Ramsayings

Caught some amazing local bands at Younglove’s last night. Finally saw the Party Photographers, who totally lived up to the hype. Really fun band. Friendly people, too. Check them out over on their Bandcamp page. Watch them play Fleetwood Mac’s “Rhiannon” in the video above.

Surprise of the night was Slutever, who filled in for a last-minute cancellation. They were AWESOME! So much fun. You should probably get Sorry I’m Not Sorry right now.

Special thanks to Mark and Erin for the lift and the banh mi! Thanks to Younglove’s, too! Great little spot and Dock Street is right across the street. Hard to beat if you’re thirsty and want a bite to eat before a gig out in west Philly.

My friend Mark made it. It’s pretty cool, so I’m sharing it, but chances are you saw it on Pitchfork or pretty much every blog in the known universe. It’s that good! So are Nightlands. Can’t wait to see them play the Ox in late January. It’s gonna be downright cozy in that icebox!

Know what’s been on my mind lately? Local music! Lots of it. I just caught the Purling Hiss bug last week . Just got handed the new Prowler CD by my favorite bartender at Memphis Taproom, Keith. Ran into Ports of Call there, too. Snagged the new Woe disc. Watching Shaking Through videos with Party Photographers and Reading Rainbow. (Give Shaking Through some money, okay?) Picked up the new Sun Airway LP. Need to get that Nightlands record ASAP. Turns out there’s more to the Philly music scene than Dr. Dog. Who knew?

Lots of people did. I’m literally the last guy to the party. Why? Never paid much attention to the local scene when I was coming up as a rock critic because Doug Wallen had that beat covered like a blanket and I wasn’t all that impressed with what was happening back in the mid-’00s, apart from bands like Man Man and Espers. That’s changed. And how.

Sure, some of it can be chalked up to me not being paid to care about music anymore. Listening to new music became a chore. Feel like I missed lots of great stuff because I tuned out, but now I’m back with open ears. In fact, I’m arranging interviews with some of the bands listed above now. Can’t wait to chat with some of these artists and showcase a renewed Philly music scene!

So tell me: who are your favorite local bands?

Not sure how I feel about Kurt Vile’s sound, but one thing’s clear: the dude is a born entertainer. Had a fun time watching him play with his band the Violators last night.

First time I met Kurt was at the first Beach House gig at Johnny Brenda’s. He was sitting next to me at the bar, hoping to meet the guy behind Car Park Records. What happened next is history.

Felt good to congratulate him last night. He played to a packed house in his hometown! Shows that Pitchfork ratings aren’t the end of the world. Wish more bands got that.

Read about them a few weeks ago. Listened to some tracks on their MySpace and fell in love. Hard to believe, but they’re even better live.

How to describe their sound? Does a southern rock-tinged Jay Reatard make sense? Skynyrd meets the Ramones?

Bought two albums and introduced myself to Mike, the lead singer and guitarist, at the merch table after the show.

Someone please sign this band and make them famous, okay? Think Matador would be a great fit. Make it happen, people!