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Herd Fest: Day 2

June 25, 2014

Day 2 of Herd Fest began with back-to-back punk shows at record stores Black Dots and Spiral Scratch. Black Dots owner Josh Smith swooped in with his band Vanilla Sex after Ranch’s cancellation, which was meant to be in order to catch the captivating Kat Delfosse on lead vocals. Once the Black Dots show wrapped up, most of the crowd wandered over to Spiral Scratch. White Whale closed out the show with the lights out and the volume cranked up. Brimstone Blondes survived a year of college to kick off the buffaBLOG stage at Duke’s with their rowdy pop. Strange Acres played a packed room at Nietzsche’s thanks to their loyal Mohawk Place crew. In between sets, the Only Comrades DJs at Hardware provided a green room-type atmosphere to unwind and grab a classy drink. Check out some of our favorite shots from Day 2 below and for a full gallery,[...]

Herd Fest: Day 1

June 22, 2014

This past weekend, buffaBLOG threw its inaugural Herd Fest: a two day, nine showcase festival scattered around Allen Town (and just beyond). With showcases at College Street Gallery, Nietzsche’s, Duke’s, and Hardware, each fit a certain taste and scene in Buffalo. Whether you like punk, roots, emo, or indie, Friday night had something for you. Check out some of our favorite pictures from Day 1 below and head over to our FB page for the full gallery. Photo Credit: Candace Camuglia

Andrew Jackson Jihad w/Cheap Girls, Dogbreath at the Waiting Room (6/17/14)

June 18, 2014

Patrons arrived to “good news” on signs plastered near the entrance. The Waiting Room had a new owner. But because of that, the venue had to apply for a new liquor license. Thankfully, the no alcohol rule didn’t impact most of the young patrons who came to start a wave-like mosh pit for the headliner Andrew Jackson Jihad. Lansing’s Cheap Girls made notable Buffalo shout outs to Mohawk Place and local band Failures’ Union. Dogbreath won the award for best merch of the evening with a variety of colorful friendship bracelets, which this writer imagined were made to pass the time in the tour van. Written and Shot by Taryn Alper

Animals As Leaders & Conquering Dystopia at the Town Ballroom (5/21/14)

May 22, 2014

It’s probably easier to describe the music of Animals As Leaders by citing the myriad of influences that they bring to their sound. That of course is the easy way , which I will absolutely avoid. Led by guitarist Tosin Abasi, this Washington D.C. based trio “noodle like no one has noodled before” (quoted from a guy I met at the show). Backed by Javier Reyes on guitar and drummer Matt Garstka, their all-instrumental set focused mainly on their latest album, Joy of Motion, on Sumerian Records. Animals As Leaders’ jazz influenced metal can veer from completely bombastic to nearly ambient in a split second. Far from contrived, each song flows rather seamlessly from start to finish. Also on the bill were another all instrumental band, the distinctively more metal Conquering Dystopia, a project that features Jeff Loomis (Nevermore) and Alex Webster (Cannibal Corpse). Loomis and partner-in-crime Keith Merrow are[...]

Mount Eerie at the Ninth Ward (4/17/14)

April 19, 2014

Phil Elverum is like an old friend who I don’t see very often and don’t speak to very much, but when in his presence, the feeling of tranquility takes over. A Mount Eerie performance is just that soothing (though powerful) feeling projected onto an audience. This year’s show at Ninth Ward was maybe the fourth or fifth time I’ve gone to experience Mount Eerie, but it was the first time I’ve seen Elverum perform solo. He performed seated on an empty stage in a wooden kitchen chair beneath a keyboard and is backed only by the poetic reverb vented from the single instrument. The April 17th set consisted primarily of new songs keyed out under appropriately intriguing single-noun titles and Elverum once again proves that he needs no supporting chorus as the ambiance he radiates is strong enough to make you feel the blue light that has consumed the room.[...]