Brookladelphia

The Lawsuits/Former Belle/Foxtrot and the Get Down atThe Foundry

Story and Photos by Dan Drago

My cab driver couldn’t find The Fillmore, Philadelphia’s newest and shiniest music venue. The problem was, neither could I. Both of us were staring at our phones, trying to figure out which unmarked alleyway led to a club owned by a Fortune 500 corporation (#61 at last estimate, I believe). After a couple of circles around (meter running, of course), he let me off at a random corner and I managed to find the place on foot. Crossing under the I­95 overpass, amidst deserted parking lots and shuttered warehouses, I finally found it. People go on and on about how Fishtown is fully gentrified, and might as well be Center City these days. These people have never navigated through the semi­-abandoned, poorly lit urban jungle that eventually leads you to The Fillmore’s entrance.

Once I got into The Foundry (the more intimate, club­-like room upstairs), I was fortunate enough to catch the night’s opener. Foxtrot and the Get Down blazed through a tight set of blues rock, with the practiced air of a band that’s definitely gotten in some serious stage time this year.  

Frontman Colin Budny is the center point to the band’s steady­as­she­goes riffage, and the vocal harmonies from keyboardist Erica Ruiz add that soul that so often goes missing from younger roots­rock bands.  

In front of a blazing red curtain, Former Belle took the stage. Bruno Catrambone, with his long hair hanging in his face, spoke to the crowd like they were all old friends. The crowd enthusiastically responded.

Bruno plays guitar in the Philly indie­pop band Cruisr, and while his Former Belle material is very different than the four­on­the­floor anthems of his other day job, he has an intensity on stage that can garner the same reaction as a 3­ minute floor filler. Former Belle’s new EP, Foreign Bed (Randm Records), is a stripped down, Oberst­style folk record on the surface.

Bruno is known to play the material solo often, and his hushed singing­style causes you to lean in so as to not miss a word. But when he hit the stage with the other three members of the band (Josh Miller, Kyle Sheva and Tim Bostwick), he turned the songs into rockers, believe it or not.

He’s at home as much on a Fender as he is on an acoustic guitar, and the band’s dynamic presence on stage had the crowd on their feet, pressed up to the rail, even singing along. And the record’s only been out a month.

The Lawsuits followed their tour mates with a set building on the energy of the night. Since making a name for themselves in 2012, The Lawsuits continue to put on a live show that will make you a devoted fan if you’re not already. They continue to glam up the country­folk­rock style that we’ve been living through for the past decade. Maybe it’s Brian Dale Allen Strouse’s country­boy looks and demeanor matched with Vanessa Winter’s powerful voice. Maybe it’s the drumming tornado that is Josh Friedman, anchored by bassist Brendan Cunningham, all the while guitarist Joe Bisirri doling out powerful riffs and ethereal atmosphere. It’s probably all those things, and more. I’ve been seeing The Lawsuits for a few years now, and while I can never pin them down (and have long stopped trying), I’m always engaged with what they’re doing. Equal parts Opry and Roxy, they sneak in under the guise of traditional alt­folk­country, but end up giving you something layered and sophisticated as well.

Their new album, Moon Son, will be out on Randm Records on May 13th (you can preview a track at thelawsuitsband.com), and if the live performances of the new tunes are any indication, this one’s gonna be something.

I’ve been avoiding the Fillmore/Foundry complex since it opened. Another big­box venue is not at all my idea of a good time, and I bristle whenever I hear of corporate entertainment groups getting into the small venue racket. However, if they keep the upstairs jumping with talent like this show, I could be seen to soften up my hater­esque stance a bit. The place is pristine, the sound is excellent, and if you can find the entrance, you’re in for a good night.

Everyone and I: A Recap of BalletX’s Tenth-Anniversary Spring Series Show

As the lights went up on BalletX’s sold-out opening night for its tenth anniversary show, the crowd was so quiet, you could almost hear our collective breath, and could certainly feel the energy of our focused attention. As a casual appreciator of dance, I was excited to accept the invitation to write about the show, but unsure about my ability to describe it. But I think the beauty of BalletX is that it is both great art and great entertainment, accessible to all of us who breathe and move.

