Heater/ Goshupon
Philly Typewriter
1735 East Passyunk Ave.
Philadelphia
March 26, 2026
I think we can all agree this has been a particularly irritating false spring. The random splashes of warmth and the hope they have triggered haven’t been unwelcome, but damn, come on already. The higher than usual temperature had everyone outside last Thursday, which, paired with victorious Phillies Opening Day festivities, set the stage for a lovely and very social evening. Philly Typewriter is a short walk for me, and Passyunk being the food and drink hub that it is made this gig a fun gathering of people who love baseball and Pavement. Add in that this three-band gig, booked by Goshupon’s Kian Sorouri, was a Juntos benefit, and it’s clear that there’s no real reason not to go.
However questionable playing rock music while surrounded by priceless typewriters may sound, it ended up feeling like a weirdly necessary exercise of anarchism in practice. None of this was mosh music by any stretch of the imagination, but the number of attendees at this show literally could not all fit in the store. I would say roughly a third of the showgoers actually watched from outside, and this wasn’t because of space, but the temperature in the room. The wood floors brightened every band’s already mid-range dominant sound, and I have to say again, the room was lined with shelves holding typewriters.
Propeller went first, and because I got to their set late and thought I’d have more time than I did, I missed an opportunity to get a video of them. That is my bad. I did some searching but it seems like they don’t have any recorded music yet. They played a heavy rock that kinda reminded me of Ovlov, but with tinges of Americana that let me know there’s no way they don’t listen to Neil Young. Speaking of Ovlov, they’re playing a show coming up at the First Unitarian Church about a week from me writing this, so if you are reading this before that show, get a ticket because it’s about to sell out.
Gouge Away & Ovlov | R5 Productions
Goshupon stepped up next; Kian and co. are a group of Philly indie rockers I’ve seen performing in one group or another since I moved here in 2011. Kian has a very unmistakable guitar style that utilizes a lot of bent notes and oddly timed transitions that make Goshupon’s slower, more tense songs sound like they’re unraveling and almost going out of tune, but they never actually do. He also has a talent for writing parts that wind around rhythm parts already based on uncommon chord progressions. When they speed things up, Goshupon plays perfect powerpop akin to some of Superchunk or Guided By Voices more upbeat moments, but really, they’re carrying the torch of a sound that I will call Ranchjams-core, and if you have lived here long enough, you know what I mean. For those who don’t, I’ll drop a Bandcamp link below to some of the most crucial and definitive music in Philadelphia.
A fellow pinball enthusiast and former roommate of mine, I know Kian as a quintessential everyman, and it always comes out during his performances. On this night, when he wasn’t handing out beers to audience members (me), he was gently encouraging everyone at the gig to take notice of the money jar for the show which would be used to benefit Juntos, seeing that it got passed around like the old days, and would return to its original position fuller than when it left. The rest of Goshupon often revolves, the band is mainly Kian’s way of hanging out with his friends as we all age and our schedules get harder to coordinate. Tonight it was completed by bassist Larissa Sapko, drummer Tim McGarnigle, vocalist/percussionist Liz Parsons, guitarist Travis Arteburn, and pianist Tom Fala, all musicians well-worked in Philly.
wgoonsdheurpgolnu | Goshupon, Wonderglu | goshupon - Bandcamp
Heater, Rob Blackwell’s very tongue-in-cheekly described “last American bar band,” were the third and final act. Because it’s a bar band with dignity and emotion, the easiest comparison to make is to the Gin Blossoms. Because Rob is a Philadelphian, they also kind of have a Menzingers vibe, but a bit more stripped down. My favorite thing about Heater is that Rob sings his ass off in this band. I’ve played music on and off with him since 2018, but because he’s pretty intently focused on not messing up when we’re onstage together, I don’t really get to see him let loose the way he does when Heater plays. They also have yet to release recordings, so the vid I took will just have to do. Consider it an exclusive. What was an enjoyable set by them was unjustly cut short by a power outage, no doubt in part because of how hard they were rocking. C’est la vie.
