Root Down in the Shadow

Finally, the last session of Season Three of Cover Club is here.  The final pick is a new band to us.  We first caught them at one of the fantastic Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia shows, this last May at the Old Swede's Church.  While there was little to find on the band out on the web, the intrigue was strong.  And their sound was so much fun!  A little surf, a little sass, a lot of energy! Seemingly coming out of no where, the dudes of Palmas are quickly bringing their East Coast Surf/Soul to the masses.  In just the last few weeks, they have a brand-new Daytrotter Session, their Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia video has been released and of course To The Valley their new EP is available; bringing "warm tones meets bright days incorporating vintage surf rock sounds with present day pop and indie." Today of course is the day we release their #CoverClub Session.   Later today Palmas plays Johnny Brenda's with Surfer Blood plus The Lighthouse and th...

Photo by Jeff Coon Photo by Jeff Coon Just over two years ago, Max García Conover in preparation for his first show in Philadelphia at The Grape Room , he reached out to Root Down In The Shadow to connect.  Could I review his new album Burrow?   A review wasn't possible, but the Grape Room was just down the hill from my house.  Since then we've collaborated many times for house shows and connections for other line-ups and sessions.  This last August was a very special day for both of us.  He was able to join make a Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia show and since we had made arrangements with the host, we had the ability to do more recording and pulled off a Cover Club Session. It isn't just the last two years that made Max García Conover's relationship with Philly special.  It's been going on for most of his life.   He explains, "My romanticization of philadelphia started way back in elementary school, dancing and singing in my bedroo...

There's always something exciting going on for the bands of Cover Club . This week's entry, Mason Porter , will finish the week with their own curated fest : The Midnight Mountain Music Show featuring friends galore such as Wallace Brothers , Ladybird , Kalob Griffin Band, and Hinton, Bower, Jones . Meanwhile they start the week celebrating other friends, American Babies , by choosing them as their Cover Club selection! This has to be the best value in town with$60 for two nights camping and show ticket. How's the response so far? "The response has been unbelievable. So much enthusiasm. So many people want to be a part of this and help out and see it succeed. We have an amazing community of fans and friends and family and this festival is really bringing everyone together in a really special and exciting way." For Midnight Mountain Music Festival tickets head to MasonPorter.com/MMMS Joe D'Amico of Mason Porter explains the choice of Ameri...

Arc Iris may be from Providence RI, but, for me, their front-woman, Jocie Adams , has always been a part of my Philadelphia listening experience. At one of my first shows in Philadelphia six years ago, she was a shy multi-instrumentalist with The Low Anthem. Over the next two years I would catch The Low Anthem every time they came through town It was Jocie’s evolution that really had me hooked. It wasn’t just what new instrument she would play next, as she moved between crotales, hammered dulcimer, clarinet and so many more instruments, but as a vocalist you could see her emerge. This emergence was most stark with the cover of Jack Kerouac “On The Road”/ Tom Waits “Home I’ll Never Be.” Through the years, the vocal duties on the song moved over to Jocie taking the reins. It was so uplifting and exciting, to see this tiny sun-dress-folkster of a free spirit wailing away, channeling some Janice and bringing the whole crowd to their feet. As Jocie’s career has progress...

Kalob Griffin Band celebrating their Cover Club session at Cambridge Sound Stuidos The bands of Cover Club have done a great job of bringing out the best Philadelphia has to offer varying from contemporaries such as Strand Of Oaks , The Districts , Clap Your Hands Say Yeah , mewithoutYou , the Lawsuits , Cruisr , and Chris Kasper. The classics have been deep with Hall & Oates , Ween , Nina Simone , Boyz II Men , The Dead Milkmen , Joan Jett , all the way to Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles . No matter which end of the contemporary/classic spectrum bands choose from, there's always an "oh yeah, I can't believe he/she/they hasn't/haven't been covered yet. Oft overlooked, Jim Croce is an indisputable favorite no matter where you're from, and fits perfectly for Cover Club as he was born and raised in South Philadelphia and laid to rest nearby after spending most of his 30 years on the planet here.   With a bit of unintended irony, Kalob Grif...

Cover Club started as one of those "let's see where this goes" types of projects. We started with a friend's studio in Newtown, Pa with Break Neck Studios to showcase some favorite bands. While the goal of the project has always been to share the Philly music that we love so much, it has been a great opportunity to share our affinity for our favorite studios and sessions. We've worked with Nomad Recording Studios , Kettle Pot Tracks , and Cambridge Sound Studios ; while making stops in Fairmount Park , the Sluice Box , MilkBoy , Church of Kong , and more! We'd be terribly amiss if we didn't take the opportunity to work with John Vettese of WXPN 's The Key for a chance to collaborate for a Key Session - Cover Club edition! Slight problem though, John is such an avid supporter of the Philly local scene, it's tough to find someone he hasn't already worked with. On top of that, how do you pick from the list of people he's on ...

