Posts Tagged ‘Philadelphia’

RON GALLO – ” Young Lady, You’re Scaring Me “

Posted: January 19, 2018 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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The RON GALLO III is a rock and roll trio lead by a tall, big-haired weirdo of the same name. As the former frontman of Toy Soldiers, Gallo spent a decade as a fixture in the burgeoning Philadelphia music scene. Now solo, Gallo has completed his second full-length record “Heavy Meta”. Embracing his love for fuzz, psych, garage, and early punk, Heavy Meta is a stark contrast to the “Harry Nilsson-meets-Father John Misty” sound of the previous record RONNY. After undergoing a shattering year of love, loss, purging, and a musical reinvention, Gallo sought a change of scenery and a fresh start.

Drawn to the rock ‘n’ roll music currently being made by his friends in back alleys of Tennessee’s “Music City,” Gallo and his very own record label American Diamond Recordings relocated to the Bordeaux neighborhood of Nashville on New Years Day 2016. Throughout his career, Toy Soldiers and solo combined, Gallo has released three full length records and three EPs working with various small independent labels in Philadelphia and New York City. He has shared the stage with legends such as Wanda Jackson, Dr. Dog, Deer Tick, Dr. John, The Walkmen, J. Roddy Walston, among others. Gallo has previously been featured among USA Today’s “Bands to Watch,” Paste Magazine’s “Philly Bands You Should Listen to NOW” and has garnered appearances on PBS SUN Studio Special, Daytrotter, Audiotree, and many more. On stage, Gallo is a huge force to be reckoned with. He is a true showman with a knack for grabbing the audience’s attention and leaving them in awe. He sings his ass off and thinks it’s important to laugh at yourself.

KISSISSIPPI – ” Cut Yr Teeth “

Posted: January 4, 2018 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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After a promising 2015 EP, Philly’s Kississippi (the project of Zoe Reynolds) signed to SideOneDummy and released the single “Cut Yr Teeth,” which is easily the best thing they’ve done yet. It’s cut from a similar indie/punk cloth as stuff like Waxahatchee, Hop Along, and Modern Baseball, and it proves that Zoe is increasingly gripping as both a singer and songwriter. (It also benefits from the drumming talents of Michael Tashjian of Thin Lips and The Superweaks.) Album info is still TBA, but if the rest of it is like “Cut Yr Teeth,” it’s gonna be a good one.

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ALEX G (SANDY) – ” Sandy Forever ” Best Albums Of 2017

Posted: December 10, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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(Sandy) Alex G is one of those artists who dumps dozens of lo-fi albums on Bandcamp, but few catch the spotlight the way he has over the last three years — and deservedly so given the musical growth visible on his latest album Rocket, proving those “prodigy” tags slapped on him back then weren’t over-exaggerated hype.

On its surface, Rocket is a vaguely Americana record where he finally sheds Elliott Smith comparisons for those of Cassadaga-era Bright Eyes, but it’s the experimental tracks. On Rocket, he steps past the Elliott Smith comparisons and into an unsuspected combination of beautiful Americana-evoking tunes often fit with strings (“Proud,” “Bobby,” “Powerful Man”) and left-field instrumentals that vary between hardcore freak-outs (“Brick”) and restless, wild fits (“Horse”). What some might find discombobulated is one cohesive vision in the mind of Alex Giannascoli. A guy-next-door songwriter so brilliant and special that Frank Ocean nabbed his talents for both Endless and Blonde, Giannascoli tells tales that aren’t always relatable and might only make sense to him, but still somehow feel like home.

SIDE A 1. Change My Mind (0:01– 2:40) * 2. Kicker (2:39 – 5:28) * 3. New (5:31 – 8:45) 4. Joy (8:49 – 13:30) 5. Child’s Play (13:34 – 15:49) 6. Promise (15:50 – 19:19) 7. Trash (19:25 – 22:08) 8. Trade (22:10 – 23:26) 9. After Ur Gone (23:28 – 25:47) * 10. Mud (25:56 – 27:44) * 11. Mary (27:48 – 31:02) 12. Bug (31:05 – 33:46) 13. Kara (33:47 – 36:49) 14. Clouds (36:52 – 39:14) 15. Salt (39:18 – 43:55) *

SIDE B 16. Soaker (43:59 – 45:37) 17. Sorry (45:39 – 48:20) 18. Nintendo 64 (48:23 – 51:00) 19. Hollow (51:02 – 55:07) * 20. Skating (55:08 – 57:40) ** 21. Memory (57:41 – 1:00:32) * 22. Tie Me Down (The Skin Cells) (1:00:35 – 1:02:58) 23. Scar Tattoo (1:03:01 – 1:06:04) 24. Sarah (1:06:06 – 1:08:57) 25. Snot (1:09:01 – 1:14:00) * 26. Sandy (1:14:03 – 1:16:42) 27. Break (1:16:46 – 1:19:41) ** 28. In Love (1:19:42 – 1:23:11) ** 29. Waiting For You (1:23:15 – 1:26:43) ** 30. Mis (1:26:49 – 1:30:05) ** 31. Change (1:30:06 – 1:32:08) ** 32. Explain (1:32:11 – 1:33:45) 33. Message (1:33:46 – 1:36:30) * 34. Clouds (1:36:32 – 1:38:55) 35. Go Away (1:38:56 – 1:39:55)

