So, you haven’t been paying attention to pro hoops this season? Fear not, I have. Here’s what you need to know:

Lebron James is really good at basketball. If you stopped caring after Michael Jordan retired, here is your reentry point.

Lebron is currently enjoying a level of sustained dominance we’ve only seen from Michael Jordan (if you don’t believe me, check out the advanced metrics), but in a totally different way. His preposterous speed, power and finishing ability gets lots of deserved ink and SportsCenter real estate, but it’s the little things he does that set him apart from his contemporaries like Durant and Carmelo. Check out this pass:

It’s not flashy, but it is deadly. Incredible velocity, impossible to defend. There are maybe a handful of players in the league who can make a pass like that, and none of them have anything close to Lebron’s athleticism and skill set. It’s unfair.

Here’s another one:

And another:

And another:

Other things that make The Heat fascinating:

- Ray Allen: He ditched the Celtics because of a feud with Rajon Rondo, took less money to join the Heatles, is 59 years old and now the all-time leading three point shooter in both regular season and playoff history.

- Chris “Birdman” Anderson: Dennis Rodman-lite, Anderson has the craziest tattoos of any pro athlete and seems to change the vibe of the game the moment he checks in.

- Chris “VelociRaptor” Bosh: One of the homeliest players since Sam Cassell, Bosh is on the short list of legit power forwards who can change a game from beyond the arc along with Durant, Kevin Love and Dirk, and is a perfect superstar-as-role-player.

- Juwan Howard: 63 years old, somehow still getting paid to play basketball, impossibly well groomed.

- Mike Miller: He played with a destroyed lower back in last year’s finals, he’s capable of spurts of incredible play, super gutty. Check this shit out

- “Positionless Basketball” – The Heat are pioneering what they call “positionless basketball”: surrounding Lebron and/or Dwayne with a squad deadly long distance shooters. It spreads the defense wide open and creates a nightmare of mismatches. it’s a Moneyball-esque paradigm shift.

- Shane Battier: He’s hilarious and erudite off the court, as clutch as it gets on the court; the second coming of Robert Horry.

None of this means Miami is going to sleepwalk their way to a second consecutive title. They have vulnerabilities and, like every other team, are an injury or two away from elimination on their best day. But if you love greatness, or love to root against it, here is your muse.

The New York Knicks are relevant for the first time since Patrick Ewing was in short pants.

It’s been a long drought in the basketball capital of the world, but the combination of superstar scoring (Carmelo is sort of the Dominique to Lebron’s MJ), an improved defense (Tyson Chandler is one of the few elite post defenders in the league), veteran savvy (Jason Kidd is 67 years old and still a valuable asset), prolific outside shooting (the Knicks broke records this year in that regard) and a great bench (sixth man of the year J.R. Smith has perhaps the hottest heat check in the league–think John Starks with more tattoos). They are a real long shot for the title, but things are interesting for the ‘Bockers for the first time in a while.

Kevin Durant is 14 years old.

If you’ve watched Sportscenter at all this year, you know Durant’s age, height (6’11″) and skill set have got to give the rest of the league indigestion, Miami included. This year Durant shot 51% from the field, 42% from beyond the arc and 91% percent from the stripe, good enough to place him in the rarified 40-50-90 club. This is a big deal. He joins Larry Bird, Steve Nash, Reggie Miller, Mark Price and Dirk Nowitzki as the only players to ever accomplish the feat, and none of them ever won a scoring title. Durant already has three. In other words: dude is shooting a lot and it’s going in a lot. He’s crazy young, crazy good and playing beautiful basketball.

Everybody is injured.

Derrick Rose, Rajon Rondo, David Lee, Kobe Bryant, Danilo Gallinari, Danny Granger, Lou Williams and, now, Russell Westbrook (**side note** — I had been prepping a separate blog post about how, in light of this injury epidemic, Westbrook’s ability to never miss a game due to injury all the way through high school, college and the pros is one of the most amazing feats in sports — I’m very sorry for jinxing you, Russ) are all out with major injuries–key players on playoff teams. In addition, Dwayne Wade, Steph Curry, Tyson Chandler, Andrew Bogut, Manu Ginobli, Kenneth Faried, Chauncey Billups, Jeremy Lin and many more are dealing with physical issues. Every Laker, seemingly, has dealt with something. Amare Stoudemire recently had his second knee surgery of the season. Dwight Howard still hasn’t full recovered from back surgery and has a torn shoulder ligament. Rasheed Wallace came out of retirement and then went right back in because his feet didn’t work. Joakim Noah’s feet hurt like hell. One of my favorite players, Kevin Love, broke his hand twice this year and then topped it off by having knee surgery. Don’t even get me started on Andrew Bynum.

Why are there so many injuries? Basketball is a tough, physical game and it’s a long, arduous season, but this is getting hyperbolic. Are players paying the price for last year’s labor-dispute-compacted-schedule (which required every team to play at least one set of back-to-back-to-back games, 11 teams endured two such sets) and rigorous off-season summer schedules?

Injuries have always been a part of basketball, changing the course of games, deciding playoff series and ending careers prematurely. If anything, it creates another layer of drama and intrigue. But I just hate seeing a guy go to the floor holding his knee–I tore my ACL in a college intramural game and it haunts me to this day. The pop, the pain, the swelling, the long aftermath.

Sub-question: has there ever been a study of when injuries occur in games? Do more injuries happen, statistically, at the beginning of games when players are tight, or at the end of games when players are fatigued? This seems significant.

