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Archive for the ‘The Foundry’ Category

Sir Chloe (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, April 18, 2024)

Posted in Daffo, Philadelphia, PA, Sir Chloe, The Foundry on April 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: April 18, 2024] Sir Chloe 

My daughter was really excited to see Sir Chloe.  I wound up buying resale tickets to this show (which thankfully weren’t crazy overpriced).

We arrived a little early (last time we went to a show that she wanted to go to I was very surprised to see how early everyone else had gotten there).   I had assumed we’d get really close (I always seem to get pretty close at The Foundry, which just proves that her bands are more popular than mine).  The close up area was already full, so we got some merch and then we found a spot.  My daughter doesn’t like to be touched by other so we hung back.  The Foundry is small enough that we could see fine (but man pictures there are really tough to get).

We were in a weird (for me) spot–on the right side close to the wall, where the secret entrance to backstage is.  Which meant that kegs were going by from time to time.  Had I realized where we wound up I would have suggested the other side, near the entrance where people tend to not congregate, but whatever.

Before this show I really only knew  the one or two Sir Chloe songs that she had played me.  So, to get ready I listened to the new album a bunch and some of the more popular songs on Spotify.  I found I really liked her quite a lot–she’s a little slow for my tastes, but I enjoyed the tone and style of the music.  And the lyrics were pretty great too.

When she came out, she had an oddly disaffected appearance.  She seemed quite aloof and almost like she didn’t want to be there. And yet, I assume it was all part of the act, because she sang great and didn’t seem like she not giving her all.

It was quite a change from the warm and friendly stage presence of Girl in Red the night before. (more…)

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Daffo (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, April 18, 2024) [SIR CHLOE]

Posted in Daffo, Philadelphia, PA, Sir Chloe, The Foundry on April 20, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: April 18, 2024] Sir Chloe / Daffo

Daffo is a Philadelphia-ish musician (they are from the area but have also lived in NJ and other places, but they said this was a homecoming show).

Daffo’s voice is interesting for someone from the east coast as they have a bit of a twang–although not on every song.  But there’s some good bite in the lyrics: “I’m a shame collector, I’m a hoarder.”

They played two unreleased songs and then a few from the new(ish) EP Pest.

The songs are mostly mellow, at least a lot of them have slow introductions or first verses and then the band kicked in.  But I liked the way that “Collector” started slow, got a little bigger and then got huge for the chorus before settling down again.

“Runner’s High” rocked a bit harder to start with and then got quieter.

I really enjoyed the new song “Go Fetch” which seemed simple but had a lot going on it.

The lyrics to “Seed” were quite good too. (more…)

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The Rural Alberta Advantage (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, March 27, 2024)

Posted in Julianna Riolino, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry, The Rural Alberta Advantage on March 28, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 27, 2024] The Rural Alberta Advantage

I saw a video of The Rural Alberta Advantage at Massey Hall in 2018 (it was from 2014).  This was the first real exposure I had to the band and the first time I saw how intense they were live.

Since then, they have played Philly three times.  I don’t think the first one registered.  But the second time I was ready to see them. But I already had  tickets to a different show that night.  I decided, however, that I’d rather see RAA, but when I went to get a ticket, it was sold out! (good for them).

But this time, there was no way I was missing them.  I arrived early, got on the barrier and marveled at the stage set up.  Keys, guitar and drums, with the drums on the right side and the drummer facing the other two.

The came out of the mystery door at the side of the stage and immediately started playing FSHG as they walked into the crowd.   Nils Edenloff walked around and sang while Amy Cole sang backing vocals.  I’m not sure if Paul Banwatt played any percussion as I couldn’t really see him.  But soon enough they were marching the song up to the stage. (more…)

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Julianna Riolino (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, March 27, 2024) [THE RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE]

Posted in Julianna Riolino, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry, The Rural Alberta Advantage on March 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 27, 2024] Julianna Riolino

Julianna Riolino is a Canadian alt-country singer.  I had never heard of her before.

