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Best of Buffalo 2008
	Arts & Letters
	Ouch. It’s been a tough year in Buffalo, what with the whole Albright-Knox debate and the trouble at Studio Arena—both covered in painful detail in the pages of this publication—yet the arts are still thriving in both the established and grassroots arenas. Theater is a hot topic once more (read Tony Chase’s articles in this and last week’s issue of Artvoice), and “deaccession” is a term people are actually using. The city has seen impressive mixed-media shows in the past year, like the extravagant, multi-gallery Beyond/In Western New York, which showcased local artists, and traveling exhibitions like Jennifer Steinkamp’s new media showcase currently on view at the Albright. Cool stuff. Cutting edge. But the votes reflect a loyalty to the tried and true as well as the new and unknown. We see the same veteran artists on the list each year, but in the realm of spoken word and “genre-defying” performers, and in film and video arts, well…it’s a whole new world—or city—out there.
	The Places You Eat
	Again this year our Best of Buffalo ballots were crowded with votes for great places to eat. For a city its size, Buffalo continues to display an embarrassment of riches when it comes to offering a variety of tastes, thanks in part to the city’s broad ethnic makeup.
	The Music You Hear
	Artvoice did a series a while back called “Got Live If You Want It,” showcasing the triumphs and tribulations of the city’s live music venues. Whether they’re devoted mostly to local music or invested in bringing in national acts, almost every club in Buffalo lends a stage to hometown musicians. At some venues local bands headline their own show, at others they may open for a bigger act. Artvoice also holds that BOOM contest you may have heard of—the Battle of Original Music—which offers bands and solo artists of all genres the chance to compete and be heard, the winners playing live at the grand finale. And of course, musicians are showcased again with our Best of Buffalo poll, with so many nominees it seems that anyone who’s ever graced a stage in this town has gotten a vote. Local talent keeps coming each year, with as many new bands popping up as those who reunite, resurface, reincarnate or reinvent themselves. So thanks for the votes, the number of which proves once again that music fans in Buffalo are the best of anywhere.
	The People You Know
	We don’t ordinarily name the winners of the Best of Buffalo contest until the big party at Town Ballroom (Monday, April 14, free to all, with lots of food and live music), where we reveal and celebrate all the top vote-getters. But I don’t think I’m giving too much away by revealing who did not win a specific category this year.
	Those Places You Go
	Congratulations! Let’s all raise a toast. The votes’ve been counted! Which places got most?
	Where You Buy Things
	Some say that restaurants and bars have the most at stake in AV’s annual Best of Buffalo poll. And it’s true that competition is fierce among those joints that sell pizzas and chicken wings, among the red sauce and spaghetti factories and the mixers of exotic, oversized cocktails. That Best of Buffalo plaque is a feather in their cap.
	The Place We Live
	Frankly, dear reader, I’m disappointed in you this year. What were you thinking when you voted in this category? Do we live in the same city? Maybe I stepped through a tear in the space-time continuum when I counted your votes, or accidentally took a bunch of heroine, because I don’t believe what I’m reading.