Root Down in the Shadow

This Friday, Mat Burke will be gracing the Kung Fu Necktie stage for the Still Bleeding EP release show.  Joined by some of the most exciting rockers in Philly: The Rivals, Penrose , and August John Lutz II of Levee Drivers ; it stands to be a wild night of music.   Mat Burke - Photo by Elizabeth Thorpe If the album title is any indication, Philadelphia's Mat Burke will be ready to bleed for us.  With his new EP Still Bleeding he's visiting a theme he's been capturing for some time.  According to Mat, "everyone bleeds not only in a physical sense but a singer bleeds every time he steps on stage, a teacher bleeds every time she talks to a class, an artist bleeds with every stroke of a brush."  Burke normally plays solo so this makes total sense that he's "still bleeding," sharing his stories as he takes the full brunt of talkative crowds without support of band mates. Theme aside, on his new EP his music is taken to new heights. ...

So our pal Mat Burke had the bad luck of getting his place broken into a few months ago.  To overcome the major shortfall that isn't covered by Mat's numerous jobs, he's doing things to raise money in the only way that he knows how: a "Break In Fundraiser."  Here's what Mat has to say about the event: "As many of you know my home was broken into shortly after christmas. The burglars ended up stealing around 10,000 dollars of my stuff. Bummer I know but the really bad thing about all of this was that about 5-6 thousand of that wasn't even my stuff. It was mics, mixing boards, pedals and other odds and ends i was borrowing from a studio for the recording of my new record. Underground Arts and their awesome staff has donated the room and the staffs time to help raise money in hopes of paying back the studio and replacing the equipment that has been stolen. Every dollar of the ticket sales will go toward this. We will also be holdin...

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 abou...

Saturday night at the MilkBoy Philadelphia, New Hope, PA's The Lawsuits , pulled out all the stops for their, Hot Love, EP release party! Friends and cohorts Mountjoy , The Levee Drivers , and Penrose each took a stab at shaking up the near sell-out crowd, raising the excitement up yet another notch band by band. By the time The Lawsuits hit the stage near midnight, everyone was ready to rock. Each "opener" did a great job, and could have easily held their own in a headline spot. With my limited exposure to the bands, one thing that stood out was every band out played their recordings. Victor G's vocals were reminiscent of Jim Morrison, joining Cameron Sima, Bob Szafranski, and Ryan Farber for alt rockers Mountjoy. The brothers Murphy of Penrose, even outplayed a description I found about the band "Philadelphia blues-garage rock", with a solid full-on set leaving the garage far behind! The Morrisville, PA based Levee Drivers led by August Lutz deserv...