clockwise from left: Maxfield Gast and Bethlehem Roberson | photo by Maxfield Gast // Sug Daniels | photo by Andrea Juers // Ameyaxoxo | photo by Tosin Ojo // Close Drive | photo by Free Dive Collective // Heavy Tears | photo by Sam Thacker
WXPN Local Picks – Week of August 25, 2025
Jazz, funk, folk, and indie rock are on our Local Picks playlist this week.
Every weekday afternoon in the 1:00 hour, WXPN celebrates the Philly-regional music scene with the WXPN Local Picks. That’s when midday host Mike Vasilikos presents a hand-picked new song by an artist rooted in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, or Delaware. Here’s who Mike has on deck this week! Tune in to hear these songs on the radio every day at 1 p.m., and for more Philly music, don’t miss the WXPN Local Show with John Vettese every Tuesday night at 8 p.m.
Monday 8/25: Sug Daniels – “Brand New Day”
Folk-pop singer-songwriter Sug Daniels is prepping her latest album, I Believe In You, which will release on September 23rd. The effervescent new song “Brand New Day” is the latest taste of the record, and features multi-instrumentalist Samuel Nobles, percussionist Keaton Thandi, drummer Adam Shumski, and flugelhorn player Pansy Lee. She’s teaming up with fellow Black Opry alum Lizzie No for a Kable House Presents gig this Thursday, August 28th, at York’s Valencia Ballroom.
Instagram | TikTok | Bandcamp | Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
Tuesday 8/26: Maxfield Gast and Bethlehem Roberson – “Remember”
Over the past year, producer and multi-instrumentalist Maxfield Gast teamed up with singer-songwriter Bethlehem Roberson — one half of the jazz-folk duo Bethlehem & Sad Patrick — for a run of knockout collaborative singles. Their latest, “Remember,” fuses funk and Afrobeat energies in a song that nostalgically celebrates family and community. They play Sellersville Theater on August 31st with Bakithi Kumalo’s Graceland Experience.
Instagram (Maxfield Gast) | Instagram (Bethlehem Roberson) | Spotify | Apple Music
Wednesday 8/27: Close Drive – “Speed Wobbles”
Suburban Philly indie rockers Brandon Higgins and John Antoni channel Vampire Weekend and Guster on their project Close Drive, which just released its first single in two years, “Speed Wobbles.” They’ll play PhilaMOCA this Friday, August 29th.
Instagram | TikTok | Bandcamp | Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
Thursday 8/28: Ameyaxoxo – “Matt Wilde is Proud”
Philadelphia-based guitarist and producer Ameya Deshpande makes cool, groove-laden instrumental music that straddles the worlds of jazz, funk, and neo-soul. His collective Ameyaxoxo finds him teaming up with sax player Chet Williams, bassist Miguel Cid, keyboardist Joab Alexander, and drummer Daniel Wilfred. Their latest, Who Knows (Vol. 1), is out now, and they’ll celebrate this Friday, August 29th at Silk City.
Instagram | TikTok | Bandcamp | Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube
Friday 8/29: Heavy Tears – “Always Now”
Area indie rocker Sam Thacker makes crunchy guitar jams in the spirit of Nada Surf and Built To Spill, and produced himself with seasoned Philly players like Ciaran Wall of Lady HD and Jeff Lucci of Air is Human. Their debut single “Always Now” is out now, and they’ll play a Friday night show at Glenside art space The Co-Lab on Friday, August 29th. And hey, before the show, consider paying a visit to the new record store Vinyl Chickie, which is in the same building as The Co-Lab!