Panorama 2255_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Saturday, September 30, 2017
Panorama 2255_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2255_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
D.O.A.: A RITE OF PASSAGE – Tickets – PhilaMOCA – Philadelphia, PA – September 30th, 2017 | Ticketfly
AGFA present a newly restored presentation of the classic punk doc D.O.A.: A RITE OF PASSAGE!
Two screenings:�
7:30 PM advance tickets: http://www.ticketfly.com/event/1540348� 9:30 PM advance tickets: http://www.ticketfly.com/
event/1540349 One of punk history’s most important documents, 1980’s D.O.A.: A RITE OF PASSAGE follows the Sex Pistols on their first (and only) tour of the United States in 1978. Their live sets (featuring on-screen sing-along subtitles) are accompanied by those from other luminaries of early punk including Generation X, The Rich Kids, X-Ray Spex, Sham 69, and The Dead Boys. A largely incoherent Sid and Nancy receive an abundant amount of camera time as do young American fans, detractors, and opportunists. Additional soundtrack contributors include The Clash and Iggy Pop.
$10 advance, $12 door�
Presented by AGFAPhilaMOCA
�531 N. 12th Street
http://www.philamoca.org/
D.O.A.: A RITE OF PASSAGE – Tickets – PhilaMOCA – Philadelphia, PA – September 30th, 2017 | Ticketfly
Friday, September 29, 2017
Panorama 2344_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2344_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Exploring David Lynch’s “Eraserhood” | Hidden City Philadelphia
“Philadelphia, more than any filmmaker, influenced me. It’s the sickest, most corrupt, decaying, fear-ridden city imaginable.” — David Lynch
When David Lynch moved to Philadelphia in the late 1960s to attend PAFA, he discovered a city that was both terrifying and inspiring. Explore the neighborhood that so electrified Lynch’s imagination in the company of two tour guides: Hidden City’s Peter Woodall and Lynch aficionado Bob Bruhin. During this one-and-a-half hour walking tour, we’ll delve into the neighborhood’s pre- and post-Lynch history, as well as the sights and sounds that inspired Lynch’s movies, particularly Eraserhead.
Questions, concerns, conundrums? Contact Hidden City project director Pete Woodall at 267-259-7112 or pwoodall@hiddencityphila.org
Tickets: Exploring David Lynch’s “Eraserhood” | Hidden City Philadelphia
Exploring David Lynch’s “Eraserhood” | Hidden City Philadelphia
Upcoming Events -- Pearl Street Potluck — Asian Arts Initiative
Pearl Street Potluck
Saturday, October 7, 12 – 2 p.m.This year’s Pearl Street Block Party goes back to basics! We will present the working draft of the People: Power: Place cultural plan for Chinatown North and invite your feedback. Then join us for a community potluck and BBQ, with interactive artist projects including Social Practice Lab Artists-in-Residence Rachel Ishikawa’s “Chinatown Beats” and Yvonne Lung’s “Dish”.
Major support for People: Power: Place: A Cultural Plan for Chinatown North/Callowhill provided by the William Penn Foundation through the New Audiences/New Places grant.
Support for our Pearl Street Pop-Up Projects provided by PNC Arts Alive
Source: Upcoming Events — Pearl Street Potluck — Asian Arts Initiative
Upcoming Events -- Pearl Street Potluck — Asian Arts Initiative
Eraserhood Friday!
7:30 PM
Dinosaur Jr. / Easy Action at Union Transfer – Philadelphia 9/29
Dinosaur Jr. / Easy Action at Union Transfer UT Newsletter: http://ticketf.ly/1RqX4bJ Facebook Event Feed: http://on.fb.me/1Xjri0B Dinosaur Jr Let’s face facts — in 2016 it is remarkable that there’s a new Dinosaur Jr. album to go ape over. After all, the original line-up of the band (J Mascis, Lou Barlow & Murph) only recorded three full … Read more
8:30 PM
Ian Abramson at PhilaMOCA
PhilaMOCA welcomes comedian Ian Abramson! Doors 8:00, Show 8:30, $15 advance, $18 day-of Ian Abramson is from Moreno Valley, California, where he learned to walk, read, and drive, but not in that order. He studied theater at California State University Channel Islands, which isn’t on an island, but has been converted from an old mental … Read more
9:00 PM
Rainer Maria at Underground Arts
RAINER MARIA at Underground Arts Friday, September 29th, 2017 21+ | Doors: 8PM | Show: 9PM ∫∫∫∫ Rainer Maria ∫∫∫∫ If you happened upon the front page of the New York Times arts section on April 13th, 2006, you might likely have been taken by one of two reactions. Perhaps “Who?” Or maybe for the … Read more
High Caliber Pre Party ft. Dubloadz & Boogie T
Unlocked Presents High Caliber Festival Pre Party ft. Dubloadz, Boogie T., We’re Not Friends & More Friday, September 29th at District N9NE Tickets – HighCaliberFest.com
Eraserhood Friday!
