Todd Henkin and The Great Unknown return with trans-global new EP ‘Every Night Fireworks’

Since making a string of beautiful records out of West Philadelphia’s bustling folk scene a decade ago, Todd Henkin and The Great Unknown have scattered to points all around the globe: Seattle, Nashville, and various way stations in Europe (Henkin and his partner are currently living and traveling in the UK and the south of France).

The collaborators — drummer Jordan Berger and bassist Matt Goldsborough, along with Henkin — have all remained close, and last year worked on a recording project tracked from all over and completed in Philly. Every Night Fireworks released on Friday via Bandcamp, and features production and Wurlitzer playing from Chris Kasper, as well as string arrangements from Kiley Ryan, vocal arrangements by Micheal Baker, and various contributions from guitarist Carl Cheesman, singer Liz Fullerton, and keyboardist Bethany Brooks.

“It’s a pleasure making this music with these guys for this long and getting to make an album during such a crazy time,” Henkin tells us over email. On Bandcamp, he writes “These songs were written in sharp moments of pandemic clarity. The fact that we pulled this off felt like a miracle.”

Below, take a listen to Every Night Fireworks, a gorgeous collection of windswept songwriting that starts from a place of warm Americana and builds from there, delivering both dynamic introspection and fervent rock. Grab a download at Henkin’s Bandcamp page.