Kobe Bryant has completed the improbable transition from “unlikeable snot” to “villainous Jordan-wannabee” to “steely veteran closer” to “old school warrior” to “tragic hero”.

I never thought I’d come to respect Kobe after rooting against him for so long, but the man deserves our collective nod. He has been really good for a really long time, and watching him enter the “screw it, I’ll say whatever I want, I’m Kobe Bryant” phase of his career has been refreshing. I love the idea of him dressing down Dwight Howard after a game for lacking intensity and I love the idea of Dwight Howard having to swallow it because it’s Kobe Bryant. I’ll take old school, vindictive boastfulness over this new fangled smile-n-hug basketball any day. Get off my lawn, hoopsters, and hate each other more! Take a note from Larry and the Dr. and choke somebody in a preseason game! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4oF34p3-rQ)

At 34 Kobe had one of his best statistical seasons but it ended tragically with an achilles tear–a devastating injury for someone his age. The playoffs without him seem patently wrong and I sincerely hope he can come back and compete at a high level. I Can’t believe I just wrote that. On that note…

The Lakers just completed one of the most disastrous seasons in NBA history.

Some pundits predicted the Lakers, sporting a basketball fan’s wet dream of a starting line-up, would go 73-9. They finished 45-37 and barely squeaked into the playoffs before being utterly abused by their once-rivals San Antonio. Again, injuries were the storyline here.

Dwight Howard, the most dominant power player in the NBA for the past five seasons or so, never looked like himself after undergoing back surgery last season. He also tore a ligament in his shoulder and said a whole lot of dumb, dumb stuff.

Steve Nash, 81 years old, broke his leg early in the year and then suffered a laundry list of minor injuries that made him look like a YMCA scrub, not a first ballot hall-of-famer (I won’t even get into his “I just moved to LA” haircut).

Metta World Peace, at times the healthiest Laker, had arthroscopic knee surgery at the end of the season but somehow miraculously was playing again 12 days later–how did no one cry “steroids” when this happened? Also, can we just zoom out and reflect that there is a player who once beat the living shit out of a fan and then changed his name to Metta World Peace–stranger than the strangest fiction.

Pau Gasol tore his plantar fascia in the home stretch of the season and also dealt with a variety of other ailments, as well as the usual trade rumors. His brother is officially a better basketball player.

There were also emotional injuries: these guys didn’t even seem to like one another, let alone have that elusive championship chemistry. Google “kobe bryant dwight howard feud” and watch the millions of results pour in.

The Spurs are still really good.

They’ve made the playoffs 16 straight seasons, and counting. That’s half my life. With the West wide open, look for the Spurs to make a run. This is a good thing, they deserve to be the protagonists. A franchise built on loyalty, innovation, perseverance and humbleness insulates themselves from the corrupt world of professional sports and are the gold standard franchise in professional sports.

Gregg Popovich isn’t just the best coach in the NBA, he is the only coach in the NBA–meaning, he has absolute authority and essentially can’t be fired. He can bench whoever he wants, play whoever he wants and employ whatever scheme he wants. Do you really think Erik Spoelstra has absolute authority? His job is tied to the contentedness of Lebron and Dwayne and his leash is relatively short. Pat Riley looms large behind his back. He’s one losing streak away from a coaching change rumor. Pop, on the other hand, is the ultimate iconoclast: he runs his team the way he wants to, scorns publicity (check out him stonewalling court-jester Craig Sager: here) and absolutely does not suffer fools.

Tim Duncan is already a nearly unanimously considered the best power forward of all time, and improbably just had one of his best statistical seasons (apparently he changed his diet and leaned up). Tony Parker is still young, lightning fast and runs the team with efficiency (he’s not married to anyone famous anymore, so we can just talk about how he’s good at sports). Manu Ginobli, when healthy, has one of the most interesting profiles in NBA history–perhaps the best sixth man of the modern era. Oh yeah, there’s also the Red Rocket, the Sandwich Hunter, the Red Mamba, the runner up in this year’s three point shoot-out, Matt Bonner.

I think I’ll root for the Spurs.

Photo by Dominic Neitz | blackbookmag.com

Dave Hartley is a man of many roles. He’s the versatile bassist who performs regularly with The War on Drugs, and has joined the Lindsey Buckingham Appreciation Society, and Buried Beds on occasion. He’s the sonic mastermind behind Nightlands. He’s the scribe behind Top of The Key. Adding to this ever-growing list, you could now call Hartley a civic and cultural ambassador for the City of Philadelphia. The twelve-year resident recently took the folks at BlackBook Magazine out of Brooklyn and on a tour of Philadelphia, stopping at popular locals Letoah’s Coffee, Miner Street Recording, Loco Pez and more. Add into the mix a collection of stunning portraits by photographer Dominic Neitz and it’s a rich and multi-sensory look at our fair city. (I can almost smell the basil in the Pizza Brain photo.) Get a look at the article here.

The Great Unknown are also celebrating a record release tonight over at Johnny Brenda’s.  The local five-piece are setting forth So Strange and Loud into the physical world, following the album’s digital release last May.  With reflective melodies and intricate arrangements, the The Great Unknown strive to make connections with their audiences both through live performance and recorded material.  Tickets and information for tonight’s 21+ show with KC Jones and Ali Wadsworth can be found here.  Below, stream “The Laws of Energy” from So Strange and Loud.

