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(04/03/19 5:01am)
Audiotree describes their Far Out series as a, "series where we step outside our studio to record artists in unusual environments." Far Out serves as their artsier outlet, where bands perform in unique locations around Chicago (where Audiotree is based), shot in rich colors and in one continuous shot, taking full advantage of the space. With one band performing two songs, it's a great way to get introduced to new music or to see your favorite band in a whole new light. Listed below are a few of my favorites, which is by no means exhaustive, and I would encourage anyone to check out the series to find their own favorites.
(04/02/19 12:02am)
Fresh off their 2018 album For Ever, British modern soul/funk band Jungle stopped off in Philadelphia on March 20 as part of their world tour from Kiev to Sydney. Jungle first came on stage to “Smile,” the opening track off For Ever, to much applause from the crowd. “Smile” is an uplifting, energetic hit, and Jungle certainly made a point to set off their performance on a high note.
(04/06/19 1:34am)
After several days of speculation about the end of Philadelphia’s Trocadero Theatre, owner Joanna Pang confirmed that the music venue would be closing in late May. Established in Chinatown in 1870, the Trocadero Theatre originally showed musical comedies under the name Arch Street Opera House. Throughout the years, it has served as a stage for vaudeville and burlesque shows, an art house cinema and fine arts theater, a dance club, and finally its current use as a concert hall and live music venue. Listed on the U.S. Register of Historic Places, the Trocadero has served as a center of Philadelphia’s culture throughout history.
(03/29/19 1:42am)
As all former emo middle schoolers know, the territory came with a set of mostly embarrassing rites of passage: having a tantrum in your local Hot Topic when parents wouldn’t buy yet another Avenged Sevenfold t-shirt, cutting lopsided bangs, crying in the middle school cafeteria when My Chemical Romance broke up. However, a true mark of the emo experience was Vans Warped Tour, a traveling summer music festival that birthed rock and punk legends like Paramore, Dropkick Murphys, Blink–182, and oddly enough, Katy Perry.
(03/24/19 11:08pm)
On Monday, March 18, Khalid’s team brought his Free Spirit College Experience Tour to Drexel University’s campus to promote his new album and its accompanying short film. Drexel and Penn students alike lined up beside the Drexel Dragon and a replica van from the film to get free merchandise, photo opportunities, and pizza. The merchandise ran out in just 10 minutes.
(03/28/19 9:41pm)
For decades now, it’s been cool for rock bands to sound bad. With the mechanization of pop–rock came a fleet of disenchanted indie rockers pushing back against the norm with gritty records full of fuzz.
(03/24/19 11:51pm)
From the moment PennSori, Penn's pop/K–pop a capella group, began its Spring concert with a medley of songs from internationally renowned Korean band BTS, an immediate infectious energy filled the Houston Hall Class of ’49 Auditorium. People didn’t need to understand all of the words to enjoy the sheer passion in the performance.
(04/23/19 5:50am)
To invoke a little Forrest Gump, listening to music should be like a box of chocolates—you should never know what you're going to get. A twist of a radio dial or a scroll down a curated Spotify playlist should bring discovery, unearthing new favorite artists, forgotten throwbacks, and genres so obscure you question their existence. My point: the social media age has made the music industry, in theory, an all–inclusive party. It takes mere minutes to become a Soundcloud rapper, and even less time for fans to find the song, share it with their friends, and make fun of you for being a Soundcloud rapper. Nowadays, virtually anyone can make music, and anyone can listen.
(03/19/19 12:11am)
On Monday, March 18, at 8 p.m., the Social Planning and Events Committee (SPEC) released the lineup for the 2019 Spring Fling Concert: Miguel and J.I.D.
(03/29/19 1:16am)
Schoolboy Q had dropped no new music since the release of his Blank Face LP in 2016, despite promising on Instagram that a new album was nearly done in September of 2017. On March 15, he dropped "Numb Numb Juice," a hard-hitting two–minute track and the first single off his upcoming album. The menacing track marks Q’s first solo cut in three years, and it undoubtedly shows that the rapper from South Central Los Angeles hasn’t lost a single step.
(04/16/19 2:00pm)
Gesaffelstein, one of the leaders of the futuristic, dark, and glitchy electronic music movement, perhaps set the bar too high with his debut album, Aleph, released in 2013. His sophomore album, Hyperion, sounds similar to Aleph, but without the edge or bite. Indeed, one could go so far as to call Hyperion a step back from Aleph, as the 10–track, 40–minute album is mostly filled with forgettable filler and a couple memorable tracks. The French DJ, otherwise known as Mike Levy, has shown in the past that he has the capability to produce intriguing and unique sounds, but as far as fascinating beats go, almost all tracks on Hyperion miss the mark.
