Philly Finds: Volume I
It has been almost a full year since I moved from the ultra-saturated music scene of Austin, Texas to the Philadelphia area. I will admit that the musical selections of this area are somewhat lacking in comparison to my former residence, or even the Baltimore/DC region that Joe has cultivated so well over the past year or so, but that is not to say that the Delaware Valley is totally bereft of anything worthy. Since the shows are slowing down for the winter, I will write some occasional features on the best of the region. Some of these bands have been mentioned on the site before and some haven't. For the first installment, I'll hit on a couple of my personal favorites.
Let's start with Hoots and Hellmouth. Local through and through, they are straight out of West Chester, PA. They cross elements of folk music, with gospel and Jeff Buckley influenced indie. Joe's wife actually found these guys first, when they were at one of the Dewey Beach music fests in 2006. Their live shows are always a raucous good time, with lots of stomping and clapping. They have been known to go out and play in the middle of the crowd and have everyone stomping along, making it an almost religious experience. XPN loves them, I love them, check them out.
Want On Nothing
It's Close, I'm Undone
Another band that I have come to enjoy is Creeping Weeds. Joe stumbled upon them earlier this year and included them in his indie at the abbey series. Take what you know of The Shins, Pavement, earlier Modest Mouse, and anyone else you can think of in that ilk, blend them all together, shake them up, and viola, there you have Creeping Weeds. They capture the best of the poppier side of indie-rock without becoming too sugary and obnoxious. A couple of great examples are their cover of BOAT's "(I'm A) Donkey For Your Love" and their excellent single "Billy Pilgrim.". They recently have been recording new music, so expect to hear a lot more from them in the future.
Billy Pilgrim
(I'm A) Donkey For Your Love (BOAT cover)
Let's start with Hoots and Hellmouth. Local through and through, they are straight out of West Chester, PA. They cross elements of folk music, with gospel and Jeff Buckley influenced indie. Joe's wife actually found these guys first, when they were at one of the Dewey Beach music fests in 2006. Their live shows are always a raucous good time, with lots of stomping and clapping. They have been known to go out and play in the middle of the crowd and have everyone stomping along, making it an almost religious experience. XPN loves them, I love them, check them out.
Want On Nothing
It's Close, I'm Undone
Another band that I have come to enjoy is Creeping Weeds. Joe stumbled upon them earlier this year and included them in his indie at the abbey series. Take what you know of The Shins, Pavement, earlier Modest Mouse, and anyone else you can think of in that ilk, blend them all together, shake them up, and viola, there you have Creeping Weeds. They capture the best of the poppier side of indie-rock without becoming too sugary and obnoxious. A couple of great examples are their cover of BOAT's "(I'm A) Donkey For Your Love" and their excellent single "Billy Pilgrim.". They recently have been recording new music, so expect to hear a lot more from them in the future.
Billy Pilgrim
(I'm A) Donkey For Your Love (BOAT cover)
Labels: Creeping Weeds, Hoots and Hellmouth
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Analyzed by Michael on Wednesday, December 05, 2007
2 Comments:
Are you kidding?! The Philly music scene is way better than DC's. I feel like it's a lot more accessible, as well.
you are the greatest, as always.
hoots & hellmouth came to austin during this past sxsw and played a free show at Fado Irish Pub (if you remember, on 4th)...they were simply AMAZING. crowd stunning. when they ran out of time, they hopped off stage and played acoustic, strolling around this dancing, frenzied crowd like benevolent storytellers. they eventually had the entire courtyard circled around them, chanting, while they held their guitars in the air and sang up to the sky. I sound so cheesy, but it really was an incredible performance.
so it's unfortunate that the first mp3 "want on nothing" isn't working... "can't find host." cheers inan
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