Text by Gabi Chepurny. Images by Jesse Marass.
People with Mohawks, studded-denim vests and Doc Marten’s congregated on South Street last Wednesday to see legendary punks Dead Kennedys.
Boston natives Burning Streets opened the night with accents and a glittering drum kit. Bassist Jewlz rocked a “Keep Calm and Eat Shit” T-shirt. While we weren’t necessarily surprised we were still please with his wardrobe choice.
Reagan Youth, which has gone through more than a few lineup changes since its inception in 1980, brought their “Anarchy + Peace & Unity” ethos to the Theatre of Living Arts, while pint-sized frontman Trey Oswald commanded the audience’s attention from the stage and in the pit.
Bassist and South Philly resident Tibbie X yelled, “I live right down the street so I’m sure you’ve seen me walking around here. Let’s hang out!”
Dan King: The King of Music Videos.
Text by Tyler Horst. Image by Kate Harrold.
If the name of Dan King‘s Old City photography studio, Overkill Studio, is inspired by anything in particular, it’s certainly not the design aesthetic. The space is roomy and bare – and just a little bit cold on a winter afternoon – accented by a few works of oozing street art mounted on formal canvases. Sectioned off by a makeshift wall to protect his gear from his artist friend’s spray paint, King’s side of the studio looks like a blank slate – ready to be transformed into just about anything.
Sitting down at a table made from found wood, rescued on a whim, the music photographer and videographer begins to elaborate on the importance of spontaneity.
“I approach video kind of like a jam session,” he says. “I’ll have some sort of weird prop or little conceptual thing and shoot around that and have fun.”
He’s not just pulling stuff out of thin air though. King’s foray into the visual side of music began many years ago as a digital media student at Drexel University. During his senior year, he started interning with two.one.five magazine, shooting shows and slowly getting access to the movers and shakers in local music. From there, his talent took him where he needed to go.
“The Philly music scene is super tight-knit,” explains King.
One contact usually leads to another, and lasting relationships with musicians can produce some pretty stellar work.
“Some bands get to work with someone who really helps them grow, and Dan is that for us,” says Dominic Angelella of indie-pop act DRGN King, the band that King has worked most closely with. “There’s a synchronicity in the relationship.”
It’s only when you know somebody really well that you can throw a party at his house, film it and turn it into a music video – which is essentially what happened for DRGN King when King shot “Wild Night.”
Hot Bijouxx: Mad For Jazz.
Text and image by Matthew Leister.
F. Scott Fitzgerald famously called the 1920s the “Jazz Age.” Tin Pan Alley was brimming with joints woven together with flappers and gangsters drinking hooch and listening to swinging bands. With its rebellious nature and underground reputation, jazz challenged classical music in many ways – it was for the mad ones.
Today, in Philadelphia, jazz is coming full-circle and gaining more traction as younger audiences discover the art form. Trendy bars and restaurants are booking more and more jazz acts. Speakeasies are booming, as well as the swing that traditionally accompanies them. It is no longer rare, and therefore, harder to stand out in the musical crowd.
Hot Bijouxx stands out.
Jade Alston: The Survivor.
Text by Aneesah Coley. Image courtesy of Jasmine Alston.
Jade Alston is a self-proclaimed “Philly jawn.” She’s lived all over the city but grew up primarily around 7th Street and Girard Avenue, where her mother owned a preschool.
The 26-year-old singer/songwriter remembers when she first made it her goal to pursue music. It was when she was 15, on the day that Ashanti’s self-titled debut album dropped. Impressed by seeing the budding songstress’ name underneath each and every song, Alston immediately put in motion her own plan to become a songwriter.
“It was so dumb but I was trying,” remembers Alston, thinking of the first song she ever wrote. She smiles, unable to hold back a small laugh.
Alston has since released two EPs, Single On a Saturday Night and its follow-up, Sunday Morning: Single On a Saturday Night Pt. 2. She classifies both records as contemporary rhythm and blues, unlike the style of music she plans to present on her upcoming album, We Will Live.
“They can expect something classic, something timeless, something that maybe you wouldn’t expect from a jawn,” Alston says with a laugh, explaining what her fans will hear on the new album. “They can expect an honest musical body of work that’s very relatable.”
She’s more recently found herself drawn to acoustic music and live instrumentation.
“A lot of the music has really humble beginnings,” says Alston’s younger sister, Tyler Miller, who served as a producer and writer on We Will Live. “It usually starts out with me playing the guitar and building in production from there. So you should expect to hear real instruments with an interesting alternative folk/rock/pop edge fused with Jade’s classic R&B origins.”
Fans, both new and old, should be pleased.
“The new sound is definitely something never before done and I, for one, have fallen in love with it,” Miller continues.
We Will Live, set to be released on July 1, serves as a symbol of Alston’s rediscovery of the importance of life and following one’s dreams, a revelation born after facing a life-threatening diagnosis of Myocarditis – inflammation of the heart muscle.
At one point during her stay in the hospital, she recalls having nearly a liter of fluid around each lung.
“I thought I was not gonna live,” she admits.