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Panorama 2445_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2445_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Sons of Pitches
Thursday, September 28 at 7 PM – 10 PM
Roy-Pitz Barrel House
990 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19123Sons of Pitches performs at the Barrel House.
Source: Sons of Pitches
Sons of Pitches
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Panorama 2380_blended_fused_pregamma_1_fattal_alpha_1_beta… | Flickr
Panorama 2380_blended_fused_pregamma_1_fattal_alpha_1_beta… | Flickr
When a Print is More than a Print | PAFA - Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Wednesday, September 27 at 12 PM – 1 PM
Curlee Holton, a prolific painter and printmaker, along with Kelli Morgan, PAFA’s Winston & Carolyn Lowe Curatorial Fellow for Diversity in the Fine Arts, will discuss the legacy and history surrounding the Experimental Printmaking Institute and the implications of the print medium in the context of the collaborative process.
Source: When a Print is More than a Print | PAFA – Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
When a Print is More than a Print | PAFA - Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Panorama 2199_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2199_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Wire - Tickets - Union Transfer - Philadelphia, PA, September 26, 2017 | Ticketfly
Tuesday, September 26 at 7:30 PM – 11:30 PM
WPRB 103.3 FM Presents
Wire at Union Transfer
UT Newsletter: http://ticketf.ly/1RqX4bJ
Facebook Event Feed: http://on.fb.me/1Xjri0B
Right from their inception in 1976, back in the first stirrings of punk, Wire went about making music in a subversive, conceptual way, setting themselves apart from both their peers and their influences.
“I had this idea that I wanted to avoid things that had a particular kind of tradition,” explains singer and guitarist Colin Newman. “I thought the three-chord trick was too simplistic and that the one-chord trick would be better. Or the two chord trick where the second chord is definitely not the right chord.”
Bass guitarist and vocalist Graham Lewis identifies another trait that has run throughout the group’s lifetime. “People said we were mysterious, arch and dark. But the only way of doing that successfully, is by also having a sense of humour. You have to have that balance. With Wire there’s a peculiarity, a contrariness and that can be funny.”
This questing approach has permeated Wire’s songwriting, their onstage presentation, even the decision, back in the 80s, for Robert Grey to strip his drumkit down to just bass drum, snare and hi-hat. And it has served them well in guarding against repetition and cliché. In context, Wire’s last album, 2013’s aptly titled Change Becomes Us was another case of “Expect the unexpected”, as it found them extensively reworking a rich cache of material abandoned amid a temporary break-up in the early 80s.
Their 13th studio album – simply titled Wire – comprises material that was written with the album in mind, but toured extensively first, as well as songs that Newman introduced to the group in the studio just prior to recording. The idea was to get the most spontaneous reaction possible from the musicians, and far from the rough and ready results one might expect from such a tack, Wire is full of swooning pop melodies with a 60s tinge and an irresistible, near motorik rhythmic momentum. One can recognise certain melodic inflections, guitar and bass motifs, and drum rhythms from Wire’s idiosyncratic vocabulary but it has a remarkable freshness.
The basic tracks were recorded at Rockfield Studios near Monmouth, with overdubs added at Brighton Electric last December following the group’s DRILL : BRIGHTON Festival. The 11 tracks selected for release were the ones that came together most naturally.
From the outset Wire was an alliance between four very different characters and continues today with the addition, in 2012, of It Hugs Back guitarist Matthew Simms, who is around thirty years younger than the other group members. “With Matt there was a really new dynamic that had appeared in the group’s sound and that was something we wanted to capture, utilise and be creative with,” says Lewis.
Wire is the first album where Simms has been involved in formulating the material from the ground up, but when the group’s particular chemistry starts working he is now very much part of the process.
