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Having formed in 1992, this year Japan’s most legendary experimental rockers turned 25. This July saw the release of Dear, Boris’ 23rd studio album. The record was intended to be the band’s farewell… However, during the writing process they wound up with three album’s worth of material and decided...
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This July, England-born, Paris-residing songwriter Kate Stables – better known as This Is The Kit (the band is rounded out by a gently revolving cast of her closest musical friends) – released her fourth studio album, Moonshine Freeze. The album is the band’s first for Rough Trade Records and...
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This January Tommy Stinson treated the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection to one of his most intimate local shows in ages. Instead of the mega-stages he found himself on when his legendary Replacements reunited, or those even bigger, where he played in his years in Guns N’...
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If we’re voting on favorite pop cultural entities of the past week, mine is going to have to go to French electropop duo Yelle’s latest single, and accompanying video, “Romeo,” which premiered last Thursday via V Magazine. “Romeo” is the third single the band has released since their third...
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So, word on the street (and, actually, also from a few quite credible, inside sources) is that X’s show this Friday, September 22nd, at Underground Arts (part of their 40th Anniversary tour) is just about sold out… So if you wanna chance to congratulate Exene, John, and crew on...
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Is it just me… or was pop culture allowed to be weirder in the ‘60s and ‘70s? Not necessarily better (although, let’s be honest, it was that, too), but weirder… This Friday, September 9th, Eagle Rock Entertainment is putting out 1975 ABC TV special Alice Cooper: The Nightmare on...
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We at PHILTHY MAG have been big fans of Beverly for quite some time (Well, since their start around 2013…) The Brooklyn band blend the kind of sunshine punk of Best Coast and Beach Day with the the ’90 alt-isms of Kim Deal and Liz Phair… They began as...
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We first met soulful, synthy, alt-pop chanteuse VÉRITÉ last May, prior to a headlining performance at Boot & Saddle, which would leave those of us in attendance believing that there’s no way the songstress (Kelsey Byrne) wouldn’t be massive in the very near future… Since then she’s played shows...
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Last Wednesday, August 2nd, Blondie and Garbage brought their Rage and Rapture Tour, which Shirley Manson fittingly referred to as, “the best summer camp ever,” to the Mann Center, in Fairmount Park. And although neither band are exactly in their prime (Debbie Harry turned 72 last month and Butch...
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Although one of our favorite singer/songwriters, Nashville’s Tristen Gaspardarek (better known simply as Tristen), seems to be constantly on the road and hitting up the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection (from the North Star, to upstairs at World Café Live, to Johnny Brenda’s, Bourbon & Branch, and...
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Brilliantly charming Minneapolis indie pop duo Now, Now, recently dropped their first new recording in half a decade, serving as the follow-up to their 2012 sophomore album, Threads, of which I wrote, “The synth-very-heavy album sounds along the lines of a pleasantly mellow trip on Jupiter. It’s quite dark,...
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It hasn’t been long since The City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection got a chance to catch up with Arc Iris. Just last September the Rhode Island indie poppers headlined Boot & Saddle, while on tour supporting their sophomore LP, Moon Saloon, which I characterized as, “likely the...
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Local songwriter Alex G, or (Sandy) Alex G, has been kicking out lo-fi experimental pop since about 2010, but there’s a decent chance he didn’t hit your radar until the past two years or so. Fall of 2015 saw the release of Beach Music, courtesy of Domino Recording Company...
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For the past year+ New York-based indie singer/songwriter Mitski has been riding a wave of critical acclaim and packed shows surrounding her fourth and latest LP, Puberty 2, released last June on Dead Oceans. The album received glowing reviews from the lofty likes of The Guardian, Pitchfork, and Spin...
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Upstate New York folk poppers The Sea The Sea are currently working on a new album, with a slightly new sound… Although it’s looking like that won’t likely drop until 2018… However, the band are currently nearing the end of a string of live dates, which will have them...
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It’s been quite some time since we’ve heard from Elizabeth Powell and Land of Talk. Last month they released Life After Youth on Saddle Creek, their first LP since 2010’s Cloak and Cipher. And they haven’t played Philadelphia since November of 2010, when they headlined Johnny Brenda’s. However, we’ve...
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Bent Knee’s Land Animal may best the most accessible art rock record of the 21st century… and that’s not a bad thing… The Boston band; known for their abrasive blending of baroque pop, metal, and avant-garde; is set to release their fourth LP on June 23rd, courtesy of InsideOutMusic/Sony. ...
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It’s hard to imagine many people are having a cooler year than step-sisters Kelli Mayo and Peyton Bighorse (along with recent addition Kurtis Mayo, Kelli’s brother), better known as Skating Polly. The post-riot grrrl, alt-rocking power-poppers recently wrapped a batch of dates supporting X, they’re preparing to join Kate...
