Flying Lotus – “Ready Err Not”
Continuing the theme of spooky music videos around Halloween time is producer Flying Lotus. A single off of the super-critically acclaimed (and appropriately titled) Your Dead!, "Ready Err Not" is minimal-sounding, excellently produced song that I didn't know was...
Dreamers – “My Little Match”
No thanks to our current spooky season, I have been on a major found footage kick as of late with films like Afflicted, Wolf Creek, and in particular, the V/H/S series. The stories within a story, sort-of-anthology horror films have featured some truly disturbing...
Tonight: Jimkata & Turkuaz
After Dark Entertainment lives up to it's name this Halloween night when two frightfully funky bands take the stage at Waiting Room. Jimkata, an indie elctro-rock quartet from Ithaca, join Brooklyn-based funk machine, Turkuaz, for a night of good music and better...
Tonight: The Irving Klaws
All Hallow's Eve in Allentown... when the weird go pro and Halloween gets back to it's primal roots, and there's no better place to let your freak run wild than at the Nietzsche's Halloween Party featuring local freaks The Irving Klaws, Small Smalls and ronaldraygun....
Tonight: Pianos Become the Teeth
No costume? Abstaining from the spookiest of holidays? Well, you could probably still wear your costume to a show, but regardless, Pianos Become the Teeth are coming through Buffalo to provide a much-needed source of entertainment if you're afraid of handing out candy...
Slap Bracelets – “The Wendigo”
New York City based shoegaze duo, Slap Bracelets, is comprised of Debbie Chou (vocals/bass/ keys) and Chris Gersbeck (vocals/guitars/bass/programming). The band has the ability to be both sweet and dreamy (listen to "The Wendigo"), but can also put on the edge to a...
Baxter Roy Long Releases Acid-Folk Collection, Palms on the setting stone
Former Denver resident, Baxter Roy Long, recently moved to Buffalo, and upon settling in, released an 8-track collection of dreamy, yet challenging acid folk, titled Palms on the setting stone. While most of the album was recorded in the Pacific North West, the lone...
Camp Counselors Releases “Sighs” on Halloween Compilation No. 2: Gatherings
Spookytacular WNY expat, Kyle J. Reigle, records under the moniker Camp Counselors and for the second year in a row, released another track to producer's yet-to-be-created slasher flick. The creepy new single "Sighs" has the same feel as Camp Counselors previous...
Taylor Swift’s 1989 and Your Taste in Music
Taylor Swift’s album 1989 dropped this week, marking a full departure from her cosmopolitan country-pop sound. Vocally, she is breathy, jaded, lower than before. Musically, there is less guitar and more echoing drums. Everyone is freaking out about it—in its opening...
Column 15: Pop Music in Horror Movies
While this feature often highlights the use of music in contemporary work, with Halloween just two days away, it seems only appropriate to focus on horror movies this week. While it took a good 20 years for horror movies to catch up to popular culture, ever since the...
Tonight: Fake Species
This evening, the fourth installment of Wonksesh will be happening at the Allen town, multi-purpose venue, Dreamland. Hailing from Cleveland, sultry electronic pop-outfit Fake Species will be the featured act for this episode. The dynamic, four member group pairs...
Weezy Season is Postponed, Still Approaching
October 28th was supposedly the date that tumultuous, polarizing, larger than life hip hop artist Lil Wayne would release The Carter V. The fifth and final Carter concludes the Carter series that has sold well over 8 million copies to date, and has been hyped up as...
Comfy Releases New Singles
Utica, New York's Comfy is a band that's buzz, unlike Ebola, has been spreading all over New York State, from the jampacked DIY shows in Brooklyn to the dimly lit basements of Buffalo and every cool house show in between. Last week, while prepping for their super...
Tonight: This Will Destroy You
The Tralf, of all places, has been the host to some pretty great post-rock shows over the last few years. From Explosions in the Sky and Mogwai (maybe the loudest show I have ever attended) to the brain crushing Swans shows this year and last, the Main Street venue is...
One Direction Dads Draw Short Straw Next September
To say that there was a collective groan accompanied the shrieks of tweener and stunted teenage girls when it was announced that British boy band juggernaut, One Direction, would be playing the Ralph next September would be an understatement. From music bloggers to...
Skirts Debut First Single From Semesters EP
Rochester garage-pop act, Skirts (formerly the dorm room outfit Meanagers), dropped the first single from its forthcoming EP, Semesters (Dadstache Records), early this afternoon. Led by a bouncy surf rock lick, "Pink Hair" features a peppy, playful melody and bursting...
Spooky Stephen Drops “Boom Room” Session Mix
If you happened to be one of the many who attended our sold out Hamlin House Halloween Party this past weekend, you may have caught Spooky Stephen, one half of Buffalo party DJ duo, Spooky Business, keeping the party lively in between Soul Patch sets. The always busy...
