I missed my favorite local band’s (This Day and Age) last show last Saturday at Club Infinity for another show which I shall discuss at a later post.

Although I really wanted to go it’s okay…the same girl who gave me mono last winter did a write-up of it in today’s Buffalo News. Kristen asks some of the burning questions inside the minds of all TDA fans and the band’s answers make me happy…a new band minus the lead singer with writing underway!

My favorite local band, “This Day and Age” is calling it quits…here’s the passage on their MySpace…

“INDEFINITE HIATUS…

well, first of all this isn’t a joke; i know we write many outlandish messages, but this is a serious one…

during the past few months as i have thought about my future, it has become more and more apparent to me that my passion, my desire to create music, to be in a band has faded… i found myself not enjoying being on tour, not having written a word since we left the studio 6 months ago (these are odd things to me).

at first it was a small feeling, but it continued to grow until yesterday when i made a decision (the most difficult decision of my life) to step away from thisdayandage.

we are calling it an indefinite hiatus; which leaves some possiblities.

joey, steve, mike, and kelly will continue playing together but not as thisdayandage… they will begin on a new musical endeavor which i’m sure will blow all of our minds.

10/24 - 11/4 will be our final shows together… it would mean sooo much to me, soo much to us for everyone who has the ability to attend any of these shows to come.. especially buffalo.

this is a desicion that i wrestled with, that i had the hardest time believing at first; but i feel at peace about it.. it is a chapter in my life that is ending.. and i refuse to be a person who is involved with something that i am not 100% behind… i can’t pretend; i can’t do that to my bandmates; i can’t do that to you, i can’t do that to myself.

these past 5 years have surpassed anything i could have ever imagined.. and i can’t thank you enough.

love,
jeff”

Augh. Make sure you see them…I can’t tell you how amazing they are live. They released their latest album last month and it’s incredible even though they sound 999999x better in person. Musically, they took it to another level and were becoming more popular accross the country.

Big loss for Buffalo music. BIG loss.

DISCLAIMER: I swear I have normal testosterone levels for a 19year old male

Anywho…as I was listening to some Ani Difranco tonight I came accross one of my favorites that I haven’t heard in a while. As a former Poli Sci major who genuinley loathes politics I refuse to absorb her lyrics but it’s about the abortion clinic bomings of the mid 90’s including in Buffalo…I didn’t put this here for a debate about abortion…just to promote a great song…so download it

“Hello Birmingham” (1999)
Hold me down
I am floating away
In to the overcast skies
Over my hometown
On election day

What is it about birmingham?
What is it about buffalo?
That the hate-filled wanna build bunkers
In your beautiful red earth
They wanna build them
In our shiny white snow

Now Ive drawn closed the curtain
In this little booth where the truth has no place
To stand
And Im feeling oh so powerless
In this stupid booth with this useless
Little lever in my hand
And outside my city is bracing
For the next killing thing
Standing by the bridge and praying
For the next doctor
Martin
Luther
King

It was just one shot
Through the kitchen window
It was just one or two miles from here
If you fly like a crow
A bullet came to visit a doctor
In his one safe place
A bullet insuring the right to life
Whizzed past his kid and his wife
And knocked his glasses
Right off of his face

And the blood poured off the pulpit
The blood poured off the picket line
Yeah, the hatred was immediate
And the vengance was divine
So they went and stuff god
Down the barrel of a gun
And after him
They stuffed his only son

Hello birmingham
Its buffalo
I heard you had some trouble
Down there again
And Im just calling to let you know
That somebody understands

I was once escorted
Through the doors of a clinic
By a man in a bulletproof vest
And no bombs went off that day
So I am still here to say
Birmingham
Im wishing you all of my best
Oh birmingham
Im wishing you all of my best
Birmingham
Im wishing you all of my best
On this election day

Haven’t posted much music stuff latley…
He might not be a Buffalonian, but he sure has some serious Buffalo connects.
Andy Stochansky was mostly known for being Ani Difranco’s drummer through the 90’s but has persued a solo career.
His latest album “100″ is produced Goo Goo Dolls lead singer John Rzeznik and Goo Goo drummer Mike Malinin drums in the album and that Goo Goo Dolls influence is pretty clear.
A easy listening, catchy pop album is the best way to describe “100″ with pretty much every song being a foot/finger tapper. If you like mellow popish rock, his albums “Five Star Motel” and “100″ will please you to no end.
Thanks to his time spent with Difranco and Rzeznik, he knows his Buffalo…

“Had a beautiful sunny day of visiting the Albrightknox Gallery being inspired and suprised and moved in all directions like a good gallery should do.
Had no idea they had some of Joseph Cornell’s boxes in their collection and wanted to stand in front of that glass case that held them for hours.
Leave to have a Thai feast served by a woman with sparkles on her finger nails and this reminded me we were back in Buffalo
Last night we played an amazing show in this town where i met people that drove from all kinds of surrounding cities.
The people up at the front who finished singing the lyrics to “Hear Nor There” made my week and will be a memory from this tour that i will carry with me for a while.
Went over to New World Records to thank them for putting a poster of me in their window. Amazing people.
Thank you Buffalo!”

