Philadelphia

Eastern Conference Champions Back in Town at JB’s July 22

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So I’ve been planning to hit this show for weeks, and I just realized that I have to be in NYC. Well, I’m there in spirit, and I hope that you can make it out to Eastern Conference Champions tonight at JB’s. These Bucks County boys left for LA with a label deal and high hopes and like many who follow the glitz and glam of the majors, they ended up running into walls and pounding their heads in frustration. ECC are doing it on their own right now and happy. Armed with a relatively new member Melissa Dougherty, the boys are making moves through the maze of the entertainment biz in LA. The band must be doing something right because they recently landed their track “A Million Miles an Hour” on the soundtrack of Eclipse, the latest from the Twilight phenomenon/franchise. That’s pretty huge. Luckily most of those fans are not old enough to come into JB’s. I hope that they still play “Navy Man” and “Noah”! I know. I’m not even going to be there, but I was thinking of you. Make sure to get their early enough to catch Busses. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 9pm, $10, 21+ – Q.D. Tran

 

 

Philadelphia

Reading Rainbow Make Me Happy at The Ox July 22

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Listen to Reading Rainbow and try not to dance. It’s impossible. I’ve already tried. Press play on “I’ll Follow You” and sways will ensue. Understated yet sweet with warm and washed out vocals, Reading Rainbow’s harmonies are organic, catchy, and fun. Somewhere between a punk rock swagger and the trippy thrill of psych rock, tracks like “Totem Pole” and “Restless” aptly highlight the spectrum of Reading Rainbow’s eclectic and creative strengths. The energetic buzzing of “Feral Kids” pours out in shouts and ahs, steering clear of mainstream gimmicks like perfect pitch and diction. Rob Garcia and Sarah Everton’s noisy anthems (not to mention their live sets) should become the golden standard for defining lo-fi at its finest or garage-pop at its best. With acts like Reading Rainbow, summer nights are epically chill. In short this band is awesome, but don’t take my word for it. Rock out to their good vibrations with Philly four-piece Univox and Summer Blondes. The Ox. 2nd & Oxford St., 8pm, $5, All Ages (Justin Roman) – Dianca Potts
 

 

Philadelphia

Da Comrade! Say Goodbye at KFN July 22

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Da Comrade! are getting ready to say goodbye to one of their very own for some time as cellist Anne Ellis West embarks on a new adventure. But before she sets sail, the band is ready to throw a bon voyage party that’s for the rock ages! It will also be a celebration party since the band was recently able to successfully raise enough money to record their debut full length alongside Kyle Pulley of Simple Machine Recording who has also assisted the likes of Dr. Dog, Grandchildren and Algernon Cadwallader. It will also be a going away party for exploding drum masters Ugh God, who head out on a summer tour next week. They will be joined tonight at Kung Fu Necktie by Motorcycle Maus, who are still riding the coattails of their recent full length Chipping Teeth. Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 N. Front St., 8pm, $5, 21+ – Bill McThrill
 

 

Philadelphia

Ladyfingers Rolling Along at Tritone July 22

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Since we last checked in on rockabilly virtuoso Adam “Ladyfingers” Weiner after he won our Artist of the Month poll a few months back, he has been on a roll. He released the infectious piano laden EP Wet T-Shirt Contest (which was recorded with some of his poll winnings at Larry Gold’s The Studio where Queen Latifah was working in the other room) before embarking on a tour of Europe. He has also been working on a movie with filmmaker friend Adam Carpenter that’s set to feature a full blown stream of live footage, depressing dives and music videos. Get ready to raise a Citywide Special to Ladyfingers who will be bringing his guitar hooks, piano trills and mad crooning skills to Tritone tonight. He’ll be performing with Swampmeat, a band from the UK that he jammed with and befriended while on the other side of the pond. Tritone, 1508 South St., 9pm, $7, 21+ – Bill McThrill
 

 

Philadelphia

New Chiddy Bang Video “Dream Chasin”

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Here is Chiddy Bang’s new video for “Dream Chasin”, the follow-up to “Sooner or Later”. It is off of The Swelly Express mixtape. Chiddy Bang will be releasing their upcoming album The Swelly Life on August 31, 2010, and will be celebrating it at the TLA on September 2. – H.M. Kauffman

 

 

Philadelphia

Interplanetary Sonic Surfing with Orbit to Leslie at Silk City July 21

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Kids these days are doing nothing but chillin’ on their waves. It is good to see Philly’s own Orbit to Leslie bringing some surf back to the beaches of the Schuylkill.  Tonight they will crash down at Silk City. I can only imagine the amount of daggering that will be going on at this concert. The lush guitars and their polyryhthmic beats are a nice match with the calming and inquisitive vocals of lead man Chris Wood. Orbit to Leslie groove, sway, pounce and resolve throughout their eclectic cannon of songs. I am especially taken by the contrast between Toadies-esque “Sugar and Salt” and the jubilant high-hat pop of “Javelin”. Silk City, 435 Spring Garden St., 9pm, $5, 21+ – Adam G.
 