Psychic Teens – “Face”
We all should thank Andy Czuba and Sugar City for bringing Psychic Teens to Buffalo many moons ago. The Philly outfit have been on the Queen City’s inhabitants radar since its deafening performance at buffaBLOG's Herd Fest this past summer. Some ears are still...
Tonight: Wildhoney
Tonight at Mohawk Place: a pretty interesting bill to make your Tuesday feel good. Baltimore's Wildhoney will be coming through, supported by locals Hot Tip and Alpha Hopper. A good shoegaze band has a knack for bringing out the best in a song by softening the edges,...
The Flaming Lips – With a Little Help from My Fwends
Trashing an album like this is not easy, mainly because of how insanely easy it is. That Wayne Coyne, amidst accusations of cultural appropriation, unchecked egomania, and sad self-parody, would record an acid-damaged track-for-track cover of fucking Sgt. Pepper’s...
Just Announced: Sam Roberts Band
Proof that Buffalo's love of Canadian acts will never die, Montreal power pop outfit, Sam Roberts Band, is set top hold a two night stand at the Town Ballroom early next year on Friday, February 6th and Saturday, February 7th. Over the years, the band has played...
Anthony Del Plato Covers Stepfriends’ “Strangers, Friends, and Pictures”
Batavia musician and blog all-star, Anthony Del Plato, has long been teasing his forthcoming local covers album. This weekend, he released the first track that could be a part of the project, a cover of "Strangers, Friends, and Pictures" from emo revisionists,...
Handsome Jack – Do What Comes Naturally
There is always a lot of talk about the hardcore and punk scene in Buffalo, but what about the blues? Bands like Johnny Nobody, Mr. Boneless, and in particular, Handsome Jack? As for the latter, the Lockport four-some hasn’t released a proper full length since 2011’s...
Tonight: Diarrhea Planet
Without a doubt, party-punk act Diarrhea Planet is one of the most talked about bands rising in the ranks of the blogosphere. Another consensus is the off-putting band name, which some dismiss before giving them an actual listen. I, for one, think the band name sounds...
Damian Preps Remix Album, Releases Re-Worked “They Fill The Space They Believe In”
Earlier this year, local mumblecore artist, Damian Weber, released one of our favorite local releases in You Don't Need It, which, as the year starts to near its completion, has the staff over at the blog already arguing over which track should make our year end, best...
Tonight: Keys N Krates
In the year 2008 in Toronto, Adam Tune, David Matisse, and Jr. Flo decided that they wanted to do something different. Live electronic music with their own style, the three perform with turntables, keys, a synth, and drums to re-create the trap genre as Keys N...
Tonight: Halloween at the Hamlin House
In a monster mashup of epic proportions, Buffalo's scary-party-throwing veterans OLD FRIENDS, NEW FACES team up with our very own buffaBLOG for one of the city's favorite Halloween parties. The 21+ event promises an evening of fun, food, dance, and drink, and with...
Ratking – “Cocoa 88”
Underground rap trio Ratking are defiantly New York. Hip hop videos have reached the point where luxury seems essential in every single music video. There's gold, girls, and paradise almost every time. Ratking is one of those groups that disassociate themselves from...
Tonight: Handsome Jack Album Release Show
With their Southern blues-rock sound, some might mistake Handsome Jack for one of the host of bands from the Nashville rock scene, but rather this talented four-piece hail from our very own Lockport, NY. The local retro-rockers will take the stage tonight at Mohawk...
Tonight: JPNSGRLS
Tonight marks the unofficial start to Halloween Party season here in Buffalo, but it should be noted that a decidedly less spooky option is going down tonight if you haven't put a costume together yet. Vancouver's JPNSGRLS will make a stop on their international tour...
Tonight: Artvoice Presents Night Shift
Get ready to sweat. Artvoice is hosting another installment of its Night Shift tonight. And for those who don't know, Night Shift is (usually) a series of dance escapades in the back room of Hardware, showcasing the most up and coming DJs native to Buffalo/WNY....
The Tins Release NSFW Video For “Let It Go”
Does a 4-song EP need a video for every song? Maybe not, but at least the Tins are making them interesting. From Freddie Mercury impersonators to violence on watermelons, the three-piece indie duo has been getting some major burn out of its latest release, Young Blame...
Andy Pothier Releases New Track, “Signs”
Earlier this week, local folk troubadour, Andy Pothier, released the first single from this forthcoming, untitled album. The bare boned "Signs" is another lovely number from the Pine Fever drummer, sounding like hushed Conor Oberst or weary, stripped down Hiss Golden...