XPN welcomes Martin Sexton to The Landis Theater tonight.  The singer-songwriter is a quintessentially American musician, blending a variety of traditional playing styles including country, rock, gospel and R&B.  Following up his 2010 LP Sugarcoating, Sexton released his Fall Like Rain EP last year.  Both efforts come after his commercial breakthrough with 2007′s Seeds, which debuted at #6 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart.  Tickets and information for tonight’s all-ages show with The Alternate Routes in Vineland, NJ can be found here.  Below, watch Martin Sexton perform “Can’t Stop Thinking ‘Bout You” with John Mayer.

Dave Hartley continues his busy start to the year with a Nightlands show at the Arden Gild Hall tonight.  The solo project of the War on Drugs’ bass player, Nightlands released its sophomore effort Oak Island last week.  The album fuses Hartley’s affinity for mystery and sci-fi with rollicking melodies and percussion, creating layer upon layer of rich textures through overdubbing and tape machine manipulation.  Hartley spoke with ArtInfo recently to share some of his recording techniques and tricks; read the full interview here.  Tickets and information for tonight’s show with School of Seven Bells can be found here.  Below, watch the video for “I Fell In Love With a Feeling.”

Nightlands | Photo by Matthew Davis

Prairie Empire stops by to record a Folkadelphia session [link]

Philly’s Nightlands celebrates the release of Oak Island at Kung Fu Necktie [link]

My Morning Jacket’s Jim James streams his new album, announces a Union Transfer show [link]

Philly rockers Free Energy get interviewed by a couple sixth graders [link]

Remembering versatile guitarist Jef Lee Johnson, who passed away at age 54 this week [link]

Indiepop five-piece Catnaps releases a new EP for free downloading [link]

Shoegazers Nothing will make the First Friday crowd wish they packed earplugs [link]

Lancaster folk trio The Stray Birds records a Key Studio Session, comes to World Cafe Live [link]

Philly rapper Chill Moody releases a mini-documentary of his December TLA show [link]

Thao Nguyen plays “We The Common” on a banjo, through a microphone, at a rally [link]

All week the Unlocked series features Almost Endless, the new LP from The National Rifle [link]

Said “people who sing well” were of Eliza Jones (of Buried Beds) and Jesse Moore (of Auctioneer/Ladies Auxiliary), who together with Hartley added heart and corporeality to songs which on record, twinkle with space-age mystery—while drummer Michael Johnson’s (Ape School) beats added velocity and momentum. The band’s 45-minute set drew from both new record Oak Island and earlier releases, and included covers of Fleetwood Mac’s “That’s All for Everyone” (Jones singing perfect counterpart) and Albert Hammond’s “99 Miles from LA. ”

Opener “Time and Place,” which also opens Oak Island, was a welcoming swarm of warm harmonies and Hartley’s taped-up guitar picking, easing in to a rolling road beat—while closer “300 Clouds,” off 2010’s Forget the Mantra, was equally alluring, with harmonies that grew and contracted like a bloom. But it was new single “So Far So Long” that proved a personal fave, the wiggly beat and drawn- out vocals luring the crowd into a hazy slow groove. If this is Nightlands, let us never leave.

Setlist
Time and Place
So It Goes
Slowtrain
Other People’s Pockets
That’s All for Everyone (Fleetwood Mac cover)
All the Way
So Far So Long
Born to Love
99 Miles from LA (Albert Hammond cover)
300 Clouds

The early part of the night saw offerings from Ape School’s Scott Churchman (joined by other members of Ape School) and Sun Airway’s Jon Barthmus. Both sets proved visceral and moody, as Churchman wove haunted melodies (incorporating the rare musical saw)—and Barthmus contributed live guitar and vocals to Sun Airway faves, the solo setting allowing for spontaneous, off-the-cuff delivery. A welcome treat indeed!

Nightlands celebrate the release of Oak Island tonight at Kung Fu Necktie.  Dave Hartley spent the brief quiet moments between touring and recording with The War on Drugs over the last few years concocting the many layers of his latest solo effort, out last week on Secretly Canadian.  In an interview with The Key’s Kate Bracaglia, Hartley noted that Island is “an evolution” from his Nightlands debut Forget the Manta and describes it as “more confident.”  Tickets and information for tonight’s 21+ show with Jon Barthmus (Sun Airway) and Scott Churchman (Ape School) can be found here.  Below, watch the sci-fi themed video for “I Fell In Love With a Feeling.”

Upstairs at Kung Fu Necktie, local indie quartet Catnaps will celebrate the impending release of their Shuteye EP (out January 29th).   The fuzzy pop / punk band took their sound in a new direction with last year’s Boys Drool, channeling a fusion of The Shangri Las and Vivian Girls on the follow-up to 2011′s debut Why Don’t You Whisper? A few weeks ago The Key premiered the video for Catnaps latest single “Cherry Lips,” which sees the band adding a sci-fi / electronic element to their sound and a cute music video just in time for Valentine’s Day.  Tickets and information for tonight’s 21+ show with Roof Doctor, Incorporated Village of Ghost and Oh Bree can be found here.  Watch the video for “Cherry Lips” below.

Also at Kung Fu Necktie tonight, Ladyfest will hold its first benefit show in conjunction with Sugar Town‘s 12th Anniversary.  The activism, arts & music festival will return to Philadelphia for the first time in 10 years this summer.  Hosted by local comedienne Juliet Hope Wayne, the event will include sets by Radiator Hospital, Bike Crash and Batty.  Tickets and information for the 21+ event can be found here.  Below, stream “Andy Griffith” from Radiator Hospital’s Some Distant Moon.

