Eskimeaux is conscientious music for the attentive listener. Started as a solo effort by Gabrielle Smith, the project has recently evolved into a four piece outfit on the road.
The band’s latest full length release, O.K., has been held in high regard by major publications like Stereogum, Pitchfork, and NPR, to name a few. Stark honesty is littered throughout, but it’s dressed up in a silk case. The album really does a good job of taking a bare-boned look at what it’s like to feel scared, unsure and alone in a quiet, humble way. It also successfully breaks the mold of traditional, soft-toned indie singer-songwriter type music in terms of instrumentation. There’s a real clarity to the heavily layered songs, and one that brings the whole collection to a much more poppy level. It’s less lo-fi bedroom rock, more crystal clear, heartfelt stuff that’s carefully constructed.
I have a hard time imagining Eskimeaux playing anywhere else in Buffalo other than Sugar City (6pm, $10). It’s an intimate, DIY venue that reflects the very nature of the music. And the rest of the bill is just as impressive. Preceding Eskimeaux is Told Slant from Brooklyn, Attic Abasement, our neighbors from Rochester, and Space Is Haunted from Buffalo. This show is just too damn good to miss.