Philadelphia Grand Jury Biography
Between these two childhood buddies of some 20 years one observes a strange, tedious and sometimes very complicated relationship that always manages to somehow end up in a smart and ruff pop song. Do they even like each other? No one really knows.
Berkfinger hadn't seen Bad Genius for going on 6 years when one day last year the curious bearded fellow just strolled into one of his solo shows with a bass and plugged himself right back into the singer's life.
From there, these two childhood buddies - and a rotating ensemble of drummers - have been writing, recording and touring their own indie punk soul hits around the country and winning fans everywhere they go.
2009 has been a pretty busy year for The Philly Jays (as their fans affectionately refer to them). This year has taken them to all corners of the country to play live, literally spending more weeks on the road than off. In between featuring on Underbelly, playing the Big Day Out and Laneway Festivals, touring with Manchester Orchestra, Dappled Cities, Yves Klein Blue, Triple J’s Unearthed Tour, Bluejuice, and selling out their own national headline tour there hasn't been time to do much else.
Yet even amidst all of that touring they have managed to squeeze out a self-produced, self-engineered and self-released hit EP on their own label called Normal People Making Hits, which months after release is still sitting pretty in the top 10 of the independent charts. The EP – named “Going to the Casino” after its lead single of the same name, has spawned three Triple J hit tracks, and a crossover hit in its title track.
Now The Philly Jays are set to release their debut album ‘Hope Is For Hopers’.
Recorded by vocalist / guitarist Berkfinger on a shoe string budget of less than $3,000, “Hope is For Hopers” displays the engrained Do-It-Yourself nature of Philadelphia Grand Jury at its best. It was done during night time lock out sessions at Big Jesus Burger Studios (where Berkfinger works as an engineer); in the day times in Berkfinger's grandparents' basement; and on the road wherever they could find electricity to plug the pro-tools recording rig in – like in MC Bad Genius' Uncle Trevor's lounge room in Brunswick.
The album features 12 tracks that capture the raw energy and songwriting prowess that has given the Philly Jays live show the life to turn audiences all over the country on any given night. They don’t need a good PA, a crowd of their own or even a drummer of their own (in fact, at a recent show in Canberra, they didn’t have a drummer at all) to turn the heads of every member of the crowd by the end of their action packed set. Just reference the plethora of live reviews singing the praises of their show-stealing sets as proof.
Hope is For Hopers captures the energy two guys whose love for what they do, and ability to get it done the right way, outshines any of the millennium production tricks most bands need to stand out.
Hope is For Hopers came out through Boomtown Records/Normal People Making Hits in late September 2009
Going To The Casino (Tomorrow Night) is a fantastic example of their rock n roll assault, which The Philly Jay’s will be giving away to anyone who wants it! To get your hands on one, but click the link below;