Today in PIFA: Free At Noon with The Low Anthem at The Kimmel Center

The Low Anthem has always been a distinctly American band. The lead members of the indie-folk group met while DJing a late-night jazz radio show at Brown University; they became friends as teammates on the same baseball team that year. (And they read Steinbeck novels before recording albums.) Footstomping songs from their first three albums (such as “The Horizon Is A Beltway”) epitomize the brute power of American folk. In February, the band released its fourth album, Smart Flesh. It was recorded in an abandoned pasta factory, a vestige of the industrial period of American strength; the record’s melancholy melodies reflect inner-dissonance in a giant empty warehouse. It’s a soul-searching record, and the band members’ differences make for powerful harmonies. The Low Anthem performs at noon at The Kimmel Center’s Commonwealth Plaza; tickets to the show are free. You can listen to the concert live online at XPN.org/listen. —Dave Simpson