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From Monteal, the band Islands are on tour in support of their new album A Sleep & A Forgetting. They play two shows at the First Unitarian Church here in Philly on Friday, February 24 and will be here that day for an XPN Free At Noon show.
Boundary-pushing blues rocker Joe Louis Walker has done it again. Walker has 50 years of music and more than 20 albums under his belt, but he continues to churn out powerful, gritty, heavy blues rock. Walker's musical influences course through his songs. He grew up listening to blues greats, including T-Bone Walker, B.B. King and Pete Johnson. At age 8, Joe Louis Walker picked up his first guitar and began to imitate their work. By sixteen, Walker was the house guitarist of San Francisco's The Matrix and was opening shows for the next generation of blues rock heroes-- Jimi Hendrix, Thelonious Monk and Lightnin' Hopkins, to name a few. Joe Louis Walker manages to channel the sound of each of his heroes, yet maintain a distinct sound.
One of the first Shaking Through artists and current XPN Artist To Watch, Sharon Van Etten has a new album called Tramp. She's in town to play a sold out show on Friday at Johhny Brenda's, and will be here for an XPN Free At Noon, this Friday, February 10, 2012!
For over ten years, Pete Donnelly has made pop music in Philadelphia. He's plays in several bands, including The Figgs and NRBQ, and has produced and played for acts such as G. Love and Special Sauce and Amos Lee. Now, after 10 years as a critical figure in the Philadelphia music scene, he's released a solo album.
Dr. Dog's new album Be The Void will be out February 7, and the band plays two nights at the Electric Factory on March 24-25. They'll be here for an XPN Free At Noon Friday, January 27!
Hailing from Brooklyn, the electroic duo Chairlift is comprised of Caroline Polachek (vocals, tambourine, synth) and Patrick Wimberly (bass, drums, keyboard). Originally formed in Colorado with the intent to make haunted house music, Chairlift relocated to Williamsburg in 2007, and began to build buzz. They've toured a lot, including a stint with Yeasayer. In the past few years, they've also released an EP and two full-length albums--the latest of which comes out next week, on the 24th. The follow-up to Chairlift's sci-fi inspired "Does You Inspire You" debut, "Something" is the duo's first album with Columbia Records.
Hailing from Ridgewood, NJ, but now comfortably situated (both in sound and influence) in Brooklyn, NY, Real Estate is a young five-piece making waves in the music market. Band members Alex Bleeker (bass), Martin Courtney (vocals, guitar), Mathew Mondanile (guitar), Jackson Pollis (drums), and Jonah Mauer (keys and guitar) have all been together for just one year, though the roots of Real Estate were planted in 2008. In the last few years, Real Estate have been building a reputation for coherent, catchy, and precise tunes--but tunes that are also introspective or effervescent at all the right times. Real Estate's summer-y indie rock is nothing short of spell-binding.
Since releasing a set of demos and their self-titled debut in 2009, Real Estate has since been named 'Best New Music' by Pitchfork, toured with the likes of Deerhunter, Girls, and Kurt Vile, and played at festivals around the world. Now that they're out with their follow-up, Real Estate is picking up even more followers and buzz. This latest album, entitled "Days" and released on their new label Domino, is just as cheerful yet just as sentimental in sound. Influenced by power-pop and beach sun by turn, it's clear that Real Estate is definitely here to stay.
Don't miss your chance to see Real Estate as the week winds down--they're here for a Free at Noon session this Friday! There's no better way to start the weekend.
One of the longest-running bands to come from the first-generation British punk
movement, The Mekons have been making music since 1977. Punk at the core but not afraid to mix it up, The Mekons have dabbled in a range of other genres, from folk to reggae. But the eight members of The Mekons are still defined by their brand of post-apocalyptic cowboy punk, which has garnered them a significant amount of acclaim. Their 28th album, titled Ancient and Modern, was released just this past September--and it holds to Mekon sound, albeit some evidencing some of the Mekon's mellowing over time. But that doesn't mean it's any less charming.
True to form, the Mekons have infused Ancient and Modern with plenty of hooks and clever, thought-provoking lyrics. Group choruses abound in The Mekons' music and the band actually sound they are having fun when they play. It is this fact that makes The Mekons so appealing: in an age where being cool means acting unaffected, The Mekons are still not afraid to put everything on the table and to have fun while doing it.
Wrapping up a list of tour dates in the Midwest and Eastern US, the Mekons will be visiting World Cafe. Come see one of the longest-running, and still rocking, bands in the history of punk at XPN's Live Friday on October 7. It's free and it's undoubtedly the best way to start your weekend.
XPN Artist To Watch, Diego Garcia is on tour in support of his debut album, Laura, and plays two shows at the Tin Angel on September 21. He'll be here for a Free At Noon show Friday, September 23.
Former frontman of the indie band, Elefant, Diego Garcia went solo in 2010. His new album Laura is on many "Best of the Year 2011" lists, and is also a XPN Featured Album of the Week.
Incorporating his Latin background – his parents are both Argentinean – into his lush, delicate music, Diego Garcia’s deeply reflective music calls to mind the likes of Leonard Cohen and Morrissey. Garcia writes incredibly introspective, often-anguished lyrics, and subtly fuses the Spanish guitar with a more traditional folk sound. With lyrics that explore a range of emotional planes, Garcia is a master of subtlety: Whether it is with panicking guitar strums, twinkles of Spanish guitar, or his soft and intimate musings, Garcia is able to delicately move the listener on an emotional level. He manages to weave his sounds like a tapestry, crafting a dreamlike, confidential album that is sure to leave listeners wanting more. After all, the album is all about his wife, Laura, and signifies a new, more personal chapter in music-making for this talented artist.
Don't miss this Free at Noon--Diego Garcia's emotional web of sound can't be beat when it comes to starting off the weekend.
And be sure to listen to his live session in the World Cafe Archives, including two web extra songs - at WorldCafe.NPR.org.
Joseph Arthur's new album, Graduation Ceremony was just released. He's playing the XPoNential Music Festival in July, and he'll be here for XPN's Free At Noon this Friday, June 17.
Singer-songwriter, Joseph Arthur began singing at the age of 21, although his fondness for music and the guitar began earlier than that. Having grown up in Akron, Ohio, Arthur relocated to Atlanta where he found a thriving music scene. A masterful painter as well, Arthur fuses his two passions, designing his own cover art and sometimes using his paintings as backgrounds for his sets. The now Grammy nominated musician's career began with a slow start but with his talent, his success was always destined to be. Having been compared to the likes of Jeff Buckley, Leonard Cohen, and Joe Henry and having toured with Tracy Chapman, Ben Harper, and Gomez, Arthur carries on the legacy of great singer-songwriters.
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