Partly because of the simple stage layout and costumes that mimic real-world attire – white tank tops, black or nude briefs, a business suit skirt, beachy tank tops and shorts – the anniversary overview felt cohesive and the dancers were anything but remote. They felt like us, members of the audience, in ideal versions of our physical bodies. Even in the more decorated pieces, with the full company in gold masks, they wore white knee socks and moved in ways that would often be considered awkward or ugly. In another full-ensemble piece, men and women wore black skirts, black vests, and high black socks, and playfully tossed granny smith apples to each other. They put us at ease in a way that classical ballet companies sometimes cannot. This was reinforced as they showed a behind-the-scenes mini documentary of the dancers in training, talking about the challenges of their profession: one dancer jokes, “sometimes I go into Whole Foods, and I think, I should just get a job at Whole Foods.”

The first half flew by, subtly building in intensity. The second, featuring Time Curves, a world premiere by choreographer Kevin O’Day, started while the lights were still up for intermission with one dancer in front of the curtain, gyrating in seemingly-improvised movements. Although she was in a more formal costume with a long satin and taffeta skirt, the audience largely ignored her until the lights went down and we were officially signaled to pay attention again. This was a clever way to blur the lines between audience and performer, performance and rehearsal. Throughout the choreography, those skirts moved beautifully, but the dancers all gradually shed them to reveal simple leotards, and the colors were all grays, beiges, and pastels.

As the style of dance and the look of the dancers’ bodies blurs the line between modern dance and ballet, the company plays with other boundaries, as they did in inviting those of us who usually review live music to write about this show. In the first half the dancers performed to Jump Little Children, Joanna Newsom, Rufus with Chaka Khan, and Beirut, and they have previously collaborated with Philadelphia musician Chris Kasper. In the second half there was some pre-recorded electronic noise, but the bulk of the sound came from cellist Wendy Sutter, playing live and seated on the edge of the stage.

The ballet theater experience dictates that everyone be quiet and attentive – in fact there were some loud fighting words between pieces when someone lit up the darkened room as he checked messages on his cellphone. Here, unlike in a bar or even a theater venue where we would see rock, indie, hip hop, or folk music, we expect and cherish the ability to focus and just be in a room with the dancers, without anyone trying to document the moment while we live it.

But the great thing about a live music performance is the element of unpredictability, and ballet is not an art form that often allows for improvisation, at least not at the final performance level. My own ballet training ended after my first recital at age four, when I donned a black mask, grabbed the bag of tiaras intended to decorate us for the finale, and ran around the stage declaring myself a French thief. But although they’re working with serious talent and world-class resumes, BalletX is free of fine-arts gatekeepers. In the pre-show discussion in the lobby with Kevin O’Day, composer John King, and lighting director Mark Stanley, the trio discussed the possibilities for improvisation and a new experience each time, with some of the lighting cues and electronic noises being randomized. O’Day also talked about his desire to blend the idea of gender in Time Curves. Men are light and women are grounded, and the costumes reflect the fluidity of gender. In discussing the evolution of dance made possible by lighting technology, O’Day reminded us: “the physical body hasn’t changed much. We’re always going back to breath.”

In Frank O’Hara’s well-known poem “The Day Lady Died,” about the death of Billie Holiday, the speaker remembers seeing Holiday perform live, and how all the audience members’ personal differences and even human needs fell away. “Everyone and I stopped breathing,” he says. Through minimizing the distance between audience and dancers, “us and them,” and literally allowing us to hear the dancers’ breath and to focus on our own, BalletX achieves that kind of immersive experience. Congratulations to founders Christine Cox and Matthew Neenan for creating this incredible body of work and inviting us all to the party.

Story by Elizabeth Thorpe

It's my first post for Brookladelphia, which is exciting. I don't have much of a connection to Philadelphia anymore, other than the time I played a gig there and wound up sleeping in an abandoned halfway house, which is a story for another time. But I do have connections with Brooklyn, especially the Brooklyn music scene: I cover music related stuff for Brokelyn http://brokelyn.com/new-music-friday-frankie-cosmos-on-the-lips/, which is another cool blog you should read. Anyway, I got excited when I learned that my first assignment would be covering a show featuring a bunch of cool bands comprised of members of other cool bands. This past Sunday I went to Mercury Lounge to see Sound of Ceres, Pick A Piper, and Innera. Sound of Ceres involves Karen and Ryan Hover of Candy Claws, as well as a revolving cast of collaborators: three members of Apples In Stereo (Robert Schneider, John Ferguson, and Ben Phelan) and Jacob Graham of The Drums. Innera is comprised of Perrin Cloutier of Beirut, along with Jessica Kepler and Mike Ciardi. Pick a Piper involves drummer Brad Weber of Caribou joined by Angus Fraser and Dan Roberts. Having some knowledge of most of these prior endeavors, I was stoked to see what these new bands would be like.

