Every gig is an opportunity. If Alex Korner hadn’t asked his friends Mick Jagger, Ian Stewart, Keith Richards and Brian Jones to fill in for his band’s Thursday night gig at the Marquee Club in 1962, the world might have never seen The Rolling Stones. On a more recent Thursday night in 2024, up-and-coming student artists took to the stage at the Electric Buffalo Records “70s Night” open mic. Bell-bottoms, dusty records, colorful strobe lighting, and an array of extreme talent created an ambiance presumably similar to the Marquee, or one of other venues where rock and roll legends got their starts. As an entirely student-run record label and performance venue under the umbrella of Cornell Media Guild, Electric Buffalo Records (EBR) is a creative hub for all student musicians. Not only does EBR host open mic nights like the one I attended on Nov. 14, they also sign student bands to their label and offer perks such as rehearsal space, recording equipment and branding assistance. From my conversations with some of the student bands performing that night, it became clear that EBR is a cornerstone of the Cornell music community.
The band Blindeye, consisting of Alexander Judd ’26 (guitar/vocals), William Taylor ’26 (guitar), Zach Gould ’27 (saxophone), Josh Yiu ’27 (drums), Lucas Mitchell ’27 (bass) and graduated member Mark Lorenz ’24 (keyboard), is an impromptu conglomerate of musicians brought together by their mutual love of spontaneous jam sessions and The Grateful Dead. Many of the members are part of other musical organizations around campus, but they banded together a few weeks before the open mic to solidify a set list and seize the performance opportunity. Lucas, also a member of the band Paragon (Slope Day student opener 2024), says that the EBR open mic provided “a chance to play in front of other people and express a different side of things” in regards to his music. “It’s really great to see… different parts of the music community around Cornell all coming together for this,” he exclaimed when I chatted with him and Josh after their performance.
Playing an open mic night is certainly a contrast to performing at Slope Day. The EBR performance space is the “Vinyl Room” of the WVBR-FM headquarters, a house-turned-radio station on the corner of Buffalo St. and Stewart Ave. Along with a complicated-looking array of amps, microphones and other PA equipment, floor-to-ceiling shelves showcase an extensive record collection. Audience capacity is restricted by the size of the room, creating a more intimate experience for both the performers and the listeners. I was squished amongst my friends as I enjoyed Blindeye’s rendition of “Sultans of Swing” by Dire Straits (in accordance with the night’s “70s disco” theme). Compliance with the theme was a bonus, but not a requirement; Matthew Gin ’25 wowed the audience with a futuristic tune written by AI, and Timo Isreb ’26 sang an original song over a stunningly produced backing track. Also performing were the bands Spit! and Lucky Strike, both EBR veterans, as well as solo acts from Ellie Raidt ’27 and Ishani Sangupta ’26. The night was capped off by the band Mara, concluding two hours of unique and incredible performances.
Before learning about EBR, I was only aware of the open mics hosted by the residence hall Just About Music (a.k.a JAM, a.k.a Low Rise 9) on North Campus. Josh explained to me that while he and his bandmates have a soft spot for JAM P-Space open mics, the community has been going through a rough patch. “[EBR] is our saving grace,” he says. “We need more people to listen. I don’t mean ‘we’ as in me and Lucas; ‘we’, as in everyone who plays music [at Cornell].” Yiu has struggled to get people to come to JAM open mics, whereas “people actually show up to EBR.”
Electric Buffalo Records is more than a performance venue; the executive board has been working with Cornell law student Joyce Lian to create an official artist contract and sign bands to the label. “Our goal is to support artists by offering comprehensive services, including access to studio resources and skilled audio engineers for recording and distributing their projects. In addition, we help arrange gigs and performances and provide marketing and artist development services tailored to their release plans and brand-building as musicians,” says Maya Behl ’25, the current EBR president. Recently, the student band Mara became the first to sign this revamped contract, and the members (James Mars ’26, Izzy Falchuk ’26 and Harry Gallen ‘27) are excited to reap the many benefits. “We have yet to make original music; however, we plan on it, so it’s super cool that we get to have [access to] the studio,” Izzy says. She previously felt that Ithaca was devoid of the music resources she had growing up in Los Angeles, and is happy to have found “a cool, vibey place to just play music with other music-loving people.” When asked about their future plans as a band, James says “I think we have ideas that we are really proud of, but we haven’t been able to share them with anybody, so…our best way [of sharing them] is through EBR.”
Maya hopes that the work that she and Joyce have put into the contract, along with the collaboration of EBR subteams such as marketing and audio engineering, will help every signed artist achieve all of their professional goals. “The label’s success depends on each of these teams being led by passionate and dedicated members,” she says, “and I have been inspired by the many EBR members who have stepped up this year to lead with initiative and creativity. My hope is that this ambitious spirit and dedication will continue to flourish long after I leave.”
Maya Blanchard is a junior in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. She can be reached at [email protected].