XPN welcomes Garland Jeffreys to The Sellersville Theater.  The Brooklyn musician will perform 1981′s Escape Artist in its entirety with his band, including classic fan favorites “Mystery Kids” and “Christine” alongside his cover of ? and the Mysterians “96 Tears.”  Though this is a retrospective evening, Jeffreys has continued to release critically acclaimed material over the course of his career, most recently with 2011′s The King of In Between.  Tickets and information for tonight’s show can be found here.  Below, watch the video for “Modern Lovers” from Escape Artist.

Oak

These days, scientists believe the phenomenon was likely caused by a sinkhole—although excavation groups today still continue to explore. When I ask Nightlands’ Dave Hartley how the tale relates to his new record, he tells me he’s drawn to the idea of “mystery without end.” “I think mystery is important in art,” he continues, over coffee at Kensington’s Leotah’s Place. “On record, I never let my voice be alone. I always cloak it in millions of itself. Maybe that’s an attempt to keep the mystery going…because the human ear always wants to hear a single voice. And I feel like I’m always pulling it away, dangling the carrot.”

Thick, echo-y, vocal layers are one key element of Nightlands, a solo project started a few years back by Hartley, most known for his role as bassist with The War on Drugs. As Nightlands, he boasts two records of complex, moving synth pop: 2010’s Forget the Mantra, and Oak Island, out this week on Secretly Canadian.

Compared to Mantra, which felt dreamy and dense, Hartley describes Oak Island as “more confident.” “It’s an evolution,” he adds, calling it the “next step” in an ever-changing musical journey.

The album was recorded fastidiously by Hartley, and mixed by Brian McTear. And while it features a slew of collaborators, Hartley states that the vision is solely his own. “I’m very autocratic,” he explains frankly. “And that’s fine, because I’ve collaborated my whole life with other people. This is the one place where I want to call the shots.”

In addition to playing bass with The War on Drugs, Hartley’s played and toured with Sondre Lerche and recorded with Sharon Van Etten, in addition to lending a hand (or a voice) to countless other projects. These different experiences have shaped his process, and opened him up to the possibilities for creation.

“The thing I’ve learned [from working with all these people] is that there’s every way of doing something,” he says, delving into the details. “Sondre, for example, is a true craftsman when it comes to songwriting. He’s diligent, and approaches it like an old school, Brill-Building artisan. And that’s his way.” He pauses. “Sharon, on the other hand, is just this bleeding heart. She’s all emotion, and she’ll show you her vulnerability in this way that will disarm you. And that’s her way.” He pauses again. “And Adam [Granduciel, of The War on Drugs] is way more guarded. He won’t show you that vulnerability—but he will find one chord that makes you feel something. And he’ll put his foot on that pedal, and just explore it.” He grins.

As for Hartley’s own process, he admits he approaches it “more like a scientist.”  “I’ll start early in the day, and I’ll go for 8 hours. I think of it as a lab,” he adds, noting that he comes from a family of scientists and is a bit of a black sheep due to his decision to pursue music.

Luckily, when it comes to recording, a scientist’s meticulous approach can be useful—especially when collaging together dozens of independent pieces.

“I played probably 98% of the instruments on the record,” says Hartley, whose previously noted “autocratic” mentality is a point of pride. “I’m very isolationist when I record—which actually I love—because when you’re isolated you can make some really strange things. But there are other people that play on it too. It’s a fun way to gauge people’s responses.”

Contributors on Oak Island include Granduciel and (The War on Drugs’) Robbie Bennett, plus Eric Slick (Dr. Dog, Norwegian Arms), Michael Johnson (Ape School), and many other local musicians and friends.

“It’s a very thick record, so even though I played most of the instruments, there was still a lot of room for collaborators,” says Hartley, adding that the record features myriad vocalists in particular. “Honestly, what I’d do [when recording] was invite a friend over to come listen to what I was working on and see what they thought. Then I’d be like, ‘hey, you should sing on it.’” He smiles. “It’s funny how the music business, as you go along, just becomes this big book of friends. It really is a business of relationships and friendships. You just couldn’t be successful if you’re not a likeable person.”

Hartley will celebrate Oak Island’s release this Saturday, January 26 at Kung Fu Necktie, before hitting the road with Efterklang in mid-February. Adapting his songs for live performance is a constant challenge, but one that Hartley “refuses to let influence how I record.”

“The advantage [of tour] is no one knows my band really. So I’m not greeting this expectation,” he says, adding that the focus will be more on vocals and vocal harmonies. “For the last record, I got really tangled up in technology—trying to recreate everything with samplers, and vocal harmonizers, and all these synthesizers—and this time I was just like, I want to get some people who sing really well, and we’ll just sing together,” says Hartley, who’s bringing along Eliza Jones (of Buried Beds) and Jesse Moore (of Auctioneer/Ladies Auxiliary). “If you have that foundation, it’s gonna be fine.”

Other plans include recording a new War on Drugs record in February (“Adam’s new songs are stellar,” says Hartley) and delving into hobbies such as basketball, science fiction, and running, because “life is short, and everything is interesting.” Music however, remains number one.

“I’m lucky enough that I haven’t had a job outside of music for a few years…it’s hard,” he says, sipping his drink. “I’ve been working towards this my whole life.”

