All Stars Tour featuring Every Time I Die

Monday, July 22

Internationally esteemed Buffalo metalcore band, Every Time I Die is on tour again, promoting their new album Ex Lives, released on Epitaph Records. Any hardcore fan could tell you a little (or a lot) about Every Time I Die: they’ve had a handful of bassists in their 15-year run, they once toured in support of Jackass’ Steve-O, and they’ve often been featured on the line-up of Warped Tour. From 2003’s heavily-rotated Hot Damn! to 2009’s hooky New Junk Aesthetic, longevity is something this band possesses. Unfettered by genre-norms, the subtle tweaks within their style allow descriptions like “southern metal,” “math,” and “stoner rock” to seep into their hardcore sound, making them approachable to a wide array of fans. On Ex Lives, singer Keith Buckley alternates between tortured vocals and blues singing on songs like “Partying Is Such Sweet Sorrow.” The song opens up with a jumpy banjo joined in harmony with a licking guitar, and self-critical lyrics while hardcore instrumentation continues to twist along a road less traveled, incorporating unpredictable elements of music borrowed from many genres. ETID has made a reputation for itself as being experimental without losing what made them popular in the first place. Buckley explains, “I don’t think us doing anything different is a surprise to Every Time I Die fans because one of the main reasons why a lot of people have stuck by us for so long is because they know they can expect the unexpected with each release.” Every Time I Die headlines the All Stars Tour which also features features Chelsea Grin, Veil Of Maya, Terror, Stray From The Path, Capture The Crown, Iwrestledabearonce, For All Those Sleeping, Structures, and Ice Nine Kills.

- jaz frazier

2pm Town Ballroom, 681 Main St. (852-3900 / townballroom.com) $22.50 advance, $25 day of show

Friday, July 19

Alison Pipitone CD Release Party with the Grace Strumberg Band

“There are drunks on my lawn/ And I can’t get them gone/ Their stories and their jokes are cruel.” If that were the opening line to a novel, you’d keep reading, right? Those are the first lines to the first track on Big Wide World by singer/songwriter Alison Pipitone, who knows how to hook a listener like nobody’s business. The 10 tracks on Big Wide World stand on equal footing with any of her considerable songbook. There are themes that long-time listeners will recognize in songs like the elegiac “That Was the Place” and “Swoop Daddy O”; the album favors mid- and slow-tempo songs to the hard, hook-heavy rockers Pipitone reels off so irresistibly in live performance. As usual, Pipitone’s band and guest musicians comprise a host of local music heroes. You’d be crazy not to buy this record, crazier still to miss the CD release party on Friday (July 19), at the Waiting Room.

- geoff kelly

7pm. The Waiting Room, 334 Delaware Ave (852-3900 / waitingroombuffalo.com) $5

Friday, July 19

The Tragically Hip

Although the Canadian rock god’s have been buddies since childhood, The Tragically Hip embrace change. For each performance, the band tweaks their ballad’s to fit their current state with a more shrieking guitar rift or an improv vocal from riveting frontman Gordan Downie. Their concerts are never static renditions of their albums. And, lately, the band has experienced more change than ever. In the midst of writing their latest album, Now for Plan A, Downie received heart-wrenching news that his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. The experience gave the songwriter a new focus and a deeper grasp of his emotions: anger, fear, impatience, and helplessness. Thus, when Downie’s wife got well and he was able to return to the album, he had a new vision with a keep-it-real attitude. Downie portrays his life-changing experience through his intelligent rock lyrics and his captivating, dangerous vocals. The Canadian Hall of Famers’ have achieved rock immortality up north with nine number one albums in their native Canada and a legendary following. Their shows sell-out quickly so hurry to get your ticket to their show at the Outer Harbor show this Friday (July 19) with support from Grace potter & the Nocturnals.

- madeline tiede

6pm Buffalo Outer Harbor Concert Site, 325 Fuhrmann Blvd (outerharborconcerts.com) $50 advance

Friday, July 19

Party on the Portico

Want a break from the summer heat? Then head down to Delaware Park this Friday (July 19) for the Party on the Portico. Have a seat on the cool, marble steps of the Buffalo History Museum next to the Japanese Garden and Mirror Lake to take in some live music from one of Buffalo’s top guitarists and his band, Doug Yeomans and Lo Blue Flame (pictured). The Buffalo-born Yeomans was named Best Blues Guitarist at the Buffalo Music Awards in 2001 and 2003, and was inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame in 2004. Sounds great, right? Want even more Yeomans? Well you’re in luck, because he also features in the band the Informers, which just happens to be playing at the Portico right after Lo Blue Flame. The Informers perform a mix of original compositions and covers of songs from the 1960’s and 1970’s—everything from Bob Dylan and the Bee Gees to Bruce Springsteen and the Beatles. On Friday, August 16, Ron Hawkins, front man of critically acclaimed Canadian band Lowest of the Low, comes to Party on the Portico in the final performance of the annual summer series. The multi-talented indie-rock legend is also a painter. His portraits of celebrities like Jay-Z, a young Michael Jackson, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper are sold on a website he helped found, called VictimlessCapitalism.com. All proceeds benefit the Buffalo History Museum. The event is 21 and over.

