ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2013
What’s Happening This Week YEAH YEAH YEAHS SEPT. 17 RIVER STAGE AT GREAT PLAZA, PENN’S LANDING SHOW AT 7:30 P.M. $47.35 ALL AGES
Karen O and her Cheshire grin will once again be gracing Philly with her presence. In addition to a Brooklyn show on Sept. 19, Yeah Yeah Yeahs have included Philadelphia in a pair of one-off dates. Guttural noises, an array of colorful costumes and a smorgasbord of tunes spanning the band’s entire discography are almost certainly in the cards.
DEERHUNTER, CRYSTAL STILTS SEPT. 20 UNION TRANSFER DOORS AT 10 P.M., SHOW AT 10:30 P.M. ALL AGES Fresh off the release of their lo-fi, garage rock-inspired LP “Monomanic,” is the eclectic and mysterious Deerhunter. Combining a hearty pop background with a range of
proto-indie influences spanning the likes of My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth, Deerhunter is a rather unique entity. Joining the band will be Brooklyn post-punks and reverb aficionados Crystal Stilts.
CONGENITAL DEATH, DRUG CHURCH, RAIN DANCE, IN BETWEEN, GROWER, THE AMBLULARS SEPT. 22 THE BARBARY DOORS AT 6 P.M., SHOW AT 7:30 P.M. $10 ALL AGES
Post-hardcore quintet and side project of Self Defense Family front man Patrick Kindlon, Drug Church will be hitting the road in support of their debut LP “Paul Walker.” Borrowing in no small part from ‘90s stalwarts such as Handsome and Quicksand, Drug Church are bringing their grungy sensibilities to The Barbary. Tourmates Rain Dance and In Between will be performing as well. Headlining will be hometown heroes and blast beat connoisseurs Congenital Death.
-David Zisser
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Boot & Saddle reopens its doors B&S PAGE 9
Saddle’s M.O. was country and perform their new, unreleased western music, the rebranded record in its entirety, as well as Boot & Saddle kicked off with a smattering of their own india sold out concert featuring The vidual songs, including a rendiBoth, a relatively new collabo- tion of “Voices Carry,” the hit ration between Aimee Mann single produced by Mann’s forand Ted Leo from Ted Leo and mer band ‘Til Tuesday. the Pharmacists. Despite However, the honcranking out or of the inaugural a set that performance went clocked in at to English singermore than an songwriter Wesley hour and feaStace, formerly tured almost known as John exclusively Wesley Harding. new songs that “I’m literally were unheard up first,” Stace by the general said. public, the reHeavy on action to The the banter, Stace Both was overcapped off his set whelmingly with a song he positive. For used to perform the first time in under his old 17 years, The moniker “MakBoot & Saddle ing Love to Bob found utility. Dylan,” which he The Boot Sean Agnew/ R5 Productions made abundantly & Saddle was clear was about his inability to always, to some degree, an oddmake love to the music of the ity. As the gaudy, neon cowboy legendary folksinger, rather boot brazenly mounted on the than actually having intercourse outside of the building sugwith Bob Dylan. gested, it formerly operated as The Both followed with a South Philadelphia’s premier performance that saw the two country and western bar.
“It was a cheap
bar where a bunch of naval officers who were working up at the naval yard in South Philly would hang out, as well as punks and general weirdos..
”
Once described by former Philadelphia Daily News restaurant critic Sam Gugino as, “the kind of place where they drink Budweiser straight from the bottle, wear Genesee beer T-shirts and smoke unfiltered Camels,” the Boot & Saddle of the ‘80s and ‘90s drew much of its clientele from the formerly thriving Philadelphia Naval ship yard. “It was a cheap bar where a bunch of naval officers who were working up at the naval yard in South Philly would hang out, as well as punks and general weirdos,” Agnew said. “So it was a really interesting vibe.” The scene is starkly different 17 years after the doors of the saloon were shuttered. Although the sawdust floors, painted tin ceilings and the iconic boot remain, 21st century amenities such as an expansive beer list, a 60-seat main room that serves as both a bar and a restaurant and a backroom that caps at 150 that hosts live music, have been implemented. The only thing the bar doesn’t seem to have is admission for the underage. “I’m definitely happy to open this space up and have a
baller venue of my own, but I definitely want to have a small space for all ages shows,” Agnew said. “I know that’s what the city needs. Unfortunately, the way that the liquor laws in the state and city work make that almost impossible.” The upcoming concert calendar features everyone from the crass, vulgar oi-punk group Hard Skin to dub producer Mad Professor. It’s a far cry from the Hank Williams covers that used to be a prominent feature of the spot. “If anything, we didn’t want to be pigeonholed into booking one type of music,” Agnew said. “For instance, last night we had all country and blue grass bands. Friday is a punk show. Saturday is an indie rock show. Then there’s going to be an electronic show. We’re doing some more experimental, jazzy-type shows, and some singer-songwriter stuff. The idea is definitely to make the calendar as different and varied as possible, for sure.” David Zisser can be reached at zisserd@temple.edu.
