NOTE: All photos are copyright of Howard Shiau Photography 2025
If you watched the Grammy’s last weekend, you’d think that rock and roll is now just a tiny fringe music genre with few followers. While rock acts are finding it much harder to earn a living with record sales and streaming, the music continues to live on with touring and merch sales being the primary ways that bands can make money. This is great news to all you rock fans since you can see many of your favorite old and new acts for prices well below those for Beyonce or Taylor Swift. Glam rock in particular seems to be resurging, with many new bands playing great music and putting on incredible shows. Two such acts hit the Town Ballroom in Buffalo on Thursday, February 9th.
Fans, mostly made up of young women (outnumbering the men probably 10:1) dressed to the nines, were lined up early outside the venue. Seventies rock bands with their groupies, right? Many of the fans were already familiar with the opener, young LA-based Brit Billy Tibbals. And why not? What young American (or Canadian as the case may be) woman wouldn’t love a long haired rock and roller with a British accent? Tibbals is the real deal, bringing to the stage an insane amount of energy, jumping and headbanging so often I was afraid he was going to hurt himself. The stage wasn’t that big!! He played a nice long set that included his latest single “Onwards and Upwards”, which was also released as a 7″ vinyl. How often do you see that nowadays? The music was reminiscent of sounds from the late 60s/early 70s and I really felt like I was transported back in time! With Tibbals in a 8×2 double breasted suit and guitarist Tristan Dean in a classic 3-piece tweed suit, it really was old school. Completing the band members were drummer (and producer of the latest record) Reza Matin and bassist Darby O’Mahony (whose last show with the tour was right here in Buffalo)! Definitely check out this incredible young act and you’ll wonder why you’re not seeing more popularity with rock and roll!
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However good Billy Tibbals was, the crowd reaction to Mac Saturn taking the stage showed exactly who it was they had come to see. With frontman Carson Macc strutting around the stage like a current day Mick Jagger, the band was in full swing immediately, opening with “Diamonds”. Macc was in his element, teasing the crowd as he moved closer to the edge of the stage, then further away. The audience could not get enough, dancing and singing along to many songs in the set. The rest of the band was excellent as well, with extra style points going to lead guitarist Mike Moody for his incredible Jimmy Page facial expressions!! At one point, as Macc slowly stripped off his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt, you could see the fans leaning forward…anticipating… but it was once again a tease as he swung his jacket over the crowd but threw it stage right. For a small venue space, the audience could not have been more lively, with one girl somehow managing to rip her leather pants! I think they were just a little excited! I recommend that anyone who loves glam rock quickly find out if Mac Saturn will be playing in your area and go check them out!
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