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Remember Be Your Own Pet? Yeah, they were pretty great; their self-titled debut LP was like the best punk record since Dig Me Out and their live shows were on par with The Stooges and Refused (Remember when they played that house show in South Philly and got drunk...
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If I had to pick a favorite artist to emerge since my time as a music critic, I don’t know that it could be anyone other than Nashville’s Those Darlins (which shouldn’t be news to any regular PHILTHY readers). The band is the lovechild of Nikki Kvarnes and Jessi...
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In Philadelphia, you know summer is officially here when the Radio 104.5 Block Parties begin. The first of the summer series kicked off Sunday at the Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing with Bad Suns, Catfish and the Bottlemen, BANKS, and The Airborne Toxic Event. Check out photos below! The...
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While being a 30-year-old music journalist can be more than a bit frustrating (if not downright maddening) in the age of the largely non-paying blogosphere, being asked to cover a personal hero, who soundtracked my formative years, is still, admittedly, quite exciting and quite flattering… especially when they’re willing...
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It’s hard to believe that Finnish cello metal savants Apocalyptica are already on their third decade… But this year marks their 22nd as a band and last week saw the release of their eighth studio album, Shadowmaker. The album marks a new chapter in the band. Although they’re known...
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Every in-the-know music snob and postmodern sonic geek knows Martin Bisi and his BC Studio for being a major player in Brooklyn’s post-punk, hip-hop, and avant-garde scene of the 1980s, producing, engineering, and recording records for the likes of Fab Five Freddy, Herbie Hancock, Afrika Bambaata, Sonic Youth, Swans,...
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About three and half years ago I was falling in love hard with the music of Madi Diaz, a singer/songwriter — who grew up in Bucks County and went on to be a star pupil of Paul Green’s School of Rock – who had recently shifted her aesthetic from...
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Not that I’m necessarily the best person for prophesying these kinds of things, but Zella Day definitely deserves to be the next great pop star… And not only that, but the next pop star that is actually worthy of your attention. The songstress, who hails from Arizona but resides...
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As far as band names go, Los Angeles’ Gothic Tropic is the best interface I’ve come across in quite some time. Although characterized as psych-pop, there is something distinctly beachy about their sounds… intermingled with the playfully morose aesthetic of some of the ‘80s best and most subversive stars...
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I wonder if my students even know what a boxset is… Unfortunately, it seems to have become yet another lost art form of yesteryear… Sure we have “digital box sets”… whatever that means… And every so often indie mega icons will re-release their entire back catalogue on vinyl for...
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I honestly don’t know where to start with this review. Not because it was bad, it was fucking amazing. But it was so good I’m almost at a loss for words. Dan Deacon shows are somewhat expected – a good, sweaty, fun-filled time, with crowd dance competitions and weird...
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Every person experiences pain, but life is about accepting and being able to release that pain. Sufjan Stevens is an artist who has never been shy about his pain. From anger, guilt, to memories of absence, Sufjan has poured out his heart into beautiful melodies. After a hiatus from...
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Evoking the soulful, funky psychedelic sounds of the late 60’s and early 70’s by capturing the vibe and the energy of the genre but with a unique feel for the present and expression all their own, Monophonics, a six-piece from San Francisco, celebrate the release of their new LP...
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Dan Deacon is nothing short of an electronic mastermind. Creator of infectious compositions and compelling melodies, Deacon became a household name in the electronic world after the success of 2008’s Spiderman of the Rings. In 2012, Deacon released America, which led to a new direction for the producer, using...
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My early, yet confident, prediction for Philly’s best concert of 2015 is between Belle & Sebastian, June 9th, at The Tower Theater, and The Ting Tings, this Friday, April 10th, at Union Transfer. While kings-of-twee Belle & Sebastian are, admittedly, my favorite band of all-time, Katie White and Jules...
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This past Friday Twin City power poppers Sick of Sarah announced the release of their upcoming EP, Anthem, due out June 30th. The EP is their first self-released effort, and while it was long in the works and displays a maturity and evolution in the band’s process, it maintains...
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In 2013 I was excited by no other artist more than Brooklyn-based Aly Spaltro, AKA Lady Lamb the Beekeeper, more recently known as simply Lady Lamb. The singer/songwriter was preparing the release of her debut LP, Ripely Pine, which hit shelves in February of ’13, which I described as...
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The last time Jolie Holland played Philly (at Milkboy) was her both most intimate and badass appearance in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection in quite some time. Holland was supporting the 2014 release of Wine Dark Sea, an album that saw the artist, best known as...
