Root Down in the Shadow

A year after the first Communion show in Philadelphia, they returned again with a selection of touring and local acts at Underground Arts.  No longer festival-ish marathon of 6 bands a night, the touring club night keeps getting closer to a smashing success. Marian Hill Good electronic music is like a chemistry experiment, screw up a few ingredients and you've got an explosion and everything bubbling over.  It might seem cool for a minute, but it's really just a mess.  When it goes well, you've got something amazing.  Duo Jeremy Lloyd and Samantha Gongol of Marian Hill had everything go right at Communion last Thursday night!  The first ingredient gone right is the "club environment", a natural habitat for the band.   The diminutive, but delightful Samantha impressed with her vocals, while her style was focal in the Underground Arts lighting.   Jeremy was spot on with his beats, but the impressive part was the live sampling played t...

Yet again, the peeps at Communion brought a festival sized lineup to Underground Arts for the monthly club series.  With a mix of local, national, and international bands, the tour brought a diverse line-up to the masses.  Let's take a look at some of the highlights: Brisbane, Australia natives Cub Sport made their first Philadelphia stop a memorable one as the four-piece band played tracks from both of their EP's Paradise and Told You So.  The quirky medley of "Independent Women", "Jumpin Jumpin," and "Crazy In Love, " a little Destiny's Child/Beyoncé covers mix certainly was notable, although perhaps it was the irony of Tim Nelson doing the vocals for "Independent Women" rather than Zoe Davis, that made it stand out .  "Pool," an ode to one particular swimming pool they liked to take late-night hops into, was flashback to my own risky youth.  Whether ironic cover or relateable lyric, from over half the world away...

The first Thursday of every month is the always intriguing Communion show at Underground Arts .  The line-ups feature from 5 to 7 bands, some on the Communion Label , some local, all exciting.  In early April a 5 band line-up was featured including three Philadelphia bands, The Lawsuits , Gretchen Lohse , and Banned Books .  National touring acts, Johnny Stimson and Sturgill Simpson flushed out the lineup, with Johnny Stimson bringing his soul over beats, while Sturgill brought his weathered twang. Video mastermind Bob Sweeney and Root Down In The Shadow regular contributor, Michael Southerton got together to make a few videos.  Bob shot some Super 8, while Mike was sure to get all the right instruments at all the right times. Check out some videos by Bob Sweeney featuring Gretchen Lohse, Johnny Stimson (coming soon) , and The Lawsuits: Gretchen Lohse "Spider at the Gate" (Communion PA) Gretchen Lohse "Spider at the Gate" (Communion PA) from B...

Note: Photos by Lindsey Borgman Pearl And The Beard came to Philadelphia as part of the Communion: Club Night Tour!  Judging by the time slots or the marquee it's hard to tell who the featured artist was for the night, but based on the majority of the music fans at Underground Arts migrating to the stage it was clearly Pearl And The Beard.  The chatter indicated about half of the crowd was beyond excited, while the other half was justifiably curious.  Not the standard rock n roll lineup, Pearl And The Beard doesn't do anything "normal": no drum kit, no "lead" singer, a cello.  These cool kids have no reservations about doing things their way. Photo by Lindsey Borgman Back in 2011, Pearl And The Beard caught the wider attention of the music world with their second album  Killing the Darlings.  Tours with David Wax Museum, Lucius , You Won't , and Lady Lamb The Beekeeper helped build a base of rabid fans. At the end of 2011, when thi...

With just days to go before the next robust Communion event here in Philadelphia, let's take a look back at the insanity that took place at Underground Arts a few weeks back:  Philadelphia Communion Show – January '14 By Michael Southerton and Emily Southerton Rosu Lup Michael: SXSW -bound Philly songsters Rosu Lup set a beautiful precedent by kicking off Communion on the Underground Arts Black Box Stage . The songs of Rosu Lup are tenderly crafted melodies that weave elements of Appalachian roots with modern sonic aesthetics. The steel resonance of acoustic guitars and banjos are folded into a reverb-soaked backdrop provided by rich California tones from the electric guitar. The backbeat drives the rich rhythm section, and the core of the four-piece band is uplifted by the lovely addition of strings (two violins) and brass (trumpet and trombone.) And “uplifting” is perhaps the most appropriate term to describe Rosu Lup. While all songs carry the burden of reality...

NEW LIVE INITIATIVE CONTINUES IN NORTH AMERICA The Communion Tour continues in the United States for its second month.  Molded from the successful '20 “Austin to Boston Tour” (featuring Ben Howard, Nathaniel Rateliff, The Staves and Bear’s Den ) Communion started a tour bringing different artists to nine cities each month: New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Bloomington, Louisville, Nashville, Minneapolis, Madison and Rock Island. The second series, in November, will feature Tennis , Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, Savoire Adore , On An On and additional support from local artists.  Looking back at October..... The Communion Philadelphia session, at the nearly sold-out Johnny Brenda's was quite an event.  Thinking in terms of founders Ben Lovett (of Mumford & Sons) and Kevin Jones (Bear's Den ) as the brains behind the Communion tour, and seeing Willy Mason , Birdie Busch and Roadkill Ghost Choir on the bill, I expected somewhat of a...

NEW LIVE INITIATIVE THIS OCTOBER IN NORTH AMERICA On the heels of the success of the 2012 “Austin to Boston Tour” (featuring Ben Howard, Nathaniel Rateliff, The Staves and Bear’s Den ) and ongoing residencies in New York City and Nashville, Communion will launch a new platform for developing, emerging and established bands to tour. Operating as a string of monthly club nights—modeled on the legendary Communion night in Notting Hill, London where the company was born—the new initiative will bring different artists to nine cities each month: New York, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Bloomington, Louisville, Nashville, Minneapolis, Madison and Rock Island. The first series, beginning in October, will feature Rubblebucket, Roadkill Ghost Choir, Willy Mason, Australian duo Yacht Club DJs and additional support from local artists. The second series will return the next month with a new lineup to be announced .  Taking a look at Communion Philadelphia, of course I thought to focus ...