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Jonny Two Bags

[PUNK] Inspired by hybrid bands like X, Los Lobos and the Blasters, and Social Distortion, latecomer Jonny Wickersham, better known as Jonny Two Bags, brings a roots rocking vibe to his solo debut, 2014’s Salvation Town. He worked with producer/musician David Kalish, perhaps best known for his helping hand with several of Rickie Lee Jones’ best records. Together they’ve merged Wickersham’s gifts as a songwriter with a complimentary sound that’s equal parts troubadour and working-class bar band.

Lone Bellow

[INDIE] Coming from a similar space to garage-folk bands like Delta Spirit, the Lone Bellow used to be just that—the musical project of frontman Zach Williams, who played around the New York City metro area as a solo act. Eventually, Brian Elmquist and Kanene Donehey Pipkin came on board and the trio was born out of a meeting in a Brooklyn diner. Elmquist lends an electric edge to the dual-strum of Williams and Pipkin, and the trio’s shows tend to revel in a rowdy spirit peppered with moments of hushed tenderness.

Start Making Sense

[TRIBUTE] Recreating the intricate worldly funk of Talking Heads is no small undertaking, and Start Making Sense has gained a reputation for doing it admirably well. Front man Jon Braun’s David Byrne is spot-on, and with the double bass duty of Bill Melcher and Nick Levinos, the seven-piece band achieves both the art-punk stylings of early Talking Heads as well as the heady groove-machine feel of their latter work. As tribute bands go, this is mighty impressive.

STILL/MOVING

[ART] One of the area’s most active art collectors will again be opening his vault this Friday at with a curatorial bent to highlight his holdings of works that lends itself to moving images. With pieces by Cindy Sherman, Cory Arcangel, Michael Bosworth, Lawrence Brose, Hollis Frampton, and Jody LaFond, and many more, artist and educator Gerald Mead has carved out an exhibition in line with Squeaky Wheel’s mission: to highlight and foster multimedia art.

Dave Rawlings Machine

[AMERICANA] This Thursday, November 5 get cozy at Babeville’s Asbury Hall as Americana veteran Dave Rawlings performs as part of an international tour in support of his recently released album Nashville Obsolete. Created with long time musical partner, Gillian Welch, the collection of spine tingling country ballads was released in September just after the duo received the “Lifetime Achievement Award for for Songwriting” from the Americana Music Association. Needless to say, Rawlings and Welch both have impressive resumes.

Tom Segura

[COMEDY] Tom Segura’s observational standup delves into a host of topics, including the shocking number of toothless people he has met, the joys of destroying hotel rooms, his own shortcomings, and some his favorite television shows. He released a comedy special in 2014 and hosts Your Mom’s House—a hugely successful, youthful podcast—alongside his wife, Christina Pazsitzky.

Poems: Buck Downs, Tina Darragh, Quadir Lateef

[LIT] A study of contrasts matches veteran DC poets—Buck Downs and Tina Darragh—with Buffalo rapper Quadir Lateef at Just Buffalo this Friday night for their STUDIO reading series. Downs, whose monthly postcard mailer written in exploratory cowboy-stoner verse, comes with the sober librarian Darragh, and meets the socially transversive fables on contemporary American life from Lateef. There’s something for everyone at this installment of STUDIO.

 

Dead & Company

[ROCK] The Grateful Dead celebrated change and thrived against the grain. Their sold-out tour earlier this year, billed as Fare Thee Well and featuring Phish’s Trey Anastasio, managed to live up to the band’s name with harmonies that transformed from haunting to euphoric without missing a beat. They closed their avowed last stand with “Attics Of My Life.” Written by Jerry Garcia, it’s a tight, harmonious tune of appreciation; perhaps a tribute to a lost friend whose soul continues to shine in every “last” set.

Sequencer Pick of the Week: PYRAMID Presents: Jeff Button

[ELECTRONIC/DANCE] PYRAMID, curated by the minds of Nate Howell, Tommy Huebsch, Chuck Abbott, Dennis Lalka, and Kyle Moody, will host Toronto-based producer Jeff Button this Saturday, November 7 at Buffalo Riverworks. Button began as a promoter of the after-hours club Boa-Redux in 2004 before starting to DJ. Leading to residencies, eventually he was placed at the well-renowned Footwork Nightclub.

Cash Cash with Tritonal

[ELECTRONIC/DANCE] Take three dudes from New Jersey and add four turntables, multiply that by their boyband image and that equals Cash Cash. Live, the electronic pop music trio provides a mix of trance music and electronic pop with their DJ set-up on steroids. As producers, the three-piece pick up keyboards, drums, and bass guitars to create vocal prog-house and trance music, as exemplified on records like their 2008 debut Take it to the Floor, and their most recent, 2014’s Lightning EP.

Interview: GWAR

[METAL] Local businesses, residents and outside interests are all rooting for Buffalo’s economic turnaround and downtown revitalization. But one frequent visitor to the Nickel City, interplanetary metal band GWAR, is strongly against a new and improved Buffalo.

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