“With ‘Sleepwalking’, I don’t think we even ran all the way through it before we recorded it.” Newman says. “Wire do this thing so well and there’s instant atmosphere. There’s my rhythm guitar, Matt playing lap steel, Graham (Lewis) playing bass with effects – there’s as much effects as bass – and Rob’s tolling drumming. It was already almost sustainable for six minutes with just that.”
Lewis also provides most of the lyrics for the album, their subject matter encompassing love songs, cryptic narratives and coded messages. One time, Newman asked Lewis to send over some unfinished, unformatted text so he wouldn’t be bound by what to use for the chorus. This material spawned two songs written on the same day, ‘Split Your Ends’ and the droll ‘In Manchester’. The latter has one of the album’s loveliest melodies, but it’s no coded paean to the city in its Baggy heyday. Instead this process led to the disorientating and rather absurd situation of having “In Manchester” as a soaring chorus, when the song is not about Manchester beyond a single line in the lyric.
As the album progresses, some of the sunlit pop tunes become more shadowy and it ultimately plunges into the musical black hole of ‘Harpooned’, eight churning minutes of the group’s darkest, most abrasive music to date, and a favourite in live performances since 2013.
Big money offers have been made to Wire to become part of the Heritage Rock industry, to get the original line-up back together and play only 70s music. These have all been unequivocally turned down. Fun though that might be, why plant yourself firmly back in the past when you are making new music this potent with the promise of more in the future?
“The point where our personal narratives meet is all about change – moving on and keeping it interesting for ourselves,” says Newman. “We’re in it for the long haul and this is a one-way trip.”
Noveller is the solo electric guitar project of Brooklyn-based composer and filmmaker Sarah Lipstate. Handling the guitar as her muse, Lipstate summons a sonic palette so rich as to challenge the listener to conceive of how it’s housed in a single instrument manipulated by a solitary performer.
In 2014, Lipstate announced her signing with Fire Records. Fire released Noveller’s latest full-length ‘Fantastic Planet’ in January 2015 and also re-issued Noveller’s critically acclaimed albums ‘No Dreams’ and ‘Glacial Glow’ in early 2016. She’s previously released records on No Fun Productions, Important Records, Weird Forest, Taiga, and her own imprint Saffron Recordings.
Noveller has toured with Iggy Pop, St. Vincent, Radiolab, Xiu Xiu, the Jesus Lizard, U.S. Girls, & Aidan Baker. Lipstate has collaborated with several renowned musicians, including JG Thirlwell (Foetus, Manorexia), Carla Bozulich (Evangelista, The Geraldine Fibbers), David Wm. Sims (the Jesus Lizard, Scratch Acid), Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth).
She has previously performed as a member of Cold Cave, Parts & Labor, and One Umbrella. Lipstate has also participated in Rhys Chatham’s Guitar Army, Ben Frost’s “Music for 6 Guitars” Ensemble, and Glenn Branca’s 100 guitar ensemble.
VENUE INFORMATION:
Union Transfer
1026 Spring Garden St.
Philadelphia, PA, 19123
Source: Wire – Tickets – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA, September 26, 2017 | Ticketfly
Wire - Tickets - Union Transfer - Philadelphia, PA, September 26, 2017 | Ticketfly
Monday, September 25, 2017
Panorama 1853_blended_fused | Church of the Nativity 11th an… | Flickr
Panorama 1853_blended_fused | Church of the Nativity 11th an… | Flickr
SUBMISSION DEADLINE — CALL FOR ART: Eraserhood Forever 2017 | PhilaMOCA
PhilaMOCA is hosting the sixth annual installment of its critically-acclaimed ERASERHOOD FOREVER exhibit – an artistic celebration of the work of David Lynch. From paintings of your favorite TWIN PEAKS characters to paper mache’d nitrous tanks, we’re looking for anything that celebrates the filmography of one of America’s greatest living filmmakers.
The opening reception will be held on Tuesday, October 10 from 6-9 PM and will be on view for all PhilaMOCA events through Saturday, November 4. Please note that acceptance into the art show does not grant artists admission to the November 4 Lynch-related event.
Submissions: All mediums are welcome (no hazardous materials); restrictions apply to video/3D pieces/sculptures. Please send digital files or photos of submissions to curator Eric Bresler at curation@philamoca.org. Links are preferred for entries of six or more pieces.
Deadline for submissions is Monday, September 25, 2017.
There will be a $20 participation fee per selected piece of artwork, 100% of sales go to the artists.
