Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts

Saturday & Sunday, August 25 & 26

170 artists, 16 mediums, 50 performances, 30 organizations, and a whole lot of food are what you’ll find at the 13th annual Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts this Saturday and Sunday (Aug 25 & 26). Local art is the focus here, from digital art to glass, jewelry, paintings, drawings, photography, wood, sculpture, and more. In addition to the wonderful visual art, there will be performances from dozens of bands and performance groups including Driftwood and One World Tribe (Saturday, 6:15pm-8:30pm on the Lafayette Stage), Family FUNKtion and Sitar Jams (Saturday, 4pm in the Dance Tent), Canal Street String Band (Saturday, 5pm on the 7-11 Stage), Lehrer Dance (Sunday, 2pm on the 7-11 Stage), Gretchen Shultz and Doug Morgano (Sunday, 4pm on the 7-11 Stage) Leon and the Forklifts (Sunday, 12pm in the Dance Tent) Habit Dance (Sunday, 10:45am on the Lafayette Stage) and many more. Don’t forget to check out Cultural Row on Breckenridge Street and dispersed throughout the Festival, where over 35 community organizations including local theaters, art galleries, small community choruses, children’s arts, and sports organizations will be on showcase to share information. Environmental Row will be located on Auburn Avenue. Come and learn about clean wind and solar energy alternatives and find out how to decrease energy consumption while lowering utility bills. Take the kids to Kidsfest—where children can make their own arts and crafts—after you chow down on everything from pierogis to pitas, hot dogs to tacos, and even juice from a solar powered blender (if you’re watching your weight as well as the environment). Try-It Beverage Stations are located near the Lafayette Stage and in the Festival Cafe where there will be products from locally owned Flying Bison Brewing Company and Labatt. For a complete schedule visit eafa.techriver.net. See you on the streets of Elmwood. —cory perla

10am-6pm Saturday, 10am-5pm Sunday between Lafayette and West Ferry (eafa.techriver.net) Free.

Thursday, August 23

Girl Talk

Where does Girl Talk find the nerve to mix Beck with Jim Jones? How does he get away with mashing up Fugazi and Dr. Octagon? Not many musicians can make their listeners ponder the question “what is art?” but Gregg Gillis aka Girl Talk deals with that question every day. That is because Gillis makes his music in a very unique way; he takes bits and pieces of songs you know, songs from the last four decades of music, and weaves them in and out of each other. The result is a series of mashed-up tracks that manage to match T-Rex with MSTRKRFT, N.E.R.D. with Bruce Springsteen, and also manage to raise questions about the blurring line between DJing and producing. He’s pulled off this controversial technique on a handful of successful records including his 2002 debut Secret Diary, 2008’s Feed the Animals, and his wildly popular 2010 record All Day. It is an engaging experience to listen to a Girl Talk record as one attempts to identify the familiar sounds that fly by in the blink of an eye. As Buffalo will find out this Thursday (tonight!) at the Outer Harbor, Girl Talk’s live show is infinitely more engaging. See last week’s issue of Artvoice for our full interview with Girl Talk. —cory perla

7pm Outer Harbor Concert site, off Fuhrmann Boulevard in Downtown Buffalo (first exit off of Skyway for Outer Harbor) (outerharborconcerts.com) $28 advance, $33 day of show, all ages

Friday, August 24

Caravan of Thieves

To listen to Caravan of Thieves is to transport to their world. That world is a kind of gypsy sideshow séance where the band channels the soul of Django Reinhardt and leads it through a filter of Beatles-like pop-rock vocals and swinging jazz rhythms. The carnival-esque aspects of the music on their latest album, The Funhouse, released earlier this year, only add to the mystic themes of immortality, resurrection, and hauntings in their lyrics. Led by husband and wife guitar duo Fuzz and Carrie Sangiovanni, and rounded out by violinist Ben Dean and double bassist Brian Anderson, the Bridgeport, Connecticut based band present a cinematic, neo-vaudevillian live show that showcases the band’s unique approach to making music. Their songs can be heavily conceptual or just plain musically interesting with their use of resonator guitars, banjos, and ukuleles. This part pop, part rock, part “hot jazz” foursome will make a stop at Babeville’s Ninth Ward this Friday (Aug 24) for a special live performance. —h. timpson

7pm Babeville’s Ninth Ward, 341 Delaware Ave. (852-3835 / babevillebuffalo.com) $10