Still, if all musical avenues tank, Hartley admits he has a secret back-up plan:

“I may seclude myself and try to write a science fiction novel,” he says with a grin. “I have a lot of ideas, and it’s something I always wanted to do.”

Nightlands play Kung Fu Necktie at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 26. Tickets for the 21+ show are $10; more information is available here.

Photo courtesy of Secretly Canadian Records

Philly’s own Dave Hartley is poised to release his second album under the moniker Nightlands.  The album, Oak Island, is streaming on WNYC’s Soundcheck blog and its easy, rhythmic intimacy mysteriously (possibly intentionally) could not be farther from a reflection of Hartley’s recent schedule.  As the bassist for the ever-busy The War on Drugs (Kurt Vile’s Philadelphia-based group), Hartley’s year included a recent appearance on Jimmy Fallon, months of international touring (including playing Primavera Sound in Barcelona), and evenings of back-to-back shows, such as two nights over New Year’s at Johnny Brenda’s to raise money for MANNA.  Somehow, Hartley found time to finish Oak Island, which has been in the making since he wrapped up his debut Forget the Mantra in 2010.  The album release show at Kung Fu Necktie is Saturday, January 26th and will be followed by a (surprisingly) quiet February before an ambitious national tour in March.  We wouldn’t expect anything less.

Purling Hiss | Photo by John Vettese

Big congrats to a couple of our Philly scene favorites, Purling Hiss and Nightlands, who both made Spin Magazine’s 5 Best New Artists list for the month of January. (Both artists made our own crystal-ball-gazing list as well.) The Hiss has their awesome new full-length, Water on Mars, coming out on Drag City Records on March 19. Spin put it at the top of its list, saying:

Once code for the searing solo experiments of former Birds of Maya guitarist (and Kurt Vile and the Violators associate) Mike Polizze, Purling Hiss has mutated into a frightening, full-fledged power trio of late, as captured last year on an Adam Granduciel-curated episode of WXPN’s Shaking Through series. Afforded the opportunity to record with a budget, Polizze and his bandmates offered up “Lolita,” a headbanger whose chorus we’ve been humming ever since.

Nightlands’ Oak Island is out on Secretly Canadian Records on January 22, with a release show at Kung Fu Necktie on the 26th. Spin called Nightlands main man Dave Hartley a “rugged bedroom pop individualist, layering watery synthesizers and roaming percussion with delicate, desperate choir boy vocals.” Check out both writeups here, and watch Purling Hiss tear up The Bowery Ballroom with “Almost Washed My Hair” below.

DRGN KNG Photo by Nicky Devine

Who’d we forget? Probably dozens more. Our apologies if we left you out. We hope you get the point though; these days, Philly is miles deep and miles wide with talent and creativity. If 2012 was a “ten,” here’s 15 reasons why Philly’s music scene is about to go to 11 in 2013.

1. The highly anticipated Kanine Records debut from power punk rockers Bleeding Rainbow, Yeah Right, out on January 29th.

2. Not wanting to be out powered by their noise brothers and sister – Bleeding Rainbow – Purling Hiss tear the blisters off their fingers when they release Water On Mars on Drag City on March 19th. Hiss guitarist Mike Polizze redefines the concept of “shredding.”

3. Not from the old school or from the new, rapper GrandeMarshall is from his own trippy, ethereal school of hip-hop. Recently signed to Fool’s Gold, his 800 mixtape was one of the best of ’12, and there’s more to come in the one-three.

4. The recent return of Reef The Lost Cauze with Reef The Lost Cauze Is Dead.

5. Don’t call it a comeback he’s been here for years: William Hart, lead singer of The Delfonics is back with the sounds of symphonic soul with Adrian Younge.

6. Roots collaborators Greg Porn and Truck North are in serious music making mode.

7. Dr. Dog drummer Eric Slick and singer-songwriter Brendan Mulvihill, aka Norwegian Arms, release their new Wolf Like A Stray Dog album on January 15th. It’s a collection of wonderful wierdworld indie-folk.

8. Pattern Is Movement will release its new album, There Will Be, next year. PIM performed new material at this show recently and by all indications the new jawns are mind blowingly funky and right on time. Rumour on the street is that new record was inspired by drummer Chris Ward and keyboardist Andrew Thiboldeaux listening to thousands of hours of Frank Ocean’s Channel Orange. When they hear the new PIM album, the Dirty Projectors will attempt to make a record like Drake’s Take Care and fail.

9. We’re pretty certain that Work Drugs will continue to release at least one new song a month. If not, we’ll be disappointed.

10. Not familiar with the mind blowing pianotechnics of jazz pianist Elew? Well you should be. This past summer he released Elew Rockjazz, Volume 2, and we’re just saying that his takes on rock classics will take you to another planet, which is a good thing. Originally from Camden, NJ and a graduate of Overbrook High, Elew is Eric Lewis. He’s toured with Wynton Marsalis, Josh Groban, Cassandra Wilson and many others. His musical world Is a planet where Thelonius Monk, Keith Jarrett, Michael Jackson and The Killers all make sweet music together. Don’t lose sight of this guy.

11. The Fleeting Ends is a trio who release their second album, Our Eyes Are Peeled on January 29th. Their attention to pop detail, songwriting and arrangements is frighteningly good, bordering on obsessive. Oh yeah: string arrangements by the legendary Larry Gold.

