Weekday Music

The year is soon coming to an end, the college students are done the first semester and heading home and looking for something to do. Quite a few shows during the week for those looking for something to fill the time usually spent working or studying.

Photo from artist myspace

Playing back-to-back nights at the Birchmere, Aimee Mann is having a sort of homecoming (born in Midlothian, VA). Out on tour promoting @#%&*! Smilers, these shows Monday and Tuesday are sure to be a good time.

Monday

The guys at R5productions call this possibly the best show they saw all year. See what the words are all about when Bon Iver comes to the Troc in Philly. Opening is Scandanavian folksinger Kristian Matsson aka The Tallest Man On Earth, who happens to be the latest to receive the title 'the next Dylan'. Some say it's true. Get there early to find out.

For something a little more local, Galaxy Hut is hosting Rose and Brandon Butler.

mp3: Bon Iver - Skinny Love
mp3: The Tallest Man on Earth - I Wont Be Found
mp3: Rose - Another Sad Song
mp3: Brandon Butler - Sparks

Tuesday

Great show at the Ottobar in Baltimore with Ra Ra Riot. Also on the bill are So Many Dynamos from the St. Louis area, who are set to release their new album The Loud Wars on Vagrant Records in the spring. Californians Princeton round out the lineup.

Staying in Baltimore, the Metro Gallery gets a little sleazy with Sleazetone artist Ssion. A little bit of disco with some electro-punk under some thinly veiled smutty lyrics, it will get you dancing.

mp3: Ra Ra Riot - Dying Is Fine
mp3: Princeton - The Waves
mp3: Ssion - Clown

Wednesday/Thursday

Not much to say about Wednesday other than Messiah College is having a great free show with Philly's Pattern Is Movement. It's a great venue and you usually can get up nice and close.

Thursday is much more lively. Johnny Brenda's is hosting a great local lineup with Secretly Canadian locals The War On Drugs. Philly's premiere banjo folk artist Joshua Marcus is set to open with Comoros.

Deleted Scenes is having a CD release party for the new disc Birdseed Shirt at the Black Cat. Exit Clov, who puts on a great show, will also be on the bill as well as La Strada from NYC.

The Oranges Band are back in their hometown, still living it up after their release of The Oranges Band Are Invisible. Catch them at Talking Head with Sal Bando, featuring former members of Two If By Sea, and Philly band Blood Feathers

Eyes Night of the Baltimore Round Robin happens Thursday at Sonar. The big name band on the bill is Beach House, but so many more will be playing in the round for you. And down at The Red & The Black, catch Karate Coyote from Columbus.

mp3: Pattern is Movement - Bird
mp3: The War On Drugs - Taking The Farm
mp3: Joshua Marcus - Coal or Smoke
mp3: Deleted Scenes - Get Your Shit Together for the Holidays
mp3: Exit Clov - Violent Berries
mp3: La Strada - The Sun Song
mp3: Beach House - Master of None
mp3: The Oranges Band - ArtStar
mp3: Blood Feathers (album stream)

A Huge Weekend

Another summer weekend with a boatload of shows to check out. Here's what's going on.


Summer is the time for festivals and this Saturday the Download Festival rolls through the Philly area for the only east coast date of this three city festival. It is a huge line-up featuring The Killers, Iggy Pop & The Stooges, Ghostland Observatory, The Parlor Mob, The Duke Spirit, Colour Revolt, Louis XIV, Sia, The Whigs, The Airborne Toxic Event, Eli Reed, and Philly's own Man Man. It'll be a hot one, so go prepared. For all details of what you can bring to the Susquehanna Bank Center (The E-Center, Blockbuster, whatever you called it), check out the festival website.

mp3: The Parlor Mob - Cant Keep No Good Boy Down
mp3: Colour Revolt - Naked and Red
mp3: Sia - Electric Bird
mp3: The Airborne Toxic Event - Sometime Around Midnight

As far as the rest of the weekend goes, a huge number of local and national acts are playing the area.

The minimalist acoustic sounds of Bon Iver are joined by Bowerbirds, who are re-releasing Hymns for a Dark Horse, for two shows. Thursday they are in Philly at the First Unitarian Church, then head on down to DC for a show at the Black Cat.

mp3: Bon Iver - Skinny Love
mp3: Bowerbirds - In Our Talons

Dubbed "The thinking-mans Wilco", Earlimart are on tour and making two stops in the area, starting in Philly Friday at Johnny Brendas. They are joined by Philly locals Sunshine Recorder and JJL (otherwise known as Like A Fox). Saturday, check out Earlimart at the Ottobar in Baltimore.

mp3: Earlimart - Song For
mp3: Sunshine Recorder - Hemmingway
mp3: JJL - Vertical Dance

Aimee Mann is playing quite a few shows over the next few days. You can catch her with The Submarines at the 9:30 Club on Saturday, then she plays back-to-back shows at the World Cafe starting Monday.

