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See You There!

Artvoice's weekly round-up of featured events, including our editor's pick for the week: the Electrorespect 6: A Tribute to Mark Freeland, this Saturday, May 4th at Nietzsche's.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out our full events calendar on-line for complete event listings, a location guide to find your way about the city, restaurant reviews, and more.

Electrorespect 6: A Tribute to Mark Freeland

Saturday, May 4

Go go go! Come celebrate the life of one of the most creative souls ever to come out of the Queen City. Innovator, artist, and rock star to his core, Mark Freeland was the energetic and eccentric avatar of the Buffalo music and art scene. His artistic output was immeasurable, always tinged with a bit of dark humor or uplifting, outrageous absurdity. Freeland wasn’t afraid to experiment. He took music to soaring levels of sonic joy and frequent weirdness. His projects included Pegasus, Electroman, the Fems, and numerous others. The man successfully tried his hand at progressive rock, punk, funk, and has been accredited as one of the first white rappers. The Albright Knox owns a collection of Freeland’s quirky and colorful paintings, preserving his cultural influence. The impression he left on the local scene and community is everlasting, and each year a tribute concert is held in his memory, featuring musical performances by his many friends, collaborators, and admirers. Performers this year include: Ed Koban, the Fems Fatale, David Kane (Erectronic) Funk Monster and Woman, BoBo, John Toohill, Disobedient Quartet, Jeff Repeater, Drop D, Scantron, Pillow Queen, and Marco Tick Mendez with Official Crew break dance crew. Find your way to Nietzsche’s on Saturday (May 4) at 9 and experience the inspiration of Mark Freeland. Proceeds benefit Music is Art Foundation. To quote ‘Go To a Party’ by the Fems, “maybe if you’re lucky you’ll find true love... at least until tomorrow morning!”

- tom etu

9pm Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St. (886-8539 / nietzsches.com) $5

Saturday, May 4

Beartooth

Screamo-punk band Beartooth want you to know that they have a problem. It’s not a drinking problem, as outlined in their first single “I Have A Problem,” though that could be part of it. Their problem is convincing people they’re no joke. What began as a joke project by Attack Attack! vocalist Caleb Joshua Shomo quickly became serious after the 20-year-old left his former band citing depression as the reason for his departure. The side-project that was Beartooth soon became a full time endeavor for Shomo and bandmates—guitarist Taylor Lumley, bassist Nick Reed, and drummer Brandon Mullins. The band’s music is fast and emotional. They played their first show, in Columbus, Ohio at the end of January to a small, but capacity crowd. The energy that night was high and they used footage from the show to create their first music video for their debut single “I Have A Problem.” Hopefully the energy will be equally as high when the buzzed about band comes through the Waiting Room on Saturday (May 4).

- jake kid

5:30pm The Waiting Room, 334 Delaware Ave (852-3900 / waitingroombuffalo.com) $10 advance, $13 day of show

Saturday, May 4

Black Pus

Black Pus is not for the faint of heart. The music is loud, distorted, and chaotic, but what else would you expect from Brian Chippendale, drummer of noise rock band Lightning Bolt? Masked and sitting behind a disheveled drum kit, Chippendale pounds out ferocious, raw drumbeats layered over droning bass lines. This is maximalist music made with minimal parts. Drums, sub-human vocals, and an oscillator triggered by the kick drum are his instruments as he loops and repeats rhythms creating trance-like vibrations. As part of Lightning Bolt, Chippendale worked with weirdo-rockers the Flaming Lips and Björk before releasing his first Black Pus record in 2011. That record was titled Primordial Pus, a rhythmic and frantic collection of powerful tracks including “Ha Ha Havok” and “Police Song.” This year, Chippendale released his second full-length album as Black Pus titled All My Relations, which, if possible, stepped up the level of experimental noise one human can make. Black Pus will come to Slyboots on Ellicott Street this Saturday (May 4) with support from the Slyboots Drumming Ensemble, Rochester doom-stoners Tuurd, and Buffalo’s C/V Duo.

- cory perla

9pm Slyboots, 350 Ellicott Street (768-2291 / onthesly.org) $7

Sunday, May 5

Cinco De Marcy

Cinco De Mayo is notorious for the welcoming of spring by celebrating with friends and a few margaritas. This year, Give For Greatness (G4G) and Buffalo Olmstead Parks Conservancy (BOPC) are throwing their inaugural spring fest, Cinco De Marcy to benefit G4G and BPOC. Hosted by the historic Marcy Casino in Delaware Park, guests are welcome to come and enjoy a nacho and taco bar, drinks, displays of art, and two levels of musical entertainment. The Rockaz, the Informers, and DJ Cutler will perform indoor and outdoor live music; also performing will be the Carnival Kids Steel Orchestra. Eric Rivera Dancing, and Salsa for the Soul will be offering dance lessons if you’re feeling brave enough. Finishing off the evening will be DJ Cutler and Differential Flava Crew in addition to prizes, and raffles. Regional craft beers will be served along with local food such as Spar’s Sausage. If you feel that volunteering is your duty, Give For Greatness is holding a meeting Friday, May 3rd for anyone interested in helping out. Please contact Give For Greatness via their Facebook page. Proceeds raised from Cinco De Marcy will benefit Give For Greatness, which supports local Buffalonian arts, and Buffalo Olmstead Parks Conservancy. Tickets are sold at cincodemarcy.eventbrite.com and at the door for $10. Come and enjoy the spring weather on Hoyt Lake in the historic Marcy Casino, while benefiting the arts!