Unable to breathe or lay back, she was forced to sleep in a recliner for nearly two months.
Now she says there’s nothing that really scares her in life.
After recovering and successfully fundraising more than $7,000 via a Kickstarter campaign, she has proved herself to be not only a successful independent artist, but a survivor, too.
Text and images by Paul Imburgia.
Last week, on Friday the 13th, West Philadelphia’s Millcreek Tavern found itself home to an unhallowed horde of crust punks, greebos and metalheads.
For any diehard speed metal fan, the lineup was no less than salivating, sporting acts like ShitFucker (above) and Midnight, courtesy of Philadelphia’s own DIY metal promoter, Falloutzine.
Tigers Jaw @ Union Tranfer.
Text and images by Darragh Dandurand.
I could smell the sweat of teenagers-off-the-leash before I even made my way into Union Transfer on Monday night to see Tigers Jaw.
There was a line out the door flooded with little scenesters and mosh-ready kids, some almost passing for sixteen years old. In mesh baseball caps, cut-off shorts and T-shirts with barely known band names screened across them, the largely 21 and under crowd plowed into the venue as one big, hormonal mass.
Want to see prog metal rockers Between The Buried and Me at the TLA next Monday with Alustrium, Kaonashi and Cognitive?
Hit us up at FreeJUMPstuff@gmail.com (please give us your full name and put “BTBAM” in the subject line). We’ll announce winners on Friday.
If you don’t want to take a chance, you can purchase tickets here.
tUnE-yArDs @ Union Transfer with Sylvan Esso.
Text by Kyle Bagenstose. Images by Grace Dickinson.
About halfway through Sunday night’s packed-to-the-rafters tUnE-yArDs show at Union Transfer, it occurred to me I was going to have a damn hard time describing what I was seeing and hearing. Various words popped into mind – creative, unique, eclectic – but all seemed too cliché and nondescript.
Hell, before the Oakland, California based band even took to the stage I knew I was in trouble. I counted about a dozen different percussion instruments on stage, one of which appeared to be a conical piece of metal pulled from a scrap heap and another an odd looking drum that was possibly a djembe, according to photographer Grace Dickinson (“I took an African drumming class,” she said).
Wreckless Eric @ The Tin Angel.
Text and images by G.W. Miller III.
In between songs last week at The Tin Angel, Wreckless Eric regaled the sparse crowd with anecdotes about his 40 plus years in the music business. He walked everyone through his life, starting with some early memories.
“I seem to be obsessed with 1962,” he said to the three dozen people in attendance. “That was when my parents bought a record player. I just took over the record player.”
He was just a lad then, growing up on the southern coast of England, and the music he listened to had a massive impact on him.
“I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for that record player,” he offered, adding as a joke, “maybe it wasn’t the best thing.”
Steve Firth From JR’s: “There’s No Excuse For Any of This. It Fucking Makes Me Sick to My Stomach.”
Things got messy on Saturday night when a woman was punched in the face between sets at Jr’s.
Things got messier the next morning, when a witness took to facebook and launched a campaign to stop people from patronizing the South Philly venue that has been a punk stronghold in a changing neighborhood.
“I am both saddened and disgusted by the events that took place last night at Jr’s bar,” she wrote (we’re not linking to the original post because it’s on her personal page). “I am writing this with hopes that neither you or your friend ever book shows or patronize this hate filled, sexist establishment again.”
Her post was shared more than 250 times, including on numerous group pages. Here’s some of what she wrote (directly cut and paste from a re-post):
“They then started shouting at her and told her to get the fuck out. She said ok and turned to grab her back pack and leave when one of the older south philly guys grabbed her by the shoulder and punched her hard in the face. Things quickly escalated, and all of these things happened within a span of about 10 seconds. Most people (the 8 people not playing) were outside smoking and heard the commotion, one of them being the victims sister. Naturally, she ran inside to see what was happening and found her sister trying to protect herself in what was almost a full throttled bar fight against 4 old south philly guys. Everyone tried to hold everyone back and stop things from getting even more out of control. We just wanted to leave as quickly as possible. The girl who was punched hit one of the older men in the head with a beer bottle.”
Last night, our G.W. Miller III caught up with Steve Firth, the lone staffer at Jr’s. Steve, who has performed in numerous bands over the years, is the reason there have been shows at the South Philly social club for the last seven years. He books shows, tends bar, runs sound and basically does everything in between. He was there when the craziness occurred.
What happened on Saturday?
Full disclosure – I did not see everything. I just talked to as many people as I could and tried to formulate my opinions of how the event escalated.
What I gather is that the dude who booked the show was playing his set. His stuff was pretty cool. I was into it – mellow, folky, depressing. It was good stuff. I liked it.
The owner is there. I don’t know what he said, something like, “Can’t you play something happy?”
Yeah, that’s a dick move. I’m not going to disagree. It’s something an asshole would say. But you kind of take it and roll with it.
I guess the girl took offense to his comments. Shit, it was her friend. I would too. If somebody was taking apart my friend, I’d be a little raw about it.
Where were you at this point? Read more…
JUMP: The Philly Music Project 