North Carolinian country-rock band Mount Moriah made its Non-COMM debut and kicked off the second night of music at World Cafe Live. The band played a selection of songs from its latest Merge Records LP Miracle Temple ; check out the setlist below and listen to the performance in its entirety here (via the WXPN media player). Setlist Bright Light Eureka Springs White Sands Miracle Temple Holiness Lament
Local multi-instrumentalist Alex Shaw performed at The Porch at 30th Street Station earlier this week for the XPN Local Show busker series. You may recognize Shaw as band leader of Philadelphia's eleven-piece Brazilian troupe Alo Brasil (check out their recent Key Studio Session here ) but for this week's afternoon set he performed solo, accompanied only by a guitarist. Watch a video of the duo below and check out other busker series videos here . Alex Shaw of Alo Brasil busking at The Porch at 30th [...]
With a big hometown gig coming up this weekend featuring his backing band The Violators, Philadelphia's Kurt Vile went acoustic for a subdued upstairs set for the Non-COMM crowd. It was a rare chance to see Vile unadorned, his songs in their barest essence, both the expansive pieces from his new Wakin' On a Pretty Daze ("Goldtone," the title track) as well as older numbers like "Baby's Arms" and "Peeping Tomboy." Check out photos from Vile's set in the gallery above, read the setlist below and listen to the performance in its entirety here [...]
Perennial dance party band Tom Tom Club brought a funky and celebratory vibe to the evening concert at Non-COMM last night. "Does everyone have a drink?" drummer Chris Frantz asked the crowd as they took the stage. "Okay, good." And then they launched into "Who Feelin' It" from their 2000 LP The Good, The Bad and the Funky. The band, led by Frantz and bassist Tina Weymouth (also known for their similar roles in The Talking Heads), touched on their new album Downtown Rockers , as well as their new wave-era hits "Genius of Love" and "Wordy Rappinghood." Check [...]
All photos by Chris Sikich | countfeed.tumblr.com It was quite the elegant affair at Union Transfer last night, and everyone and their mother was there (literally). Folksinger Sam Beam took the stage in a suit with slicked-back hair, followed by his band of 13 (yes, 13) who were all dressed to the nines. Backup singers in long black dresses, the horn section in dapper jackets - everyone looked ready to impress. Over the course of the 100 minute set, Iron & Wine played selections from more than 10 years of music [...]
All photos by Joe Del Tufo | JoeDelTufo.com Out on tour in support of their 2013 LP Bankrupt! , international pop-rock sensations Phoenix stopped by Non-COMM last night for a 45-minute set that pulled from almost all of their five studio albums (20042s Alphabetical being the only one not touched on). With their trademark light show and high-tech visuals absent, the band showed that they transcend flash, throwing as much energy into this intimate performance for about 500 Non-COMM attendees as they have at arena shows in the past. Check [...]
A mix of lively comedic banter and danceable traditional bluegrass, Steve Martin and Edie Brickell entertained the Non-COMM crowd with selections from their collaborative album Love Has Come For You . Backing them were The Steep Canyon Rangers , a North Carolina ensemble that Martin told the crowd he came across while on vacation. Check out photos from their performance in the gallery above, and listen to the set in its entirety here (via the WXPN media player).
I always though Philly to be more of a bluegrass town, what, with its West Philly front porch jam sessions and train terminal busking, but that sweet-and-sour country style is alive and well in our fair city and giving us cause to celebrate. We have here a session from local twang connoisseurs Morning River Band , who came to us on the verge of releasing their brand new LP To Suzie . For me, Morning River Band serve up just what the doctor told you not to order, but goddamn, you're gonna order [...]
Nashville by-way-of Athens, Georgia songwriter Gabriel Kelley played a set of his folk-influenced acoustic Americana to the Non-COMMvention crowd last night. His debut LP, It Don't Come Easy , was released last summer. Check out a photo gallery from Kelley's set above, see the setlist below and listen to his performance in its entirety here (via the WXPN media player). Setlist Only Thing to Do Se Ya Comin' Make It Easy On Me Faith Holding Me Down
Sam Beam of Iron and Wine got NonCOMM 2013 to a breathtaking start by playing a short acoustic set during the convention's opening cocktail hour. He played four songs touching on the more recent end of his catalog before before heading across town to headline a sold-out show at Union Transfer. See photos from Beam's performance in the gallery above, check out the setlist below and listen to his set here (via the WXPN media player). Setlist Grace for Saints and Ramblers Boy With [...]