12. Dominic Angelella and Ritz Reynolds are DRGN KNG. The geniuses at Bar None Records were smart enough to sign them and are releasing Paragraph Nights on January 22nd. Oh yeah, did you catch that nice little writeup in Rolling Stone?

13. Ron Gallo and his band of merry ramshackle roots rockers Toy Soldiers release their new album next year. Produced by Bill Moriarty, Maybe Boys promises to deliver on their fun live performances and Gallo’s knack for writing songs that bring to mind a Sun Records meeting of The Band.

14. Our pals Free Energy unleash their new collection of bubblegum indie-rock, Love Sign, on January 15th. More infectious than The Cars and the Ohio Express.

15. When he’s not bassing it up for The War On Drugs, Dave Hartley, has his own groovy musical project called Nightlands. Hartley releases Oak Island on Secretly Canadian on January 22nd. While we are certainly amazing by his musical talents, Hartley is also a pretty sharp basketball fan and shares his insights with us in his basketball column for us, Top Of The Key.

Bing & Ruth’s David Moore on the ambient performance he brings to The Barnes Friday [link]

The new LP from The Fleeting Ends, Our Eyes are Peeled, gets the Unlocked treatment [link]

Dave Hartley, bassist for The War on Drugs, launches his sports column From The Key [link]

South Jersey pop-punks Aspiga treat us to a song from each release in their Key session [link]

Roots collaborator Truck North releases Our American Cousin free EP [link]

Does cover art make the album? We ponder this and look at some great local album covers [link]

Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore and drummer John Maloney tonight at Space 1026 [link]

Brooklyn duo She Keeps Bees is features on this week’s Folkadelphia session [link]

Baron Davis slams on DH-47 (Dave Hartley)

Top Of The Key is our new sports column written by Dave Hartley, bassist in The War On Drugs, and leader of his own band, Nightlands. He’s also the go-to bassist and multi-instrumentalist for many other musical projects in town. There’s probably only one thing that eclipses his love of music, and it’s basketball. To put it bluntly, Hartley is a basketball freak with a encyclopedic knowledge of the game. He writes an occasional column for Impose and his one time appearance on ESPN’s SportsNation with his War On Drugs bandmates is legendary. Nightlands releases its new album, Oak Island, on January 22nd on Secretly Canadian. Nightlands play a show at Kung Fu Necktie on January 28th and you listen to a new song here. Hartley’s first column is on a topic that’s on almost every 76ers’ fans mind: Why the Bynum injury doesn’t spell doom for the 76ers.

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On Monday, Andrew Bynum updated us on the status of his knees (and his hair). He sounded optimistic, but if you read between the lines there is some really troubling information, particularly this quote about his left knee in an interview with he did with the press. “Health is going to be an issue. There’s nothing I can really do about it. It’s arthritis in the knees. Cartilage is missing. That’s not going to regrow itself. Maybe in the future, the next three to five years, there may be something out there that really does help. For right now, it’s a waiting game.” For 76ers fans, this is dark news, but it’s not the end of the world. Here’s why.

1) Timing – As sad as it is that Bynum hasn’t even practiced with the 76ers, it’s much better for him to encounter these knee troubles now, before he becomes a free agent at the end of the season. Think of it like finding out your girlfriend is really into Insane Clown Posse and bath salts right before proposing to her–a major bummer, to be sure, but much better than finding it out on your honeymoon. If he were to give them 60 or 70 games of solid production this season and subsequently received a max deal, his knees and his contract could cripple the Sixers for years to come. The Sixers took a calculated risk–one that anyone in their position would have taken–and so far it hasn’t panned out. But after this season (and provided the Sixers have the wisdom to NOT offer him a big contract) Bynum’s substantial salary ($16.9 million) will come off the books. The front office can use that money to build around their young, promising core.

2) Jrue Holiday – Overshadowed by the messy Bynum situation has been the stellar play of Jrue Holiday. The NBA is becoming a guard’s league and the Sixers just signed one of the best young point guards in the league to a relatively reasonable extension (4 years, $41 million). He’s only 22 years old and already has three years of NBA experience, putting him on pace to become of the best points in the league in the next two or three years. Doug Collins trusts him with the ball and with good reason–he’s having by far his best season.

3) Andre Iguodala had to go – Iggy had a good run here–he’s respected around the league for his defense, passing and athleticism and was an important part of the US Olympic roster–but he never quite lived up to his “franchise” tag and the massive contract Philly gave him. He’d be a great fit as a third or forth option on a contender, but his role as point-forward was inhibiting Holiday’s development and, frankly, he’s just not good enough offensively to be the first option on a great team. Evan Turner is so far making good use of his increased playing time getting and the offense can funnel through him and Holiday (and Thad Young).

4) It’s not a center-oriented league anymore – This is a big one. Out of last year’s four conference finalists–The Spurs, The Heat, The Celtics and The Thunder–exactly zero had what you would call a “dominant center” and three had power forwards that to varying degrees masquerade as centers (Kevin Garnett, Chris Bosh, Tim Duncan). Small ball is heavily en vogue: in the Finals, Oklahoma’s “traditional center” Kendrick Perkins was rendered almost completely useless when The Heat went with Bosh at Center. The demise of the five is so decisive that this year the NBA removed the position entirely from the All Star ballot and replaced it simply with “frontcourt”. The Sixers should focus on getting someone who can rotate to defend penetrating guards and throw quick outlet passes, a much cheaper proposition than “the second best center in the NBA,” as Bynum is often dubbed.