- leif reigstad

5:30pm Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, 25 Nottingham Ct. (873-9644 / buffalohistory.org) $10 non-members/$5 members, 21+

Saturday, July 20

On The Wire

In his book Assimilate: A Critical History of Industrial Music, author and musician S. Alexander Reed says “Even though industrial music has always been ethically concerned with the present, the genre’s aesthetics over its first decades expressly projected a future.” In Assimilate, Reed, who has released five albums with his own gothic-industrial band, ThouShaltNot, delivers a definitive treatment of industrial music from VNV Nation to Skinny Puppy. On the Wire, a new gothic/post-punk/industrial dance night, which will take place every third Saturday at Ohm Ultra Lounge in Allentown, brings together elements of Buffalo’s past and present goth scene in a way reflective of Reed’s doctrine. The first event in this series was held last month and after which promoter and event organizer Dani McGraw mused over the many new faces—from Buffalo and Rochester alike—to the many familiar faces from classic Buffalo clubs like the Continental: “It felt great to see everyone coming together again, the scenes of past and present,” she says. Veteran DJs like Transmission Dance Party’s Jason Draper and Sequence DJ Aaron Andrews will usher in the future of the Buffalo goth scene with classic tunes from the likes of Chemlab and Bauhaus, to newer music from groups like How To Destroy Angels and She Wants Revenge. The next installment of On The Wire happens this Saturday (July 20).

- cory perla

11pm Ohm Ultra Lounge, 948 Main St. (332-0510) $5, 21+

Saturday, July 20

Close To Extinct

Enigmatic Buffalo artist Jeremy Jermaine Jerome, also known as Just Ending Now is always on a mission to put on the most disarming, provocative show he can imagine. With that kind of ambition there is always the risk that things can go haywire, but it’s a risk Jerome is willing to take in order to present Buffalo talent in a unique way. Always aiming to catch the audience off guard, Jerome takes religious and social themes, shoves them in a blender and spews them out over abrasive hip hop beats. For his next show the 28-year-old hip hop artist has teamed up with beatboxer extraordinaire Scantron, rappers Timmy and Sycheed , and local artists Max Collins and Mickey Harmon to present a combination of experimental hip hop and art instillations they’re calling Close To Extinct, which will take place on Saturday (July 20) at the Dnipro Ukranian Center. Expect surprise art instillations from Collins, live drawing from Harmon and plenty of heavy hip hop beats all night long. With a catch phrase like “the turning point of humanity,” the show (like everything Jerome does) is hyped with lofty promises, but at the very least you can expect some fun and energetic sensory experiences. Advaned tickets go on sale for $10 exclusively at Ashker’s Juice Bar (1002 Elmwood Avenue).

- cory perla

8pm Dnipro Ukrainian Cultural Center, 562 Genesee St. $10

Saturday & Sunday, July 20 - 21

Rock The Barn

Clarence may have transitioned from a rural, farm town to a typical suburb a ways back now, but that doesn’t mean they’ve lost touch with their roots. The annual Rock the Barn music festival is returning for its ninth year this Saturday and Sunday (July 20 and 21) and will be held where it always is: “The Big Yellow Barn” on Main Street. Originally, Rock the Barn started as a one-day, private fundraiser, but over the years has grown exponentially. In total, the event has raised over $200,000 for the Meals on Wheels services in Clarence, Akron, and Newstead. The festival is more than just music though, and includes fun for the entire family. The kids will be kept busy with various arts and crafts activities, and for the adults, there will be a Taste of Rock the Barn, where various food vendors bring their best treats to sample. The main draw though is still the music which will only stop for setup and tear down between sets. This year there will be an all-blues line-up on both days. The Donnellys Band, The Electras, The Willie Haddath Band, Smokin Joe Kubel/Bnois King, and 3 of a Kind (pictured) will be ripping things up on Saturday, and U People, Chuck Jackson’s Big Bad Blues Band, Albert Castiglia, and Patti Parks Band will close the event on Sunday.

- jeremiah shea

3pm to 11pm Saturday and Noon to 7pm on Sunday, Big Yellow Barn, 9015 Main St., Clarence (rockthebarn.com) $15 advance, $20 at the gate, kids under 10 free

Tuesday, July 23

San Cisco

Aussie outfit, San Cisco, is cute as a button with their twee-indie-pop vibe and has quickly made it into the spotlight of their scene. Their fun, sunny songs like “Fred Astaire,” “Awkward,” and “Rocketship” make them small celebrities in their own Australia, and infecting radio stations around the world. Having just formed in 2009, the four high school mates put together their first EP Golden Revolver in late 2010 and were blasted with critical acclaim. Australia’s alternative radio station Triple J frequently played the song “Golden Revolver” from the EP. Then in 2011 the band was nominated for the Unearthed J Award, Triple J’s talent search within the Australian nation. Since their initial EP, they have released a second EP, Awkward and their first full-length album, San Cisco. From both projects, they put out bright and catchy melodies with a lot of “oh-wee-ohs” and “do-do-dos,” which is not to say there isn’t depth to their lyrics. Refreshingly, the hooks written into their songs are not without thought, referencing lost friendships due to stubbornness and not being as forth-giving as Fred Astaire. Though, they don’t ever plan on moving away from their supportive home in Freemantle, West Australia to follow their growing fame, touring is definitively on the itinerary with Buffalo’s Tralf Music Hall on the list of stops this Tuesday (July 23).

- jaz frazier

7pm The Tralf Music Hall, 622 Main St. (852-2860 / tralfmusichall.com) $12 advance, $14 day of show