On the first weekend of May, singer-songwriter and Roxborough native Dave Hause brought his Sing Us Home Festival back to Manayunk’s Venice Island for year three. As “the most successful one yet” (as Hause himself told the crowd), performers included New Jersey punk band The Bouncing Souls, UK folk/punk singer-songwriter Frank Turner and Philadelphia-area artists including Speedy Ortiz, Buzz Zeemer, Quarry, Mary Mother’s Deathbed, Lullanas and more.
After it rained for a straight 48 hours in 2024, we all manifested dry weather in 2025. That mostly worked, too, although the storm that blew in around 8 p.m. Saturday night hit just as the highly anticipated Bouncing Souls took the stage.
Bouncing Souls | photo by Ellen C Miller
The band brought the storm on Saturday (literally & figuratively) and though the crowd didn’t seem to mind rockin gout in the rain,, when Mother Nature’s “light show” over-powered the stage light show the show had to pause for the storm to pass. Fans took shelter under vendor tents and then went right back to the front of the stage as soon as the downpour let up. Unfortunately, though, the show couldn’t continue due to continued lightning in the area.
Nonetheless, everyone was back on the island Sunday afternoon with excitement for day three of the weekend. While Sunday started out a little soggy, fans of all ages hung out, danced, and sang along to their favorite songs in their best ponchos. The rain cleared for good by the time Dave Hause started his second full set of the weekend and then fortunately it stayed dry when Frank Turner closed out the weekend with a classic solo acoustic set. He spotlighted old and new favorites spanning his whole discography, from “Ballad of Me and My Friends” off his 2006 record Campfire Punkrock to his latest album Undefeated, to “I Still Believe” from 2011’s England Keep My Bones, which the crowd helped him sing (and some were even still singing it upon exiting).
Frank Turner | photo by Ellen C Miller
Beyond the headliners, the whole weekend celebrated musicians of the greater Philadelphia region, with local rockers Quarry kicking off Friday night, followed by singer-songwriter John Gallagher Jr. The “Hause Family Campfire” tradition, a semi-acoustic in-the-round set, continued this year on Friday where Dave Hause was joined by Jon Muq, Sean Bonnette (of Sunday artist AJJ) and Tim McIlrath.
Local faves Speedy Ortiz started day two with an energetic set — and, for frontperson Sadie Dupuis, a warm-up to the Broad Street Run the next morning. Mary’s Morning Deathbed kept the early afternoon crowd entertained with a fun set during which they turned famous works of text by Shakespeare and Robert Frost into pop/punk-ish songs. The afternoon continued with a bonus pop-up performance by Eric Bazilian (who “just happened to be in the neighborhood” and stopped to perform his hit “All You Zombies”).
Eric Bazilian | photo by Ellen C Miller
Tim Hause and his band played songs from his latest album Pre-Existing Conditions, mixed with older cut including “Summerkiss” and an older favorite “High Hopes.” The weekend kept on building momentum with Buzz Zeemer and Dave Hause and The Mermaid preluding The Bouncing Souls.
On Sunday, Philadelphia-based singer/songwriter twin duo Lullanas were up first. Their soft vocals paired perfectly with the day’s rainy vibes and eased the crowd into the afternoon. Maryland folk singer-songwriter Black Guy Fawkes and the multi-instrumentalist / singer / producer Mobley built the energy up for Dave Hause and Frank Turner. Mobley enlisted a few audience volunteers during his set to help out with a song; he had a bit where he tapped their hands and turned them into human instruments.
Mobley | photo by Ellen C Miller
Overall, Sing Us Home 2025 was another positive weekend of music, community, and top-notch songwriting. And though we all probably would have preferred a fully dry and sunny weekend, Hause is undeterred. After he played his final set of the weekend, he loudly proclaimed “See you back next year” to the Sing Us Home family, a confident voice that this festival will remain a vibrant part of our local music scene.