Showing posts with label tralf music hall. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tralf music hall. Show all posts
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Just Announced: Swans


After playing one of the most blistering shows that the Tralf has held in some time, the long time post-punk outfit Swans is set to return to the downtown Buffalo venue on Saturday, July 5th. Led my Michael Gira, the band is set to release the follow up to 2012's critically claimed album The Seer on May 13th, a double album titled To Be Kind. You can listen to To Be Kind's first leaked song, "A Little God in My Hands," below. Tickets will go on sale this Friday, March 28th, at noon for $15 in advance/$18 day of.



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Tonight: Donna the Buffalo



I thought I'd reached the zenith of "Funny White People Dancing" last week at the Jay-Z concert, but then I remembered that Donna the Buffalo was coming to the Tralf tonight. If that's your kind of thing, then I urge you to find a nice spot in the Tralf's upper level and feast your eyes on the twisting and the shaking and the bopping. 

Or just listen. I urge you to do that too, because this band is awesome. Their music is a funky blend of jam and bluegrass; and what I love about them is that they never do too much of either. They constantly shake things up; if you don't believe me, try to count how many times co-lead vocalist Tara Nevins picks up a different instrument. They really, really know how to entertain a crowd. I've been to the Tralf a handful of times since their show last year, and I've never seen the place come alive like that. I don't expect tonight to be any different. 

The show starts at 9pm, and they will play for hours. Tickets are still available for $20.  




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Just Announced: Cults


Looks like Cults will continue on their journey to play every venue in Buffalo as they return to our snowy city on Monday, Feb 17th. This time around, the NYC retro, wall-of-sound pop act will be hitting up the Tralf, after playing the Town Ballroom and the now defunct Soundlab a couple years back. Thankfully, for their third forth trip to Buffalo, the band will have a much needed set of new material as their sophomore release, Static, dropped last fall.

Tickets go on sale this Friday, Jan 10th, at noon for $15 in advance/$17 day of.



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Tonight: The Lone Bellow


Less than 72 hours after The Lone Bellow’s debut album came out earlier this year, I wrote an earnest, if not overzealous review of the album, in which I proclaimed that if this band doesn't move you, you are not a human being. I then took to Twitter and pleaded with the band to come to Buffalo. Eight months and a more relaxed, balanced opinion of the band later, they've made it to Buffalo and are playing tonight at the Tralf. I wouldn't go as far as to call it kismet, and I’m sure it has entirely nothing to do with my January request, but hey, they are finally here.

If you’re unfamiliar with their music, it’s a beautiful blend of alternative-country and folk, a southern-influenced, Brooklyn-cultivated mix of heartland and big city. Some of the melodies and chords are soft enough to hear the ghost of War Horse next door at Shea's, but then they’ll get together and belt out a group harmony that can be heard over rush-hour traffic. Their range is absolutely incredible, and their passion is extraordinary.

I’d love to promise that you’ll be blown away, but the last time I promised something in regards to The Lone Bellow it was that they were going to be bigger than Mumford and Sons. I may have missed the mark on that one, but how about this: The Lone Bellow are going to make you happy that you decided to go out on a cold Thursday night, and will change your mind about a musical style you may have otherwise ignored.

The show starts at 8. Aoife O’Donovan opens. Tickets are $14 and available here.


         

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Concert Review: Beach Fossils


Beach Fossils brought more than their stark, drone-y style of indie rock to The Tralf Monday. They also brought a wonderful sense of humor and playfulness that they often masked under an exaggerated lackadaisical attitude.

The Brooklyn quartet's tight, screeching set energized the 100-plus crowd with the upbeat melancholy of early songs like "Daydream" and "Sometimes."  But the real fun came near the show's end, when lead vocalist Dustin Payseur offered commentary that was far different than your usual stage banter.  With their set drawing near a close, Dustin announced, "We're going to play two more songs and then we're going to. . .kill ourselves on-stage." From there things just got weirder.

 The band's performance of "Crashed Out" ended in a long blaze of screeching guitar and static that would make even the most ardent noise-rock junkie cringe, and Dustin's paranoid moaning vocals would make Cage the Elephant singer Matt Schultz seem calm by comparison.

They returned for an encore performance of "Twelve Roses," and then Dustin and guitarist Tommy Davidson stuck around for a "Q&A" with the audience - only they mumbled unenthusiastically and never gave a straight answer to anybody's question. When one person asked what Dustin's favorite album was, Dustin replied, "Uh, your album," and later commented, "this is the stupidest thing we've ever done, I can't believe you're all still standing there."  After an impromptu sax solo by drummer Tommy Gardner, the band left the stage entirely.

The ending was so non-chalent it felt funny, bizarre and perhaps even a little stupid.  But it's this same lazy but committed grunge-like attitude that embodies so many of their songs, and in a way, it was almost fitting.
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Tonight: Future Islands


Imagine a really great hug. One that's warm, spacious, and visceral at the same time, and when that hug is over you feel tremendous, relaxed. That's what it's like listening to Future Islands, the synth-pop based group that lies their heads in Baltimore, Maryland. Each song is a bright wavelength of reverberation, provided by Gerrit Welmer's gliding keyboard and William Cashion's climbing bass, with Sam Herring's swift and sonorous words.  It's pertinent to mention the group has some gnarly artistic taste, as their album cover art is heavily illustration based and full of abstract, vivid images.The trio will be performing at The Tralf Music Hall this evening, with guests to be announced, show starting at 8 p.m. Only $12 to dance! 




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Tonight: Get The Led Out


It was a fitting start to the morning: "Immigrant Song," my current ring tone, came blaring out of my pocket and scared the hell out of the cat I was trying to wrestle into its carrier for transport to the vet. That was fun. There are few things quite as startling as hearing "Immigrant Song's" signature opening screech while dealing with a fractious cat at 9 A.M. on a Saturday. 

Why was it a fitting start, instead of a horrifying one? Because Get The Led Out, America's premiere Led Zeppelin experience, is coming to Tralf Music Hall tonight. My use of the word "experience" over "cover band" is a conscious decision, as the concert page makes it very clear that these guys are less impersonators and more curators, recreating Led Zeppelin's catalog note-for-note, preserving their sound and throwing it right at us in an intimate live setting. And really, it's every bit as good as it sounds: I saw a different band recreate Led Zeppelin IV note-for-note at UB's Center for the Arts a few years ago, and what struck me was how literally they took the phrase "note-for-note." They didn't experiment, they didn't fuck around; they just played Led Zeppelin IV exactly the way it was originally recorded. 

Fortunately, it's happening again tonight. And Get The Led Out aren't planning on fucking around either: they will bring the noise and the spirit of Led Zeppelin with enough confidence to offer a money back guarantee. Tickets are $24 and still available here.




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