Latest Posts

Alberto Alaska Debuts First Full Length Album, Possession

August 28, 2015

Alberto Alaska is a band with creative intention and control, and those qualities manifest themselves pretty apparently in both their recorded material and live performances. They don’t shy away from investing in their sound and there’s something laudable to be said of that. For roughly the past year and a half, the Rochester based quintet has plugged away in Buffalo’s own GCR Audio recording studio to perfect their first full length release, Possession. With distinct strains of 90’s era alt-rock woven in, the band’s signature heavy riffage style and soaring, ethereal vocals have made a bigger and better comeback on the new release. It tastefully mirrors bands like Circa Survive and Hrvrd but manages to maintain a feel of its own. The album itself is a true exemplification of the congruous relationship these guys have formed between purposeful art and unrelenting attention to sonic detail. Skillfully disembodied is the vibe[...]

Tonight: Space Wolves

August 27, 2015

You wouldn’t necessarily guess it upon first listen, but Space Wolves’ music offers up an interesting contradiction. The duo, comprised of Chris Scamurra and Nick Reynolds, pairs woeful lyrics with docile instrumentals, then runs it all through a sprightly, retro-pop filter. Of course, it’s a little naive to to think that happy sounding music always equates to happy subject matter, but SW’s version of this contradiction really resonates. To me, it’s the very real angst that a lot of us self-doubting, nervous ninnies feel, masked in the sunny tint of a 60’s sitcom. In a similar fashion to Newish Star, Space Wolves have very few songs over two and half minutes, making each one a quick jab that knocks you back because you’re either A) relating all too well to the tragedies of heartbreak and debilitating anxiety or B) you’re dancing your arse off to the rambunctious surf rock melodies.[...]

Tonight: Beach House

August 21, 2015

Beach House is a band that wants you to pay attention to more than just their haze-pop sound. The Baltimore duo has been at it for just about 11 years now and they’ve maintained consistent notability throughout. But they’ve also been met with some opposition over, oddly enough, the consistency of their sound and the lack of drastic sonic change over the years. In a 2012 interview with Pitchfork, Alex Scally discloses, “Writing about us, people have said: ‘Do we need another album by this band?’ What the fuck is that? That only matters if you’re just listening to sound…A lot of people listening to music now don’t listen to the songs or lyrics at all. They just go, ‘Good tones…’ and that’s it. But we’re obsessed with songs. Sometimes, I feel like people aren’t listening to our songs, they’re just listening to the sound.” Beach House is heavily identified[...]

Aqueous

August 17, 2015

Aqueous is a successful Buffalo-born band and it’s hard to argue otherwise. Success, however, is such an imprecise concept these days. It can be boiled down to every individual musician having their own definition. Even then, it’s difficult to surmise that there’s ever one defining moment of success for anyone. That being said, if there is anything that Mike Gantzer, Dave Loss, Evan McPhaden, Ryan Nogle, and now Tom Vayo have been successful at as active musicians in one of Buffalo’s most beloved groove rock bands, it is this: viewing success as a ceaseless process and sowing carefully plotted seeds of progress along the way. If Buffalo is a toasty incubator for musical talent, the guys from Aqueous are the eggs everyone is rooting for to hatch next. The band has four full length studio releases and multiple tours under their belts, and can draw a steadfast crowd at every[...]

Comfy // Skirts Split

August 10, 2015

It can be difficult to view a split release as a singular piece of work, and in some sense, it’s much more common and appropriate to view each artist’s contribution of songs as an individual creation. Comfy and Skirts’ latest joint EP release from Miscreant and Dadstache Records seems way more accessible as one harmonious album than usual. These two bands work well on their own, but are also incredibly compatible with one another. To me, Comfy is the unkempt, rebel of a sibling and Skirts is the slightly more ordered, quirk-ridden one. Both are deliberate in their sound. Both are equally expressive. I saw Comfy, a lo-fi garage pop band out of Utica, for the first time at Nietzsche’s not too long ago. Their live performance involved swaddling a fake baby fashioned from a blanket full of red string and disassembling it in a frenzied manner (the fake baby was[...]

