Buffalo Stack
"Buffalo Stack is an easy band to like. The ensemble’s debut record is a mix of various styles, including rock, soul, country, and blues. Saying that, though, gives the music short shrift because in some ways it almost seems indefinable…the band is a cohesive unit…(Andy Stack's) guitar playing is never flashy, but it’s surprising, soulful, and always in the right place. ...he has an engaging, pure voice…here’s hoping the group will build up a strong enough following to be around a while and make more great music." - John Heidt, Vintage Guitar Magazine
Some musicians are content to be sidemen/women. There’s a simplicity to it, and if that’s your calling, it can be quite fulfilling. Other people have an inner voice and vision that demands to be shared. You can only suppress that voice for so long before you have no choice but to heed its’ call.
After thriving as a sideman musician in the New York City music scene for several years, writer, guitarist and vocalist Andy Stack heeded that call and headed north on a whim to the Hudson Valley (home to luminaries like Bob Dylan and The Band) and founded the group Buffalo Stack.
It was in this mountainous region of the state where Andy's own voice began to blossom free from the hustle of the NYC lifestyle, but with the musical prowess formed in the crucible of the big city scene. Within 6 months he had written a full album’s worth of original roots/rock/Americana music, bringing together some of the finest musicians and singers from the valley, and playing weekly at many of the fertile music clubs in the region, including The Falcon, The Towne Crier, and Club Helsinki.
Andy brings to Buffalo Stack his command of American roots music, his knowledge of the folk traditions from his ancestors’ homeland of Ireland and his modern music sensibilities. Influences from Chicago, to the Delta, from New Orleans to New York City, all find their way into the cocktail. He culls the deep cuts for material, improvises solos with a compelling approach to his instrument, and leads the band through a dynamic and adventurous set of original songs and carefully selected covers. The band in its versatility has performed in different formations from duo to big band with a horn section and background singers, consistently bringing enthusiastic audiences to their feet.
To date, Buffalo Stack has released a 5-song EP Hammer and Nails in 2016 and a full length self-titled album in 2014.
Andy has collaborated as a guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and record producer with artists such as Amy Helm, Duncan Sheik, Suzanne Vega, Lucius, Teddy Thompson, Jonah Smith, Mike and Ruthy, Les Nubians, NY Ska Jazz Ensemble, and many others. He holds a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from SUNY Purchase.