Preview

Tonight: DIIV

July 15, 2014

In this day and age, terms like “shoegaze,” “dream rock,” and “indie pop” get thrown around fairly often. It makes sense in our brains to categorize music as we try to explain it to someone who’s never heard it before. Rarely do these catch-alls catch all however. They may touch on distinct sonic qualities, or maybe even a vibe, but they hardly capture the soul of the music which it intends to prescribe. Sonically, DIIV could probably be described as any of the above. What separates them from the pack is the same thing that separated Nirvana from the rest of their grunge brethren, or Bob Dylan from the endless stream of folk artists, pre or post the man himself. Great music exists in intangible places. It is familiar, yet fresh; It captures some parts of our heads and hearts. DIIV exists in this current. DIIV’s songs are uniquely compelling;[...]

Tonight: Solitary Excursions

July 14, 2014

Over on Massachusetts Ave, the revitalized laundry mat, which operates under the name of the WASH Project, will be hosting an evening of experimental musicians called Solitary Excursions. Leading the way is Iowa’s Curt Oren, a jazz oriented looping musician, and quite the baker so says his bandcamp page, and Erie, PA minimalist Onewayness, an artist who beautifully marries drone and ambiance with acoustic instrumentation. Think the Books and you have a nice starting point. Local support will come in the form of avant-grade jazz musician Zane Merritt and celestial laptop musician Transfer in Jamaica, the latter making his live music debut. $5 will gain you entry, and, according to the facebook event, access to a couple dozen of Oren’s homemade cookies, so don’t be late.

Tonight: Miniature Tigers

July 14, 2014

Buffalo’s busy Monday night will be highlighted this evening with a visit from Brooklyn’s Miniature Tigers at the Waiting Room. The buzzing and bouncing synth-pop quartet is still riding high after the release of their summer ready album Cruel Runnings earlier last month. We recently had the opportunity to sit down with MT’s lead singer, Charlie Brand, to discuss the album, touring, and city specific music scenes. If you missed the interview, check it out here. Joining Miniature Tigers tonight will be Aussie buzz band the Grisworlds. If you caught Tokyo Police Club this past Friday at the Outer Harbor and liked what you heard, then this band could be for you. Local support will be provided by the always busy surf poppers Bryan Johnson & Family, who look to be finally releasing a proper EP last this summer. Keep an eye out. Music begins tonight at 8pm. Tickets are $14[...]

Tonight: Swimsuit Addition

July 14, 2014

Like they probably say in all those journalism classes I didn’t take: lead with the big news. Punk time is dead, be on time to the Glitterbox, and catch Chicago’s Swimsuit Addition tonight, supported by Newish Star, Mink and newbies Dildon’t. Doors open at 6pm, music starts at 7pm and will assuredly be over by 10 pm (shove that in the face of whiny friends/traitors who complain they can’t see a show on a school night). Swimsuit Addition makes me want to do this, but with full knowledge that if I stopped dancing they’d feed me to their pet spiders. Surfy, poppy and maybe rotten to the core: it’s telling that one of their tags on Bandcamp is “hellokittywithitseyegougedout.” Newish Star I love, and not simply because last time I caught them, they set the local record for most uses of the term “school shooting” on stage. It’s because they write[...]

Tonight: Quarterbacks

July 13, 2014

There’s a ton of great bands that call New Paltz home, and Quarterbacks is one of ’em. And they’ll be coming to visit us at the Hive today as an 11th hour addition to their tour, along with fellow New Paltzers Fraternal Twin. These last minute shows scare the hell outta me, because how can you be sure that people will even know that they should go? And Quarterbacks is certainly worth catching. Can’t help but compare Quarterbacks to Frankie Cosmos, maybe I’m a hack. But, like Frankie, Quarterbacks on the record is usually a single person (here, Dean Engle) singing poignant lo-fi folk tunes in an observational style that kinda make you wanna smile as you cry a single tear. And, like Frankie, Quarterbacks live is a different beast: Engle is joined by pounding, driving rhythm section and the songs take on new life (at least, if this Shea[...]

