The Jungle Gym, Breckenridge Street's DIY space for music and other shenanigans, is hosting a menagerie of bands this evening for your listening enjoyment.

Headlining tonight's events are Summer People from nearby Binghamton, NY.  The band formed in 2008 and has been touring or recording seemingly nonstop since then.  Their sound is rock for sure, but the gravelly croon of the vocals splitting through the mix adds an extra dimension to the music.

Also performing tonight are a variety of bands from across the country performing music in the realm of punk/rock.

Goldmines has traveled here from Celveland, OH for tonight's show... which is a lot closer than Olympia, WA; the city Generifus has hails from.  Rounding our tonight's lineup are Pang and Dream Journal, both local outfits that enjoy a good thrashing of a guitar.

Show starts at 8PM with a suggested donation of $5

Haven't made plans for Halloween yet? Still wondering what you're going to dress up as and what you're going to do this evening?

Well if you're still without a costume and have a penchant for dancing to some of the finest glam tracks of all time, then all you need to do is paint a lightning bolt across your face and get down to The Pink this evening.

From 11PM on, Shaken Stylus will be spinning glammed-out vinyl selections and leading a Halloween dance-fest that only The Pink can provide.

Even if you have one or multiple parties to attend, you can rest assured that The Pink will be there for you in your time of need when the Rubbermaid tote runs out of apples to bob for and the spiked apple cider fountains run dry.

It's The Pink, so it's a 21+ party... but I feel you probably knew that already.

Have a fun and responsible Halloween everyone, see you in November!

Make hump day heavy with Royal Thunder!  The Atlantan rockers are on the first stretch of a tour that takes them everywhere from Toronto to Corpus Christi as they perform 24 shows over the course of 30 days.  My initial impression as I listened to the first few songs off their debut full length album CVI, was that they sounded a lot like Wolfmother with female vocals (female vocals make everything better).  As I continued to listen through the album, however, I found the structure of many of their songs to be more intricate and orchestrated than the straight-ahead rock of Wolfmother.  The album unfolds into a less growly type of Mastodon feel -- the torch carriers of Atlantan metal (but don't forget, half of Mastodon is from Rochester, NY!).

Last night's show included the second time I have seen Two Gallants in Buffalo since May and this performance was everything I hoped for and had anticipated since I learned of the show a few months ago.

I hadn't been to The Ninth Ward for a show before and didn't know exactly how punctual they were with set times but I was starving and decided to get as quick a dinner as possible down the street at Merge.  I was relieved when I got my table and saw the gentlemen of Two Gallants just placing their orders for dinner a few tables down... that way I could at least gauge how long I had to scarf down my food.

Last night was the first show of 2GS North American/European tour in support of their new album, The Bloom and the Blight (released on September 4th).  No strangers to Buffalo, drummer Tyson Vogel quipped that the Ninth Ward was a little different setting than Mohawk Place [the venue they are usually playing at when in town] as he invited the crowd to "come closer and hang out with them".

The tell-tale syncopation between guitarist Adam Stephens and Vogel were in full effect from the get go as they would coordinate tempo changes and song endings with an unspoken communication that only comes after playing countless hours with one another, as they have over the decades.

My friend Jonathan described 2GS as if an "emo/indie rock band had a child with a country rock band and that child rebelled against its markedly uncool parents and basked in a life of pounding drums and finger-picking insanity" after their show in May.  I still agree with that description after last night and feel that they are further blossoming into their own.  The folky ballads were still present (and welcomed), but when they pumped up the volume they came across as heavier than I have heard them play before... a "classic" heavy, mind you (the song "Ride Away" off The Blight and the Bliss features some riffing reminiscent of Black Sabbath).

The prevalence of a harder rock song in some songs did not take away from the sincerity of the warble in Stephens' voice throughout each and every song.  I found myself, on multiple occasions throughout the set, thinking to myself that the words and lines I could discern from the songs I wasn't familiar with made me want to go over to the merchandise table and buy all the albums I didn't own so I could read through all the lyrics and get the entire story of each character in each song.  The lyrical styling deals with wholly believable characters, subjects and stories that I feel many could relate to.

It's not easy being a two-piece band and creating a sound that fills a room.  2GS has the ability and energy to do it on a nightly basis and I feel fortunate that Buffalo has made an impression on them such that they travel across the country to play here so often.

