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Today: Vaggie Fest

August 8, 2015

The sixth annual Vaggie Fest takes place today at the Adam Mickiewicz Library. Originally a riff on Veggie Fest, the all day festival is a celebration of women in punk from in and around the WNY  area. Groups from Pittsburgh, Montreal, Toronto, Rochester, and Buff will be on hand to shred. Canada is represented by VCR, weirdo Toronto wailers, on tour with eclectic group Tonka and Puma while Montreal offers up queercore hardcore (the best kind) band Pretty Boys. Seismic Thrust brings a different kind of Philly flavor with their jangly alt country,and PBGH neighbors Cruces dish out blues vocals with stoner doom instrumentals. Fellow Steel City act Brazilian Wax will bring some riot grrl flavor for a new generation. Chimes sounds like the NY/NJ indie scene they’re from with their psychedelic slacker jams while the familiar fuzzy garage sounds of Rochester friends Green Dreams will supplement the know em love[...]

Today: Vaggie Fest – Day 3

August 9, 2014

If by this point, you’re all Vaggied out, I can only ask you to take heart and soldier on, because this is the big one. Day three of Vaggie Fest is an all-day affair, featuring 13 bands that you are lucky enough to catch for just ten bucks over at Ocean Garden Oriental Foods (right next door to Sugar City). Let me start with the bad news: Pleasure Leftists can’t make it. If you’ve caught them before, then you know that this is a real loss. But they’ll be back soon. Now, the good news: the show is still awesome without them. Five out-of-towners, eight locals. If you’re the thrifty type, I guess it’s worth mentioning that you’re paying just over 75 cents a band (but that feels crass to mention, like informing your dinner guests about the price of each plate). The lineup is: Green Dreams (Rochester, imagine if The[...]

Tonight: Vaggie Fest – Day 1

August 7, 2014

So in case you have been living underneath a rock, or in a sinkhole, you probably already know that there is a ‘lady band’ fest going on this weekend, under the very fitting title of Vaggie Fest. Instead of a single day festival, which for the past three years has been happening at the Polish Library on the East Side of Buffalo, year five of Vaggie Fest will be expanded to three days. Day one starts this evening at Broadway Joe’s as part of their Punk N Tots series, returning to Joe’s again tomorrow night, followed by the festival concluding at Ocean Garden Oriental Foods on Saturday afternoon over on Niagara Street. Tonight at Broadway Joe’s, three day passes will be available for $20 (or $7 if you can only make tonight), which will get you a cool handmade ticket and a shiny bracelet if you so choose to indulge[...]

Buffalo Vaggie Fest

July 28, 2014

I’m sure you have seen the flyer. I’ve seen it everywhere, from Black Dots Record Boutique to the Elmwood Market, from Spot Coffee to Amy’s Place. The flyer depicts any man’s worst fear, especially if they’ve seen the campy B-­horror film Teeth. Needless to say, it’s definitely eye-catching. The flyer that I am speaking of is for the Buffalo Vaggie Fest, which will be celebrating its fifth year next weekend. The event is the brainchild of Britt Wagner, and even though it is a “lady band” fest, Wagner has a hard time identifying herself as a feminist. Well, maybe she is a feminist by its technical definition, but she prefers the term “equalist.” “I don’t like to say that I am a feminist, but I’m an equalist. Equal shit for everyone,” she says as she takes a sip from her bottle of Magic Hat. “I’ve been places where people have been[...]

Tonight: Buffalo Vaggie Fest Benefit DJ/Dance Party

July 26, 2014

Planning a festival is not easy. Having just spent the last 6 months stressing over our first annual Herd Fest, I don’t want to think about the next installment for some time. It was a blast, but a breather is needed. Another area music festival that is quickly approaching, very quickly I am sure for the promoters, is the Buffalo Vaggie Fest, a three showcase festival celebrating everything that is woman in music. With showcases being held at Broadway Joe’s and Sugar City, the festival will host female fronted/centric bands from the Western New York area and beyond. Planning a festival also isn’t cheap. Pre-sale bracelets, merch, food, tapes, promo flyers, etc. all cost money so tonight at the newly opened, very female present Hot Mama’s Canteen (12 Military Rd.), a benefit dance party will be going down in hopes to help cushion some of the Vaggie Fest costs. Beginning[...]