Spicy Buffalo

Toby Keith to Drop by First Niagara Pavilion August 20

Country artist and chart topper Toby Keith will be going on an album tour running for almost the entire year to further support the recent release of his new studio record entitled “American Ride”.

With shows stretching from California to Virginia, and even crossing the Canadian border to Vancouver and Toronto, Keith will be taking his fans for an “American Ride” as he sings tracks from his highly successful album which was released fall of last year. Catch him as he takes the “Ride” in Burgettstown, PA when he performs at the First Niagara Pavilion on August 20, Friday at 7 PM. Trace Adkins and James Otto will also be appearing as special guests.

Tickets for the show go on sale via Ticketmaster on June 18, Friday at 10 AM EDT. Citi cardholders will have exclusive access to advanced tickets on June 16, Wednesday at 10 AM EDT. Ticket prices are $33.75 for general admission lawn seating and $44.75 to $73.75 for pavilion seating.

“American Ride” is Keith’s 13th studio release and has produced the artist’s 19th chart topping hit with the album’s title track landing at the top spot of the Billboard Hot Country Songs list.

Go to Toby Keith Tour to view all the latest on the artist’s tour schedule and music.

Buffalo Welcomes American Idol Finalists September 10

Lee DeWyze, Crystal Bowersox and the rest of the American Idol Season 9 Top Ten will be hitting the road starting on July 1 for the annual American Idol road show entitled “American Idol Live!”.

The Top Ten will first be hitting Detroit’s Auburn Hills Auditorium as its first stop and will crisscross trough various US and Canadian cities till September 14, where they will close the tour with a show in Pittsburgh’s Consol Energy Center.

Catch the “Idol” Top Ten when it hits Buffalo, New York on September 10, Friday at 7:30 PM at the HSBC Arena. Tickets are available through the HSBC Arena online ticketing website and Live Nation on May 15, Saturday.

Ticket prices are $38 for the 300 level end area, $48 for the 300 level center, 200 and 100 level end areas, and $68 for the stage wedge, 200 and 100 level centers and floor areas. Ticket refunds and exchanges are not allowed.

Lee DeWyze was crowned as the new American Idol last May with fellow finalist and early favorite Crystal Bowersox bowing out of the competition as the runner-up. Expect these two to perform last in each show for the tour.

For more news on your favorite Idol finalists and winners, log on to American Idol Tour.

John Mayer Conquers Buffalo with “Battle Studies” August 10

Grammy award winner and chart topping singer and songwriter John Mayer will be on a summer tour that gets underway on July 16 in Charlotte, NC in support of his latest studio release, the Billboard chart topper “Battle Studies”.

As part of Mayer’s 34-city trek across the US which also includes a few stops Canada, he will be performing in Buffalo, NY at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on August 10, Tuesday at 7 PM.

John Mayer Tickets go on sale on April 24, Saturday at 10 AM EDT via Ticketmaster. Mayer’s official website will be holding a presale event on April 19, Monday at 10 AM EDT. Citi cardholders can also avail of presale tickets on April 21, Wednesday at 10 AM EDT. Live Nation will also be offering access to presale tickets on April 23, Friday at 10 AM EDT. Tickets are priced at $36 for the lawn seating areas.

“Battle Studies” is Mayer’s follow-up to his critically and commercially successful 2006 studio effort “Continuum”. Whereas “Continuum” is more R&B and soul, “Studies” is greatly influenced by the music icons of the 70s and the 80s like Neil Young, Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac.

Log on to John Mayer’s website for more details on his upcoming summer tour.

Green Day’s Wall of Sound Smacks Buffalo August 5

Grammy award-winning band Green Day has just announced its North American summer tour which will be launched on August 3 in Camden, NJ and will conclude with a show in Chula Vista, CA on September 2.

The 14-city tour will involve a stop in New York’s Darien Lake Performing Arts Center at the Darien Center on Thursday, August 5. They are scheduled to perform at 7 PM. The band AFI is also set to perform as support act.

Tickets go on sale to the public on April 17, Saturday at 10 AM EDT through Ticketmaster. Presale tickets are available for Citi Cardholders beginning on April 14, Wednesday at 10 AM EDT. Early bird tickets are also available through the AFI Fan Club starting on April 15, Thursday at 12 PM EDT and through the Live Nation presale starting on April 16, Friday at 10 AM EDT.

Ticket prices are from $20 to $35 for the lawn areas.

Green Day is expected to sing tracks from their current chart-topping album, “21st Century Breakdown”, which was released in May 2009.

Meanwhile, a theatrical adaptation of the band’s 2005 hit single “American Idiot” is set to open in Broadway on April 20. Reviews for the said musical are also expected to come out later in the week.

Check out the band’s complete tour schedule via Green Day Tour.

Kings of Leon Rocks Darien Lake PAC on July 30

Rock quartet Kings of Leon is slated to go on tour this summer trailing from east coast to west coast and back in a span of four months, still, to back up their 2008 release “Only by the Night”.

Included in the tour is a three-city stop in California in July and several east coast stops scattered through the months of June and September with a show in Atlantic City, NJ on June 5 to set things off.

