Snow Caps is the musical project of Philadelphia songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Andrew Keller.
A mélange of personal lyrics not limited to the bizarre and beautiful, Keller birthed the first Snow Caps album, Baby Bird, in 2008 and released a further five full-length albums.
A constant in the ever-evolving Philadelphia DIY scene over the years, Keller has played guitar and viola in the band Hermit Thrushes for 14 years, also collaborating with songwriter Emily Bate in Jonagold as well as performing with Folklore, Scott Churchman, Will Henriksen, Foxy Doxies and, most recently, Shanda.
Tomorrow, Keller releases their latest Snow Caps voyage, Notes, via Philly DIY stalwarts, Strange Mono. Exclusive to Sun 13, be the first to listen to Note in its entirety below.
Described as “diary music”, there’s a lot going on during Notes. With melodies akin to fellow Philly underground champs, Golden Apples, Keller veers off down other paths with wonky hooks that slowly seep into the pores with repeated listens. Essentially, Notes is an album full of earworms for those who like their indie pop conceived in the tall grass. No bad thing at all!
The first ideas for Notes came during a weekend trip to the beach with some friends in September 2021, the first time that they left the house for more than a few hours after receiving their first covid vaccination. The titles for the songs came to them while drawing, a recent addition to his daily art practice. The song Lemon Eye was originally intended to be part of a correspondence project with Pittsburgh musician Brian Hecht (Radon Chong, Skinless Boneless) and while Notes evolved into a solo venture, Hecht’s influence remains evident in these songs.
Proceeds from Notes will be forward to the The People’s Fridge. A community fridge, providing essentials and food stability to the people of West Philadelphia.
Notes is out tomorrow via Strange Mono. Purchase from Bandcamp.
