Buffalo Heard

Kingston, ON indie-rock band, Kasador plays at The Tralf Music Hall 1/19/17

Kasador, an indie-rock band from Kingston, ON, rung in the new year with its first U.S. show by lighting up The Tralf in Buffalo last night. Bandmates Will Hunter, Boris Baker, Nick Babcock, Cam Wyatt and Angus Fay broke into the Canadian music scene in 2014, and have been playing on the road since, opening for bands like Walk Off The Earth,Lights, Arkells, July Talk, Wintersleep, U.S.S, and Current Swell.

Having just released their self-titled debut EP last September, frontman Will Hunter described the album to Buffalo Heard: “it’s a collection of our favorite songs that we had been writing [in the studio or in rehearsal]. Originally we went into the studio excited to record the songs we knew best and had been playing for a while, but every time we recorded something new we felt the songs were becoming more layered, interesting…just stronger. So through a lot of recording, we learned to work on what we wanted to sound like.  ‘Neighbourhood’ was the first track where everything felt right and we set that as the standard for what we wanted to work towards. After all the dust had settled, we had written a lot of songs and recorded 12 of them and eventually chose the ones that were closest to the vibe we were looking for.”

What can fans expect at your show? Will and Kasador want to put on a solid show—they want people to feel engaged and animated.  “We want the audience to move. It’s not lost on us that when people come to a show it’s their ‘Friday’ night…  Our goal is to have people leaving the show feeling like they had a great night!”

Well, we certainly had a great night. Kasador, you succeeded in your mission and we shook it out all night. After Kasador’s show, we didn’t want our night to end– and it didn’t. Leaving with so much good energy, we took it to Allentown Burger Venture, which never disappoints in both ambiance and food, for a night cap meal.

To be sure, the highlights from the show were the band’s two singles ‘Talk About It’ and the ‘Neighborhood’ (closer and their favorite song to perform) in addition to the surprise cover of  ‘Last Nite’ by The Strokes.  While the band’s vocals could be further refined, Kasador has a powerful sound that fuses rock, pop and electronic.  Cam really kills it on the guitar.

As our last and most favorite question, we always want to know what other artists the band members are really into right now – whether it’s old or new.

“We have been listening to a Canadian band called The Zolas a lot in the car, our friends from Montreal Busty And The Bass are always a go to.”

Band Member: Favorite Artist Right Now
Cam: Whitney
Nick: Mash Out Possy
Boris: Jason Isbell
Angus: Miles Davis
Will: Saint Motel

Key takeaway: Spend a night with Kasador and you’ll find that their energy, upbeat synths and catchy choruses will bring you to your feet and onto the dance floor.