The Morelings Johnny Brendas Philadelphia 9-24-15

morelings-s-552The Morelings, a Philadelphia foursome comprised of Kedra Caroline (vocals, bass)  Matthew William (guitar) Shawn Riley (drums) and Jake Detwiler (keys, bass, guitar) played at Johnny Brendas this past week on 9-24-15.

Being able to have creative freedom behind the camera lens for The Morelings is such an honor. The dreamy, electric swirl of sound that Matt, Shawn and Jake’s instruments create along side the always stunning, smokey-smooth dreamy voice of Kedra is truly thrilling to hear. I found myself during the show at a few points with my camera at my side, taking in the sounds and the scene- forgetting my mission to capture the night because I was drawn in.  It was a unique photography moment for me, the mix up of sound, the visuals, and the lights all creating a cocoon of musical magic and I didn’t want to miss it all while behind the lens. But I did get shots, phew! You can see them here.

The Morelings opened with Before and ended with Same Century. They played a set full of mostly new material except No Sign from the previously released EP, which you can hear by clicking here. And one last link to check out to their New Order cover of Lonesome Tonight .

I hear that they have been working on an album since June, I hope to see that sometime soon. So, keep your eyes and ears on the look out for more to come including a Q & A of the band with Sisters Dissonance.

~Ady

Desaparecidos 8-7-15 Union Transfer Philly

I wanted to get this photo set out there for everyone- click here– , but I haven’t paired my words to my set yet. Stay tuned for a short review/vibe from the show, which was phenom!

~Ady

Desa stamped-202

AA Bondy | Tin Angel Philadelphia, PA – July 15, 2015

BondyTinAngel10-7-2015Listening to AA Bondy’s music or seeing him play live is one of those joys in life that just makes everything feel right with the world. My sister Ady and I both agree on this. As it happens, Bondy is ever elusive—he will come out of the woodwork and release a masterpiece out of nowhere, disappear into the sunset (just long enough to make everyone wonder if he’s left us for good), and then to our delight return again. He operates on his own system of time, which I can only assume is called Bondy Time. He’s like the tide, ebbing and flooding, and you quietly come to rely on this natural cycle. This past May high tide returned in the form of an unassuming Tweet announcing a summer tour: Bondy was back. He reappeared with no warning or fanfare, and the long wait only made it that much sweeter when he did.

The last time Ady and I saw him was almost four years ago at the now defunct First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia (November 2011) where he performed as the front of a four piece band, a wall of glorious sound in support of the lush and beautiful album, Believers. Flash forward to July 2015, and our evening at Tin Angel is a very different experience. This is a stripped down, solo performance that is part revisitation of older songs that are reworked and played from the gut, playful and full of experimentation; part wicked funny social commentary comedy hour (I would gladly pay kindly to see a full standup Bondy routine, or throw my full support his way if he decided to, say, run the country); and a full dose of Bondy “giving birth” to a new record he is in the process of creating as he embarks upon a voyage of America. The audience, filling every inch of the tiny but comfortable venue, hangs on his every word and every note, listening as we are treated to glimmers of the new album to be. We are assured that a new album is coming along with more touring in the near future. I can tell you that both Ady and I are waiting patiently-yet-impatiently for what is to come.

Joseph Arthur live at The Tangier (Akron, OH 11/26/2014)
Photos by Ady
Words by Shan

Thanksgiving tradition is now my sis and I cozied up in one of the slinky booths of the Tangier to be part of Joseph Arthur’s evening there. He plays host to the town . . . one man and his guitar and red pork pie hat, Akron body back in his homeland just as we are taken back to a piece of ours.  Market Street falls dark and cold but inside is festive lights and warmth. It’s been a long journey but we have returned to our bunker, the cradle of the big booth we’d been yearning for, and fall in love with the golden voice all over again. Song comes out of every pore of Arthur’s body, arms, legs, mind, heart. He towers above and yet climbs even higher to stomp on box and pummel us in the face. A glass of wine and The Devil’s Broom. Lou Reed is there in spirit, too. People packed in like sardines to be in his presence. Octaves spill from his lungs. Joe’s lungs. They must be massive. He loops and he runs circles around our minds. He is his own wall of fame.

