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Red Heat

November 11, 2014

Red Heat sounds like some kind of STD that possibly ran rampant through US Soldiers stationed in the South Pacific during World War II. Rather, Red Heat is a thinking man’s punk trio consisting of Jordan Jones (drums), Nick Randall (guitar), and Brandon Schlia (bass/ vocals). The sound of fuzzy, infectious walking bass lines paired with the political vocals of Schlia draw you in, attacking such issues as militarization, national media, public education, and even Ferguson, MO. “My job is to write lyrics that run short but make a point,” Schlia explains, “like Bukowski if his obsession was world politics and not beer & pussy.” Red Heat uses everything at their disposal. They make you want to lock yourself in your bedroom and get reacquainted with every punk rock ever made from The Stooges all the way to NOFX, and everything else in between. Heat manages to even operate outside of[...]

SHEDS

October 21, 2014

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. SHEDS just played their first show earlier this month at the Glitter Box. “We were kind of removed from the live music scene for about a year,” guitarist Patrick McPinic says, “during which we holed up every weekend to play music. We really enjoyed all of the bands at the Glitter Box show.” SHEDS consists of a trio of Lancaster natives: McPinic, Justin Young (guitar/vocals), and Jason Overholt (drums). They have been playing together for almost a year in a half and just recently released their first single, “HPBG.” If you happened to carouse the merch table at their Glitter[...]

Bill & Jamie’s House

October 7, 2014

The words Bill & Jamie’s House may give you thoughts of stuffy, pompous dinners and cocktail parties, events where you find yourself surrounded by professors and PhD students who manage to speak a lot of words without saying anything. Needless to say, Bill & Jamie’s House never sounds like too much fun, but oh contrary my pessimistic butterfly, the band has more meaning and substance than your graduate school mind can fathom. The new acoustic duo has yet to play a proper show or release any recorded material, and yet they still seem to be creating a buzz for themselves already. What would you expect from Mohawk Place legend Bill Nehill and former Mallwalkers and Sexist member, Jamie Rowitsch? “Although we are very new, it has already exceeded my expectations tenfold,” Nehill says. “Also, I love the fact that we rehearse at Jamie’s kitchen table.” If you have followed the[...]

Cal Dripken

September 30, 2014

The issue with a lot of doom, hardcore, and even punk is that the genres so conforming and formative, that it becomes drone-esque, taking you on a flight plan without showing you any new views of Lake Tahoe. Once you have been to LA, you have been to LA, but how about we go to Narnia instead? That is exactly where the Buffalo sludgy, metal quintet, Cal Dripken, plan on taking you. Then again, what else would you expect from a band that features current members of Fleshy Mounds, Blobs, Aircraft, and Scajaquada Creeps? “You can have a heavy riff and still have a melody that doesn’t have to be a boneheaded melody,” guitarist James Warren explains. “It can have something to it, besides just being loud and heavy. We try to combine both of those things a lot.” What really makes Cal Dripken stand out among the multitude of[...]

HUNS

August 20, 2014

Editor’s Note: Fresh Meat will be a periodical, in-depth look at some of the area’s freshest bands. For the first installment of the series, we focus on the instrumental trio, HUNS. For HUNS, it’s all about the improv, and no, I’m not talking about the comedy club. Improvisational music is usually something that you correlate to jazz, even though there have been a few bands who have thrived on it, such as Fugazi, Mogwai, Kyuss, and Clutch. “We record everything we do right here,” drummer John Neiss says, pointing to a shelf of stacked recording equipment. The shelf is nestled into the corner of Huns’ tiny rehearsal space in downtown Buffalo. “We go back and listen to it,” adds guitarist Brandon Schmidt. According to Schmidt, the biggest obstacle is keeping Neiss engaged. “He is very punctual when it comes to time.” “I can’t stand 4/4,” Neiss chiming in. An interjecting Schmidt[...]