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Tonight: Nik Turner’s Hawkwind

November 28, 2015

Tonight, legendary flutist and vocalist Nik Turner will be bringing his edition of the legendary UK space rock band Hawkwind to Buffalo’s own Mohawk Place for a special show featuring San Francisco kraut rock outfit Hedersleben. Nik Turner’s Hawkwind will without a doubt melt some brains at the Mohawk with their heavy sound, science fiction and metaphysical explorations, avant-garde use of strings and wood instruments, and otherworldly vocalizations of the guru-like visionary Turner. Don’t plan on operating heavy machinery for a while after this show. Fusing Tuetonic Krautrock stridency and their own sci-fi apocalyptic space rock musings, the Bay area’s Hedersleben will get the mood set right, along with local favorites Handsome Jack and Hawkwind fans Malarchuk. I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention that Hawkwind featured a young Ian “Lemmy” Kilmister, so nostalgic Motorhead fans won’t want to miss this. Tickets are $10, with doors at 7pm and show at 8pm.

Record Store Day Black Friday Preview

November 25, 2015

Ah… the filthy capitalists! In their unquenchable thirst for more dollars they finally managed to thoroughly bungle Black Friday last year, with ludicrous early AM opening times and worse, some retailers even opened on Thanksgiving Day. Consumers amazingly said “ya basta!” and the swine took a bath. It was beautiful. Independent record stores however eschewed the lunacy, instead continuing their own Black Friday tradition of Record Store Day specials and in store fun, a tradition that will be there for you, weary consumer, after you’ve done battle, or eschewed the scrum and saved yourselves exclusively for the pleasures of the record shop. In either case, enjoy yourselves at these following fine record merchants. Both Record Theatre locations (3500 Main St in University Plaza, 1800 Main St at Lafayette St) will be opening at 9am with Black Friday Record Store Day special releases, prizes, and surprises all day. Black Dots (223 Lafayette St[...]

Tonight: George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic

November 22, 2015

It is not an overstatement to say that George Clinton’s impact on popular music is “incalculable.” As the band leader/ring leader of the brilliant musical collective that gave the world Funkadelic and Parliament, he took the funk originated by James Brown, Sly Stone, Tower Of Power, and The Isley’s in the 60’s and used it as a palette to take the genre and African American music and art further than anybody could’ve possibly imagined. The funk itself became the thing: a vehicle for psychedelic exploration and conceptual adventurism that combined ass shaking grooves, ambitious production and stagecraft, humor, and biting social commentary to create a sc-fi parallel universe of African American expression, the original Black Superheroes (before the arrival of Public Enemy, also Clinton disciples). And that’s not even getting into the inescapable fact that P-Funk became the musical foundation for the Golden Age of Hip-Hop of the late 80’s/early 90’s.[...]

Tonight: Sixties Future EP Release Party

November 20, 2015

After stoking serious interest about town with some impressive shows at the Mohawk Place this summer and fall, not to mention at Dreamland opening for Made Violent’s last local show before their UK tour with Wolf Alice and Drenge, Buffalo’s next big band, Sixties Future will be celebrating the release of their highly anticipated debut EP tonight at Nietzsche’s. If that wasn’t enough, the release party also features from newbie emo/grunge locals Cooler, the soaring beach punks of Rochester’s Skirts, and the always excellent Aircraft. For my part, I don’t think I’ll ever forget that first time seeing Sixties Future at Mohawk this past summer, watching these guys unload a pleasing and distinctly Rust Belt tinged brand of American rock with notes of Springsteen and The National, and exchanging incredulous looks with fellow staffers Brendan O’Connor and Ron Walczyk while Mike Moretti stood at the back smiling beatifically like a happy papa.[...]

