#PhillyPresents - Divers by Sean Hoots

Photo by Lindsey Borgman

Your band name: Sean Hoots/Hoots & Hellmouth


Style: Anything with passion/fire/vibe. My general approach can be expressed by the formula Soul + X, where X represents any number of mixable styles (rock, folk, electronic, noise, etc.).

Years on the Scene: Many years, to be sure. 8 with Hoots & Hellmouth, but I've been around a lot longer than that doing a whole host of musical things.

Current Project and/or Members: Hoots & Hellmouth is currently on a bit of a pause. 8 years of hard touring requires a breather at some point! In that space, I am exploring a variety of music, involving a variety of folks, everything from solo singing and soundscape-making to ensemble playing with some of Philly's best (and cutest), including Todd Erk, Jaron Olevsky, Tom Bendel and Carl Bahner.





Any new album projects? Sessions in the works?
All kinds of stuff in the works...I just did a trio session/show at Carl Bahner's Springhouse Sound Studio last weekend, and the results are already making it obvious that we're gonna need to release it to the public. I'm also currently prepping Volume 2 of my Raise The Dead Language series (soundscapes and collages), which should see the light of day in June. And I've got a pile of R&B tunes that are slowly being massaged into place (the first of which, "Boy Of Leaf," is featured on Mad Dragon Records' recently-released 10th Anniversary compilation).

Recent and/or most unique/exciting show:
The Springhouse Sound Studio show this past weekend was pretty outside-the-box for me. Carl Bahner has this great little studio in King Of Prussia, and he's been hosting intimate session-shows there recently (Toy Soldiers did one not too long ago). For the evening, I put together a rather impromptu trio, involving both Carl and Todd Erk, just to see where we could go with it. The night ended up being a revelation, reminding me of my true home on the electric guitar. I haven't ripped so many solos in years! We got funky, freaky, noisy, spacey...it was a savory blend of yum, to be sure.

Sean Hoots Trio "Rivers & Rivulets" Live at Springhouse Sound

Introducing: Divers

Taut and tight. Fierce and fiery. Divers have emerged in the wake of another great Philly band, The Weeds, featuring a few common elements in both the personnel and music departments, but achieving a focus and stride unmatched by its predecessor. Emily Zeitlyn is a magnetic force on stage, drawing attention to both the words she delivers and the way she delivers them. Her lyrics have a plain, stripped-bare quality, and they come across in turns vulnerable and with aplomb...but always raw in a way that just feels right. In a scene often dominated by male front-persons, Em has carved a powerfully commanding niche for herself in front of the mic.

The full picture of Divers is rounded out with a virtual who's-who of Philly awesomeness. Todd Erk on bass, Ross Bellenoit on guitar and Tom Bendel on drums...how many times have you seen those guys in combination on a local stage? But despite their familiarity (or perhaps because of it), these guys gel to form exactly the unit that is required to serve Zeitlyn's song-smithery. They keep the arrangements stark and minimal, opting for sinewy grooves over flashy shows of technical prowess. When Ross does manage to cut loose chasing down a meandering solo line, it is ultimately in support of the overall vibe. That's what makes these guys so freaking good...they serve the songs, and the songs reward them (and us) for their dedication.


"Eggshells" is definitely a fave. It really epitomizes the immediate directness in both word and music that I think makes this band such a gem.


'Eggshells' is featured amongst not one, but two, great new sessions.  Check out both the Key Studio Session and the On The Hill Session by Kettle Pot Tracks.  If you want to know more, do yourself a favor and check out this loaded Q&A ...



Where to see them? June 6th @ Johnny Brenda's



Why? Johnny Brenda's is the perfect setting in which to bask at their feet and receive the rock.







More from Sean Hoots......

Photo by Lindsey Borgman

Philly music hero (band/producer/promoter): Sun Ra, Coltrane, Brian McTear/Miner St Studio/Weathervane, Roots/?uestlove...basically all the folks who've carved their own path, stuck to their guns and made this city the rich mosaic of musicality that it is. Here's to keeping things weird!

Music info/source site for Philly: The Key, Folkadelphia, Philebrity...Root Down!


Random thoughts? Explore your place(s) in the multiverse.