Illinois had a great set Thursday night at Johnny Brenda’s and we have the video to prove it.
Illinois “Paid To Wait” LIVE at Johnny Brenda’s (Dec 29, 2011) from their forthcoming album.
Illinois “Alone Again” LIVE at Johnny Brenda’s (Dec 29, 2011)
In my younger years I used to get to shows too early and had to wait around for the opening band which was a good thing because I picked up some favorite bands in the process. Well, of late, I’ve been rather late to shows and end up missing most of the opening act. I apologize, as a music enthusiast I should know how to schedule my time better. That being said, I did miss all but the last 30 seconds of Hollis Brown’s set. I’ve never seen that band before so I would have at least liked to have seen their set. Hopefully, we’ll cross musical paths sometime in the future.
I did of course make it to Johnny Brenda’s (Philadelphia, PA) in time to see Illinois. After all, Illinois is one of my favorite bands and for good reason – their live shows are always incredible. I’ve seen Illinois countless times since 2005 and I don’t recall every seeing a bad performance by them. So, if Illinois is playing a show in the area then I always try my best to make sure I’m there. I admire and respect the effort and passion that Illinois put into their music which makes their music sound so good. By the way, great news, Illinois is going to release a new album soon so keep an ear out for that.
Cheers Elephant was the headlining band for this show. Although I haven’t seen Cheers Elephant in ages it was nice to see that they had not lost an ounce of their on stage dancing, energy, and antics. Man, that is one hyper band and that’s exciting when it comes to live performances. So, it was great to see Cheers Elephant again and their performance made it quite apparent that I really need to see this band more often.
See the entire photo set here.
We spent some time updating our Google Calendar to reflect the upcoming shows and events of some of our favorite Philly area artists. Please check out the upcoming dates listed below or on our Calendar page. See you at a show!
The Philly Folk Parade presents: A Winter Solstice Benefit Show at World Cafe Live (Philadelphia, PA) December 21, 2011. Featuring: Joshua Park, Brad Hinton, Ron Gallo, Allison Polans, and Joe D’Amico, Philip D’Agostino, Kevin Killen and Bethany Brooks. It was a beautiful night of music by some of my favorite Philly area artists.
Shows This Week: Dec. 19 – Dec. 26, 2011
12/20/11: Pete Donnelly – 700 Club (Philadelphia, PA) *Listening Party
12/21/11: The Philly Folk Parade – World Cafe Live (Philadelphia, PA) *Winter Solstice Benefit Concert
12/22/11: Peasant – Maxwell’s on Main (Doylestown, PA)
12/23/11: Kuf Knotz – The Poets Art Gallery (Philadelphia, PA)
Happy Holidays!
Shannon Pelcher
& The Iron Threads
CD Release Party
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Tin Angel
20 S. 2nd St
Philadelphia, PA 19106
w/ Lara Ewen
7pm | 21+
Shows This Week: Dec. 12 – Dec. 18, 2011
12/15/11: Laura Shay – Seven Stones Cafe (Media, PA)
12/15/11: Pete Donnelly – Espressit Coffee House (Haddon Township, NJ)
12/16/11: Citizens Band Radio – Havana (New Hope, PA)
12/17/11: Andrew Lipke – North Star Bar (Philadelphia, PA)
12/17/11: Ross Bellenoit – The M Room (Philadelphia, PA)
12/17/11: Kuf Knotz – Panda (New York, NY)
12/18/11: Shannon Pelcher – Tin Angel (Philadelphia, PA) *CD Release Party!
12/18/11: Alright, Junior. – North Star Bar (Philadelphia, PA)
See you at a show!
Joe D’Amico recently released this video for “Asleep In My Shoes”, the title track from the album ‘Asleep In My Shoes’ (2011). As a fan, I’m happy to be able to just listen to the song but this video really adds a new dimension to the song. The visuals compliment the feel of the song without destroying the song’s integrity or overwhelming the viewer with embellished imagery. All in all, the video for “Asleep In My Shoes” is concise creativity yielding a great music video that works – watch it and I’m sure you’ll agree.
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Chris Kasper The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest (Chris Kasper, 2011) Track List: |
‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ by Chris Kasper is said to be the final installment in the FlyingBoy Trilogy (FlyingBoy, Chasing Another Sundown). And if that is the case then it’s a very bittersweet end. ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ takes Chris Kasper’s incredible singer-songwriter skills that is evident in all his previous works and broadens it to include a slightly more musically experimental side. So, what might have been a risk to many artists reveals itself as the pure brilliance in Kasper’s diverse sound. ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ is a memorable listening experience that no ears should be deprived of.
‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ begins with the ethereal tones of “Walking On Water” that song has an effortless feel similar to the feel in “Safe And Sound”. “Blue It Be” is not only about the color blue but feeling blue (but the pulsing drum will wipe away any blues and make you want to dance). “Once You Start, Away You Go” starts off somewhat slow and mellow but breaks open with a rockin’ heaviness that is marvelous. Aww, “(Little Parade Down) Baltimore St.” has such an infectious melody adding that extra hint of beauty to the song. For now, “Miss Augustine” is my favorite track because I love that vocal effect, electric drum sequence and those all too important oo’s. Plus, “one day I may be stronger” is some lyrical optimism that we can all use. More, lyrical optimism can be found in “Every Now And Then” with “every now and then I build myself up from the ground.” But if we’re talking about those deep, thought provoking, intelligent lyrics that Kasper delivers we got to include “you are what you are even when you hide.” Man, sometimes I think Chris Kasper is a lyrical genius.
I honestly could go on and on about how awesome an album ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ is but I’d rather just end this review here so we can all go and listen to this album and enjoy it. So, give ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ a listen and I guarantee you’ll be blown away by how good this album is.
Also, since it’s that time of year with all these polls and whatnot I’d like to say that ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ by Chris Kasper wholeheartedly deserved its spot on my list of Top 10 Albums of 2011. I just want to listen to ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ again and again and again and…
[LISTEN] “Once You Start, Away You Go” from ‘The First Hundred Years Are The Hardest’ by Chris Kasper
[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/chriskaspermusic/once-you-start-away-you-go[/soundcloud]
Thank you to Chris Kasper, Andrew Lipke and all involved in this album – job well done!
Chris Kasper: website | Facebook | Twitter
Shows This Week: Dec 5 – Dec 11, 2011
12/08/11: Joshua Marcus – Johnny Brenda’s (Philadelphia, PA)
12/09/11: Jonas’ 30th Birthday Party!! – The Fire (Philadelphia, PA)
12/09/11: Meeting in the Aisle – North Star Bar (Philadelphia, PA)
12/10/11: Kevin Killen – Dawson Street Pub (Philadelphia, PA)
12/10/11: Laura Shay – NY Bagel Cafe and Deli (Glen Mills, PA)
12/10/11: Alright, Junior. – Mill Hill Basement (Trenton, NJ)
12/10/11: Cliff Hillis – Java Bay Cafe (Ocean Pines, MD)
See you at a show!
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