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I’m not going to lie, I’m really glad that Dom La Nena and her latest album, SOYO, turned out to be quite amazing, because my initial interest in agreeing to cover her stemmed primarily from hearing that, in her late teens, she had toured with Jeanne Moreau, the actress...
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Like the recently profiled Whirr (but, perhaps, different in every other way), Tess Henley isn’t exactly a Philly artist (She’s based on the West Coast. Seattle, to be precise.), but I would consider her to be an honorary contributor to the music scene in the City of Brotherly Love...
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Although we at PHILTHY MAG aren’t necessarily interested in mainstream tastes or predicting trends in the listening habits of college students, it is nice to see friends do well for themselves… and our friends in The Last Bison, whom we first met in 2012, have come quite a long...
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Fortunately, if it can be called that, the more our culture seems to be becoming entrenched in spectacles that inform us of how we should be approaching our own lives – through life-like (or possibly more like “life-mildly-resembling”) media narratives, the more people seem to be calling “bullshit” on...
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“It’s just a rock show. Bring your drinking shoes!” Hardy Morris, best known as a founding member of alt. country psych rockers Dead Confederate, is telling me what to expect when his Diamond Rugs kick off their upcoming tour at the hyper-intimate – and even more divey – Ortlieb’s...
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Missy Mazzoli has been called “Brooklyn’s post-millennial Mozart” by Time Out New York. She’s written work that’s been performed by The Detroit Symphony, New York City Opera, and Minnesota Orchestra, among many noteworthy others. She’s currently working as Composer-in-Residence with Opera Philadelphia on an opera adaptation...
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Today sees the Blu-ray and DVD release of Michael Armstrong’s Mark of the Devil, a film that was sadly missing from my teen years. The 1970 tale of witch hunts (… and eventually rapes, tortures, and mutilations) in 18th century Austria may be most famous to its US release, accompanied...
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Critically acclaimed painter, rock musician and poet, Joseph Arthur brings his synergistic live performance to the Arden Concert Gild on Saturday, March 21st at 8:00 pm for a WXPN Welcomes show. Joseph Arthur’s influences span from a variety of sources from Jimi Hendrix to Picasso. His music catalog is vast...
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Brighton-based, London-born composer and performer Poppy Ackroyd is a beautifully postmodern entity of polarities. Classically trained in piano and composition, she lends herself to interdisciplinarity within the fine arts. In addition to her own “releases,” she often writes soundtracks to experimental video projects, theatre, and dance pieces; she is,...
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Since we last heard from Reno, Nevada’s Swahili they have become Portland, Oregon’s Swahili… And the lo-fi, avant-garde, highly-dissonant band with roots seemingly in the No Wave scene, have gone on to become somewhat of a pop group… Well, maybe more of a long-winded (The eight songs on their...
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Charming Disaster fall into that very charming category of old-friends-in-new-circumstances for us at PHILTHY. The duo is comprised of Sweet Soubrette leader Ellia Bisker and Kotorino leader Jeff Morris. The two have each become known for, all on their lonesome, balancing and orchestrating their “expandable and collapsible” Vaudeville-inspired, jazzy...
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“I’m an awkward person so it’s hard for me to deal with any reactions to my existence,” says Jessica Lea Mayfield, laughing slightly, but undoubtedly with complete sincerity. I had just asked her about her favorite responses to her latest project, which has the indie singer/songwriter — best known...
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On Sunday night, Union Transfer became a magical land packed full of tigers (with the exception of one llama)… well, according to one mystery man in a cape. Sound strange? Maybe. But for those who were in attendance for of Montreal’s concert… completely normal. As much as the night...
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San Francisco-born Moon Duo released their third LP, Shadow of the Sun, earlier this week on Sacred Bones. And while the record, which I would characterize as “psych rock with an ‘80s post-punk edge,” has been receiving praise as their best yet, the comparisons it’s been getting are somewhat...
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There is definitely a hyper-sensual quality to My Body’s brand of electro-pop… My Body are Jordan Bagnall and Darren Bridenbeck and they recently released their 6 Wives, EP, a collection of songs dripping with postmodern sonic eroticism, seeming to draw inspiration from the ‘90s sexiest kinds of R&B, dream...
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Northampton, Massachusetts rockers And the Kids characterize their sound as “conscious noise pop,” resenting the ambiguity of “indie rock.” Their Facebook page places them in the genre of, “unconscious, accessible, existential, indie, glitter, popsicle, crisis.” And their Twitter reveals that they’re fans of Belle & Sebastian, Purity Ring, MGMT,...
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The last time PHILTHY MAG caught up with Los Angeles’ Milo Greene was just last fall. The band; who have characterized themselves as “cinematic pop,” with the ultimate goal of scoring film and television; and who have all four members sharing lead vocal duties; were presently on the road...
