Folkadelphia Session: On The Water (celebrating the release of their record ‘False Starts’ on Friday)

I would like to take this opportunity to formally nominate On The Water to become the house band for every West Philly basement. If you haven’t yet had the chance to experience these musical ne’er-do-wells in the underbelly of a row house or warehouse, crammed inside with a ton of other sweaty, excited human beings, clutching a can in one hand and your fist in the other, well, you’ve been missing out. That all can change when On The Water, led by Fletcher VanVliet and featuring a variably sized collective of musical cohorts and companions on your various stringed, percussive, and amplified instruments, celebrates the release of their brand new, barely broken in record False Starts at Beaumont Wherehouse on this coming Friday, April 12th.

In fact, a West Philly basement might be the perfect modern equivalent to a pirate’s galley. Maritime terminology notwithstanding, On The Water craft the same kind of raucously muscular songs and chants that could easily translate to the theme music for the oarsmen on the deck of a ship (or perhaps as the last sounds a traitorous soul hears as he is committed to walk the plank). Both have a primal energy that demands attention, participation, and respect – and perfection and gloss be damned! That’s what makes False Starts and this Folkadelphia Session so great and fun to listen to – it’s raw and real.

On The Water (operating as a six piece band) recorded these songs, both new and old, at the XPN Performance Studio on February 26th, 2013 before embarking on tour. They return to officially release their new album False Starts on Friday, April 12th at Beaumont Wherehouse.