Tonight: Attic Abasement

August 7, 2015

If you like Fridays, if you like Nietzsche’s, if you like stacked bills at Nietzsche’s, there is a 100% chance that you should locate your physical being there for tonight’s gem of a lineup. Hailing from Rochester, Attic Abasement is a low-fi indie trio who’s slack-rock sound unites a quiescent attitude with effortlessly disheveled vocals and instrumentals. Frontman Mike Rheinheimer’s voice, at times, bears sonic resemblance to Dave Bazan’s (Pedro The Lion) mellow but emotionally pointed croon. It’s basement music with a simple exterior, but there’s a lyrical complexity woven in that heightens the captivation factor. Opening the show are three beloved local bands including Sixties Future, a new Gaslight Anthem-like band, MAGS, and Newish Star. Cover is only $5 and music kicks off around 10pm. Check out the Facebook event for more information.

Iron & Wine w/ Ben Bridwell at Canalside (7/30/15)

July 31, 2015

As Samuel Beam and Ben Bridwell sidle on stage, they are received by a spirited yet collected crowd. Beam has this benevolent air about him while Bridwell has more of a boyish excitability (you can see this as his head flits back and forth at the mic and he attempts to dance). Beam, most commonly known under the moniker Iron & Wine, and Bridwell, vocalist of the staple indie-rock group Band of Horses, are undoubtedly two successful and prolific musicians in the indie/alt-folk scene of the past decade. So naturally, with their talents combined in a joint set, we expect great things. The duo’s friendship predates both of their main musical projects and the camaraderie is apparent. There’s a moment mid-show where they exchange coy laughs and joke about Hootie and the Blowfish being the only notable band out of South Carolina (both are also originally from SC). Beam takes[...]

Tonight: Rebecca Ryskalczyk

July 27, 2015

Rebecca Ryskalczyk, a current member of Bethlehem Steel and former member of the now defunct Paul’s Grandfather, is no stranger to the DIY music scene. As of late, she’s really taken the DIY attitude to heart by embarking on a solo tour. That solo tour has landed her in her home city tonight, to much anticipation from friends and fans alike. Ryskalczyk has a subtle approach to vocals and instrumentals, but there’s more to it than that. Though she successfully maintains a genuine vulnerability in her sound, total fragility doesn’t seem to be what she’s going for. This helps her music have it’s own alluring brand of dynamism, in that she can be gently whisper-singing one second, belting the next, and have it all dig at you in some intense way. This show is definitely a good one to check out, whether you haven’t made it out to any Infringement[...]

The Loner(s) – I Wish Shit Would Stop Spinning

July 20, 2015

To a certain degree, there is something voyeuristic about any deeply personal album that someone decides to put out in the open. But it’s the combination of James Keegan’s forthright lyricism and “bedroomy” sound quality that provokes something especially voyeuristic. I Wish Shit Would Stop Spinning is the recent full length release from The Loner(s), a one man band out of Rochester. You can put this album on and have it totally stitch itself into the background while simultaneously feeling like your ear is pressed to James’ wall, listening to him play muffled guitar and grapple with some form of despondency. There are little foot notes under all 10 songs on Bandcamp that detail what day each song was recorded and how the song was recorded — all have been recorded on a digital portastudio or 4-track cassette recorder. I don’t get the immediate sense that perfect sonic balance is[...]

Tonight: Jaill

July 17, 2015

Unite The Beatles, Ty Segall, The Beets, Beach Fossils, The Spinto Band and Surfer Blood in a harmonious marriage, and Jaill is the ultra cool offspring of all six individually brilliant parents. It’d be too much of a cop out to describe ‘em as just plain surf rock, because it’s a little more varied and textured. They have a distinctive psych-pop sound with a dark tinge in terms of lyrics, all wrapped up in a bubblegum-like exterior. Jaill, a member of the extensive Burger Records family (and formerly a member of Subpop Records), recently released their full length album Brain Cream in June of this year. In celebration of the release, they’re bringing their divey jangle pop to Mohawk Place tonight. The album is a great continuous listen and successfully dangles the listener at the threshold of low-key pleasantry and fetching, upbeat energy. The rest of the lineup includes The[...]

