Spencer LaJoye opened for The Crane Wives at Babeville’s 9th Ward last November. Eleven months later, on Friday, October 9, they return as headliner — the kind of quick turnaround that suggests the first Buffalo audience was paying attention.
About the Show
LaJoye describes their work as “queer indie folk music for everyone,” building autobiographical songs live through a vocal loop pedal, drawn from classical violin training, Broadway vocal preparation, and a theology degree that surfaces in the writing whether intended or not. Songs are built in the open: LaJoye layers their own crystalline vocals, constructing arrangements in front of the audience rather than behind a studio’s closed door. From Southwest Michigan, they’ve spent more than a decade on the road with material pulled from their own life: identity, family, desire, and the long, specific process of figuring out who you are. Their 2021 anthem “Plowshare Prayer” moved them from regional folk scenes to households across the country. The debut full-length Shadow Puppets, released in February 2024 and produced by Chris DuPont, pressed further: 12 tracks with synth-guided arrangements exploring those same themes, catching people somewhere between a first and second listen. LaJoye has also released Plant a Piano, a theatrical piano EP, and Remember the Oxygen, featuring orchestral arrangements. They’ve shared stages with David Wilcox, Dar Williams, and Mary Gauthier.
Live, LaJoye earns the description “charming and banter-heavy” — sets that move between laughter and catharsis without much warning, held together by a magnetic stage presence and wry, quietly confident delivery. “Art can change the world simply by making us feel something,” LaJoye has said of their approach, and that philosophy tends to show up in the room. The 2021 Kerrville New Folk Songwriting Competition winner and 2024 Songwriter Serenade winner carries more than 500 monthly Patreon supporters. That level of direct audience support reflects the consistency of the work. Listening rooms across the country frequently sell out.
Venue & Logistics
The 9th Ward at Babeville sits inside the Babeville complex at 341 Delaware Ave in Buffalo. The building is a historic music hall, and the 9th Ward is its smaller, more intimate stage, one suited to singer-songwriters who build songs in front of you rather than behind them. LaJoye’s music asks for this kind of room: every loop pedal layer carries, every vocal choice lands. Show time is 8:00 p.m.
Tickets
Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 day of show. Buy tickets