His CD’s are hard to find and I think I got the only copy of “100″ at New World Records (only place I’ve seen it sold)

Other music news…”As Tall As Lions” are one of my favorite Indie bands out there and are playing at the Icon tonight. Good mix of piano into some banging guitar into some solid vocals. So if you’re into that kind of stuff, go for it…$14.

Yesterday This Day And Age released their second album

. Basically its the best album I’ve heard from any Buffalo artists this year. Give them a listen.

Pregnant and with an arthritic wrist, Ani Difranco still did her annual duty of releasing a new album. “Reprieve” is her 2006 work and fits in with the rest. Always a woman with attitude and some strong opinions on politics and life in general, she makes her thoughts clear throughout the album. Although most of the album will bore any non-ani fan there are some goodies along the way like “Nicotine”, “78% h2o”, “Millenium Theatre” (extremely political track), and “Half-Assed”. Overall its a lot like her other albums but without as many gems along the way. I’ll give it 2.5 buffaloes out of 5. Looks like she won’t win my album of the year title two years in a row afterall.

My newest favorite local band, “This Day and Age” has a couple new tracks out on their PureVolume page (purevolume.com/thisdayandage). I’m predicting that this album that is due out on August 22nd will get my Buffalo album of the year award.

They’ll re-start their touring August 26 at Club Infinity in Williamsville.

The newest Goo Goo Dolls album has a song called “We’l Be Here (When You’re Gone)” that is about Johnny Rzeznik’s return to Buffalo and seeing the Bethlehem Steel plant. It was already my favorite song on the album before I figured the meaning out. Here are the lyrics….

And through the fence I see a ghost
Of a place that used to breathe
You know it choked away the sun
But we still had food to eat

And now everyone is gone
To a place that won’t be home
Can they keep their family strong?
Will they make it on their own?

And we’ll be standing when you’re gone
And we’ll be heard again
We missed our chance but not for long
I know somehow we will hold on we’ll be here
When you’re gone

Then one day we realized
That they couldn’t hear our voice
And it’s so hard to understand
When it’s caught up in the noise

But the ones who fight and die
Are the truth inside the lie
Now it’s all built on our backs
And we struggle to survive

And we’ll be standing when you’re gone
And we’ll be heard again
We missed our chance but not for long
I know somehow we will hold on we’ll be here
When you’re gone

Oh man…such a good song. It gets my vote for official anthem of Buffalo

After dealing with the dissapointment which is the Goo Goo Dolls latest album, I went over to YouTube to find that unreleased song This Day and Age performs. Mmmm, probably one of my 20 favorite songs of all time. Enjoy. New album in August

Today the Goo Goo Dolls release their 8th studio album named “Let Love In” in stores everywhere today as well as iTunes. Lead singer Johnny Rzeznik wrote the entire album in the upstairs of the “Century Grill” (Home of the Bacon Basket) after feeling completely uninspired spending another winter in Southern California.
So far, most critics are not impressed with Johnny’s return to the Buffalo roots.
The album has gotten less than stellar reviews from the New York Times, Boston Globe, and Ft.Worth Telegram. Noting the lack of edge and substance after a four year gap between albums.
In addition to that there are only 11 tracks, 9 of which are actually new. But its not all bad, in fact the album grows on you the more you listen to it, and regardless of the criticizms, Let Love in already has three singles that have fared well in the Adult Top 40 charts with a few more songs on the album that will surely be released as successful singles. So lets take a closer look at the album…
1. “Stay With You” A great opener that just starts rockin out the nano-second the CD starts to play. It also is a bit of a new sound for the band around the bridge part. Has some big dramatic build ups and a very catchy chorus.
2. “Let Love In” The title track and one of the catchies intros I’ve ever heard. The chorus doesn’t quite fit with the rest of the song but its still great, this song will be a hit. Guarantee.
3. “Feel the Silence” This song has a lot of potential but the chorus just never kicks up to what it should. Parts of it are catchy but it never really gets to where it should.
4. “Better Days” You hear this song everywhere you go in Buffalo so I don’t even wanna talk about it. (Hated it to begin with)
5. “Without You Here” A very dramatic song. Really good buildup and the instruments just all blend together perfectly at the end
6. “Listen” This song is from Robby. Which means “Time to skip!” in most peoples minds but this one is really worth listening to (which is the message of this song…”Why don’t you listen!?!?”) So obey Robby’s wish and give this one a shot-its pretty catchy.
7. “Give A Little Bit” This cover has been out since October 2004-Nothing needs to be said.
8. “Can’t Let It Go” This one will probably be on the charts later this year. I don’t particularly like it but it has that “Radio Goo Goo Dolls” sound to it. Kind of an upbeat version of “Here is Gone”. Rzeznik has said that this is his least favorite song on the album.
9. “We’ll Be Here (When You’re Gone)” Its as if they just forgot to put this song on their last album “Gutterflower” a great rockin sound that is a bit lacking in the album. The ending is kind of abrupt but its definintley the edgiest song on the album
10. “Strange Love” The. Worst. Song. I. Have. Ever. Heard…….Seriously.
11. “Become” a song with an epic sound to it, very dramatic and should be a hit with the ladies. Very deep and a nice concluding track.