Text and images by Jessica Flynn.
The stage at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts was bumping some serious bass yesterday when Mindless Behavior performed. The show was opened by artists OMG Girlz, Coco Jones and Young Marqus.
The pit was filled with girls who had laminates that read “Photo Girl.” There was an outfit change or two, banter about social media and a possible fight between two girls in the pit during “My Girl” nearing the end of the evening.
Text by Joe Gallagher. Images by Jessica Flynn.
There is no shortage of shows in this city, which over the past five years thanks to the efforts of many promoters and clubs large and small, has cemented itself as a valuable stopover (and even as a place worth reloacting to) for artists.
However, Saturday was a night on which a show really felt like an event.
Presented by The Guild (who are becoming an asset as valuable to this city as the Liberty Bell or the Schuylkill River Trail) at the Golden Tea House, it was at once Nona’s record release show and a showcase for their slightly offbeat peers: Martin, Omar, Cayetana and Three Man Cannon. “House” actually does Golden Tea a disservice: while it may well be a residence for a few people, the actual feel of the place is closer to a proper rock club thanks to its open floor plan and mezzanine. It is by the far the best place to attend a show and live above the law at the same time. Read more…
This Is Hardcore Fest Preview: Rival Mob.
This is Hardcore 2013 is the biggest, most anticipated, annual hardcore fest in the country which runs from August 8th-11th at the Electric Factory. Gracing the stage this year will be Gwar, Kid Dynamite, Judge and Paint it Black, to name a few.
This week, our Bree Wood caught up with Brendan Radigan, frontman for The Rival Mob, currently on Revelation Records. The Rival Mob is comprised of members from infamous bands like Mind Eraser, Righteous Jams, Mental and XFilesX, and known for their no-nonsense, aggressive style. You can catch them in the opening slot Saturday, August 10th. Photo provided by The Rival Mob.
Who is Rival Mob?
A bunch of goons playing a bunch of tunes. Featuring the talents of Doug Cho, Trevor Vaughan, Pearse McGrath, Justin DeTore and Brendan Radigan.
Philly Street Performer Chris Hall: “If You’re Good, You Will Always Be Able To Make It.”
Text by Cary Carr. Image by Timothy Becker.
It’s hard not to notice Chris Hall. He sits directly outside Reading Terminal Market’s doors, playing his electric guitar and flashing a huge smile to anyone looking his way. He basks in the sunlight, seemingly without a care in the world, his playlist consisting of cool island music and jazz.
“It’s music that means something,” he explains.
Hall says his interest in music was first sparked in kindergarten when he played the xylophone for his elementary school assemblies. He went on to play in a few bands, including Time in Motion, a 14-piece ensemble that played at sororities and fraternities in Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore and Boston.
Hall says he used to watch a friend of his play on the street and think “what a bum,” assuming he wouldn’t end up in the same situation. But when he was asked to go on tour with a band, he had to turn down the offer in order to take care of his mother, whose health was failing. By the time he was ready to return to the music scene, he had a hard time adjusting.
“I was like, ‘Wow. How am I going to make it now? Everything’s changed,’” he says.
So Hall decided to give street performing a try, moving between Center City, Old City and along South Street.
Hall says he has no problem with the limited amount of money street performers pocket.
“It’s representation without taxation,” he says, laughing. “You gotta love it.”
“It’s blue skies, it’s a stage,” he adds, looking up at the sun. “If you’re good, you will always be able to make it.”
Hall said, with God as his inspiration, he’s going to stick to performing in his hometown of Philly.
“If you can make it here, you can make it just about anywhere,” he says.
Chris’ Jazz Cafe: A Home For Real Jazz Fans.
Text by Jared Brey. Image by G.W. Miller III.
The casual jazz fan is an endangered specimen. On a scale of “bored by it” to “obsessed with it,” many folks fall on one end of the spectrum or the other, leaving the inhabitants of the sparsely populated middle to wander, often alone, unsatisfied with the bored crowd and unable to hang with the Real Jazz Fans.
That still-sizable crowd interested in jazz but not really committed to it may be the most important demographic.
Chris’ Jazz Café, a restaurant and venue at 1421 Sansom Street, is in many ways well-positioned to cater to that group.
Text and image by G.W. Miller III.
Homer Jackson worked at WRTI radio when it was an all-jazz station during the 1980s. Everyone working at the station then was young. Most were 25 or younger. “What person under 25 knows anything about jazz?” Jackson ponders.
