What’s Good – September 5-11, 2024
Our weekly guide to what’s going on around Buffalo and in the world of pop culture.
Thursday, 9/5
Jason Ellis (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 8pm, $31)
This Australian former pro skateboarder and MMA fighter is now a comedian, who hosts the podcasts The Jason Ellis Show, Hawk vs. Wolf, and Awesome World.
Righteous Villains (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8pm, FREE)
Chicago-style blues.
Plant Water (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9pm-mid, FREE)
Improvised noise jazz.
Bluegrass All Stars (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, noon, FREE)
Improvised noise jazz.
Sweetface Kitchenette (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 6-8pm)
Classic country & western.
McCarthyism (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 7pm, $10)
Poetry Open Mic & Game Night (Twentysixallen, 26 Allen St, 6pm)
Co-hosted by Sara Ali and Meg Specksgoor
Karaoke Night (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 9pm)
Friday, 9/6
Castles & Creatures (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 7pm, $15adv/$20)
An improv comedy show inspired by role playing games.
Confessions (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 8:30pm, $22adv/$25)
An improv comedy show inspired by your (anonymous) secrets!
Chico Bean (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7:30/10pm, $31)
Bean is a veteran of Wild N’ Out and Guy Court, and is 1/3 of The 85 South Show.
Collie Buddz (Town Ballroom, 681 S. Main St, 7pm, $36, 16+)
The Take It Easy world tour. w/Yaadcore, DJ Universal
Elliot Scozzaro Quintet (PAUSA Art House, 19 Wadsworth St, 6:30pm, $16/19)
Bebop, standards and originals.
CJ Chenier & the Red Hot Louisiana Band (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 7pm, $20adv/$25)
w/Miller & the Other Sinners
Band Named Sue (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-10pm, FREE)
Country-inspired bar band.
The Medicinals (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9:30pm-mid, $10)
Reggae 8-piece from Rochester.
The Mood Swingers (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 6-8pm)
Houses of the Holy (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 9pm, $15adv/$20, 18+)
Led Zeppelin tribute band.
Live Band Karaoke (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 10pm, $8)
Belt out your favorites in front of a live band.
New Movies This Week
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (in wide release)
Tim Burton revisits a favorite old haunt, as Michael Keaton returns as the ghost with the most, Winona Rider as his death-obsessed pal in the world of the living, and Jenna Ortega is cast against type as a teenager who puts the dead in deadpan.
The Front Room (in wide release)
Pop singer Brandy stars in this psychological horror film from debut writer/directors Max & Sam Eggers.
The Thicket (Transit Center)
Peter Dinklage stars in his passion project, a Western about a bounty hunter searching for a missing girl.
I’ll Be Right There (Transit Center)
Edie Falco juggles her pregnant daughter’s wedding, her mother’s poor health, and her own romantic entanglements in this indie comedy.
His Three Daughters (Netflix)
Estranged sisters Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne, and Elizabeth Olsen have to put their differences aside to care for their ailing father in this indie drama.
Rebel Ridge (Netflix)
Aaron Pierre steps in for John Boyega, who dropped out of this action thriller about a man who takes on a corrupt local police force.
The Greatest of All TIme (Elmwood Center, Transit Center)
An elite secret agent retires to the quite life, until his past comes back to haunt him. In Tamil with subtitles.
Saripodhaa Sanivaaram (Elmwood Center)
A vigilante takes on a brutal and corrupt police inspector in this action thriller. In Telugu with subtitles.
Saturday 9/7
The Ha-Ha Show (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 11am, $15adv/$20, All Ages)
An improv comedy variety show featuring sketch comedy, made-up songs, and audience interaction.
You Should Smile More (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 3pm, $15adv/$20, All Ages)
An improv comedy show with an all-female or gender nonconforming cast.
Adventure Club! (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 4:30pm, $15adv/$20, All Ages)
Improv teams comprised of BIT students and other local performers.
Babushka! (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 4:30pm, $22adv/$25, All Ages)
The local improv duo of Todd Benzin and Don Gervesi.
Various Factors (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 8:30pm, $22adv/$25, All Ages)
A completely improvised Broadway-style musical comedy.
Piano Karaoke (Buffalo Improv Theater, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 10pm, $5, All Ages)
Sing along with our piano player or just hang out to enjoy the afterparty to BIT’s grand opening weekend.
Bijou (Electric City, 433 Pearl St, 7pm, $15-60)
House music icon. w/Corrupt UK, Pvcket Change
Mary Ramsey and Friends (PAUSA Art House, 19 Wadsworth St, 6:30pm, $15/$19)
Latin and Gypsy jazz, Celic, folk, and jazz standards.
Cyclops (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 9pm, $19.50, 18+)
Dubstep with a psychedelic light show. w/Soltan
Sungmin Shin (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 1-2pm)
Reese Fulmer & the Carriage House Band (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 7-9pm)
Singer-songwriter and storyteller.
Teachers Gone Bad (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 4pm, $33)
Teachers turned comics riff on classroom antics and other topics.