2GS will be playing at Lee's Palace in Toronto next Saturday, September 29th.  They are entirely worth the drive if you haven't (even if you have) seen them before.

If the famed Italian composer Ennio Morricone is synonymous with the music of "Spaghetti Western" movies than the best way I can describe the music of MONO (their live performances anyway) is like a "Sushi Western"...

...that, or sex music for drug people.

There is an air of mystery to them, for sure.  They take the stage with nary a word to anyone and launch into light and fanciful guitar work that cascades into a vast, roaring sea of noise.  Dialed in, calculated noise.  Nothing that happens on the stage happens without MONO intending for it to.  Ten years of perfecting their sound has led to a band so disciplined that, at some points during the show, it almost seems as if the music is making itself... it's that organic.

MONO's current tour is in support of their latest album, For My Parents.  Their newest material comprised the bulk of the setlist as their latest effort was just released on September 4th.

The choice of songs performed at the show was the one minor drawback for me.  Everything was performed impeccably but songs tended to become indiscernible from one another at times due to the overarching theme of For My Parents.  It would have been nice to hear some more material from their back catalog (which, I know, is often a complaint of fans... I also go back to one of the greatest statements I've ever heard a musician make from stage when Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth said something along the lines of "You may not like some of the music we are about to play but as musicians we feel that it is important to like the music you make.  If you're going to release new music then you need to stand behind it... and we like our music.  We're not going to go on tour and play the same tired songs every tour like some other bands do, no, we are always moving forward".  That has stuck with me and I will always respect an artists' motivation to share their newest music with their audience).  I also realize that MONO's songs are almost all over ten minutes long and there are only so many songs they can play in a given night.

The energy certainly made up for any similarities between songs, however.  One doesn't often associate "high energy" with a band that features both guitarists sitting on stools for the major duration of a show... MONO proves that theory to be incorrect. Guitarists Takaakira Goto and Hideki Suematsu emitted focused energy whether they were fingerpicking light chord shapes or thrashing away at their guitars with tremolo picking insanity.  All while Tamaki Kunishi kept the driving rhythm going via bass or piano as she swayed back and forth to the force of the song.  This was all brought together by the thunderous drumming of Yasunori Takada who made judicious use of both a timpani and gong in addition to his standard drum kit... the gong was awesome and, for once, fully utilized rather than serving as a showpiece for an egomaniacal rock drummer who only uses it to finish a drum solo.

No vocals.  No crowd banter.  No egos.  Pure instrumental symphonic music.

After attending the show, I am certainly looking forward to checking out more of their back catalog to see what their other material sounds like.

I'm usually saying how some band has driven along endless stretches of interstate highway to come play a show in Buffalo... well MONO has gone right ahead and one-up'ed everyone.  Mono has traveled all the way from their homebase in Tokyo, Japan to share their vicious brand of instrumental rock with the good denizens of Buffalo tonight.

Mono has been honing their sound since 1999 and, over the past decade, have come to embody a style that is truly their own.  Drawing as much influence from classical music as they have from the forefathers of thrashing noise rock, MONO blends it all together into something that can be either light and beautiful or uncompromisingly in-your-face... either way, MONO's music is always impassioned.

They are currently touring in support of their new album For My Parents, an album that they said is "What cannot be explained in words to parents, we hope can be captured by these songs.  We hope that this album serves as a gift from child to parent. While everything else continues to change, this love remains a constant throughout time"... a heartfelt message and strong indicator of what music means to each individual musician in the band.

Playing in support tonight is Chris Brokaw of Codeine fame, the influential NYC slowcore band of early 90's.

Head on down to Soundlab, show starts at 8PM.
Tickets are $15 at the door.

Today is my usual post day.

I woke up with nothing to write about.  Music and musical happenings around Buffalo were not at the forefront of my mind today.  I woke up on the couch at 6:30AM, gazed disappointingly at the half full Glencairn glass of Talisker scotch on the coffee table, and wiped the sleep from my eyes.  I stumbled twelve feet towards my bed with every intent of indulging in the sixty minutes of sleep waiting for me once I got there.  I woke up a little later and hit the road over to Depew at 8AM to send my closest friend off to Las Vegas for the next five to seven years (knowing him, he'll surely complete his Ph.D. studies in five... and if he doesn't, well, nobody is going to be reading this article 5+ years from now).

