The Throwdown
8pm. Ol’ Wondermoth, 208 North Street (nickelcitycoop.org) $5 donation
Improvisational music trio the Throwdown will be bringing their explosive, free-form sound to a different sort of house party on Friday night—a fundraiser for the Nickel City Housing Cooperative in their property at 208 North Street. The band’s frenetic live performances are reminiscent of the music of Albert Ayler, John Coltrane, Marion Brown and others from the raging jazz scene of the 60s. Joining drummer Ravi Padmanabha is saxophonist and Hallwalls music director Steve Baczkowski, along with legendary bassist and Buffalo native Juini Booth (pictured). Booth’s fifty-year career includes stints with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, the Tony Williams Lifetime, Coleman Hawkins, Albert Ayler, Chuck Mangione, Sun Ra, Freddie Hubbard and McCoy Tyner among many others. Anyone who has experienced previous performances by the Throwdown will attest to the emotional and passionate nature of the group’s sound. Bring along an open mind and get set to have it blown. BYOB, along with valid identification.
> Buck Quigley
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WINTER BLUES AND BREWS WEEKEND
Ellicottville, NY, ellicottvilleny.com & buffaloniagarabrewersassociation.org
Don’t let the cabin fever take hold. Get out of the house this weekend and take a trip to Ellicottville to experience some great blues music and unique local brews. The Ellicottville Chamber of Commerce and Buffalo Niagara Brewers Association (BNBA) are hosting this special weekend event featuring 20 BNBA member breweries from all around WNY and some of the area’s favorite blues bands. Head over to Ellicottville Brewing Company for beer tasting events on January 23 and 24 and try some samples from Big Ditch Brewery, Community Beer Works, Flying Bison, Four Mile, 42 North, Resurgence, Southern Tier, and Hamburg Brewing Company. Participating venues hosting live music include Balloons, Madigan’s, Gin Mill, and Villaggio. The Heavenly Chillbillies, Doug Yeomans Lo-Blu Flame, Hoagy and the Blue Bombers, Miller and the Other Sinners, and Leon & the Forklifts are just some of this weekend’s performers. Spend an evening enjoying the festivities or make a weekend of it and stay the night at one of Ellicottville’s charming B&Bs. For a full list of breweries, bands, and activities head to ellicottvilleny.com or buffaloniagarabrewersassociation.org. Cheers!
> DIANA PRINCE
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PUNK AND SKA EXTRAVAGANZA: PART DEUX
8pm, Mohawk Place, 47 E. Mohawk Place, Buffalo, (buffalosmohawkplace.com), $5
Come get rowdy at Mohawk Place this Saturday night with five of the finest punk and ska bands Western New York has to offer. Buffalo Punk legends Johnny Revolting head the showcase and, fun side note, they’re in the process of filming zombie flick Johnny Revolting vs The Undead. And YOU can actually be a part of it. Filmmakers will be present at the show and conducting short 15 second interviews for the film, the premise of which is “The greatest punk rock band of all time plays a private show for a select group of fans...but those fans soon turn into zombies.” The seven piece band The Abruptors will provide the ska (with a new single, “Anything In This World”), D.N.R. will return from a 10 month hiatus with new tunes, On The Cinder will play their first show of the new year, and Radical Operations round out the lineup (also with new songs to play, including one that was written in honor of Bill Cosby’s arrest warrant. Ha!). This should be a good time. Don’t miss out.
> Sinthea Schmidt
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LUMAGINATION LAUNCH PARTY
6-9pm. Buffalo & Erie County Botanical Gardens, 2655 South Park Ave, Buffalo, (buffalogardens.com), $35/$40
Be the first to see the Botanical Gardens lit up! Defy the darkness of Buffalo’s cold midwinter nights this Tuesday evening at the Lumagination Launch Party. A truly colorful and captivating event, explore creatively themed, wildly-lit, interactive greenhouses. Experience the Palm Dome as you’ve never seen it, wander amongst the giant lanterns in the Wegmans Family Garden, and marvel at the Orchid Fairy House, magic Disco Room, thunderstorms and waterfalls of light. Tickets include cocktails from Ketel One Vodka, Bulleit Bourbon & Nolet Gin, wine, beer, light appetizers from Tonawanda Castle Catering, a basket raffle, and more. ($30 for Garden members, $35 for the general public, $40 after January 21). If you’re unable to make the opening night event, you can still take part in the magic by visiting the Botanical Gardens Wednesday through Saturday nights from January 27- February 20, between 6 and 9 pm. ($12 adults, $10 Garden members, seniors, and students, $5 kids 3-12).
> ORORO MUNROE
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SCOTT STAPP
7:30pm. Buffalo Iron Works (buffaloironworks.com/200-1893) 49 Illinois St. $27.50 presale $32 doors
You might be familiar with the work of singer-songwriter Scott Stapp, the former frontman of Creed, an obscure little rock band from the early-2000s. Believe it or not though, there was a brief time when the post-grunge poster boys were arguably the most popular rock band in America, selling out stadiums in support of their diamond-certified album Human Clay, which produced such chart-topping #1 hits as “Higher” and “With Arms Wide Open.” Stapp’s muscular vocals and the larger than life earnestness which characterized his delivery would define the success of Creed, but when the band’s momentum fizzled and backlash soon set in, Stapp would become an easy target of hipster ridicule in the following years, further confounded by his outspoken Christian beliefs and heavily publicized bouts with depression and alcoholism. Despite all that, Stapp remains an active musician, collaborating with a number of artists and drawing on his personal demons to fuel the inspiration for two solo albums. Stapp has also continued to perform across the country in smaller venues for his loyal fan base, as he will Tuesday evening when takes to the stage at Buffalo Iron Works.
> Jordan Canahai
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Yellow Claw
8pm. Town Ballroom (townballroom.com/852-3900) 681 Main St. $22-$25
Dutch DJ Trio Yellow Claw deliver a unique fusion of styles that has seen them become a sensation throughout clubs and festivals around the world. Playing a distinct mash-up of trap, hip-hop, dubstep, and electrohouse that sets them apart from other groups in their native country and abroad. The trio’s popularity begain in 2010 when they formed in Amsterdam and their popularity soon spread as their singles found success on both the Dutch and Belgium charts. Subsequent music videos and live performances would go viral on Youtube, gaining millions of views and attracting the recognition of one of Electronic Music’s most popular producers, Diplo, who signed them to his Mad Decent label. Yellow Claw would produce a number of highly successful EPs under the label such as Amsterdam Trap Music while going on to launch their own label. It’s in their live shows, however, where Yellow Claw truly shines, having earned rave reviews in the EDM scene for putting on first-rate shows. Electronic music fans will have the opportunity to see for themselves when Yellow Claw performs this Tuesday at the historic Town Ballroom.
> Jordan Canahai
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