Chico Bean (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7:30/10pm, $31)
Bean is a veteran of Wild N’ Out and Guy Court, and is 1/3 of The 85 South Show.
Spit Sisters EP Release (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8pm-mid, $10)
Album release for the emo/indie group’s new EP. w/Sleep Debt Ceiling, Racehearse
Morgano Kincaid Combo (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 3pm, $10)
Sue Foley & the Pistolas (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 8pm, $30)
The Scales (The Cave, 71 Military Rd, 8pm, $18)
Phish tribute act.
Bidwell Parkway Farmers Market (Bidwell Parkway, 8am-1pm)
Fresh produce and locally-sourced goods, Saturdays through 11/23.
Celtic Sessions (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 4-7pm, FREE)
Sunday 9/8
Chico Bean (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7pm, $31)
Bean is a veteran of Wild N’ Out and Guy Court, and is 1/3 of The 85 South Show.
Maria Sebastian’s Songbook Band (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 4-6pm)
Folk, rock, country, Americana, and jazz.
The Claudettes (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 6pm, $15)
Bob’s Burgers (Fox)
The beloved animated series starts its 15th season, and while it’s taken a step down since its first decade, the show’s done a much better job of staying funny than The Simpsons did at the same age.
Monday 9/9
Descendents & Circle Jerks (Town Ballroom, 681 S. Main St, 6pm, SOLD OUT)
Two legendary punk bands on one bill
Good Neighbors Listening Party (9th Ward, 341 Delaware Ave, 7pm, $10)
Music Is Art and the Songwriter Peer Group present an album release party for Good Neighbors Vol. 4, featuring 10 songs by 20 of Buffalo’s best songwriters.
Jungle Steve (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8pm, FREE)
Acoustic covers and originals.
Songwriter Showcase/Open Mic (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8pm-mid, FREE)
Local songwriters until 9pm, and open mic thereafter.
Classic Vinyl Live (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 7pm, $15)
The group performs Jethro Tull’s Shuffling Madness.
Tuesday 9/10
The Suicide Machines (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 6pm, $30adv/$35, 18+)
This Detroit band walks the line between ska punk and hardcore.
Sad Park (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 7pm, $24, 16+)
w/Yungatita
Leprous (Town Ballroom, 681 S. Main St, 6pm, $40, 16+)
The Meoldies of Atonement world tour. w/The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die & Fight the Fight
Uncle Lazer (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 8pm, $33)
“The Mullet Maniac” finds comedy in his rough and rowdy upbringing in the Texas oil fields.
The Steam Donkeys (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8:30pm, FREE)
“Cosmic Americana” from the long-running local group.
Rust Belt Comedy Showcase (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9-10pm, FREE)
A rotating cast of WNY comics.
The Stripteasers (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 10pm-mid, $4)
Weekly burlesque show.
Duende Chess (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 6-8pm)
Monthly chess night w/prizes. All skill levels welcome.
Terry Savastano (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, noon, FREE)
Twang Gang (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 6pm, FREE)
Open Mic (Cucina @ Hotel Richardson, 444 Forest Ave, 6-8pm)
This weekly open mic features music, poetry, and comedy. Register at jkonze@douglasdev.com.
Open Mic Night (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 6-9pm)
Wednesday 9/11
Silversun Pickups (Town Ballroom, 681 S. Main St, 7pm, $40-140, 16+)
LA shoegaze band. VIP package includes preshow soundcheck, Q&A with the bands, and autographed merch.
Ghost-Note (Asbury Hall, 341 Delaware Ave, 6pm, $31adv/$36)
This funk group is built around Snarky Puppy’s percussion section, Robert “Sput” Searight and Nate Worth. w/Phoelix
Jackie Fabulous (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 8pm, $28)
This 2019 semi-finalist on America’s Got Talent charmed the judges so much even Simon Cowell gave her a hug! She’s also been seen on Arsenio Hall, Last Comic Standing, and Gotham Comedy Live.
Gel (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 6:30pm, $21, 16+)
w/MSPaint, Destiny Bond
Laura & Carl (Hallwalls, 341 Delaware Ave, 7pm, FREE)
No info given about this film screening.
Joe Baudo Jazz Quintet (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, noon, FREE)
Buffalo Dead All Stars (Sportsmen’s Tavern, 326 Amherst St, 7pm, $10)
Daniel Byrd’s Boogie Machine (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9pm-mid, $5)
Comedy Open Mic (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 9pm)
Thursday 9/12
Nicki Minaj (KeyBank Center, 1 Seymour Knox Plaza, 9pm, $44)
We usually stop these listings on Wednesday, but next Thursday is too big to ignore, as the iconic wrapper brings her world tour to KeyBank, just before wrapping up at home in Queens. w/Tyga ,Bia, Skillibeng
GWAR (Town Ballroom, 681 S. Main St, 6pm, $44, 16+)
Cancel your plans and go see these demonic monsters who want to destroy the world with the power of their rocking. w/Brujeria, Native Howl, Brat
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars Live (Shea’s, 650 Main St, 8pm, $72-$236)
And for a completely different show about rocking elaborate costumes, come see Season 9 of Drag Race All Stars live on stage!