Latest Posts

Tonight: Cactus Truck

December 19, 2014

Recently, I thought to myself, “I really hope the apocalypse has a saxophone.” So it seemed well-timed that the Ninth Ward is hosting Cactus Truck tonight (8pm, $10). The Amsterdam based trio make music that is best described as intense. Comprised of drum, guitar/bass and saxophone, Cactus Truck’s music engulfs the listener in an enthralling cacophony. Mixing free jazz with no wave and noise, the result is a  total experience for the audience. This is not a show for talking with friends as music plays in the background.

Tonight: Instead of Sleeping, Humble Braggers, and more

August 29, 2014

Pittsburgh, PA’s Instead of Sleeping has been through Buffalo three times already – and they always leave the stage having expelled more energy than one thought humanly possible. If that wasn’t enough convincing, there is also a stacked local lineup featuring Fredonia-fuzzmongers Zealot, the smooth piano pop of Darling Harbor, and the swimmy reverb of Humble Braggers. Tonight’s show is at the Ninth Ward. Tickets are $5 presale and $10 at the door. Be there for doors at 7:00pm. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/playlists/30317224″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

Tonight: Morning Arms

July 29, 2014

Tonight, buffaBLOG’s favorite basement venue, the Ninth Ward (341 Delaware Ave.), will play host to dreamy indie Chicago sextet, Morning Arms. The band’s sound is comparable to a female-fronted Ra Ra Riot with a morphined Los Campesinos. For a local touch, Applenium would have been the perfect opener for the band’s vibe.  Also on the bill is Steak and Cake Records’ MINK as well as the Etchings. Doors are 7pm with an 8pm start time. There will be someone behind a table asking for $5.

Tonight: Jolie Holland

July 18, 2014

Jolie Holland‘s take on Americana is hardened and harrowing, a bracing brand of homegrown darkness. Injecting elements of jazz, soul, and rock n’roll into her country-noir folk songs, the Houston singer-songwriter embodies the sum total of our American music traditions. Tonight, Holland’s intimate performance at Babeville‘s Ninth Ward will demonstrate her range, precision, and passion. She will be accompanied by the similarly formidable Shy Hunters from Brooklyn. Tickets to this evening’s event are only $12. Doors open at 7pm.

Tonight: The 2nd Annual B-Lo Invasion Homecoming Show

June 8, 2014

Has it really been a year already? Tonight is the 2nd Annual B-Lo Invasion Homecoming Show featuring the same star-studded lineup as last year. Jacob Smolinski will be taking a break from his tenure in his new band, Local Onlys, to reprise his role with The Cascos, and there is bound to be excitement from the Matt Danger Lippman-fronted Brimstone Blondes. Last but not least is Victory For Poland, who have been crashing our top 20 lists since we discovered them. In case you weren’t already sold, here is a quote from Smolinski himself: “Last summer, it was wild. This summer? Wilder. Be there or be square.” The show is $10 at the door and starts at 7:00pm at Babeville. [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/62242753″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]

Tonight: Graph Rabbit

June 4, 2014

Graph Rabbit is a dreamy indie rock act based out of Brooklyn that combines the talents of Austin Donohue, a filmmaker as well as musician and composer, producer Allen Farmelo (The Cinematic Orchestra, Talk Normal), experimental pianist Shy Kedmi, and sound engineer Valgeir Sirgurosson (Bjork, Sigur Ros). You get a blurry, fairy-tale-Icelandic vibe when you listen to the band (performing live as a duo) with some Thom York influences thrown in for good measure. Graph Rabbit’s debut LP, Snowblind, is literally defined as damage to the eyes caused by excessive exposure to highly reflective snow fields. You go blind and you can not see. Now that’s a concept Buffalo can wrap its head around. Using analog synths, glockenspiel, strong vocal leads, and lots of sleigh bells, Snowblind tells the story of an aimless wanderer searching for harmony. The LP is all about escape, and Graph Rabbit make an effort to transport[...]

Tonight: Annie Girl & The Flight

May 19, 2014

A last minute tour addition will bring San Francisco-based Annie Girl & The Flight to the Ninth Ward tonight. With their hypnotic blend of folk-tinged experimental rock, their music often drapes focused build ups with floating melodies that leave the door open for listeners to come in and get lost in the trance of their sound. That is, through all of the droning instrumental psychedelia and dark melodic whisperings of the band’s leading voice, Annie Girl and The Flight seem to carry the uncanny ability of pulling you along for their ride from the very first notes they play. To be accompanied by local folkies The Observers. It’s all going down tonight at 8pm, $7

Mount Eerie at the Ninth Ward (4/17/14)

April 19, 2014

Phil Elverum is like an old friend who I don’t see very often and don’t speak to very much, but when in his presence, the feeling of tranquility takes over. A Mount Eerie performance is just that soothing (though powerful) feeling projected onto an audience. This year’s show at Ninth Ward was maybe the fourth or fifth time I’ve gone to experience Mount Eerie, but it was the first time I’ve seen Elverum perform solo. He performed seated on an empty stage in a wooden kitchen chair beneath a keyboard and is backed only by the poetic reverb vented from the single instrument. The April 17th set consisted primarily of new songs keyed out under appropriately intriguing single-noun titles and Elverum once again proves that he needs no supporting chorus as the ambiance he radiates is strong enough to make you feel the blue light that has consumed the room.[...]

Just Announced: Mount Eerie

March 24, 2014

Phil Elverum will bring his Mount Eerie project, formally known as Microphones, back to Buffalo this spring on Thursday, April 17th with a performance at Babeville’s Ninth Ward. Mount Eerie most recently played the Buffalo venue back in September of 2012. The prolific musician was quite busy in 2013, releasing a string of albums, including November’s Pre-Human Ideas. Tickets for the show will go on sale this Friday, March 28th, for $13 in advance/$15 day of. – Mac McGuire