Album of the Week

Matches Laces – Matches Laces EP

October 10, 2024

Chronologically speaking, Matches Laces may be a name that’s new to your ears, but a deeper dive will tell you it’s actually the moniker of a Buffalo music scene stalwart. Mike Santillo has been kicking around town for more than a decade as 1/3 of beloved Buffalo-based indie rockers The Tins. Santillo’s desire to combine organic and synthetic sounds has resulted in a batch of eight new songs, affectionately self-titled the Matches Laces EP. Soothing, vintage-sounding synths fill every space on this release – expect lots of rigid arpeggiation and mechanical drum machine percussion being combined into something surprisingly warm and human-sounding. Matches Laces first strikes a flame with album opener “Didn’t You Lie To Me?” With its pleasing ascending chord progression and Santillo’s falsetto vocals, fans of MGMT, Passion Pit, and Tame Impala will find themselves smitten. Throughout the song, arpeggiated synths twinkle brightly over a simple-but-effective bassline while puffs[...]

Roger Bryan and The Orphans – Days Or Nights​/​That​’​s Life!

September 25, 2024

It wouldn’t be a stretch to call Buffalo-based act Roger Bryan and the Orphans “elder statesmen” – for the last 16+ years, Bryan & co. have been crafting ragged, heartstring-healing Americana. Their latest album, Days Or Nights/That’s Life! (DONTL), is a 10-song continuation of their ever-growing catalogue. Expect songs that sound rusty (in a Rust Belt sort of way), soaked with harmonica, vintage organ tones, and crispy Telecaster-esque crunch that you might expect from someplace where the music tends to be a little more twangy. DONTL kicks off with the rambling “Remind Me,” which immediately highlights the aforementioned instrumental suite that makes Bryan’s compositions so heartwarming. Screaming harmonica soars overtop an open chord jangle, falling into a pocket of alt-country emotion that feels hopeful, lovelorn, and lightly restless. Bryan’s hushed but impassioned vocals are an obvious pull here, and while this is certainly more Wilco-coded than late-90s pop rock, I do[...]

Fuzzrod – III

September 20, 2024

Rochester’s Fuzzrod is a no-nonsense kind of band. In a world full of twinkly and ethereal lo-fi beats to study and chill to, Fuzzrod’s latest EP, III, might function as the exact opposite. Sure, there’s a time and a place for mood music, but there’s no substitute for heading out to the Bug Jar on a Friday night and having your eardrums destroyed by a dimed Big Muff. Fuzzrod aims for a happy medium – produced by drummer Stephen Roessner (as always), III is a rare, fuzzed-out record that focuses on songwriting as much as its fun, punked-0ut live energy. It’s intentionally five (5) songs in length – a “healthy dose to support daily use” for those of us relegated to our nine to fives. “Map of Outside” kicks off the album with a spitty guitar riff, spring-loaded with plenty of retro punk energy. The sludgy tones here are masterfully captured[...]

Siddo. – Romantic Rehab

July 7, 2024

Buffalo indie-punk phenomenon, Starjuice, have been making a name for themselves on many o’ local bills as well as a recent tour across the country.  Despite their busy gig schedule and multiple releases under their belt, lead singer Sidney Flanigan has been releasing quality solo acoustic folk-punk material on the low. You can find these on Bandcamp under the name, Siddo., as well as a couple other previous monikers which she references there. Her latest release Romantic Rehab is comprised of four excellently written songs about hopeless romanticism, learning to move on from those who hurt us and trusting loved ones who care. The first song, “Smoking Cessation” compares quitting a cigarette addiction to leaving behind a broken relationship in the most heartbreaking manner. The song basks in understated indie-folk sadness before building to an emotional outburst with Flanigan’s raspy punk vocals on full display. The short yet satisfying song[...]

Catch the Ghost – Midnight Naps in Cemeteries

July 7, 2024

Catch The Ghost is Buffalo’s first phantom-themed emo-punk band. That’s right, it’s more than just a name – the group’s latest project Midnight Naps in Cemeteries takes haunting personal issues, whether that be vices, fears, anxiety, or people we hate, and compares them to troublesome ghosts that pester to no end. It’s a fantastic metaphorical vehicle that creates some intriguing lyrics as well as unifies the project under one focus. The group’s guitarist, Luke Wheeler said “We’ve always had a really fond fascination with ghost hunting, and Zack Bagans’ style of aggressive paranormal research.” The group actually did an hour-long live stream titled “Hinsdale Investigation,” in which they did some of this paranormal work. They said “Practical ghost hunting applications are crucial for songwriting.” In addition, the two remaining members, Kody Fintak and Nick Benstead, expressed their love for an indie horror video game called Phasmophobia. Funnily enough, the first[...]

