Concert Recommendations: Fall 2013

By Nick Stropko

Over the past few months, I’ve been watching an amazing slew local shows being announced for the fall with frustration. You see, dear reader, while Philadelphia is about to have one of the best concert seasons in recent memory, I will be in Istanbul, enjoying the requisite college rite of passage that is study abroad (please, shower me with pity). Despite my infuriating inability to attend any of the following concerts, I have compiled a personal list of must-see shows for this fall.

Kishi Bashi @ First Unitarian Church Sanctuary, September 14 ($15)

Truthfully, I haven’t really given a good listen to Kishi Bashi’s only album, 151a. However, I did have the opportunity to catch him at the Church Basement as part of a WKDU Presents event, and it was stellar. Kishi Bashi creates little string ensembles with a lone violin and a loop pedal, which are combined with soaring vocals and occasional beatboxed vocals (it’s way less obnoxious than it sounds, I promise) to great effect. Throw in some whimsical stage decorations and a charmingly intimate venue, and I expect this to be a great experience.

Vampire Weekend @ The Mann Skyline Stage, September 19 ($35)

Okay, confession: I’m a huge V-Dubs fanboy. Huge. I’ve seen them five or six times, and Modern Vampires of the City is my album of the year right now. This being said, they’re a very tight, consistent band, and I’m very curious to see how much of their new material translates live. There’s really no gimmick here—just excellent songcraft and musicianship (and a steadily increasing touring budget, I suppose).

flaminglips

The Flaming Lips & Tame Impala @ Festival Pier, October 3 ($50–eesh)

A fortuitous pairing, to say the least. I’ve never really associated the psych stalwarts with the fresh faced up-and-comers, but I think the two bands will complement each other quite nicely. While the legendary nature of the Lips’ shows is already well-documented (they do seem to be adding some strange, disturbing elements to go with their dark new album, The Terror), Tame Impala proved to be a pretty excellent live band at their recent Electric Factory gig. I’m already a huge fan of both bands’ material, but I can guarantee that this will be a very entertaining show.

Making Time w/ Fuck Buttons @ Voyeur Nightclub, October 19 ($10)

The new Fuck Buttons album, Slow Focus, is a slice of dark, menacing, bass-heavy goodness. I really want to hear this thing pouring out of some overpowered subwoofers. Paired with Voyeur (possibly the most worthwhile nightclub in Philadelphia) and the fine folks at Making Time, I expect this to be a very, very good time. Be prepared to move.

Animal Collective w/ Dan Deacon @ Union Transfer, October 28 (Sold Out 🙁 )

This one’s already sold out, but it feels worth mentioning. Deacon’s manic energy, channeled through performing in the middle of the crowd, is not something to miss. I guarantee that you will dance, and you will love it. Animal Collective is notoriously spotty in their live performances, often receiving the complaint that their concerts are more about writing new songs live than performing old ones. That being said, apparently they’ve been playing more older stuff lately (they absolutely killed Peacebone when I saw them at the Mann a few months back), and I think the energy is going to be incredible. A second date has been announced sans Dan Deacon, which should also be cool, but if you can somehow manage to get into this show…do it.

Man Man @ Union Transfer, October 30-31 ($20)

Oh my god. Go to this. Go to this. I can only imagine what kind of hijinks Man Man have planned for back-to-back hometown Halloween shows. The band has put on some of the most entertaining live performances I have ever seen, and I fully expect this to surpass any previous shows of theirs. This one will be special.

Basia Bulat @ The Boot & Saddle, November 20 ($10)

I first encountered Basia as an opening act for Beirut at the Electric Factory last year. She’s an incredibly charming and talented folk artist who plays a variety of instruments, including a weird autoharp thing. It’s cool. Anyway, if you’re looking for an excuse to check out R5’s newest venue, this would definitely be it—warm music to provide respite from November’s cold.

All this being said, I’m just thankful that I’ll be here for Neutral Milk Hotel.