Night Windows Q & A with Ben Hughes

nightwindows_coffeeNight Windows Review and Q & A with  Ben Hughes

 

Night Windows the band envisioned, created and executed by Ben Hughes alone has released its debut LP Musicassette/Magnetic Memory. I’ve sat with the album on several occasions listening to the sounds, the lyrics, the melodies,  and the composition and I like it. In learning about this new band, I’ve also learned a few things about myself. The first thing I do when I listen to a new band, or artist is to try to figure out who the influences are and secondly I listen to the lyrics– carefully. As for the influences, we all have them, we can’t get away from our roots, and where our musical footprints have derived from. For Night Windows I hear a few I recognize, but it is balanced out with a healthy dose of Ben’s own sound to create Musicassette/Magnetic Memory which is evident and testimonial to talent.

Listening to Musicassettte/Magnetic Memory took me on what I like to think of  as a music journey.  I got the feelings of personal discovery through the tracks along with many different stories to tell. Often themes of personal struggle with the human condition and just making it by in the world– in a sometimes first and sometimes third person experience, so much so I can’t quite tell if Ben’s talking about himself or someone else.

nightwindows_coffeenotes

There’s a Friend of Mine carries an islandish sound with strumming patterns and vocal sounds that has a familiar type of feel in such a subtle way that it’s almost new all at once (if that could make any sense).  My favorite track on the album is Home, which takes the listener inward with the minor key and lyrics.

I could continue to review each song individually, speculate on influence and genere, but I won’t!  I will just say that Ben is a chameleon with his vocals- something I like most about a singer and respect due to the complexity and skill that requires.  He’s capable of adapting his voice to each song to give the song the feeling he’s striving for that you hear in the lyrics. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to Musicassette/Magnetic Memory I suggest you check it out here!

Night Windows will play at Ortleib’s Saturday the 21st @6pm. GO see!

Read the Q & A interview that Ady had a chance to do below.

June 18, 2014 Interview with Ben Hughes of Night Windows

nightwindows_writing

 Ady: You recently released your debut LP Musicassette/Magnetic Memory.   What was it like to go through the process of writing and recording a full length release in your bedroom? I did read that you created this body of work all from    your bedroom? 

 Ben: The process of writing and recording Musicassette/Magnetic Memory was a lot of    
things. It was a triumph one day, a defeat the next. It was a real learning experience. I have been making albums from my bedroom since 2005, but this was the first one that I knew I’d actually release. I had a better recording set up (thanks to my friends for teaming up and buying me a new set up for my birthday), more space to work with (a music room and a garage), and more instruments at my disposal. 
I’d wake up early and record before work, and then get right back to it when I got home. Then when I was done recording all of the songs, I started the mixing and mastering phase of the production. This was the most difficult for me, because I had a lot more tools to use and wasn’t sure how to use them. Ryan Buzby (longtime friend and bandmate) kind of coached me along through the process, so that helped out a lot.
As for what you read about the bedroom studio, it was a bedroom down the hall from mine that I labeled the Music Room 170.
Ady: What about your debut release are you most satisfied about?

Ben: I’d have to say that I am most satisfied that I made it through the process without losing my initial vision for the album. It was really cool to hear it all come together the way that I imagined at the beginning of the process. 

Well, I did shave 5 songs off of the album, because I am not generally a fan of long albums, and it seemed more focused and stronger without the 5 songs that I cut out. Plus, now I have 5 unreleased songs from the Musicassette sessions that I can either use as singles or an EP, so it all worked out.

Ady: Where is the name Night Windows from?

Ben: Night Windows is a song from The Weakerthans album Reunion Tour (One of my favorite albums). I looked everywhere for a fitting name for this project and Night Windows just felt right to me. 

Ady: As you know, Sisters Dissonance is all about the live show. when will Night Windows hit the road to play some gigs?

Ben: We are booking some shows from mid July to late August in the tri-state area. I’ll keep you posted!

Ady: What advice can you give to rising musicians? Especially those that are from the NJ/Philly area?

Ben: Don’t rely on gimmicks, don’t be an asshole, develop a good filter (friends, bandmates, etc), and most of all, focus on the songs.

Ady: And lastly the Sisters Dissonance question no one can escape:  If you were a superhero what would your super hero name be and what power would you possess? 

Ben: Well, it’s kind of funny — I once dubbed myself Consumption Man after a day of heavy eating and drinking, so as much as I’d hate to have that be my super hero name, I might have to go with it. Consumption Man possesses the power to consume anything and everything in sight! All for the greater good? lol