Cursive

Friday, July 31st

This may be unknown to most people, but a long time ago, in the distant early 90’s, Emo was a respectable genre. It wasn’t the pathetic teenage angst wallowing that it became in the 2000’s, but rather the more melodic and, well, emotional offshoot of 80’s hardcore, spearheaded by bands such as the mighty Fugazi. It was from this primordial Emo-sludge that Cursive came, and from it evolved into something unique. Embracing the fractured stylings of post-hardcore while maintaining the focus on indie songwriting, Cursive became one of the first bands to bridge the two genres and by 2000 successfully melded them in their breakout LP Domestica. Afterwards the band continued to push their sound, adding strings, horns, and on their 2006 effort Happy Hallow, a full brass section. Their recent release Mama, I’m Swollen, shows a dramatic change in the band’s sound, mostly from the departure of long time drummer Clint Schnase. The band has gotten a bit mellower, and without Schnase’s presence the math-rock aspects of the Cursive sound have diminished—so expect a lot more 4/4 timing in the band’s new material. Though the band is little tamer, front man Tim Kasher still has his bite—so don’t be surprised if a softer song (softer of course being relative to their hardcore roots) has some of the frantic outbursts that have been a part of the band since its inception. Cursive fans should be lining up for this, while Fugazi fanatics should definitely give this band a try if they haven’t already. The Love Language opens the show on Friday (July 31).

—geoff anstey

8pm. Tralf Music Hall, 622 Main St. (www.tralfmusichall.com). $15 presale/$17 day of show at Ticketmaster (1-800-745-3000 / www.ticketmaster.com)

Thursday, July 30rd

Killswitch Engage, Rise Against w/Rancid, Billy Talent, All That Remains, & Whitechapel

It’s so great when bands hang out together. Like, the only way I can figure the collaboration involved in Tinted Windows is that all those guys were all drunk at the same bar one night. It’s the only explanation. But less incongruous is the line up at the Fairgrounds next Thursday (July 30), which boasts headliners Killswitch Engage and Rise Against, whose members apparently got to talking, realized they were both scheduled to play Buffalo on the same day, and decided to make it easy on a largely shared fanbase and combine their efforts. And—this is almost too much—they’re bringing Rise Against tour-mates Rancid and Billy Talent, and Killswitch’s support groups All That Remains and Whitechapel. Metalcore fans in Western New York couldn’t ask for better news.

—k. o’day

6pm. Agri-Center @ the Fairgrounds. 5820 South Park Ave., Hamburg. $32/advance at Tickets.com and Tops Markets. All ages

Friday, July 31st

Building Buffalo

Ever wonder what Allentown looked like back in the day? A new exhibit will showcase the old homes and neighborhood layout of the area. “Building Buffalo: A Structural Look at the History and Culture of Allentown” will showcase Allen Street as it was originally imagined after the Civil War: a major thoroughfare linking people to downtown. Several vintage maps of the neighborhood will be on display as well as posters focusing on the history of individual homes with true Allentown character. At Friday’s reception, there will be tips for those interested in researching the history of their own property. The exhibit will be up at Sugar City through August.

— ellen przepasniak

4-10pm. Sugar City Gallery, 19 Wadsworth St. (manintheceiling.com/sugarcity). $3 donation

Friday, July 31st

Zach Deputy

Toting the loaded description of “sci-fi Middle Eastern funk,” New York City’s Consider the Sourceis excited to announce the release of their highly-anticipated 3rd album, Are You Watching Closely, a follow up to 2007’s celebrated release Esperanto. With Jazz Times’ Howard Mandel calling them “the future of music,” and after sharing a stage with Wyclef Jean and Klezmer great Andy Statman, the band is ready to tour with a new musical perspective—futuristic in it’s own respect. They blend heavy, sludgy rock with jazz-fusion, Middle Eastern sounds, and calculated, complex time signatures. The band has been widely accepted with a fan base ranging from jam band lovers to prog rockers to jazz enthusiasts. They will be having their Buffalo debut at Nietzsches on Friday (July 10) along side Peanut Brittle Satellite and Headie LeMar.

—baron von schtupin

10pm. Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St (886-8539 / www.nietzsches.com)

Saturday, August 1st

Mark Norris & The Backpeddlers, Flatbed, The Irving Klaws

Mark Norris will forever be frontman for girlpope, the pop-punk band that split four years ago after a decade of tearing up stages and nearly making it big. Legends and memories, some false and some hazy but true, accumulate around such bands. In any case, time does fly, and more and more Norris and his new band, the Backpeddlers, have separated themselves from Norris’s past. The songs are more subtle, maybe, and more lyrical—Norris as Ray Davies instead of Norris as Greg Graffin. On Saturday (Aug. 1), the Backpeddlers share the stage with two other bands with deep Buffalo histories: the Irving Klaws, perv rockers par excellence; and Flatbed, a countryside rock band featuring the vocals of Joelle Labert. —geoff kelly

9pm. Mohawk Place, 47 E. Mohawk Street. $5.

Sunday, August 2nd

Mel Brooks' Silent Movie

As you kids may have learned in history class, there was a time way back in the 1920s before sound film was invented, when live musicians would improvise accompaniment to movies. The better theaters had elaborate Wurlitzer organs designed for this purpose, instruments with multiple keyboards that were a spectacular show all by themselves. The few theaters that have retained their Wurlitzers, like North Tonawanda’s beautiful Riviera Theater, occasionally run silent films with live accompaniment, but get small crowds due to the (unfortunate) lack of interest in “old” movies. So credit them for doing something very smart this weekend: a special screening of Mel Brooks’ 1976 tribute to slapstick comedy, Silent Movie, accompanied by the Mighty Wurlitzer! Brooks’ film is in color and has lots of actors you’re likely to recognize, including Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Bernadette Peters, James Caan, Liza Minnelli, Anne Bancroft, and Paul Newman (coincidentally the subject of a summer-long Thursday night retrospective at the Riv).

—m. faust

2pm. Riviera Theater, 67 Webster Street, North Tonawanda (692-2413 / www.rivieratheater.org). $10.

Sunday, August 2nd

Infringement Awards Ceremony and Closing Party

These last 11 days have seen a lot happening in Allentown, thanks to the efforts of Infringement 2009’s tireless planners who managed to coordinate over 500 events, 240 plays, bands, art installations, films, and parties at over 40 venues and non-venues throughout the area. Show some audience appreciation and get to know the performers at the farewell party on Sunday (July 2), held at Infringement headquarters (Nietzsche’s) after yet another full day of Infringement programming. This “last hurrah” features a medley of kinds of entertainment, as well as the “Iffy Awards” honoring the best of the fest. Acts include Vinzent Massi, A Hotel Nourishing, Slapstick & Superego, the John Hunter Trio, Cowboys of Scotland, Harold Black and the White Lies, Euphraxia & Red Moon: American Tribal Style Bellydance, and Noah Gokey. Visit www.infringebuffalo.org for full schedule.

—alan victor

7pm. Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St. (886-8539 / www.nietzsches.com)