Top Played Artists 7/30/2013 – 8/6/2013

1 SMITH WESTERNS Soft Will (Mom And Pop)
2 SHANNON AND THE CLAMS Dreams In The Rat House (Hardly Art)
3 CAMERA OBSCURA Desire Lines (4AD)
4 LEMURIA The Distance Is So Big (Bridge Nine)
5 OWEN L’Ami Du Peuple (Polyvinyl)
6 KING TUFF Was Dead (Burger)
7 COKE WEED Back To Soft (Self-Released)
8 LOVE LANGUAGE Ruby Red (Merge)
9 HUNX AND HIS PUNX Street Punk (Hardly Art)
10 HOT CHIP Dark And Stormy [EP] (Domino)
11 BEAR MOUNTAIN XO (Last Gang)
12 SERENGETI Kenny Dennis (Anticon)
13 GOGOL BORDELLO Pura Vida Conspiracy (ATO)
14 HEBRONIX Unreal (ATP)
15 THE NATIONAL Trouble Will Find Me (4AD)
16 SPEEDY ORTIZ Major Arcana (Carpark)
17 A GREAT BIG PILE OF LEAVES You’re Always On My Mind (Topshelf)
18 GRANDCHILDREN  Golden Age (Earnest Jenning)
19 SALVIA PLATH The Bardo Story (Weird World)
20 FRONT BOTTOMS Talon Of The Hawk (Bar/None)
21 KID CONGO AND THE PINK MONKEY BIRDS Haunted Head (In The Red)
22 BASS DRUM OF DEATH Bass Drum Of Death (Innovative Leisure)
23 GAUNTLET HAIR Stills (Dead Oceans)
24 SAN CISCO San Cisco (RCA)
25 PITY SEX Feast Of Love Run (For Cover)
26 AUSTRA Olympia (Domino)
27 SOMBEAR Love You In The Dark (Trans)
28 WEEKEND Jinx (Slumberland)
29 HAPPY HOLLOWS Amethyst (Pesky Fruit)
30 MOOD RINGS VPI Harmony (Mexican Summer)

Interview with Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo (July 10, 2013)

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Here it is! Matt Scottoline’s (of The New Matt Show) excellent interview with Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo. Hear Ira talk about sports talk, the Sun Ra Arkestra, the late Maxwell’s, and their relationship with the unknown.

Stream the interview above.

Interview with Smith Westerns (July 26, 2013)

Image courtesy of Fat Possum
Image courtesy of Fat Possum

By Kirsten Becker

I caught up with Cullen Omori, the singer from Smith Westerns before their 7/26 show at
Union Transfer to talk about their latest release, 90’s music, and what’s coming next for the band.

Kirsten Becker: What was the recording process for this record? What comes first, music or lyrics?

Cullen Omori: It kind of happens together. The way that we write our songs varies, [guitarist] Max [Kakacek] will write some parts and I’ll write a full song, or Max write a full song and I’ll write some parts. So, when I go about writing music I try to go about with the chords with the lyrics because I feel like when you have words down, you come up with the melody or the chords a lot quicker. For me, lyrics come with the music. That’s kind of how I write.

Continue reading “Interview with Smith Westerns (July 26, 2013)”

