This Week's Public Picks
The Public’s weekly local music reviews and previews.
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With All Due Respect: The Problem With Judge Selection
New York’s system of selecting judges isn’t the only obstacle to assuring an ethical judiciary.
Centerfold: Joan of Arc
This week’s centerfold is “Joan of Arc” by OGRE, which is currently on display at Hallwalls.
Cover Art: Barrel + Brine
RJ AND LINDSEY MARVIN are pickling and canning the best of Buffalo at Barrel + Brine. Read all about it in this week’s issue.
Buddy Cop Redux: The Nice Guys
The kind of movie you watch when you want to watch something, and there’s nothing better available.
Buffalo Beer Buzz
What’s brewing on Western New York’s beer scene.
Artists Seen: Timothy Frerichs
Photographer David Moog’s portrait of the educator and eclectic visual artist.
This Week's Agenda from Loop Magazine
Stay in the Loop with this week’s LGBT happenings in Western New York presented by Loop Magazine!
At Ashker's: Gerald Mead Collection and Max Collins
Works from the local collector’s trove and by photographer Max Collins.
Coffee that Counts: Third Wave Coffee Has Hit Buffalo
Third Wave coffee has hit Buffalo big time, and with warmer weather comes a host of chilled brews and cold, caffeinated concoctions. While many opt for corporate coffee knock-offs made with powdered mixes and other mass-manufactured ingredients, we really dig the real deal. Here are some of our favorite ways to simultaneously gear up and chill out.
John Ruskin: The Goddess of Getting-on
[LIT] Peter Smith is former dean of the School of the Arts at Columbia University, former director of the Hopkins Center for the Creative and Performing Arts at Dartmouth College. Yet he makes little of his academic resume.
(“When a man is wrapped up in himself,” wrote the Victorian era critic John Ruskin, “he makes a pretty small package.”)
RuPaul's Drag Race Season 8: The Queens Live Across America
[DRAG] There’s a reason that TV critics love RuPaul’s Drag Race. “Good God there is some good drag on display,” said A.V. Club about RuPaul’s Drag Race season eight. Entertainment Weekly called it “the most competitive season ever,” and The Guardian straight up called it “America’s best reality TV show.” That’s because the drag queens on this series are extremely talented. Not only are they singing and dancing machines but they’ve also got to be expert stylists and know how to do everything down to sewing up a dress.
Valerian Ruminski Sings at Silo City
[OPERA] What do you do when you walk through the Marine A silos at Silo City? Why, you sing, of course. Or shout. Or clap your hands—anything to test the acoustics of the open, 90-foot-high, concrete amplification system.
Arbor Labor Union
[INDIE] Formerly known as Pinecones, Georgia’s Arbor Labor Union has just dropped its debut under its new moniker, entitled I Hear You, on the SubPop label. It’s a satisfying listen for the post-rock enthused, but you can definitely hear a penchant for Americana twang poking through. The organic nature of front man Bo Orr’s vocalizing—which marries the bewildered outbursts of a lo-fi David Byrne with something even punkier—makes for a transfixing contrast with the drone and crunch of the band’s soundtrack.
Dave Chappelle
[COMEDY] By the time you read this, tickets may be gone, but comedy-legend Dave Chappelle has just announced a last minute show at Shea’s Performing Arts Center this Sunday, May 22. The show is part of a string of north eastern tour dates, which have been infamously selling out in just minutes.
A Giant Dog
[INDIE] Austin-based five-piece, A Giant Dog, is bringing their retro-glam and rock-and-roll realness to Mohawk Place on Sunday.
Dark Star Orchestra
[ROCK] Whether working off a previously performed setlist by the Grateful Dead themselves or cobbling their own unique assemblage of Dead tunes to suit their mood, the seven men of Dark Star Orchestra have been consistently filling rooms for over 15 years. More than 2000 shows on, the band’s success attests, of course, to the lasting power of the Grateful Dead, but Dead heads won’t show up repeatedly for a show that doesn’t do justice, which means the Dark Star Orchestra definitely has a leg-up on the Dead-cover-band competition.
Just Announced: Dave Chappelle
Comedy-legend Dave Chappelle is coming to Buffalo this weekend.
Steel Fest
[HISTORY] The Steel Plant Museum of Western New York is one of the best resources to learn about Buffalo’s industrial upbringings that the city has to offer. And the second annual edition of Steel Fest, this Saturday, May 21 is a great opportunity to check out, or revisit, this great cultural institution. The festival will feature 20 local vendors who will be selling handmade and handcrafted goods ranging from artwork to tableware and textiles.
TJ Borden, Jeannine Giffear, and BBAM Quartet
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] A favorite son in cellist TJ Borden is in town for a visit, with a collection of adventurous soundmakers joining him.