It was an early show on a Sunday evening and the audience was clearly there for the music. Smiling faces bobbed their heads as they grooved to the first band, Innera, which again is a project of Beirut co-founder Perrin Cloutier. There was no accordion involved as in his other band, though - Cloutier operated a fairly extensive synthesizer configuration while Jessica Kepler's airy voice floated over beats that were almost ambient, but brought to nearly danceable status by Mike Ciardi's drums. The blend of actual drums with electronic everything else was pretty cool, and actually came back later in the show. I did wish that I could hear Kepler's vocal a little better- her voice is so airy, almost ethereal, that it was difficult to hear over the band's intense instrumentals. The rest of the sound, though, enveloped the room, joining forces with a video light show situation for a pretty neat experience. Innera was the only band this evening who were actually based in Brooklyn, and I felt like their dreamy experimental pop sounds, combined with their excellent taste in printed shirts, was solid evidence of this. Check out their bandcamp to hear it for yourself. https://innera.bandcamp.com/releases The friend I was with told me a rumor that Mercury Lounge’s stage was built over a bunch of sand: I have no idea whether or not there is any truth to this, and if i felt like googling it I would, but I don't. I did speculate as to whether that was the reason for the room's great acoustics, and I wonder what other things might be under there creating natural amplification. Astroturf, perhaps, or marbles, or a colony of gnomes with minuscule amplifiers strapped to their shoes.

It should be noted here that I have never been, nor should probably ever be, in charge of sound design for any performance space.

So Innera was first, then Pick A Piper https://pickapiper.bandcamp.com/, the band that I knew the least about before attending the show. They may have also been my favorite. I'm probably not supposed to play favorites, but I like to live on the edge. They started out their set as three dudes behind three synthesizers, or, some configuration of synthesizers and drum machines; throughout the set they played with different combinations of electronic instruments and real live drum sets. Which was really cool - almost ancient, tribal rhythms combined with fast paced beeps and boops and melodies, which all three guys then sang over. At one point they sounded very Death Cab For Cutie, but specifically the Death Cab For Cutie sound that's faster and dancier than some of their other stuff.   The last band was the headliner, Sound of Ceres. Karen and Ryan Hover, of Candy Claws, are the backbones of the group; they are joined by a revolving cast of collaborators from other bands like Apples in Stereo and The Drums. This evening, Karen's airy vocals, Ryan's pounding synth beats, and drums courtesy of another of their collaborators, were accompanied by Jacob Graham of The Drums. Only, he wasn't playing the drums: he actually wasn't really playing anything. Their set began, and I heard eerie melodies that were set off by what looked like outer space footage on the screen behind them. There were two people on the floor, Jacob Graham and a lovely lady whose name I forget, who were moving their hands up and down in time to the music. I thought at first that they were theremin players, lending the spookier tones of Sound of Ceres' catchy, ethereal sound. Upon further investigation, I.E. the time Karen told everybody, it turned out that they were performing a liquid light show. Those things I thought were theremins were actually old school overhead projectors, like, the kind you used in seventh grade biology class (if you're my age). The bouncing, dancing, pools of colored water swished and swirled in time with the music in a way that almost made me wish I was still in the midst of that weird hallucinogen phase I went through in college. Almost. And those "spooky" sounds I heard were just one example of what Karen and Ryan's dual synthesizers could do. According to their website http://soundofceres.com/press/, "While Candy Claws explored terrestrial realms such as the ocean, the forest and the Mesozoic, Sound of Ceres expands to contemplate all of space and time, and the human place within it." That seems fairly accurate: their sound seemed to transcend the room and envelop the audience in another place and time entirely. Tricky time signatures and pounding beats combined with the liquid light show, which at one point involved live fish, to create something I'd never encountered before. They're from Colorado, and while they tour all over the world, their sound and their light seems to belong in Brooklyn. Not that I'm biased. Sound of Ceres and Pick a Piper are on tour together right now, and by the time this posts I suppose they will have just played Philly staple Kung Fu Necktie. I'm pleased that I got to see them with Innera when they were in my fair city. Check out all three bands on their websites using the handy links above, and follow them on social media for tour dates and more exciting things. You can also follow me on twitter, @LillyVanek, for more stuff about music and musings on why I should never be a sound designer.

