Charli XCX

“I think this is the first time I had a unanimous reaction overall from both audience and press…  I wish I would have done this album years ago.  I feel like I’m stepping into a place that really defines me on many levels,” says Tunisian-American singer/songwriter Emel Mathlouthi (better...

“It’ll be a no computer, lawless and DAW-less setup, Octatrack and Machinedrum.  I’m gonna try to get people to dance… I’m gonna dance… Merriment will be had,” says Erin Hoagg, aka Rare DM, during a recent phone chat.  We’re discussing her three-date East Coast jaunt set for this weekend,...

We’ve seen Nandi Rose, AKA Half Waif, a lot in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection over the past decade or so, from shows at PhilaMOCA and Everybody Hits, to opening Boot & Saddle for hovvdy and Land of Talk, and providing support for both Julien Baker...

This August, Canadian composer and musician Caribou performed a free pop-up DJ set at our very own Bok Bar Rooftop, prior to the October release of his Honey LP (via Merge Records and City Slang) and his subsequent headlining tour, which kicked off earlier this month and will find...

Atta Boy took eight long years between their first and second LP… so it’s not entirely surprising that it was more than a decade into their career before the Americana-tinged indie pop outfit embarked on their first proper tour…  The L.A.-born quartet formed in high school and released their...

I recently documented 20 of the hardest-to-believe-they-ever-happened Philadelphia shows of the past 20 years, which included Caroline Polachek fronting Chairlift for a crowd of about 30 at KFN in 2009, Charli XCX playing to under 20 at North Star Bar in 2012, and Billie Eilish’s first-ever Philthy appearance, which...

This month marks 20 years since I moved to the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection.  I was the typical suburban alternative teen, migrating to University of the Arts to study among likely the only fans of The Velvet Underground and Nick Cave hailing from upper-middle-class, yuppie-breeding...

“I’m excited and expecting a lot of kids to come out to these shows and pull the craziest stunts, moshing and stagediving.  That’s honestly the greatest thing about being in a hardcore punk band,” says Kat Moss, vocalist for Scowl, the Santa Cruz group who’s become known for pairing...

“We felt like we wanted to make a record that felt like the antidote to the last few years that we went through,” says St. Lucia mainman Jean-Philip Grobler of the band’s fourth LP, Utopia, which drops this Friday, October 7th, courtesy of Nettwerk.  The synth-pop band, led by...