The Chernobyl Agency put on another banger of a show featuring a few of the area’s better bands, with some plot twists.  I’ve lost confidence in Buffalo’s original music, I won’t hide behind it. I didn’t think it would be close to a sell out, especially for a show with no touring acts a bill with all local bands.  I am extremely happy I was showed up last night, and I’ll gladly eat my crow.  Pass the bacon, please.  It also helps the lineup has a lot of younger fans and they WANT to go out on weekends to shows.  It was a great feeling to see a wildly large attendance (in comparison to many past small turnouts) and maybe the Chernobyl people have something to do with it.

I personally haven’t been to Mr. Goodbar in almost a decade so it was a little temporary return to my youth, so to speak.  Goodbar doesn’t also run many metal shows, so this was a pleasant turn of events. The variety of styles was pretty interesting as well….Inertia is a technical death metal/deathcore outfit, Squatch is an instrumental band, SAST is a spastic technical mathcore band and Dilettante is a punk/alternative style band.  We got there a bit late and only caught a few songs by the time we got upstairs for Dilettante, so we truthfully can’t gauge someone’s set by literally a song or two.  You can hit that link and check out their music if you’re into their punk rock sound.

Up next is the crazy cats in Short Attention Span Theatre.  Their wildly diverse sound kept everyone entertained, without a doubt in my mind.  A well versed band (including the Brand father and son duo of Kenny on drums and Gus on Bass) really strutted their stuff, ripping through many styles of music song after song.  Between mathcore, punk, death metal, indescribable Primus style weirdness, funk, clean sections, melodic passages and harmonies the Buffalo 4 piece showed how eclectic their musical influences truly are.  I’ve seen them on a lot of local fliers and never checked them out live until yesterday evening.  I’m really glad this time I finally did. Western New York has its own cracked out experimental mathcore band and SAST deservingly drew lots of applause from the audience.  Check out their tunes below for a real musical treat.

Next up are the always entertaining boys in Squatch.  The 3 piece instrumental trio relies in groove and heaviness, with some sweet unusual sounds they create from their pedals. They’re not a technical or progressive style instrumental band, but in fact are really heavy and have really tight rhythms.  The guys lock in on a rhythm and will absolutely beat you down with them.  They have that punk rock attitude about them where they don’t give a shit, and play what they want how they want.  I’ve been following their footsteps for a few years now and It’s an honor to say how much they’ve grown musically especially their stage presence.

Squatch is always super entertaining and always a fun time live.  The band also had a weird gig where they were feeding each other hot dogs on stage.  It was pretty funny actually.  And after their set they were grilling hot dogs at their merch table….weird but catchy.  I like it! The plot twist in this show……they brought upon a vocalist for their last song.  Believe it or not, the trio now became a 4 piece with a vocalist .  I forgot the name of it, but damn was that song good.  And so is their new vocalist! You can check out their debut full length “Jafar’s Calamari Safari” right below, as we await new recordings with their vocalist.

Up last were the headliners, our pals in Inertia.  They never disappoint live, EVER.  Did they ever bring the heat.  They said they didn’t practice this past Wednesday, and sounded as good as anyone to be honest. Steve’s energy is never lackluster, and absolutely carries the band with it.  Doug is always a treat live, with his diverse skill set on the drum kit.  He blends a lot of different styles and tastes into his band, and it really shines.  Last night really proved that statement for sure.  The more I see Inertia the more I really appreciate Doug’s skills as a drummer.  He’s definitely one of our area’s better drummers.  What else can I say about Kahlil that hasn’t been said already? He’s a clean player who always puts on a show for Western New York.  He effortlessly tapped and swept his way through Inertia’s set like no other human being has before.  Sarikey took all of us guitarists to school last night, and his worthy talents made all of us pay close attention.

What was even sweeter? The band has come a long way, worked hard to get where they are.  They’ve gained lots of traction worldwide and around the nation, getting fans outside of Buffalo which is great.  PEOPLE DEMANDED THEY PLAYED ONE MORE SONG! What was even crazier? PEOPLE WANTED A SECOND SONG AFTER! Guess what? Because they’re so nice, they obliged!  Check out the band’s 2018 masterpiece debut “Teratoma” below and tell me you’re obsessed with it.  I dare you to listen and tell me you’re not hooked on their crazy sound!

It was nearly 1 AM when all was said and done, and my old ass was so tired.  It was well worth it seeing such an immensely talented lineup for such a small price.  I’ll recycle the point it was a pleasure to see a packed local show, instead of an empty venue.  I haven’t been to a show at Goodbar until last night and it was fairly roomy too. The stage is a nice size where bigger bands of 5 or more members will still have enough space to move around.  Good times were had by all in attendance for sure.