Story by Lilly Vanek

Lilly will be performing this evening at TROOST for the 1st Annual Notes & Cloud Festival.  Click on the link below for more info.

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/951194845001087/

Don’t forget to reserve tickets for our Brookladelphia tribute to The Beatles this week!  We will be celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Revolver at The Bell House in Brooklyn April 14th and World Cafe Live in Philadelphia, April 15th.  

Meet The Go Round!  They will be performing at our Beatles tribute on April 14th at The Bell House in Brooklyn!  Be sure to get your tickets while you can! 

Ticket link: https://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1093651?utm_medium=bks

Who is your favorite Beatle? 

 Paul. Used to be John, but he seems like he'd be hard to get along with on a long drive. After doing some touring you realize the value of a good road tripper.

About the band:

We met in 2010 when we shared the bill at a tiny venue in South Brooklyn. We had both planned to do the same Elliott Smith cover which gave us the idea us to join forces so we could avoid accidentally playing the same song again. That plan didn’t work so well because now we only play the same songs.

Our songwriting process is pretty fluid. Sometimes one of us will bring a nearly finished song to the table and the other person will mainly try not to mess it up. Other times, one of us might have a pile of lyrics that seem to magically fit with the other’s tune and the thing takes off of its own volition. Lately, we tend to share songs in a less finished state to see how they grow organically. It’s healthy to abandon your expectations for specific outcomes.

Plans for 2016: 

We hope to get the nerve to play bluegrass in public.

Fun Fact: 

Yesterday we went to another "Bluegrass Brunch" at Brooklyn Bowl​ to cover the Man About a Horse​ set. Yet again, it proved to be a fun time for all ages! People enjoying the music, food, brews and bowling. A great turn out!

The band mixed originals with traditional bluegrass songs, as well as bluegrassy takes on some non-traditional songs like U2's, "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and The Allman Brothers, "Midnight Rider"

Man About a Horse is a Philadelphia-based bluegrass band with strong ties to the folk music tradition, and a progressive streak that informs their original songwriting. Spanning generational boundaries, Man About a Horse is equally at home picking in the parking lot and performing on stage at some of the nation’s very first bluegrass festivals.

You can catch them at the upcoming Brookladelphia​ event --   PHILLY- BEATLES tribute for the 50th Anniversary of REVOLVER presented by Brookladelphia & the Philadelphia Folksong Society​ on APRIL 15.  Get your tickets at http://tickets.worldcafelive.com/event/1077935

They are all over the northeast, see their schedule - https://www.facebook.com/manaboutahorse/app/123966167614127/

Meet Animal Reporters! They will be performing at our tribute to The Beatles at the Bell House in Brooklyn on April 14th!  Get you tickets while you can!  https://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1093651?utm_medium=bks

On Friday, Up the Chain celebrated the release of The Prison Break at Johnny Brenda's with friends Hezekiah Jones and Purples. UTC played the album in its entirety, inviting to the stage guests who had played on the album: Dan Schwartz of Good Old War, Vanessa Winters of The Lawsuits, Kyle Perella of Levee Drivers, Matt Kelly of Poin Curse, and Justin Pellechia of Satellite Hearts. Up the Chain knows how to make a crowd feel good, and the excellent three-band lineup built the vibes perfectly. Lead singer Reed Kendall has always excelled at writing catchy, heartfelt songs, but with Kirby Sybert, Noah Skaroff, and newly-added keys player John Hildebrand, he's developed as a frontman (as well as behind the scenes in the studio). The Prison Break is the full-length debut for this lineup, and if the high-energy release party is any indication, it's going to spread a lot of good energy.

Story by Elizabeth Thorpe

Meet Cole Quest & the City Pickers! They will be performing at our tribute for The Beatles at The Bell House in Brooklyn on April 14th.

Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/206932122984837/ for more info. 😀

Favorite Beatle: Thats a tough one, while it’s debatable question for sure, I would go with John. As an icon, as a singer, an activist, and of course as a songwriter, I would say, for me, he was the best embodiment of what The Beatles were and what I wanted them to be. John also happened to be a fan of my grandfather, Woody Guthrie, and for that I’ve always felt I shared a connection with him. We even did our take of the John Lennon tune, Crippled Inside, on our upcoming album.