Today is my day off of work this week.

I came home from wishing two of my best friends well on their journey with nothing to write about.  I took consolation in hours upon hours of sunshine, Clown Shoes Hoppy Feet 1.5, and a margarita or three.

[sidenote: leftover scotch makes a great addition to both homemade guacamole, as well as, homemade margaritas... mmmmmmm, smoke!]

I sat outside, basking in the sun, listening to my "new music iPod" for a good part of the afternoon... you see, I have a bazillion and one songs on my computer, so I keep a 2GB iPod that I only put music that I am not intimately familiar with on.  As I was listening through my music a song came on, as it often does, that sounded quite familiar to me.  That song was "#1 Crush" by Garbage.

I have certainly heard the song before... I mean, everyone my age has seen the Leo/Claire [Leguizamo?] interpretation of Romeo + Juliet at least several times.  More importantly, I probably haven't heard the song, except in passing, since its' heyday in the mid-to-late 90's.

Pretty cool song.

After listening to the song seven or eight times I got to thinking...

...and my thoughts led me to pose this question:



Jesus, it's an intense feeling, isn't it?  It's good.  It's great.  It's scary as shit, but it is, most definitely, great.  The trick is, I think, to not let it consume you completely... but to let that passion fuel you toward your own personal pursuits.  Stand on the shoulders of passion and touch the sky yourself, for loving someone else without loving oneself is an act of futility.

Of course, Shirley Manson could very well just be singing from the voice of a serial killer.

It's a fine line.

If you talked to me three days ago I wouldn't have even been able to tell you this show was happening here in Buffalo (check that, Darien Center) tonight.  I then fielded a phone call from a friend who won two tickets to the show on 103.3 The Edge (yes, people do actually win things on radio contests).  Now I sit here this morning, still in disbelief, that I am going to see Slayer this evening.

That is fucking ridiculous.

I had reserved myself to the belief that I was just never going to see Slayer.  I am a casual fan that happens to have a very strong personal connection with one of their songs... from what I can remember my editor telling me I can and cannot talk about via this blog I would say that I am most definitely not allowed to get into that story on a public forum such as this... so I'll leave you to wonder.  That wasn't enough for me to ever pay to go to a Slayer show... plus they usually were playing with bands I didn't really care for at all.

Well none of that matters because I will be trekking to Darien Lake Performing Arts Center for the third time in as many weeks to Reign in Blood this evening.

I'm also pumped to see Motörhead.  They are another band that I am a casual fan of but, regardless of what I (or anyone else) think about them, you can't deny how influential Motörhead has been for heavy music.  On a personal level, Lemmy has been influential on my facial hair choices... what started as a Halloween costume ended up being a life choice for about 5 months and something I break out from time to time to this day.

As far as Anthrax goes... I know they covered "Phantom Lord" by Metallica.  I also know that Scott Ian has a ridiculous goatee... and chances are that you will see him if you turn on ANY television program that interviews rock musicians.

I'm not going to pretend to know a goddamn thing about Slipknot.  I know they have quite a large following.  I think I heard one of their songs once due to it being in the soundtrack for the original Resident Evil movie.  They were a little after my time... maybe they weren't... whatever... they wear masks (in case you were unaware).  They are the last band to go on tonight, I will probably give them 3-4 songs to impress me, otherwise I'm beating the traffic.

Holy shit, I'm going to see Slayer tonight... my neck is going to hurt tomorrow.

On this Monday morning, I can guaranteeeee, that you should infringe a time or two... or even threeeeee... because Monday evening, oh Monday evening you will surely beeee, listening to music at Mohawk or DBGBeeeeeeees!

We're several days in, now, and already there have been successful performances in abundance around downtown.  What's in store for today?  Read on to find out:

Listen to your inner movie buff and start the day at Filigrees (on the corner of Elmwood and Forest) with their Monday Film Fun event.  Three movies will be screened and the event goes from 12:30-5:30PM.  Red Green Totem, Decency in Kind, and Thin Red Line are the the films to look forward to this afternoon.