Diarrhea Planet
Diarrhea Planet is the best rock band out of Nashville right now. And I realize 'rock' is a relative term, but you would be hard-pressed to find another band out there currently that embodies the spirit of rock and roll more than Diarrhea Planet does. Their...
Tonight: Papadosio
Asheville, North Carolina-based band Papadosio bring a unique, improvisational approach to electronic music, creating organic grooves with eclectic instrumentation. As a mainstay on the summer festival circuit in addition to heavy touring over the past few years, the...
Do I Love Makonnen?
Makonnen Sheran has had a whirlwind of a couple months. The 25-year-old ATLien has spent the last 5 years or so in legal trouble, stemming from the accidental death of his friend while Makonnen was trying to take a gun from him. Posted up at home for all that time...
Stepfriends Releases New Album, All We’ve Got
The dudes (and dudettes) in Buffalo emo-pop collab-group Stepfriends have just digitally released their debut full-length album All We've Got. The eleven-track record, mostly recorded at The Square Studio in Syracuse, gives emo a little soul--think a jazzier Into It....
Interpol – “My Desire”
Early aughts NYC post-punk darlings Interpol released a video for "My Desire," the latest single off their underrated 2014 release El Pintor, and it's a doozy. Directed by Markus Lundqvist, the atmospheric and mildly disturbing clip features the band providing a slow...
Just Announced: buffaBLOG Rochester Showcase
After four years of throwing parties in various Buffalo venues, we were itching to branch out a bit and get out of town. So with the help of Rochester promoter/talent buyer/musician, Tim Avery, we are happy to announce our first show in the 585 at the Bug Jar this...
Column 14: The Heart-Pounding Intensity of The Knick
The Knick is the best show currently airing on TV. Well, after its season finale this past Friday, it’s technically on hiatus until 2015, but that doesn’t change the fact that it is a frenetically pulsating beam of television magic in an otherwise dull fall season....
Tonight: Jeffrey Lewis & the Jrams
Tonight, make a mini-road-trip to Boiler 54 in Medina to catch Jeffrey Lewis and the Jrams, with openers, freak-folk collective from Rochester, Seth Faergolzia and the 23 Psaegz. I absolutely love Jeffrey Lewis. He is a nerdy comic book hero who has mastered the art...
Just Announced: Dr. Dog
Dr. Dog never really did much for me. All of the elements were there: rollicking indie-folk rock, dual harmonies, just the right combination of psych, pop, and twang. But for some reason, I couldn't get into them. Then a few friends dragged me to their early 2014...
Routine Involvements Release Music Video For “UFO”
Last week, Rochester-based two-piece, Routine Involvements, released its first music video for the single "UFO." Featured on the band's early 2014 release, Future Days (Dadstache Records), the video for "UFO" is superbly cinematic, displaying the Routine Involvement...
SHEDS
The glory of the the DIY/ House venue is the element of surprise. Sometimes you are lucky if you know more than two bands. Then there’s the out-of-town band. But there is always that variable, that one band that no one knows shit about. SHEDS is one of those bands....
Radiohead’s “Lift”
Lost Gems is a new feature where I will explore some of the B-Sides, Covers, and Unreleased songs from some of pop music's greatest artists. Some of the weird, cool, or brilliant songs that for whatever reason might never have gotten the notice they deserve. Today we...
Tonight: New Found Glory
New Found Glory is approaching 20 years as a band and still going strong. Often credited alongside Blink-182 and Green Day as the godfathers of the genre, the pop-punk heroes will be hitting the Town Ballroom tonight in support of their freshly-released eighth...
Hawker M. James Premieres Glammy New Single, “Some Attention”
Hawker M. James, the moniker of Rochester every-man Mike James (Longwave, Demos, Admirers), had his latest single debut this afternoon on Wondering Sound. Produced by electronic musician Joel Ford (Tigercity, Ford & Lopatin), "Some Attention" sees James getting...
Tonight: Big D and the Kids Table
What do you have planned tonight? No seriously what do you have planned tonight? Binge watching Scandal on Netflix? Watching two football teams with cliché archrival namesakes battle it out on the televised gridiron? Yeah, that’s pretty much what I thought. It’s...
Secret Pizza Releases New Song From Shark Tank Recording Session
Over the weekend, one of our favorite 585 acts, driving post-rockers Secret Pizza, released a new track as part of a (mostly) Rochester based compilation, The Shark Tank Sessions, from Brass Palace Recordings. The seven track collection features tracks cut from 4-hour...
Zak Ward – That’s What You Get
Like a lot of people, I’ve always had a tendency to associate the music I listen to with a certain season. Sometimes there are objective reasons for this, certain sounds do traditionally pair well with particular times of the year, and sometimes it can be entirely...