Mason Porter

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March 29, 2013 | 8:51 AM | By

Tonight’s Concert Picks: Dangerous Ponies and Slutever at MilkBoy, Pusha T at Union Transfer, Low Cut Connie at Johnny Brenda’s and more

PoniesDangerous Ponies will be playing at MilkBoy tonight in celebration of their brand new four-song EP Tenderheart. Released just this month, Dangerous Ponies shifts their sound between fun loving indie, as well as some pop influence, but mostly, it is just a plain good time. The new release can be found to buy on their Bandcamp, where you can also purchase the release on vinyl. Also to be taking the stage is Philadelphia’s two piece punk band Slutever. The duo has various material available on their Bandcamp, one of which is their single released in February of this year. Tickets and information for the 21 and up show can be found here. Below, listen to the title track off of Dangerous Ponies EP Tenderheart.

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FILED UNDER: Artists, Concert Previews, Events, News, Scene, Dangerous Ponies, Low Cut Connie, Mason Porter, pusha t, Slutever
January 22, 2013 | 3:52 PM | By

Unlocked: The Key’s review of Joe D’Amico’s A Short Time’s A Long Time

What does an eleven-minute folk song sound like, anyway?

Easy answer: Dylan’s “Desolation Row.” And that song has so many words upon words, verses upon verses – the fact that Dylan could keep it from collapsing under its own complexity is, to this day some 38 years down the road, remarkable.

But what of the musician who wants to stretch out, but doesn’t want to do it with pure verbage? Joe D’Amico of West Chester folk ensemble Mason Porter  found himself this quandary. He loves playing mandolin-led bluegrass music, and continues to do so, but as a songwriter had more expansive goals.

D’Amico’s eleven-minute song is called “Imagine My Surprise – Mother, Mother – Good Morning Child.” It appears on his latest LP, A Short Time’s A Long Time, which The Key is featuring this week in its Unlocked series. And it’s not folk in the slightest. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Album Reviews, Artists, Events, Recordings, Joe D'Amico, Mason Porter, Unlocked
August 18, 2012 | 12:52 PM | By

Photo Recap: Friday at Philadelphia Folk Fest with Mason Porter, Pokey La Farge and more

Day two at the 51st annual Philadelphia Folk Festival brought an eclectic assortment of styles, including the mandolin-led local combo Mason Porter; Dante Bucci, a virtuoso of the hang drum; new singer-songwriter Zach Stock; Philly-area favorite Griz; buzzing old-timey combo Pokey La Farge and the South City Three; veteran country-folk singer Mary Chapin Carpenter; and the raging eclecticism of the Voice of the Wetland Allstars, who bounced from blues to zydeco to boogie and rock like it was their job. Which it pretty much was. Check out a gallery above.

FILED UNDER: Artists, Concert Photos + Videos, Events, Dante Bucci, Griz, Levi Landis, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Mason Porter, Philadelphia Folk Festival, Pokey La Farge, Voices of the Wetlands Allstars, Zach Stock
July 8, 2012 | 11:30 AM | By

Celebrate Woody Guthrie’s 100th birthday with Mason Porter, Hezekiah Jones and more (tonight at World Cafe Live)

Next Saturday marks the 100th birthday of the man who charted the course of American folk music as we know it, Woody Guthrie. In celebration, a roster of regulars from the Philadelphia folk scene are converging on the World Cafe Live stage tonight to pay tribute in song. Led by long-standing West Chester folk trio Mason Porter, the bill will feature Hezekiah Jones, ubiquitous harmonica player Bob Beach, local troubador John Flynn, piano-playing storyteller Ben Smith, host of The Folk Show on WXPN and regional folk guru Gene Shay, and many more. Members of the Philadelphia Folksong Society receive a $2 discount at the door, and a portion of the show’s proceeds will benefit the Lansdowne Folk Club. The Woody Guthrie 100th Birthday Celebration With Mason Porter and Friends takes place at World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut Street, tonight at 7 p.m. Admission to the all-ages show is $10.

FILED UNDER: Artists, Concert Previews, Events, Ben Smith, Bob Beach, Hezekiah Jones, John Flynn, Lansdowne Folk Club, Mason Porter, Philadelphia Folksong Society, Woody Guthrie, World Cafe Live
May 31, 2012 | 9:06 AM | By

Download Mason Porter’s new single “Blue Eyes Smile” (playing Appel Farm Fest on Saturday)

Among the mix of national heavyweights and XPN favorites on this weekend’s Appel Farm Music and Arts Festival (Dawes, Jukebox the Ghost, Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek) is the West Chester bluegrass combo Mason Porter, who are just gearing up to release a new batch of original tunes (following last year’s great covers LP Story of the Rifle). Below, you can grab a free download of Mason Porter’s first single from that body of new work, “Blue Eyes Smile,” and enjoy its swift picking and warm campfire harmonies. For more, check out the band’s Key Studio Session here.

FILED UNDER: Artists, Concert Previews, Downloads, Events, Recordings, Appel Farm Music and Arts Festival, Mason Porter
May 3, 2012 | 9:00 AM | By

Download The Key Studio Sessions Compilation Vol. 4 (feat. City Rain, Pink Skull, Lushlife, Chill Moody, + more)

Photo by Arrah Fisher

Special thanks to all of the bands for coming to our studio, and to John Vettese for recording them. We’d also like to thank volunteer production assistants Fred Knittel, Madeleine Lesperance, and Dan Malloy as well as photographers Kate Bracaglia, Corey Cohen, Sarah Fry, Shamus McGroggan, Noah Gabriel Merenda, Sylvia Ramirez, and Heidi Schlenzig for sharing their work.

Click here to download the 18-track compilation in its entirety as a .zip file. Want to hear more? Click here to listen to the full sessions by all 18 local acts; you can also download The Key Studio Sessions Compilation Volume I, Volume 2, and Volume 3.

Playlist:
Zakee “Spotlight”
City Rain “Real Good”
Pink Skull “Oh, Monorail”
Mason Porter “Back To Where We Started From”
Univox “What’s More”
Arrah and the Ferns “Waterproof Gold Watch”
Acid Kicks “Take My Soul Away”
The Menzingers “Mexican Guitars”
Music For Headphones “Why”
Lushlife “Gymnopiede 1.2″
Griz “The Secret In The Garden”
New Sweden “Saint, Don’t You Lie”
Sunny Ali and the Kid “Stop the Haiti”
Peasant “Girls”
Chill Moody “Cotton”
Little Big League “St. John’s”

FILED UNDER: Recordings, Acid Kicks, Arrah and the Ferns, Chill Moody, City Rain, Griz, Little Big League, Lushlife, Mason Porter, Music for Headphones, New Sweden, Peasant, Pink Skull, Sunny Ali and the Kid, The Key Studio Sessions, The Key Studio Sessions Compilation, The Menzingers, Univox, Zakee
February 11, 2012 | 6:02 PM | By

Dawes, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Rodney Crowell playing Appel Farm Arts & Music festival in June


WXPN Welcomes the Appel Farm Arts & Music Festival on Saturday, June 2nd. The initial lineup includes Dawes, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Rodney Crowell, Cheryl Wheeler, Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek, Mason Porter, Quincy Mumford & The Reason Why and more to be announced. Tickets are available here.

FILED UNDER: Artists, Events, News, Appel Farm Arts & Music Festival, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Dawes, Mason Porter, Sara Watkins