Northern Arms | Photo courtesy of the artist

In Northern Arms‘ new video for “What You’ve Got On,” a routine ride on the Broad Street line becomes a little less normal for a young woman making her way from Tasker-Morris in South Philly to Cecil B Moore in North Philly.  We watch her wait behind the yellow line (leaning over every now and then to check for headlights down the tunnel), write in a journal, look out the window and listen to music – all normal, everyday things we all do to pass time on SEPTA commutes.  Meanwhile, scenes of the local ten-piece playing live on the platforms of several stops (definitely not a normal or everyday occurrence on SEPTA) lead us to believe the two will meet at some point in the video.

And meet they do, when the band catches the traveler’s eye before mysteriously appearing in the car itself, one by one.

If ever there was a Philadelphia answer to Arcade Fire or Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Northern Arms seems to be it with their cavernous, dark art rock that comes complete with a horn section.  When we first heard “What You’ve Got On” back in March, XPN’s Bruce Warren called for a big year from the band.  And with the impending release of their debut record coming later this month via BITBY, Northern Arms is definitely on the right track.

Northern Arms will celebrate the LP’s release on May 30th at Johnny Brenda’s; tickets and information can be found here.  Check out our premiere of the “What You’ve Got On” video below, and revisit their Key Studio Session from last year here.

NORTHERN ARMS- WHAT YOU’VE GOT ON from BITBY on Vimeo.