Preview

Tonight: Sleepy Hahas Album Release Show

May 16, 2014

After some minor lineup tweaking, the Buffalo psych garage four-piece, Sleepy Hahas, is set to celebrate the release of its debut LP, the heavy and driving Dull Days, tonight at Buffalo Iron Works. The coming together of the album has been a bit of a communal effort, with the Victory Gardens handling some impressive album art work and Lesionread jumping behind the camera for a couple videos (see the lyric video below) to a couple of Dull Days‘ tracks. As for our thoughts on the album, check back with us next week for a proper write up. Joining the fun tonight will be Fredonia fuzz rock threesome Zealot, the darker pop sounds of Strange Acres, and crunchy college rocking Bearhunter. Tonight’s show kicks off at 8pm with a $5 cover.

Tonight: The Loveless

May 15, 2014

Meanwhile back on the West Side, the Gypsy Parlor will be hosting retro garage rock outfit, The Loveless, and electro spazz act, Voices, later on for an enjoyable evening of music. Keeping the music going between acts, and long after, will be DJ sets from the Victory Gardens, a.k.a. Brett Mikoll of former blog faves All Blondes Go to Heaven, playing choice cuts of indie rock into the night. Show kicks off tonight at 8pm. Have $3 on hand for the door.

Tonight: Night Birds

May 15, 2014

Before heading to Canada for a couple gigs, New Jersey’s Night Birds will make a quick stop at Nietzsche’s this evening, not Broadway Joe’s as originally planned. The band plays a brand of fast-paced raucous surf-punk that is pretty well-received in our city. They also wouldn’t sound out of place on an early Tony Hawk Pro Skater game. Providing local support tonight will be instrumental surf trio Aaron & the Burrs as well as the crispy new post-punk act Orations. Show kicks off at 8:45 sharp. $6 will get you through the door.

Tonight: of Montreal

May 13, 2014

“Let’s pretend we don’t exist, let’s pretend we’re in Antarctica.” I’m sure you are familiar with these two lyrical lines, sung by Kevin Barnes in a droll tone supported by a roaring, peppy synth. If you haven’t, they belong to the ever-popular of Montreal, who will be taking the Town Ballroom tonight. Since then, they have moved on to an inclusive, eclectic sound, riding hard on guitar and experimenting with strong diction in their vocals. Atlanta’s of Montreal was formed a while back in ’96, and since then, has grown a long repertoire of albums. They are contemporaries of The Elephant 6 Collective including bands such as Neutral Milk Hotel and Apples In Stereo. Most recently, their latest album lousy with sylvianbriar, featured a strong rock and roll edge mixed with an upbeat pop twang. WNYBAC designed the poster for tonight that you can have a chance to purchase for $20[...]

Tonight: Matt Pryor

May 13, 2014

Matt Pryor is one of those men who unintentionally became one of the founding fathers of a genre that would eventually come to be called “emo.” He and his band, The Get Up Kids, conquered the late 90s and early 00s with a string of passionate and critically acclaimed albums full of emotional indie rock.  He’s here in Buffalo tonight for an intimate acoustic show with a cast of other emo/pop punk greats. Joining Pryor is Bob Nanna (Hey Mercedes/Braid), Steve Soboslai (Punchline), Mark Rose (Spitalfield), and Anthony Musior from Buffalo-based band The Traditional. Doors are at 7:00pm, only $12 at the door. Tonight’s show has been moved to The Gypsy Parlor. All tickets purchased from The Waiting Room will be honored. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/112615180″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

Tonight: Mastodon

May 12, 2014

The other day I was having a conversation with a friend of mine and we were talking about what makes a metal band great. In this day and age, metal bands are a dime a dozen, and with so many heavy bands out there, it’s sometimes difficult for the uninitiated to discern the trash from the true. True fans of the genre ( like my friend, who’s absolutely obsessed) seem to have an innate understanding and opinion of what makes a band great, good, or simply average, so I was curious to pick his brain a little bit and see what we could come up with. Here’s the gist of our convo. The band should be overwhelmingly fast (DRI), or overwhelmingly slow (Crowbar), overwhelmingly crushing (Behemoth), absurdly technical (Unearth), or just flat out produce memorable riffage (Pantera). Points for creativeness (Spiral Architect) and the ability to integrate other musical genres[...]

Tonight: Party at the Polish Library

May 10, 2014

Over the last couple years, a weird thing’s happened in the Buffalo music scene: a ton of mid-level rock music clubs closed. With the departure of long-time staples like Mohawk Place, Soundlab, The Vault, and even, like, that place that used to be Blue Monk, most area bands and promoters have been forced to shoot for either opening slots at bigger downtown halls, or organize house parties at one of the myriad, illegal basements. This kinda sucked on one hand, but on the other, it forced local music to adjust, and move beyond its arguable state of atrophy; things kinda had to change. So bands broke up and re-organized in better forms, and new, oddball venues started getting a lot of traction. One place that’s picked up a bunch of otherwise homeless show ideas is the Polish Library (612 Fillmore Ave) – a weird but welcoming East Side locale with[...]

Tonight: Roz and the Rice Cakes

May 10, 2014

Tonight, the Jungle Gym will host Providence’s Roz and the Rice Cakes, some clever and friendly folks out on tour. They’ll be bringing a dose of pleasurable-to-the-ear indie folky music that has enough math-rock to it to consistently make your ears perk up before you drift too far into a reverie. They’ll be supported by local post-punk heroes Cross Stitch, unhyphenated local punk heroes Sleeptalker, and local surf-psych-pop princes Aircraft. Bring some dollars to support the touring band (suggested donation of $5) and enjoy yourself. First band will kick off promptly at 9, so get there on time and don’t be a loser. Facebook event here if’n you want to RSVP.

