The folks over at Kung Fu Necktie are having themselves quite a Tuesday. Earlier today, it was announced that Dr. Dog would perform at KFN a week from today. (Tickets, predictably, immediately sold out.) Well, just now, The Dead Milkmen have announced that they’ll be performing their new album, The King In Yellow, at a special “Hometown Holiday Show” at KFN on December 10th. Tickets to the show are $15 and available here; all tickets holders will get a free download card for the new album.
Blog Archives
Watch the new video for The Roots’ “Stomp”
Okayplayer premiered the third in the series of four new videos from The Roots’ forthcoming album undun today, which you can watch below. The album is coming out on December 6th. You can watch the first video (for the track “Make Me”) here; the second video (for “Tip The Scale” featuring Dice Raw) can be found here.
Philly Local Philes: Gracie’s “Sisters”
Yesterday, Philly music bloggers collectively went abuzz over the latest offering from Andrew Balasia, aka Gracie: a collaborative track called “Quilts” recorded with Stefaloo (the monicker of Los Angeles multimedia artist Steph Thompson). With Gracie appearing at Johnny Brenda’s tonight, we thought it prudent to remind you that his suave downtempo electropop did not materialize out of nowhere. Today’s XPN2 Philly Local Phile spotlights “Sisters,” a bubbling number The Key brought you last month. Watch the video stream the music below.
Gracie- Sisters from andrew balasia on Vimeo.
Tonight’s Concert Picks: The Kooks at The Trocadero, Girl In A Coma at North Star Bar
The Kooks are reminiscent of a modern day Brit-rock Invasion. Embodying various components of The Beatles, The Kinks, and The Rolling Stones, The Kooks uses formulaic musical tactics that have been proven repeatedly successful by its predecessors. On the band’s third album, Junk Of The Heart, Luke Pritchard’s nasally vocals are backed by classic rock arrangements that build to satisfying, but simple choruses. These choruses and verses are composed of minimal instrumentation with straightforward chord progressions; the lyrics themselves are accessible, not overly cryptic or deep. Though the band may not be the most poetic or musically innovative, the music is enjoyable pop/rock that mirrors that of its Brit-Rock forerunners. The Kooks perform with The Postelles at 8 p.m. at The Trocadero Theatre; tickets to the show are SOLD OUT. —Caitlyn Grabenstein
It is Nina Diaz’s voice that saves Girl in A Coma from fading into the rut of female punk oblivion. Unlike the San Antonio three-piece’s contemporaries (such as The Vivian Girls—or The Donnas before them), Girl in A Coma vetoes the simplistic nature of punk-inspired vocals and instead offers front woman Diaz’s subtle vibrato and surprising sensuality. Even in the breathy track, “Smart,” which was released earlier this month on the band’s fourth and latest album, Exits And All The Rest, Diaz’s voice has a discernable strength resting beneath her attempted whispers. It is a refreshing sound to hear in female punk, and comes a little unexpectedly if judging solely on the band members’ tattoos and Converse shoes. Though signed to Joan Jett’s Blackheart label, the group cites influences from outside of the monotone-chant-singing genre, the band most explicitly paying honor to The Smiths and Radiohead. Though those are lofty names to drop, the band shows potential for that kind of success—or at least enough to out-sing its competitors. Girl In A Coma performs with Coathangers and Brothers of Brazil at 8 p.m at North Star Bar; tickets to the 21+ show are $12. —Marielle Mondon
