Latest Posts

Tonight: The Gooch Palms

May 21, 2015

After putting on a head turning performance at this spring’s SXSW, the bare bones punk duo of the Gooch Palms will pay Mohawk Place a visit tonight. The self proclaimed “shit-pop” pairing from via Los Angeles via Newcastle, Australia recalls the Ramones, Stooges, and Eddy Current Suppression Ring. Gooch Palms singer/guitarist Leroy Macqueen seems to take a clothing optional approach when performing live, frequently letting his manhood swing freely while on stage. Just an FYI. Cover for tonight’s show is $10 at the door. Music begins around 8pm with support from fellow LA act, Death Valley Girls.

Tonight: Atsuko Chiba

May 20, 2015

I usually give every band on a bill coming through Buffalo the ol’ college try to see if the gauge my interest. More often than not, a band I’m not familiar with doesn’t do it for me. With this, I was planning on taking today off, but I just couldn’t pass up gushing about Atusko Chiba. Atusko Chiba is a Montreal-based quintet on the tail-end of a tour all over the United States. The group’s sound is 80% dreamy instrumental, with short bursts of chants. The best way to describe AC would be experimental post-rock (fans of Explosions in the Sky or Mono would dig) with heavy In Casino Out-era At The Drive-In patches. Mohawk Place is set to host Atsuko Chiba tonight with locals Shadow Swine and JeffRepeater. It’ll probably be an early one, so I would get there by 8pm with $5 in hand.

Just Announced: Ceremony

May 20, 2015

The show announcements have been coming in at a blistering pace lately so we wanted to catch up a couple that slipped through the cracks, bringing us to to Ceremony. The powerviolence act turned Matador signee will fill another hole in massively busy summer shaping up down at Mohawk Place. The California based five-piece just released its fantastic, post-punk break up album, The L-Shaped Man, yesterday, and will take the album on tour this summer with a stop scheduled for the downtown venue on Sunday, July 5th. Joining Ceremony will be fuzzy shoegazers Pity Sex. Tickets are currently available to purchase for $12

Tonight: Pile

May 17, 2015

Man, am I upset I have to miss this show. Tonight, the Boston four piece, Pile, will be bringing its live show to the Mohawk Place. The band is fresh off of its new album, You’re Better Than This, and with an extreme amount of buzz surrounding the group these days, is set to take off in popularity. With an absolutely mind numbing combination of post-hardcore sounding vocals, infectious riffs, and pummeling drums, Pile’s live show will have ears buzzing and your feet moving. Pile is not the only reason to check this show out though, as the locals on this bill are not to be missed. Opening the show will be newly formed act, Rosy, featuring members of Newish Star.  Following Rosy will be local post-harcore infused indie act, The Slums, and finally, taking the stage right before Pile will be one of my personal favorite local acts, JOHNS: a[...]

Tonight: Melt-Banana

May 16, 2015

Japan, it would appear, went off the deep end into wackiness sometime in the 80s; since the 90s, its capitalism-meets-schizophrenia, rampant-consumerist culture has had a disaffected release in Melt-Banana. The Tokyo-based four-piece mixes punk and pop and noise into an wall of WTF cerebral madness, both chaotic and precise, with energetic, melodically barked vocals that sounds like the soundtrack to an epilepsy inducing Japanese commercial for fish lightbulbs or something. Backed by a prominent, grindcore-leaning rhythm section, and guitar that often slips into circuit-bent, sound-effect territory, Yasuko Onuki’s lyrics are a hyperactive word salad, delivered with undeniable fervor. I was a fan for years before I even realized they were in English; even though it was catchy enough to sing along with, I’d just be shouting stuff like “punch kick punch!” like I had too much candy while playing Street Fighter Turbo at the neon game works. The band is crazy[...]

Tonight: Lazlo Hollyfeld

May 15, 2015

Every once in a while Buffalonians get together for a true Harvestsum banger. Tonight is that night. Resident xylophone-toting instrumental rockers, Lazlo Hollyfeld, are going to be bringing it home tonight. Don’t forget the quiet crush of Applennium, the fuzzy garage pop of Johnny Nobody, or the intelligent musings of Alex Berkley & co. Mohawk Place is the place to be. 8:00pm is the magical hour – make sure you bring $5 for admission. Also, bring your friends. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/175635118″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Just Announced: Mikal Cronin

May 12, 2015

I feel like the only posts I write for this blog lately are show announcements, but that would mean Buffalo is getting a lot of good shows, consistently, which is the whole point of this thing, so why am I complaining? Anyways, the latest to add to this endless news cycle is Mikal Cronin at Mohawk Place. The former Ty Segall bandmate has been quietly releasing stellar power pop albums over the last few years, with his latest record, MKIII, dropping last week on May 5th. Cronin will play the downtown venue on Tuesday, September 15th. Tickets for the show will go on sale this Friday, May 15th, for $13 in advance, $15 day of.

