This week: A new Main Line music venue, Brooklyn Bowl anniversary, and a host of other concerts in the Philly area
The Living Room is opening in Ardmore, Brooklyn Bowl is celebrating an anniversary, Kirk Franklin and Maverick City Music are bering gospel to South Philly and The 1975 are playing indoors in Camden.
There’s a new singer-songwriter venue opening on the Main line, and a Fishtown club is celebrating an anniversary, plus there’s gospel music at the Wells Fargo Center, bluegrass at the Fillmore, and glam-rock at Underground Arts.
1. Molly Ringworm
Galloway, N.J., indie rock quartet Molly Ringworm are headlining a hometown gig at Anchor Rock Club in Atlantic City. The band’s six-song EP, Seems, which was released in March, puts them squarely in the wave of 1990s inspired alt-rockers like Beabodoobee and Momma. Teen Idle, Coke Spiders, and Away Game are also on the bill.
18 and over. $10.65, 8 p.m. Nov. 4, Anchor Rock Club, 247 S. New York Ave., anchorrockclub.com.
2. Brooklyn Bowl Anniversary
The music venue, restaurant, and bowling alley celebrates its first year in business next door to the Fillmore in Fishtown with two weekend shows. Friday, it’s Andy Frasco & the U.N., with Little Stranger and a DJ set by Baba G. from the Disco Biscuits. Saturday, it’s Spin Doctors with John Popper from Blues Traveler.
$20-$25, Nov. 4, $22-$25, Nov. 5. Both shows 8 p.m., 1009 Canal St., brooklynbowl.com/philadelphia.
3. The Living Room & Cricket Cafe
Philly singer-songwriter Laura Mann’s Living Room venue enters its third and most ambitious stage. This weekend, the BYO listening room taking over an old funeral parlor begins operation as an all-day cafe, as well as a nighttime showplace. After a Friday night soft opening for Main Line locals, the calendar gets going with Boris Garcia Band on Saturday, The Was — featuring Don Lee Van Winkle, Al Snyder, and Skip Denenberg — on Sunday, and Julia Othmer on Monday. Larry Ahearn will host a weekly open mic night on Wednesday. Upcoming shows of note include Eric Bazilian on Nov. 11, NRBQ on Nov. 12, and Steve Wynn on Nov. 17.
Boris Garcia Band: $20-$30, 8 p.m., Nov. 5, 104 Cricket Ave., Ardmore, livingroomardmore.com.
4. Maverick City Music & Kirk Franklin
This double bill features two forces in contemporary worship music that teamed up on a live album called Kingdom: Book One earlier this year. Franklin has been a leader in blending gospel and R & B since the 1990s, and he showcased his ease and effectiveness as a performer at the Roots Picnic in June, when sound problems forced him to improvise. Maverick City Music are an Atlanta collective that have scored a series of hits like “Jireh” and “Wait On You” on a flurry of releases since debuting in 2019 with their EP Maverick City, Vol. 1.
$40.50-$110.50, 7 p.m., Nov. 5, Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St., wellsfargocenterphilly.com.
5. Trampled by Turtles
Duluth, Minn., string band Trampled By Turtles have been making robust folk and bluegrass music going back to 2004′s Songs From a Ghost Town. The Dave Simonett-fronted sextet has a fresh buzz about them at the moment because of their brand new 10th album, Alpenglow,produced by Jeff Tweedy.
$35-$37.50, Nov. 5, Fillmore Philadelphia, 29 E. Allen St., thefillmorephilly.com.
6. The Last Waltz Tour
It’s a Last Waltz battle royale. There will be two opportunities to see the historic 1976 concert by The Band, that was turned into a film by Martin Scorsese. This show at the Met Philly is a national tour whose lineup includes Warren Haynes, Don Was, Kathleen Edwards, Jamey Johnson, Cyril Neville, and more. Keep an eye out for an all-Philly Last Waltz on Thanksgiving weekend at Franklin Music Hall that will honor the legacy of late Philadelphia music promoter Bryan Dilworth and benefit Connor Barwin’s Make The World Better Foundation.
$39-$129, 8 p.m., Nov. 6, The Met Philly, 858 N. Broad St., themetphilly.com.
7. Tonstartssbandht
The Orlando, Fla., band of brothers — siblings Edmund and Andy White — give you options on how to pronounce their name: it’s either “Tahn-starts-bandit” or “Tone-starts-band-hut.” Six of one, a half dozen of the other, one thing’s for sure: Although they’re usually characterized as a psychedelic noise band, Petunia, their 16th album, is marked by a shimmering melodicism that marks them as one of the most underappreciated outfits.
With Patrick Holland and Ex-Reverie, $15, 8 p.m., Nov. 6, Dolphin Tavern, 1539 S. Broad St., dolphinphilly.com.
8. Starcrawler
L.A. glam-punk band Starcrawler are fronted by Arrow de Wilde, the daughter of rock photographer Autumn de Wilde, and an over-the-top show woman who consciously draws from the in-your-face performance tradition of acts like Iggy Pop and Courtney Love. The band tours behind new album She Said. Hard-rocking Philly outfit Vixen 77 open.
$15, 8 p.m., Nov. 8, Underground Arts, 1200 Callowhill St., undergroundarts.com.
9. The 1975
Matty Healy’s celebrated Manchester, England, rock band The 1975 come to Camden for an indoor show at Freedom Mortgage Pavilion behind their most optimistic and hook-filled album yet, the brand new Being Funny in a Foreign Language. The band, now in their 30s, open every album with a dose of autobiography, expressing empathy for younger souls burdened with growing up in a chaotic time. “I’m sorry if you’re living and you’re 17,” Healy sings in “The 1975,″ offering comfort to the disconsolate while sounding plenty perky himself on such grabby tunes as “Looking For Somebody (To Love).” BlackStarKids open.
$39-$89, 8 p.m., Nov. 9, Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, One Harbour Blvd, Camden, livenation.com.
10. Billy Bremner’s Rockfiles
Scottish guitarist Billy Bremner was a key member of Rockpile, the great Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe fronted 1970s pub rock band. On the band’s Seconds of Pleasure, he sang lead on Lowe’s song “Heart” and wrote “Trouble Boys,” which was later recorded by Edmunds and Thin Lizzy. He’s bringing his decade of rock-and-roll know-how to the Main Line next week.
$25, 8:30 p.m., Nov. 9, 118 N. Wayne Ave., Wayne, 118NorthWayne.com.
11. Cloud Nothings & Speedy Ortiz
This formidable double bill of Philly indie bands is topped by Cloud Nothings, the Cleveland-born guitar band fronted by Dylan Baldi, who are marking the 10th anniversary of the release of their acclaimed 2012 album Attack on Memory. The extra treat is that the opening act is Speedy Ortiz, the formerly Boston-based band that is one of many creative outlets for guitarist, songwriter, producer, and poet Sadie Dupuis, who also records as Sad13 and has just released her second collection of poems, Cry Perfume, on Black Ocean Press.
$25-$30, 8 p.m., Nov. 10, Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia, 1009 Canal St., brooklynbowl.com/philadelphia.