Taylor Kelly and Taisha Estrada
Nostalgia Fishtown
14 Jefferson St.
Philadelphia
Sept. 30, 2026
The last time I caught singer-songwriter Taylor Kelly live, she was in the middle of an electrifying set at the Black Squirrel with trumpeter Jonah Francese’s 18-piece big band, Thinkin’ Big. Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised to catch her with a smaller ensemble a few blocks from my house at Nostalgia Fishtown. Tonight, Kelly joined gifted singer and guitarist Taisha Estrada for an evening of daring, heartfelt music. Backed by a 4-piece band, Kelly took the stage first and opened her set with “Attention,” a slow-cooking R&B gem from her 2024 EP The Spins. From the gorgeous synth pads and spacey guitar of the song’s intro to Taylor’s vulnerable, lovelorn words, “Attention” stood out early and set the tone for an exceptional set.
From there, Kelly introduced “Fit In,” another dreamy, emotive song from The Spins. Beneath its gorgeous arrangement were devastating lines like “I wish I didn’t think I was dying every time I have an ache or pain." The tail end of Taylor’s set featured some rocking energy with the songs “Nothing to Prove” and a creative take on Avril Lavigne’s “Complicated."
By the time Estrada was ready to hit the stage, the energy in the room was crackling. From the opening of her set, Estrada promised about 40 minutes of music. What we got was a tour de force that combined Latin-pop with R&B, hip-hop, jazz, prog-rock and psychedelia. The first song was built upon a groovy rhythm and augmented with start-stop changes and Estrada’s powerful voice. The second song was a minimal jam that featured a reverb and delay-drenched guitar solo from Parker Speirs that was absolutely unreal. Alternating between Spanish and English lyrics, Estrada’s songs were at times warm and grounded before a sudden turn revealed their glowing, otherworldly qualities. Estrada closed the show with “I Am A Tree,” a beautiful midtempo tune that speaks to humanity's capacity to grow together and take care of one another. It was the perfect sentiment to cap an evening dedicated to the connective power of well-crafted music.
