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A Special Seated Show withSAINTSENECA
Highwalllow & Supermoon Songs was born from a period of personal struggle when Little hit a years-long stretch of burnout and found unexpected healing and a creative spark in painting. A green-ink pen discovered on the sidewalk rekindled his sense of wonder, leading to a series of monochrome artworks that would later inspire the album’s cover and spirit. “I loved the way it looked, the way it would glide when the ink flowed. It felt good to just let go,” he explains.
What began as a meditative artistic practice grew into a collection of paintings that became the basis for a solo exhibition in a hospital gallery and ultimately the hand-painted gatefold jacket that houses the new album. That spirit of renewal carried into the recording process, which began at Little’s home studio in Columbus, OH. Longtime collaborator Glenn Davis helped shape the sessions, while producer Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes) brought the songs into full focus with expansive, layered mixes.
Like the green ink that sparked it all, Highwalllow & Supermoon Songs feels more found than written. “I wanted this album to reflect that—some songs were found on the landscape, others were found on two moons, orbiting that landscape like satellites, disparate pieces pulling on each other, creating a world of song,” Little explains.
Highwalllow & Supermoon Songs stands as Saintseneca’s most realized release to date – a 21-song opus that’s more adventurous than anything he’s done before, yet grounded in a pop sensibility that makes its expansive sonic world accessible. The album feels familiar and rooted, yet carries more gravity as two moons orbit its landscape. Strings and synths intertwine with drum machines and samples, creating a sound that defies easy categorization – unamericana. “I found that I circled back to the country music that I grew up listening to and always wanted to run from, but then I just wanted to hear it. The voice of George Jones, raw and razor sharp with emotion, the alchemical perfection of Hank Williams’ songwriting, Dolly Parton’s crushing melodies. They seemed to effortlessly cut through the air, floating in the atmosphere like perfume even after the songs stopped.”
RADIATOR HOSPITAL (solo)
Music fan who makes music.
HOUR
Subminiature, the new live album by Philadelphia instrumental chamber folk ensemble Hour, comes fresh off the heels of 2024’s ‘Ease the Work’ and provides a capstone for the band’s oeuvre to date, brandishing new material alongside longstanding arrangements of pieces from 2018’s ‘Anemone Red’ and ‘Tiny Houses’, the inaugural releases of Dear Life Records.
Across this collection of recordings harvested over two years of extensive DIY touring, bandleader/composer Michael Cormier-O’Leary demonstrates a deep understanding of the character of his shifting ensemble and its players. Subminiature also serves as a hard worn tour diary, cataloguing concerts that were affectionally curated to highlight the strength of the music; at once adventurous and melodic and insistent upon spaces that encourage deeper connection. These tours saw the group performing in movie theaters, on islands, in machine shops and parking garages, crowded bars and living rooms, churches and theaters. Invariably, the music expands and contracts to match the space the ensemble is performing in. Recorded on a range of recording devices, this impressive live album highlights the focus and dynamism of a hardworking, fluid ensemble.
SHANNEN MOSER
Despite spending most of the last decade living, working, and nurturing their craft in the city of Philadelphia, Shannen Moser’s sound remains rooted in their upbringing in rural Pennsylvania. Tributes to the pastoral hillsides of Berks County echo through their music, evoking images of learning to sing along to Townes Van Zandt in the passenger seat of their dad’s pickup or along with the Sacred Harp choirs in Quaker meeting halls. In 2014 Moser packed up their roots, along with influences from freak-folk artists like Joanna Newsom and early Animal Collective and moved to Philadelphia to focus on recording and performing. Those privy to these performances and recordings quickly became captivated by a sound that was both haunting and infectious, showing promises of songwriting genius and a powerful voice.
Over the last half decade they have continued to develop and refine that voice. Now, on the verge of releasing their third full-length record, Shannen Moser is hitting their stride as a musician and a writer. They’ve shared the stage and toured with acts such as John K Samson, Kevin Devine, and Manchester Orchestra, and moved audiences all over North America with their profound ability to conjure emotion.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia, 2125 Chestnut St, Philadelphia, PA 19103-3146, United States
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