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Tonight: Sloan

November 19, 2016

Canadian heroes and local favorites Sloan return to Western New York as part of their One Chord To Another 20th anniversary tour. The timeless Nova Scotian (sic) power pop rockers are themselves enjoying a major anniversary, having formed 25 years ago at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (yet another legendary band formed at an art school), and while they’ve never achieved widespread success in the US, they’ve cultivated a fanbase in border cities and towns over the decades like Buffalo that welcomes them whenever they play here. On this tour fans will be getting two sets of Sloan: One Chord To Another in it’s entirety and a whole set of Sloan classics, so don’t mess around. Doors open at 7pm, show starts at 8pm, and tickets are $27.50.

KOPPS Share New Single “I LOL @ U”

November 18, 2016

Right now during these surreal and uncertain times, when we needed something like this the most, KOPPS has delivered a sonic judo chop to the senses with their bonkers new single “I LOL @ U.”  A riot of 80’s electronica, 90’s sass, ulterior motives, and super sweet ear candy, this psychedelic head rush from our good friends from Rochester doesn’t play around. That goes for the accompanying lyric video, which is beautifully executed and viciously trippy (if not unduly mean to ice cream), proving again that KOPPS is the whole package. You can catch KOPPS December 3 at Anthology in Rochester when they join Joywave, The Demos, Harmonica Lewinski, Mikaela Davis, Secret Pizza, Pleistocene and pretty much the rest of Rochester’s indie scene to play a benefit for Tim Avery, a booker and essential scene impressario battling cancer. Tickets are $20. Show goes 2pm to midnight.  

Tonight: Harmonica Lewinski

November 11, 2016

Rochester retro rockers Harmonica Lewinski make a trip west on the 90 to stir up some trouble and some lewd and lascivious thoughts at Milkie’s on Elmwood. True Rochester and local favorites, you know you’re in for rowdiness at a HL show, especially with local ne’er-do-wells Deadwolf and the newly rechristened Johnny & The Man Kids (aka Pepperoni Boys, aka Spaghetti Boys) opening the show. Come hear songs from Harmonica Lewinksi’s full length debut Head Honcho and cope with… things through some dangerous and properly delinquent rock and roll. It will make you feel good. Or less bad. Cover is $5 and doors open at 9pm. Head Honcho by Harmonica Lewinski

Tonight: SURVIVE

November 3, 2016

Halloween’s not quite over yet for Buffalo this year. In a pretty damn good year of shows one of the most surprising and pleasing gets of 2016 is After Dark Entertainment’s bringing Austin TX electronic band SURVIVE to the Waiting Room tonight. SURVIVE has had an interesting and probably thrilling 5 months due in no small part to their participation in creating the tremendously effective soundtrack to Netflix’s summer blockbuster hit Stranger Things, a ridiculously dense and pleasing homage to Spielberg, Stephen King, and the early 80’s that virally conquered the pop culture zeitgeist upon it’s release in mid July. The band has enjoyed the increased exposure, releasing Stranger Things soundtrack albums along with a new album in September, RR7349 embarking on a national tour that brought them to our fair city. This show is a must for WNY Stranger Things obsessives and fans of 80’s flavored electronic minimalism, and a real coup for After[...]

Tonight: Mallwalkers

October 29, 2016

The expression “family friendly” and punk rock don’t generally go together but they might tonight when Mallwalkers celebrate the release of Dial ‘M’ For at Sugar City with special guests for an all ages show that also happens to be free. With doors opening at 6pm and music at 7pm (sharp) you can pack up the whole crew and see what’s going on at Sugar City while thrilling to the punk shenanigans of the 9 member local gang known as Mallwalkers; who will be joined by sharp indie rocker M.A.G.S., punk rock warriors Gun Candy and Trinkit, twee pop minimalists Welk’s Mice, and Pat Kewley, who will be doing stuff. Because it’s an all ages space Sugar City is a drug and alcohol free space, so please, do all that at home. There might be some punk rock loving families present!

