Falling Still somehow occupies this niche of space between post-Cobain grunge and glam rock, taking the musical taste from the former and the swagger and slight crassness from the other. While Don't Kick The Whiskey is off being mastered at Bernie Grundman, I was able to take a listen to the boy's work. The lyrics to "I am the Dr" are dragged through the dirty gutters of the Sunset Strip and leave you feeling a bit sexy, a bit filthy, and a bit high. The rest of the album is more focused from their previous offering, May All Magic Guide and Change You, while still retaining that unique genre bending that has the party pounding beers and swaying to the beat. No official release date as of yet.
Company of Thieves have released seven live videos from there Logan Square Auditorium show in November of 2009. The band rips through some of their live staples including "Oscar Wilde" and "Pressure". They also touch on the lesser known live track "Even in the Dark". The song above is a track off COTs new album Running From A Gamble out May 17th on Wind Up Records. Although something tells me "Look Both Ways" has grown up a lot since this recording. The whole batch of videos was produced by Hollus frontman Jamison Acker and Company of Thieves.
Fast times and cheap thrills, tonight at the Dive - get some Horizontal Action compliments of local garage punk Jonny Snot! In addition to Schmidt’s on the cheap and hang time with friends, tonight’s installment of Horizontal Action sets to serve up garage rock obscurities alongside fuzzed out faves and essentials by the Mummies, Hubble Bubble, and Philly punks the Dead Milkmen. No cover, no excuse. Be there or you know, you’re a square. The Dive, 947 E. Passyunk Ave., 9pm, FREE, 21+ - The Deli Staff
When a band goes under the name Country Mice, you pretty much know what to expect from them - some kind of rootsy stuff. And as a matter of fact that's what Country Mice deliver: very well crafted folk rock with some psych influences. Sure, go ahead and call it alt-country if you want, but it's much country-er than Wilco's alt-country material (why the press decided to coin that genre for those records by the way is beyond us, it was more like just... quality rock? Anyhoo, Country Mice really manage to instill new life into this genre - we love "A Good Old Fashioned Barn Rising" from their myspace profile, and also the single "Festival" (embedded here), a twangy rock'n'roll tune that would make Neil Young proud (or will if he ever got around to listen to it). The band is about to release their debut CD, due out in June. - Read a Deli interview with the bandfrom last year here.
With sweeping snare and banjo, Yellow Humphrey’s songs are charmers with warm vocals and even warmer melodies. At last releasing their debut LP Featherweights, Yellow Humphrey’s current creative efforts morphed into a collective of 15 or so like-minded locals. Led by the songwriting and soothing, mellifluous vocals of Gretchen Lohse, the band features a core of seasoned Philly music community vets in Stephen Quaranta (Paper Masques, ex-Zelda Pinwheel), Rick Flom (National Eye), Alec Meltzer (Papertrees, Summer Fiction), bassist Dave Barbaree (Paper Masques, Papertrees) and multi-instrumentalist Naeemah Maddox while compiling on the recordings the musical talents and instrumentation of Dave Hartley (Nightlands, The War on Drugs), Jonas Osterele (ex-the Teeth, Flashy Python), and many more. From delicate viola to bending licks of banjo, the understated instrumental arrangements makes songs like “Ursa Ultra” and the album’s title track feel earnest, while “Shakey Ride” render’s Yellow Humphrey’s Gretchen Lohse into indie starlet Zooey Deschanel’s vocal doppelganger, yet with more finesse and strength. These tunes are nostalgic, like Whitman or a front porch, and filled to the brim with a folky romance. Get swept away by Yellow Humphrey tonight at Johnny Brenda’s and helping to celebrate this special occasion is Featherweight’s producer Nick Krill (Spinto Band) with Mike Quinn (And the Moneynotes, The Sw!ms) performing as Young Nick Krill and Magic Mike. Eliza Hardy-Jones (Buried Beds, The Mural and the Mint) will also be adding her always charming vocals. It’s a packed house of local talent so it should certainly be a nice place to settle down for the evening. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 9pm, $10, 21+ - Dianca Potts
Local DJ Chrissy Muderbot will be releasing his thrid full-length album Women's Studies on May 9th through Planet Mu. The first single from the album is the catchy and addictive track "Bussin' Down". The single was released on April 4th and the video is below.
Chrissy will be celebrating the release on May 26th with a set at Smart Bar. He will also be performing at the Pitchfork Music Festival on July 16th.
This 11 member collective is about to unleash their wild and raw debut album on our fair city. Names Divine currently has the album, Something Vague and Maybe Rotting up on bandcamp for free, and will officially be releasing it on May 13th. The album is dark and heavy with vocals by Kendra Calhoun and Jillian Musielak that seem primal and almost painful, but always deliver something satisfying. As I said this is an eleven piece band that lists four drummers, trumpet, clarinet, theremin, bird flute, & harmonica. Names Divine delivers an experience really unmatched right now in Chicago.
From the nature-filled great outdoors of Anchorage, Alaska to the concrete roads and brights lights of New York City, The Lives of Famous Men have left their mark on the cross-country path to musical eminence. With their new album, Marigold Maxixe, this now Brooklyn-based indie pop band, sings honestly of their experiences of love and life on the road. Interwoven within the seven tracks are elements of smooth jazz, punk pop, and a bit of folk rock, appealing to wide variety of tastes and sounds. Written and performed by members of The Lives of Famous Men- Daniel Hall, Ari Katcher, Dylan Mandel, Andrew Totemoff, and Jason Wahto, Marigold Maxixe is a refreshing release that both fills you with energy and soothes your soul. - Read Christina Morelli's interview with the band here.
Parody-Dance trio Tayisha Busay Tayisha Busay seem able to transform any song in the most fun and absurd thing ever. Just to give you an idea of the what's going on with these guys, they seem to have a passion for not-so-toungue-in-cheek kind of jokes, like when for example they reveal that they just found out that the name of their single for an upcoming full-length is actually a slang term for an uncircumcised penis: it's called "Covered Wagon,” but they apparently meant it to be about the Oregon Trail... The album art has a half-unicorn, half-mermaid on it — a mermicorn, if you will. What more can you want? Maybe this: in the music video for “WTF You Doin’ in My Mouth,” they drink and vomit... glitter. With lots of passion and a boatload of spunk, catchy electro-dance tunes, ridiculous ‘80s aesthetic and love of spandex, we can only hope Tayisha Busay will write and score their own version of “Flashdance” and star in it. For some seriously fun times see these guys at Santos on May 10. - Read Lauren Piper's Q&A with the band here.