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The WAR ON DRUGS – ” Holding On “

Posted: December 8, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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The War On Drugs set to release new single 'Holding On'

The War On Drugs released single ‘Holding On’ as the Philadelphia-born band ramp up excitement around their latest album. Everything got bigger for The War On Drugs in 2017. If ever the “indie-rock” label fit these Philly daydreamers, they’ve shed the qualifier to become one of America’s leading rock acts, period. It wasn’t just their fan base that grew this year: A Deeper Understanding feels built for big crowds, from the dreamy, 11-minute sprawl of “Thinking Of A Place” to genuine song-of-the-year candidate “Strangest Thing,” which builds and builds to multiple crescendos, slathering some stadium-sized riffs over its infectious hook, soaring synths, and frontman Adam Granduciel’s mythically romantic musings.

The standouts would conquer the charts in a more guitar-dominated era, but as with any other War On Drugs release, the pleasures here are cumulative—this is a richly enveloping listen, front to melancholy back. As for the bugaboo of influence: A Deeper Understanding doesn’t dispel the Dylan and Springsteen comparisons The War On Drugs has been provoking since back when Kurt Vile was still with the band.

Having released the track “Thinking Of A Place” for Record Store Day 2017, their first new music since their acclaimed 2014 album Lost In A Dream, The War On Drugs have kept their cards close to their chest in regards to the record . “I kept thinking about an LA record and what that means,” frontman Adam Granduciel told said in an interview with Pitchfork. “To me, it means the second Warren Zevon record, but it could also mean Tonight’s The Night. Then I threw my hands in the air and just wanted to make a record with my friends, wherever that may be.”

For much of the three and a half year period since the release of Lost In The Dream, The War On Drugs‘ frontman, Adam Granduciel, led the charge for his Philadelphia-based sextet as he holed up in studios in New York and Los Angeles to write, record, edit, and tinker-but, above all, to busy himself in work. Teaming up with engineer Shawn Everett (Alabama Shakes, Weezer), Granduciel challenged the notion of what it means to create a fully realized piece of music in today’s modern landscape. Calling on his bandmates – bassist Dave Hartley, keyboarding Robbie Bennett, drummer Charlie Hall and multi-instrumentalists Anthony LaMarca and Jon Natchez — continuously throughout the process, the result is a “band record” in the noblest sense, featuring collaboration, coordination, and confidence at every turn. Through those years of relocation, the revisiting and reexamining of endless hours of recordings, unbridled exploration and exuberance, Granduciel’s gritty love of his craft succeeded in pushing the band to great heights.

WELLER – ” Weller “

Posted: December 1, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Anchored by ringing guitars and equally vibrant vocals, Philadelphia’s Weller is easy to compare to 90s college rock or any other sun-kissed genre format of that bygone era. However, the difference lies in this three-piece’s command of millennial anxieties and awareness that eclipses the easy nostalgia marker. The band is gearing up to after the release of their debut LP this summer after a year of steady touring and releases, to fully lock in their revived, yet refined take on a once-golden formula.

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Band Members
Harrison Nantz
Jeremy Berkin
Evan Clark Moorehead

SLAUGHTER BEACH DOG – ” Audiotree Live Session “

Posted: November 30, 2017 in MUSIC
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Slaughter Beach, Dog began as a cure for writer’s block — an outlet for Jake Ewald (of Modern Baseball) to experiment with styles that didn’t fit within the well-defined territory of his former project. Ewald quickly discovered a talent for this format and penned a collection of conversational tunes that float between folk, indie, punk and alternative rock. His ability to isolate and compile daily human interactions give vibrancy and value to these otherwise mundane experiences.

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Band Members 
Jake Ewald – Vocals, Guitar and Keys
Nick Harris – Guitar and Vocals
Ian Farmer – Bass
Zack Robbins – Drums

The WAR ON DRUGS – ” Nothing To Find “

Posted: November 12, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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A young punk and a green giant hit the road in the goofy yet poignant new video for the War on Drugs‘ “Nothing to Find.” The track appears on the Philadelphia outfit’s new album, A Deeper Understanding.