Accepted Art Delivery: Drop-offs of accepted art can be made at PhilaMOCA (531 N. 12th Street) on Saturday, October 7 from Noon – 6:00 PM and Sunday, October 8 from Noon – 6:00 PM or by appointment. Work must be ready to hang and prepared for installation. Art delivered by mail must include return postage and must arrive by October 6.
For questions, contact curator Eric Bresler: curation@philamoca.org
About PhilaMOCA:
The Philadelphia Mausoleum of Contemporary Art is a former showroom for tombstones and mausoleums turned multi-purpose art space that specializes in film and live music. PhilaMOCA is located at 531 N. 12th Street and is considered by many to be the “center of weird in Philadelphia”. Winner of Philadelphia Magazine’s “Best of Philly”; recently named one of the “20 Coolest Things About Philadelphia” by the Huffington Post and one of the “20 Must Visit Places in Philadelphia” by Time Out NY.
Source: CALL FOR ART: Eraserhood Forever 2017 | PhilaMOCA
SUBMISSION DEADLINE — CALL FOR ART: Eraserhood Forever 2017 | PhilaMOCA
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Panorama 2444_blended_fused_pregamma_1_fattal_alpha_1_beta… | Flickr
Panorama 2444_blended_fused_pregamma_1_fattal_alpha_1_beta… | Flickr
Drab Majesty - Tickets - PhilaMOCA - Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2017 | Ticketfly
Get tickets: http://ticketf.ly/2rYQzTF
Drab Majesty is an inter-dimensional platform aimed at channeling aural and visual messages founded by a human being from Los Angeles in 2013. The human communes directly with it’s spiritual muse/assumed alter-ego Deb Demure to demonstrate the power in relinquishing ownership to a divine design, thereby handing inspiration over to the spirit world – essentially serving as a contractor in business with the Collective Consciousness.
Relying on those principles, Drab Majesty, from its inception, set out to achieve no specific style, yet over the span of a European tour, several US tours, an LP entitled “Careless” (released and reissued 3 times on DAIS Records), 2 cassette EP’s, and a 7-inch on (Weyrd Son/Brussels), Deb has honed in on a pointed aesthetic.
While inherently guitar-driven music in the vain of The Chameleons or Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, Drab Majesty’s sound is often nuanced by ethereal washes of icy keyboards and arpeggiated synthesizers, backed by heavy mechanized percussion and forked pulsing synth bass, all adorned with reverb-laden vocals reminiscent of a hallowed cathedral.
In the past two years Deb has been invited to support bands such as Psychic TV, Clan of Xymox, The Frozen Autumn, Prayers, and label mates Youth Code and King Dude to name a few. Part alien, part mime, part priestess — yet all summed up in the feeble form of a human looking body, Deb Demure aims to serve as a musical and visual medium marrying the void and the form.
The name Kontravoid belongs on a limited run cassette circa 1980-something, the type of tape buried in lost upstate dustbins of pre-MIDI analog electronics, wedged between Cabaret Voltaire and Das Ding. The dark industrial and new wave influences are strong on ex-Crystal Castles drummer Cam Findlay’s new project—his voice is scary, like an echoing underwater growl—but the underlying pop melodies always afford a degree of breathing room.
After departing as writer/producer for Toronto band Parallels, Findlay has settled into a music venture he can call his own, assuming the identity of this masked alter-ego for what appears to be a permanent ride.
On his debut self-titled album, Kontravoid turns to analogue synths to create a dark, brooding pop masterpiece. His brilliant vocals emit a dystopic low-grown, often running through warped effects accompanied by exceptionally stirring arpeggiated synths and washes of sound. Modern touchstones could parallel the likes of John Maus or Trust, but Kontravoid’s vision is a much more twisted one, embracing goth influences and yielding a monstrous result that is harder to define. Despite its sonic vampiricism, Kontravoid’s music leaves plenty to dance and lose your mind to, but the imagination here goes way beyond these activities exclusively.
Native to the Philadelphia region, Remote Control is a species of the Blue Wave family. The body of Remote Control is divided into three distinct parts, each uniquely formed to aid in its unusual mating call; and thusly its proliferation and continued survival in the harsh environs of its natural habitat. Its distribution continues to become more widespread, but it can often be spotted in Western Philadelphia. Remote Control’s coloration varies according to season, but tends to be predominantly dark. It is nocturnal and almost entirely herbivorous, but when necessary will feed on whatever it can capture and devour whole. As a species of the Blue Wave family, Remote Control’s behavior is docile unless provoked, with the exception of it’s mating ritual which reaches loud volumes and involves an elaborate dance where the participants appear as though they are weeping.
