Latest Posts

Tonight: The Slums

April 29, 2016

After 2 years of anticipation, we’re finally here, all the hype, all the teases of new material from this passionately loved artist who wears their heart on their sleeve and reps their city to the death; I am of course talking about the release of, Sorry by The Slums. Unless you’ve been completely oblivious to the local music scene, it’s been kind of hard to miss the local shout-rockers in our fair city, playing barn-burner of a show after barn-burner of a show. But tonight’s show is one of proper celebration, as the band marks the release of their buffaBLOG-approved, debut album. The Slums will be playing most (if not all) the tunes off their debut with I’m sure some room for old singles as well. The band’s trademark raw, aggressive, and wildly emotive punk sound, lends itself especially to the live setting, and if you’re like me, I know[...]

Tonight: New Madrid

April 21, 2016

One of the exciting thing about Town Ballroom’s recent Leopard Lounge shows is that it has provided the perfect venue for some of indie rock’s rising stars or best kept secrets. The latter is especially true of tonight’s guest, New Madrid. It’s almost difficult to describe the sound of these Athens-based indie rockers because they almost seem to pull inspiration from every major era of indie rock and do so with a sound that’s effortless and immediate. Given their hometown, it’s maybe too easy to label that as “College Rock” but if any band in recent memory deserves that label it’s them. Yet the band also seem to carry with them the lazy slacker rock vibes of the early 90s as much as the wandering experimental rock of the early 2000s. New Madrid sounds immediately familiar but like no one specifically, which in itself is an incredible feat. The band arrives[...]

Tonight: San Fermin

April 12, 2016

While Baroque pop may have been perhaps indie rock’s biggest scene in the mid-2000s, it’s a sound that has increasingly been disappearing in recent years. Lucky for fans of bands like Arcade Fire, Grizzly Bear, and Menomena; San Fermin arrived to pick up that ball and roll with it. Based out of the original hub for much of that scene, San Fermin hails from Brooklyn, New York, and it’s something you can hear in their music. The band artfully juxtaposes the classical compositions of band leader Ellis Ludwig-Leone with their raw rock sound to create something personal but massive in scale. San Fermin is a band who have been steadily rising and growing a fan base while avoiding any of the ‘hype band’ tags that causes many artists to fizzle out. Instead they have been quietly winning plaudits from NPR and The New York Times and blowing the unsuspecting public[...]

Tonight: Acid Mothers Temple

April 2, 2016

Tonight Mohawk Place will be home to one of the most tripped out, mind-bending experiences to hit Buffalo in a long time. Japanese cult legends, Acid Mothers Temple, will stop by to bring their unique conscinousness-expanding psyc-rock to the unexpecting public. With nearly 100 albums to their name between their live and studio work, this is a band that never ceases working or experimenting. Acid Mothers Temple mix everything from loud distorted guitars to jazz instrumentation to electro breakbeats and howled vocals. Rather than make music for the general public or even as a means of self-expression, Acid Mothers Temple founder, Kawabata Makoto, has said that he aims to immerse people into a world of collected sounds he hears through life. With an incredible live reputation behind them and a sound that’s this wholy unique, it’s safe to say that tonight show at Mohawk Place will be like nothing you’ve ever[...]

Tonight: David Wax Museum

March 23, 2016

Fresh off a much-buzzed about sting at this year’s SXSW, Buffalo is joined tonight by David Wax Museum. The duo hails from Charlottesville, VA, and plays a unique and winning blend of folk rock and Mexican-styled music that they’ve entitled Mexo-Americana. The band’s retro inspired instrumentation is clearly on display and the Mexican influence can clearly be heard on singles like “Born with a Broken Heart” and “Guesthouse”. That said with the band’s focus on pounding percussive rhythms and acoustic guitar, David Wax Museum’s sound also calls to mind the music of experimental folk artists like Dodos. For those looking to see a band who seem just on the verge of being the next big thing, with a clearly defined adventurous sound, should look no further than 9th Ward tonight.  $15 cover.

Feverbox Release New Single

March 10, 2016

Buffalo’s Feverbox might not be from the Heartland, but one listen might be enough to fool you. Reminiscent of bands like The Black Keys and Alabama Shakes, Feverbox arrive as a band with a deep soulful blues rock sound. Their latest single ‘Voices’ is an absolute full-fired barnburner of a song. “Voices” is drenched in atmosphere and is absolutely infectious, with one of the slickest hooks I’ve heard in a rock tune this year. If you find yourself lamenting the recent lack of great blues rock bands, the Queen City might not be the first place you’d think to look, but Feverbox proves it might be the best place to look. Catch them on April 15th at Dreamland with Bryan Johnson and Family, Skirts, and Dreambeaches. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/250124709″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

Madeleine McQueen and the Breeze Release Impressive EP

March 2, 2016

With nearly every city having a crowded folk scene, it takes a truly special talent to stand out; and that’s why we take the time to bring you, Rochester’s Madeleine McQueen and the Breeze. At the tail end of 2016, when the music blogosphere was busy compiling their top lists of 2015,  McQueen quietly released  her EP titled Entangled. While the sharp songwriting and mesmerizing vocals of her earlier release seem to continue to have grown, it’s the addition of the grand layered arrangements that help it stand out from the work of other local singer-songwriters. Each song from opener “Long Gone” to “SMIC” have sweeping instrumentation that give them an energy and passion often missing from the local folk scene. This is not to miss the excellent songwriting though, with title tracks like “Entangled,” Madeleine finds a way to perfectly sum up the conflicting barrage of emotions that swirl around one when[...]

