25 O'Clock

Here are another handful of new tracks from Philadelphia artists for your listening pleasure. As always, check out the clickable playlist below, and support the artists.  There's a set of tunes in there that are all bands playing the Jam For Josh at The Fallser Club on July 18th. Josh Craft is the co-founder (along with his wife Jess) of Rock To the Future , a non profit group that brings after sc...

Sweet Juice Fest has been featured on this show since its inception in 2022, and this is the first year we get an in depth look at not just some of the artists that are playing, but the foundation and philosophy of the festival itself. John and Paige sit down with Shona Carr and Mel Harris, two of the festival's founders, to talk about this year's fest, the growth over previous years, and how Swee...

As promised, here's the playlist episode for the month of May, just under the wire. Twelve new tunes from twelve Philadelphia artists, and you can go right to their sites and support them below on the clickable playlist.  The Tisburys- Here Comes The Lonesome Dove The Describers- Home On Time (Sunrise) Kat Rivers and the Second Sight- Broken Promised Land Red Desert Motel- Cowgirl & Ramona Lo Prie...

John and Paige talk with photographer/tour manager/many-hat-wearer Ashley Gellman about life on the road and at home. Ashley has worked with artists like Bartees Strange, Jamie xx, Jonas Brothers, boygenius, and is currently on the road with Lucy Daucus. She's a larger-than-life personality, and she breaks down her life on the road, her upbringing as an independent kid doing her own thing, her rel...

In Philadelphia, John and Paige talk with Sovei , an artists no matter what they choose to apply their talent to. Whether it's singing and songwriting, sound experiments, visual collage, poetry, fashion, Sovei brings their spirit and experimentation to it all. Sovei talks about singing from an early age, their original incarnation as  Justmadnice , being one of the founders of the Sweet Juice Fest...

This episode marks a new chapter in the 25 O'Clock book: our first episode with collaborators, and our first episode of a new format going forward. While Dan is living in Hong Kong, he wanted to keep the show going, and with the help of his friends back in Philadelphia, Paige Walter and John Vettese (you might know them from their day jobs at WXPN ), 25 O'Clock continues on with great conversation...

In Part 2, longtime Philadelphia talent buyer/promoter/manager Derek Dorsey talks about everything he was up to during the 00s to now, including leaving The Fire (a club he booked for over 15 years), working in music publishing, managing bands, and continuing to book shows for Philadelphia venues like The Blockley, Underground Arts, and the Electric Factory. Derek also opens up about his current h...

Dan sits down with Philadelphia music community icon and long-standing champion Derek Dorsey. He's booked and promoted thousands of shows at The Fire, Underground Arts, The Blockley, and Electric Factory, if you played in Philadelphia in the last 25 years, you worked with Derek at some point.  In Part 1, Derek reminisces about growing up in Overbrook, early concerts, his love of music, and his ear...

Just a few days before he took off for Hong Kong, Dan talks to folk singer-songwriter Andrea Nardello at her kitchen table in Philadelphia. Andrea talks about growing up the tomboy sister of older brothers just over the bridge in New Jersey, coming out of her shell to perform in college, and getting her start on the road while living in Atlanta at the beginning of her career. They discuss touring...

It's been a long time coming, but Dan finally sits down with Bruce Warren , recently retired program director from WXPN , Philadelphia's non-commercial radio station. Bruce talks about growing up in Northeast Philly, getting turned on by Philly soul, Motown, The Beatles, etc, starting a music zine to get into shows for free, and taking a random late night DJ shift at a burgeoning college radio sta...

Dan took a trip out to Wayne, PA to sit down with rock n' roll lifer Paul Keen ( Pawnshop Roses , Dead Flowers , Wolf & Vixen ). Paul talks about growing up loving the classic rock of his parents, especially The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Faces, and The Who, and finding a home in the Manayunk music scene at The Grape Room and Dawson Street Pub. Dan and Paul discuss the finer points of being tw...

We're back from January break, and in the home stretch before Dan heads off to Hong Kong. We're getting the year started off right with a great conversation with singer-songwriter Maria Mirenzi . Maria talks to Dan right at her dining room table about growing up in Mountain Top, PA, playing saxophone, being a "jazz kid", Temple music school, living in France, her first project Brother Martin , gro...

And like that, the end of another year. Whether 2024 was a slog, a joyful ride, or something in between, we can all agree that if you measure a year by its music, it looks a whole lot better. Dan shares a playlist of tracks from Philadelphia artists from 2024. Some have been on the show, some he's only just discovering, and all of it is top notch. Check out the clickable playlist below, and have a...