Tonight: Louis Prima Jr. and the Witnesses

July 12, 2014

To carry a legacy on decade after decade is quite a feat. Louis Prima was a pivital musician during the New Orleans jazz era. He became notable for classic Italian tunes to his starring vocal role as King Louie in the Disney film The Jungle Book. With Vegas experiences and collaborations with Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack, Prima became known for his “Wildest!” signature. If you think you don’t know Prima, think again, especially if you’ve wandered Hertel Avenue for Buffalo’s Italian Festival. And if that doesn’t strike your memory, take a listen to his famous song from The Jungle Book. His son, Louis Prima Jr., is continuing the legacy but rather than recreating the past and following a set path led by his father, he is amping it up with a modern vibe. The band’s album Blow scored a #25 rank on CMJ‘s Jazz charts. Along with his eight-piece band,[...]

Tonight: Crows & Jays with FolkFaces

July 11, 2014

It’s the second Friday of the month, and Buffalo folkies Crows & Jays will be performing with FolkFaces in The Front Yard of the Burchfield Penny Art Museum. Using clever harmonization to emphasize a lyrically driven approach to their take on indie-folk, Crows and Jays have made quite the sonic splash since their 2012 formation. Touring as the opening act for The Whigs only three months into the band’s conception, and with one EP and one LP already floating in their wake, this quartet is sure to bring some live and folked-out energy to the Elmwood Village tonight. Walking a more roots-driven line down the broad paths of bluegrass, jazz, ragtime, and more, the folks of FolkFaces tout an array of instrumental talent. Dobro, banjo, upright bass, washboard and harmonica, just to name a few. Together, these two bands should prove perfect compliments under the warm-setting sun of a Buffalo[...]

Tonight: City and Colour, Young the Giant, and Tokyo Police Club

July 11, 2014

Not just everyone in the world gets to be in two wildly successful bands… But then again not everyone is Dallas Green – he’s the man with the golden voice that you hear singing in those beautiful City and Colour songs. Buffalo’s Outer Harbor series nailed it earlier this year with Vampire Weekend and Cults – tonight is poised to do the same. City and Colour is supported by alternative radio mainstays Young the Giant and the upbeat, keyboard-driven indie rock of Tokyo Police Club. This particular date at the Outer Harbor is sponsored by Alternative Buffalo 107.7 and seems to be one of the ones to appeal to a younger crowd. The show is all ages, but plenty of beer will be flowing for the 21+ crowd. City and Colour, Young The Giant, Tokyo Police Club, and Clear Plastic Masks Outer Harbor All Ages Gates at 6:00pm $45 Day[...]

Tonight: Transmission Dance Party DJs the 2000s

July 11, 2014

Tonight at 11pm, Hardware will host one of the top three events to go to tonight (it’s a pretty stacked Friday), with Transmission Dance Party taking over the backroom to deliver you some of your favorite dance punk must-haves from the 2000s. If you still have a fondness for Peaches, The Rapture, LCD Soundsystem, Le Tigre, Hot Hot Heat, !!!,  Franz Ferdinand, Shiny Toy Guns, Shout Out Out Out Out, Fischerspooner, The Faint, and a bunch of other bands that I’m sure you’ll say “Oh yeah, I haven’t heard that in a while,” then you need to head on down to Allen. If you don’t care for the music, you can just stand out front and get in the way of people trying to get in. Doors are at 11pm with a $5 cover.

Tonight: The Tins Album Release Show

July 11, 2014

It wasn’t too long ago that The Tins had been so quiet for so long that they merited a “What Are They Up To?” post just a few months ago that ended with a strangely in-depth description of ice cream. In the last month, they’ve been all over the place: a new music video, a tour announcement, some decent press and now this album release show. Tonight at Iron Works, they’ll be teaming up with Aircraft, Brimstone Blondes and the quote-unquote “mysterious” duo that is The Actors. The Tins, if you believe fellow buffaBLOGGER Mike Torsell (and I have to, because I moved here at the end of last year) took the city by storm in 2012, and this album release show may be their first step toward taking over the country. They’ll be on the road for just under a month, starting in Buffalo and making their way all[...]