Matt Script Reveals New Video

December 23, 2015

Last week saw the premiere of the new video for Buffalo singer-songwriter Matt Script’s catchy new single, “See You Anymore.” The video was shot almost entirely on Snapchat and has a manic energy and offbeat sense of humor that perfectly reflects the breezy single. The new song is reminscent of bands like Wavves or FIDLAR but decidedly more melodic and harmonious. It’s impressive how effortless and infectious “See You Anymore” is when one would guess it’s creation was anything but. The track is a brief taste of his new album sharing the same name but leaves me eagerly awaiting to hear more in 2016.

Staff Picks

December 22, 2015

To cap off our Best of 2015 coverage, we asked a handful of our staff writers to submit their favorite albums and songs of the year. Make sure to follow all of the blog’s year in review coverage throughout the month of December Cliff Parks Favorite Album Father John Misty – I Love You, Honeybear I don’t want to go with this album, it was my Album of the Year So Far earlier this summer and I loved the latest from Tame Impala, CHVRCHES, and Neon Indian, but with America currently cracking up, Father John Misty’s sophomore album is album of 2015 now more than ever. Between the ascent of candidate Trump and our nation’s mounting multiple existential crises, Josh Tilman’s ode to love, manhood, and getting hitched to that special someone so you can ride out the American apocalypse together seems right on time, all the time lately. It[...]

The Black Ships – Dead Empires

December 15, 2015

The question of what would have happened in a world where Joy Division still exists is one of pop culture’s enduring questions. And while the Manchester foursome may have never been able to answer, Saratoga Springs’ The Black Ships may be able to, at least sonically. Awash in the same emotional bleakness and unease as Joy Division, and the same new wave pop hooks as New Order, the band finds a middle ground that immediately wins over fans of both groups. This, however, is no mere tribute band. While it’s easy to spot their influences, The Black Ships are making a definitive statement on Dead Empires. This is a act that sounds wholly unlike any other band in the upstate NY area but arrives fully confident in their technique and vision. Take for example the stellar “Sea of Cortez.” While the band’s synth/guitar combo gives a rather new wave vibe, The Black[...]

Ryan Adams – 1989

September 22, 2015

When Taylor Swift finally dropped 1989 last year, it’s success was hardly a surprise. The singer’s new album had felt like the final chapter in her carefully cultivated image as pop’s biggest underdog. Going back to her debut as a teenage country star who’s lyrics read with the vulnerability of a livejournal entry, she was pop music’s ultimate good-girl. But the moment Kanye stepped up on that stage, both were cast in roles in the public eye that would define them for years: Kanye the asshole and Taylor the victim. With every successive album since then, using her every girl persona her private life as the base of her lyrics, Swift increasingly drew a portrait of her life as someone constantly downtrodden, defiantly picking themselves up. In the process, her music became increasingly poppy and her songwriting grew sharper. This finally culminated in 1989, the triumphant pop album that with the[...]

Tonight: Atlas Genius

September 19, 2015

Buffalo will play home to one of the most popular up-and-coming bands in indie rock tonight in Atlas Genius. Fresh off the release of their sophomore album, these Australian brothers look to make good on the promise of their first album and it’s huge breakthrough hit, “Trojans.” Mixing melancholy and infectiously hooky pop music, the band will be sure to provide quite the dance party for those making it out to Waiting Room this evening. Atlas Genius only continues to seem to be moving on to bigger and better things, so tonight could be a rare opportunity to catch the rising act at a smaller venue. Also, make sure to get there early for NY post-punkers, Mainland. The band has a sleek breezy indie rock sound and just released the Jim Eno (Spoon) produced EP, Anyway. The group has a very anthemic UK indie rock sound and should make for a wonderful[...]

Tonight: Montage of Heck

August 20, 2015

For one night only, the fine folks at Cultivate Cinema Circle teamed up with North Park Theatre to bring one of the year’s most-acclaimed films to Buffalo, Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck. With production beginning nearly 8 years ago, Brett Morgen became the first filmmaker ever offered full authorization to make a documentary on Kurt Cobain. Granted this privilige, Morgen was given access by the Cobain family to over a decade’s worth of home movies, diary enteries, audio tapes, and artwork. What Brett Morgen has crafted is a vibrant and harrowing multimedia collage that seeks to recreate who Kurt Cobain was as a human being. Rather than recap the pop mythology of Nirvana, Morgen’s film tells the human story about a deeply damaged outsider who brought his childhood pain to his art. A pain that somehow resonated with a public who had never heard anything like it, to make him[...]