Black Kids – “Obligatory Drugs” (NSFW)

October 20, 2016

2008 was a different world: Barry Obama wasn’t our President, we were still on our first iPhones, Christian Bale was Batman, buffaBLOG didn’t exist, and Florida new wave outfit Black Kids released Partie Traumatic. Produced by Suede’s Bernard Butler, the album album divided critics (actually, critics and Pitchfork’s critic) and reached 5 on the UK charts on the strength of the multi-racial band’s very Millennial update of British New Wave before the rather promising band pretty much disappeared off the face of the Earth after releasing a remix EP in 2009. Fast forward eight years to the final 100 days of the Obama Presidency, the worst Presidential election ever, and the release of the first new music from Black Kids in 7 years, the NSFW “Obligatory Drugs.” Trading the New Wave synths for Os Mutantes fuzzed out guitars and South American beats, “Obligatory Drugs” heralds the release of a full LP[...]

Tonight: The Leones

October 15, 2016

Tonight Buffalo’s Leones celebrate the release of their Halloween album Ghost In The City at the Mohawk with Twin Speak, Orations, and Award Show. Bold and ambitious, Ghost In The City features excellent atmosphere, vocals reminiscent of Richard Ashcroft, and some serious class. Utica psychedelic doom rockers Twin Speak will opening the show with Buffalo goth romantics Orations, Award Show, a lo-fi acoustic bedroom folk project from Jesse Kaufman and Nate Ward, and 80’s horror movies on VHS in between sets. The bands request donations of Halloween masks and child friendly costumes to benefit underprivileged children through the NPO Gateway Longview, which serves 3600 children throughout Western New York. Doors are 7:30pm, show starts at 8pm, and cover is $5. Fire Walk With Me by The Leonesr

SURVIVE – RR7349

October 11, 2016

The second half of 2016 has been a very good to Austin, Texas electronic band SURVIVE. The preposterous viral success of Stranger Things on Netflix this summer catapulted the largely unknown band into the public’s imagination thanks to adoring articles from Pitchfork, NME, and AV Club, a hot two volume soundtrack album from band members Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein, the show’s obsessive fans, and the band is making the most of it with a national tour and a well timed sophomore album, RR7349. But could it live up to the expectations that come from sudden increases in attention, and could it exist separately from Stranger Things? The answer on both counts is definitely. SURVIVE as a full band trades emotive minimalism for glacial synths and pulsating, widescreen vistas that occupy an entirely different sonic space. The layered sounds of RR7349 conjure 80’s futurism, bleak coldness and human struggle, to create subdued but epic soundtracks for movies[...]

Tonight: Pinkerton 20th Anniversary Show

September 30, 2016

Tonight celebrate the 20th anniversary of Weezer’s sophomore classic Pinkerton with some of Rochester’s best musicians at DBGB’s on Allen Street.  The frankly terrific Rochester scene will be represented by members of Pleistocene, the Ginger Faye Bakers, Talking Under Water, FM Green, and Down To Earth Approach, who will be in town to convene a tribute to the dark and abrasive cult hit, a favorite of Weezer obsessives. Local indie rock quartet Hundred Plus Club, celebrating the release of their debut EP will be opening the show with harmonious Buffalo grunge rockers Cooler. Doors open at 9pm and cover is $5.

Tonight: Aircraft

September 23, 2016

Wednesday Buffalo News restaurant reviewer Andrew Galarneau delivered a terrific article summarizing the terrific bounty and potential that is the current Buffalo food scene. In addition to the still valuable classics that defined the region for generations (wings, fish fries, beef on weck), he extolled the virtues of the farm to table movement as well as the new ethnic cuisines arriving in our area thanks to the newest members of our community, and heartily encouraged local eaters to branch out and support these new efforts. It’s an amazing time to be an eater in this underdog and snake bit city, or a supporter of our local music scene, but you already knew that. Which brings me to tonight’s entertainments at Nietzsche’s featuring Aircraft, OL’ CD, and Feverbox. You already know all about Aircraft: psych rockers, blog favorites, always terrific, now featured on local TV; these guys never disappoint. OL’ CD are pleasingly skeezy[...]

