#1 City I Have To Get To More Often Of 2014

Philadelphia's Beach Slang at Asbury Lanes in October

Philadelphia

You'll remember that Allyson Dwyer and I had a less than wonderful experience seeing the Slowdive reunion at NYC's Terminal 5. That left me trying to find alternative locations where I could see bands who were too big for a 500-capacity venue and too small for, say, Madison Square Garden. I posted a question on Facebook about Philly's Union Transfer, and the feedback was uniformly positive. I'll have to think about it the next time a band I want to see announces that they're playing Terminal 5. I'll scan the tour announcement for Philly.

I've lived in New Jersey since I was 5, and I've only been to Philadelphia maybe a half-dozen times. I know we went there on a 5th grade field trip -- the day Ronald Reagan was shot, as it turns out. I endured a few Phillies games at The Vet with my friend and his Phillie Phan dad. We've taken a few flights out of the Philadelphia airport, and I think we spent the day there with my father-in-law once. That's it. This is made even stranger by the fact that CoolMom graduated from the University of Pennsylvania; and, save for the times mentioned above (airport, dadinlaw), I don't think she's been back there.

Take my vow never to set foot in Terminal 5 again and pair it with the great music coming out of Philadelphia, and I think my relationship with the city is about to deepen.

Beach Slang

Maybe my favorite song of the year comes from this new band made up of Philadelphia punk vets. That off-kilter, pulsing guitar sound, the Smiths references, the -- as aptly pointed out by Scotch LaRock in his review -- Replacements meets Psychedelic Furs meets Jawbreaker sound of the band, and the go-for-broke live performance all combine to make "All Fuzzed Out" a song that I can listen to over and over while singing along, bouncing my head, and pumping my fist as I drive.



Cayetana

OK. Maybe this is my favorite song of the year. Philly's Cayetana won me over when I saw them open for Laura Stevenson, and their record Nervous Like Me definitely wins my "Most Listens Of 2014" competition. The record is strong throughout. I love album-closer "South Philly," but "Hot Dad Calendar" has this great video, so...



Radiator Hospital

The prolific Sam Cook-Parrott of Radiator Hospital put out another record of quirky, lo-fi pop gems in 2014. "Cut Your Bangs" exemplifies that whole punkier version of Elephant 6 thing he does so well.



Mumblr

I used the word "uncomfortable" to describe Mumblr's Full of Snakes quite a bit in my review of that record. "Sober" is one of those uncomfortable songs about being young and powerless against your own feelings of jealousy and insecurity. It's also got some sonic references to music that I love, like Modest Mouse.



Those, and that whole Terminal 5 thing, are just a few of the reasons why I've gotta get to Philly more. I mean, I know we'll see all of these bands in Asbury Park at some point; but it doesn't seem fair to make them keep coming to me. And I think it would be good to get out there and see them in their natural habitat.