Harbour and The Orphan The Poet
Theatre of Living Arts
334 South St.
Philadelphia
Aug. 14, 2025
A few months ago, I was at happy hour with a few friends of mine chatting about new music and upcoming concerts. I was looking to discover new sounds that hadn’t come across my Spotify playlists and was itching for smaller bands to listen to and photograph. My pal Abby pulled up her concert calendar, chock-full of upcoming dates for bands that I was unfamiliar with. One of the bands she mentioned was Harbour; I looked them up and immediately put in a request to cover them a few months later. Their strong guitar riffs and dreamy sound that veers slightly into surf rock matched my desire to reenter the pop-punk bubble of music I had recently drifted away from. Every song they played made me want to bop around, snap my fingers, and sway along.
Fast forward to August and their show at the Theater of the Living Arts on South Street in Philadelphia. Although I had expected some more banter from the band with the crowd, the five-piece band went straight into their expertly curated hour and a half long set performed in a comfortably packed venue. Their electric guitar riffs and perfectly crafted vocals bounced seamlessly off the walls bringing much joy to my live music starved brain.
To back them up on tour, they brought along singer Ally Holliday, whose mellow music would have resonated more strongly in a quieter setting. I'd queue her songs to chill out after a long day — her set was a surprising contrast to the the rock and roll I had come to experience at the concert hall.
The Orphan The Poet takes the stage.
Up next, The Orphan The Poet took the stage. Full of energy, the crew kicked off their performance with some heavy crowd engagement, riffing with old fans and introducing themselves into the future music rotations of audience members otherwise unfamiliar with them. While only 3 men strong, they brought the tight pop-punk vocals needed to spark joy and enthusiasm among an audience eager to receive their energy.
