On May 4, Movie Was Bad/Mascula, the double EP from Sixteen Jackies, is set for release via Philly’s own Born Losers Records. The band’s new single and the second installment in the VHS series; “VHS #2 (Masks)" projects an eerie atmosphere, with each installment pulling "from a different classic horror film for inspiration (while not being too overt) and this one in particular pulls its images from Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Looking back on the range of possibilities one’s upbringing projects on his/her/their future, a villain takes note, backed by a looming albeit energetic, musical menace. Come join Sixteen Jackies at their release celebration on Friday, May 18 at PhilaMOCA, where they’ll be supported by Madalean Gauze and Isles Isles!

Ceramic Animal recently shared a new single, “Hit or Miss,” featured on their forthcoming sophomore album. A strolling, twang-inflected ditty is warmed-over with the addition of keys. Re-routing misguided ambitions, while aspiring to retain companionship, the song hovers between hope and a melancholy distance. You can find the dapper quartet at Union Transfer on Thursday, May 17, supporting local boogie-woogie rock ‘n’ rollers Low Cut Connie. (Photo by Dylan O’Connor)

Co-produced with Headroom’s Kyle Pulley, Kississippi‘s first full-length album, Sunset Blush, is out now. Composed, confident melodies are dispersed throughout the record. There’s a smooth, silky polish to the overall sound – one that forms a steadying foundation when the pull of personal lyricism grabs hold. In the midst of a nonstop touring schedule, Kississippi will performing at The Foundry on Sunday, June 10, on a billing that will also include Have Mercy, Gleemer, and Super American.

Moon Town, the forthcoming album from the Sami Rahman-led project Mattress Food, will be released on April 14. Steeped in a Brit-folk/pop resonance, “Gold Burner” incorporates pleasant orchestral clutter, with a delayed flicker of light. Feel free to temporarily tune out and escape the chaos of your daily life. You can also catch Mattress Food this evening at Bourbon & Branch, where they’ll be supporting Smellco‘s EP release show with The Wrong Band. 

Krust Toons: "Duh." by Tedd Hazard – please feel free to drop him a line at teddandthehazards@gmail.com if you dig or have any funny ideas. You can also check out more of his illustrations and animation shorts HERE.

Cave People‘s new EP Kingfisher is out now via Stereophonodon. A stirring, intimate, warmth radiates from within a cabin. The serenity of thought-provided space gently wears into you, which is countered and accentuated by a heart-thumping, grungy melody. Boot & Saddle will hosting the band’s record release this Thursday, April 12, with support from Petal & Body Guard.

Layers on layers create a rich density; however, that complexity can sometimes confine a means of accessibility or entry. Hop Along achieves the delicate balance between the two with their latest album Bark Your Head Off, Dog, which was released today via Saddle Creek Records and will be celebrated tomorrow evening at Johnny Brenda’s. Wistfully weaving words into emotive-ranging, exploratory, narrative webs, one naturally embraces the triumphant tangles. These songs hold their hands out, expressing personal consciousness, while connecting with the listener in a one-on-one level. Swept up in the stories, memorable melodies and polished instrumentation provide a living-breathing framework, one that offers nuanced sonic accents, playing with pockets of space, crafting tight-grooves, highlighting subtle-penetrating details, while also pushing to powerful points of peak performance in key stretches. What catches one’s ear at first may be not what one holds onto in hindsight. – Michael Colavita

More shows to hit this weekend…

Johnny Brenda’s (1201 N. Frankford Ave.) FRI Rosali, The Dove & The Wolf, SAT Hop Along, Lucy Stone

Boot & Saddle (1131 S. Broad St.) SAT Yowler

Kung Fu Necktie (1250 N. Front St.) FRI No Thank You (Record Release), Narra, Tact/Forever Vista/DJ Deejay, SAT Shit City/A Black Celebration: DJ Baby Berlin and Jem/DJ Littlespaceyy, DJ Magglezzz

PhilaMOCA (531 N. 12^th St.) SAT RFA (Album Release), Secret American, SUN The Goodbye Party

Underground Arts (1200 Callowhill St.) SUN Violent Society, Please Die

The Trocadero (1003 Arch St.) FRI U + Me + R&B, SUN Mantis

The Fillmore Philadelphia (1100 Canal St.) FRI Dirty South Joe, Magglezzz

The Foundry (1000 Frankford Ave.) SAT Work Drugs

Electric Factory (421 N. 7^th St.) FRI Stassi Pryce, El Feco, Ras Professor, Elliven, Big Mind Band

