Neil Hamburger performs at the 9th Ward at Babeville on Sunday at 8 p.m. The event is sold out. During the fearful haze of the spring of 2020, when the world-at-large was in its first shutdown as a result of the coronavirus, entertainers who work the road like Gregg Turkington were suddenly out of a job. The prospects for Turkington’s Neil Hamburger persona—a character willing to take a comedy gig anywhere and everywhere—to suddenly be allowed to perform nowhere, were especially dim. Turkington was losing work, and wasn’t thrilled by the Covid-era adaptations in stand up comedy presentation. “I don’t…
Author: Kip Doyle
Kip Doyle
Kip Doyle is a writer and marketing professional. His interviews have been read in The Public, Artvoice and on Metal Injection, and his satire work has been published by The Hard Times. Doyle is a former managing editor of the Salamanca Press and a former reporter for the Olean Times Herald. He was also an editor at Punknews.org. He graduated from Buffalo State College and has a master's degree in Integrated Marketing Communications from St. Bonaventure University. His interests include music, comedy, pro wrestling, sports and technology. He lives with his family in downtown Buffalo.
When a legendary heavy metal singer shows up to town, you never know who will fly in for an unexpected guest spot. Both the audience and Iron Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson were surprised by the sudden appearance of that old heavy metal chestnut, a live bat on stage, during An Evening with Bruce Dickinson at Buffalo State College’s Performance Art Center on Feb. 1. “It was probably sent by Sharon Osbourne,” Dickinson quipped as the bat briefly stole the show from a performer who’s used to having all eyes and ears on him. Dickinson’s fascinating life story quickly recaptured the…
Fourteen years after their last concert in the city limits, Los Angeles’ Bad Religion finally return to Buffalo on Nov. 5. The show was originally scheduled on April 8, 2020, as part of Bad Religion’s 40th anniversary tour with Alkaline Trio. The tour was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Some of the players have changed since their 2007 gig at the Town Ballroom. Original members Greg Graffin (singer) and Jay Bentley (bass), along with longtime guitarist Brian Baker remain, while drummer Jamie Miller has replaced Brooks Wackerman. Mike Dimkich has taken over the guitar spot left by Greg Hetson’s…
Few bands can take the best chunks of the various hard rock subgenres and present them in a coherent, enjoyable manner. Trying to jump from punk to doom to boogie rock or whatever on one record (or one song) can be a chore for the listener, much less for the performer. This isn’t an issue for Buffalo’s Tines, who sound completely at home blending heavy, ambitious, catchy and pleasantly reverent hard rock on their new two song 7” EP. Side A features “Thin Blue Line”, which opens with a Thin Lizzy-esque guitar dual leading to a boppy, organ-drenched verse and…
The world’s plans have been derailed in 2020, as is the case for Bad Religion, the Los Angeles-based punk band marking 40 years since their inception in 1980. Bad Religion was set to play Buffalo on April 8 as part of a tour with Alkaline Trio. The tour and the rest of the band’s live dates were scrapped due to the coronavirus outbreak. The following interview with bassist Jay Bentley took place before the outbreak and the tour cancellation. However, the release of the band’s autobiography Do What You Want: The Story of Bad Religion is on as scheduled for…
If you’re paying attention to the national comedy scene, it may appear that Josh Potter has come out of nowhere as producer of the popular Your Mom’s House podcast hosted by married comics Tom Segura and Kristina Pazsitsky. Locals know better, with Potter spending nearly 15 years as the assistant producer on WEDG’s Shredd and Ragan Show from 2004-2017. Potter also worked as a stand up comic, honing his self-deprecating style around the Buffalo area. He picked up hosting gigs and opening spots for national acts while looking to take the next step in his career. However, Potter said he struggled to advance professionally…
If anyone knows a thing or two about making the most of opportunities, it’s Buffalo Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander. Who could have anticipated that Alexander, who went undrafted after graduating from the University of California, would now be going into his 15th season in the NFL? Unlikelier still: Alexander’s transition from defensive tackle to defensive end to starting linebacker, all coinciding with Oakland native’s physical transformation from a 300-plus pounder to a much leaner 36-year-old tackling and running machine. And although he’s known as the “One Man Gang,” Alexander, who told the Buffalo News that he plans to retire after…
Seminal punk band Bad Religion hasn’t played Buffalo in 12 years, but it’s nothing personal. In fact, guitarist Brian Baker is a big fan of the city’s history and architecture. And it’s not due to lack of demand either: Bad Religion’s show tomorrow at Anthology in Rochester has been sold out since last week. With warm memories of cold days in Buffalo still fresh in his mind, Baker was happy to check in with fans in the Queen City. You grew up on the East Coast and you’ve played in a number of bands that have come through Western New…
Just because the Micah Hyde Charity Softball game is all about supporting a good cause doesn’t mean there won’t be some legit competition when the Buffalo Bills offense and defense go head-to-head. The game takes place at Sahlen’s Field on Sunday at 1 p.m., with a pre-game home run derby at 12:30 p.m. Hyde, who hosted previous charity softball games during his time with the Green Bay Packers, said recruiting players among his teammates is never a problem. “As soon as the softball game came around, everybody starts coming up, (saying) ‘Hey, let me be in the home run derby.…
From accurately copying Fred Flintstone off the television screen as child to a decorated career as one of the top living comic, fantasy and pin up artists, Joe Jusko never could have imagined how far his hobby would take him in life. “I was five or six at the time, and my parents realized that I had a knack for drawing, and I became sort of obsessed with it afterwards, once I realized I could draw,” Jusko said. That obsession would result in decades of incredibly colorful and detailed characters that explode off the page with rippling anatomy and dazzling…