"Lightning Bolt" First Impressions

This is the first full Pearl Jam of the digital age not to leak online in advance of its release, so let’s all thank iTunes for streaming it legally in advance!  I heard several of these tracks in a partial leak a few weeks back but I always savor the first, complete listen of a new Pearl Jam album. Let’s dig in.

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Rockin' at the Knox

A few of us sauntered down the road to the Albright-Knox Art Gallery — or its parking lot, to be more accurate — last Friday night to take in the annual “Rockin’ at the Knox” fundraiser concert. Featuring an eclectic mix of artists, the show was headlined by The National, a band who’s rapidly risen to prominence over the past year; and Rufus Wainwright, the flamboyant piano player I’d known only through his cover of “Across the Universe.” Aside from the great set from The National, the night was highlighted by beers and a mobile M&T ATM we quickly became enamored of. We were two beers away from taking full advantage of the ATM’s mobility (i.e. running down the street with it).

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You can read a review of the shows from The Buffalo News here; and click the image above for the gallery.