De La Soul – and the Anonymous Nobody…

September 2, 2016

It isn’t easy being De La Soul. Almost from the start, the struggle has been real for the Long Island trio: instead of enjoying immediate cultural impact of their debut album Three Feet High And Rising and it’s idiosyncratic and irreverently funny explorations of hip hop and it’s possibilities, they got to be sued over a sample not even used in a hit song by the utterly forgotten original artist (Flo and Eddy?). They refused to be pigeonholed by fans and critics, confounding both on subsequent albums De La Soul Is Dead and Buhloon Mind State, and have seen their whole catalog get trapped in legal and record label Hell. After all this there was much rejoicing when the band announced that they were working a new album, their first in eleven years, and more when it arrived last week. Made possible by a resoundingly successful Kickstarter/Go Fund Me/whatever campaign, and the Anonymous Nobody by De La Soul finds Pos,[...]

Tonight: The Melvins

August 24, 2016

Legendary 80’s stoner rockers and alternative music survivors The Melvins return to the Queen City after a seven year absence to play The Buffalo Iron Works tonight. With not one but two albums in stores this year, Three Men And A Baby and Bases Loaded, the sludge metal masters will be joined by Seattle sludge rockers Helms Alee, promoting their fourth LP Stillicide. Day of tickets are $22 and doors open at 8pm. The Iron Works brick building will be vibrating mightily so prepare yourselves.

Tonight: The Mystery Lights

August 16, 2016

Fans of Daptone Records know that whatever the label is putting out, whether it’s Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Charles Bradley, Antibalas, Naomi Shelton & The Gospel Queens, or The Budos Band, it’s going to sound instantly classic but also have a sense of immediacy that says “we’re here, you’re hear, and this is right now.” Now the Bushwick ,Brooklyn soul empire is expanding to include straight up rock music with their new WICK Records imprint, and their first band The Mystery Lights will be making their Buffalo debut tonight at the Mohawk Place. Cranking an insurgent brand of rock that channels The Animals, Jefferson Airplane, and The Black Angels, the Salinas, California by way of Queens outfit will be in town to promote the eponymous debut album, released in June. Opening the show will be the recently reformed The Good, the city’s first New Wave band, along with heavy duty garage rockers The Pepperoni Boys,[...]

Tonight: Bold Folly

August 11, 2016

Broncho might have stiffed local fans tonight but a night of solid local music still awaits later at the Mohawk featuring psych rockers Bold Folly, dreambeaches, and Mr. Boneless. Bold Folly’s been cultivating an alluring sound that’s part Gene Pitney on acid, part unhinged rockabilly, and part bluesy space rock for a year or so, releasing the EP Queen City Tuesday in March. dreambeaches approach their satisfying take on psychedelic pop in a way that recalls fun Peter Gabriel from the mid 80’s, the Beach Boys, and Vampire Weekend, while Mr. Boneless brings a distinctly Flaming Lips vibe to their vaguely country rock sound. Taken together there’s a possibility your brains might be running out your noses by the end of the night… in a good way. Show begins at 8pm, and cover is $5.

Brat’ya – Call Me

August 1, 2016

Lovers of layered vintage synths, naked emotion, and neon soundscapes will find much joy on our Album Of The Week, Brat’ya’s debut five song EP Call Me. The brainchild of Buffalo by way of  Azerbaijani electronica artist Alek Ogadzhanov, Brat’ya combines the electronic majesty of M83 and Miami Horror with the plaintive indie rock vocals of Death Cab For Cutie (but not The Postal Service) to tremendous effect, creating music that sounds sweet in the ear and resonates in your soul, making Call Me the complete package. “Be Someone” gets Call Me off to a strong start, stripping the electronic layers back to a slow burning, throbbing heartbeat under prayerful lyrics that speak to these… interesting times. Sure, sentiments like “let go of fear, give into love” and “I just want to say free your heart” never go out of fashion, but during this summer, after those two political conventions, they feel[...]