Written By Barbara Gettes / Photos by Lisa Schaffer

One of my favorite things is finding an artist who does not scream to get your attention. If you are familiar with Philadelphia native Hezekiah Jones, you also know the power of a whisper. With a long-awaited release of some new music in the after-time post-pandemic present apocalypse;  I am positive that I am not the only one breathing a sigh of relief to get some new songs from Hezekiah Jones.  The low-fi approach to his recording has become seminal in understanding their signature sound. If you close your eyes you can imagine sitting around a bonfire with friends, or in the intimacy of a living room where everyone is also singing along in the sweetest of harmonies.  Hezekiah Jones seems to encapsulate this feeling.  Of togetherness. 

Word has caught on about the Jones family and fans now will pack a venue to experience Hezekiah Jones live. An experience to seek as you can still see, hear, and meet the bonfire friends dancing their asses off or whispering the harmonies that run nearly two decades deep.  Alas.  This is not about the Hezekiah Jones live show experience.  It is about the new release.  The new EP boasts two new songs for the devoted lovers of Hezekiah Jones.  One song titled “Having a Time Machine Isn’t a Good Enough Reason to Time Travel”. The other song is titled “Like a Rock in a Tub”.   Though it sounds like there are subtle whispers of so many voices,  I am suspicious that on “Having a Time Machine Isn’t a Good Enough Reason to Travel” the vocals are comprised of Kiley Ryan and Raphael Curtrufello.   The voices we hear could exist in our heads just as much as on the floor in a living room concert.

Next song up is called “Like a Rock in a Tub” and it boasts another signature vibe of Sir Raphael Curtrufello, AKA Hezekiah Jones. A creepy waltz.  The last I heard a new creepy waltz from Hezekiah Jones was pre-Wednesday times and so Wednesday Adams if you are listening, I strongly encourage you to find your way to the recordings of Hezekiah Jones.  Find your way to one of his live shows and I reckon Hezekiah Jones would be thrilled to have you and your cello as the newest Jones member. I’ll call it now; Wednesday Jones. You won’t regret it. Season 2 is in the works.  Let’s help the music supervisor on Wednesday see this, okay?

Seriously… listening to this music is a breath of fresh new air mixed with the comfort of your very favorite old blanket. One last bit to be noted about Hezekiah Jones is that the impact he has had on countless people with almost a rabbinical character is tremendous. A silent, non-judgmental, mainstay on the Philadelphia music scene for two decades.  I am confident your ears will devour the new Hezekiah Jones songs that were released today. Gratitude to Hezekiah Jones and family for releasing new songs, this week of November 6, 2023, and brightening our souls on these dark days.  We look forward to future releases, as always. 

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Toby & Zach of Dr. Dog

Written by Brian Cronin  Photos provided by Lisa Schaffer

The first annual We Live On benefit concert was held on March 13 and March 15 at Ardmore Music Hall (AMH) in Ardmore, right outside of Philadelphia, and was hosted by Dan Fein. The benefit was set up to raise money for Derek Dorsey, a longtime music promoter, manager, and talent buyer in the Philadelphia music scene.

Sunday’s show brought out many artists and folks to support both Derek and this new foundation.  

I attended Sunday’s show that featured: Dr. Dog‘s Toby and Zach, Hoots & Hellmouth, Hezekiah Jones, John Faye, Anjuli Josephine, Stargazer Lily, Ben Arnold, Illinois, Andrew Lipke, Don McCloskey, Johnny Showcase & The Mystic Ticket, to name a few. It was a great night of music as each one of the artists had been covered by Origivation/THAT MAG at some point throughout the years.

Personally, for me, it was good to reconnect with the artists both performing or showing their support in the crowd. AMH did a great job, as always, with their house sound and keeping the night on a constant flow. Derek has touched so many lives throughout the years, and to see and feel the energy in the room, was electrifying.

