Shawn Hennessey is a longtime player in the Philly music scene: a versatile percussionist who has brought an array of congas and chimes to the rhythmic underbelly of artists like Don McCloskey and Ryan Tennis. He’s also a producer, an educator, and a singer-songwriter, and this year he returns to his longtime solo project Hennessey Bonfire for the album A Wake On The Boulevard.
Sonically, the album is built on bright Ghanaian highlife melodies and brisk Caribbean rhythms that are uplifting and infectious, an inviting atmosphere for presenting more introspective lyrical content; framed around the passing of his father, and the fact that he never saw his father in person until his funeral, Boulevard is a moving exploration of family, mortality, and hope for the next generation.
Joining him in WXPN studios this week to bring four of Boulevard‘s highlights to life are the Hennessey Bonfire live band: Justin Leigh on drums, Elliot Garland on bass and synth, and Tom Spiker (who co-produced the record) on guitar. Watch them perform in our studio in the video below, and see Hennessey Bonfire live for their album release party this Wednesday, June 7th, at 118 North in Wayne. Details and more information can be found at WXPN’s Concerts and Events page.