Tonight: Michael Parallax

November 11, 2015

Dreamland’s living room is one of the best and most innately interactive spaces in Buffalo. Beyond ideal for shows that blur if not smash the barriers that traditionally exist separating artist and audience, special experiences are known to jump off underneath that magical chandelier, and this will certainly be true tonight when Orlando’s Michael Parallax returns to Buffalo. A frequent tour mate of Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt!, Parallax’s celebratory pop art happening revival meeting freak out is perfect for the venue, so be prepared for some togetherness with your fellow humans after sets from an impressive lineup of local electronic arts including, the always fine Armageddon Party, Hooked On Casiophonics, and Logan Locking. The “suggested” donation is $5 and the show starts at 8pm. WHO WE ARE by Michael Parallax

Tonight: Lydia Loveless

November 5, 2015

There’s an emerging consensus that holds that Columbus, Ohio native Lydia Loveless can do no wrong. A singer/songwriter of uncommon clarity, grit, and conviction, she seems to defiantly hold the very promise and potential of American music in her hands. Having just stuffed the sophomore slump in the trunk of her car and on the road behind her just released Somewhere Else, Loveless returns to the Sportsmen’s Tavern stage tonight along with Toronto alt-country trio Elliot Brood. Tickets are $17 and doors open at 7pm.

Tonight: Futurebirds

November 3, 2015

Athens, Georgia’s Futurebirds bring their laid back and stoned out brand of country rock to Mohawk Place tonight along with Burlington roots rockers Waylon Speed and local folk rockers Hokan. In town promoting their latest release, Hotel Parties, Futurebirds are a riot of chiming, cascading guitars and sweet harmonies, and for fans of Brooklyn it-band Phosphorescent, this is a can’t miss. Vermont’s own Waylon Speed, meanwhile, is straight ahead, ecstatic American roots music that’s a transcendent tonic for your clapping hands, dancing bones, and world weary soul. Tickets are $12, doors are at 7pm and Hokan gets the show started right around 8pm.

buffaBLOG Halloween Playlist 2015

October 27, 2015

Halloween is a wonderful time of year. Parties, scary movies, inappropriate uses of black face, schizophrenic weather, sexy Donald Trump costumes, themed playlists… this time of year has it all, and we here at buffaBLOG have you covered for the first and last ones. David Bowie with Frank Black – “Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)” In honor of news that Sir David will be releasing a new album January 8, 2016 (his birthday), here’s a live clip from 1997 featuring Bowie and Black Francis performing the 1979 classic. Can’t believe this clip is almost 20 years old. The Flaming Lips – “The Terror” (live) The terror in question is more existential than diabolical. Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds –  “Red Right Hand” This one is for The X-Files fans out there. Two more months to new episodes! Hopefully they live up to our expectations! Pink Floyd – “Careful With That[...]

Neon Indian at the Tralf (10/23/15)

October 25, 2015

In a year of live music treats, Friday night has to stand out thanks to the much anticipated return of Denton, Texas electronic funk outfit Neon Indian to Buffalo after a five and a half year absence, along with truly excellent opening support from Explorer Tapes and Lesionread. Any hard feelings (there really weren’t any) would be completely forgotten, wiped away by an electro-funk heavy set that took the crowd to Night School and turned the Tralf into an 80’s dance party. Explorer Tapes got everything going right with a gorgeous and aching set of Brian Wilson meets Lindsey Buckingham influenced 80’s yacht rock. The duo of Max Townsley and Drew Erickson, also from Denton, impressed the seated Tralf audience with plaintive and sweetly expressive harmonies, Buckinghamesque guitars and dreamy sythns, making the place feel like a nightclub on a cruise ship, which was perfectly simpatico with the headliner who’d composed[...]

Watch Lesionread Perform Final “Art All Day” Set

October 24, 2015

Last night at the Tralf, Lesionread (aka Shawn/Sean Lewis/Louis) staged a triumphant return to BFLO opening for Neon Indian. The beat heavy and trippy set gradually drew in the crowd of LR neophytes, offering a tactile, almost punk experience all in the service of spreading the love and selling art.  By set’s end, the whole floor was jumping with joyful abandon, a fitting conclusion to Lewis’ “Art All Day” era. Check it out the set below, and for a full review of the show, click here.

