Those who have seen Avi Buffalo before or heard their polished debut album have come to expect impressive things from the band, and that’s what made Tuesday night’s Casbah show such a disappointment.

The Long Beach group opened with a cacophonous, messy number that initially seemed like a joke, but after a few more songs, it became clear that the entire set was to be just as lazy and disorganized. If frontman Avigdor Zahner-Isenberg had put half as much energy into the music as he did his between-songs banter, he might have redeemed the show. But as it was, only the occasional song — such as the always-welcome “What’s In It For?” — provided any reprieve.

Many of the show’s attendees were there because they had been won over by the band’s successful Four Day Weekend appearance last year, but even they began to clear out halfway through the set. Hopefully Tuesday’s apathetic performance can be chalked up to a rare off night for Avi Buffalo, and doesn’t signal the decline of a once-promising act.

Photos – Avi Buffalo at the Casbah – August 9, 2011