FINELY TUNED
New releases by Buffalo musicians show progress at making records and writing songs

By JEFF MIERS
News Pop Music Critic
12/3/2006

Attempting to pinpoint the specific ingredients that make up "the Buffalo sound" is taxing. There is no one sound, but there are collective reverberations of disparate artists following their own paths, sharing in common little other than clear and present talent, a burning desire to create, and a tough road ahead.

Over the past decade, Buffalo musicians have become increasingly adept at making records. Many have also gotten better at writing songs. The convergence of these two occurrences has made for a renaissance in the world of local original music.

Here are a few of the finer records released by Buffalo artists in recent months.

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Ellen West
Preparing to be Forgotten
[Independent]

(*** out of four)

As singer, guitarist and primary songwriter with the indie-rock trio the Missing Planes, Michele Buono - aka Ellen West - brought a moody, dramatic presence to the Buffalo rock scene with her dark, angular, post-punk guitar playing and the downbeat beauty of her singing.

With drummer Matt Barber and relative newcomer Tommy Stanford on bass, Buono was our own shoe-gazer version of PJ Harvey, and the way she wrenched real anguish and tonal color from her Gibson SG threw into extreme doubt the notion that modern female singer-songwriters are supposed to play pretty and nice.

As Ellen West, Buono makes her recorded debut with "Preparing to be Forgotten," a title that should strike a chord with anyone who has spent time as part of the original rock scene in Buffalo.

Yes, the record is a mellow, introspective, acoustic guitar-based affair, but it is far from maudlin. In fact, in this intimate, stripped-down setting, Buono-as-West truly shines, her minor-key laments and elegant dirges - aided by the sparse piano touches of Justin Guerin, who also produced the record, and cellist Jen Sojka - sounding at times like an indie-rock version of Lucinda Williams, or the ethereal bummers of the aforementioned Harvey.

Standouts include "I Shouldn't Have To Lie," a relatively sunny piece spurred on by Buono's wispy chorus vocal, and "Letting Go," a song that ends the album by encapsulating the bittersweet beauty of Buono's songwriting.

Check out: www.myspace.com/ellenwest

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There were 3 other artists reviewed in this article. Go to the following link to read those:
http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20061203/1037942.asp