King Buffalo at the Raccoon Motel -- January 16.
Tuesday, January 16, 7 p.m.
Raccoon Motel, 315 East Second Street, Davenport IA
With their most recent album Regenerator inspiring The Obelisk to hail the band as "one of the brightest lights shining in underground rock today" trio of vocalist/guitarist Sean McVay, bassist Dan Reynolds, and drummer Scott Donaldson bring their outfit King Buffalo to Davenport's Raccoon Motel on January 16, their talents also leading Sludgelord to call the group "a powerful concoction of heavy psych, blues, and stoner rock in stunning cohesion."
Since forming in 2013, the self-proclaimed "heavy psych" band based in Rochester, New York, has made its name via four EPs, four full-length albums, and tours with the likes of Clutch, All Them Witches, Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, The Sword, and Elder. Written and recorded by the band with mixing and engineering by guitarist/vocalist Sean McVay and mastering by Bernie Matthews, the seven-song outing Regenerator is the third in King Buffalo’s stated "pandemic trilogy," 2021’s The Burden of Restlessness and Acheron. Both of those albums, like 2018’s Longing to Be the Mountain, 2016’s debut Orion, and the various EPs and other offerings they’ve made over the last nine years, made bold declarations about who King Buffalo are as a band. As McVay, Reynolds, and Donaldson continue to explore the outer reaches of modern psychedelic songcraft, melding progressive rhythms, drifting atmospheres and accompanying surges of electricity, the new collection only further establishes them as one of the brightest lights shining in underground rock today.
As the third of three, Regenerator seems inherently to tie together the two LPs most immediately before it, and as King Buffalo unfold the leadoff title-track across nine-and-a-half minutes, it becomes clear just how truly they have marked out their own sonic presence. The melodic highlight “Mammoth” shimmers with hope that somehow doesn’t come across as desperate, and as “Hours” engages classic space rock and the closing “Firmament” summarizes the first, second and third series installments, the final chapter of this trilogy becomes the essential cornerstone of King Buffalo’s work to-date.
The band returned to live activity late in 2021 touring alongside Clutch and, more recently, embarked on a full North American spring tour with Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats. The musicians also completed UK and European headlining tours, with festival appearances in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, Belgium, and Denmark.
King Buffalo headlines their Davenport engagement on January 16 with an additional set by Rezn, admission to the 7 p.m. concert is $20, and tickets are available by visiting TheRaccoonMotel.com.