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This Friday songstress/guitarist virtuoso Laura Marling returns to Philadelphia for a performance at Theatre of Living Arts. However, support act Valley Queen, who has spent the past month on the road with Marling, is equally worth getting excited about. The LA-based band, fronted by Natalie Carol, boasts a blend...
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Although you don’t generally think of a Rock’N’Roll road show as the ideal setting for a married couple, Atlanta-based, psych-leaning, garage rockers Gringo Star and Shantih Shantih think otherwise… Nicholas and Peter Furgiuele of Gringo Star are currently on tour alongside their wives, Julia Furgiuele and Anna Barattin, who...
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It seems like just yesterday seminal Scottish alt rockers The Jesus & Mary Chain were taking the stage of Union Transfer in celebration of the 30th anniversary of their legendary debut album, Psychocandy (To be fair it was just September of 2015.) Well, the Reid brothers are already back,...
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Next week sees the live debut of our newest favorite duo… emerging from the ashes of one of our favorite trios… After the recent disbandment of Brooklyn indie poppers Little Daylight, Nikki Taylor and Eric Zeiler, 2/3rd’s of the outfit, return as Me Not You. As a duo, Me...
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I’m guessing that a number of you are, at the moment, eagerly anticipating Bishop Briggs’ first ever Philthy headlining show this Friday, May 5th, at Union Transfer… And, if you’re anything like me, I’m guessing you generally like to take your sweet ass time getting ready and show up...
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It’s hard to imagine a more perfect lineup for an ultra-sweaty Saturday night at Philthy’s favorite former honky-tonk than The Wild Reeds and Blank Range. This Saturday, April 29th, the two bands, who have already been on tour together for much of the year, will be playing Boot &...
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Psych-rocking post-punks Moon Duo are currently between the releases of the two volumes of their fourth album, Occult Architecture (on Sacred Bones Records), a wonderfully heady album that explores the dualities at the core of our culture, such as lightness and darkness, maleness and femaleness, and nature and spirituality. ...
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About a year ago we first met Kelsey Byrne, aka VÉRITÉ, whom I characterized as the ultimate embodiment of “alt-pop”: “A popular chanteuse (not diva) who has integrity and a soul… equal parts ‘90s R&B, 21st century blue-eyed soul, and synth pop revivalist.” At the time she had released...
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Last Friday hyper-quirky experimental, Austin-based, indie poppers The Octopus Project released their sixth LP, Memory Mirror. The album is the band’s first on Robot High School and also the first to feature new full-time member, multi-instrumentalist Lauren Gurgiolo, formerly of Okkervil River. Although the album maintains the spacy/fuzzy/dancy elements...
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It can be hard to assume what’s coming next from composer/producer/multi-instrumentalist Emily Wells. Although the Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter was originally best known for her work on violin, her live shows often have her playing live drums, guitars, analog synthesizers, beat machines, cello, and viola (which she generally handles all on...
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Philthy’s own Grandchildren (perhaps known better to some of you as the Danger Danger crew) spent the second half of March touring the sounds of their forthcoming fourth album across the southeast. The album, which is yet to have a title or release date, see the electro-orchestral post-folk poppers...
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Although Oakland-based singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Melina Duterte – better known by her musical moniker, Jay Som – is merely 22, her young musical career could already easily qualify as a success… Last year Polyvinyl Records re-released a collection of her early DIY recordings, titled Turn Into, which led to touring with...
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If you’re currently navigating your way through Austin, attempting to spot the next super cool indie pop artist among the ineffably profound plethora of other likely-pretty-fucking-cool indie pop artists, I would recommend looking for Melbourne-based Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, who have a handful of performances scattered throughout the city...
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Although ultra-doomy rockers King Woman are still in the early stages of their career, they’ve already achieved some of their most significant and specific goals. I ask frontperson Kristina Esfandiari in a recent phone chat what she considers to be the highlights of the band so far and she...
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Although Vanessa Carlton is still perhaps best known for her 2002 pop mega-hit “A Thousand Miles,” her musical identity has taken a major turn in recent years. Not only did she wed and start a family with Deer Tick’s John McCauley (whose music is of the rambunctious punk and...
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Tonight our very favorite punky power-poppers, Potty Mouth, return to The City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection for the first time since the charmingly haphazard re-opening of The Fire, and they’re bringing with them their super cool buddies, PARTYBABY. The two bands are about a third of the...