Crane Library (Elmwood Avenue) is playing host to a myriad of unique events today and, had I not been scheduled to work today, would probably be my destination of choice (I go out to see music quite a bit... gotta change it up sometimes, oui?).  There will be Celtic Storytelling from 1:00-2:00PM featuring stories of healing and repose shared in the Bardic style and accompanied by the soothing sounds of a Celtic harp.
Take a break, grab a bite to eat, and head right back to Crane Library at 4:00PM for the performance of Incident at Deer Lick, a satirical piece dealing with the three M's (murder, mystery, and marriage, of course).  Franklin LaVoie will be performing as Buffalo's former editor of the Courier Express... Mark Twain.
The final event of the day at Crane Library, "Symphony #3", starts at 7:00PM this evening.  'Tis a puppet show featuring a man and his dog who attmept to rediscover and reconnect with society after living in solitude... in a hand-dug hole underneath a highway billboard.  All set to the music of Aaron Coplands' "Symphony #3".

Nietzsche's will be holding the aptly titled Best Monday Ever today.  The event goes from 6:00-10:00PM and features 30 minute sets from the following bands (in order of appearance): Jamey Kern, Autoverse, Chacko P. Coltrane, Frigid Giant, Lloyd MacHardy, Blue Lazer, and Lazy Ass Destroyer.  Nietzsche's is the de facto epicenter of Infringement Festival and always promises to have killer shows throughout.

My personal pick for music event of the night however is a "choose your own adventure" of sorts... it will be a fairly easy choice for most.  Do you prefer rock music (in the vein of indie/alt)? THEN CHOOSE PATH A!  Tend to lean towards electronic music stylings?  THEN CHOOSE PATH B!

Path A leads you to Mohawk Place from 8:00-11:00PM for sets by various alt and indie rockers Mob From Atlantis, The Merchants, and The Screaming Jeans.

Path B takes you to DBGB's at 10:00PM and keeps you there until question mark PM/AM (who knows?) for Monday Mixdown with Drop D, Nobez, and DJ Soma.  Plus, bonus for those who show up early, DBGB's will be hosting the Monday Funday Open Mic Night from 7:00-10:00PM.

Enjoy your day, Infringe away!

'Tis a wee bit of a somber day here in Buffalo; for the incredible local rock outfits of not just The Found, but also White Bison, shall be in a state of permanent hiatus upon the point which these two harbingers of sweet, sweet rock n' roll leave the stage at Mohawk Place tonight (probably early tomorrow morning, in all likelihood).  It is at that time that Buffalo will get a little lighter... a little more scissor-sy... a little more lacking in the heavy rock department.

...But of course, the world keeps turning and the opportunity will prevent itself for some currently unknown troupe of miscreants to grab that Olympic torch o rock being passed around Buffalo, slap some guitar strings on it, and show us what they've got.

For now, however, you should be concerned about the events for this evening.  I have seen both these bands several times, and all whimsical writing aside, they are an absolute pleasure to see.  It would behoove you to see what these two bands are all about, as tonight will be your last chance before you become like my friend who never made it to a Chylde show and now kicks himself every time he hears them on my iPod.

What can I tell you about these two bands... well for starters, both The Found and White Bison have their origins in Buffalo, NY.  The Found employs an organ-heavy, grimy, slightly psychedelic, blues-soaked sound of the classic rock powerhouses of the mid-to-late 1960s.  Their sound is further rounded out and made complete by having a rhythm section that includes not only a drum kit, but also various other forms of percussion, as well as, soulful vocal melodies.  White Bison is a three-piece powerhouse of heavy rock that will have you bobbing your head and pumping your fist in the air within moments of launching into a song.  They are also quite proficient at slowing it down and laying a smoky, mystical, jam on you.

Of particular note, The Found will be releasing their fourth album on this night.  Word on the street is that their supply of CDs is expected to be exhausted tonight, so this is your chance to be one of a select group that get a hard copy of what is sure to be another great album by The Found.

Head out to Mohawk Place this evening and help make Ben Hayes (drummer of both bands) last* [never say never] show in Buffalo a great one.

Rochester-based Velvet Elvis, will be opening the evening with their own brand of smoke-filled, hard rock.  If you're familiar with the other bands playing tonight you'll love these guys too... if you're familiar with the other bands playing tonight, however, you've probably already seen Velvet Elvis and agree that they also kick some ass.

I couldn't find exact info on cover for tonight but I would assume $5 to be accurate.

The show starts at 10pm
(which is awesome because some people, like myself, have to work until 9:30).

Toss on a band t-shirt and rock n' roll tonight, it should be a spectacle.