Feb 04 : "Break the Cycle" - The Green Wheel (Philly)

I went to The Pouch over the weekend and saw "The Green Wheel". Third visit to The Pouch; first visit to The Green Wheel. As the band was setting up, it seemed like they were drawing in some additional musicians from the audience, who wound up singing as a side "chorus" in the first songs. This was my first time seeing the band; not sure who was a regular member of the group, and who was added in on an impromptu basis. Wound up seeing only a part of their show.

The band has a sole Bandcamp offering, which happens to be quite good. Its title is "Break the Cycle" :::

Here's the band's description of the work. This song calls for a systemic reset, affordable homes, and particularly freedom from the student or medical debt peonage in which so many are trapped today. "Break The Cycle" is not just a certified banger but a call to action, demanding a full system reset, rolling jubilee, forgiveness of debts and an end to artificial scarcity and profiteering off of the suffering of others.

"The Green Wheel" is also known as "Baylor". Here is the link to their web page ::: The Green Wheel / Baylor web page (CLICK HERE), and here is the click to Instagram ::: Baylor on Instagram (CLICK HERE). (pic is from artist's Bandcamp page)

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Seems like I can't do any music writeup these days without somehow dragging SEPTA in as a significant element of the evening. So yes I did see part, but not all of The Green Wheel's show. Had to leave earlier than I wanted; late-night connections aren't the best. I didn't want to get stuck in that night's ten-degree weather. The Green Wheel played later than originally planned; lineup was jumbled from what was originally advertised, and the whole evening got a late start due to some bad cables. I will have to check out the band again.

Jan 28 : "Loyalty and Blame" - Heliocentric Overdrive (Philly)

SEPTA got me there in time for the last couple songs. A couple weeks ago I went to Ortlieb's to see Heliocentric Overdrive. The band is one of frontman Tom Lugo's creations. All of his outfits are under the umbrella of his production company, Patetico Recordings. Over many years I've been to shows of his various projects, but Jan 16 at Ortlieb's looked like it drew the biggest crowd yet!

In the final song, making sure the we were all fully immersed in the music, Tom jumped down off the stage and played his guitar moving around through the audience. He increased the intensity as the audience applauded. His background in athletics and martial arts gave him the agility to do more moves than we see in others who try to do the same thing.

The music was also more tight than when I saw them last.

Here is a sample of their latest work. The song is "Loyalty and Blame", and was released over the summer :::

Heliocentric Overdrive doesn't have any other shows coming up soon, but here is the click to their Facebook page where can find out what's next ::: Heliocentric Overdrive on Facebook (CLICK HERE).

(Pic is from Tom Lugo's Facebook page.)

Jan 07 : "The Inauguration of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani"

"The Inauguration of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani" is Democracy Now's full-length video of their live broadcast of the New York City inauguration. The event was beautiful and inspiring. The link to the video is below.

Mamdani had a message of hope, offering big plans and big ideas which were all drawn from interactions he and his team had with average citizens. What a breath of fresh air compared to so many politicians on both sides of the aisle. Many offer little more than to tweak the status quo. Many offer little if no inspiration to follow or support them. Many don't have well thought-out platforms and offer little more than "we're not as bad as our opponents". And too many try to divide and demonize others.

The excitement in this event is electric. You can see it in the faces of those in the audience as well as those on stage. Good speakers. Good music. People react positively to someone offering bold new ideas, and, in our current political climate, someone who does not try to divide the members of the populace against each other.

Aginst all odds, Mamdani and tens of thousands of his supporters achieved one of the biggest political upsets in recent times, beating well-funded opponents who also had the support of the political machine.I truly hope that Mamdani will be successful and that more candidates will emulate his style. If Mamdani is as successful in governing as he was in campaigning, he might well turn out to be the standard by which all future candidates are measured.

So here is the link to the full ceremony. Check it out; I'm sure you will both enjoy it and be inspired by it. This was a special broadcast from "Democracy Now". "The Inauguration of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani" (CLICK HERE).

(pic at top is from broadcast)

Dec 17 : "Panglossian Mannequin" - Guerilla Toss (New York)

New Music / Freshly Written and Recently Released

ROUGH TERRAIN

It's rough terrain riding over the song structures of New York band Guerilla Toss. Lots of bumps in the road, quick changes in tempo, volume, vocal styles, as Guerilla Toss is pulling us along at a rapid speed. We can't imagine what will happen next.

I went to hear Guerilla Toss at Johnny Brenda's back in October (not up-to-date in my writeups). They were headlining the evening. They gave a strong performance, although a lot of the nuances and subtleties of the stylistic changes found in the recordings did not carry over to the live show.

The band released a new album in September, "You're Weird Now". Here is "Panglossian Mannequin", which I think best exemplifies the fast changes. It's the sixth track on the album :::

To hear the rest of the songs in their album, here is the click to their Bandcamp page ::: Guerilla Toss on Bandcamp (CLICK HERE). And here is the click to their Facebook page ::: Guerilla Toss on Facebook (CLICK HERE). (pic above is from band's Bandcamp page)

Dec 03 : "Desertenko" - Special World (Philly)

Philly Music

Maybe it's time to start looking at Philly band "Special World" as being TWO bands. There's the "original" (at least from my perspective) Special World that lives on Bandcamp. A lot of this music, while in different styles, could be considered to be more laid back.

Then there's what's emerging at the live shows which is more forceful and intense. They've even upped this since their Cambridge Hall show back in August. I most recently saw them at Johnny Brenda's in October (yes, I'm way behind in my music posts). They had expanded to five members. In the Bandcamp world, the vocals are largely leading the way. But at the Johnny Brenda's show, there were not only the more powerful drums which I had heard at Cambridge Hall, but along with a focus on the bass, a foundation of powerful chords that carried the songs and almost became the songs, and then providing the support for the vocals. Even though they performed a lot of the same music that is on Bandcamp, the Johnny Brenda's presentation brought forward a feeling of strength or confidence that doesn't appear in the laid-back Bandcamp stylings.

But here, going back to a sample from the Bandcamp stylings, is "Desertenko", which is the fifth track on their album "Special World" :::

Special World has another show coming up on December 20 at Living Rune". And they've got a new website ::: SPECIAL WORLD NEW WEBSITE (Click here). In the meantime, here is the click to their Facebook page ::: Special World on Facebook (CLICK HERE).

(Pic at top is from band's Bandcamp page.)