4333 Collective presents:
Joint Chiefs of Math, Housing, Gunittt, Kat Nzingha
Ortlieb's
847 N 3rd St.
May 27, 2026
The bill had a wide gamut of different acts: an idiosyncratic, grime-inspired, free-form noise set, a charming and exuberant solo rapper, and two bands both on the math rock spectrum. Those last two groups — and their similarities and differences — stole my attention. The two bands, Joint Chiefs of Math and Gunittt, both displayed virtuosic prowess and played with explosive ferocity; yet each group was made up of only two performers channeling all that power. It made me start thinking about the power of two.
Remember the really cool two-piece fest that 4333 Collective threw back in February at the Ukie Club? These two-piece fests are great in that they push groups to come up with creative re-imaginings of current projects, or to spawn new projects altogether. The festival has also resurrected older groups, giving younger listeners a chance to catch a glimpse of what came before them. This recoupling opportunity sparks new dialogue between musicians and their respective scenes, exposing us to both newer sounds and older ones, simultaneously allowing us to recognize traditions while pushing to expand them.
There's a history of two-piece bands that conjure up some wild and creative music. One of the most incredible and my favorites are Suicide from the ‘70s, whose totally unique early electronics make them sound like they time traveled back to 1977 to record. An earlier and anomalous example would be the group Attila, whose self-titled 1970 album featured a then-young Billy Joel wailing on an organ affixed with distortion and wah-pedal along drummer Jon Small. By the 2000s, two-pieces proliferated the world of well-known artists: The White Stripes, MGMT, The Black Keys, for example. More transgressive outfits include Hella, Nice Nice, or the incredible Lightning Bolt.
In Philly, we have some really good two-piece groups that situate themselves in this lineage. Joint Chiefs of Math is one of them. Joint Chiefs started off here in Philly around 2008 and features Kevin Keenan on guitar and Marcus Denke on drums — and damn, can this duo play! Joint Chiefs have popped up on the bills for Two Piece Fest on and off since its inception back in 2008. They reformed for the festival again last February — and it must have given them the bug to start playing more regularly again.
The equipment and gear set up for Joint Chiefs on stage was the first tip-off that I was about to hear something really impressive. Both performers were situated facing one another on stage with their sides to the audience. The XL footboard Kevin used was at least 15 pedals deep, maybe more. He had a digital keyboard with programmatic ability in front of him at arms length. Behind his rig, facing the audience, was a cabinet with two or three large component style units with all manner of plugs going in and out, plus a laptop perched on top. Over on Marcus' kit, there was nothing too fancy or strange in terms of drumming equipment, but I noticed at least six or seven mics all strategically placed, some right next to the pads for close-up sound, some further back for more ambient noise capture. The effect was that we, the audience, could hear all the nuances of the drummer so clearly, it felt like I had my head right next to the kit. The clarity of the crisp sound mixed with overwhelming technique made it impossible to not get caught up with the performance. In addition, Kevin used two guitars interchangeably, both with humbucker pickups that added a thick, warm sound to the drums. My only complaint is that the drums were mixed so well and high that it could overwhelm the guitar at certain points. There was prepared recorded material at the intros and endings of some songs that synced up the tempo of the players. It was likely they had some sort of looping system they were able to manipulate live, but that's beyond my technical knowledge to explain. It was a very intense and satiating set.
Since good things happen in sets of two, there was another two-piece listed for the show. Preceding the bombastic performance of Joint Chiefs was Gunittt. As their name states, speed was a strong factor in their performance. Gunitt consists of Alex on a classic electric Rhodes keyboard and a drummer who currently plays with a great local band called Cartoon. This duo really matched the technical prowess that Joint Chiefs displayed. The biggest difference in the performance for Gunittt was a gorgeous Rhodes piano that was run through a Fender tube amp, giving it a warm, distorted sound. The result of this Rhodes/tube combo was that it created a familiar sound to other guitar/bass and drum duos. Their set-up was similar to the aforementioned two-piece pioneers, Attila. The rhythms came in lightning fast, spasmodic outpourings that ran like clockwork with Alex's ecstatic and distorted keys. His voice often matched the melody lines he played on the piano, adding to the urgent feeling of the music. As with Joint Chiefs, the drumming was a pure pleasure to watch.
Both acts delivered way more than I had bargained for on an otherwise sleepy Wednesday night, cementing my belief that Philly always has so much to offer musically. This time the offering came as a deuce.