He didn’t know much and neither did most of those around him, including Rich Nichols, who went on to become the longtime manager of The Roots. But they were a creative bunch that listened to whatever interested them, from bop to avant-garde to world music, and everything in between. That’s what they put on air.
“Each personality had a community they connected to,” Jackson remembers. “There was a quilt that was created.”
It all fell under the massive umbrella of jazz, which is really about the improvisational style of playing rather than a packaged musical genre. They did not remain confined within one definition of jazz.
“Jazz is a synthesis of everything that came before it,” Jackson says. “Jazz is an approach. Culture isn’t stagnant. Culture evolves.”
His experiences at the station stayed with him all these years, while music became more corporate and interest in jazz declined.
So last year, Jackson, a multidisciplinary artist who has received numerous grants and awards over the years, launched the Philadelphia Jazz Project. The mission is broad and ambitious — galvanize the base of jazz fans, reach new audiences and support the future of jazz by building bridges between different communities.
The organization began programming in February with a filmed community conversation with local music-thought leaders. They’ve held a few listening parties, where people gather to absorb and then discuss music, followed by live performances. Jackson wants the project to be a fertilizer for ideas — jazz and otherwise.
“I’m an instigator, in a way,” he says.
There is a bigger picture, beyond music, however.
Jackson, who grew up near Gratz and York streets in North Philly, just a few blocks away from his current home, wants to world to know about all the talent that exists in Philadelphia.
“It’s all here,” he says. “Why go anywhere else? Why go to New Orleans? It’s not so hot and our food’s not so salty.”
Joint Chiefs of Math: Born in The Basement.
Text by Ed Newton. Image by Abigail Reimold.
Kevin Keenan and Marcus Denke of Joint Chiefs of Math sit in Denke’s Northern Liberties space, recalling their first musical efforts together. It was 2006 when the two began collaborating at drummer Denke’s parents’ house in Emmaus, Pa. After a while, Keenan, a guitarist, started living there. It seemed easier since the two spent so much time with one another anyway. Keenan parked his beat-up van right outside the Denke family residence.
“My dad was so pissed,” Denke remembers.
The guys set up practice space in the basement and began writing songs.
The Districts Live (and Free) on Wednesday!
The Districts, new transplants to Philly after growing up in Lititz, PA, will perform a pop-up show on Wednesday at 7 PM thanks to the folks at Out of Town Films. It will be in a location to be announced later, in the Northern Liberties/Fishtown/South Kensington area.
To RSVP for the free show and get details, send an email to outoftownfilms@gmail.com.
The show will be filmed, with videos released in the coming weeks. So, you could become famous or something.
John Redden: Master of Ceremonies.
Text and images by Rick Kauffman.
Everything that happens in The Barbary is manufactured by meticulous design — the lights, temperature, music volume, even the employees and attendees. All are micro-managed to an extent by one man, John Redden.
He tweaks decks and flips nobs as a hundred-plus fill his bar to capacity. He’s bare-chested in a zipper-clad black leather vest, revealing his extensively tattooed torso and arms. A swarm of bats dyed into his skin crawls up his neck. On his jugular notch lies a black anchor with the text “Est. 2007,” marking the date he took ownership of The Barbary on Frankford Avenue. During “Hands and Knees” parties, attendees are stamped with a matching anchor on the back of their right hand.
Girls seductively dance on top of tables, beckoning boys closer. It’s all a show, just a tease.
The English Beat @ Eakins Oval.
As part of The Awesome Fest, a celebration of all things 80s, The English Beat performed at Eakins Oval Friday evening.
The Thatcher-era ska-rockers burned through their catalogue of Angl0-Carribean rhythms including “Twist & crawl,” “Can’t get used to losing you” and “Save it for later.”
They played along with the 80s theme with Antonee First Class, the toaster who essentially fills Ranking Roger‘s role, freestyle rhyming about things from that age, including Mork & Mindy and Ferris Beuller (which was the featured movie after the concert).
Several hundred people watched the free show, with a lot of aging Gen-xers dancing from start to end.
Dave Wakeling and the rest of his touring English Beat cohorts ended their set with “Ranking full stop,” “Mirror in the bathroom” and General Public’s “Tenderness.”
And then a huge group of people went to the other end of the oval and watched the John Hughes classic film.
JUMP: The Philly Music Project 