Saturday, August 25

Wet N Wild Pool Party

Back in March, the film Project X hit theaters, showcasing an outlandish party thrown by a few high school kids. Outlandish might even be a bit of an understatement—one of the movie’s most notable scenes involves a teenager bearing a flamethrower being shot down by the SWAT team. In the air of insane partying that has become inherit with the title Project X two Buffalo promoters, Dennis Ferry and Valentino Shine, have adopted the title to describe their newly founded event series. Project X is debuting its first event on Saturday (Aug 25), with the #WETNWILD Pool Party. The aim of the series is to provide exclusive parties, unlike what is typically offered in the Queen City scene. The series’ kick off pool party will provide the perfect cool down for DJ Heat, who will be blazing the turntables. With over ten years behind his decks, the master of cutting, scratching and mixing will provide the appropriate summer soundtrack for this this original Buffalo party. The event will also feature artists Mario Be, Rufus Gibson, Miosi, Swagglerock, and Roboroc. So slip on your favorite bikini or swim trunks and get prepared to party under the sun, did I mention there is an open bar? —sara dinatale

2pm 601 Dinges St. Tickets available at After Dark Box Office (893-2900 / ticketsweb.com) $15 general admission, $25 open bar, $50 VIP. 18+

Saturday, August 25

Battle@Buffalo: Under the Lights II

B-boying, popping, locking, turfing...electric boogaloo-ing? These are all forms of funk-style streetdances but don’t get it confused, they are not synonyms—and don’t dare lump them together as simply “breakdancing,” either. The “breakdancing” you’re probably envisioning—the kind where a human spins on his or her head only to freeze upside down in mid-move—and the most popular type of streetdancing, is b-boying. B-boying is characterized by a four distinct elements: toprock, footwork, spinning moves or power moves, and freezing. There is no doubt that there is tremendous talent involved in pulling off such an extreme physical skill, and the task seems even more impossible when you’re standing on the sidelines. The b-boys and b-girls of Buffalo will do the impossible this Saturday (Aug 25) at the Battle@Buffalo: Under the Lights II, at the New Era Flagship Store on Delaware Avenue. This is the second annual Under the Lights event, hosted by Verve Dance Studio. There will be two main events: an All Styles Battle, which is a head to head battle, and the B-boy Battle, which is a three on three team battle. Expect dance workshops, local art, and live music from the Chill Harmonic Orchestra, and DJs Forest Getemgump, Culter, and Simple. Winners will receive cash prizes and New Era merch, but if you’re into hip-hop, dancing, or just the spectacle of physical excellence, this event is sure to keep you entertained. Come out and support your local talent or compete to win. —cory perla

2pm-10pm New Era Flagship Store, 160 Delaware Ave. (vervedancestudio.com). $5 general admission, $6 to compete

Saturday, August 25

American Grain

Once the epitome of industrial structure strength, the Marine A, a complex grain elevator just off the Ohio Street Corridor, sat unused and mostly forgotten for years. The 20th century bone-white structure that sits in the heart of Silo City has been given a burst of new life. With stellar acoustics the once prospering grain elevator is now repurposed as performance art space. American Grain will be held this Saturday (Aug. 25) as a one-time site-specific evening of performance. Performances include both theater and music. Admission may be free, but only five groups of 40 will be able to fit within the extremely tall, but somewhat narrow structures. But the limited space within Marine A shouldn’t discourage patrons from attending the evening’s programing. A message on the Torn Space website now reads “Sold out, but show up anyway!” so keep that in mind if you’re still planning to show up. Outside, the Silo City will be given a festival atmosphere, with drinks available and an audio-visual display of images projected onto the stunning structure’s exterior. The free event is open to the public, and the artistic contributions come from Dan Shanahan, musicians Jonathan Golove and Matt Sargent of University at Buffalo, and videographer Brian Milbrand of Buffalo State. —sara dinatale

6pm. Marine A, 20 Childs St. (turn right off of Ohio Street) (tornspacetheater.com) free

Saturday, August 25

Queen City Sight & Sound

Tucked away within the forests of Sherman, NY is a one-mile path adorned with dazzling lights. Throughout the smooth hike the lighting schemes change as each section’s artistic expression differs. This Saturday (Aug 25), Night Lights at the Heron will be the perfect backdrop and venue for the third annual Queen City Sight and Sound. The arts and music festival will exhibit creative works of Buffalo artists. But the works aren’t just on display; remember to bring some extra cash because the pieces are for sale. While taking a stroll down the lit path check out the venue’s café’ in the woods. Live music will be performed by the Thrillblains, Bourbon and Coffee, Andrew Biggie, and more. Festivalgoers can also watch live painting, dance the night away, participate in tarot card readings, and view photography displays. But as the night progresses don’t feel pressured to go home, you can set up camp with a tent and spend the night under the Heron property’s alluring lights. —sara dinatale

8:30pm Night Lights at the Heron, 2361 Wait Corners Rd. Sherman, NY. $10 admission, $20 to camp