5) Culture Crisis – For the first time in a decade, the Sixers have a really positive culture. Collins has a long history of gaining the respect of young players, and Philadelphia has been no exception. They buy into his system and he trusts them. A lot of people were turned off by the 76ers during Iverson’s decline because of his ball-stopping play and their general culture of materialism. That is long gone. The team plays hard. They say the right stuff in press conferences. They play defense. They pass. I’m not sure Bynum wouldn’t upset that balance. He’s sulked quite a bit in the past. Jogged back on defense, made complaints about his playing time. Philadelphia needs to fall back in love with their basketball team. A selfish superstar is not the answer–a trip to the Eastern Conference finals is.

Despite the evidence, some analysts think the Sixers could be tempted to offer Bynum a big contract, regardless of whether he plays or not this season. Seems insane, right? The thinking is, “we have a unique opportunity to lock up a franchise center, one that may not come around again for years and years, we have to seize it.” This logic is of the “he’s really dominant but there are health concerns” mentality that lead to Gilbert Arenas’ and Amare Stoudemire’s franchise crippling contracts. Injury problems aren’t cons in the same way that “needs to work on his midrange jumper” is a con. It is a con that renders all the pros in the world completely pointless! If you aren’t on the court, no amount of upside can help you and or allow you to earn your guaranteed money. Please, Philadelphia front office, do not offer a 25 year old who has already had four knee operations 100 million dollars.

I knew that I dug what these guys were up to as soon as I saw their video of Ages playing in the back of Johnny Brenda’s. In the year and a half since then, they’ve faithfully documented the Philly scene in videos that range from lo-fi immediacy to multi-camera productions, showcasing the town’s up-and-coming acts as well as buzzing national bands that make their way through. I’m happy to welcome them to this space to talk about what they have in store for the December Tune-Out. All events are at PhilaMOCA (531 N. 12th Street), start at 7:30 p.m.

From Kyle and Dave:

After hearing about the series from John V. at XPN and checking out Pet Milk when Herbie curated we thought it was a really cool idea and contacted Eric at PhilaMOCA about getting involved. We were offered December, so here goes…

Tuesday 12/4
Nightlands performing to 2001: A Space Odyssey – $14 admission

Nightlands is Dave Hartley from The War on Drugs. All of us at BITBY love Nightlands so naturally he was the first person we asked. Dave was super excited to do this when we asked him to participate and he knew right away he wanted to do 2001: A Space Odyssey. Yes, the whole movie, on the big screen, with the dialogue from the film accompanied by an original score performed live by Nightlands. There will be an intermission and we will be serving Narragansett Beer. Jeff Ziegler will be joining Hartley as well. We really wanted to be able to bill the show as Nightlands doing a score to 2001:A space Odyssey and in order to that we had to buy the rights to screen the film for the night which is costly, that is the only reason tickets are a bit pricey for this show. It will be well worth it, though. The super talented Mikele Edwards from Arc In Round will perform a short set before the screening as well.

Tuesday 12/11
Thee, Idea Men with Katie Frank

Two bands we have been seeing a lot of at BITBY lately are going to make this show a fun night. Thee, Idea Men are awesome and we love having them play shows. They are always full of energy and get the crowd going. Katie Frank is the latest release on our BITBYmusic label and her debut Coverd Bridge Road EP will be available at the show. Katie rocks and you will instantly fall in love with her, trust us. After two quick sets from the bands, a classic Cusack film will be shown.

Tuesday 12/18
Ex-Friends

Last in our series we have Ex-Friends (featuring members of Plow United). Awesome punk rock from awesome people. The movie will be announced the day of the show.

Hope to see everyone out at the shows!

Thanks
Kyle, Dave and the rest of BITBY.tv

The Beach Boys are much more than the just Pet Sounds and Surf-Car-Girl party songs. Here are twelve strange and beautiful songs that came after.”

In a Spotify playlist he created for his bands’ label Secretly Canadian, Hartley handpicks his favorite Beach Boys tracks from albums including 1967′s Smiley Smile, 1970′s Sunflower, 1971′s Surf’s Up and more.  Stream the playlist below and read Dave’s thoughts on each track in a cut-by-cut here.  He also discussed his favorite Beach Boys era in a recent What’s In My Bag episode, which you can watch here.  The War on Drugs return to Philadelphia for two end-of-the-year shows at Johnny Brenda’s in December.  Nightlands will release a new record called Oak Island on January 22nd.

WXPN Welcomes The Spinto Band May residency at Kung Fu Necktie every Tuesday in May starting next Tuesday, May 8th. Today, The Spinto Band release their new album Shy Pursuit and next week they begin their month long residency celebration with some incredible opening bands for each show. On May 8th Purples and Alec Ounsworth open; Nightlands and Via Audio open on Tuesday, May 15th; The Extraordinaires and Heyward Howkins have the honors on Tuesday, May 22nd and Cheers Elephant and Langor open the final show of the residency on May 28th. Go here for tickets and more information about the shows. The Spinto Band have compiled a free sampler of the bands playing the Kung Fu Necktie shows that you can download here. The band recently stopped by the XPN studios to record a Key Studio Session. You can download a sneak preview of it here.

