Philly Bands that Better Still be Together after Quarantine.
- Louie Louie
Saw them support The Coathangers and LA Witch at the Underground Arts (still open!) The whole Friend of a Stranger album is great, like the Go-Go’s playing a Leslie Gore tribute show. I like their sassy lyrics. This song gets stuck in my head all the time.
2. Sixteen Jackies
Sixteen Jackies opened for Orville Peck back in 2019 at the Boot and Saddle (RIP). They got the party started so hard that they kept the headliner sweating under his signature mask. Sixteen Jackie’s singer sounds like Frank Black’s pretty younger brother, but with the unpredictability of Dave Thomas (Not the Wendy’s dude) from Pere Ubu and just a dusting of Britpop in his phrasing. I’m a sucker for ‘verbed out guitars. This song is catchy as hell.
3. Empath
I caught them open for Priests at Philamocca. (Still open!) Empath’s drummer is a beast. He reminds me of a young Carmine Appice in both hard-hitting style and mustache.
Growing up on the Mummies and Sebadoh, I have a soft spot for lo-fi recordings, but these guys are ridiculous. When I first spun their Environments seven inch, I thought the vinyl was defective, but the artfully dodgy production grew on me with every listen. Love the hook in this song.
