With the release of their newest album, "Electric and Benevolent," Philly’s own indie quintet The Extraordinaires seems poised to chisel out their own niche in the brimming East Coast indie scene. Catchy and poppy enough for anyone to bob his or her head to, yet with a unique style that would please even the biggest indie snob, The Extraordinaires take a narrative approach to songwriting that often breeds songs progressing in a series of “acts,” as opposed to the conventional verse– chorus–bridge structure. The result is an album that sounds more like a collection of musical stories than anything else. In the case of "Electric and Benevolent," these stories are all based on the life of Nikola Tesla (why not?), whom they turn into a sort of folk–legend, crafting tale after tale about his wily, steam–punky genius. Catchy tunes like “Ellis Island” and “The Egg of Columbus” are the album’s lighter, more theatrical fare, while the second–to–last “Colorado Springs” features eight minutes of towering indie jamming. If you consider yourself a fan of indie, whatever that means these days, odds are you’ll enjoy "Electric and Benevolent"
Hidden Gems: “Electric and Benevolent” The Extraordinaires, 2009