Jimso Slim – 3 is the Number

June 19, 2024

Shane Joyce is Rochester’s one man indie rock wrecking crew. Joyce is a talented multi-instrumentalist and his project, Jimso Slim is a jewel in the Western New York music scene. Of his project, Joyce said: “I record and play all of the parts. The only exception is a recent song called ‘Brother’s Dead’ where my friend Russell Brinkman recorded the bass.” He continued, “Everything is recorded out of my basement. I have a drum kit, a few guitars, a bass, a couple amps and a couple microphones. I’m certainly not an expert at recording or instrumentation, but I just do what I can and see what happens.” His latest release 3 is the Number, is an EP composed of, you guessed it, three great indie tunes. On the first track, “Rita Says,” Jimso Slim’s nasally Dylan-esque delivery grabs the listeners attention over a swooning instrumental. Backing chorus vocals add dimension and[...]

Mark of Fatality – Last Breath Under One Thousand Stars

June 9, 2024

The intro track off of Erie metallic hardcore band, Mark of Fatality’s debut studio EP, Last Breath Under One Thousand Stars, starts with an air of reverence. A dramatic synth part builds while a speaker says things like “This war was never about good and evil,” “Public places are now a shooting range and artificial intelligence is the new age.” They question “Have we really evolved into complex beings or are we still primitive beasts based on instinct?” He concludes with something he’s sure of: “We all have the Mark of Fatality.” It’s a bit ecclesiastic in the way it describes primeval problems and how relative they are to our current decaying world, you know, in a real metal, hardcore type of way. Anthony Hudock, the band’s guitarist, mentions how early 90s metalcore bands like Undying and Prayer for Cleansing, often included synth intros similar to this one. The spoken-word[...]

Luno J and Neftali – The Dramatic

May 16, 2024

Rapper Neftali and producer Luno J have an intriguing history in the local music scene, prior to releasing their recent six-song collaborative project, The Dramatic. Neftali, who started in the scene seven years ago, was a member within the now defunct alternative hip-hop group, FREAK THE MIIGHTY. Lately, he’s releasing solo music as well as fronting Buffalo hardcore band, JEWELTONE. Luno J, a recent transplant to the city in 2021, joined local powerhouse rap group Free Music Party soon after. He began making a name for himself with his unique production style fusing influences from EDM, R&B and hip hop.  Luno said of a specific musical inspiration for The Dramatic, “I really like Flume and in particular the tracks he does with rappers because it’s kind of an untapped genre of EDM-influenced experimental tracks with rapping over top.”  This influence is evident in the intro track, “Too Late,” which combines hip hop[...]

puh-GEEZ – LEVELS

April 10, 2024

If you’re out exploring record shops in Buffalo, you might run into local hip hop artist puh-GEEZ who calls music havens like Soul Stop, Black Dots, and Apples and Oranges his home. He shops for his own enjoyment as well as picks up records for his DJ sets which he performs under the name, Knew’d. Inspired by physical media, puh-GEEZ recently released his 2-sided project, LEVELS in segments. The first side dropped on September 21st of last year while the second half came out on March 17th this year. For Bandcamp listeners the entirety of the project has been available in full since the fall. About the release, the rapper and producer said: “I think I made Side 1 available everywhere cause it just seemed like the right thing to do. Side-B was a little more personal in a way and I think I just wanted it to be more[...]

Robbery Club – SHARP AIR / ALONE

April 5, 2024

Robbery Club is Buffalo-style punk rock done right. The group is hot off a killer set on a stacked show at Casa Di Francesca’s on March 7th, and a debut release of two singles released just a few days prior. It may seem like Robbery Club is coming out of nowhere, but that’s not the case. Members within the current lineup have been impressing the local scene with their aggressively catchy blend of pop-punk and emo for quite some time under their previous title, Ghostpool.  Check out our 2018 review, which touched on the “crunchy guitars and hooks aplenty” in their debut EP. Just one nostalgic stream of their 2019 track, “Bug,” will guarantee it to be stuck in your head all day. It’s a chokehold angsty emo melody on a song that still feels punk as hell. Their debut tracks as Robbery Club, “SHARP AIR” and “ALONE” build upon this[...]