I regrettably did not attend Tuesday’s night’s show, as they had another great lineup featuring Talib Kweli, Karl “Dice Raw” Jenkins, Schooly D., Chris and Herb of Fathead, Mike Voss, Flipside Esq., and Wardell Piper. Tuesday night’s festivities were hosted by Elements of Hip Hop. Not only were the funds raised to help Derek with his immense medical bills, but also for his new foundation, We Live On. The foundation has the goal of creating a space for people with rare diseases to network and to provide information on services and providers available. We Live On strives to create that safe community space as rare diseases are isolating and often end in suicide rather than death by disease. Most importantly, the foundation will serve its community of individuals and families who are facing medical adversity, establishing that people are not alone and that there is hope.

In Loving Memory of oosi Lockjaw

Reviewed by: Lauren Rosier

Philadelphia was just named the number one music city in North America by Vivid Seats. It is also home to some of the best bands and solo musicians in the industry today. Hezekiah Jones is one of those bands.

Raphael Cutrufello is the mastermind behind Hezekiah Jones and has led the six-piece band in becoming a music staple in Philadelphia.  The solid six-piece band has released eight previous recordings prior to the new album, In Loving Memory of oosi Lockjaw. It’s full of the beautifully crafted guitar work, folksy, and acoustic tunes that you’re used to from Hezekiah Jones.

The story of Oosi Lockjaw begins with meeting the Khomeini in the opening track “The Dark Heart’s Out” with a gorgeous string arrangement. Cutrufello’s voice is so perfect — a great storyteller, smooth, and welcoming.

The second track “Go Cat Go” opens with an amazing guitar melody and is reminiscent of folk greats like Cat Stevens. Cutrufello has a way of bringing together different genres of music — folk, acoustic, singer/songwriter, country, bluegrass, etc — and blending it into something that says Hezekiah Jones.

“Spare The Wicked” has an incredible melody and string arrangement and is just fitting for a crisp, autumn afternoon.

In Loving Memory of Oosi Lockjaw is for fans of Sufjan Stevens, Good Old War, and Joseph Arthur among others. It’s the perfect album for a chill autumn evening, relaxing at a coffee shop, or spending a quiet night with friends.

Rating: Bad-Ass

Photo by Lisa Schaffer

Chances are you’ve seen Brad Hinton on stage somewhere around the Philadelphia area, even if you didn’t know it was him at the time. Hinton has spent the better part of a decade performing in collaborative bands like Wissahickon Chicken Shack and Hezekiah Jones, with even more hired-gun credits for live shows with newcomers like Dylan Jane. But over the last few years, Hinton has been gradually experimenting with the spotlight, releasing two solo albums, Mourning Dove and Whippoorwill, that highlight the range of folk, country, and bluegrass that capture his imagination at different turns.

Hinton is the definition of a reluctant frontman. Naturally shy, he first contemplated going solo after the Chicken Shack disbanded.

“I wanted something I could do by myself, and didn’t need a lot of other people to do,” he explains. “But, I go back and forth on being comfortable performing solo. I really enjoy adding flavor to songs as part of a band more than I do bantering with the audience.”

This conflicting desire is why Hinton will always perform with other bands even while writing and recording his own material. Fluidity is the name of the game, as lineups vary night to night and projects overlap and evolve.

“The Brad Hinton Band is definitely not a set lineup,” Hinton says. “It’s more situational. I could see that backfiring in certain ways, because I think people like consistency, but I don’t necessarily like to deliver a consistent package each time. I think there’s a little surprise in what I do. That’s what keeps me interested. I don’t want to play my songs over and over again the same way.”

Growing up in the Poconos, Hinton was influenced by singer-songwriters like Simon & Garfunkel and James Taylor, but also loved the gospel music he heard at church. A trumpet player by training, Hinton picked up the guitar in high school and expanded his instrumentation even more after meeting bassist Phil D’Agostino while at Penn State. Now a resident of Bucks County, Hinton alternates between guitar, banjo, lap steel and a resonator guitar called a dobro.

