Scenes from Philly Music Fest 2021

The annual Philly Music Fest touched down last week, showcasing 20 regional artists in six concerts at five independent venues over the course of five nights. The numbers were impressive, but the music even moreso.

Opening night on Wednesday, October 6th saw a one-two punch of Alex G and Spirit of the Beehive bringing their trippy indie oddities to the Music Hall stage at World Cafe Live, while poet and musician Camae Ayewa took over the upstairs Lounge stage to present sets from three of her projects: her punk band Moor Jewelry, her experimental electronic outfit Moor Mother, and her free jazz ensemble Irreversible Entanglements.

Thursday night brought a bit of indie rock and a bit of dreamy pop to Johnny Brendas with the effervescent vocalist AnnonXL and Muffs-esque indie trio Lunch joining Hop Along for a packed-house gig. Friday featured an eclectic early gig with garage rockers Kelsey Cork & The Swigs, rootsy modern rockers Stella Ruze, and singer-songwriter Son Little over at MilkBoy, while Barney Cortez, Moses Mosima, and Ivy Sole played a late night gig at RECPhilly.

To close the week out, The Menzingers headlined two nights at Ardmore Music Hall, with terrific openers both nights: power trio punk ragers Control Top and indie rock four-piece Highnoon on Friday, and retro-poppers Queen of Jeans with Balkan brass ensemble West Philadelphia Orchestra on Sunday.

In addition to showcasing artists with Philly regional roots, Philly Music Fest supported the next generation of local artists by raising money for a variety of local music-education nonprofits, and representatives from World Cafe Live, Beyond The Bars, Rock To The Future, and Girls Rock Philly were on hand at each show to talk about their programs.

Below, check out a roundup of photos from Philly Music Fest 2021.

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