There was a lot happening in Philadelphia on the first weekend of May, and Manayunk got in on the fun. Sandwiched between the Manayunk Canal and Schuylkill River, on Venice Island, Dave and Tim Hause put on their Sing Us Home Festival for the second year, with Rising Sun Productions. While the weather may have been a tad different from last year’s sunny weekend, no one seemed to care about a little rain. In fact, the rain just blended into the background and became another festival attendee. With Tim Hause kicking off Friday night with a solo set and Dave Hause closing it all on Sunday evening with The Loved Ones, the weekend was packed with music of all sorts.
Hause Family Campfire | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
They brought back the “Hause Family Campfire” tradition for Friday night (the driest day of the weekend) featuring Dave Hause with Laura Jane Grace, Amythst Kiah, and Langhorne Slim each taking turns singing old songs, new songs, and cover songs. They also ended night one the same way as year one with a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark” and it was still a big crowd hit.
Day two continued similar vibes to the “sing-around-the-campfire” Friday night as Fishtown Choir kicked the day off with a crowd sing-a-long. Perhaps the attendance this year was a little lighter due to the rainy weather, but it wasn’t even noticeable as the days went on.
Sing Us Home Festival | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
Laura Jane Grace | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
The people there were fully embracing the festival vibes from when Space Cadet opened day two all the way through til The Jayhawks ended Saturday night. Saturday also included Sug Daniels performing with her band, Laura Jane Grace & the Mississippi Medical performing during a more steady rainfall – but honestly that somehow enhanced the already amazing set.
Tim Barry played a solo set that ended with him coming off stage and performing his last songs in the middle of the crowd. Then it was time for Dave Hause & the Mermaid which felt like Saturday’s headline set number one. He and his band played a mix of old songs and more recent songs, and Sug Daniels joined Dave on stage for a song, too. The Jayhawks came prepared for the rainy day and played a few songs from their 2003 album Rainy Day Music to close out night two.
Dave Hause and the Mermaid with Sug Daniels | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
The Jayhawks | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
Dave and Tim kicked off Day three together, as they did the first two days, but with a performance of “You are my Sunshine” this time. Then it was time to enjoy a chill Sunday Punk Brunch on Main Street with Mercy Union, Fire in the Radio, Sarah Shook and the Disarmers, Strike Anywhere and The Loved Ones. Dave and Tim’s opening song choice worked because the rain finally came to an end as Strike Anywhere took the stage, and it stayed dry for the return of The Loved Ones.
People were excited for the reunion of The Loved Ones on Sunday ever since Dave Hause & the Mermaid finished playing Saturday night, and it did not disappoint. The weekend closer was complete with a crowdsurfing banana, another guy being “booed” for showing off his Rangers t-shirt to the band, and was over at a decent hour so everyone could get to their next Sunday night concert (or still manage to catch the Phillies game).
Sing Us Home Festival | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
The Loved Ones | photo by Ellen Miller for WXPN
Recapping the event on social media, Hause initially posted “Thank you all for a weekend we’ll never forget,” and followed up today with a more extensive video message, joking about the gorgeous sunny day that came in the wake of Sing Us Home. “It’s the perfect day for, I don’t know, an independent music festival. I guess it’s laugh, or cry, or maybe a little bit of both. But we’ll see you in 2025 for Sing Us Home year three.”
We’ll be there. Check out a full gallery of scenes from this year’s Sing Us Home Festival below.