Where the Bands Are: This Week in Live Music and Concert News

John Lennon's 84th birthday celebration, The Caz opens its doors in South Buffalo, and this week's live music picks

Oct 09, 2024

Hey there, Music Lovers.

Hoping you and all your loved ones are safe and sound, as one hurricane relief effort is superseded by the arrival of a second powerful hurricane in the American southeast. The devastation has already been immense, and while general good vibes, well-wishes, prayers, or whatever we might call the positive energy we send out into the universe, are always a good thing, actual money and tangible support are even better things.

There are many ways to offer support for those in need, but I’ll take this opportunity to recommend the World Central Kitchen, which provides meals to those most desperately in need around the world. The WCK has teams already in place in Florida, North Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee, and 100% of anything you might be able to contribute to the organization translates directly into food and clean water for those displaced by these catastrophic weather events. Check out the World Central Kitchen here.

On a tangentially related note, John Lennon would’ve turned 84 today as I’m writing this, and it sure does seem like our weary and embattled world could use a bit of the man’s conception of universal love and (an at least imagined) peace right about now.

It’s fitting, then, that Lennon’s 84th birthday celebration includes a focus on his 1973 Zen-like masterpiece ‘Mind Games,’ which is being granted a new lease on life through the efforts of Sean Ono Lennon, who shares a birthday with his father.

Sean has rather radically reimagined ‘Mind Games’ as a series of 9 Meditation Mixes, “designed to put the listener in a relaxed, meditative state, to help guide one’s mind into deeper states of consciousness.” According to a press release from Capitol/UMe, ”various sound design techniques and processes have been applied to the original 1973 two-inch multitrack recordings, and in some cases have been enhanced with additional instrumentation from Sean Ono Lennon,” to create these Meditation Mixes. “Each of the nine mixes has been radically altered, slowed down and extended, ranging from 5 to 10 to upwards of 33 minutes, allowing for the musical soundtrack to wash over the listener and provide a relaxing, immersive, deep listening and meditative experience.”

You can check out these new, mindful mixes, and order the 180-gram, crystal clear vinyl here.

John’s 84th is also being celebrated by the relighting of Yoko Ono Lennon’s Imagine Peace Tower in Reykjavik, Iceland; the outdoor artwork, built on Viðey in 2007, is lit annually on Lennon’s birthday, October 9th, and shines until December 8th, the day of his passing. If you’re interested, you can view the lighting here.

**Yoko Ono Lennon’s Imagine Peace Tower**, Reykjavik, Iceland.

Yes, all of this Lennon-related activity is largely symbolic, but it’s fair to say that, in order to work toward a better world, we must first imagine that better world.

Happy birthday, John.

In other good news, one of of my favorite Buffalo bands from the early 2000s, garage-roots-American outfit the Old Sweethearts, will be reuniting for the Harvest Sum Twenty show November 16th at the Cave.

Coinciding with the Sweethearts’ Arms of the Town vinyl reissue, all 5 original members return to close out 20 years of the Harvest Sum indie record label - fitting, since Old Sweetheart Roger Bryan’s In Regards to Your Affairs was the debut release on the Harvest Sum imprint, back in 2004.

This Harvest Sum Twenty gig - which will also includes performances by Lower Pony, TVMTN, Bearhunter, Johnny Nobody, and Roger Bryan & the Orphans - will be the first Old Sweethearts live show since the legendary 2013 ‘The Closing of Mohawk Place’ farewell party.

Also of note this week is the grand opening of The Caz, the new venture being booked by Andre Pillette of Farrow, in the site of a former bank that has been retro-fitted as a top-tier live music room and restaurant. This is exciting news, not just for the potential revitalization of the venue’s Seneca Street, South Buffalo location, but for the entire regional music community, for part of the Caz’s vision involves a dedication to both national artists and our own bands. To wit, the Caz’ stage “is a platform for emerging and local artists, helping them connect with a broader audience.” That’s nothing but good news.

The Caz opens its doors on Thursday, October 17, with a double bill featuring Johnny Hart & the Mess and The Brass Machine. You can find a full list of upcoming shows here.

JUST ANNOUNCED:

José González

Sunday, March 30, 2025, 7 pm at Asbury Hall in Babeville, Buffalo. Tickets: $49.50/$59.50.
Presale - Thursday, October 10 10 am-10 pm, Password: CROSSES. General - Friday, October 12, 10 am. Get tickets here.

Photo: Peter Toggeth, Mikel Cee Karlsson

Funtime Presents

Drive-By Truckers

Tuesday, January 28, 2025 7 pm at the Town Ballroom, Buffalo. $55.25/VIP $199.45

Eggy

Friday, December 27, 8 pm at Electric City, Buffalo. Tickets on sale Friday, October 11 at 10 am.

The Traveling Milburys

Saturday, April 5, 2025, 7 pm at Asbury Hall in Babeville, Buffalo. Tickets: $35/$45. Tickets on sale now.

Stephen Wilson Jr.

Saturday, March 15, 2025 7 pm at the Town Ballroom, Buffalo. $31.87/VIP $110.87

BDAS (Buffalo Dead All Stars) New Year’s Eve Matinee

Tuesday, December 31, 2 pm at Sportsmen’s Tavern, Buffalo.

THIS WEEK:

Funtime presents:

Jeff Tweedy wsg/ Elizabeth Moen

Tuesday October 15, 7:30 pm at the Buffalo State Performing Arts Center, Buffalo. $79/$59/$49. Very few seats left!

River Jam: Andy Frasco & The U.N., Spafford, Magic Beans, Roy G Biv, Tsavo Highway, and KimoFox

Sunday, October 13, 2 pm at Buffalo RiverWorks, Buffalo. $39.50

Jay Race’s Almost D.A.B (Official after party of River Jam)

Sunday, October 13, 11 pm at Nietzsche’s, Buffalo. $10/$5 with River Jam ticket

The Scales (Phish Tribute)

Friday, October 11, 8 pm at The Cave, Buffalo. $15

Ellicottville Fall Festival 2024

Friday, October 11 - Sunday, October 13, various times at various venues in Ellicottville, NY. Get full music schedule and listings of events HERE.

After Dark Presents: