Personal tastes aside, there’s a high statistical probability that you’ve seen Josh Halpern perform if you’ve spent more than a few months in the Live Music Capital. On top of his ongoing partnership with Chase Weinacht for their now-decade old project Marmalakes, Halpern provides percussion for Hello Wheels, Still Corners, Teddy Glass, and Taft (just to name a few) and while drummers tend to get pushed to the back of the stage, Halpern’s cheerful, infectious energy always gives the fronting member(s) a run for their money.
Well they can stop shaking in their boots (or more, depending on how you look at it) because Halpern’s gone ahead and taken the frontman role for himself with his recently announced solo project J Halp. On Friday J Halp unfurled his debut single ahead of the Ahlen EP (out in late July), one whose psych-pop soul-R&B swing and levitating vocals make Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker sound like a calf, “Divebomb”!
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