Holy Ghost

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25
In case you missed it, yacht house is now a genre of music. Or at least, that’s what techno-pop duo Holy Ghost! (and its contemporaries like Chromeo and Washed Out) would have you believe. After meeting in high school, band members Alex Frankel and Nick Millhiser were first inspired by the day’s popular hip hop, eventually mixing those influences with a palate of ‘70s and ‘80s-era keyboard dance. Though not as innovative as James Murphy (founder of DFA Records, to which the band is signed, and the mastermind behind LCD Soundsystem), Holy Ghost! maintains a mostly sample-free existence, inching ahead of other neo-house acts who fail to make anything noteworthy or new. Original or not, the band’s self-titled debut album, which was released earlier this year, delivers many tunes for a good time—particularly if you find yourself on a boat. Holy Ghost! performs with Jessica 6, Midnight Magic, and Eli Escobar at 8:30 p.m. at Union Transfer; tickets to the all-ages show are $13-$15.—Marielle Mondon

Also Playing: Allman Brothers Band at Tower Theatre (7:30 p.m., $49.50–$125); Snowing + Algernon Cadwallader, 1994!, Glocca Morra, The World Is… at First Unitarian Church (7:30 p.m., all ages, SOLD OUT); Sick Of It All + Trapped Under Ice, Hundreth, Back Track, Take Offense, Betrayal at Broad Street Ministry (7 p.m., all ages $15)

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 26
Nightlands + Dustin Wong, Norwegian Arms at PhilaMOCA (all ages, $7–$10); Reading Rainbow + Woven Bones at Johnny Brenda’s (9:30 p.m., 21+, $10); The Bailey Hounds + Ruby The Hatchet, Wendy at Kung Fu Necktie (7:30 p.m., 21+, $8)

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27
Simple Plan + Forever The Sickest Kids, The Cab, Marianas Trench at Electric Factory (6 p.m., all ages, $30.90)

• Suzerain (A Letter To The Judge)by Nightlands from Forget The MantraDownload

For their part, the folks at Secretly Canadian/Dead Oceans/Jagjaguwar have said in a statement that they “[L]ost significant amounts of stock in this fire. This being said, our primary thoughts and concern are with the Sony warehouse staff and PIAS sales staff whose lives were all massively disrupted by the tragic event, as well as our independent label peers who had a more significant portion of their worldwide stock committed to the Sony DADC / PIAS warehouse… Dead Oceans, Jagjaguwar and Secretly Canadian are in the fortunate position of having significant stock holdings dispersed around the world. We’re working very quickly now to shift some of that existing stock to make our records available in the UK and Ireland as soon as possible.”

If you’re interested in helping out any of the indie labels that have been affected, now would be a great time to buy a few tracks directly from the labels’ websites, as doing so will get needed money to the companies faster than buying from iTunes. A donations page has also been set up here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK5ecuxXyYM&feature=player_embedded

All the Way by Nightlands from Secretly Jag on Vimeo.

TOUR DATES:
1/20 Brooklyn, NY- Glasslands w/ The Tony Castles, and Dustin Wong
1/22 Philadelphia, PA- The Ox w/ Here We Go Magic, and Ape School
1/25 Toledo, OH- Mickey Finn’s Pub
1/26 Chicago, IL- The Empty Bottle w/ YAWN, and Houses
1/27 Pontiac, MI- The Pike Room

In other new-bands-from-Philly-garnering-national-acclaim-related news, Nightlands has just released its first set of tour dates (which includes a January 22nd performance at The Ox with Ape School. Dates below). The tour is in support of Nightlands’ debut album, Forget The Mantra, which was released last month on Secretly Canadian. It’s actually only five shows—which, technically, is more “road trip” or “jaunt” than an actual tour—but we’re not going to complain. In fact, we’re pretty much thrilled whenever a local band gets in the van and does the whole making-a-name-for-itself thing the old-fashioned way.

Cool stock photo, brah!

As you might have noticed in the post right below this one (seriously, do you really need a link? It’s right there!), The Key is pretty excited about tomorrow’s release of Nightland’s debut LP, Forget The Mantra, on Secretly Canadian. The label just sent out a tweet asking fans to vote for the band in Magnet‘s recent poll of most-anticipated releases of the week.

As it currently stands, Nightlands isn’t doing so hot, with only 7 total votes (which is worth a sad 0%). Meanwhile, Tom friggin’ Howie has 31% of the votes with 638. Tom Howie? Are you kidding me? Come on, Philadelphia—you’re not going to let that acoustic-guitar-toting Canadian singer-songwriter walk away with this week’s honors, are you? Doesn’t Dave Hartley deserve better than that?

We’ve done our part. Have you?

Photo by Darshana Borah

Tomorrow marks the vinyl release of Forget The Mantra, the debut full-length from Dave Hartley’s solo project Nightlands, and let me tell you: it’s one thrilling collection of sounds and styles. A dreamy wash of pulsing loops, soaring tropical melodies, and collaged audio blends together to evoke fellow experimentalists from Os Mutantes and Flaming Lips all the way up through El Guincho. Hartley is best known as a bassist-in-demand around Philly (War On Drugs, Yellow Humphrey, The Lindsay Buckingham Appreciation Society, and a brief stint with The Capitol Years), and seeing him own the show here is a treat. “Suzerain” is the obvious standout—it’s made the blog rounds, and even showed up here a month and a half ago. Figured we’d reprise it and remind you to pick up the record and get your turntable fired up for some tripped-out listening tomorrow evening.

• Suzerainfrom Forget The Mantra by NightlandsDownload