We're ready for our first concert! Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Napalm Death The Melvins Melt-Banana Underground Arts Philadelphia, PA 4.13.16 Photo by Dan Long   Phawker live show coverage Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

So Pitted Bully METZ First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia, 1.12.16 Philadelphia's first snow of the season interestingly coincided with the evening's METZ gig at the First Unitarian Church Tuesday night, some chilling wind and flakes whipping viciously through the handful of cold individuals huddled outside the basement's stairway. Some concertgoers had voluntarily arrived without coats, anticipating the eventual warmth that would ensue once the amps were plugged in and the inevitable movement of the all-ages crowd began emitting heat, so their endurance was certainly put to the test. We filed into the venue once the doors were opened. Everyone found their spots on the floor and began ceremonially cracking open cans of PBR. The hall went black save for the backlit glow of blue light that cut silhouettes of the members of So Pitted , an abstract punk trio whose direct sonic assaults somehow aligned with their moments of noise-laden oddity. Watching So Pitted, I...

Melt-Banana Hot Nerds HIRS Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia, PA 5.22.15 Phawker live show coverage Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Ufomammut Usnea Ominous Black Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia, PA 5.20.15 Photo by Dan Long Phawker live show coverage Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Faith No More Le Butcherettes Electric Factory Philadelphia, PA 5.15.15 Photo by Dan Long Phawker live show coverage Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Sleep Windhand Union Transfer Philadelphia, PA 8.26.14 Photo by Dan Long Phawker live show coverage   Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Son Little clipping. Shabazz Palaces Union Transfer, 8.25.14. Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds at The MANN, 7.25.14. Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

No Age PhilaMOCA Philadelphia, PA 9.7.13 Phawker live show coverage   Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

No Age at PhilaMOCA, 9.7.13. Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

A year ago today, I attended a Sunn O))) concert at the Union Transfer in Philadelphia. The experience was to be written up and submitted to Kicking Against The Pricks as a concert review, but that didn't happen. Kicking Against The Pricks has been, unfortunately, inactive for some time now, so the review was never published online. Call it self-indulgence, but I figured it would be cool to publish the review here as it's been a full year since the show. Sunn O))) Dead in the Dirt T.O.M.B. 9.5.12 Union Transfer (Philadelphia, PA) I’ve found it difficult to explain in as succinct a way as possible how Sunn O))) works as a concept, let alone as a band. The sonically dense and intensely austere duo formed by Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson have constructed a ritualized expression, allowed to transmit to live audiences via ominous and enormous drones that don’t seem possible to consider until you experience them. The albums are one thing, but when your ribs ratt...

Wire at the Union Transfer, 7.13.13. Photo by Jenniah Janisheck Caldwell Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Little Big League Barren Girls Marnie Stern Johnny Brenda's Philadelphia, PA 5.10.13 Marnie Stern ended the American leg of the Who Gives A Hoot '13 tour in Philadelphia on what wound up being a very rainy Friday night.  Indoors at Johnny Brenda's, we were being charmed by Stern, who amusingly attributed her lack of voice to an excessive helping of blow jobs during the tour, (the real reason being a drunken night of karaoke, a factoid publicly disclosed by bassist Nithin Kalvakota ), and demanded that the crowd relieve themselves of their clothing (a couple t-shirts made it to the stage).  Touring drummer, Joe Wong , had no trouble shedding his t-shirt for the cause. Yes, the banter always wins at a Marnie Stern show.  But, so does the music. Since 2009 , I've been to every Stern event in Philly, (the ONE exception being that Tera Melos show that I'm still annoyed I missed), and with every event she's become a bigger name who draws larger audie...

Iceage METZ Night Birds White Lung The First Unitarian Church OF Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA 4.19.13 Poster by Rodger Binyone No Ripcord review Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Swans at the Union Transfer, 10.13.12. Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Sunn O))) at the Union Transfer, 9.5.12. Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

Inzinzac   Gun Muffs Child Abuse Ruins (Alone) Kung-Fu Necktie Philadelphia, PA 5.2.12 I shook Tatsuya Yoshida ’s hand just before he got the bottle of water he’d requested from the bartender in broken English. Up to this point, I’d been sitting at the bar at Kung Fu Necktie, enjoying a glass of Yards and the company of friends. Yoshida’s warm-up for soundcheck was enough to keep my attention off of the Flyers game (they lost), his every automatic motion resultant in arrhythmic battery, precise and complex. After every quick lapse into percussive onslaught he would inquire, “Sound okay?” The show hadn’t even started and it was already money well spent. Yoshida performed Tuesday night as Ruins (Alone) , another iteration of his Ruins project which is normally a two-manned operation either based in guitar or saxophone, (or some other instrumental permutation I may have missed). For this version, Yoshida ran solo, the music parts of his act supplied by a small lapto...

This is a quick interview with composer John Zorn , highlighting his four-piece show at Columbia University’s Miller Theater on December 9th. John Zorn Composer Portrait Preview from Miller Theatre on Vimeo . Sincerely, Letters From A Tapehead

I know I've been promoting Shining 's upcoming live DVD, Live Blackjazz , something fierce lately, but videos for the release keep surfacing.  This one, a performance of "In the Kingdom of Kitsch You Will Be a Monster," the lead-off track from Shining's fantastic Grindstone LP, should be reason enough for fans to pick this up.  Information comes courtesy of Indie Recordings. SHINING RELEASES NEW MUSIC VIDEO On II.II.II Shining is releasing their first ever live album and dvd from a concert in Rockefeller, Oslo. Today we are premiering the music video for the song "In the Kingdom of Kitsch You Will be a Monster". Watch it here: CLICK HERE Shining is also touring Europe. Tour dates: 05-NOV - Damnation Festival, Leeds (UK) 06-NOV - Fleece, Bristol (UK) 08-NOV - Patronaat, Haarlem (NL) 09-NOV - Doornroosje, Nijmegen (NL) 10-NOV - Point FMR (Musiques Volantes Festival), Paris (FR) 11-NOV - STUK, Leuven (B) 12-NOV - ULU, London (UK) W/ Devin Towns...