LISTEN TO THIS: Buffalo Tom, “Let Me Come Over” (1992)

A series in which I recommend music that might have flown under your radar.

Buffalo Tom – Let Me Come Over

Listen if you like: The Gaslight Anthem, The Lemonheads, The Hold Steady, Afghan Whigs

Some songs take a while to percolate. They need to simmer in you for a while before they really get into your bones.

“Taillights Fade” by Buffalo Tom is not one of those songs. The first time I heard it, it crawled under my skin and wormed its way into my head. It was one of those songs that even after hearing it only once, it would bounce around my skull forever – and not because it’s catchy or poppy, but because it was a perfect slice of chainsmoking whiskeydrinking fuckitall angst that was wildly different from the grunge that ruled the day, yet it still rocked.

It came from a good album, too. Released in 1992, Let Me Come Over was the third album by Buffalo Tom, a rock band out of New England. They’d never really hit it big by this point, and in truth, they never would. Still, for this one they really locked in the blend of throwback narrative rock and modern college rock sensibilities that was their stock-in-trade. The record was (and remains) great. I still pull it out every few months and am reminded of how overlooked it is.

To see where I’m coming from, here’s Taillights Fade:

Just terrific.

I was stoked when writing this to discover that after a long hiatus, Buffalo Tom released a new record in 2018 called Quiet And Peace. Awesome! I already grabbed it. Now I’m just waiting for some quiet and peace of my own so I can give it a good listen.

If you dig what you heard, buy it!