In a jumble of misunderstood credential arrangements, I arrived at the Popped! Philadelphia music festival last Saturday more or less as a spectator with a photo pass. No interviews, no all-access backstage pass, no video cameras, and not even an idea to give the Phillyist world an artsy camera perspective of the small details involved in being there. Despite my skepticism of the changed nature of this festival, and the frustratingly unorganized course leading......

Never wear a short-sleeve button-down shirt and a $300 tie at the same time. You just look like a wealthy classless fool! PHILADELPHIA ORCHESTRA: BEST OF...CZECH MIX We're not entirely sure that this program's name isn't offensive. But we do love a good reference to the mix to end all mixes. But anyway, if you like classical music by the likes of Dvorak, Strauss and Bartok, than get thee over to the big KC for......

THE N CROWD TEACHES IMPROV You've seen them perform, now you can learn of the dark arts from those who know best. The N Crowd is offering improvisation classes every Thursday. They last a couple of hours and set you back $40 a pop (or you could drop $200 for 7 weeks' worth, at a savings of $80). We suggest considering this a date-worthy outing, especially if you and yours are a recent match. Improv......

You know it's bad when the dry cleaning lady gives you a disapproving look and tells you she can't guarantee success on the first try. REAL PIRATES AT THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE Well, sort of. Their historically significant stories and wares are on display over at the Franklin Institute. The exhibit specifically features artifacts from the Whydah, including a full-size replica of the ship. The show runs until 8pm tonight, so you'll have time to head......

You know those days where it seems that there are like four good bands playing on one night? And they’re all really good? Saturday, June 7, is that day. Personally, this brings to mind one of the few concepts that I learned in my macroeconomics class – opportunity cost. Even if you go to one of these shows and plan your day carefully, you can’t see it all! The Roots, Gnarls Barkley, Sharon Jones and......

Happy Swedish Flag Day! 2008 US AIR GUITAR CHAMPIONSHIPS Okay, awesome, we love air guitar! The TLA, on South Street, surrounded by bars, braiding and bubble-gum trees. We're also down. BUT, what really forces writers like us to CAPS-lock the hell out of an innocent word like "but" is the presence at tonight's event of Tragedy, an "all metal Bee Gees tribute band." This fact elevates South Street, Friday night, and air guitar to a......

Happy Birthday Socrates! We wonder how he fits all 2,477 candles on his birthday cake... THE ELECTRIC FACTORY PRESENTS: RILO KILEY The band is ten years old but the tunes still ring new and true. They are an engaging live act, so much so that they're still riding out the success of their most recent release, 2007's Under the Blacklight. They're a killer show and good warm-weather band. Makes you want to smoke cigarettes and......

Smile people: It's Friday! AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL'S GUANTANAMO CELL TOUR The champions of human rights are constructing a replica of the infamous cells at City Hall this weekend, available for examination or entrance by passersby. You can videotape a message to Bush, too. That must be one hell of an interesting video library. WHO: Anyone WHERE: City Hall's Dilworth Plaza,1400 JFK Boulevard (map) WHEN: From 1pm to 7pm HOW MUCH: Free! PENNYWISE AT THE FILLMORE It's......

Some of you have work tomorrow. Others do not. To the former, our condolences. To the latter, our congratulations. TWO STAGES AT DOC WATSON'S This is one of our more basic but to-the-point event names. Yes, there will be two stages rocking tonight over at Doc Watson's Pub. We Are Castles, Domi, The Orange, Conversation with Friends, Common Crave and Bodega will be playing. Also, enjoy $3 Magic Hat #9 and a late-night Happy Hour......

This is not fair. This weather only exacerbates an already ominous-looking Monday. INDIAN JEWELRY AT JOHNNY BRENDA'S Apparently, they're known for their "droning vision music and seizure-inducing stage show". Sounds like Monday music to us! The Sounds of Kaleidescope and Lesser Known Neutrinos join them. WHO: 21+ WHERE: Johnny Brenda's, 1201 Frankford Avenue (map) WHEN: 8pm HOW MUCH: $8. Get 'em at the door, starting at 8pm, or here. ANATOMY OF THE FACE AND FACIAL......

Sex doesn't have to be boring. In fact, it can be a ratings monster and can even turn into a movie you don't have to hide between your mattress and box spring. Yes, we know. Everyone knows, creepzilla. SEX AND THE CITY IN PHILADELPHIA DENIM Public Relations and Me/Me2 magazine are bringing a theme to match the release of the movie. Tonight they're going to be at Bamboo Lounge. The campaign lasts all month long......

We didn't make it to Can't Miss This! yesterday, but it's not because we don't love you. We were testing you. Did you notice we weren't here with our daily trio of evening derrings-do? We hope so. MARY SCHOLZ AT TRIUMPH BREWING COMPANY Scholz will play tonight at Triumph Brewing Company. The combination of bar, brewery, restaurant and intimate live performance from a excellent local musician will give your arid May evening a decidedly smooth......

It just may be that this particular Phillyist is going to the sold out Jimmy Eat World show in Atlantic City tonight. And it just may be that you aren't. Ha! THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC PRESENTS: HAIRSPRAY If you like musical theater, you know Hairspray. This weekend, you can catch a production over at the Academy of Music, presented by their program entitled Broadway at the Academy. It's a real show, so you'll have to......

Local music, a film screening with the director and an open casting call for a scary new reality show with a devilish prize. Tuesday is no longer the plain-Jane it has been wont to, uh, be, in the past. And the price tag is pretty nice, too. FOOLING APRIL AND WMMR AT DOC WATSON'S PUB We mentioned Fooling April in our Countdown to 2008 because they're an incredible local band. And the bar tends......

