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Humble Braggers – Disposable Friends

June 14, 2015

Buffalo’s summer album of jams might have arrived at this past Saturday’s release show for Disposable Friends, the latest EP from synth-pop darlings Humble Braggers, out now on Admirable Traits Records. With an abundance of delightful hooks, soaring vocals, a full bodied sound, and intensely listenable tunes, Disposable Friends is a terrific salvo from Tom Burtless and company, and an easy pick to be Album of the Week. The funky guitar licks, understated post new wave atmospherics, and the yearning vocals of Burtless gets everything started perfectly on “How It Starts,” the EP’s lead single. Immediately, the synthesis of the various elements and heavy hooks hit you upside the head via your aural system. The ear candy continues with “All Alone,” a plaintive ballad featuring spacey yet restrained synth lines and a clean, melodic guitar that holds it all together. The attention to detail is most impressive. Disposable Friends really lifts off,[...]

Tonight: Arkells

June 11, 2015

The second installment of Thursday at Canalside 2015 keeps it going tonight with a visit from Hamilton, ON’s Arkells along with Robert DeLong and Milo Greene. Local favorites who almost qualify as local, Arkells have been journeying down the QEW to Buffalo for the last few years, gradually building a sizable audience for its potent power pop, currently showcased on most recent album, 2014’s High Noon. Rounding out tonight’s hodgepodge of acts will be Washington state EDM starlet Robert Delong and Los Angeles indie folk rockers Milo Greene. Tonight’s Thursday at Canalside will also be interesting to see how Canalside handles the crowds as amenities like beer, food, and port-a-potties that were lacking at last week’s kick off. Will supply satisfy demand? Will the NO FUN police break up excessive freedom? Will the crazy fun times continue? Find out tonight. Gates open at 5pm.

Matt & Kim w/Made Violent at Canalside (6/4/15)

June 5, 2015

Well folks, congratulations. We did it. It’s been building for years, and it’s certainly been talked about a whole lot, but Thursday night it sure felt like the much ballyhooed “new Buffalo” was real, and it was awesome. The first Thursday at Canalside of 2015, which featured Brooklyn duo Matt & Kim, new local heroes Made Violent. and Boston’s Bearstronaut, was something brand new for Buffalo, an immediate victory for the youth experiment with this year’s edition of Canalside, and something close to a dream come true. The Millennials and 20 somethings were truly in the ascendency Thursday night, with many attending their first Thursday at Canalside judging by the rampant confusion about the cash for tickets currency exchange concept that has been in place for the last few years. Drawn by a bill featuring decidedly younger artists, they were there to kick it out, and all three bands held[...]

Tonight: Shonen Knife

June 1, 2015

Legendary Osaka, Japan garage rockers, Shonen Knife, return to the Queen City to kick off their North American tour at a special benefit show tonight at Waiting Room for beloved community enterprise Music Is Art. Local punkers and post-punkers Healer, Lost Elysium, and Orations will open the show with Tokyo’s DJ Sashimi spinning records throughout the evening. With the Music Is Art Festival only a few months away on September 12th, this is a mightily good cause to get behind, in addition to a terrific bill featuring a band with a long history playing our city. Tickets are $15 at the doors and show will kick off at 7pm.

Tonight: Buffalo Afrobeat Orchestra

May 30, 2015

A special convocation of musicians featuring members of One World Tribe, Rockaz, and 12/8 Path, plus DJ Milk will be assembling at Nietzsche’s tonight as the Buffalo Afrobeat Orchestra to celebrate Afrobeat music and that genre’s totemic hero, Fela Kuti. The Nigerian bandleader, philosopher, and political rabble rouser has become legendary not only for contribution to world music, but for off stage activities that bordered on revolutionary, and his inspiration will no doubt propel Buffalo’s Afrobeat community to new heights of excellence tonight. DJ Milk will also be spinning choice cuts into the night, so if you’re looking to get down to Fela, Femi Kuti, Africa 70, Manu Dibango, and Antibalas, Nietzsche’s is the place to be. Tickets are $10 and the show starts at 10 PM.

Neon Indian – “Annie”

May 26, 2015

Summer is definitely starting to jump, with show announcements and new music, and Neon Indian (aka Alan Palomo) is doing his part with his first new material since 2011’s excellent Era Extrana in the funky and reggae flavored “Annie.” It’s been far too long since we’ve been treated to the expressly psychedelic sounds of Alan Palomo, and even longer since we’ve seen him live in these parts (5 years since Soundlab), and even though there’s no word yet on a new album, this delightful morsel just might be enough to hold you over until beach season.

Tonight: ZSD

May 14, 2015

Among the many things I’ve been digging about this “New Buffalo” has been the synergy generated when organizations and interests come together in an effort to bring people together and do good work. Case in point: tonight’s latest installment of the ongoing collaboration of The Public Presents and The Good Neighborhood at Nietzsche’s featuring the debut of ZSD, the latest project from the always magnificent Zuri Appleby, working with Deshawn “D Ray” Jackson and Sike. $5 or the donation of a gently used musical instrument to Music Is Art and later a deserving Buffalo Public School music student, gets you in the door at 8pm to see what Zuri’s been up to, plus Radarada and the Vitamin D Duo while hanging out with folks from insurgent weekly newspaper The Public and community organization The Good Neighborhood. You just might catch a glimpse of what our “New Buffalo” looks and sounds[...]

Tonight: EPQ Presents A Tribute to Herbie Hancock

May 7, 2015

Buffalo jazz/funk collective Ellen Pieroni Quartet is presenting a killer four band tribute to American music legend Herbie Hancock at Nietzsche’s later on tonight. Jazz, funk, fusion, r&b, and classical… Hancock has done them all during his 50+ year career, and his CV is sure to provide fertile ground for the EPQ, along with Intrepid Travelers, Adam Bronstein Trio, and Jon Lehning Sextet to showcase Buffalo’s jazz scene. The show starts at 9pm and the cover is $5.

