girl about town

Au Revoir Simone - Still Night, Still Light

Royce Epstein — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 14:26:01 -0400

Brooklyn trio of long-locked songstresses Au Revoir Simone are back with the long-awaited followup to their last album from 2007 - this time they bring us "Still Night, Still Light", a study in contrasts delivered by vintage keyboards, a drum machine, and three ethereal voices. Just released on May 19th, this new body of work proves to be more sophisticated than their previous offerings, with more sparse arrangements and themes of reflection and contemplation. And yet the songs have an upbeat vibe despite the lo-fi production and meloncholy lyrics, with the drum machine providing the backbone for the girls to weave their melodic stories. Included are several insturmental passages, enhancing the album by creating cohesion. The new album was produced by Thom Monahan, who is known to many Philadelphia music fans from his work with the Bigger Lovers and the Capitol Years. So what's not to like about this album? Lovely twinkly synthpop covered in poetic lyrics with girly vocals, both sad at times and content at other - perfect listening for hazy lazy summer days where daydreams set in and your own worries are forgotten.

Track Listing
01 Another Likely Story
02 Shadows
03 All or Nothing
04 Knight of Wands
05 The Last One
06 Trace a Line
07 Only You Can Make You Happy
08 Take Me as I Am
09 Anywhere You Looked
10 Organized Scenery
11 We Are Here
12 Tell Me

Erika, Annie and Heather of Au Revoir Simone

Au Revoir Simone - band site / myspace

Mighty Joe Castro @ Studio 27.28 - 06/06/09

Carly Marcoux — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:38:10 -0400

Photo of Joe Castro by Justin Clowes, 2009

Girl About Town is happy to support local artist and musician Joe Castro for his opening art exhibit at Studio 27.28 with artist Mike Travato between 6 and 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 6th. "Mighty" Joe Castro's painted works are often set in a World filled with intense colors; intelligent and brooding, with scenes where the subjects are often just a little-bit skewed--leading you to take a deeper look into the haunted scenery of the image itself. Joe Castro is a local artist who was a vibrant member of Philly and Delaware's music scene; playing guitar for a number of acts over the years, including Nero, Swingline, and The Situation. Come to the exhibit to meet or say "Hi" to the artist and talk new music and art, and then head over to BAR ERA afterwards to hear tunes spun by Girl About Town's Carly (DJ Sally Cinnamon - spinning soul, indie, and rock favorites) accompanied by DJ Mod Revolve (Baggy, new wave, and Brit-pop classics); the songs begin at 9pm at Bar ERA and continue on throughout the evening.

Saturday June 6th, 2009 - Joe Castro & Mike Travato
6-9pm @ Studio 27.28 - 2728 Girard Avenue, Philadelphia PA
9-close @ Bar ERA (after party) - 2743 Poplar Street, Philadelphia PA

Joe Castro - web site

Girl About Town is on summer holiday!

Royce Epstein — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 08:34:15 -0400

Girl About Town is on summer holiday! It's been almost 2 years since we launched and we are taking a much-needed break to re-group and enjoy the summer. We will not be posting new content except on an occasional whim. However, if Paul Weller or Elvis Costello want to meet us for an interview, we will make an exception.

We would like to thank all of our readers and friends for their support, and of course all of the bands that we've worked with. Check back here in The Fall to see what we're up to. If you are interested in joining Girl About Town, please contact Royce at royce@phillygirlabouttown.com.

Thanks, Happy Summer, and see you soon.....

Spill! Day One SF Pop Festival, an interview with Pelle Carlberg

Carly Marcoux — Sun, 31 May 2009 16:32:20 -0400

There is definitely something really wonderful about smaller festivals that make a whole festival-going experience lighter, and far more exciting. Last Friday in San Francisco, Girl About Town began covering one of our first out of city festivals of the year. In a city where large hills and wind-swept hair rules the street, you can't go wrong by chasing that cool ocean chill with a bit of heart-filled pop beat!

The first day of the festival showed us what successful festival planning can really be like, with passes already sold out, and kids lining up around the block practically spilling out to the street in greetings and hi-fives over pop fests past at the first venue of the evening; The Rikshaw Stop. A lot of the regulars had either come to see their favorite band, are in their friend's band's side-project, or are friends with their favorite band and possibly putting them up for the week. This doesn't include the new fans, but those who are new bridge the gap between the regulars and some have even flown in from out of the country for the first time in anticipation of seeing bands who may have never played live, or may be playing their last show live.

The first night's popfest show began with opener Pelle Carlberg, the most immediate comparison being one similar to that of Belle & Sebastian--but Carlberg is so much more. Pelle; who is working on his most recent album with Labrador Records' Johan Angergård, of The Legends and The Acid House Kings, was accompanied on stage with vocals, guitar and harmonica by Jonathan Hummelman. Playing long-titled crowd favorite "Clever Girls Like Clever Boys Much More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls" handclaps played him out to whoops and laughter, and the flame song that followed--the tongue-out, "Go To Hell, Miss Rydell" (about a writer who reviewed Carlberg's former band Edson) became the highlight of the set with the song "Pamplona" (a song tied loosely to the subject of the race of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain) leading him out.

