Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia - September Concert Review with Murchant / Penrose / Satellite Hearts / The Unlikely Candidates

by guest contributer Emily Southerton

If you had been walking down the streets of a Philadelphia fall on the evening of September 15^th, as the sun set on West Philly’s painted gables, you might have stopped momentarily at the doorstep of Nomad Studios. Outside, the autumn air is crisp and dropping like an apple from a tree, but looking through the glass, you’d have seen a living room scattered with warm folks, drinks in hand and smiling, eyes fixed on a September Sofar Sounds show.

Murchant opened the evening. A Pennsylvania girl relocating to Joshua Tree, CA, Murchant sang a solo set, and backed herself with guitar and ukulele. Her voice is rich, and in “Credit Card,” rises quickly with complex melodies, supported by swells but gentle enough to warble with an enchanting vibrato. Eyes closed, bones and feathers tied around her neck, she taps her boot and smiles, which elicits a similar response from her audience. Her set was sweet well received, but it left me curious about her other projects in which she's supported by the sound of a full band, one of which contains her two sisters. In the end, Murchant picked up the uke and closed with "Meadow Gate" which stood starkly and beautifully alone.

Murchant:

Credit Card—unreleased

The Man—unreleased

Sweet Dreams are Made of This—Eurythmics Cover

Meadow Gate—Coruscate at the Meadow Gate

Murchant - The Man | Sofar Philadelphia (#473)

Penrose, followed. Before the show, I had sat outside on the stoop chatting with two of the three tall brothers of the band, and they talked about their travels and writing. It became clear that the Murphy brothers lyrics are deeply influenced by the road and it's duplicities. I listened as they compared (or contrasted) their experiences of "living on the New Jersey Turnipike" for years playing shows between NYC and Philly, with that of the protagonist of Circe. Circe, Penrose’s Feb 2013 odyssey album, traces a broken man’s journey across America, from LA to the swampy city of New Orleans, and I was heartened by the intentionality of their concept album. When their set began that night, like that lone traveler, Dan Murphy played a solo set and opened with the type of Spanish-influenced guitar that got the eyes of every musician in the room zeroed in on Dan’s fingers which pricked sharp melodies within aggressive arpeggios. He sang, “Lawd that ship is going down, don’t need your love, I put mine in the ground,” with a coarse tenor voice and a furrowed brow, knocked on the wood of his guitar, stomped his feet, and wore all-black. His stand out piece was “Adaline,” and in it, he wove melodies into his finger-picking that elicited images of a spider spinning his web. I must admit, the experiences of the song as a whole were unfortunately interrupted, as the complexities of emotion that Dan sang about were not matched by complexities in his voice; lines were hurried and the dynamics that lead one to feel a protagonist’s pain were missing. I want to trust Penrose’s Johnny Cash-ness, but as they walk the line between Philly and New York in these next few months, these boys might have to find the truth in their own voices.

Penrose:

Every River Goes to Hell—Circe

All Gone—unreleased

Adeline—unreleased

Underground—Circe

Penrose - Adeline | Sofar Philadelphia (#473)

 

Two solo acts down, Satellite Hearts set up the stage and the local foursome quickly fell into three unreleased tracks. I was told before the set that instrumentation would be slightly adjusted from their usual to account for the acoustic setting, and as the band rolled into their set, guitarist Dre DiMura sweetly strummed a mandolin over a soft and playful bass from Lucas Rinz, complimenting wonderfully tasteful drumming, thanks to Keaton Thandi. Each song of the set was reworked in a way that evoked such “Harvest Moon” and “Moondance” moods, so perfect for the season that you knew you were in just the right spot on the right evening. The four clearly enjoyed adjusting their classically heavier rock sound, smiling and laughing through jangly and rhythmic kicks in, “Mountainside Breakdown” and, “Marilyn.” The audience got to hear, “Getting Along,” from the newest EP, Four to the Floor. Peppered with bluesy harmonica, the song drives and hints at what’s to come, and it’s is a big Hell Yes. As for guitarist/singer, J. M. Pellicchia, the man croons with an intriguing and shaky-Dylan-tenor before he bursts out, eyes-flashing, into full Jack White whooping and hollering, and it is plainly just fun to hear him sing and gets better as the whole band cuts through with blood-like harmonies. And as a guitar flicks into Spanish picking, DiMura’s mandolin sings, and Thandi catches a wood block, one can’t help but get pulled in by the idiosyncrasies of each song and the nuance with which each member plays. Nothing takes you out of this music, and everything pulls you further into their performance.  This is good music. Their collaboration is poetic. Satellite Hearts ended the night with a shout of, “Play faster!,” and as the band spun into a rowdy frenzy, there was not a face in the room that wasn't grinning, and you know, I think that just might be what all this is about.

Satellite Hearts:

You Know I Love You—unreleased

Mountainside Breakdown—unreleased

Mr. & Mrs. Green—unreleased

Getting Along—Four to the Floor

Apple in my Eye—unreleased

Marilyn—Imperial Green

Satellite Hearts - Getting Along | Sofar Philadelphia (#473)

The Unlikely Candidates closed the evening. The Fort Worth, TX based national act of the evening had just finished a set for 104.5 Block Party earlier in the weekend, and came out blank-eyed and stating, “If we look fried and disinterested, it’s only because we’re exhausted.”  Four of the five-some set up in nearly all black, each with a different leather accessory, and hair smartly styled in the just-right amount of disarray. They started with a song appropriately titled, “Howl,” which matched their wolfish appearance, and I enjoyed the way the lead singer Kyle Morris leaned in and narrowed his eyes at the crowd. You could tell he had the presence and experience to hold a crowd's attention on a much larger stage, but was also not afraid to take advantage of the living room setting and look you wildly in the eye. He often stumbled backward as if shot and though I enjoyed his presentation, I have a hard time reviewing the Unlikely Candidates because the admittedly talented (Texan) vocalists sang with a faux-British accent that runs so deep in the alt pop/rock scene, and so against my grain.  As for the crowd, however, all across the room, listeners were deep into to the performance as they swayed and tapped their feet in time. Morris further pleased the crowd with a nod to his southern roots singing a throaty cover of "House of the Rising Sun," and the band closed with their radio hit, "Follow My Feet."

The Unlikely Candidates:

Howl

Just Breathe

Home

House of the Rising Sun—(cover) traditional, origins uncertain

Follow My Feet

The Unlikely Candidates - Follow My Feet | Sofar Philadelphia (#473)