Music
Press
The New Time, #19 on WPRB's Top 30 list for July, 2009.
http://blog.wprb.com/358 - WPRB
June 12, 2009--We’re going to tell you to go to The Fire, of all places, on a Friday night, no less, to see a band whose debut single is called “”Neutral Milk Hotel.” How’s that for stacking the deck? But we swear this will be good: The band is called The New Time (pictured), they’ve got this whole Walkmen-as-told-to-Van-Morrison-on-K-Records vibe, and they are aided and abetted by TJ Kong and the Atomic Bomb and Sweetheart Parade, who are also decent. Here’s that single we were talking about: - Philebrity.com
July 7, 2009--“I like hooks,” says the New Time frontman John Davidson. His band is about to release its first proper EP, a collection of five hook-heavy tunes that draw heavy influences from groups like Neutral Milk Hotel, Arcade Fire and the Shins.
“That’s the main thing [the songs] have going for them,” Davidson says. “Very intellectual music lovers might not be into them because they might be too straightforward, but there’s something about a pleasing hook and pleasing melody that’s fun, but also melancholy, that you can ramp up and make violent and play it so it sounds like you’re punching someone in the stomach.”
The band recorded An Incomplete History in February. For Davidson, it was a dream come true. Though the New Time had released a demo in 2007, he says that album was heavily folk and country—a far cry from the vision Davidson had for the group.
“The EP that we have coming out is not country or folk at all,” he says. “One of the frustrations for us is that since we did that [first] demo, we sort of got pigeonholed as an alt-country or new-folk band, which we’re really not. We never thought of ourselves that way, but other people did, so it kind of stuck around. I’m hoping with this record we can kind of shed those labels.”
The band’s first EP came off with a country hue because “when we were forming the band, part of it was I didn’t believe I could really realize my songs in a large orchestral way,” Davidson says. But as the band succeeded, “I sort of became convinced that we can make this as big as we want. I love that old country music, but I don’t necessarily want to play it.” - Philadelphia Weekly
07.14.2009--The New Time are shaping up to be one of the best new bands in Philly and this new song/video with its bluesy, southern sound and cute girls in short-shorts performing a mixture of modern and swing dance moves doesn’t disappoint. - The Walrus Music Blog
July 11, 2009--[...] The tunes have a familiar feel, but in a warm, childhood-blanket kind of way. "Mississippi Halfstep" accomplishes its mission of demanding you to dance without delving into anything corny. On the menacing Texas country rocker "The Last Days," string players Oprea and Eileen McKenna spin a sonic tumbleweed while Davidson reads off dark revelations like Brother Justin in HBO's "Carnivale." - Delaware News Journal
July 13, 2009--The New Time hails from MAGNET’s hometown of Philadelphia and recently released debut EP An Incomplete History (on Cut Narrative). Check out the first single off the record, the catchy, Strokes-like “Neutral Milk Hotel.” Now, if only the members of the New Time will buy us a pint or six of whatever Dogfish Head beer is on tap at Johnny Brenda’s … - Magnet
June 24, 2009--The New Time - Neutral Milk Hotel: It doesn't happen often, but on occasion I do get an email with just facts. For example, the one from this band, which simply indicated that they'll soon be moving to Austin (from Philadelphia) and a copy of their upcoming EP An Incomplete History is heading my way. No fancy press quotes, comparisons to other acts or anything else - just information and a song. Of course, it certainly didn't hurt that said song turned out to be an infectious pop rock gem. Good work, "local" people. - Side One Track One
August 24th, 2009--The New Time—An Incomplete History: John Davidson, a native Alaskan took the jump and settled in Philly in 2007. Before getting to the Big Philly he spent some time in PA taking up the night shift at the local newspaper in the heart of PA’s former coal belt. Between writing stories that were often heart breaking, Davidson met sports editor and accordionist Joe Petrucci and the two began playing at a local tavern where they met Matt Guza, a washboard player and multi-instrumentalist, eventually all moving to Philly. In 2007, the band self-released a demo EP, With Signs Following, recorded on a handheld digital four-track device and mixed on a laptop. By 2009 the band expanded and includes Megan Oprea (Davidson’s wife), Petrucci, Guza, Eileen McKenna (his finance), and Justin Hallman. Known for intimidating live shows that include macabre dance choreography, group choruses and a bit of a waltz. Folks describe the band’s sound as Tom Waits meets the Stokes or the Pixies playing loud and louder on your front porch or the Walkman. They’ve toured Philly, NY and even come to grace us in Austin. Finally, in July 2009, The New Time self-released its first record, An Incomplete History, a five-track EP recorded over ten days in February in a Fishtown warehouse. - Austin Daze
Discography
With Signs Following EP (self-released, 2007)
An Incomplete History EP (Cut Narrative, 2009)
Photos
Bio
The New Time formed in the fall of 2006 in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., a dying rustbelt town in the heart of Pennsylvania's former coal country. Led by Alaskan songwriter John Davidson, the band moved to Philadelphia, expanded its lineup and released a demo EP, With Signs Following, in the fall of 2007.
After playing in and around Philadelphia and New York for nearly two years, The New Time recorded a five-track EP, An Incomplete History, in the dead of winter 2009 and self-released the record in July to postive reviews from the Philadelphia music press.
In August 2009, The New Time relocated to Austin, Texas, where Davidson and company are playing shows and preparing to record a full-length album.
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