(03/21/19 8:39pm)
The Australian music scene is booming right now, with several bands exceeding the borders of the Land Down Under. As the groups become bigger, many are making their way to the states for tours, frequenting festivals and Philadelphia venues. Regardless of where all this musical genius is coming from, better to brush up on the hottest bands from the Outback now rather than later:
(03/21/19 4:39am)
RFA, a band of hometown friends recently named one of the 10 Artists You Should Know from Philadelphia by NPR, is a lot of things. When I ask a simple question—"who is the band?"—a veritable smorgasbord of answers, varying in seriousness and pretension, were thrown at me.
(03/23/19 6:40pm)
This past year has seen the return of the cowboy. Musicians from both country and indie genres have been referring to cowboys in their songs and often embodying the cowboy ethos in their performance. Some wear a cowboy hat and flannel, while other are adopting this persona in more subtle ways. Although there are many iterations of the cowboy in contemporary music, a few common themes run through their music: A cowboy is an adventurous outsider, relishing the freedom of being on the move and not tied down.
(03/19/19 5:38am)
Kansas City native folk rocker and fearless nomad Kevin Morby has announced his fifth solo record, Oh My God. The former Woods bassist and The Babies singer made a name for himself with his acclaimed releases, the latest being 2017’s City Music. On this upcoming double LP, Morby conceptually explores the human experience through religion, as is noted by a recent press release:
(03/19/19 1:17am)
Three years after releasing her previous album, A Seat at the Table, Solange came out with When I Get Home on March 1st. While A Seat at the Table acted as Solange’s explicit commentary on issues of race, gender, and existentialism, When I Get Home completely diverges from this concept in its abstractness and fluidity of sound; at times it appears to be more of an artistic statement than an album.
(03/20/19 12:38am)
I wasn’t the oldest non–parent seeing Set it Off at Union Transfer on March 3—that honor belonged to my twenty–one–year–old friend—but I was the tallest, often several inches above the brace–faced and pimply high school students surrounding us in the pit. I came from the punk and hardcore scenes, and my friend from metal—both genres prone to raucous shows with headbanging, moshing, and even a few walls of death. We had survived acts like The Descendents and Marilyn Manson. Surely we could go just as hard as an audience not yet old enough for a driver’s license. Instead, we left that show with no voice, agonizing pain from neck to lower back, and the uncomfortable realization that we might be getting too old for this.
(03/14/19 6:21pm)
In 2013, Irish musician Andrew Hozier–Byrne, known as Hozier, released his single “Take Me to Church” as part of his debut EP of the same name. At the time, Hozier was a struggling musician, writing and recording his music in the attic of his parent's home. Originally available as a free online download, this single went on to be a massive international success. Contributing to the single’s popularity was its music video featuring a relationship between two men and the bigotry that they face. Paired with religious terminology, this soulful ballad reflects Hozier's frustration with the Catholic Church and broader societal institutions that shame sexuality. Despite its contentious nature, the song tied with the Imagine Dragons’ "Radioactive" for the longest–running number–one song on Billboard’s Hot Rock Songs chart and was certified five times platinum in the US. “Take Me to Church” is as musically significant as it is culturally significant.
(03/15/19 9:28pm)
In a recent interview with Teen Vogue, Norwegian wunderkind Sigrid said she “wants songs with three emotions in one,” layering pop's classic bubblegum softness with feelings of anxiety, hopefulness, and liberation. At only 22 years old, Sigrid has an ironclad grip on her emotions. Named BBC's Sound of 2018, she bounces between emotive peaks and valleys all in the span of a verse on songs like “Strangers” and “Don't Kill My Vibe,” echoing the upbeat catharsis of ABBA—the most iconic Scandinavian crossover group. Sigrid's debut album, Sucker Punch, which she co–wrote and arranged, delivers more of her signature style, exploding with the sentiments and wide–eyed optimism of a girl poised to become pop's next darling.
(03/14/19 6:27pm)
Saint Paddy's Day is right around the corner, and there's no better time to make a pre–darty playlist featuring the best artists from the "Emerald Isle". Whether you're from Dublin or you're only Irish on this one day a year, Ireland certainly has some excellent music that's worth a listen. Here's a breakdown of the best artists from Ireland.