Venue Information:
PhilaMOCA
531 North 12th St.
Philadelphia, PA, 19123
http://www.philamoca.org/
Source: Drab Majesty – Tickets – PhilaMOCA – Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2017 | Ticketfly
Drab Majesty - Tickets - PhilaMOCA - Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2017 | Ticketfly
Saturday, September 23, 2017
Panorama 2063_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_mapping_… | Flickr
Panorama 2063_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_mapping_… | Flickr
Eraserhood Saturday!
2:00 PM
Points of View Speaker Series: Dr. Kellie Jones
PAFA’s Points of View Speaker Series Presents: Dr. Kellie Jones In her 2017 book “South of Pico: African American Artists in Los Angeles in the 1960s and 1970s,” Dr. Kellie Jones explores how the artists in Los Angeles’s black communities created a vibrant, productive, and engaged activist arts scene in the face of structural racism. … Read more
7:30 PM
Thundercat – Two Nights at Union Transfer – Philadelphia 9/23+24
Thundercat at Union Transfer UT Newsletter: http://ticketf.ly/1RqX4bJ Facebook Event Feed: http://on.fb.me/1Xjri0B 9/23 – http://ticketf.ly/2rwRfT4 9/24 – http://ticketf.ly/2rwQ9Xi Thundercat THUNDERCAT is the alter ego of virtuosic bassist / singer Stephen Bruner. The South Los Angeles-native has released two critically acclaimed full length albums on Brainfeeder Records since 2011, and last year saw the release of widely … Read more
Desperate Living with Susan Lowe
PhilaMOCA welcomes actress Susan Lowe for a special 40th Anniversary screening of the John Waters classic DESPERATE LIVING! Susan Lowe was a John Waters regular having appeared in 10 of his films including a leading role in DESPERATE LIVING as the memorably angry bleach blonde Mole McHenry. From 1969’s MONDO TRASHO to 2000’s CECIL B. … Read more
8:00 PM
Hyperglow, Philadelphia PA! – America’s Largest Glow Party!
Hyperglow Tour – America’s Largest Glow Party! Presents: LIGHTS OUT! Fall 2017 Tour Saturday, September 23rd | District N9NE Tickets Go On Sale 8/1/17 12:00pm EST – HyperglowTour.com LIGHTS OUT, and the night begins… This season Hyperglow Tour will give their fans a new experience that will take you through a journey of darkness into … Read more
Eraserhood Saturday!
Friday, September 22, 2017
Panorama 2413_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2413_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
X - 40th Anniversary - Tickets - Underground Arts - Philadelphia, PA, September 22, 2017 | Ticketfly
9.22 | $30 adv | doors 8pm | 21+
VIP Packages Available
+ X (the band) +
+ Skating Polly +
Source: X – 40th Anniversary – Tickets – Underground Arts – Philadelphia, PA, September 22, 2017 | Ticketfly
X - 40th Anniversary - Tickets - Underground Arts - Philadelphia, PA, September 22, 2017 | Ticketfly
Thursday, September 21, 2017
Panorama 2282_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2282_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Panorama 2996_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2996_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Chinatown Beats — Asian Arts Initiative
Over the course of my residency I have been collecting sounds myself, with the students of Asian Arts Initiative’s Youth Arts Workshop, and with other volunteers of the project. With this archive of sounds and the help of two amazing programmers, Ada Adhiyatma and Nicholas Anselmini, I am launching the Chinatown Beats Audio Sequencer, which is an online platform that allows participants to create beats using everyday sounds recorded by stakeholders of the Chinatown North community. This platform allows participants to playfully explore and relate to the neighborhood through music.
Source: Chinatown Beats — Asian Arts Initiative
Chinatown Beats — Asian Arts Initiative
How the Palmer House’s Real Homeowner Ended Up in Twin Peaks
…we actually have the television that Sarah Palmer watched her shows on in the living room. That’s our television set. So it was cool to watch the finale on that TV. So many layers!