Tonight: The Soft White Sixties

April 22, 2015

Buffalo Iron Works will be representing for the people tonight when the Cobblestone venue hosts San Francisco’s The Soft White Sixties along local favorites Handsome Jack. Earnestly rocking what’s been dubbed “working class soul,” this maximum R&B quartet are touring behind its just released debut album, Get Right, and for a city nostalgically holding onto it’s once proud working class ethos, this could be a pretty good show. Opening the evening’s entertainments at 9pm will be Buffalo by way of Lockport powerhouse, Handsome Jack, fresh off a Record Store Day 2015 set at Record Theatre last Saturday. Tickets are available at the door for $12.

Done Diggin’: Staff Grabs

April 19, 2015

Another Record Store Day came and went this past Saturday, and it turned out to be a great overall experience for many of us on staff here at the blog. The weather was fantastic, dozens of local bands were playing free shows all over Buffalo’s record shops, and we even bought some decent vinyl. Check out what a few of our writers had to say about Record Store Day 2015. Cliff Parks My football (soccer) team Arsenal was in the FA Cup semifinal, forcing me to bail on the prodigious line at the original Record Theatre at Main and Lafayette, which wasn’t specifically the end of the world because there weren’t too many RSD special releases this year that I considered “MUST HAVE.” Next year, hopefully I won’t such a conflict again, otherwise I’ll have to get in line at 5am like the brave souls at the head of the[...]

Tonight: Monophonics

April 16, 2015

Buffalo Iron Works will be grooving hard this evening to the gorgeously psychedelic, R&B stylings of San Francisco soul outfit Monophonics along with Albany’s hard rocking Wild Adriatic. In town in support of its recently released sophomore album, Sound Of Sinning, the mighty five-piece from the Bay Area is known for an intense and towering sound, reminiscent of The Isley Brothers, Edwin Starr, The Guess Who, and Shuggie Otis, that grandly fuses classic soul with the psychedelic rock of the 60’s and early 70’s to intense effect. Meanwhile, Albany power trio Wild Adriatic channels the bar band stadium rock sound of 80’s stalwarts The News and Bryan Adams with unabashed enthusiasm and a minimum of irony. There’s going to be a wild and heady dance party at Iron Works tonight, and $15 gets you in. Show starts at 9pm.

buffaBLOG Record Store Day 2015 Preview (WNY Edition)

April 15, 2015

What began as an effort to save independent record stores has evolved into an almost full-fledged international holiday for music lovers, and 2015’s year’s Record Store Day this Saturday promises to be the biggest yet at our local record shops. Seldom does commerce and art and bonafide happening intersect so beautifully as on Record Store Day, and in shops all over Western New York music fans will converge in search of deals, new and esoteric special releases, and the bonhomie one finds when lovers of vinyl come together to celebrate something they hold special. Is it too much to call Record Store Day an almost religious observance? Certainly, but with the shared reverence, goodwill, joyful expectation, hand shaking and good tidings, it’s not far off. To help you get your good feels on this Saturday, here’s our annual guide to Record Store Day in WNY 2015. Of course many of[...]

Tonight: Smart House

April 11, 2015

Tonight Buffalo’s hottest free weekly newspaper, The Public, and The Good Neighborhood will be presenting a show at Nietzsche’s featuring two of Buffalo’s most ambitious and exciting bands: Smart House and Strange Acres, in addition to Brooklyn’s The Vine Brothers. Working backwards, the eclectic lineup actually traces a fascinating history of popular music, from the gritty yet delicate Americana infused folk rock of The Vine Brothers to the aching, David Lynch inspired retro chill-rock of Strange Acres to the less is more future pop of Smart House (including blog alumni Brian Gorman). $5 or the donation of a used musical instrument gets you in.

Tonight: Start Making Sense

March 31, 2015

Buffalo Iron Works will be the place tonight when Talking Heads tribute band Start Making Sense “burn down the house” with the music and spirit of that elusive and seminal new wave powerhouse. Endorsed by Bernie Worrell, the godlike genius and legendary keyboardist for Parliament/Funkadelic as well as the Talking Heads in the early 80’s, Start Making Sense gets Talking Heads right without the karaoke, while frontman Jon Braun tastefully handles the difficult chore of channeling David Byrne with a less is more approach that works. Get ready to dance with your neck, elbows, and knees… but please be careful with the sudden hand gestures as you might poke somebody’s eye out of spill his or her beer. Getting things going will be Hall & Oates tribute band HMFO. $12 is day of ticket price and doors are at 8pm.

The Wrecking Crew One Night Only at the North Park Theatre

March 30, 2015

Next Wednesday, the North Park Theatre will be hosting for one night only the documentary The Wrecking Crew, chronicling the legendary Hollywood studio musicians that played on hits by Phil Spector, The Beach Boys, The Byrds, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Nancy Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel, Glenn Campbell, and countless others. Their contributions to music history and global pop culture are profound, but their efforts have been largely unsung, until now thanks to this film, which lit it up on the festival circuit before arriving in Buffalo next week. The Wrecking Crew were musicians’ musicians, the ones studios called first when they needed hit music for artists recording throughout Los Angeles or for a TV show or film, and they included conductor/arranger Jack Nitzsche, Hal Blaine,  Carol Kaye, Dr. John, Leon Russell, and Niagara Falls native Tommy Tedesco, whose guitar can be heard in Bonanza, M.A.S.H., Batman, Green Acres, the[...]