Previously I’ve mentioned Philly’s Blood Feathers a handful of times on Noise Narcs, but only to castigate myself for not having posted on them. But I’m glad I waited, since guitarist/singer Drew Mills was kind enough to answer a few questions from the road of their Summer’s End tour.
Blood Feathers plays harmonized stompin’ rock with monster hooks, which never veers into dreaded roots rock territory despite influences as far afield as Bo Diddley and classic country. That members of the band have moonlighted in both Bob Wills and Tom Petty cover bands is fitting. Mostly, it’s just good old rock and roll, and we at Noise Narcs can attest that they put on a great show, from their “reunion” show at Johnny Brendas that my not-quite-yet girlfriend and I made out through, to their stunning blast of a ’50s cover gig at Philebrity’s Under the Sea Dance, which was worth every minute of the 40 minute walk in the freezing cold and snow to snag a cab.
Their new album, Goodness Gracious, is a lock for a spot on my top ten of ’10 list and has already become a staple of any Noise Narc road trip. Out now, via Philebrity Label, it comes highly recommend. Stream it for free at Apollo Audio and then buy it (and their equally great debut, Curse and Praise) via the Blood Feathers site.
Blood Feathers, “Don’t Know You at All” [Amazon]
Blood Feathers, “Sugar in Bed” [Amazon]
Blood Feathers, “Sea Legs” (from Curse & Praise) [Amazon]
How did you guys move from two-piece plus help of Curse and Praise to today’s expanded and solidified lineup? And how has that changed the process of writing and recording an album?
Drew Mills: Ben and I had been playin’ together for quite a while before we even considered having other players. Once the music started to grow toward a larger more rock n’ roll vibe, we clearly needed some players. And, fortunatley enough, we found the best players we know, that happened to be our best friends who wanted to play good old rock n’ roll.
Goodness Gracious took me a beat longer to get into, with its lush, dense sound, but has grown on me like a second skin. Was that denser sound a result of the bigger band? What else has moved you into the direction?
DM:Definitely a result of the added fellas. There’s a limit to what two dudes can do. Pretty much the sky is the limit with a full ensemble. “Touch the sky BLUE MOUNTAIN.”
[Natives of the Delaware Valley will remember ads from the area's closest ski
resort -Ed]
Back in March, PhillyBurbs claimed that your next release would be a Christmas album, coming out, well, soon. Any truth to that?
DM: There was talk…
Best Philly bar, non-band owned/employed-at division: Kurt’s half of the 700. [Blood Feathers' multi-instrumentalist Tracy Stanton owns the other half]
Best Philly bar, non-Port Fishington/Northern Liberties division: Surf n’ turf, West Philly, but only when the flyers are doin’ well. [Well, I thought we at Noise Narcs had a pretty encyclopedic knowledge of Philly bars but we're stumped. -Ed]
More answers after the jump, including Blood Feathers’ Ethan Hawke connection…
In the next two days, some of Noise Narcs’ favorite Philly acts are playing in Philly. And both have some Noise Narcs connection. And man are we excited.
