Latest Posts

The Get Money Squad – Nothing’s Wrong

A spanking-new collaboration from Network’s Quinton Brock and producer Jon Bap keeps it fresh and brings forth a batch of songs with an unexpected new sound. Dubbed The Get Money Squad, the duo gets summery with their debut EP titled Nothing’s Wrong. Think the carefree attitude of Mac DeMarco meets the poetic softness of Shuggie Otis. Bap’s jangly guitar riffs compliment Brock’s smooth vocals nicely, and the combination is cooler than John Stamos double-fisting a pair of large Slurpees. Damn, that’s cool. Nothing’s Wrong is our Album of the Week. “Bohemia” introduces the EP with a quick minute of dialogue before melting away into a hypnotic instrumental section that I wish was much longer. The opener bleeds right into “June666” (my favorite of the five tracks), which chronicles a relationship between the devil and his significant other while a simple drumbeat and a fun bass line carry the song through[...]

Besnyo – Worry

I was conned. The year was 2008, and I had made my way downtown to see my fellow Eden-ites in A Hotel Nourishing play a show presented by Harvest Sum at Nietzsche’s. Alex Berkley had just finished playing his acoustic solo set, during which he had repeatedly suggested that the audience buy his new record, Worry, at the merch table in the front. Having enjoyed his set and completely oblivious to his clever ruse, I weaved my way to the merch table and paid for my copy of Worry. It wasn’t until later that night that I realized, somewhat shamefully, that the CD that I paid for was not the work of Alex Berkley. It was the work of Harvest Sum heavyweights Besnyo, and I am happy to say that the embarrassment resulting from my gullibility dissolved away just a few short minutes into their set that night. Worry is buffaBLOG’s[...]

Steak & Cake Records

Let’s get this done! This Friday, Buffalo’s own Steak & Cake Records, the Potomac based DIY label, will host the very first showcase of the inaugural Herd Fest at College Street Gallery, featuring a stacked lineup of local favorites. Space Wolves will kick off the night at 7:00 with a set of their signature blend of surf / garage rock, followed by the rhythmic indie pep of the NYBRKFST (pronounced “New York Breakfast”) at 7:45. Next up on the menu of delicious sonic treats is Alex Berkley & the Atlanta Falcons at 8:40, which is bound to be bangin’ if their performance at the buffaBLOG Birthday Party earlier this year is any indication of what Berkley and the boys are capable of. I’m especially excited for the return of A Hotel Nourishing, closing out the showcase with their set at 9:25. You won’t want to miss this two-piece, consisting of[...]

Newish Star Releases Look Both Ways

I didn’t know what to expect when I dove into Look Both Ways, the early-June release from fresh Buffalo act, Newish Star. As I examined their bandcamp page, I noticed there isn’t a track on Look that touches the two-minute mark, so the moments before that initial listen-through were saturated with a nervous curiosity. Safe to say the songs—frenetic Dinosaur Jr-style explosions of noisy energy—warrant the quickness. It works. The opening track, “Super Double Jackpot,” touches on the all-too-familiar feeling of helplessness with lyrics like “So you tried, and you gave it your all / but the only thing that matters is the control of it all”, as the song races to the finish line, raucous and proud. Other highlights include the 36-second-long punk number “No Way Out”, the satiating riff-work of “Newbody,” and the whistle solo (yes, whistle solo) a midst the bumbling chug of “Runnin’ Rich.” Although proclaimed[...]

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Only Run

“How can I open up?” asks Clap Your Hands Say Yeah’s Alec Ounsworth on “As Always”- the opening track of the band’s latest release. He seems to have answered his own question, as the song- a cosmic cascade of phaser synths and Ounsworth’s signature howl- introduces the soaring, synthetic atmosphere of Only Run– the band’s first LP since 2011’s Hysterical. CYHSY has come a long way since their humble beginnings as a DIY-oriented indie band, but the overly electronic Only Run seems to lack that idiosyncratic energy that made them so buzzworthy in the first place. 2012 marked the departure of guitarist/keyboardist Robbie Guertin and bassist Tyler Sargent, which could offer explanation to such a wild reinvention of their sound. Lineup changes aside, the new album lacks substance, and left my appetite for classic Clap Your Hands hooks completely intact. However, Only Run does not come without its merits. “Impossible[...]