Top Played Artist 7/23/2013 – 7/30/2013

1    KING TUFF    Was Dead    (Burger)
2    LEMURIA    The Distance Is So Big    (Bridge Nine)
3    OWEN    L’Ami Du Peuple    (Polyvinyl)
4    SMITH WESTERNS    Soft Will    (Mom And Pop)
5    HUNX AND HIS PUNX    Street Punk    (Hardly Art)
6    SHANNON AND THE CLAMS    Dreams In The Rat House    (Hardly Art)
7    GRANDCHILDREN     Golden Age    (Earnest Jenning)
8    COKE WEED    Back To Soft    (Self-Released)
9    SPEEDY ORTIZ    Major Arcana    (Carpark)
10    SALVIA PLATH    The Bardo Story    (Weird World)
11    CAMERA OBSCURA    Desire Lines    (4AD)
12    PSYCHIC TEENS    Come    (SRA Records)
13    HOT CHIP    Dark And Stormy [EP]    (Domino)
14    NIGHT BIRDS    Born To Die In Suburbia   (Grave Mistake Records)
15    SURFER BLOOD    Pythons    (Warner Brothers)
16    BASS DRUM OF DEATH    Bass Drum Of Death    (Innovative Leisure)
17    FRONT BOTTOMS    Talon Of The Hawk    (Bar/None)
18    WILD NOTHING    Empty Estate    (Captured Tracks)
19    ELEANOR FRIEDBERGER    Personal Record    (Merge)
20    BEAR MOUNTAIN    XO    (Last Gang)
21    PITY SEX    Feast Of Love    (Run For Cover)
22    GAUNTLET HAIR    Stills    (Dead Oceans)
23    IRON AND WINE    Ghost On Ghost    (Nonesuch)
24    HALF MOON RUN    Dark Eyes    (Glassnote)
25    A GREAT BIG PILE OF LEAVES    You’re Always On My Mind    (Topshelf)
26    EBONY BONES    Behold, A Pale Horse    (1984)
27    AUSTRA    Olympia    (Domino)
28    LOVE LANGUAGE    Ruby Red    (Merge)
29    FAMILY CREST    The Headwinds [EP]    (Tender Loving Empire)
30    LA MACHINE    Phases And Repetition    (Castleface)

Concert Review: 7th Annual Lancaster Avenue Jazz & Arts Festival @ Saunder’s Park (July 20, 2013)

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By Nick Stropko

As I sat beneath the shade of a tent in Saunder’s Park last Saturday, slowly wilting from the midday heat, I couldn’t help but wonder one thing: why aren’t there more festivals in April? Despite the oppressive temperature (mid-90s and humid for much of the day), people were beginning to trickle in for the 7th Annual Lancaster Avenue Jazz & Arts Festival, a free concert that seeks to coax jazz out from its ivory tower and allow it to mingle with the community for an afternoon.

Continue reading “Concert Review: 7th Annual Lancaster Avenue Jazz & Arts Festival @ Saunder’s Park (July 20, 2013)”

Top Played Artists 7/16/2013 – 7/23/2013

1 KING TUFF Was Dead (Burger)
2 OWEN L’Ami Du Peuple (Polyvinyl)
3 SHANNON AND THE CLAMS Dreams In The Rat House (Hardly Art)
4 SMITH WESTERNS Soft Will (Mom And Pop)
5 LEMURIA The Distance Is So Big (Bridge Nine)
6 HUNX AND HIS PUNX Street Punk (Hardly Art)
7 SPEEDY ORTIZ Major Arcana (Carpark)
8 SURFER BLOOD Pythons (Warner Brothers)
9 SALVIA PLATH The Bardo Story (Weird World)
10 CAMERA OBSCURA Desire Lines (4AD)
11 PITY SEX Feast Of Love (Run For Cover)
12 BASS DRUM OF DEATH Bass Drum Of Death (Innovative Leisure)
13 SERENGETI Kenny Dennis (Anticon)
14 PRIMAL SCREAM More Light (Ignition)
15 GAUNTLET HAIR Stills (Dead Oceans)
16 ROBERT POLLARD Honey Locust Honky Tonk (GBV Inc.)
17 WILD NOTHING Empty Estate (Captured Tracks)
18 IRON AND WINE Ghost On Ghost (Nonesuch)
19 HALF MOON RUN Dark Eyes (Glassnote)
20 PORTUGAL. THE MAN Evil Friends (Atlantic)
21 BIBIO Silver Wilkinson (Warp)
22 MIKAL CRONIN MCII (Merge)
23 SIGUR ROS Kveikur (XL)
24 GOLD AND YOUTH Beyond Wilderness (Arts And Crafts)
25 HOT CHIP Dark And Stormy [EP] (Domino)
26 DAVID LYNCH  Big Dream (Sacred Bones)
27 PSYCHIC TEENS Come (SRA Records)
28 DEAFHEAVEN Sunbather (Deathwish)
29 LIGHTNING DUST Fantasy (Jagjaguwar)
30 OBLIVIANS Desperation (In The Red)