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Despite being named after a presumably lame American road movie; whose only real cred comes from boasting cameos from the likes of Flea, Michael Pollard, and Garrett Morris; Russia’s Motorama is quite the cool Rock’N’Roll band. Next Tuesday, March 10th, the band are set to release their third LP,...
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When I first met Melissa Ann Sweat, better known as Lady Lazarus, she was quite enigmatic, with little available biographical information and very few photographic representations, yet she was very willing to open up to me in our chat which appeared on PHILTHY in September of 2013. She’d recently...
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Like recently profiled indie poppers The Colourist – albeit quite a bit more “badass” –Richmond’s Avers are an act that PHILTHY MAG have been fans and friends of for quite some time. The “super group” of sorts, composed of members of The Mason Brothers, Farm Vegas, Hypercolor, The Trillions,...
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Brooklyn trio EULA explore the boundaries of post-punk to an abrasively sexy degree… from the traditional, morbid intellectualism of the godfathers of the “movement” to the noisy, dissonant, and often downright scary experimentalists associated with post-no-wavers to the transgressive playfulness of Riot Grrrl… and many of the things in-between. ...
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Leisure Cruise more or less began as an intellectually morbid joke. (I wish I could say that of more bands.) The band is comprised of Dave Hodge (best known for playing in Broken Social Scene and Bran Van 3000 and arranging for the likes of Janet Jackson and Carly...
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We at PHILTHY MAG have been longtime fans, supporters, and friends of Orange County indie poppers The Colourist. We first met in June of 2013, right after they released their debut 7” and we later caught up last March, prior to their first Philadelphia headlining show. ...
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Earlier this month Philadelphia experienced for the first-time, in-the-flesh, New Zealand musician Brooke Fraser in her radically new form. The songstress, who has deservedly earned a title as a darling of Christian music and who began as a relatively traditional “singer/songwriter,” only to transform into a powerful princess of...
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Our friends at Lagunitas and O+Positive are sponsoring an awesome tour called Couchtrippin’ and it’s hitting Philadelphia on Feb 21st with a free show featuring Heartless Bastards. There are all sorts of awesome entertainment happenin’ at this event like a beer circus, side bands, green screen video booths and a ton...
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While every lonely housewife and intellectually-repressed book club member in America flock to see the premier of 50 Shades of Grey, the adapted film of E.L. James’s book, I pull out of my bookshelf a copy of The Marquis De Sade’s Justine and say (pointer finger up): actually this came first. Already getting...
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2015’s best record yet hits shelves today, courtesy of relatively obscure Austin, TX indie label, Red Eye Transit. And that record is Indépendance, the first full-length from Tomorrow We Move To Hawaii, an Oslo-and-Berlin-based duo comprise of Marianne Stranger and Eyvind Brox, whose sounds are as hard to pinpoint...
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We at PHILTHY would hope that our readers know that we’re not exactly the type to shy away from (if not downright enjoy) a bit (or maybe more) of S&M (I mean, we’re called PHILTHY, for fuck’s sake.) However, we’d like to think that we have at least slightly...
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Although shoegaze fans have had quite a bit of nostalgia (or… more accurately, “imagined nostalgia,” as most of them were unlikely there the first time around) to get excited about as of recently, between Slowdive reuniting last year, and Ride’s upcoming dates (their first in nearly two decades), but...
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Arden Concert Gild presents one of my most intriguing and unique Brooklyn-based indie rock bands today, San Fermin, with opener White Hinterland on Saturday, January 31 at 8:30 pm. Get your tickets here. Enamored by the lush gorgeous arrangements of the debut album, a full production comes from a band pushing...
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Update: Within 5 minutes of this article going live Zola Jesus’ performance this Tuesday in Philadelphia was cancelled due to severe weather. But please take the time to read my recent chat with her anyway. As a humanities professor and an unabashed cinephile, I feel a special bond with...
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I’m hoping that anyone who caught one of Phantogram’s two sold out appearances last year at Union Transfer is familiar with Lia Ices… The postmodern singer/songwriter, who was initially known for the slightly more traditional singing and songwriting found on her first two LPs, traded that sensibility for something...
Remember Be Your Own Pet? Yeah, they were pretty great; their self-titled debut LP was like the best punk record since Dig Me Out and their live shows were on par with The Stooges and Refused (Remember when they played that house show in South Philly and got drunk...
If I had to pick a favorite artist to emerge since my time as a music critic, I don’t know that it could be anyone other than Nashville’s Those Darlins (which shouldn’t be news to any regular PHILTHY readers). The band is the lovechild of Nikki Kvarnes and Jessi...