- kendra sornberger

2pm-9pm Marcy Casino in Delaware Park, 199 Lincoln Pkwy (cincodemarcy.eventbrite.com) $10

Sunday, May 5

Anderson Art Collection Sale

In 2000, David K. Anderson donated the University Heights art gallery that bears his name, as well as the entire collection housed in it, to the University at Buffalo, his alma mater. Other works in his extraordinary collection, amassed over five decades as an important figure in the contemporary art world, endow the David Anderson Charitable Trust collection. This Sunday (May 5), pieces from that collection will be offered for sale to the public, with the proceeds to benefit a range of local institutions, inlcuding the Albright-Knox, Hallwalls, the Burchfield Penney, the Buffalo History Museum, and many more. The sale, coordinated by Dean Brownrout Modern/Contemporary, comprises about 400 museum-quality works on paper, including prints by Karel Appel, Norman Bluhm, James Brooks, Christo, Jim Dine, Claire Falkenstein, Sam Francis, Michael Goldberg, David Hayes, John Hultberg, Paul Jenkins, Lester Johnson, Jules Olitski, Gio Pomodoro, Clayton Pond, Ludwig Sander, George Segal, Julian Stanczak, Antoni Tapies, Walasse Ting, and Mark Tobey, among many others. This is a rare (and charitable) opportunity to start or add depth to your art collection. Even if you’re not buying, the collection itself is worth seeing. Admission is free.

- geoff kelly

1-6pm. UB Center for the Arts, North Campus. Free

Tuesday, May 7

Volbeat with All That Remains

The word Volbeat doesn’t have an official definition, but it has come to be known as the sound made when one mixes together rockabilly, early rock and roll, and metal. Needless to say, heavy guitars and sinister vocals are an important part of Volbeat’s sound. The band, which formed in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2001, has in the last decade released a string of well received records including their platinum selling albums, 2007’s Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil, 2008’s Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood, and 2010’s Beyond Hell/Above Heaven. Though the Danish metal band’s sound is similar to contemporary hard rock acts like Five Finger Death Punch or Stone Sour, their influences come from an earlier era. Says guitarist and vocalist Michael Poulsen: “I think it all has something to do with the fact that since I was a child I was really interested in old rock and roll music. My parents were playing Elvis, Johnny Cash and Fats Domino, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, all the music from the 1950’s—they were playing it all of the time, and generally my family were all interested in music but no one was writing or playing—they were just listeners.” Poulsen quickly went from passive listener to aggressive musician, leading his band on a worldwide tour which will land Volbeat in Niagara Falls for a performance at the Rapids Theatre this Tuesday (May 7) presented by 103.3 The Edge. Metalcore band All That Remains and alt-rock band Eye Empire perform in support.

- cory perla

7pm Rapids Theatre, 1711 Main St., Niagara Falls. (205-8925 / rapidstheatre.com) $35 advance, $40 day of show

Tuesday, May 7

Limp Bizkit

As a freshman in high school I scrawled LIMP BIZKIT in white-out on my history binder. I wasn’t very popular. I quickly learned that I could only enjoy Limp Bizkit’s music in secret. I understood that they were a guilty pleasure even though they were working with well respected musicians like Def Jam recording artist Redman and Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man. Looking back, I suppose those features by Redman and Method Man were counteracted by features from DMX and Xzibit, but it can’t be denied that Limp Bizkit’s angry style was popular, though in an unpopular way. This was over a decade ago, in the late 1990s when “rap-rock” and “nu metal” were the cringe-worthy buzzwords of the day. It’s hard to believe now that records like Significant Other, which featured the mega-hit and Grammy Award winning song “Nookie,” and the unfortunately titled Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water went platinum many times, but like clockwork, 15 years after the release of their debut album Three Dollar Bill, Yall Limp Bizkit are returning. The band’s original line up is almost entirely intact—including front man Fred Durst, guitarist Wes Borland, bassist Sam Rivers, and drummer John Otto—minus turntablist DJ Lethal, who has been replaced with DJ Skeletor. It will definitely be a blast from the past when Limp Bizkit comes through the Town Ballroom this Tuesday (May 7). Bizkit is sure to play their hits from the 1990s and early 2000s, but there might also be a taste of their new record, out on Cash Money Records this year.

- cory perla

7pm Town Ballroom, 681 Main St. (852-3900 / townballroom.com) $30 advance

Thursday, May 9

Faux Pavilion

The track “I Can’t Stop” couldn’t be more appropriate for English producer and DJ Flux Pavilion. Since the early oncoming waves of dubstep, he has been a major player. Joshua Steele, mostly known by his moniker, is not only a multi-faceted musician but also a mover-and-shaker. In 2009, he teamed up with friend and fellow dubstep extraordinaire Doctor P to found their own record label, Circus Records, along with the help of DJ Swan-e and Earl Falconer. A list of Flux Pavilion’s productions includes banger after by banger; he produces the type of songs that you fall in love with, listen to incessantly, and if you stop for a while you still get just as excited when you rediscover them. Jay-Z caught on and included one of Flux’s tracks in his wildly popular album Watch the Throne, “Who Gon’ Stop Me” which sky-rocketed up Billboard charts before even being released as a single. Although dubstep has lost its place in the forefront of the sub-culture, Flux Pavilion is bringing the genre back in a transformative way that’s still reminiscent of what was, but with a whole new vibe of what’s coming. He will surely be playing tracks off Blow the Roof, his newest EP released in January of this year. Let’s hope he also plays most of his throwback tunes as well, because lets be honest: it wouldn’t be a Flux Pavilion show without “Got 2 Know” or his remix of DJ Fresh’s “Gold Dust.”

- alicia greco

7pm Town Ballroom, 681 Main St. (852-3900 / townballroom.com) $27 advance, $30 day of show