by Shauna Presto | Sep 8, 2015 | Buffalo
Spring Service, the acoustic bedroom folk project of Tom Dennis, is music for the quiet observer. The Sun Kil Moon-esque instrumentals and story-like lyricism wring you out in an emotional but overwhelmingly appeasing way. All four tunes on Dennis’ debut EP...
by Shauna Presto | Sep 4, 2015 | Concert Review
I was told I’d encounter two things at Ratatat’s live show: lasers and birds. It was my first time experiencing the rock-tronica duo, comprised of Evan Mast and Mike Stroud, and after the forecast I was given, I walked into the Rapids Theatre entirely unsure of what...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 31, 2015 | Album of the Week
Aircraft is the band you’d picture being propelled 200 years into the future and selling out venue after venue in Saturn’s ringside (presumably flourishing) psych-pop music scene. It’s spacey, surf-like indie rock that maintains a tastefully flashy appeal, but it’s...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 28, 2015 | Rochester
Alberto Alaska is a band with creative intention and control, and those qualities manifest themselves pretty apparently in both their recorded material and live performances. They don’t shy away from investing in their sound and there’s something laudable to be said...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 27, 2015 | Preview
You wouldn’t necessarily guess it upon first listen, but Space Wolves’ music offers up an interesting contradiction. The duo, comprised of Chris Scamurra and Nick Reynolds, pairs woeful lyrics with docile instrumentals, then runs it all through a sprightly, retro-pop...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 21, 2015 | Preview
Beach House is a band that wants you to pay attention to more than just their haze-pop sound. The Baltimore duo has been at it for just about 11 years now and they’ve maintained consistent notability throughout. But they’ve also been met with some opposition over,...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 17, 2015 | Interview
Aqueous is a successful Buffalo-born band and it’s hard to argue otherwise. Success, however, is such an imprecise concept these days. It can be boiled down to every individual musician having their own definition. Even then, it’s difficult to surmise that there’s...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 10, 2015 | Album of the Week
It can be difficult to view a split release as a singular piece of work, and in some sense, it’s much more common and appropriate to view each artist’s contribution of songs as an individual creation. Comfy and Skirts’ latest joint EP release from Miscreant and...
by Shauna Presto | Aug 7, 2015 | Preview
If you like Fridays, if you like Nietzsche’s, if you like stacked bills at Nietzsche’s, there is a 100% chance that you should locate your physical being there for tonight’s gem of a lineup. Hailing from Rochester, Attic Abasement is a low-fi indie trio...
by Shauna Presto | Jul 31, 2015 | Concert Review
As Samuel Beam and Ben Bridwell sidle on stage, they are received by a spirited yet collected crowd. Beam has this benevolent air about him while Bridwell has more of a boyish excitability (you can see this as his head flits back and forth at the mic and he attempts...
by Shauna Presto | Jul 27, 2015 | Preview
Rebecca Ryskalczyk, a current member of Bethlehem Steel and former member of the now defunct Paul’s Grandfather, is no stranger to the DIY music scene. As of late, she’s really taken the DIY attitude to heart by embarking on a solo tour. That solo tour has landed her...
by Shauna Presto | Jul 20, 2015 | Album of the Week
To a certain degree, there is something voyeuristic about any deeply personal album that someone decides to put out in the open. But it’s the combination of James Keegan’s forthright lyricism and “bedroomy” sound quality that provokes something especially voyeuristic....
by Shauna Presto | Jul 17, 2015 | Preview
Unite The Beatles, Ty Segall, The Beets, Beach Fossils, The Spinto Band and Surfer Blood in a harmonious marriage, and Jaill is the ultra cool offspring of all six individually brilliant parents. It’d be too much of a cop out to describe ‘em as just plain surf rock,...
by Shauna Presto | Jul 11, 2015 | Preview
In elementary school, I had this friend named Gillian (spelled the same way). She was a fearless girl careful coordinate every outfit, had every hair on her head neatly trimmed, was clear and concise, but was also totally unafraid to throw down on the monkey bars,...
by Shauna Presto | Jul 6, 2015 | Rochester
Though its gritty garage punk sound is poppy enough to dance to, Skirts also have this old-fashioned, summer heartbreak sound that’s hard to get out of your head. The Rochester-based band released an 1809 Session for the track “Swimming” late last week, making it the...
