Agenda

Despite the fact that his regular groups occasionally appear under the name Punk Bop, drummer Ari Hoenig took the "punk" purely as a modifier, keeping the music in a recognizably hard bop vein. You've gotta love bona fide Brazilian girls who can revive L7's "Pretend We're Dead" as a party jam and bridge the gap between Sleater-Kinney and Jennifer Lopez with their own "I Wanna Be Your J. Lo." Screw all this holiday cheer. It's almost winter, the season of chilly weather and heavy hearts. Consider those struggling with newfound unemployment, with failing health or heartbreak; they're certainly not hearing their lives reflected in Burl freaking Ives. Philly's Sweetheart Parade hits closer to home.