Source: How the Palmer House’s Real Homeowner Ended Up in Twin Peaks
How the Palmer House’s Real Homeowner Ended Up in Twin Peaks
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Panorama 2283_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
Panorama 2283_blended_fused_pregamma_1_mantiuk06_contrast_… | Flickr
The Early November & The Movielife - Tickets - Union Transfer - Philadelphia, PA, September 19, 2017 | Ticketfly
The Early November & The Movielife with Heart Attack man at Union Transfer
UT Newsletter: http://ticketf.ly/1RqX4bJ
Facebook Event Feed: http://on.fb.me/1Xjri0B
Playing ‘The Room’s Too Cold’ in its entirety!
Six years have passed since New Jersey’s The Early November released what, at the time, appeared to be their final album. Sprawling across three discs, The Mother, The Mechanic & The Path was a conceptual, grandiose and challenging record. Challenging for listeners but even more so, for the band that created it. Plagued with recording and creative struggles, it left the band feeling drained and frustrated. More so than anyone, it left songwriter and front-man, Ace Enders, feeling defeated. While proud of the record and response, he knew that it was not what he originally dreamed it would be. Less than seven months after it’s release, the band decided to call it day and announced their “indefinite hiatus” in March of 2007.
Since then, much has happened. Enders immediately set out with a new solo moniker, Ace Enders & A Million Different People, determined to do everything “right” this time. In the music industry, that includes going to Hollywood to work with a hotshot producer and make a “hit” record. A deeply personal and sensitive songwriter, Enders found the experience less than gratifying to have his songs manipulated and contorted. As someone who has always produced their own material, the last straw came when he was asked to leave his own session only to come back and find a song completely re-arranged and re-recorded. The final product was ultimately scrapped and Enders vowed to never again make a record on someone else’s terms. After re-gaining his confidence and recording independence, he went on to release multiple full- lengths and EP’s under multiple project names (…And A Million Different People, I Can Make A Mess Like Nobody’s Business, solo) while keeping a continuous tour schedule.
The other members stayed active as well. Guitarist Joseph Marro moved to California and joined indie-pop band HelloGoodbye. Drummer Jeff Kummer released a solo album, completed college and began working in television production. Bassist Sergio Anello toured with Enders for a period. Guitarist William Lugg worked in organic farming and even dug graves at a point. While still remaining close friends, the members appeared to have completely moved on from the band. Just a couple months before they all took the stage again at the sold-out Electric Factory in Philadelphia, an Early November reunion seemed to be about the most unlikely thing to would happen. Even before playing a second time, the old friends knew that they wanted to make a record together and be a band again.
Things had changed for the little underdog band from the farming town of Hammonton, NJ during all those years. They found themselves with new purpose, drive and knowledge. Having signed their first recording contract at the ripe, old ages of 17, 18 & 19, they knew what they did and did not want to do this time around. They found the perfect partner in Portland, OR label Rise Records and set out to record a new album in Ace Enders recently built, Living Room Recording studio with Enders at the helm.
In Currents is a record that could have only been made by this band, at this specific point in time. The Early November had to have the experiences they did in the past 10 years which are documented on this new album. The good and the bad, the ups and the downs. The tastes of success and the crushing disappointments. The band has grown up, lived life and seen both its beauty and dismay. An atmosphere and tension hovers over the entire record leaving one unsure whether they should smile or sigh. In Currents is an introspective and thought provoking record displaying a gamut of emotional territory. In the opening track, A Stain On The Carpet, Enders recollects a regretful evening and confronts the threat of losing someone to dementia. The alt-country tinged, The Smell Of This Place, reminds himself and his loved ones that those very ups and downs have been worth the ride and are responsible for where and who they are now. In the short but poignant Digital Age, Enders addresses an issue facing every musician; how to survive in a industry that seems to be abandoning its art.
With their first new record in six years, The Early November have made an album that strongly and positively represents their entire career. The raw and youthful attitude from 2003’s, The Rooms Too Cold blends with the ambitious, sonic experimentation of The Mother, The Mechanic & The Path. Enders describes In Currents as “a journey through life’s joys and struggles” and “being pulled in a direction you can’t control…like an ocean current or the flow of electricity”. It’s a scenario everyone in this world is in and can relate to. It’s not about where those currents will eventually take you, it’s about the journey you’ll have and the experiences you’ll take with you that matter the most.
“It’s been so long friend, how ya been?”
