Latest Posts

Tonight: Herd Fest Day One

June 16, 2016

Tonight is the night. After close to nine months of planning Herd Fest is finally launched. This year we did things different. In the past we subcontracted shows to various scene reps and labels in order to diversify the voices being represented for the festival. This highly collaborative process was fun and confusing so we decided to do things different this year. For our third year, we took the reigns and centrally booked all of the shows. We had bands go through an application process in order to diversify and cater to fans of up-and-coming indie acts, resulting in four days of showcases at seven venues with 67 bands set to perform. We launched our Herd Fest app, where you can go and download and create your own schedule for the next four days. In addition, we have on-site managers for each venue ensuring stage management. Bands will be playing very close[...]

Pleasure Leftists

Tonight: Pleasure Leftists

April 16, 2015

I was able to see Pleasure Leftists for the first time last year at Buffalo Iron Works as an opener for Cloud Nothings. The venue was jam packed and teeming with anxious attendees awaiting their opportunity to thrash around to the nihilistic, lo-fi punk of the headlining band. The members of Pleasure Leftists were a quiet presence while setting up and playing, mentioning only that they were from Cleveland and throwing polite thank you’s in between songs. But they had this way of commanding the entire room as soon as they struck a note. The dark, but alluring howl of lead singer Haley Morris worked in perfect harmony with the steadfast rhythm section and somewhat ominous guitar parts. The blend definitely had me (and everyone else) deeply entranced for their entire set. You can catch Pleasure Leftists tonight at the Glitterbox, along with Aaron and the Burrs, Softlines and Corliz[...]

Tonight: Cruelster

December 28, 2014

Cleveland has a long history of cool, aggressive bands. See: Any of Tony Erba’s projects, Integrity, list goes on and on. Add Cruelster to that list; part rock’n’roll, part punk, full on aggression. They’re playing tonight too. Ocean Garden Oriental Foods on Niagara for a measly $fiver. Surf birds, Aaron and the Burrs, and lady elves, Cross Stitch, open the thing. Working on elf time, not punk time. 8pm sharp for a sunday night. Get it out.

Aaron & the Burrs Drop New Single, “Release the Bats”

September 16, 2014

It appears that the September Polar Vortex is upon us, slowly surrounding us like Union Soldiers at Wounded Knee, minus an aristocratic narcissist with a wicked mustache. As the weather gets colder and greyer, it’s hard not to focus on the inevitable coming winter. However, it’s not all bad. Maybe the news of new music from the instrumental surfer post-punk outfit, Aaron & the Burrs, will raise your spirits or at least your body temperature. The trio is comprised of Nicholas Reynolds (guitar), Eric Bifaro (bass), and Carson Cain (drums) and have been playing together for close to two years in various West Side basements “Release the Bats” takes you to a place where terms like Polar Vortex only exist in dystopian novels penned by Eastern European writers with names you always mispronounce. When I listen to Aaron & the Burrs, I imagine I am on a tropical beach sipping finely aged rum[...]