Phillyist Playlist: Good Old War

One morning last week, when my alarm clock sounded and XPN kicked on—my standard start to the day—I was greeted by a catchy folk melody sung in three-part harmony. It was upbeat but relaxed, exactly the kind of thing I needed to get from asleep to groggy to somewhat coherent. When the song was over, Michaela Majoun said that the catchy song was called "Coney Island," and that it was by a group named Good Old War (MySpace). The name sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place where from. So I checked my pile of promo CDs, an ever-growing backlog of music that I need to listen to to decide what to write up and recommend on this website, and sure enough, Good Old War's album, Only Way to Be Alone was sitting there, unwrapped and unheard. But "Coney Island" was catchy enough, so I figured I would bump it to the top of the list and give it a listen.

And I'm damn glad I did. Only Way to Be Alone is pretty much the only thing to occasionally bump holiday music from my playlist, which is dominated by the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, Christmas with the Rat Pack, and the like from December 1 through 26. But Good Old War has put out a simply fantastic—understated, but fantastic—album. Think of a lot of the classic Americana songs featured on the O Brother, Where Art Thou soundtrack, and you've got a sense of Good Old War's influences.

And another reason to get into Good Old War: they're local boys, from Langhorne. As if their music wasn't enough to get our attention on its own. Tomorrow night, they're playing a regionally-flavored, sold-out show at the Troc balcony bar with Ace Enders and a Million Different People (from Hammonton, NJ), The Morning Light (from Pittsburgh), and Skylife (also Philly). The show is, well, as we mentioned, sold-out, but also a little emo-heavy, and we're not sure how Good Old War will fit into the lineup. But because Good Old War is a local band, and still relatively unknown, they're sure to be playing in the city again soon. They're now on Phillyist's 2009 watch list—and they should be on yours, too. So if you need a last-minute stocking stuffer for the music fan in your life, look no further than Only Way to Be Alone.