His songwriting is based more on structure and melody than lyrical content, and the recordings tend to reflect whatever genre he is most interested in at the time. Whippoorwill was more bluesy in feel, but Hinton says the material on upcoming EP Chickadee is more straight-ahead with a Neil Young vibe.

You can hear some of these new songs on July 18th at Milkboy when Hinton will bring together a band of his favorite cohorts to lead a bill that features Dirty Dollhouse and Caroline Reese and the Drifting 5th. Hinton will also be performing at Bethlehem’s Musikfest on August 7th.

In the meantime, catch up with the previous material on Hinton’s Bandcamp page, and look out for a new Hezekiah Jones album that is nearing completion. Whether front and center or off to the side, Hinton will continue to be a major player in the Philadelphia music scene. His willingness to collaborate guarantees things will stay fresh for both him and the audience.

The summer weather couldn’t be better for an outdoor house concert just outside the city limits this weekend. On Sunday, August 10, local music lovers are invited to the home of Andy Clibanoff, e-commerce guru and online television producer.

Co-hosted by Ken Winneg from the Sofar Sounds house concert series, the show will feature performances from Philly artists Hezekiah Jones, Our Griffins (fresh off XPNFest), and Up the Chain, with special guest Angel Snow from Nashville. This setup should prove to be one of those magical summer nights, so make sure to RSVP online by Friday.

A $25 donation goes directly to the artists, and grub will be provided by food vendors Vernalicious, Weckerly’s Ice Cream (2014 Best of Philly), and Brûlée Mama.

Bring your own chair, blanket, wine, beer.

Hezekiah Jones (photo credit, Michele Lynn)

Hezekiah Jones brought folk, roots rock and then some to Johnny Brenda’s this past Thursday, June 26th. They shared a bill with New Sweden, The Spinning Leaves (who played their first show as a band in over a year,) and Lovers League, who released their debut album that very day.

Hezekiah Jones’ set boasted a healthy mix of older tunes and some yet-to-be-recorded material. “Knives of Summertime” came early on, which left a warm impression as heads were nodding and bodies swaying. It felt very much like a summer scene, as Raph Cutrufello sang that sweet melody, Kiley Ryan played bluegrass-y licks on the fiddle, and the rest of the band perpetuated the song’s addictive beat.     

“Spare the Wicked”, a seemingly new tune in the band’s arsenal, sported more ambiguity in genre, as they seem to have a great talent to do. Rock suffused the percussion, folk pervaded the guitar and perhaps the vocal melody took a blend of the two. An elaborate drum solo from Kevin Killen, followed by some bad-ass bass work from Phil D’Agostino found the other band members sitting on the stage observing and clapping as if they were audience members themselves.  

Other tunes in the lineup included “Cannonball”, “Cupcakes for the Army” and “Borrowed Heart”, which was, of course, more haunting and beautiful than ever. “Hildebrand”, the last song of the set, got the very local and artist-heavy crowd dancing, as many of the previous tunes had.

But old or new, aspects of each song became as raucous and electric as a Zeppelin breakdown, or as acoustic and folky as Old Crow Medicine Show. One of the cool things about Hezekiah Jones is that they really defy a set genre- they let their songs unravel as their musical gut tells them, and they stand out because of it.   

As a special encore, TJ McGlinchey and Dani Mari from Lovers League played a gorgeous version of “Two of Us” by The Beatles. Their beautiful harmony floated through the atmosphere like a gentle breeze. Needless to say, it was the perfect end to a night of delightful music.

Lovers League (photo credit, Michele Lynn)

Few Philadelphia bands are as dynamic as Hezekiah Jones. So many players have come and gone from the group in its first few years of existence, that many of their early albums do not quite reflect the sound that they have come to hone when they perform as their current set of characters.

