Two dozen bands are playing the NON-COMMvention in West Philly this week
Couldn’t snag passes? All the shows will be livestreamed.
More than two dozen music acts are about to descend on West Philly this week for the NON-COMMvention. The gathering of radio programmers from around the country kicks off Tuesday night and runs through Friday at World Cafe Live.
The convention brings together mostly non-commercial public radio stations like University of Pennsylvania’s WXPN-FM (88.5), which hosts the annual event. Thus the name, NON-COMM.
And because those stations support young, up-and-coming artists seeking greater exposure — as well as veteran acts looking to get the word out about new projects — World Cafe Live will be busy as a beehive this week with bands playing upstairs and down, in the afternoon and evening.
The big names are the Black Crowes, who play Wednesday night, the evening before the band, led by brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, headline the Met Philly. The Decemberists play NON-COMM on Thursday, the night after they perform at the Fillmore Philly.
But there are also scads of less well-known acts worthy of discovery, beginning with Tuesday night’s bill, which gets started with Philly party band Snacktime. Also on bill are Sudanese English singer Elmiene, Wilmington-raised, Nashville-based songwriter Aaron Lee Tasjan, and Filipino English singer beeabadoobee. Los Angeles bands Lo Moon and Iron & Wine — the latter is a project of songwriter Sam Beam — also play that night.
Other highlights through the week: Americana stalwarts the Old 97′s team up with Laura Jane Grace for a Free at Noon doubleheader on Wednesday. Reyna Tropical — the project of guitarist Fabiola Reyna that mixes Peruvian, Congolese, and Colombia rhythms — is on a bill that night that also includes Philly’s Moustapha Noumbissi and bluesman Cedric Burnside.
Thursday’s Free at Noon pairs legendary Texas bandleader Alejandro Escovedo and songwriter Lizzie No. That evening’s bill includes two worthy Chicago indie bands in Ratboy and Brigitte Calls Me Baby. The can’t-miss-gig of the week is Dublin post-punk quartet Fontaines D.C., sampling their upcoming fourth album, Romance. After that blowout, the action finishes off with one last Free at Noon on Friday with Jade Bird and Ride.
The full schedule is at noncomm.org.
NON-COMM events are accessible first to convention-goers, and next to WXPN members, with limited passes available to the general public. But all the music will both be broadcast on WXPN and live streamed at livesessions.npr.org and xpn.org.