Helen Leicht’s Philly Local Pick Of The Day: The Sky Drops’ “Long Way”

might live in The House That Shoegaze built, but they don’t like being confined by the genre’s characteristic walls of sound. So you won’t find the Wilmington, DE-based duo behind closed doors, hanging up My Bloody Valentine posters in their bedroom; instead, guitarist Rob Montejo and drummer Monika Bullette are probably lazing the afternoon away on a ratty couch in the garage, listening to lo-fi rock and early grunge LPs. That’s not to say that stripped-down songs such as “Long Way”—off The Sky Drops’ 2009 debut, Bourgeois Beat—don’t have the distorted guitars and complementary vocal melodies you’d expect from a shoegaze-influenced band. They just don’t have tracks upon tracks of distorted guitars piled on top of each other, pushing the vocals deep down into the mix. Which means you might even be able to hear the lyrics when the band performs with Adam And Dave’s Bloodline, Busses, and New Motels at The Key’s launch party this Saturday, September 25th, at The Blockley. (Hey, did we mention that already?)

Every weekday at 1 p.m., Helen Leicht highlights a new song by a local artist during her XPN Middays program (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.–2 p.m.). Tune in (or listen online) to hear today’s pick of the day, as well as plenty of other songs from the many musicians Philadelphia has to offer.