Jaugust – Be My Echo, Always

March 26, 2024

Buffalo’s latest electronic duo, Jaugust, specializes in a catchy, relatable indie-pop sound inspired by early 2000s electronica-meets-emo bands like The Postal Service, American Football, and The Appleseed Cast. The duo is composed of Nick Sessanna of the Buffalo indie-emo band Cooler (check out our previous review) and Anthony DelPlato of indie meets alt-pop act Everything in Waves (previous reviews here). Their debut release, Be My Echo, Always, came out on September 8th, 2023. The project’s opener, “Racing the Shadows,” is a perfect modern take on upbeat synth-pop. It’s a “running away” song that sounds like the band is trying to beat out past mistakes by turning a blind eye to them. The second verse, however, dives into what Jaugust is running from – the project’s main theme, and its source of conflict. Jaugust tends to keep lyrics pretty generalized to heartbreak as Sessanna sings of things like being haunted by[...]

Garden Closet – cicada breath

February 19, 2024

Shoegaze is thriving. Scenes in eastern cities like Pittsburgh, New York City, and especially Philadelphia are having surges of creativity and success, yet the sound is relatively untouched in Buffalo. Garden Closet is often in a scene of their own in the 716. The three-piece leans hard into the heavy and dark side of shoegaze, drawing on influences from both classic 90’s bands and the genre’s contemporary forerunners. The lead singer, Kay Stuitje, said: “When I started this project I was really inspired by a movement in shoegaze that’s highly localized in Philadelphia… bands like They Are Gutting A Body of Water, Knifeplay, Bleary Eyed… all those bands. They’re doing this cool shoegaze sound that’s less polished, [and] less clean than a lot of shoegaze that you hear.” “jaundice,” the lead single for the group’s debut project cicada breath was released as a demo in 2022. The album features an updated[...]

Well Kept Things – Weathered For Better

February 15, 2024

Buffalo emo-rock outfit, Well Kept Things, has an interesting history. The group got traction in the local scene with well-loved releases in 2015 and 2016, before they ended up shelving the band for seven years. Check out this older post from 2015 about the band in their early days. It seemed unlikely that the group would ever get back together, but when one of the members, Kody Fintak, moved back to the Buffalo area, the Well Kept Things spark was back in full effect. After this long period of inactivity, the group returned with a release, Weathered For Better, on December 14th. The intro “Pick Scratch” is heartfelt, goofy, and catchy, three common ingredients that make up many great emo tunes. The band mentions that they drew inspiration from Latterman, a melodic punk four-piece from Long Island while recording the intro song with Jay Zubricky at GCR audio. Loud call-and-response[...]

Pinch Kitten – Curly Sue

February 5, 2024

Pinch Kitten is Buffalo’s latest artful and insane punk band that refuses to be boxed in. They go by “Buffalo Barf Punk,” an absurd tag that feels fitting for the group who enjoy playing misfit mixed bills, polar shifts in their sound, and constantly rotating vocalists. The volcanic intro track, “Sour Punch” is a loud rager that builds toward an even louder energy of pure punk detonation. Even on the intro, Pinch Kitten, along with Curly Sue’s first vocalist, Koala Manne, already sound like they’ve damn near lost it and are ready to tear everything down around them in a fiery rage.  A new vocalist, Calvin Hardick, arrives in a similar manner on “Hippie Poems.” This character is just as angry, but instead, their bratty, more lyrical delivery juts out at an even faster pace. “Curly Sue,” also sung by Hardick, is a self-affirming indie song which feels both like a[...]

Georgie – Intimacy Hangover

August 21, 2023

Georgie is an ever-growing outfit of artists from Rochester, NY, centered around mindful, calm songwriting on banjo and other interesting instrumentation. Their latest EP, Intimacy Hangover, came out Friday, August 4th, including interaction of cello and guitar underneath sensitive and perky vocal tunes. The band released a one minute trailer to the upcoming EP just three days before the release to get their fans more anticipated for what they are about to hear. You can see, hear, and feel the passion of the band’s music within the video as they are all jamming and blissing out in the living room of a house playing one of the songs from the project with joyful smiles.  The project starts out with the opening track “Alaska” that’s only a minute long and it starts out with smooth banjo that makes you feel like you’re floating. If you didn’t think you were already light[...]