Tonight: Superhuman Happiness

October 16, 2015

Luminescent NYC quartet Superhuman Happiness will be bringing their insanely pleasing brand of psych pop to Allentown’s Nietzsche’s later on tonight. Brimming with gorgeous boy-girl dual harmonies, warm and fuzzy melodies, and a mightily funky horn reminiscent of Antibalas, Superhuman Happiness are in town promoting their latest release Escape Velocity, and the vibe and good feelings will be potent and utterly irresistible. Opening the show will be blog favorite and Buffalo hip-hop troublemaker Jack Toft. According to the Bandsintown event page, doors open at 7pm, but this is Nietzsche’s so it’s probably closer to 9pm to 10pm, and the cover is unknown, so I’d keep $10 handy along with your dancing shoes…

Why We Can’t Have Nice Things

October 14, 2015

The Buffalo News via Buffalo.com reported Wednesday that the Common Council unanimously voted Tuesday to eventually move the wildly successful Canalside Concert Series somewhere not Canalside, a move that might potentially kill off the long running concert series just when it’s getting good. Apparently complaints about noise, traffic, and unruly young people by Marine Drive Apartments residents proved sufficient to precipitate this shock move, and now Canalside concertgoers get to look forward to the series moving to the Outer Harbor or Lasalle Park, and truthfully, I don’t think the series can survive a move to either. Let’s be honest: while summer was great, it hasn’t been a good couple of weeks for the “fun crowd” in Western New York, with the oncoming change in bar closing time in Erie County, which is totally happening by the way (you’ve been warned), and now word of a Canalside Concert move to the[...]

Tonight: Blitzen Trapper

October 10, 2015

Portland roots rockers Blitzen Trapper make a welcome return to Buffalo tonight at the Town Ballroom along with Jesse Malin. After excellent shows at the Mohawk and Tralf over the years, the PAC-NW country/folk rock five piece will be bringing songs off their most recent release All Across This Land, a return to form that finds the band refocusing themselves on their sound after the progressive yet somewhat unsatisfying VII, while the acclaimed singer songwriter and man of the people Jesse Malin will be celebrating the release of of 2015, Outsiders, which just dropped  yesterday. This will be a celebration of the best kinds of American music: raw, soulful, exuberant, inclusive, joyfully real, and a really good time. Tickets are still available for $16. Doors open at 7pm while the show starts at 8pm.

Toro Y Moi at Waiting Room (9/29/15)

September 30, 2015

Columbia South Carolina electro-funk chameleon Toro Y Moi at last made his Buffalo debut Tuesday night at a sweltering Waiting Room with Astronauts, etc. and the clear consensus is that show was absolutely worth the wait. In town in support of  What For, his fourth studio album in five years, the prolific Toro Y Moi (aka Chaz Bundick) delivered an expansive set of chilled out electronica and corporate funk as heady, psychedelic ear candy that got the crowd moving Opening act Astronauts, etc. established an incredibly chilled out vibe with an intensely smooth and soulful light disco rock built on a tight yet laid back rhythm section, dreamy keyboards and the seemingly effortless falsetto of lead vocalist and member of Toro Y Moi’s touring band,  Anthony Ferraro. The vibe was straight up late 70’s and it was strong, moving the growing crowd with sharp grooves and mesmerizing them with melodic and[...]

KOPPS – The Sound of Music

September 27, 2015

One of my favorite shows this year was easily !!! with Rochester’s KOPPS downstairs in the Ninth Ward at Babeville this past May. If the acoustics in Asbury Hall are dodgy, the acoustics in that brick basement are downright sublime, and that was a show you felt in every cell of your being, the energy created by both bands a thing felt that night. After being dogged by sound issues earlier in the week at Waiting Room, KOPPS in particular sounded spectacular, getting the crowd moving and playing new songs pointing to an even denser, ambitious sound to go with their never secret weapon, vocalist Patricia Patron. This latest iteration of blog favorite KOPPS is on full display on The Sound Of Music, a four track EP co-written with Joywave’s Daniel Armbruster released last Friday via Cultco which fulfills those ambitions and then some. “My Gold” was a huge hit live[...]