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The last time Philthy saw Jesca Hoop was from the mega-stage of Union Transfer (surrounded by an overwhelming onslaught of lamps), when she and Sam Beam (Iron & Wine) put on an epic, two-hour set comprised of their respective histories, in addition to the songs they collaboratively composed for...
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The last time I saw Brooklyn trio Slothrust was two-and-a-half years ago, noteworthy for being my very first show as a “thirtysomething.” The band played the cramped upstairs stage of Kung Fu Necktie, touring behind their sophomore LP, Of Course You Do, an album taking a lot of cues...
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It’s not every day that an international pop star graces the stage of the charmingly grimy and endearingly divey Voltage Lounge. However, this Valentine’s Day that would seem to be the case, when the Eraserhood club hosts Ninet Tayeb, better known simply as Ninet. A decade ago Ninet emerged...
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While Atari Teenage Riot and Refused share the title for the most impressively progressive live acts of the 1990s and the live music champions of the first decade of the 21st century would be The Sounds and The Ting Tings, the most impressive live shows of our current decade...
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Although Swedish singer/songwriter LÉON is still a relative mystery in our neck of the woods, based on what we know of the postmodern chanteuse, we’re a fan (And, according to Wikipedia, so is Katy Perry.) Late in 2015 LÉON released the four-song Treasure EP, boasting possibly the best “blue-eyed...
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After providing us with possibly 2016’s best album, Crab Day, and one of Philthy’s most enchanting shows of the year at Johnny Brenda’s, Welsh-born/LA-residing singer/songwriter Cate Le Bon is returning with both a new, four-song, EP (courtesy of Drag City) and a local show double-headlining The Black Box at...
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This Friday, 1/27, Cuddle Magic will be dropping their latest LP, Axis/Ashes, courtesy of Northern Spy Records, and tonight they kick off a round of dates supporting folky indie poppers PHOX at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC. And this Thursday, 1/26, Cuddle Magic and PHOX will find themselves...
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Well, it turns out 2017’s first great record was 24 years in the making… sort of. This Friday, January 20th, Fat Possum Records is releasing Anything Could Happen, the sophomore effort from Bash & Pop, Tommy Stinson’s post-Replacements power pop group whose debut, Friday Night is Killing Me, dropped...
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Although the concert season is beginning to wind down, making way for the holidays, and weather is finally giving us fewer and fewer reasons to leave our homes, there are a handful of upcoming shows in the 215 that certainly warrant braving the elements in the next week… and...
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Like so many of indie rock’s most intriguing artists of recent years, American Wrestlers’ sophomore record sees the project evolving from a solo project to a full-fledged rock band. American Wrestlers began when Scottish-born, Manchester-residing musician Gary McClure moved to St. Louis in 2014 to marry girlfriend Bridgette Imperial. ...
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French-Israeli folk pop songstress Yael Naim is currently wrapping up nearly two years of touring and is kicking off a very short string of US dates tonight, at our very own World Café Live, for her first Philadelphia show in quite a few years. Naim first came to mainstream...
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Although it’s hard to imagine Philthy’s bastion of EDM, Rittenhouse’s Coda, garnering more excitement for an event of the non-white-DJ variety than Stevie Wonder’s recent free performance at the club, in support of Hillary Clinton, I think 2016’s runner-up (… pun… intended?) will take place this Saturday, November 19th,...
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Although Vanishing Life are about to embark on their very first tour, I would hope that PHILTHY readers are familiar with a few of the band’s parts. The punk outfit are a supergroup of sorts, comprised of Walter Schreifels, of Quicksand and Gorilla Biscuits; Autry Fulbright of …And You...
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As a rule, I’m not generally a fan of bro bands… However, years ago I made an exception for LA skate punks FIDLAR… largely in-part to their connection to post-riot grrrl ultra-vixen and one of my own personal heroines, Kate Nash… who, it was confirmed for me in a...
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I’m not sure what’s the best way to get you in the mood for voting or not voting, but I suspect there’s no better way to spend this Monday night (November 7th) in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection than with Dilly...
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So I realize it’s fun (and easy) to make fun of Motley Crue, but I think they just might be the greatest “hard rock,” band of all-time (Now whether that’s something to be proud or ashamed of is an entirely different argument.) I mean, sure they’re basically bros who’ve...
Having formed in 1992, this year Japan’s most legendary experimental rockers turned 25. This July saw the release of Dear, Boris’ 23rd studio album. The record was intended to be the band’s farewell… However, during the writing process they wound up with three album’s worth of material and decided...
This July, England-born, Paris-residing songwriter Kate Stables – better known as This Is The Kit (the band is rounded out by a gently revolving cast of her closest musical friends) – released her fourth studio album, Moonshine Freeze. The album is the band’s first for Rough Trade Records and...
