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Tonight: Mike Gordon

Those who are looking to see something similar to a Phish show tonight, you might be in for a surprise if you’re heading to the Town Ballroom for Mike Gordon, although anyone who knows Phish already knows this. On the other hand, if you are part of the overwhelming majority of those who would rather live in a world without Phish or even jam music in general, you might still qualify as someone who would enjoy tonight’s show. A true master on bass, Gordon has been developing his own style since the early 80’s and over the last decade has spent more time working on his solo career, developing a unique style of folk fused with more contemporary styles to create a very appealing, fun, yet intricate sound that requires the audience to spend equal parts time listening as moving and shaking. His most recent album Overstep features favorites like[...]

Tonight: Landlady

Brooklyn’s Landlady will headline Mohawk Place tonight accompanied by Buffalo favorites Aircraft, Bryan Johnson & Family, and the JUST added Wax Mice. The New York natives are lead by Adam Schatz, the eccentric driving force behind the bands art-rock sound. The group is highly accredited, as its most recent album Upright Behavior was not only reviewed on Pitchfork, but received a positive rating of 7.4. Landlady has a unique sound, often including wind instruments, violin, and alike. Upright Behavior is the band’s first full length album, but its EP, Keeping to Yourself, might be the group’s strongest work, with distinction between songs, and in many ways a better understanding of themselves as artists. I’m not saying Upright Behavior sucks, I’m just pissed many have hailed it as the better work. Landlady’s “old stuff” has just as much to offer. Tonight is not just a night of music.  It is also a fundraiser for[...]

Aqueous at Buffalo Iron Works (4/18/15)

Aqueous returned to Buffalo, the city they call home, for an energetic sold out crowd at Buffalo Iron Works last night. Last November, I made the mistake of telling guitarist Mike Gantzer that as far as “jam” bands go, I could really see Aqueous climbing to the top.  He said “Thanks man, but we’re not a “jam” band.  We’re a ‘Compositional Groove/Rock’ band and that’s the style we’re going for.”  After a few Heady Toppers at Burlington’s infamous Nectar’s, hearing this really threw me for a spin.  After a little time to  process what Mike said, it made perfect sense.  Regardless of how you might classify Aqueous, they fucking jammed hard last night, and the crowd reacted. The band heralded the night as “Aqueous does Cake” or as fans immediately coined “Cakequeous.”  With an opening set of exclusively originals, the band kicked off with “Underlyer” and “Complex Pt. 1.” The two juxtaposed[...]