Bob Weir & Wolf Bros @ Met Philly Friday night. Photo by JOSH PELTA-HELLER Though lift off initially felt a little wobbly, when Bob Weir and Wolf Bros finally noodled their way out of a nebulous aural haze and into a discernible set opener Friday night at Philly’s Met, the Grateful Dead founder, fronting a stripped down trio of legendary producer Don Was on upright bass and Primus alumnus Jay Lane on drums, still managed to elevate the sold-out crowd to stratospheric highs with new interpretations of some old tunes and debuting some unexpected new ones. The opener, Weir’s 80s-era […]

Photo by JOSH PELTA-HELLER Over the course of eight studio albums since their inception in 2001, Deerhunter have grown to be a canonical act in the realm of psychedelic indie-rock. Fronted by multi-instrumentalist and founder Bradford Cox, the band have undergone a series of lineup changes marked by tragedy: two bassists, Justin Bosworth and Josh Fauver died while they were in Deerhunter, the former from a skateboarding head-injury and the latter from unannounced causes. Deerhunter’s self-described “ambient punk” has steadily morphed from wild, psychedelic garage-punk to poppy indie-rock. The band are on the road once again following the release of […]

Photo by DYLAN LONG When I found out that Anderson .Paak (pronounced pak) used to go by the name Breezy Lovejoy, I couldn’t help but smile. After seeing his live show at the Fillmore last night alongside a couple thousand fans who crammed themselves as far up front as they could, I learned firsthand that the name suits him all too well. The acclaimed funkster’s stop at the Fillmore was part of his Andy’s Beach Club world tour, aptly named given that his entire discography takes wing on a perpetual summer breeze. Surrounded by his partners in crime, the R&B […]

Photo by JOSH PELTA-HELLER Halfway through their Fillmore set on Thursday night, Metric singer Emily Haines nodded openly at her band’s evolution. “You get this pair of pants, and you wear them all the time, and then you don’t know where those pants are anymore!” Consider that fair warning, Metric fans: by “those pants” she meant the first half of their 20-year catalog, because the Toronto synth-rockers shined the hot strobe lights almost exclusively on their latest record for the duration of their set, saving just a couple of their best-beloved hits for last with no apology and no further […]

Photo by ALEX PATERSON-JAMES The narrow collection of artists in my playlists that I have relied upon to get me through the last few months has grown so stale and tired that I almost want to walk in headphone-less silence on my way to work every morning. Almost. But then I remembered my sister’s mention to me last month of a band she told me “was weird as fuck, but your kind of thing.” The group in question was Cherry Glazerr. So after seeing the name pop up on the web after the band’s release of their third studio album […]

Photo by ALEX PATERSON-JONES Recently, I’ve felt haunted. Maybe it’s the Benadryl dreams, or my deepening fascination with astrology, or my long-overdue first reading of Toni Morrison’s Beloved, but the ghosts of my past, and even of my present, have started to creep into my subconscious. And while these kind of prolonged meditations on the phantoms of the past can help bring to light the parts of ourselves we often prefer to keep in the dark, the benefits of these reveries can grow toxic when left unchecked. There is a power in learning to simply let go, and that kind […]

Photo by MATT SHAVER Despite the frigid wind and snow of a polar vortex—whatever that is—Union Transfer was packed with beanie-wearing, beer-guzzling indie kids last night. At first, the crowd was largely friends and family of opener Arthur, the experimental pop project of Arthur Shea. Shea also plays in Philly band Joy Again, who I’ve been following on the DIY scene for several years, watching them grow from playing in dingy basements to touring with Rostam (Vampire Weekend). Arthur’s music is surreal and alien, full of bizarre sound effects and skittering pop keyboards. The overall impression is frenzied, like an […]

Photo by MATT SHAVER The first time I heard Neko Case sing was at a live show and she was singing just to me. The year was 2004 and I was at the Tower Theater, er, sorry, Tower Records, in Fairfax Virginia. The listening stations were a favorite spot of mine after classes. I’d post up on those shiny red stools and bury myself in whatever the staff was recommending at the moment, and in this moment it was The Tigers Have Spoken. I was hooked from song one and have been enthralled ever since. Neko has THE voice – […]

Photo by MATT SHAVER Mineral was one of those bands that got me through high school. Cliché as it may be, those angst-filled, sometimes brittle, but always powerful vocals, and the noisy, feedback-laden guitar riffs spoke volumes to me – speak volumes to me. Formed in Houston in ’94, Mineral became one of the most important bands in emo, and their first full-length album, The Power of Failing (1997), has become a staple of the genre. Their songwriting was unapologetically honest, and the highly emotional lyrics were carried by epic vocal harmonies through song structures that usually took the listener […]

Photo by ALEX PATERSON-JONES A$AP ROCKY’s latest LP,Testing, released last May, rocks a combination of eclectic, experimental head bangers and high-octane mosh pit fuel, perfectly-suited for live workouts on his current “Injured Generation” tour, which stopped at the Liacouras Center last night, with opening acts Smooky Margiela and Comethazine in tow. Just 16 years old, Smooky took the stage first and owned it with a charisma much larger than his body size. Throwing down his now-blowing-up hits “Stay 100” and “Vlone Flex,” Smooky made it clear why A$AP has chosen him to join his creative collective, the A$AP Mob. Next […]

Photo by MATT SHAVER My friend Virginia insists that the only downside of marijuana is that it makes Kurt Vile songs go on too long. That’s simply not true. It also makes you cough and it’s very expensive. Now don’t get me wrong, I like Kurt Vile as much as the next stoner beardo of a certain age. And there’s a lot to like about him: wizardly finger picker, gorgeous Jag tone, droll Kensington hillbilly drawl, Joey Ramones’ legs, and, as of this writing, best hair in rock n’ roll. He has proven adept at mounting Burrito Brother jingle and […]