To use the word ‘they’ or ‘their’ would imply that the group has been one cohesive unit from the get-go. This is not the case. Raphael Cutrufello, the one constant and the man responsible for starting the band, initially planted the seeds of the project by capriciously inviting people to play with him when he first started performing.

“I had a hard time being on stage by myself, it was very nerveracking for me,” Cutrufello says.  “So I would just invite people up- even if it was somebody I had just met. For a long time it was…just friends and strangers I would have on stage.”

But only in the last few years did Cutrufello find a group of musicians that he has clicked with, and those six players became steady band mates. They include Kiley Ryan, Phil D’Agostino, Kevin Killen, Matt Helm, and Brad Hinton. For Cutrufello, playing with the current group has cemented what he feels his songs are supposed to sound like.  However, the overarching sound differs from that of the initial records, each of which features a variety of instrumental contributors. “We’ll get finished a gig, and people will say- what sounds most like what you just did, and I have nothing to represent that,” Cutrufello says.

In order to rectify that small disconnect, the band is currently recording some of their older material to make their performance sound matches their studio sound. However, at the end of the summer they will begin recording new song-stories in the form of a full-length album. Contrary to an instrumentally diverse and elaborate album like Have You Seen Our New Fort, Cutrufello plans to revert back to the stripped down, character-driven stories that permeated his earlier output.

Additionally, he has been having fun with writing instrumental pieces for film soundtracks.  “…To focus on melodies and movements of the songs instead of thinking- this is a verse, this is a chorus.  It’s nice to get away from that.” Beginning in the fall they will begin work on a soundtrack for a civil war movie, The Walk.

Hezekiah Jones (photos by Lisa Schaffer)

Let’s rewind to focus on an older, but no less noteworthy song of Cutrufello’s called “Borrowed Heart,” based on the film The Bride of Frankenstein.  In its infancy, the song consisted of just Cutrufello’s gritty Americana voice and bouncy acoustic guitar strumming. But he and the band had joined forces with Brian McTear, who recorded and produced the song. He featured parts of that process in his short documentary series Shaking Through, associated with Weathervane Music.

As stated in the documentary, McTear’s idea of what constitutes a genre is an overarching drum rhythm that runs throughout a song. “Borrowed Heart easily could have had this chugging along, choo choo train brushes-on-a-snare beat,” McTear says in the footage.

But Cutrufello’s openness to experimentation in the recording process led him to shy away from that typically folky approach to percussion. “That did a lot to take it out of that particular genre, and made it more difficult to put your finger on what kind of song this was,” McTear says.

As such, “Borrowed Heart” transformed from a bare bones folk tune into a lush, haunting, atmospheric, stylistically ambiguous song. The producers and the band recorded percussion, bass, violin, vocal harmony and a seven-person background chorus. Clips of the footage from the film serve as the video that accompanies the song.

Thematically, Cutrufello wanted to expose where the monster was coming from as an outcast living among humans. “This poor guy… I felt bad for the monster,” he says. The movies omit a few key qualities of the monster that are found in the book. For instance, what we don’t know from watching the films is that he is able to read and speak, and spoke quite eloquently at that. “He kind of comes off as a dolt, but he’s not. He’s actually a really intelligent monster,” Cutrufello says.

One scene in the movie that Cutrufello found particularly poignant is the one in which the monster happens upon an old blind hermit living in the woods, and the two befriend each other. “The man is teaching him how to talk, how to drink booze, how to smoke cigars- just being friends,” Cutrufello says. “And then the hunters come and ruin everything for the monster. He’s about to have a friend, and start to realize that maybe this isn’t all bad…”

Catch Hezekiah Jones at Johnny Brenda’s Thursday night, June 26th. Local band Lover’s League, started by seasoned Philly musicians Dani Mari and Reverend TJ McGlinchey, will be celebrating the release of their debut self-titled album. The Spinning Leaves and New Sweden will also take the stage that night. The music starts at 9 pm.