 

Philadelphia

Bandcamp Changing Its Business Model in Early August

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I know a lot of indie artists out there use Bandcamp. Well, I just wanted to give you a heads up to upcoming changes to their business model. Like what happens to all cool free shit, it’s time for Bandcamp to figure out how to make money off this idea to remain “sustainable long-term”. These changes won’t be starting until early August. The basic service will remain free. However, Bandcamp will begin taking 15% of every transaction. Their rate will drop to 10% when your all-time sales exceed $5,000. Your initial rate (based on sales to your PayPal email address, not your Bandcamp account) will be determined by all your sales to date. (If you’re a label and have multiple artists all using the same PayPal account, your rate will be calculated by looking at the combined sales of your artists.) For a truly independent artist, it still beats most record deals. – Q.D. Tran

 
Philadelphia

Mose Giganticus Drop Latest Album on Relapse Records in North America

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Mose Giganticus’ latest album Gift Horse is available in North America today on Relapse Records. The follow-up to the band’s 2008 EP Commander! was recorded at Skylight Studios (Circa Survive, None More Black, Turmoil) with engineer Vince Ratti. Being one of the casualties from The Khyber’s recent fallout/summer break(?), Mose Giganticus will be celebrating their record release at The Fire on August 13 with Monolith, City of Ships and Constant. – H.M. Kauffman

 
Philadelphia

Kuf Knotz Signs to Mad Dragon Records

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Just wanted to congratulate Kuf Knotz on signing to Drexel’s Mad Dragon Records! We’ve been crossing paths for years now, and I’ve had a close-up view of his career at many different stages so I know how much this means to him. If his name sounds vaguely familiar, Kuf has been hustlin’ around the Philly music scene for years now. He’s also received plenty of love from Helen Leicht and the XPN crew. Kuf was an essential part of the now defunct hip hop/rock collaborative BurnDown All Stars, and is currently with The Hustle, which he founded. There are also some hot tracks that he laid down with Mutlu and Dave Quicks as Subtle Ground. (But who knows if they’ll ever see the light of day?) I look forward to seeing Kuf’s pics from the road. The guy is a master action photographer. Look out for his solo album BoomBox Logic later this year. Cheers! – Q.D. Tran
 

 

Philadelphia

The Deli’s Featured Artist of the Month: The Fallen Troubadours

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The Fallen Troubadours aren’t actually from Philly, but we’re guessing that we’ll hear more from them soon when they finish their upcoming new album. Their rootsy rock makes a great soundtrack for many drunken nights and should be welcomed with open arms by Philly’s like-minded music community. Guitarist Brendan Steaklum was nice enough to answer a few of our questions.
 
The Deli: How did The Fallen Troubadours start?
 
Brendan Steakelum: Well…TFT is an evolution of an idea/band that’s had many faces. The lead singer (Brad Stewart) and I have been playing in bands, writing songs together since high school. Our last band was called the Suns of Ivy, but we broke up due to "creative differences". So I moved on to another project (playing bass in The Great Unknown) and Brad, Clif, Mike and Brandon started a band called Northern Soul. Inevitably we started making music again and renamed the band The Fallen Troubadours and started playing some local shows in the city, and recording songs. Now…here we are.
 
TD: Where did your band name come from?
 
BS: The name was used for an acoustic show that Brad and I did years ago.  We recently found a poster from the show and thought it was a better name than Northern Soul…so we changed the name. Like most band names it just sounds better than everything else we were tossing around.
 
TD: What are your biggest musical influences?
 
BS: We all come from different musical backgrounds but running similarities are The Beatles, Dylan, Oasis, Kinks, CSN&Y, The Byrds, The Animals, Oldies and Motown.
 
TD: What artists (local, national and/or international) are you currently listening to?
 
BS: Dr. Dog is always playing in someone’s car, Mumford & Sons, Delta Spirit, Dan Auerbach, M. Ward, Broken Bells, Fruit Bats…
 
TD: What’s the first concert that you ever attended and first album that you ever bought?
 
BS: The first real concert I ever attended was Bruce Springsteen with my Dad…amazing…I never looked back. The first album I ever bought was Weezer’s Blue Album and Oasis’ What’s the Story Morning Glory…same time in a CD shop called Tin Pan Alley in Hamburg, PA.
TD: What do you love about Philly?
 
BS: I love the music scene number one, great camaraderie and support for other bands…and of course, the beautiful women.
TD: What do you hate about Philly?
 
BS: Traffic, getting to Philly from "Dutch Country"…there’s also too much of the same thing going on musically…
TD: What are your plans for 2010?
 
BS: We are currently working on our debut record with Candy Colored Dragon and Issac Betesh. Hopefully it will be ready to go by the fall. Other than that, playing everywhere we can, writing songs and working with The Children’s Alopecia Project.
 
TD: What was your most memorable live show?
 
BS: Opening up for Dave Davies of the Kinks….just ask Brad.
TD: What’s your favorite thing to get at the deli? 
 
BS: Thanksgiving on a roll please.
 
– The Deli Staff
 

 

Philadelphia

Benefit for the Bird at The Fire July 19

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It will be a very family-like environment at The Fire tonight when Hezekiah Jones, Cowmuddy, The Spinning Leaves and The Fractals take the stage for a “Benefit for the Bird”. (Update: Benefit is for Philly artist Amy Bird to help cover some hospital costs after an accident. Where’s our Obama Care!?!) Looks like this is a last minute/unannounced show because it doesn’t appear to be on any of the artists’ calendars. You can also catch Hezekiah Jones later this week when he performs at the North Star Bar with Frog Holler and Sister 3. The Fire, 412 W. Girard Ave., 9pm, $6, 21+ (Photo by Lisa Schaffer) – H.M. Kauffman