Latest Posts

Tonight: Mac Sabbath

November 16, 2018

There is no better way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the formation of Birmingham UK rock/metal gods Black Sabbath than with tonight’s Mac Sabbath show at the Tralf. Equal parts skull crushing Sabbath tribute band and trenchant parody of fast food and consumer culture, Mac Sabbath kicks a profound amount of ass channeling the ur metal majesty of Ozzie, Tommy, Bill and Geezer while hilariously sending up modern life and shamelessly beloved pop culture iconography with a properly Sabbathesque live show that is all satisfyingly sweet sensory overload. And for a band that hails from Los Angeles California (pronounced “Californ-ay-yeh”), Ronald Osbourne really has a tremendous midlands accent. Doors are at 7pm, mayhem begins at 8pm, and tickets are $22.

Tonight: Foxygen

July 24, 2017

At long last, glam psych rockers Foxygen will be making their Buffalo debut tonight at the Tralf..  The pointedly Los Angeles based duo of Sam France and Jonathan Rado have spent the last decade taking a nihilistic sledgehammer to 70’s psychedelic rock and AM Gold radio on albums like We Are The 21st Century Ambassadors Of Peace & Magic, … And Star Power, and most recently on Hang, a theatrical and phantasmagoric orchestral rock opus that’s pushes everything to the edge of sanity and frankly, beyond. Getting it going and transitioning your headspace will be Brooklyn lo-fi rock act Cut Worms and local provocateur/shaman, and Brimstone Blondes frontman Matthew Danger Lippman. Doors open at 7pm, show starts at 8pm, and tickets are still available at the door for $20.

Tonight: Wavves

May 19, 2017

Beloved California surf rockers Wavves make their welcome return to Buffalo tonight at the Tralf with Chicago psych rockers Post Animal. It’s since six long years since Nathan Williams and company played the Town Ballroom and the band’s had some adventures: signing to Warner Brothers after the indie success with King Of The Beach and releasing two albums with them before totally falling out with Warners and returning to the indie world all pissed off and invigorated. Footloose and free, Wavves dropped their wonderfully wacky and adventurous sixth album You’re Welcome this very day in history, making tonight’s show even more special for local fans. Chicago buzz band Post Animal opens the show, having just dropped their latest single “Special Moment” last week. The buzz surrounding them is noteworthy for a few reasons: 1) it’s entirely justified thanks to their dense and dreamy, Tame Impalaesque sound; and 2) part of the buzz[...]

Tonight: Cloud Nothings

April 28, 2017

Tonight Cleveland post punk garage rockers Cloud Nothings make a welcome return to Buffalo at the Tralf for their first local show in three years. These spirit brothers of the Rust Belt and their mighty, primal rock are back in support of their excellent fourth album Life Without Sound, a melodically complex turn that still retains the angst fueled howl that makes them on of the most captivating bands going right now. Your guess is as good as mine about who’s opening the show, but tickets are still available for $18, and doors open at 8pm. UPDATED: According to Cloud Nothings Twitter feed the openers will be “some weird Cleveland ____” in the form of a band called Brainwashed California and “this guy” Adam Miller.

Tonight: Old 97’s

May 15, 2016

Tonight Buffalo gets a visit from original 90’s alt rock stalwarts Old 97’s when they play the Tralf with Heartless Bastards and BJ Barham. Gritty yet lyrical country rockers Old 97’s hail from Dallas and are essentially the last men standing of that still vital musical movement, still going strong and touring behind their most recent album Most Messed Up.Opening will be Austin-based garage rockers Heartless Bastards, promoting their fifth album, last year’s Restless Ones, along with American Aquarium frontman BJ Barham. Tickets are $24 with doors opening at 7pm.

Tonight: The Besnard Lakes

April 28, 2016

Montreal psych/prog rockers The Besnard Lakes make a long awaited return to Buffalo tonight at the Tralf Music Hall with Detroit’s Turn To Crime. In town for the first time in 6 years, this time in support of their most recent opus, 2016’s  A Coliseum Complex Museum, The Besnard Lakes will be unleashing their Beach Boys by way of David Lynch infused indie take on the ambitious prog rock of the 70’s, all haunting yet gorgeous vocal harmonies, otherworldly, spaced out melodies, and epic jams. Meanwhile, opening the show will be Turn To Crime, the latest project of Awesome Color’s Derek Stanton is an intriguing fusion of classic Detroit rock and modern post punk. Doors open at 7pm and tickets are $14.

Tonight: The Blind Boys of Alabama

June 24, 2015

The Tralf will be a house of praise when it hosts the sublime sounds of The Blind Boys of Alabama this evening. Formed nearly 75 years ago, The Blind Boys of Alabama are true men of God. Their otherworldly vocal harmonies and graceful, gospel infused blues are a musical journey into the very heart of American music, and a balm for the soul for believers and non-believers alike. And in light of recent, nation shaking events last week, this could be just what you need. Tickets are $29, doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 8pm.

Tonight: !!! (Chk Chk Chk)

May 22, 2015

The beautiful old bricks that bless the Ninth Ward at Babeville with sublime acoustics will be vibrating with all sorts of sexy funky future sounds when !!!, blog favorites KOPPS, and Groove Cereal take it over tonight. Sacramento, California’s dance-punk outfit, !!! (or, Chk Chk Chk, a reference to the 80’s classic The Gods Must Be Crazy), is in town promoting 2013’s Thr!!!er, with a follow up in the wings, while this show will also be KOPPS second show in Buffalo this week, having played Waiting Room Monday night opening for Priory at one of the Alt Buffalo’s $1.07 shows. Even though their set was plagued with sound problems, the unstoppable Rochester darlings overcame the static and utterly owned the audience, and the show. I’ve never been to a show at the Ninth Ward that didn’t sound absolutely wonderful, so tonight ought to be a genuine treat. Plus, dancing. Buffalo trip-hop[...]

Tonight: DIIV

July 15, 2014

In this day and age, terms like “shoegaze,” “dream rock,” and “indie pop” get thrown around fairly often. It makes sense in our brains to categorize music as we try to explain it to someone who’s never heard it before. Rarely do these catch-alls catch all however. They may touch on distinct sonic qualities, or maybe even a vibe, but they hardly capture the soul of the music which it intends to prescribe. Sonically, DIIV could probably be described as any of the above. What separates them from the pack is the same thing that separated Nirvana from the rest of their grunge brethren, or Bob Dylan from the endless stream of folk artists, pre or post the man himself. Great music exists in intangible places. It is familiar, yet fresh; It captures some parts of our heads and hearts. DIIV exists in this current. DIIV’s songs are uniquely compelling;[...]

Tonight: Poliça

June 2, 2014

The Tralf’s “Summer Of Indie” continues with a killer lineup of up and coming electronic artists featuring Minneapolis  electronica outfit  Poliça with New York’s Lolawolf and blog favorite Lesionread. In town to promote last year’s excellent Shulamith,  Poliça stands apart from the field thanks to their propulsive, R&B infused 80’s new wave sound, evocative lyrics, intense live shows, and chilled out yet soulful vocals from front woman Channy Leaneagh. There’s a tremendous amount of buzz around Lolawolf and their debut EP due in no small part to minimalist old school synths and the distinct and delicately smokey voice of Zoe Kravitz (daughter of Lenny, spiritual son of Prince), while local wunderkind Lesionread (aka Shawn Lewis) will no doubt continue his rise to power and rapid evolution as electronic and multimedia artist  with some new hardware and some mouthwatering new material. Missing Lesionread is foolish, so being there by 8 PM is[...]

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[...]