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The Bottle Rockets

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The Bottle Rockets perform "Better Than Broken"

In the early 1990s a genre of music started to form that drew from country, folk and indie rock. Amorphous, several labels were thrown at it: progressive country, alt.country, No Depression, Redneck Underground, Insurgent Country and—probably the most widely accepted—Americana. While Nashville suits were perfecting the transformation of Country (with a capital “C”) into a glitzy, arena-sized spectacle, complete with pyrotechnics and smashing guitars, smaller venues opened their doors to this fringe element. Independent labels started popping up to provide a home to these acts, and in many parts of the country Americana radio helped spread the word. Soon, young would-be rockers were sitting around campfires singing Uncle Tupelo (Wilco, Son Volt) songs. The Bottle Rockets, from St. Louis, Missouri, were there at the beginning, carving out their own niche within this loose genre—creating something often called rural-rock. Their music is about as straight-ahead as it gets. Gritty and cleverly honest, the band makes a very rare stop in Buffalo in support of its current release Zoysia (Bloodshot), which was produced by Jeff Powell (Alex Chilton, Afghan Whigs) at legendary Ardent Studios in Memphis. This is the kind of show that, in a year, every hipster will say they were at—but the place only holds a couple hundred, and at this price, hipsters can actually afford to go. So get there early and stay late. Opening will be great local Americana band Flatbed followed by Otis Gibbs—bib overall troubador with an anarchist bent.

Saturday, November 4 at 9pm. Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst Street (874-7734). FREE.