Tonight: Gillian

July 11, 2015

In elementary school, I had this friend named Gillian (spelled the same way). She was a fearless girl careful coordinate every outfit, had every hair on her head neatly trimmed, was clear and concise, but was also totally unafraid to throw down on the monkey bars, make up  Britney Spears songs by herself at recess and live in an eccentric bubble of her own. All of this comes to mind because it seems to be an adaptive description for Gillian the band (hear me out on this one). The quintet has a sound that’s super cohesive and well thought out, but entirely daring at the same time. It’s a cool fusion between 70’s disco and 80’s power rock, all housed under an undeniably catchy umbrella of indie dance pop. The alternating male/female vocals add a fresh and sonically pleasing dimension to it all. The New York City band recently released[...]

1809 Studios Releases Latest Session feat. Skirts

July 6, 2015

Though its gritty garage punk sound is poppy enough to dance to, Skirts also have this old-fashioned, summer heartbreak sound that’s hard to get out of your head. The Rochester-based band released an 1809 Session for the track “Swimming” late last week, making it the latest installment in the series. 1809 Sessions is a recurring video series filmed at 1809 Studios in Macedon, NY that has recorded live sessions for a variety of Rochester and touring bands. With the popularity of visuals in the music realm rising, tons of bands are filming live sessions these days. That being said, not every band’s energy translates well through video, but that doesn’t seem to be a problem in the slightest with Skirts. The band has plans to release a split EP with garage-pop band Comfy from Utica through Miscreant and Dadstache Records. Keep your eyes and ears peeled for that in early[...]

Tonight: Dreambeaches

July 3, 2015

The surf rock genre is one that has erupted in recent years, to the point where you can almost find a little bit of surf in a significant portion of indie music. With bands like Best Coast, Wavves, Surfer Blood, Beach Fossils, and Real Estate in heavy rotation, it’s a sub-genre that has cemented itself into the larger indie rock scene pretty darn well. Dreambeaches unites foamy instrumentals with a bubbly, melody-driven overlay, both of which mimic the swell and wane of an easygoing tide. With only a single song released, Corey Bzibziak (bassist of Humblebraggers) has left a lot of people’s ears perked for what’s to come. Tonight is the group’s full band debut at Nietzsche’s, alongside Fredonia based Buxom, as an opener. Scope & Figure, an alt-punk outfit from Rochester, NY, will be headlining the show in support of recent release, Exemplary Sports Magic. The group’s music is[...]

Spoon at Canalside (6/25/15)

June 27, 2015

It goes without saying that there’s something exceptional about a band that’s been in the game for so long and still preserves a knack for consistency and relevance. In the case of Spoon, “in the game” translates to eight full length releases over the span of two decades, six singles peaking in the top 50 of US rock charts, music placement in over a dozen movies and television shows, and international tours galore. I imagine the band’s consistent success being attributed to the unique duality of their music. It has a classic rock ‘n’ roll feel to it and is poppy enough to reel in droves of both young and old. Spoon is like the quiet cool kid you knew from high school — somehow noticed by few and everyone at the same time — who undeniably wore his heart on his sleeve but disguised that sensitivity with a gritty[...]

Real Estate at the Tralf Music Hall (6/20/15)

June 22, 2015

Within ten minutes of me shuffling in, the entire venue goes from about 300 people to full capacity. Bodies are pressed up against the stage. Every crevice is filled on the floor. The band dives right into their muted, suburban-rock jams. “Have my adopted babies!” “Play at my wedding!” Proclamations like these along with “Fuck yeah, Real Estate” chants are hurled at the band from keyed-up fans. When you hear Real Estate, you don’t really picture their live show being accompanied by a rowdy audience. Understated sound and presence is their whole schtick, but it strikes me as less of a schtick and more of an inherent quality of all five members. In a 2014 interview with Pitchfork, guitarist Matt Mondanile states, “Our music possesses an ambient quality similar to electronic music — it’s pleasing to have on in the background.” There is no gimmick with this New Jersey born[...]