Catch them along with Built to Spill and The Stills as support acts when they all hit the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center in New York on July 30, Friday at 7:30 PM. Tickets will be available to the public via Live Nation on March 27, Saturday at 10 AM EDT. No presale events were announced for this particular show. Tickets are sold for $36.50 for lawn seating areas.

“Only by the Night”, the band’s fourth studio release brought us the hits “Sex on Fire”, “Notion”, “Revelry”, and the hit carrier single “Use Somebody”. It is the band’s follow-up to their 2007 release “Because of the Times”.

To view Kings of Leon’s entire itinerary for their upcoming summer tour, log on to Kings of Leon Tour.

Paramore, Tegan & Sara in Buffalo for “Honda Civic” Tour

The band that gave us the hits “Decode” and “I Caught Myself” – Paramore, is now prepping for an all-US city tour in partnership with auto giant Honda for the annual Honda Civic Tour which will also feature rock band Tegan and Sara as support act.

The tour will kick off on July 23 and will conclude on September 19. The tour will be brought to New York’s Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on August 8, Sunday at 6:30 PM, where both bands will be singing their hits live.

Tickets for the event go on sale on March 27, Saturday at 10 AM EDT via Ticketmaster. The event’s website will be the first to offer presale tickets on March 23, Tuesday at 3 PM EDT. Citi, Live Nation and radio will all be holding presale events on March 26, Friday at 10 AM EDT. Ticket prices are from $37 to $48.50. Full tour details can be viewed at Paramore Tour.

A Honda Civic Si Coupe will also be raffled on the tour’s final show in Anaheim on September 19. For those who want to have a chance to own a new Civic, simply become a fan of the event’s Facebook fan page and just follow the instructions posted there.

The Honda Civic Tour started in 2001 with Blink 182 headlining the trek. It was held annually except for last year. Its most recent outing was in 2008 with Panic at the Disco at the helm.

Paramore is currently furthering “Brand New Eyes” reach, their third studio album which took the no.2 spot on the Billboard 200 upon its release last fall. It features the tracks “Ignorance” and “Brick by Boring Brick” which are also now streaming at the band’s website.

Pearl Jam Drops the Hammer on HSBC Arena May 10

Pearl Jam is getting ready to rock the HSBC Arena like it was 1994. The Seattle grunge icons have laid out 10 cities they’ll call home this May, and on Monday, May 10 at 7:30pm they’ve decided to settle into Buffalo. The band is touring in support of their latest album “Backspacer” which was released last fall. It climbed to number 1 on the Billboard Album Charts in its first week of release. Band of Horses will be offering opening support for Pearl Jam on their upcoming tour. For more information on tour stops, checkout Pearl Jam Tour.

Tickets go onsale to the general public through Tickets.com on Saturday, March 20 at 12pm. Ticket prices have yet to be released for this date.

Tom Petty to Break Hearts at Darien Lake PAC August 14

Tom Petty is readying his first studio album in 10 years. The album entitled “Mojo” doesn’t have a release date, but that hasn’t stopping Petty from hitting the road to support his coming work. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers have outlined a 36-city tour that will make its way to Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on Saturday, August 14 at 7:00pm. For information on other stops on the upcoming tour, visit Tom Petty Tour.

Tickets for the Darien Lake show go onsale to the general public via Ticketmaster on Monday, March 15 at 10am. Fan club members will have a shot at presale tickets on Wednesday, March 10 at 10am as will Citi cardholders who will get access on Thursday, March 11 at 10am. Tickets top out at $131 for front pavilion seating and the general admission lawns will set you back $41.

Dave Matthews Band Returns to Darien Lake PAC on June 2

What summer tour would be complete without a helping of the Dave Matthews Band? They will be making their annual trek through Buffalo on Wednesday, June 2 at 7pm. It will be just one stop on a 40-city tour which will carry them through September. The group continues to tour in support of their latest album ‘Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King’ that was nominated for two Grammy Awards. DMB has tabbed an assortment of musicians to help them out on the road including Ben Harper, Zac Brown Band, Gov’t Mule, Brett Dennen and Raphel Saadiq. No word on who will be present for the Atlanta show. For up-to-date tour info, check out Dave Matthews Band Tour.

Tickets go onsale to the general public on Friday, February 26 at 10am. If you weren’t fortunately enough to take advantage of the DMB Warehouse fan club presale, you can still score advanced tickets via the American Express presale on Monday, February 22 at 10am. Ticket prices run from $70 to $40.

Elton John, Billy Joel Play HSBC Arena on March 9

After a spate of illness sidelined the Buffalo date from Elton John and Billy Joel’s Face 2 Face Tour last December, the dynamic duo finally reach Buffalo on Tuesday, March 9 at 7:30pm. The world tour has now covered over a year on the road for the pair. The format for the show is both will come together at the beginning to play a set of duets together for breaking out for solo sets only to rejoin together for the big finale. Buffalo and Albany will be some of the last dates played by the pair before going their separate touring ways in 2010. Visit Elton John Tour for additional upcoming tour dates.

Tickets are currently onsale via Tickets.com. Ticket prices range from $179.50 for floor and select lower level seating to $99.50 and $49.50 for upper level seating.