The weekend is still barely visible over the horizon, but that doesn't mean you can't have some weekendly fun upon this unseasonably warm eve. Here are a few things to do so you can tell your friends how immersed you are in city life. A BOB MARLEY BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION! Bob Marley was a class act from the start, and identification with the marijuana counter-culture did nothing to dampen his image as one of the most......

It's nasty out, but don't let the weather keep you from exploring all that this city's artisans and art curators have to offer! Take, for instance, the special First Friday event the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts is throwing in honor of their new (aforementioned) Cecilia Beaux American Figure Painter exhibition, starting at 5PM. It's the first chance that Philadelphians will have to see the exhibit, plus, there will be live music and free food.......

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2008 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know! Raise your hand if you don't love YouTube/Viddler/Google Video/etc. Okay, that one guy raising your hand? You probably just want to scroll past this post, because it probably won't interest you in the......

It's the holiday season, so many of us are in a charitable mood. Certainly, there are good feelings to be had from performing acts of selflessness, and we at Phillyist encourage you to donate your time, money, or a toy this holiday season. Sometimes you get the opportunity to contribute to a good cause and have a lot of fun at the same time. Thursday night, you'll get one such opportunity. WXPN is presenting a......

innerpartysystem Ticket Giveaway
11.29.07 - 11.30.07 (ENDS AT NOON!)...

Raise your hand if you enjoy live music festivals. *Phillyist raises hand* Now, raise your hand if you’re an un-American communist who doesn’t like the idea of live music in a beautiful Philadelphia park (or cute little kids raising their hands, like at left). *Select members of the Fairmount Park Commission raise their hands* Yesterday, the Fairmount Park Commission voted to table a multi-day, multi-stage festival in Fairmount Park and your help is needed. As......

Fun Fun Fun Fest 2007 Recap from Super!Alright! on Vimeo. Austinist attended a town hall meeting about proposed noise ordinances that could undermine the city's future as the Live Music Capital of the World, and lamented the possible loss of Texas's only feminist bookstore. Throughout the week, they interviewed a bunch of indie fashion designers and D-I-Y websites—Etsy, Ornamental Things, 31 Corn Lane, and Aorta Designs—for the upcoming Stitch Fashion Show. They also did......

Free Yr Radio, a campaign launched by Toyota and Urban Outfitters in support of independent radio, is getting a soundtrack. It's a benefit compilation CD that's coming out tomorrow (a release date chosen to coincide with non-commercial radio's biggest event, the CMJ conference in Manhattan - an event we've gotten more press releases about than we can count). The compilation features a collection of live music, B-side tracks and previously unreleased material from the......

Wow-ee! At ten this morning, a brand new Ben Franklin sculpture (this one by James Peniston) was unveiled at 4th and Arch Streets, bringing the total number of sculptures of the founding father in Philadelphia up to 24,367.* To celebrate, we're going to be sure we do First Friday up right this month, starting with the very special reception to welcome the newest Ben in the city. "Keys to Community": The Ben Franklin Project set......

Imagine dusk in the Appalachian mountains - the crickets are chirping through the tall grass, the moist air wets your back as a cool breeze sweeps through the dense heat. It's finally that time. The time when friends and family congregate on the front porch for some cold drinks - iced tea, beer and maybe some whiskey - and best of all, live music. The sounds of the fiddle, banjo, guitar and bass will soon......

The best of the internet, chopped into tiny bits and grilled for your enjoyment. Maxim Online has collected for you a list of the best movie scenes involving drugs, and they even included video clips. Beware some NSFW language. Why would you get the text of Windows' blue screen of death tattooed on your arm? We don't know, but somebody did, and we respect that. (Via Mike V.) Hey, you can vote for Philly's best......

I love this city. This week I found out that it loves me back. Okay, maybe not the entire city, but at a minimum, Standard Tap. A few weeks ago, I moved to Northern Liberties. Needless to say, I love it: good people, quality food, live music, great yoga studio, copious amounts of cider, and a kick ass pair of swings. I was so busy enjoying this city that I was surprised when my ex-landlord......

...that our city is the most beautiful place? Yes, we know we stole that line from a Flaming Lips song, but that doesn't make it any less true. Saturday afternoon come out to Northern Liberties and feel the love all over again with realizePhiladelphia, a free music and art festival in Liberty Lands Park. From art and live music to puppetry and comedy, immerse yourself in the local flavor. Come for the outdoor art gallery......

Holy smokes! Giant fish on the MTA, Paris Hilton in jail, then out, then in again, Al Gore, goatses, blumpkins, Matt Damon, and baby art critics! It's been a busy week across the Ist-A-Verse, and here's a smattering of what's been going on. In Gothamist's neck of the woods, they found out that many things are possible: A man caught a 40+ pound fish off the Rockaways and took it home on the subway. Graffiti......

The time comes in every person's life to move out of the dorm room. This journey can be literal or metaphorical (believe us, Phillyist knows far too many folks who still act like adolescents, and are plenty old enough to know better). One major component of this transition: "What the hell do I put on the walls?" When the black light Jimi Hendrix poster starts to fade and the paper and ink representation of 50......

Dear Philly-Area Music Lovers: As I briefly mentioned in my review a few days ago, after taking in Friday night’s poorly-attended show at Johnny Brenda’s, my boyfriend and I spent a little while talking to Ross Flournoy (thanks, Daytrotter, for telling me his last name and supplying some awesome MP3s, to boot!), The Broken West’s frontman. While we were talking to Ross, he actually apologized to us, as did a few other band members......