The Demos

Preview: The Demos

May 11, 2015

If you’re feelin’ dog-tired from Porchfest this past weekend (or maybe you had a really rowdy Mother’s Day?), keep that show-going momentum up! Our Rochester neighbors from The Demos are bringing their tuneful indie pop to Mohawk Place tonight. Their harmony-laden tunes are sweet and sunny but offer enough kick to really dig into you and get you moving. It’s a cohesive mix between Kevin Devine and The Strokes with a hint of The Beach Boys. Definitely worth checking out if you haven’t heard! Dead Flowers from Dallas are slated to headline (picture The Black Keys with a little more twangy Southern blues influence) along with Old Best Friend out of Brooklyn, whose tender indie rock sound is fairly similar to Wild Sweet Orange. Buffalo’s own 90’s influenced alt-punk act Wolf are kicking the whole show off, so get there early to check them out. It’s bound to be the[...]

Tonight: Pam Swarts, Fashion Expo 1990, and many more

May 8, 2015

In what is probably the largest non-festival local bill so far this year, Mohawk Place will play host to a deliciously wide spectrum of musical talent tonight. Beginning at 8pm, with no definitive headliner, tonight’s performances are to include the eclectic klezmer vibes of Ahavaraba, the powerful acoustic songwriting of Lara Buckley, Different Planets’ electronoise lounge beats, Rochester’s Makeshift Letterbox and their thick and eerie post rock, abrasive feminist punkers Jamie and the Debt, Pam Swarts’ beautifully layered art rock expeditions, Buffalo’s favorite saucy alt rap duo Jack Topht and Little Cake, and finally electro/house duo Fashion Expo 1990, who will be closing out the night at 11:30. *Inhales deeply* Mohawk Place will be divided into two separate stages for the monster of a bill, with live music being played endlessly from 8pm until after midnight. I know it’s getting warm out, but don’t wear flip-flops—more than just a few[...]

Tonight: The Bones of J.R. Jones

April 30, 2015

If you’re at Mohawk Place tonight, you might think you’ve time traveled back to the early 1900s. The tunes emanating from the stage will be reminiscent of the stripped-down blues that has evolved over the last century into the modern folk and Americana music styles we enjoy today. The step back in time is the work or J.R. Linaberry, D.B.A. The Bones of J.R. Jones, in a solo act show that promises electric guitar licks, banjo backbeats, and acoustic charm. Patrick Stephen Johnson and Levi Van Cleve (of Buffalo’s beloved Pine Fever) open the evening. The show starts at 8pm and tickets are $5 at the door.

Tonight: Landlady

April 22, 2015

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[...]

Just Announced: Sebadoh

April 21, 2015

If there was any doubt that Mohawk Place was back in business, that question has been laid to rest over the last couple months. It seems like we are writing about show announcements from fantastic bands on a near weekly basis, and like clockwork, this morning we got word that Sebadoh will be playing the venue on Thursday, June 4th. Sebadoh formed as a new venture for Dinosaur Jr.’s Lou Barlow after the songwriter/bassist left the band in the late 80s due to lack of song contribution and conflict with J Mascis. The trio became one of the leading acts in the lo-fi movement of the early 90s and consistently released quality albums, most notable 1991’s III and 1994’s Bakesdale, into the late 90s. The band’s ended its lengthy hiatus a couple years ago with the 2013’s Defend Yourself, and will see that reunion continue this summer on a tour that run’s[...]

Just Announced: Pity Sex

April 20, 2015

I’ve been yearning for this one for a while. The fuzzrocious emogazers in Pity Sex will be joining us on Sunday, July 5th, for a night of noise at Mohawk Place. Pity Sex is a great example of what the recent emo revival has to offer. Between gigantic guitars and lilting male/female vocals, PS sounds like what would happen if the Pixies discovered a big muff. Joining the bill are fellow shoegazers (albeit of the hardcore variety) Ceremony and solo act Tony Molina. Mohawk is the place to be. Tickets go on sale this Friday at noon.

Tonight: Cantenac Dagar

April 19, 2015

French Polynesian experimental duo, Cantenac Dagar, create challenging instrumental music using banjo’s, cassette player’s, and human beatbox to achieve an often abrasive, drone-oriented sound. The pair’s latest release, a nearly thirty minute, one-track effort titled BUREC, develops slowly to reveal a raw, abrasive style with built around primal percussion. Tonight, the two will be performing at Mohawk Place where Cantenac Dagar will also play a set as the duo’s acoustic alter-ego, Fort Crèvecœur, which incorporates more traditional instrumentation with the same avant-garde inclinations as Cantenac Dagar. Also performing tonight are Buffalo experimental folk musician Lara Buckley, whose sparse acoustic arrangements combined with an other-worldly vocal delivery makes for a meditative take on the genre as well as local duo Double Memory. Show starts at 8pm. Admission is $5.

Tonight: The Tins

April 17, 2015

Tonight will probably be the last chance to see the Tins for free in Buffalo. The indie three-piece will host a night of upbeat tones at Mohawk Place including local favorites Brimstone Blondes, Parade Chic, and many more. With a line up totaling seven bands and a DJ set, the music will start at 7pm and is promised to “go all night.” Although free, the purpose of the night is to bring attention to the trio’s current Kickstarter campaign to raise money for both an upcoming album and subsequent documentary. The event is being hailed as the “unofficial after-party” for the Modest Mouse show at Asbury Hall in Babeville. Following Isacc Brock’s off kilter delivery and jagged riffs, the Tins will counter with an optimistic indie sound that might leave you feeling like you and the drummer have laid the same fair maiden at one time or another. After the[...]