by Cliff Parks | Jun 13, 2017 | Rochester
To borrow and adapt a now classic Rick James quote, nostalgia is a hell of a drug. Ephemeral, elusive and irresistible, we can’t escape it now matter how hard we try (trust me, after a while you just go with it), and for Exhibit A of this human phenomenon would...
by Sean Lynch | May 30, 2017 | Rochester
Rochester indie powerhouse Joywave dropped their second single “It’s a Trip!” earlier this month from their new album Content due out July 28th via Hollywood Records/Cultco Music. The album will be a major followup to the band’s 2015 breakout release How Do You...
by Cliff Parks | May 27, 2017 | Preview
Tonight Rochester by way of Brooklyn vintage rockers Maybird will be bringing their instantly timeless rock to the Buffalo Iron Works with Sun Parade. The quartet from just up the 90 made a big splash regionally, rapidly drumming up a number of admirers, including a...
by Sean Lynch | May 24, 2017 | Rochester
Calicoco is the moniker of the new project fronted by Rochester musician Giana Caliolo. “Night Owl,” Calicoco’s debut single, dives headfirst into the stresses of lifestyle changes. The outfit’s upcoming Needy EP serves as the culmination of...
by Cliff Parks | May 3, 2017 | Rochester
Rochester electro darlings KOPPS are back with a new single that accurately/regrettably/inevitably captures the zeitgeist, the sweet electronic poison that is “Baby I’m Dead Inside.” Trading their trademark trashed glitz for simmering, low key...
by Mike Powell | Feb 27, 2017 | Album of the Week
Rochester synth punk outfit, CD-ROM offer up a multi-textured and infectious on their debut EP titled, _001. Assembled together like Voltron from various Rochester bands, Green Dreams, Leus Zeus, and Sports, CD-ROM consists of Jesse Amesmith on vocals, Nate Briscoe on...
by Nick Sessanna | Dec 14, 2016 | Rochester
Rochester electro-pop act Soviet Dolls recently released their latest single, the dark and looming “Ghostlover.” The quintet combines lush synth textures with an alternative rock backbone and the cherry-on-top vocals of dusky singer Alexandra Wendt. The...
by Ronald Walczyk | Dec 12, 2016 | Album of the Week
I drove home in the snow tonight (Sunday). And no, not just a dusting, Buffalo’s first semi-legitimate accumulation this December. The roads were mostly awful; it took me about double the amount of time it normally does to get home from work. But amongst all the...
by Ronald Walczyk | Dec 5, 2016 | Album of the Week
Evan Meulenmans crafts songs for people who hold optimism to a high standard. His music seems to be an effortless offering—a mere extension of his obvious inner positivity. The Wisconsin-bred, Rochester-based folk musician’s latest release, Lilac Drive, combines...
by Cliff Parks | Nov 18, 2016 | Rochester
Right now during these surreal and uncertain times, when we needed something like this the most, KOPPS has delivered a sonic judo chop to the senses with their bonkers new single “I LOL @ U.” A riot of 80’s electronica, 90’s sass, ulterior...
by Brendan O'Connor | Oct 19, 2016 | Photos
This past Sunday, Anthology was packed to the brim for a sold out show featuring some of the biggest active pop punk bands. Headlined by The Wonder Years, the stacked lineup also featured Seaway, Moose Blood, Knuckle Puck, and Real Friends. The show was absolutely...
by Ronald Walczyk | Aug 8, 2016 | Album of the Week
Rochester-based indie rockers Northern Spies, a project featuring members of several other prominent Rochester bands, have been on the circuit for a few years now. Last year’s Nothing But Static EP wasn’t quite what the effort’s title suggested. The...
by Ian McCuen | Aug 3, 2016 | Rochester
The Branch Davidians have released their EP Sex, Death, and Things Less Boring. Based in Rochester, the band began as an indie folk duo, before lead man Ben Stephanus expanded both the size of the group and the scope of its sound. Their five-song release is full of...
by Ronald Walczyk | Jul 18, 2016 | Rochester
Pleistocene rises! Rochester’s coolest named-after-a-geological-epoch surf-punk outfit has dropped a new single off of the band’s forthcoming LP Spear, due out on Pleisto-tour cassette via Casual Punks on 7/22 (and beyond, if you happen to catch the 5-piece on their...
by Jake Sessanna | Jul 18, 2016 | Album of the Week
Named by 585 Magazine as an “Artist to Follow” in 2016, Jon Lewis fronts a John Ralston-like musical style begging for local, perhaps even statewide attention. Lewis partakes in a practiced indie rock act from Rochester coming at us as both a solo...