About the band: The history of the group is kind of a long story, but the short version is we all met at various bluegrass jams in the city. We spent some time evolving our skills together in various bands, and after an invitation to record at The Magic Shop studio we decided to lay down some tracks. I brought a handful of originals, we did a bunch of our favorite bluegrass covers and next thing we knew we had a CD and a band name. My songwriting process starts with a moment of realization on a topic. If I can manage to find a progression that fits with the lyrics, I’ll play it through a handful of times, and if it passes the test of “yea that could be a bluegrass song”, I’ll bring it to the band. If they take well to it, it stays, or else it goes in the pile of “songs for a later date”. I’ve got a lot of songs in that pile.

Plans for 2016: Finish up our debut CD, and release it! It’s been about a year in the works and we’d like to get it out into the world. I’d also like to get out, play, meet and pick with as many people as possible. Bluegrass seems to lend itself really well to meeting, playing, discussing and drinking with new musicians and friends without needing much more than our instruments. I’m hoping to get on the road for a few weeks at some point this year and tour the east coast a bit. We’ll see what comes our way.

Fun Fact: Other than being in a band we’re also many other things including… A Yale school graduate student, an illustrator, 2 programmers, a music teacher, a “master of the classics”, and a Brazilian who’ll blow your mind.

Brooklyn Bowl is now having Sunday afternoon “Bluegrass Brunch” complete with live music, bowling and their delicious food (and drink).

I had the pleasure of seeing Mason Porter do a set this past Sunday. Up from Philly, Mason Porter has become one of my favorite cross-over bluegrass inspired bands. With a nod to tradition, they also jam and rock out. This show was no exception. They fit the Brooklyn Bowl stage very naturally and had heads bopping and feet dancing!

As a special treat, they invited members of Spuyten Duyvil up for the last couple songs. Mark and Beth brought some great spirit to “Rain and Snow” and “Deep Elem Blues”

Joe D'Amico on mandolin, leading a jam on “Aberta”: https://youtu.be/L9_K5qjPIYg

The band jamming on with their song, “Rise The Day”: https://youtu.be/cWlkACogSWY

Set list… 2/28/16 - Brooklyn Bowl Alberta Snow Angel Flesh and Blood Rise The Day Four Leaf Clover Girl From The North Country Back To Where We Started From Let Me In Dark Hollow A Woman Like You See America * Fill My Cup Rain and Snow ** Deep Elem Blues ** * Debut ** w/Mark and Beth from Spuyten Duyvil

Mason Porter will be performing at our tribute to The Beatles in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Revolver on April 15th at World Cafe Live! https://www.facebook.com/events/956324897748819/

Next NY show: March 18th w/Spuyten Duyvil https://www.facebook.com/events/1710112099207065/

Next big show in Philly area: March 12th - Porter Fest https://www.facebook.com/events/1704005896511786/

Mason Porter has a new EP on the way this summer.

LINKS!: http://masonporter.com https://www.facebook.com/masonporterband

Meet Angela Sheik!  She will be performing at our tribute to Fiona Apple for the 20th anniversary of Tidal on June 15th at Rockwood Music Hall and June 17th at World Cafe Live!  This photo is from her video “Bring it On” directed by Jay Walker, from her album Home Before Dark.  visit her at angelasheik.com

Today’s Brookladelphia featured song is “With Soul” by Tamy Stevens 

https://soundcloud.com/officialtamystevens/with-soul

‘With Soul’ was inspired by Dizzie Gillespie’s “Con Alma”, featuring not only a snippet at the beginning but chopped horns throughout the song. The horns sound like they warp in and out of the song, reminiscent of D’Angelo’s Sugah Daddy for all the right reasons. The fast kicks give the song a lot of energy while still invoking a distinctly RnB head bopping groove. Stevens’ shows that soul doesn’t have to be late night lounge music, and that high energy can still be be sexy. “And when you talk I could take a swim in your speech/ So let me take a dip/Say something/Matter fact close your mouth, say nothing”. Also the production is on point, the percussion sounds crisp and intelligently arranged. Stevens accompanies her voice with more of her voice, which adds depth to the piece and gives a richer soul feeling. Stevens’ soundcloud page reveals a wide variety of sounds that she’s experimenting with, ranging from soul, to hip hop, to house. Clearly she’s somebody who’s not afraid to try something new, and with this song I can say I’m excited to hear whatever it will be.  

