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All photos by Jeff Levy | www.jefflevyphoto.com
Last night The Hold Steady brought its trademark rambunctious and animated live show to Bethlehem’s Musikfest Cafe as its winter tour moves onward. Tonight, the band headlines a sold-out Union Transfer with Swearin’ opening; last night, they were joined by Philly shredders Purling Hiss. Check out a photo recap of the Bethlehem show in the gallery above and either get excited for tonight’s show if you have tickets, or see what you’re about to miss if you don’t.
Modern Inventors | Photo by Alicia Brown
R5 Productions have called in local artists to contribute to a new poster series for their events. The Philadelphia Posters Guild will feature at least one new poster each month created by an artist for selected concerts.
The list of currently confirmed artist/concert match-ups includes Thom Lessner for The Dead Milkmen show on Halloween at Union Transfer; Ralph Stollenwerk for Sword’s show at Union Transfer on November 13th; Bonnie Brenda Scott for Dan Deacon’s show at Union Transfer on November 15th; Neil Burke for Om/Dan Higgs at Johnny Brenda’s on November 23rd; and JP Flexner for The Hold Steady’s show at Union Transfer on December 29th, with more to be announced.
From the Guild’s website:
Philadelphia Poster Guild project is an effort to merge local artists, musicians, & venues to create quality, affordable art for the masses. With a little luck, one or more posters will be released each month. These posters will be available at selected R5 shows for a fair price. They will also be available online for a reasonable price as well, shipped in a sturdy tube. Proceeds from this project will benefit local artists, musicians, and a few select non-profits. Support your local artists…they will reciprocate. More details to follow.
Images of the posters will posted on the Guild’s website, and you check out a full list of involved artists here.
WXPN favorites The Hold Steady announced a brief run of year-end dates today, including a stop at Union Transfer on Saturday, December 29. Tickets for the all-ages show are $20 and go on sale this Friday, September 14, at noon. More information at the venue’s website. Below, watch a sold-out Free at Noon crowd pogoing as The Hold Steady plays “Your Little Hoodrat Friend” circa 2010.
According to Pitchfork, the Shins, Panda Bear, Girl Talk, the Hold Steady, Cults, the Pains of Being Pure at Heart and Rakim are just some of the bands that are playing at the Popped! Music Festival on September 23rd and 24th here in Philly at FDR Park. No official word yet from the Popped! camp on this, however.
Leading up to the release of The Hold Steady‘s fifth studio album, Heaven Is Whenever, the big question on most fans’ minds was, “How will the loss of mustachioed keyboardist Franz Nicolay affect the band?” That question was given a definitive answer a month and a half before the album’s May 4th release, when “Hurricane J,” the first single off the album, was made available on March 22nd: Keyboards had become an afterthought, with even more anthemic guitar riffs and “whoa-oh”s filling the musical space Nicolay’s contributions used to occupy. The result is an album that will likely appeal more to fans of The Hold Steady’s earlier work—after all, the album was produced by Dean Baltulonis, who also produced the band’s debut—than those who were hoping the lineup change would push Craig Finn and friends in a new direction. Either way, the songs on Heaven Is Whenever promise to be every bit as exciting as the rest of the band’s output in a live setting. The Hold Steady performs with Wintersleep at 8 p.m. at The Trocadero; the all-ages show is sold out.