Priscilla Ahn is also making a run through the area, starting Saturday at the Tin Angel in Philly, then heading to Jammin Java Sunday where she hooks up with Willoughby. Those two are also at Rams Head in Annapolis for a Tuesday show.

Before gracing us with their presence for our Saturday Anniversary show next weekend, Bellman Barker are pulling a two-for. They will be at the Metro Gallery Saturday with Baltimore's The Courtesy Line and then travel to Philly to perform with DC-mates The Caribbean and Brooklyn's Soren Well.

mp3: Bellman Barker - Charles Kil
mp3: The Courtesy Line - Make It Up
mp3: The Caribbean - The Go From Tactical
mp3: Soren Well - Black Transmissions

Thursday

It's very light on Thursday. Other than Bon Iver/Bowerbirds, Philly's own The Extraordinaires are playing Johnny Brendas.

mp3: The Extraordinaires - The Chicken The Egg or The Song

Friday

The Duke Spirit is playing a Free at Noon at the World Cafe before their performance Saturday at the Download Festival. Also, Hello Tokyo are performing at The Fire.

mp3: Hello Tokyo - Kiss Me Good-bye (remix)

Saturday

The World Cafe seems to be the happening place this weekend, this time with The Apples In Stereo.

Down in DC at the Black Cat, Virgin Records artist We Are Scientists are touring in support of their new album Brain Thrust Mastery. They are joined by Oxford Collapse, who also have a new album BITS coming out Tuesday.

mp3: The Apples in Stereo - Energy
mp3: We Are Scientists - Chick Lit (remix)
mp3: Oxford Collapse - The Birthday Wars

Sunday

Finishing off the weekend is Philly's The Bee Team. In the midst of a I-95 tour with DC's Deleted Scenes and The Never, they are at Millcreek Tavern, then start the week off in DC at Black Cat.

Across the river at IOTA, catch locals Prabir & The Substitutes and Greenland.

mp3: Deleted Scenes - Fake IDs
mp3: The Never - Cavity
mp3: Prabir & The Substitutes - Slow
mp3: Greenland - Shipwreck on the Watery Eye

This Week's Releases

This week features so many releases, that I don't even know where to start. Instead of talking about my favorites, I'll let you listen for yourself. There is plenty for everyone, so find something new. Enjoy!

The Epochs

The Epochs (Buy) - "Opposite Sides" & "Full Album Stream"

Bell X1

Flock (Buy) - "Rocky Took a Lover" & Full Album Stream

The Republic Tigers

EP (Buy) - "Buildings and Mountains"

The Mountain Goats

Heretic Pride (Buy) - "Sax Rohmer #1"

The Raveonettes

Lust Lust Lust (Buy) - "Aly Walk With Me" & Full Album Stream

Bon Iver

For Emma, Forever Ago (Buy) - "Flume"

Atlas Sound

Let The Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel (Buy) - "Quarantined"

The Big Sleep

Sleep Forever (Buy) - "Bad Blood" & Full Album Stream

Headlights

Some Racing, Some Stopping (Buy) - "Cherry Tulips"

Throw Me The Statue

Moonbeams (Buy) - "Your Girlfriend's Car"

Apes (DC band)

Ghost Games (Buy) - "Beat of the Double"

Crushed Stars

Gossamer Days (Buy) - "Spies"

Speaker Speaker

Call It Off (Buy) - "We Won't March"

Flowers Forever

Flowers Forever (Buy) - "Black Rosary"

Monade

Monstre Cosmic (Buy) - "Regard"

No Kids

Come Into My House (Buy) - "The Beaches All Closed"

Panther

14 Kt. God (Buy) - "Violence, Diamonds"

American Music Club

The Golden Age (Buy) - "All Lost Souls Welcome You to San Francisco" & Full Album Stream

Megafaun

Bury The Square (Buy) - "Lazy Suicide"

Philly Thursday

Thursday night in Philly promises to be a great one. The big name is Ted Leo & The Pharmacists. One of the mainstays of the East Coast punk scene, his songs are now a little more mainstream, but he still puts on one hell of a show. I saw him play at the ACL Fest in '06 and came away very impressed. Check him out at the Starlight Ballroom.

Me and Mia


Over at Johnny Brendas, Elvis Perkins plays the intimate room. Compared to Van Morrison and Nick Drake, he is a festival favorite. Joining him is blog hero Bon Iver, who is very reminiscent of Iron and Wine. Toping it all off is local Roomtone, another who is getting comparison to Drake.

Elvis Perkins - Ash Wednesday
Bon Iver - Skinny Love
Roomtone - Water Music (instrumental)


Looking for more of an adventure, head over to the Northstar Bar and check out John Ralston, out with a new album. With him from Athens, GA, the indie pop of Modern Skirts and the mash-up of every indie genre of Philly's own Grammar Debate!

John Ralston - Gone, Gone, Gone
Modern Skirts - My Bully
Grammar Debate! - Believe It Away