Latest Posts

Six Bands to Catch at Music is Art this Weekend

September 16, 2025

Every September, Ruff Buff roars to life with the sights and sounds of Music is Art (MiA), a beautifully grassroots festival that has become an annual cultural cornerstone. If you’re a buffaBLOG regular, you probably already know the drill – founded by Goo Goo Dolls’ Robby Takac (whose band originated here in Buffalo way back when), MiA is more than just a lineup of bands. It’s a community-focused showcase of the artistry, creativity, and resilience that celebrates our Rust Belt locale. For locals, Music is Art has become both a homecoming and a rallying cry, proof that our city’s spirit is thriving, and that music continues to unite Buffalonians across neighborhoods.   You’ll notice we’re skipping some of our usual blog favorites to focus on new and friendly faces for this article. Writing about the same, blog-worthy acts can feel like a bit of a refutation on why we exist[...]

Must See Shows (7/23/25-7/29/25)

July 22, 2025

Wednesday, July 23rd @ 7pm Samantha Crain @ 9th Ward   Chocktaw-American singer/songwriter/multi-hyphenate Samantha Crain returns to Buffalo for an intimate basement show on Delaware Ave. Wednesday. Touring in support of their latest length album Gumshoe, their stop at the 9th Ward is at the tail end of a US and Canadian Tour that has been at full throttle since early May. Fans of Waxahatchee, First Aid Kit or Bonnie Prince Billy would be pleased as punch for this one. Opening the show will be indie-folksy Cherokee Nation folk musician Kalyn Fay. It’s $22 at the door.   Gumshoe by Samantha Crain Thursday, July 24th @ 6pm Root Cellar @ Duende   Last month, Buffalo-based freewheeling experimental jazz project Root Cellar came out with their album Fermentations. In fact, we loved the release so much, we made it our Album of the Week. The largely-improv’d act will be playing at Duende[...]

Root Cellar – Fermentations

June 26, 2025

For Buffalo’s Root Cellar, the act of creation is a patient one. The chamber quintet’s debut album, Fermentations, arrives via Erie’s Infrasonic Press with a backstory as interesting as its sound. The six expansive tracks were captured live in two distinct sessions at Revolution Gallery, separated by over a year. This lengthy process, engineered and mixed by Shaun Mullins, has produced a remarkably cohesive, hour-long album that breathes with the energy of its live origins yet feels brilliantly intentional in its construction. It’s a fitting title, as the album documents a sound that has been allowed to bubble, evolve, and mature, settling into something complex and potent. Fermentations is our album of the week.   The band’s “post-jazz” description is a starting point, but it hardly covers the ground they explore. The group, formed in 2017, operates at a compelling intersection of influences. There’s the structural sensibility of post-rock outfits like Tortoise,[...]