Dan brings Ross Bellenoit back for another conversation, his last one was fall of 2016. A lot has been going on: Ross has continued to release music as a solo artist, as part of the face-melting jam band Muscle Tough , and as part of Don McCloskey's live band . On top of it all, he continues to produce records at Turtle Studios , and teach guitar to all ages and levels. Ross talks about growing up...

Dan sits down with pianist/composer/producer Corey Bernhard (currently a member of the Late Show with Stephen Colbert house band) about his journey from Boston to Philadelphia, and all the points in between. Steeped in the jazz and experimental scenes in Boston and New York, Corey landed in Philadelphia and founded Killiam Shakespeare, a beloved Philly insturmental hip-hop group. he's played with...

Dan has talked to John Faye on the show before ( twice, actually ), but this time they're doing it live. On December 4th, 2024, John held a vinyl listening party for his new LP, 'The Long Game', at 48 Record Bar in the Old City neighborhood of Philadelphia. He asked Dan to come interview him live on stage in front of an audience, they recorded it, and decided it was cool enough to share with the w...

Dan has a full house this week with Sexton Sideshow founders Paula and Jim Minacci. As the sextons (or caretakers) of  Old Swedes' Church in Philadelphia since 2000, they started having events featuring Philadelphia artists like Deadfellow, Low Cut Connie, and EJ Simpson's long running one-man 'Jesus Christ Superstar' production. Paula and Jim talk with Dan about how they got into doing shows, bei...

The last time Brendan Johnson of Stella Ruze was on the show , it was with his bandmate Katie O'Donnell, and it was less than a week before the world shutdown in March of 2020 (Dan didn't have another in-person guest for nearly a year and a half). It's been almost five years, but Brendan comes back to talk to Dan about the band, some line-up and life changes amidst them, and how embracing improvis...

Dan was moved to reach out to a seemingly anonymous person, based solely on liking his concert photography. And through that, Dan talks to Jersey Wall (or Eric, as he's known to some) for one of his first podcast appearances ever. Eric talks about growing up moving a lot, his dad's record collection, going to shows as a rite of passage into growing up, and his lifelong love of technology and innov...

Dan traveled up to Newtown, PA to sit with Dirty Dollhouse front-woman Chelsea Mitchell in her shop, Newtown Book & Record Exchange , along with her bassist Josh Machiz. Chelsea talks about growing up in Newtown, being an anxious, book-obsessed kid, and how she found her way into music by playing in the church worship bands and choir (where, as a bonus, she received classical voice training). She...

Dan and and Kat Rivers met over a Philly music Discord, and started doing Monday co-working sessions at an Olde City coffee shop with a rotating cast of musicians and creatives. Kat talks about growing up in Paduka, Kentucky, her many years in musical theater (including the Walnut Street Theater, which is what brought her to Philadelphia), and stepping away from theater to focus on performing musi...

Dan recovers from a week of Philly Music Fest with a playlist episode. Ten tracks of Philadlephia music goodness, including a couple from the 'Want To Play A Song?: Live On 25 O'Clock Vol. 1' compilation out now exclusivley via Bandcamp. Also, Dan shares some big news, so don't miss that! Clickable playlist is below, support that artists you love!   1. Aaron Parnell Brown- Always Everything 2. Kat...

Dan talks with Josh Ostrander, aka Mondo Cozmo , from his basement studio in Los Angeles. After mutually admiring each other's set-ups through their computer screens, Josh talks to Dan about growing up outside Philadelphia, all the ups and downs with his previous groups La Guardia and Eastern Conference Champions, and the hard decision to shift to a solo project back in 2016. Since then Josh has t...

Dan has admired Chiara D'Anzieri's music ( under the Santa Chiara moniker ) for a while now, and has wanted to have her on the show ever since. Chiara talks about coming to the US in her 20s after meeting Philly musician  Ron Gallo on a beach in Italy while he was on tour, and how the adjustment to life over here was an up-and-down journey. Trained as classical cellist, Chiara spent most of her yo...

Dan talks to Chris Pires, drummer for Philly ska-punks Catbite , in lieu of their Philly Music Fest appearance. Chris talks about convncing his parents to let him have a drum kit, all the different acts he's played with, and how Catbite formed out of nowhere as a "thing to do". Chris also gets into the dynamics of a band relationship, and the importance of having real, adult conversations amongst...