She came across as more country on some songs than on others.  She has a bit of a snarl and can really belt out some notes.

She was a little overly goofy, I thought, between songs.  She said her name between every song (which I liked and was kind of funny), but it also felt like she was trying a little too hard.  Which is odd because she’s been doing this for a while.   But she was certainly memorable.

When she said she was from a small town outside of Toronto (and outside of Buffalo, NY) I was surprised, and I think she guessed it right because she joked about being Italian, so people think she’s from New York. (more…)

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Cherry Glazerr (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, March 11, 2024)

Posted in Cherry Glazerr, Ex-Pilots, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia, The Foundry on March 12, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 11, 2024] Cherry Glazerr 

After Ex Pilots and the obnoxious guy who was talking about how much he didn’t like Cherry Glazerr, a new guy behind me popped up who was a truly crazy fan.  He said he was going to start crying as soon as singer Clementine Creevy came out.   He also shouted her name and said “I love you” about six times.  It wasn’t scary stalker territory but I could see how she could have been unnerved by him.  He sang/screamed too loudly for a bunch of songs and then I think people got him to calm down (it’s a small venue after all).

I’d wanted to see Cherry Glazerr for a while.  I could have seen them in 2019, but they played a date that I couldn’t make.  Then in 2022 they were the openers for the Alt-J/Portugal the Man show that I really wanted to go to but couldn’t make.  Of course, it’s always more fun to see a band like this headlining a small venue, so this show at The Foundry was perfect.

They opened with the slow, moody, “Touched You With My Chaos,” with Clementine sing/shouting “I said that I loved you” and the creepy intense fan screaming it along with her.

But he wasn’t the only one super psyched to be here.  The two women in front of me bounced and screamed to each other for song after song.  And a guy who pushed his way to the barrier was literally leaping three feet in the air to land with every drop in a song.

I don’t really know the band’s output all that well, but I recognized a few songs like “Told You I’d Be with the Guys” with the sharp guitar line and screamed lyrics. (more…)

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Ex Pilots (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, March 11, 2024) [CHERRY GLAZERR]

Posted in Cherry Glazerr, Ex-Pilots, Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore Philadelphia, The Foundry on March 11, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: March 11, 2024] Ex Pilots

I was not familiar with Ex Pilots before this show, but a guy behind me certainly was.  he was one of those guys who feels the need to talk loudly about whatever he thinks he knows a lot about.  He was pretty annoying, but he was right: people are going to come away from this show as Ex Pilot fans.  At the very least, I became a fan.

He also went on some crazy rant about Cherry Glazerr saying he’d never heard of them but thought they were some kind of 90s female grunge sound which he was never into (I was shocked that the the women around him didn’t pound him).  he also said he was surprised that there was only one opening band because most shows have like four.  Ugh, men.

But he was right about Ex Pilots.

I really enjoyed the way Hammer started as a fast rocking song and then after a minute it shifted gears to a slower, heavier rocking sound and then immediately shifted again into a lighter bouncier verse.  According to their recording, this song is only two minutes long.  It changed gears about five times and I was hooked.

“Exactly Like You” is a quieter song with echoing guitars.  It has very few words (only the title is sung) and at two minutes long, the vocals don’t come in until the half way part.

There were lots of fascinating things about this band.  There are six members in the band, including three guitarists!  And yet despite this, lead singer (and from what I can see, the main Pilot) Ethan Oliva played most of the lead guitar lines too.

After two new songs (I always think it’s funny bands ask if it’s okay if they play a new song, especially if hardly anyone has heard their older songs) they played “Nick Song” has a really catchy vocal melody.  “Bad Aibling” has a rocking shoegaze feel.  Most of the songs were about two minutes long but “Aibling” stretched out to 3! (more…)

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Palehound / Empath (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, October 20, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Empath, Palehound, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry on October 20, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: October 20, 2023] Palehound / Empath

I saw Palehound twice within a few months back in 2018.

