Phillyist Playlist: Liam and Me at the Khyber

Somewhere, we're not sure where, on this Phillyist's top ten list of favorite things in the whole wide world (which contains no fewer than fourteen items) are entries for "good local bands" and "gratuitous references to Coen Brothers movies." So I could hardly contain my excitement when I heard about Liam and Me (MySpace), a local band that draws their name from one of the most memorable lines from The Big Lebowski. "With a name evoking John Turturro's hilarious turn as Jesus Quintana," we thought, "this band had better not suck." But Editor Jill, who is familiar with Liam and Me and interviewed their frontman, Matt O'Dowd, for this very site a while back, assured me that they were a quality band with a great sound.

Still, I was a little bit nervous when I popped over to this Philadelphia band's MySpace page and read this:

Ok—so what kind of music are you really into? What songs do you blast in your bedroom while you dance with reckless abandon? What songs do you sing at the top of your lungs in your car, ignoring weird looks from the drivers next to you?

Since 2004, Philly-based rock band Liam and Me has been working to create perfect pop songs. They’re the kind of musicians who love a great hook paired with a great arrangement, big hits with a sense of music history.

Uh-oh, cliché alert! Fortunately, though, when I listened to their songs, it became quickly clear that Liam and Me puts a lot of thought into their writing and arrangement. This allows the band to avoid falling into the depths of suckitude, where so many pop-rockers end up. I hope that Liam and Me, who will release an album sometime later in 2009, can cut their own path and avoid being lumped in with the likes of Hellogoodbye and Boys Like Girls, because they certainly have the potential to be much better than that. But the Coen Brothers' reference in the band's name, not to mention the limited amount of music they've released so far—and the fact that they're from Philadelphia—gives me a lot of hope.

You can check out Liam and Me for yourself tomorrow night at the Khyber, details below.

Liam and Me, with Lights Resolve, Elevation, and In Secrecy
Tomorrow, 1/19/09
8:00 p.m., 21+
The Khyber, 56 S. Second Street
Tickets: $8

Image Credit: Flickr user Amanda Munoz