Following the original popfest date, Pelle has been playing supporting dates from West Coast to East, and tonight is slated to play Philadelphia, on May 31st, at The Khyber! This is only Carlberg's second time out to the US, but his saccharine tunes and breathy, jangle-pop delivery will surely demand a return for the talented singer and his songs.

Pelle Carlberg: The thing is, my real name is “Per” and the nickname for “Per” is “Pelle”. It is a very old, traditional, Swedish name. It’s spelled with two “L”’s and “Pelé” the (football) soccer player is just a single “L”, and I wasn’t named after him. But when I took the name “Edson” for my band, it was a play on words, because “Edison Arantes do Nascimento” took the name “Pelé” so I took his. Soccer and the players in the game can be so exciting. Even though a game can go ‘nil, nil‘ (zero-zero), there’s just such a drama to it. There’s an elegance to it.

Girl About Town: How would you describe your audience over here in the US?

I get a lot of emails from the US about “The Lilac Time”. I’ve been around for quite a while…. I’ve been in bands since 1985, and there was no thing… called ‘indie’ or ‘alternative-pop’ when I started playing, and I‘ve more or less, always been playing the same style of music. In the ‘90s when this thing called ‘alternative-pop’ and ‘indie’ came up, I already felt as though I had missed that train at the time. I’ve always just tried to write the kind of music that I love listening to. It’s not very produced, but I just try to give each song what it requires. I usually write the lyrics first; then I’ll pick up a guitar, sit down, and find a melody to go along with them, or try something at the piano.

Do you play most of the instruments in your recordings? Are you a multi-instrumentalist?

I play quite a few instruments….but not very good! No, I mean, I’ve played guitar for more than twenty years, and I’m probably still not very good, but I can play my songs….and that’s good enough for me. I tend to play all of the instruments myself when I’m recording, and then have my friends come in--like, I’ll have all of the ideas down and what I think a bass line should sound like for the song to give them an idea of where I think it should go.

Would you say that your songs are all very personal experiences?

The songs that I write are “kitchen sink” and they’re 99% my life.

If you had to choose an author and re-create songs using only the content of his books, and you could take the material anywhere musically--who would be the author?

Have you heard of an author named Roddy Doyle? He wrote that trilogy for film; The Commitments, The Snapper, and The Van. I kind of like his sense of humor in the darkness. There’s always a serious button to things, but he writes with some kind of….‘glimpse in the eye’ to it. But still, there’s something; I guess I’m a bit fed up by the Irish of it. There’s something a bit too jolly, and party-all-the time about it that’s too much; and that’s not really me. It’s just part of their culture to just 'be,' and be happy, and drink a lot, and….

So what would be the ultimate cultural portrayal for you via your own music? We see Damon Albarn and others delving into different cultural settings with their abilities and experience (Albarn producing Mali’s Amadou & Mariam)--where could you see yourself in a different culture’s settings and what culture would that be?

I don’t know, I guess I would dig even deeper into the past. This might sound awkward, but I’m quite into American music. I actually really enjoy Creedance Clearwater, so maybe some late 60s, early 70s American rock n’ roll. There’s something about just plugging in your guitar and just singing it....you just sing it out loud… And there are no filters, whatsoever. Today’s music has a lot of filters (and production) and you hide everything behind cool things and props-like. I’d like to strip down the music even more, and I wish that I could be a bit louder, sometimes.

How did the production of your own album come together for you?

I’ve been recording in a small studio in Stockholm that I share with Johan (Acid House Kings, The Legends) from Labrador Records. So I’m there during the days and he’s there at night in the evenings. It’s nearly a home recording studio, but digital. Everything I do there is very organic though. It’s not a big thing for me, but that’s the way that I work. Today if you want a tambourine on a song, all you have to do is ‘drag and drop’ audio files--but I‘d rather do it myself. You can get so many different dynamics and nuances if you just do it yourself.

Tell us about some of the simple nuances in your songs….

All of my songs are full of nuances, because I never really do things over and over. I usually end up keeping the first vocals that I add [to a song], just to have something to work with. There are always so many sounds in there; like telephones ringing, or kids playing in the background and stuff. I normally like to keep those sounds in, because that’s the way I want my music to be--it should be full of life and not sterile.

What has been your favorite thing about touring the US out of the two times that you’ve been here?

Oh, that’s a simple one. I’ve been touring Asia quite a lot and all over Europe, and since my songs are based around lyrics, it‘s very hard to play to an audience who might not have English as their native-tongue. Just being in the US, where everyone understands what I’m singing is fantastic. My two favorite countries to come and play are the UK and the US, for natural reasons, of course… Swedes are generally very good at English, but not when it comes to listening to lyrics, because we learn English quite early, but not early enough. Because we hear it in music, and on television, well; since we’re born. And, then, we sort of learn to listen to it phonetically, instead of actually knowing the meaning the words and that’s likely why we’re so melodic--and maybe the reason why melodies are so important to us in turn.