This week for CoverClub we get to be extra excited. This week, Pine Barons are playing our favorite festival: XPoNential Festival and they have a great cover for us to share! Cover Club | Pine Barons "January 1979" (mewithoutYou) Now based in Philly, these New Jersey exports weaned on mewithoutYou in high school. It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All a Dream! It's Alright was out at the time, but it was Catch for Us the Foxes that the fellas gravitated to. For Pine Barons they all agreed "it's different from our band and so fun to play. It encompasses being a high school student and wanting to yell. Plus a song we can all agree on" During their #CoverClub session, when they recorded the amazing cover of mewithoutYou' s "January 1979" they also treated us to a studio version of "Clowns."  Expected to be part of a full length album, being recorded in Head Room Studios in Spring of '16, this ...

Back in April for Record Store Day, the #CoverClub crew went to Main Street Music to cover Anthony D'Amato's in-store session.  It was tons of fun as we did some video inside (see original "Rain On A Strange Roof" below) and then took a jaunt over to the canal to do another shoot of Marah's "Walt Whitman Bridge."  The session was a blast, and all the details are over at the CoverClubPhilly.com site. Afterwards, keeping an eye on the internet buzz.. I found something spectacular!  Many fans and artists love music for the same reason... the connection.  And this, is a connection! Anthony D'Amato — Rain on a Strange Roof from Michael Batchelor on Vimeo .

Welcome to Season Two of Philly-centric video series, Cover Club. Cover Club is best conceptualized as “A special brand of Philly covers”, akin to The Onion’s AV Undercover series but with one caveat: the song being covered must originally be from a Philly artist.  Vita and the Woolf - photo by Lindsey Borgman Jennifer Pague- Photo by Dan McGurk It's an exciting time for the young band Vita and the Woolf !  Last fall they released their debut EP Fang Song, played a Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia , kicked ass at the Communion Club Night , recorded a Key Session , took part in Philly Sings Philly, played all over town, and were featured in an in-depth interview with WXPN's the Key . If that cross-section of their recent schedule wasn't enough, on-tap is an even crazier next month.  According to Jennifer Pague , the principal member of the band, "What's next is March Tour down to SXSW . We are hitting 10 states and playing a bunch of shows. Then we a...

Welcome to Season Two of Philly-centric video series, Cover Club. Cover Club is best conceptualized as “A special brand of Philly covers”, akin to The Onion’s AV Undercover series but with one caveat: the song being covered must originally be from a Philly artist. Vita and the Woolf joined by Tutlie for #CoverClub - photo by Lindsey Borgman We're ready to reveal the final band of Season Two of CoverClub. Wrapping up our second recording session at Cambridge Sound Studios in South Philly, young rising stars Vita and the Woolf tackled the exciting Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!  In the video, Jennifer Pague grabs the bass and leads her band and session-mates Tutlie as her chorus!  Cover Club: Vita and the Woolf "Satan Said Dance" (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah) Last November for Philly Sings Philly Jennifer Pague covered Dr. Dog 's "Shadow People" to a positive response so it was a logical choice for Cover Club.  Until a few days before our second sess...

Welcome to Season Two of Philly-centric video series, Cover Club.  Cover Club is best conceptualized as “A special brand of Philly covers”, akin to The Onion’s AV Undercover series but with one caveat: the song being covered must originally be from a Philly artist.    Mark Cruttenden of Tutlie Rebecca Way of Tutlie Just two weeks ago, Tutlie came to Cambridge Sound Studios for their Cover Club session. All six members came ready to lay down an awesome session. It could have been chaotic, but the Tutlie team came ready to rock. Warming up with their original, "Frejya" the session started off great. Hailing from their debut LP Young Cries,  this amazing track shines in their video, directed by Bob Sweeney . Cover Club | Tutlie - "Frejya" Check out the Tutlie original "Frejya" via Bandcamp.com Young Cries by Tutlie Head over to the CoverClubPhilly.com audio page for more songs from this session/series Tutlie w...

Welcome to Season Two of Philly-centric video series, Cover Club.  Cover Club is best conceptualized as “A special brand of Philly covers”, akin to The Onion’s AV Undercover series but with one caveat: the song being covered must originally be from a Philly artist. Director Bob Sweeney in action filming Tutlie at Cambridge Sound Studio - Photo by Lindsey Borgman Tutlie is hands down one of the most exciting bands I've had the chance to work with in the last year.  In a year where I had to pick & chose which shows to go to, as I had a newborn at home; it was great to see Tutlie continually popping up on the radar.  First it was the Communion label "Club Night" at Underground Arts and later at Sofar Sounds: Philadelphia .  I was thrilled when we were able to sit down to talk about "who" they were.    As I got to know them, one thing was sure; they had to be a part of Cover Club .  When we started booking for Season Two , they were a mu...