JEFF the Brotherhood kick off a two-night stand at Kung Fu Necktie tonight. The Nashville band of brothers Jake and Jamin Orrall got the music bug from their father, who has written / produced for Taylor Swift and Reba McEntire. The younger Orralls' brand of music couldn't be much further from that of Swift's though - with a raucous live show and a sound that inevitably finds itself described as grungy, scuzzy and sludgy, JEFF the Brotherhood attract attention through a barrage of loud and distorted but equally quirky and endearing rock songs on their latest [...]
Vampire Weekend released their new album, Modern Vampires of the City , on Tuesday and recently performed a 12 song set at Apogee's Berkeley Street Studio in Santa Monica for KCRW and NPR Music . Vampire Weekend play the Firefly Music Festival on Sunday, June 23. Video, set list below. "White Sky" "I Stand Corrected" "Diane Young" "Step" "Diplomat's Son" "Unbelievers" "Ya Hey" "Campus" "Oxford Comma" "Contra" "One (Blake's Got A New Face)"
Photo by Kelly Davidson Bow Thayer & Perfect Trainwreck recently released an excellent new roots-rocking album, Eden . Thayer and his band play this Saturday, May 18 at the Voltage Lounge . The Vermont based band bring together bluegrass, folk and rock with an incredible amount of energy and excellent musicianship and songwriting. Below, download "The Tide," that nicely captures the band's sound.
On their way to SXSW in March, Philly's Thee, Idea Men stopped by WRVU in Nashville, TN with tourmates Katie Frank & The Pheromones , Dan Orlando and WC Lindsay . The group of local musicians performed a cover of Amy Winehouse's "Valerie" live on the Vanderbilt University radio station, with Orlando on keys and Lindsay behind the camera. Check out the footage below and see Thee, Idea Men live at MilkBoy on June 13th. Dan Orlando will be at Kennett Flash on June 1st. Tickets and information for both [...]
Anjuli Josephine and her band, Andrew Lipke and Juston Stens and the Get Real Gang are among the initial artists announced for the 2013 edition of the Sundrop Music Festival at The Fire. Returning for its third year, the festival features two days of music on two stages - a free and all-ages outdoor stage on Liethgow Street in Northern Liberties and a ticketed run of 21+ shows at The Fire's indoor stage. For more information, check out the festival's Facebook Page . Below, download Key Studio Sessions performance tracks from Josephine, [...]
Questlove and restauranteur Stephen Starr open Hybird in New York's Chelsea Market . The menu features Quest's fried chicken drumsticks, dumplings, "Questolicious Cupcakes" ( including the "Sexual Chocolate (On Chocolate)" variety, which would make a great song title - ed. ), and slushies. Michael Klein, from the Philadelphia Inquirer attended an industry party at Hybird and writes "the drumsticks are plump, meaty and thick-crusted." As for a Philly location? Klein writes Stephen Starr's response: "This isn't even open!" Starr exclaimed. "Let's see how it does. But if it works, Philly [...]
The Chromatics Why, you may ask, do we call this show the Indie Rock Hit Parade when the word 'rock' only describes part of the music played? Sure, calling it the 'Indie Rock-Folk-Dance-Punk-Baroque-N oise Hit Parade' might be more accurate (especially considering the most recent episode's playlist), but that name is a bit much and doesn't even lend itself to a cool acronym. Anyway, the latest Indie Rock Hit Parade featured a wide spectrum of sounds, from LA skate-punks FILDAR to the neo-no wave of the UK's Savages . Acoustic-based [...]
Having released their last record in 1985, Black Flag - whose Greg Ginn-led reunited lineup plays Union Transfer on June 20 - unveiled their first music in 28 years with two new songs this week. First came " Down in the Dirt ," a single in exchange for an email address. Then there's the newest song, “The Chase,” which features a super low-rent music video and lyrics that are massively vague. Given how young these guys were when they rose to fame, we have to wonder what the original Black Flag fans think of all this [...]
Below, listen to the first official single, "Her Favorite Song," from Mayer Hawthorne's forthcoming album, Where Does This Door Go , out July 16. He's playing Musikfest on Saturday, August 3rd. Go here for the complete lineup to Musikfest and to purchase tickets.
All photos by Abi Reimold | Abireimold.22slides.com About a year ago, the snappy and warped psych-pop band Literature relocated to Philadelphia from Austin, Texas with an awesome LP called Arab Spring in tow. Hard tourers, sharp dressers and a buzzing name on the indiepop circuit, they specialize in a sound that's a bit more direct than the washed-out hazy dazy Pain of Being Pure At Heart aesthetic of a few years back. There's a lift to their sound (though still a reverb'd surface) and a galloping-out-the-gate energy (with some oddball lyrical [...]
The Key
Stream: Disclosure – When A Fire Starts To Burn
Belly - "Now They'll Sleep"
You’ve GOT to Hear This: “Enemies”
Boards of Canada :: Tomorrow's Harvest