Pelle Carlberg - band site / labrador records / myspace

Eye Candy #54: SF Popfest Day One - Oh No Oh My and Still Flyin'

Carly Marcoux — Sun, 31 May 2009 16:31:47 -0400

Oh No Oh My from Austin, TX putting the rock back into indie.

Demonstrating the alligator clap for "Rope Burns"

Members of San Francisco-based collective Still Flyin' rounded out our evening at The San Francisco popfest this past week, playing their reggae-influenced, rocksteady jams and dub-beats to a high-spirited, dancing crowd that clamoured for more. The supergroup is comprised of a collective of several indie-pop bands including; Masters of the Hemisphere, Je Suis France, Track Star, Aislers Set, Ladybug Transistor, Love Is All, Maserati, and Red Pony Clock. They played songs off of their recently released album "Never Gonna Touch the Ground" as well as their hit "Rope Burns".

Still Flyin' - band site / antenna farm records / myspace

Depeche Mode: The Dark Progression

Royce Epstein — Mon, 18 May 2009 00:30:47 -0400

For thirty years, Depeche Mode has been synonymous with the explosion and evolution of synth pop. While certainly not the first band to experiment with electronics and synthesizers, they were one of the first bands to advance the genre using samples and creative studio techniques without the use of guitars for the first decade of their career, all while propelling electronic music into the forefront of pop music. "Depeche Mode: The Dark Progression" is a new documentary exploring the history and legacy of one of England's most beloved acts. Pieced together from interviews, rare live footage, news clips, and amazing photos, the world of Depeche Mode is dissected and celebrated as the band enters another chapter with a new album (their 12th) and an enduring live road show. Starting from the birth of the band with the crucial involvement and accomplishments of Vince Clarke to the departure of Alan Wilder in 1995 and beyond, the documentary does a thorough job of depicting the importance and contributions of Depeche Mode. For one, this band is the largest selling electronic band ever, cracking the US market at a time when alternative music was still on the fringe of the mainstream and deemed impossible. Secondly, Depeche Mode was (and still is) hugely influential on many other musicians. They are a band's band, making other musicians jealous with their ingenuity and breadth of material - Gary Numan, Thomas Dolby, and OMD's Andy McClusky all discuss Depeche Mode's brilliance in great detail and how the band's music affects them personally. The film also puts the band's own influences into perspective, looking at everything from industrial Essex to Kraftwerk to Moogs to the New Romantic movement. Commentary from luminaries like Mute's founder Daniel Miller to the producers and engineers of many of the DM albums round out the content. DM Biographer Jonathan Miller puts it all into context. Tracks included are: "Just Can't Get Enough", "People Are People", "Stripped", "Never Let Me Down Again", "Strangelove", "Personal Jesus", "Enjoy the Silence", "Walking in My Shoes", "I Feel You", and many others. Fans will appreciate the in-depth discussions about the songs, but even more fascinating is the personal look at the band members and what each brings to the success of the band - Martin Gore's leadership and song writing talent; Dave Gahan's dark and powerful frontman persona; Andy Fletcher's keyboard wizardry; and Alan Wilder's studio saavy that really shaped the music to take form and create the DM signature sound. While this documentary is unauthorized by the band or by Mute, it certainly paints a favorable light and fills a void for fans of this iconic and beloved band. Look for it on June 16th when it's released.

Depeche Mode - band site / mute / myspace

Liechtenstein feature in tonight's England Belongs to Twee - Adobe Cafe, 5/16/09

Carly Marcoux — Sat, 16 May 2009 05:49:18 -0400

England Belongs to Twee (EBTT), one of Philadelphia's longest twee/oi! running DJ nights has been presenting some of the most sugary-pop shows in town as of late including; headliners from the UK, Comet Gain, a What's Your Rupture? DJ-hosted dance night, as well as the latest twee breakout act The Pains of Being Pure At Heart. As a Philadelphia companion show for this week and the next's NYC Popfest shows, EBTT is hosting Göteborg, Sweden's all-female trio: Liechtenstein. The group is making their first foray into the US and plays twee and sugar-pop in the vein of beloved groups that came out of the late 70s girl-scene such as Gang Of Four-influenced band Kleenex, The Shop Assistants, and Dolly Mixture. Throw in a little Talulah Gosh mixed with the group's final incarnation Heavenly, and you've got Liechtenstein--choral voices mixed with shoegaze pop, and driven beats! Liechtenstein release their album "Survival Strategies In a Modern World" on Slumberland Records in the US and Fraction Discs in Sweden on May 26th but, if we're lucky, will have advances of the 10" record available for sale at their show here. If twee is your game, you'll want to catch them before they head to NY with accompaniment from support acts Brown Recluse Sings and a Huggy Bear tribute band (members of Des Ark, Middle America & Layers/Quake) rounding out the evening. The fun begins at 9pm, door is $5-7 (sliding scale) and Adobe Cafe is located at 1919 E. Passyunk Avenue in Philadelphia--the show is hosted upstairs at Adobe.

Roses In the Park - Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein - band site / slumberland recs / myspace