Music

The last time Marshall Crenshaw blew into town, he was backed up by incendiary Midwest rockers, The Bottle Rockets. Crenshaw worked his way through his catalog with the Bottle Rockets giving it a little added volume and heat, so I wonder what surf instrumental darlings Los Straitjackets (featuring Rochester’s Greg Townson on one of the […]

It’s been 47 years since Black Sabbath unwittingly created stoner metal (and heavy metal as a whole), and you would expect that nothing new could possibly be said about ripping bongs, cosmic entities, and following the smoke toward the riff-filled land. Leave it to Vancouver’s Black Wizard to take the tried-and-true, riff-worship formula and twist […]

York, Pennsylvania-based indie rock band The Ok-Ok’s may be young but it brings the talent that most musicians work their entire lives for. On the group’s new full-length album, “22/17” — simply named because three of the members were 22 and one was 17 when it was recorded — singer Sadie Swartz belts soulful, wailing […]

Somebody’s gonna get hurt; it’s just a matter of time. Canadian quartet The Wild is what you get if you mix Motley Crue with a bunch of pyromaniac, axe-wielding, beer-swillin’ gearheads with a penchant for blowing shit up and loud, fast rock ‘n’ roll. The band defies convention and gravity and comes off as one […]

Jack Antonoff has a touch for weaving pop gold. Along with his work in the highly regarded indie pop band Steel Train and in Fun (the song “We Are Young” dominated 2012), Antonoff has writing credits on hits by Taylor Swift, Lorde, and Sia. With his project Bleachers, Antonoff finds influence in 80’s-style synth-pop and […]

Los Lobos is the epitome of a cultural melting pot. The band blends American roots music, rock, and blues with Latin styles, including cumbia and norteño, to create a broad-based sound of its own. Established in 1973, Los Lobos topped the charts a decade later with a cover of “La Bamba” while its other tunes, […]

During its all-too-brief initial run, Vekora was always one of the Rochester’s best-kept secrets. Its only full-length record, 2014’s “Vekora,” is a sprawling yet cohesive mission statement, blending The Appleseed Cast’s sense of atmosphere with the grandiosity of Brand New and Circa Survive. Vocalist Alexandra Wendt is an equally commanding and breathtaking presence on the […]

The name of Rochester’s annual celebration of all things regionally punk leaves little to the imagination, and for good reason. You get what you’re paying for at the North Coast Punk Fest — and what you’re paying for is some of the finest punk rock that Western New York has to offer, no more, no […]