Musical duo finds balance touring, raising family Eros and the Eschaton made a stop in Philly on Sept. 12. JAMIE SCHOSHINSKI The Temple News Bands use unique sounds in their music all the time, but not many songs feature a crying baby. But Eros and the Eschaton, the duo comprised of on-andoff-stage couple Kate Perdoni and Adam Hawkins, do just this. The power of music brought them together in Omaha, Neb., in 2010 while they were playing in different bands. They casually began playing together and quickly fell in love. A year later they had their son, Lio, and started writing their own music together. The first song they wrote, which is also the first on their newly released album “Home Address for the Civil War,” was “20 Different Days,” and it starts off with a three second audio clip of their son crying. “While we were recording he was wailing about something and we just decided to keep it in,” Perdoni said. The song was recorded in a building owned by Hawkins parents’ which used to be a church. The unique acoustics in the space let the sounds of their playing reverberate which is an important element in many of their later songs. The name of the band, Eros and the Eschaton, comes from a lecture given by the American
psychonaut Terence McKenna. In Perdoni’s words, the talk was about how adults can find and keep hope in a world where so many bad things happen. McKenna, and especially this talk, was a major inspiration for the band, and the reason the sixth song on its album is called “Terence McKenna.” Perdoni and Hawkins are self-described spiritual people and many of their songs focus on the inner-self. During the early months of the band’s existence, the three lived near Greensboro, N.C., where most of Perdoni and Hawkins’ time was spent writing music. Now, for a little over a year, they have been on the road. This time around, the touring has been a little different than it was in the past and that is mainly due to Lio. Psychedelic band Eros and the Eschaton played at “We used to just be able to PhilaMOCA on Sept. 12.| EMILY VISHNEVETSKY TTN sleep in the back of the van, or under the stars, but now we need to make sure we find a place on 12th Street. While they did psychedelic atmosphere as they that’s safe for Lio,” Hawkins a soundcheck, their son ran and played. Despite a few technidanced around the room, clearly cal difficulties the band stayed said. upbeat and positive during the Since becoming parents, enjoying himself. “Usually he doesn’t come show, really showcasing their Lio has become the duo’s main to our shows — we have somelove for the music. priority. Also, despite what it one take him to a house or hotel, Eros and the Eschaton are may seem, touring is not all fun but we’re leaving for New York signed with Bar/None records and games. tonight so we brought him,” and their debut album came out “There’s a daily grind to it,” Perdoni said. on Aug. 13 of this year. As with Hawkins said. “We’ve gotten to A family friend watched Lio most music in the dream-pop the point where we are dirty and during the show, which allowed genre, their songs are mellow tired.” for Perdoni and Hawkins along with a strong psychedelic feel, But at the end of the day, with their bandmates to take but there is also a prominent the two say they love it. Perdoni and Hawkins love hearing new the stage. While they played, a indie rock sound. The band’s music, meeting new people and screen was draped behind them inspirations are eclectic too, inwhere images were projected. cluding My Bloody Valentine, collaborating with them. On Sept. 12, the band The images were constantly Yo La Tengo and Neil Young. As for the future, the band played a show at the PhilaMO- changing and featured bright neon colors, paint splashes and will continue to tour for another CA, or the Philadelphia Mauhypnotic spirals which created a two months before finally stopsoleum of Contemporary Art,
ping in November. They then plan to settle down and begin working on their next album. “We’ve been culminating all these ideas – now we just
need to map them out,” Perdoni said. Jamie Schoshinski can be reached at jamie.schoshinski@temple.edu.
Former Temple professor advocates music education in latest movie MORROW PAGE 9
big, glossy, Hollywood films,” Morrow said. “They can still feel like an independent, gritty, low-budget movie. You won’t find people tap dancing along the street or breaking out into song. When they’re playing music, it’s because that is what’s actually happening in the story.” “Everything Went Down” is about a young college professor who falls into a deep depression after his wife dies. He discovers the music of a young, frustrated singer-songwriter, who is on the verge of giving up her music career because she’s having a tough time making a living off of it. Music brings the two together and they form a relationship. He helps her realize that playing music is its own reward, and becoming rich and
famous isn’t what it’s all about. She helps bring him back to life. Morrow said he’s a big believer in the powerful healing effects that music can have on people. Ultimately, that’s what his film is about. “There has been a lot of defunding by the government of music therapy and education programs,” Morrow said. “It’s a shame, because research has shown that music engages the emotions and the brain in a way that no other art does.” While at Temple, Morrow worked with the Arts and Quality of Life Research Center at the Boyer College of Music and Dance. This program ran and helped fund music therapy programs for kids living in Philadelphia.
Morrow will be in attendance at the TUTV screening. He hopes that after watching his film, people will come to recognize the therapeutic value of music. Paul Gluck, general manager of TUTV, said he hopes this screening will initiate a meaningful discussion with the audience members and Morrow about the healing power of music, and possibly encourage the Temple community to get more involved in music therapy. Noah Drew and Kate Tucker are the two lead actors starring in this film. Drew is a former Temple graduate student whom Morrow met while teaching a TV directing course at Temple. Tucker, who plays the role of the struggling musician,
is a recording artist who’s been featured on a Starbucks playlist. This film, like most of his others, was mostly self-funded, in addition to a boost from Kickstarter. “The most difficult part of making this film was that it was low-budget,” Morrow said. “But through people donating their time and the various companies that donated equipment and locations, it came together successfully.” This film has been playing in film festivals since February and will be until early spring 2014. Afterward, it will be available through Netflix, Video On Demand, iTunes and other online sources. Mary Salisbury can be reached
Kate Tucker sings to Noah Drew in this still from “Everything Went Down.”| COURTESY DUSTIN MORROW