On Saturday the Philadelphia music community gathered at World Cafe Live for the Fourth Annual Winter Doldrums Festival, presented by Dull Dime, WXPN and Turtle Studios to benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s David Eric Cohen Fund. As usual, the twelve-hour marathon featured a great lineup of local bands, with lots of overlap and collaboration. The goals of the festival are to pay tribute to founder Michele Lynn’s son David, to bring awareness to the cause of education and prevention, and to strengthen community ties in the dark days of midwinter. Throughout the day, various musicians shared personal experiences with the stigma of depression and suicide, but the mood stayed celebratory. Festivalgoers watched the light change from noon to midnight as they caught up with friends, shared food, and bid on silent auction items. Frank Kolbmann paid tribute to Robin Williams with a live painting. The day started with solo artists, and then the middle of the lineup featured a “duos” section with three pairs of musicians collaborating on each other’s songs. Michele previewed her Vilomahad project, in which various musicians put her poems about the loss of her son to music, and then the full bands came in and rocked the rest of the night. A late highlight was Andrea Nardello’s “The Weight” singalong with Mutlu and John Faye. Exuberant tribute band The Rent-a-Cops closed out the night. Every year the festival is a meaningful way to gather in support of those we’ve lost and those we hold dear, and it couldn’t come at a better time. It’s a safe bet that Michele is already planning for next year.

Meet Hotsy Totsy!  They will be performing at our tribute for The Beatles at World Cafe Live on April 15th.  This show is also presented by the Philadelphia Folksong Society.  Jenny Pilong of Hotsy Totsy filled us in about their favorite Beatle, songwriting process and plans for the year.  :)

Favorite Beatle: Naturally we all have a different one...I am a John Lennon girl. Di is all Paul. And, I'm not sure, but Amanda may be George. At any rate, we all joke that if we were lady Beatles...that's who we'd each be. How we started: Diana and I were actually thrown together to be a part of an Andrews Sisters tribute act at the Tropicana in A.C. (Which is why when we went back there last month it was so surreal...full circle...lol) Amanda came on board full time a couple of years ago and that's when things started taking off. We started writing our own music and finally moved ourselves out from the whole novelty act thing into a "real" band. 😉

Writing: We all have different styles. I'd been writing with my friend, Steve, in Jenny & Me for awhile. Amanda & Diana really broke into it just in the past year & a half. It's like, once we opened Pandora's writing box....everyone woke up and ideas started flowing. I tend to hear melody first. Amanda feels the poem first....and I think Di just gets the whole thing all rolling in at once. Haha. I lean towards minor chords and melancholy (even my happy sounding tunes are sad songs in disguise....haha)...and Di is all pop. Amanda falls somewhere in the middle. My boyfriend, Louie actually co-wrote lyrics with me for a couple of our tunes (South Seas, LOL). Amanda & I collaborate really well also. She'll bring a long poem that I'll edit into 3 and a half minutes...lol. Or she's given me pieces of lyrics and an overall idea and I put it all together. Di is all solo penning right now. But we arrange everything together. Which is key. Because then it takes the song to a whole new level. Harmonies, counter melodies, subtle shifts in rhythms here and there....we tend to pass a melody between the three of us within any one song, weaving the harmonies in and out of it. We try and stay away from the typical girl group formula of stacking a top and bottom around a lead line....it makes arranging stuff a little more....challenging....haha....but so worth it in the end. 

2016: The album. Finally. We are set to release this spring...April if all goes well. We have one session left and then it's all mixing/mastering/pressing. We're really excited. We had some amazing musicians (as you know) come in and play on this. Thanks to the kickstarter campaign, we were really able to create something magical. The album is officially titled, Fresh Pineapple 🍍. We have a cool co-bill at Smyrna Opera House in April with No Good Sister through Gable Music Ventures. 

Fun facts: All three of us have worked on the Spirit of Philadelphia at some point in our earlier lives. Haha. We are pretty much incapable of rehearsing without there being food and wine involved (2 Italian Hotsies and one Irish...haha). Baby Bye Bye was our first original song. I wrote the hook, initially, as Boo Boo Bye Bye because we misread a Band Aid Brand jingle contest. Turns out, they didn't need a new jingle, they were just running a contest for people to sing their existing jingle. But I had the hook...so I changed it to Baby Bye Bye, finished the tune, and brought it to the girls to see if A. They liked it. And 2. If they'd be into Hotsy doing original stuff. They did. And they were.  So we arranged it together....and that was the moment when evvvvvverything shifted. In the best of ways.