For the first time I can remember, the leading story after a weekend of football had little to do with sports but with the politics that surround it, much to the detriment of an unfolding humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. Players all over the league demonstrated in solidarity with a basic tenet of the Black Lives Matter movement, that America’s minorities are treated differently by law enforcement than are whites.
[JAZZ] There are moments, most of them arranged by music curator Steve Baczkowski, in which Hallwalls feels like a center of the free jazz universe. That will certainly be the case when multi-instrumentalist Charles Gayle performs this Friday, September 29. Gayle, originally a saxophonist, taught music at UB in the 1970s; he then moved to New York City, was homeless for 20 years, a situation he says he chose, and worked as a street musician; then, in the late 1980s, he recorded a trio of albums that made him famous.
[LECTURE] The next installment in the Science & Art Cabaret, the engaging lecture/performance series that explores the intersections between, well, science and art, takes color as its subject. The lineup includes a color-blind painter, A.
[MUSIC/VIDEO] Time makes everything respectable, even that which struggles to be disgraceful. Just ask Mick Jagger or Pete Townsend. That’s especially painful for the original punk bands, formed to stick a thumb in the eye of the sanitized corpse of popular music of the mid 1970s.
Last week, the President of the United States of America took time out of his busy schedule of golf and watching Fox to hector black football players about exercising their 1st Amendment right to political seech.
[JAZZ] On Tuesday, October 3, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra will celebrate 100 years of jazz with a special concert in conjunction with the Colored Musicians of Buffalo. The CMC’s resident band the George Scott Big Band will join the BPO on stage at Kleinhans this special show. The show explores the history of jazz and features pieces from “Pink Panther” to “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” and “Stormy Weather.”
[FUNK] Kung Fu must like it here in Buffalo, because they’re making their second appearance at Buffalo Ironworks this year, this Thursday, September 28. The funk band was founded in 2009 in Connecticut, the band combines jazz, funk, and rock, creating music that’s organic, yet flows at times like a DJ set. The five-piece band refers to their music as “Nu-sion”—or new fusion, or sometimes as “extreme funk,” and are influenced by early fusion groups like Weather Report and Head Hunters—perfering to blur genre lines.
[INDIE] It would be too easy to call Frankie Cosmos music simple. It’s got an aspect of minimalism to it—much of the time there’s simply drums, guitar, and Cosmos’—real name Greta Kline—childlike voice, but on her latest record, Next Thing, Kline’s voice is always rather high in the mix, cutting through the music and delivering her comforting yet inquisitive lyrics as directly as possible—a dynamic created by thoughtful and particular mixing, and layered vocal harmonies. That’s to say, there’s more going on than a surface level analysis might indicate.
[JAM] Equal parts reggae, jam, and psychedelic rock, the Werks are a breath of fresh air as far as jam bands go. Appealing to casual listeners and “Werkaholics” (the nickname given to die hard fans of the band), the Ohio-based band’s latest album, Magic flows through a variety of sounds without feeling forced. Fans of Lotus, Umphrey’s McGee, or even the Red Hot Chili Peppers will certainly find something they like. Catch the Werks at the Town Ballroom’s Leopard Lounge this Saturday, September 30.
[ROCK] If you are looking for 2017’s hardest working man in show business (and who isn’t?), don’t overlook Chris Jericho, the pro wrestling superstar who’s star is burning brighter than ever 27 years after he debuted as a wrestler. That has a lot to do with how prolific and successful Jericho has been outside of the ring, where he has become a best selling author, an acclaimed podcaster, and the name behind the recently announced Chris Jericho Cruise that caters to fans of rock music and pro wrestl
[FESTIVAL] The rolling hills, meadows, and woodlands of Knox Farm State Park are as good as any place in the area to check into early foliage displays, and this Saturday, September 30 you can do this and check out the Taste of New York Festival. With over 60 vendors selling NY-made beers, wines, ciders, spirits, fruits, cheeses, burgers as well as artisan jewelry and crafts and live music, go have yourself a day on the 633 acres on the near side of East Aurora.
[HIP HOP] Maybe Matisyahu is the first name you think of when you hear a term like “Hasidic hip hop” but Kosha Dillz is the new generation. Blinged out in a retro windbreaker and gold Star of David chain, the Dillest, or Dillywonka if you will, is fun and funny, but also a legit rapper.
[FOLK] A consummate storyteller with a career spanning over 50 years, Graham Nash is best known as the high end of Crosby, Stills & Nash harmony-driven sound. Prior to his tenure there, he was in The Hollies; both acts have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. As has been pointed out many times, the initial grouping of Crosby, Stills & Nash lasted only twenty months, and that includes the Deja-Vu album with Neil Young.
[EMO] Sad White Suburban Males are exactly sad as they sound, but they’re still fun. Imagine a more emo-sounding Blink 182 and you’re on the right track. The band will release their debut record Sorry to Kill the Mood this Friday, September 29 with support from Ghostpool, Milo Duhn, and Darth Nater.
[ROCK] Stone Sour is the slightly less aggressive, costume-less side project of Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor. Purists might actually consider Stone Sour to be Taylor’s main project since he formed the band in Des Moines, Iowa in 1992, prior to fronting the more popular group, Slipknot, but the band only became popular after the rise of Slipknot. In fact, Stone Sour did not release their full length until 2002—three year’s after Slipknot’s debut.
[INDIE] Released to near-universal acclaim last year, barely-27-year-old Mitski Miyawaki’s Puberty 2 is an album that reflects painful personal growth. At a time in our culture when sadness is shunned in favor of muted emotions and is often greeted by a prescribed solution, Mitski is unafraid to use her music as a vehicle for processing difficult feelings. And she’s not entirely a product of our culture, anyhow: technically half-Japanese and half-Amercian, she seems uninterested in declaring allegiance to either.
[CONFERENCE] The thing about climate change is, no matter whether some people deny it or others dispute the root cause and what we are able to do to stop it, it’s ravaging the planet’s entrenched seasonal cycles, disrupting wildlife and displacing millions of people while we go on arguing about what to do. The epic forest fires and back-to-back-to-back hurricanes are only symptoms of a greater global system change running parallel to our planet’s sixth mass extinction event.
[PARTY] If you’ve ever wanted to party on a battleship, here’s your chance. Madd Ink and the Liberty Hound are throwing an epic end of summer party, this Friday, September 29, and it’ll take place on the U.S.S. Little Rock, which is parked at the Buffalo Naval and Military Park. The End of Summer Luau will feature live music from Fresh Water Four, DJ MatKa, Sexy Rock Band, DJ Danny the Kid, and more.