eric Burns. Earnest and unfiltered, the track honors the courage it takes to stay true to yourself, to your friends, to the moments that define who you are. Across these nine songs, Vakili creates a world of nuance and intensity, offering songs that are by turns tender and tenacious, delicate and defiant — each one a testament to the power of presence and the beauty of not backing down.
For Vakili, the studio is only part of the story; what excites her most is the live performance. Onstage, she is a force of nature: Radiant, kinetic, and unapologetically present. Each show is a high-voltage exchange of electricity and emotion, made all the more memorable for artist and audience alike thanks to an ever-present spirit of collaboration, experimentation, expression, and connection amongst the band. "I show up with the lyrics, the melody, and I know the directions I want to go in, but everyone brings their own ideas and original thinking – and that inevitably will lead us somewhere I hadn't imagined," Vakili beams. With her commanding presence and an openness to spontaneity, she provides not just a concert, but an invitation to let go, lean in, and fully feel. Ultimately, that's what this project – and music itself – is all about for her: Limitless possibility and expression.
In fact, it was while she was on tour for the Tannersville EP, driving through the continental US with one of her brothers (a former submariner) as roadie, that Vakili found the inspiration for what would ultimately become a new album, a new name, and a new era for her artistry.
"The combination of performing live for diverse audiences in a new town every night and being on the road led me to this latest musical output; it also allowed me to acknowledge that Vakili Band, as it had once been, was no longer, but that a new path of musical experimentation as Lily Vakili was ripe for discovery," she says.
At its core, Oceans of Kansas is an ode to resilience, honesty, and human connection – a record that invites listeners to stand in their own truths, to honor their histories, and to keep moving forward with open eyes and open hearts. It's not about perfection or polish; it's about showing up fully, embracing the mess, and making something that feels alive.
There may no longer be an ocean in Kansas, but with her latest album, Lily Vakili rises with a tidal force – flooding the soul with raw feeling, intimate stories, and uncompromising sound. It's a soundtrack for living boldly, feeling deeply, and refusing to be anything but yourself.
COLUMNS
This Week in Music: Previews for Concerts from November 4-10, 2025
Here is a look at shows taking place from November 4-10, 2025 along with our featured listings and a look at some upcoming shows. New Jersey Stage offers previews of concerts throughout the Garden State as well as select shows in New York City and Philadelphia areas. Click on the title to go to the full preview. Jump to Featured Events, Event Previews, Event Listings, Coming Soon.
MORE NEWS
Meet Loaf comes to The Strand on November 15th
(LAKEWOOD, NJ) -- James D'Amico's Sun Concerts and The Strand Theater present Meet Loaf - A tribute to Meat Loaf on Saturday, November 15, 2025 at 8:00pm.
The Yard at Bally's AC presents The Amish Outlaws
Sensorium Emporium hosts Songwriter Circle on Thursday
The Princeton Folk Music Society presents Phil Ochs Song Night
Monmouth University Strikes A New Chord With Endowed Scholarship Honoring Thom Bell and David Steinberg
UPCOMING SHOWS
The Marquee Club in the Spotlight Cabaret at bergenPAC
(ENGLEWOOD, NJ) -- Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC) recently kicked off a new performance series that showcases exceptional, internationally acclaimed musicians in an intimate setting. These talented individuals are scheduled to present their performances in the new listening room, The Marquee Club located in The Spotlight Cabaret, during the months of October and November.
Cousin Brucie Presents The Rascals LIVE! at PNC Bank Arts Center
Inaugural "Everything Fab Four" Fest to feature Max Weinberg, The Weeklings, Jake Clemons & many more
Sensorium Emporium hosts Songwriter Circle on Thursday
Advertise with The Penguin Rocks for $50-$100 per month, click here for info
The Penguin Rocks
© 2025 by Wine Time Media, LLC
PO Box 811, Belmar, NJ 07719
[email protected]
Presented by New Jersey Stage