Tonight: Rubblebucket

May 9, 2014

Rubblebucket. Rubblebucket. Rubblebucket. Say the word three times and all your wishes will be granted! Not really, but the Brooklyn-based band’s name is a catchy one. It brings to mind a magical spell that can be cast anywhere, from the dirty city streets to the cool air of a mountaintop. A charismatic, playful lead female vocalist and saxophonist carries the spotlight among her fellow band members. Together, they form a dynamic septet that produces a riveting big-band sound, flowing between softer pop sets and extended grooves. 2011 album Omega La La fastened their music as a facet to the larger festival scene–playing at larger line-ups such as Bonnaroo and Camp Bisco. Rubblebucket moves in catchy, dance-heavy spurts, proven to get you hooked. Opening for Rubblebucket tomorrow will be Rhubarb, a staple in the WNY groove-rock community. Preach Freedom from Rusted Root (I’m sure you’ve heard “Send Me On My Way,”[...]

Tonight: Floor

May 8, 2014

To the heavy-initiated Floor need no introduction. They are a legendary metal band incorporating stoner elements with traditional doom and sludge. To their fans, they are much, MUCH more. Floor have always been trendsetters, among the first to incorporate slowed tempos with churning groove, and always stood apart from the rest of their bearded brethren. Their magnetic releases could only be topped by their live shows, a caucophony of blistering sound and visceral pummel. They’re the band that the newbies would be forced to hear about, as us old-timers not-so-subtlely bragged about “being there” in the 90’s. Fortunately for those newbies Floor is back, after a bit of a layoff, and have been laying crowds to waste in recent times. I had the chance to see them at Soundlab a few years back and loud isn’t strong enough of a word. Earplugs are advised. Tonight, we hail all things Floor[...]

Tonight: Terror Pigeon!

May 7, 2014

Terror Pigeon! and Michael Parallax are returning to Buffalo to play at Dreamland tonight. The former, originally Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt!, are signed to David Byrne’s label Luaka Bop and infamously tour all year around, churning out ecstatically charged live shows throughout North America. Sometimes referred to as a band, sometimes referred to as a performance troupe, their high jinx stage routine is difficult to characterize, encompassing plenty of props and whirling bodies with a constantly changing lineup. As far as their music goes, founding member Neil Fridd has revealed “people have called it everything from disco to semi-annoying Latin music.” “Theatrical electro-rock” might suffice as a blanket pseudo-genre however. In similar vein, synth-pop stalwart Parallax takes queues from Dan Deacon in what beatsperminute.com has called “communal hippie raves “. Opening will be local rap and electro-pop purveyors, Jack Topht and Daniel Robinson. Doors open at 7:30pm and $5 will secure your[...]

Tonight: The Aquabats

May 5, 2014

Everyone has their cultural/musical touchstones and if I were to point to one of my earlier ones (we are talking late 90s’) I would have to point to the Aquabats. In Middle School, I found very little to identify with in the alternative music that circulated among 13 year olds in ’98, I was not particularly dark or edgy but I was still alienated all the same, it was just a goofier kind (see: young nerd). So when I heard the Aquabats, specifically their first two albums, something clicked. Awash in a campy California aesthetic that was equal parts 60s’ Batman as it was third wave ska, I was instantly drawn to their songs of martians, powdered milk and forlorn crushes bathed in blaring poppy horns and rapid tempos. Even if I started to lose track of them as time went on and my taste shifted, I still returned to[...]

Tonight: Pine Fever

May 5, 2014

What says “Cinco de Mayo” more than an Americana band playing at a pizzeria? A ton of things. But given that so many people use Cinco de Mayo more as an excuse to drink tequila than to celebrate the Battle of Puebla, I don’t think it matters so much, as long as it’s fun. Pine Fever will be playing some tunes at Vera on Lexington at 10 pm. They’ll be joined by local burlesque heroes the Stripteasers. Check it out, try to keep the crass cultural appropriation to a minimum, and you’re sure to have a great Monday evening.

Tonight: Shlohmo

May 4, 2014

A blend of heaven and hell, Shlohmo has a way of lifting the black lace veil. Vocals drowning in slowing syrup and echoing sounds, reminiscent of the acoustical ambiance of a cathedral’s vaulted ceilings. He relaxes the hyphy. Un-monikered, he goes by Henry Laufer. He is only in his early 20s and under his WEDIDIT collective, has been signed to labels (Friends of Friends, Error Broadcast) and with his  Jeremih remix, became a crate staple for DJs from all over. Initially a collegiate student of fine art, he dropped out, began producing on a serious level and eventually turned out his EP, Bad Vibes. His Myspace account got him signed to the Los Angeles-based label Friends of Friends, where he is among the likes of Daedelus, LOL Boys, Groundislava, Jerome LOL, and Salva. Shlohmo incorporates unconventional experimental sounds to his lo-fi melodically straight forward produced tracks, which makes them a bit more[...]

Tonight: ElectroRespect 7 – A Tribute To Mark Freeland

May 3, 2014

Tonight, a cavalcade of musicians and Freeland devotees will be converging on Nietzsche’s for ElectroRespect 7: A Tribute To Mark Freeland to get their freak on and support the upcoming tenth anniversary edition of the Buffalo Infringement Festival. Ed Koban, Funk Monster and Woman, David Kane, John Toohill, Disobedient Quartet, JeffRepeater, Aversa Army, Lemonade, Gumwads, Moonpowder, and blog favorite Lesionread are coming together to honor and remember fallen local musician/artist/hero/Pride of Kenmore Mark Freeland, who we lost in 2007. Doors open at 9 PM and $5 gets you in, with proceeds benefiting Infringement and its 10 years of daring DIY art happening excellence across our city. Musical wildness, respect, and raising money for a good cause… you can’t go wrong.