Don’t call it a comeback because reunion records rarely sound as inspired as The Movielife’s first full-length in 14 years, Cities In Search Of A Heart. This is an album that shows how the group’s songwriters—vocalist Vinnie Caruana and guitarist Brandon Reilly—have grown since 2003’s celebrated full-length Forty Hour Train Back To Penn, and also contains some of their most energized songwriting to date. In other words, whether you’ve loved The Movielife since they were a scrappy Long Island hardcore band in the early 2000s or you’re a recent initiate, it’s difficult not to get caught up in kinetic frenzy that permeates every note of Cities In Search Of A Heart.
The story of this record officially began two years ago when, after spending years on their own projects—Caruana’s I Am The Avalanche and Reilly’s Nightmare Of You—the duo started playing shows together as The Movielife once again. “The two of us became close friends again and we both felt like we had learned so much about songwriting since the early 2000s that we should do another record,” Caruana recalls, speaking from his current home in Brooklyn. “We had a great reaction to the reunion shows in 2014 but felt like instead of keeping it on a nostalgic level we wanted to write a record together that people could get into.” Not wanting to taint the band’s legacy or recycle the past, the duo were faced with the monumental task of figuring out exactly who The Movielife are in 2017, which was no easy task.
Caruana and Reilly struggled with the writing until last year when they realized that they simply had to make a new record that included the punk spark that was so prevalent in all of their previous work. “I knew the tempos had to be up and we had to be energetic because that’s what our shows are like and that element is so important to who we are as a band,” Caruana explains. Eventually the duo ended up with fifteen songs that they ended up trimming down and perfecting until they ended up with the ten songs that made the final cut. “I have to admit that the task of making this record seemed slightly impossible in the beginning but I’m so happy that we pushed ourselves so hard because we ended up making a Movielife record that we’re freaking out about and can’t wait to share with the world,” he adds.
Caruana has good reason to be excited. From the driving, melodic rocker “Mercy Is Asleep At The Wheel” to the fuzzed-out pop perfection of “Laugh Ourselves To Death” and orchestrally-tinged acoustic ballad “Pour Two Glasses,” the album shows that The Movielife have crafted a collection of songs that’s as captivating as it is catchy. “‘Mercy Is Asleep At The Wheel’ is about how it feels to be alive right now during such a crazy time and also musically it feels like a really good place to pick up again,” Caruana says of the aforementioned song. “On the other hand, we’ve come close to having a ballad before but ‘Pour Two Glasses’ is something completely new to us and we put it in the middle just to break things up. There’s a lot of new feelings on this record that you haven’t gotten from this band before.”
In order to capture their vision, the band enlisted new drummer Brett Romnes who also produced the record over the course of a month at Barber Shop Studios in northern New Jersey. “The studio was built inside of an old church from the 1800s on a lake and we just posted up there for a month and banged out the record,” Caruana explains, adding that Reilly took on the bass duties as well. The group also enlisted Brand New’s tone guru Joe Cannetti to help capture the perfect sound and subsequently had Zakk Cervini (Blink-182, All Time Low) mix the results. ‘We had a dream team of me and Brandon on the songwriting side and Joe and Brett on the production side helping us execute and then we brought in Zakk who works more in the pop/rock world and he took what we already had and made it sound absolutely massive,” he continues.
Lyrically, the album sees Caruana once again writing from the heart, about where he is in his life today and about the current state of the world. “The dichotomy of The Movielife has always been upbeat music with sometimes unsettling lyrics and on this record that dark cloud is being addressed throughout the record in different ways,” Caruana says of the album. While lines like, “We’re all gonna die, exploding in a ball of fire” from “Laugh Ourselves To Death” may sound nihilistic, it’s more of a reaction to the uncertainty that plagues the world today as interpreted through the band’s unique approach to songwriting. On the flip side, Cities In Search Of A Heart features some of the band’s most hopeful songs to date such as “You’re The Cure,” keeping the album’s overall sound feel far more inspiring than defeatist.
But ultimately Cities In Search Of A Heart is meant to be listened to, not analyzed, so turn it up because rebirths usually aren’t this catchy. “Calling on the hearts, wear it on the sleeve for all to see,” Caruana sings during the album’s infectious closer “Hearts” and with these words it’s clear that he’s singing as much for himself as he is for the band’s listeners who may not have found their own voices yet. This album speaks to those very simple yet relatable attributes of what it means to be human during an unprecedented time in history, so take it all in and hold on tight.
VENUE INFORMATION:
Union Transfer
1026 Spring Garden St.
Philadelphia, PA, 19123
The Early November & The Movielife - Tickets - Union Transfer - Philadelphia, PA, September 19, 2017 | Ticketfly
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