Tonight: Deltron 3030

July 10, 2014

Go back to the future with hip hop supergroup Deltron 3030 tonight.  Their latest effort, Event 2, is an event 13 (human) years in the making, following up their self-titled debut released in 2000. Released late in 2k13, the album has both critical and celebrity cred, and according to Del, “..was one event, but those event can span centuries.” Translation: the well-produced record was well worth the wait. Comprised of Gorillaz emcee Del the Funky Homosapien, producer Dan the Automator, and turntablist Kid Koala, the group is a cunningly conceptual collaboration of music and media. Three men; infinite sound, and they are bringing it all to Waiting Room for your aural pleasure this evening. Tickets are still available for this all ages event for $25 at the door. Doors at 7/liftoff time TBD.

Tonight: Mike Dillon Band

July 9, 2014

Iconoclast percussionists are, by definition, unhinged creatures, and Mike Dillon is no exception. Praised as a “punk provocateur,” a “jazz vibraphone visionary,” and a “percussion visionary,” this New Orleans-based multi-percussionist will make a stop Nietzsche’s this evening in support of his latest release, Band of Outsiders. Mike Dillon and his merry mix of outsiders (The Mike Dillon Band) is comprised of Patrick McDevitt (bass), Adam Gertner (drums), and Carly Meyers (trombone), who Dillon has described as “a high priestess of trombone who channels the energy of Iggy Pop through the chops of JJ Johnson in second line parade.” Doors are at 8pm, $12 will get you in. Photo Credit: Zack Smith

Tonight: Justin Timberlake

July 9, 2014

If you’re going to First Niagara Center tonight for Justin Timberlake’s big show, you’ve probably had your tickets for quite some time now. The show was already sold out before its original date in February, which was postponed, with the re-scheduled date memorably being announced on The Tonight Show. Timberlake is still one of the biggest draws in pop music. While his 2-part album The 20/20 Experience received somewhat mixed reviews (I was a fan of both records), it was one of the best selling albums of the year, with “Suit & Tie,” “Mirrors,” and “Not A Bad Thing” all cracking the top 10.  Also, if you saw the NSYNC reunion at last years VMAs, you know that JT is just as much a showman as he ever was – well, I mean he’s only 32 – and tonight’s show should be quite a spectacle. This show was sold out[...]

Tonight: Man Man

July 8, 2014

If you haven’t heard, Man Man is coming to Buffalo tonight. Since forming in 2003, it’s been easy to classify the Philadelphia-based group as an indie-rock band but they have many influences, touching on all genres of music. To add to the variety, they use an interesting blend of keyboards, synthesizers, percussion, and horns as well as typical drums, guitar, and bass. The band first caught my attention while listening to an internet streaming radio playlist for Gogol Bordello. Man Man’s earlier works definitely has that Eastern European feel to them, like Gogol, but have evolved with their last couple of albums, achieving a sound that is uniquely their own. Their latest album, On Oni Pond, came out in September of 2013 and has been received favorably. Honus Honus, the band’s frontman and lyricist, has a recognizeable, deep, raspy voice along with lyrics that produce cartoon-like imagery. The music they[...]

Tonight: Lady Gaga

July 7, 2014

Mother Monster Lady Gaga takes the stage tonight at First Niagara Center, the latest stop on the megastar’s summer tour, the ARTPOP Ball. As the tour name suggests, the show promises to be more than just a concert. If it’s anything like what we’ve come to expect from Gaga, it will elevate the pop music genre into an artistic, theatrical experience, something no audience member will ever forget. Doors open at 7:30. Tickets start at $37.50 and are available through tickets.com and the First Niagara Center Box Office.