Palehound singer/guitarist Ellen Kempner is a fantastic guitarist and a really compelling frontwoman.  I’m not entirely sure what she’s been up to since then (two albums apparently).

As far as I can see they haven’t played Philly since then.  I was pretty excited to see them, but her date landed right on my daughter’s birthday.  So, yeah, that isn’t happening.

No questions asked.

Empath are a Philly band that play a kind of noise punk.  Rolling Stone says “They sound like four people who sat in a room flexing their own freaky styles until — before they realized their interests might be wholly incompatible — the chaos created its own logic.”  They sound pretty great.

I could have seen Empath 4 times, but each time something happened.  The most recent time, they were supposed to open for Fucked Up but cancelled (and I got to see Pony, so that was okay).

I do hope to see them one of these days.

 

(more…)

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Claud: Supermodels tour / boyish (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, September 15, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Boyish, claud, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry on September 15, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 15, 2023] Claud / boyish

I saw Claud open for Soak back in 2019.  I really enjoyed their set–I really liked claud’s voice.  It was clear and quiet but not whispered.  I also really enjoyed the delicate guitar sounds that claud got–even when a song had a loud thumping bass.

Claud’s music is quiet and lo fi.  It would have been a chill night at the Foundry, but I wasn’t really that interested in going.

Boyish was formed by India Shore and Claire Altendahl in 2016 at Berklee College of Music.

Their blurb says (more…)

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Babe Rainbow / Molly Lewis (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, September 15, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Babe Rainbow, Molly Lewis, Philadelphia, PA, The Foundry on September 15, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 15,  2023] Babe Rainbow / Molly Lewis

I know of The Babe Rainbow because Levitation Records (who put out all kinds of cool psychedelic music) released a Levitation Sessions album and I like to check out any band that plays a session with them.

Babe Rainbow is from Australia.  They do play psychedelic music but it lands squarely on the delicate 60’s folk side of psychedelia.  Meaning it’s fun to have on, but I don’t need to see them live.

Molly Lewis is an Australian born, Los Angeles-based, musician known for her whistling.

I wasn’t really sure how to describe the music that she whistles over, but Aquarium Drunkard calls it “Pacific impressionism” and I think that’s pretty spot on.  But the key is that she is an amazing whistler.

She works in what is oddly called “exotica,” filled with sultry Bossa Nova guitar, rain sticks, shakers, jazzy instruments and an overall feeling of being far away from everything.  It’s pretty dreamy.  It would also be interesting to see her whistle these lead lines in a live setting, although I feel like perhaps the overall vibe would be too chill to really appreciate.

 

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Ex Hex / Slomo Sapiens (The Foundry, Philadelphia, PA, September 7, 2023) [DID NOT ATTEND]

Posted in Bat Fangs, Ex Hex, Helium, Philadelphia, PA, Slomo Sapiens, The Foundry on September 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[DID NOT ATTEND: September 7, 2023] Ex Hex / Slomo Sapiens

Ex Hex is a kind of indie supergroup comprised of Mary Timony (Helium, Wild Flag) and Betsy Wright (from Bat Fangs who I saw and liked).  The third member is drummer Laura Harris.

Ex Hex is the most commercial sounding music Timony’s made and I actually found their first album a little boring.  They were kind of straight ahead punk pop songs that might have been revolutionary in the 90s but felt kind of staid in 2014.

The newer album, the one they are touring (which actually came out in 2019) is a little more complex and more interesting as a result.  I would have been rather interested in going to this show.  Unfortunately, I only found out about it early this afternoon and there was no way I could get to it.  Oh well.

Slomo Sapiens continues the tradition of great band names from Philadelphia.  I didn’t know much about them, but they are described as a psychedelic “sludge rock” trio, which sounds pretty good to me.

I’ve listened to a couple of songs and psychedelic sludge rock is right on the nose.

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