World Café Live (3025 Walnut St.) FRI (Upstairs) John Vettese / Conjunto, DJ Rahsaan, SAT (Upstairs) Stella Ruze/(Downstairs) Rockin’ Docs for Diabetes Cure

The Fire (412 W. Girard Ave.) FRI The Soft Spots, Distant Voices, Blood Sound, The Phonies, Tubey Frank, SAT Apex Predator, Mauled By A Bear, Nasuta

MilkBoy Philly (1100 Chestnut St.) FRI Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Calvin Weston, Sirius JuJu, Mixed People, Johnny Popcorn

Ortlieb’s Lounge (847 N. 3^rd St.) FRI Dear Forbidden, Resilient, Kelsey Cork and the Swigs, SAT The Bad Larrys, EyeBawl, SUN The Morning Herald, Kodiak Park, Water Temple

The Barbary (951 Frankford Ave.) FRI Dylan Jane, SAT Something Like A Monument, Medusa’s Disco, Chalk & The Beige Americans

Silk City (435 Spring Garden St.) FRI DJ Dav, Reed Streets, SAT DJ Deejay, SUN Francisco Collazo

Fergie’s (1214 Samsom St.) SAT Johnny Moskal, SUN Rusty Cadillac

Connie’s Ric Rac (1132 S. 9^th St.) FRI White Cheddar Boys, Baffle the Cat, Tropical Disease, Urban Shaman Attack, SAT The Prisoners, Scars Like These, Disoriental

Bourbon & Branch (705 N. 2^nd St.) SAT Petty Vandal, JJ Gunn, Adam Travis & The Soul, SUN Stereo League, Sixteen Jackies

The Grape Room (105 Grape St.) FRI Somethin’ Divine, The Sly Foxes, Swwik, Sitting in Cars SAT Naps Past Noon, Inner Temple, Pansy

Ardmore Music Hall (23 E. Lancaster Ave.) FRI Stargazer Lily, SAT Splintered Sunlight, SUN The Griz Band, Walking Dead, Sammy Vile & Vilbred

First Unitarian Church (2125 Chestnut St.) FRI Caracara, SAT Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Lil Zubin, Holy Mountain

The Pharmacy (1300 S. 18^th St.) FRI Overwinter/Frankly Lost , Wolves Can’t Dance, Fuzzy Slippers/Zinskē, SAT Auburn Row, The Boardwalk Kings, Here For The Night /The Rectors, Cthulhu Martini!/Yeenar, Erik Kramer

Tralfamadore (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) SUN Handsome Crü , Brackish, Puppy Angst

The Sound Hole (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) FRI Boon, SAT Soularium

The Mothership (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) FRI The Retinas, Don Babylon, C. M. Slenko, SAT Destroying Angel, John Markow

All Nite Diner (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) FRI Free Cake For Every Creature, Slow Ref

All It Takes To Ruin It All, the new album from Philly power trio No Thank You, is officially out today via Lame-O Records. Consistently pushing forward in tight springs of momentum, the album maintains a deeply personal connection with its narrative. Working through a range of emotions including grief, a palpable sensitivity flourishes. The band will be celebrating the album’s arrival this evening at Kung Fu Necktie, supported by Narra and Tact.

Ahead of releasing their self-titled debut album, RFA just shared a new single. “Goodbye, Stranger” serves as an upbeat invitation to take a relationship to the next level. There’s an infectious, harmony-rich hook, with a call for efficiency, and it quickly fizzles. You can catch the band’s release show this Saturday, April 7 at PhilaMOCA, with Secret American and Del Water Gap.

Aidan Peterson, a.k.a. Instupendo, just released his sophomore EP Faces I Know. The mind wanders and reflects in the bright buoyant ambiance. Whether blooming into or winding down from the flow of daily activities, one absorbs a loose yet crisp cathartic sense of motion. And to think, Peterson is just getting ready to finish high school.

Great Weights‘ self-titled EP drops on April 13 via Bunny Cat Records. “After the Drive-In” instantly accelerates as the instrumentation blitzes and then broods, meeting the emotional intensity displayed in the self-aware lyricism.  The song acknowledges the necessity of change, and it unapologetically takes back ownership of one’s actions. You can find Great Weight performing next at their record release show on Friday, April 13 at West Philly’s The Mothership, where they’ll be supported by Tact, Ronnie Vega, and Cage Flight.

One taps into the futuristic, electronic, musical grid when listening to Interlinked, the new album from Fox. A hyper-kinetic, hypnotic wave rolls in, one that soothes and soars as the percussive snap triggers the synapses. There’s a graceful nature as one acclimates to the liquid groove, covering vast distances in short order. It’s atmospheric at an individual level, yet connected in its innately undeniable dance-ability.