This winter, World Cafe Live hosted WXPN’s second-ever Homegrown Live! concert, a free gig showcasing musicians from the Philly region. The vibe was delightfully indie pop, with longtime XPN favorites Hurry and Queen of Jeans playing sets alongside the artist we’re featuring this week.
Madska is a relatively new band, and landed on WXPN’s radar in autumn of 2024 with the independent release of their debut album The Big Splash. Led by singer-guitarist Maddy Rose Weisman and lead guitarist Sean Bonney-Burrill, the band makes introspective dreampop music about personal growth and change; “Townie” is a soaring anthem about the ennui of returning to your college town, “Goonies” explores family and childhood trauma. It could come across as heavy, but the music is uplifting in the purest sense, fleshed out with Gabe Banford‘s soaring keyboard textures and the tight rhythm section of drummer Owen Duff and bassist Brian Sanderson.
In this Homegrown Live! set, Madska warms up for their spring tour with Hit Like A Girl — which they should be home from soon — by showcasing The Big Splash and sharing one killer Chappell Roan cover. Watch their set in the player above, see a gallery of photos from the show below, and find Madska’s 2025 tour dates here. Their next area gig happens April 17th at Harrisburg’s Launch Music Festival and Conference, tickets and information can be found here.