The Trouble With Sweeney

(I Know You Destroy) (Burnt Toast Vinyl)
by Tim Den

Philadelphia is without a doubt becoming the nation’s number one hot spot for authentic, clever, this-side-of-the-century Big Star storytelling. Case in point: The Trouble With Sweeney. Led by guitarist/vocalist Joey Sweeney (an accomplished writer/music critic for the likes of Philadelphia Weekly and Salon.com), the band’s second full-length (I Know You Destroy) plucks tales of ordinary life and plants them in garden beds of wind-bent pedal steels, nurturing them with Uncle Tupelo roots rock and healthy doses of neurosis/self-deprecation. Quite a potent brew, considering The Trouble boys also kick the barn down with good times rock ‘n’ roll Replacements style (if the bartender had put more ice in the drinks… chill out, homeboys!). As literary, observational, and pensive as it is a humorous celebration of “the little things in life,” The Trouble With Sweeney are giving Philly one more reason to be proud of its pedigree.
(PO Box 42188 Philadelphia, PA 19101)