Still riding the momentum from the recent release of their acclaimed fourth album A Deeper Understanding, The War on Drugs have shared the video for “Nothing to Find,” starring young actress Sophia Lillis (of IT fame), who embarks on a road trip with some sort of plant covered alien and car. Throughout the journey, Lillis’ character tries to keep her mate trimmed and watered, but no amount of care can stave off the inevitable march of nature. As the sun falls, the green giant – many of his leaves now brown – collapses to the ground. When Lillis’ character wakes up the next morning, her partner has returned to the earth, leaving a lone branch in her arms.

‘A Deeper Understanding,’ the new album from The War On Drugs, available now.

 

MODERN BASEBALL – ” The Thrash Principle “

Posted: November 10, 2017 in MUSIC
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Modern Baseball are getting heavier with age. It’s just a one-off, but if “The Thrash Principle” is any indication of what their next album will sound like, it’s yet another new direction for the young band. Where most of the tracks on Sports and You’re Gonna Miss It All bounced, this one drags its feet. The band has always been good at balancing dark thoughts with a bit of levity, but they seem to have reached a tipping point, and this is the first time they feel really weighed down. Years of heartbreak and rejection have taken their toll, and relationships start to blur together like memories you’d rather forget. Brandon Lukens’ always sharp lyricism twists and turns dynamically, as he subtly corrects himself as he goes along: “Didn’t watch your ex’s set,” oh, wait, no, “couldn’t watch your ex’s set.” “And I’ve known you forever…” Or is it “yet I’ve loved you forever”? “You suggested I write a song about the first time we met, but I can’t seem to remember…” shit, nope, “I don’t wanna remember there or then.” All of these shifting thoughts provide ammunition for the kicker: “So is this the hook you wanted? Is it stuck inside your head? Can you sing it with your friends, or alone?” The final twist of the lyrical knife leaves the narrator rejected and alone,

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MODERN BASEBALL – ” You’re Gonna Miss It All “

Posted: November 8, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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Modern Baseball’s second LP on yellow vinyl,  “You’re Gonna Miss It All” is the Philadelphia band’s second full-length, for one thing. Beyond that, songwriter Brendan Lukens recently finished his second year at Drexel University, and he never lets you forget what 21-year-old college students are often like , Its culturally literate,  blurring the line between introspective and self-obsessed, impressed by their capacity for clever wordplay and emotional awareness while knowing both of those qualities conspire to prevent people from saying what they actually feel. And due to the all of the aforementioned, Lukens is kinda full of it, too. He won’t exactly lie to you, but he’ll tell you what he aspires to be while doing the exact opposite.

Along with fellow Modern Baseball songwriter Jacob Ewald, Lukens frets over the past, future, and especially the present. He thinks about the next five minutes, the next morning, and whether his death will be cool enough, he worries a hell of a lot about himself, and how other people figure into that. It’s a lot to endure because people in Lukens’ situation get drunk most every night, stumble into relationships, and run from their problems. If you’re in this emotionally state, you’ll relate to You’re Gonna Miss It All directly and deeply. its a wealth of infectious songs that are both sharply observed and sharply written.

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PALM – ” Rock Island “

Posted: November 2, 2017 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
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On Rock Island, their second LP, Palm produces evidence of a distinct musical language, developed over time, in isolation, and out of necessity. On the island, melodies are struck on what might be shells or spines. Rhythms are scratched out, swept over, scratched again. Individual instruments, and sometimes entire sections, skip and stutter. There is the sense of a music box with wonky tension or a warped transmission in which all the noise is taken for signal.

Like other groups so acclaimed for their compulsive live show, Palm has been burdened by the constant comparison between their recorded material and their touring set. On Rock Island, they render this tired discussion moot, using the album form to present that which could never be completely live, reserving for performance that which could never be completely reproduced.
Despite appearing behind the instruments typical of rock music, Palm trades in sounds of their own making. On these songs, one of the guitars and the drum kit are used as MIDI triggers, producing an index that can be combed through later and replaced with new information. The percussion is sometimes augmented so as to suggest a multiplication of limbs. The strings are manipulated to choke, crack, and hum like other instruments, or other bodies, might.

Working again with engineer Matt Labozza, the band spent the better part of a month in a rented farmhouse in Upstate New York. With the benefits of time and space, Palm recorded the various elements piecemeal, only rarely playing together in groups larger than two or three. While some members tracked, others holed up in the next room, experimenting with quantization, beat replacement, and other methods borrowed from electronic music. Even accounting for the many labors that brought them to be, these materials seem produced by an organic logic. Their complex friction forms a habit of thought, scores a network of grooves on the floor of the mind.

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This is music with dimensionality. Sonic objects are deployed, developed, and dissected in various states of mutation. The listener flits about between the field and the lab. The tone is warm in a way only the sun could make, the pace as forceful and as variable as a gale. Whether one locates Rock Island in a sea or in a refinished attic (as in Greg Burak’s album cover), whether one escapes to there or is banished, its psychic environs are charted clearly enough. Only at this remove from the mainland can we sense the conditions necessary for such a strange species of sound.

 

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