Empath allow their freak flag to fly with some freeform dancing under misty lights in the new video for their latest single, "Polyfoam". The track is featured on the band's upcoming 7-inch, Environments, due out July 23 via Get Better Records. The release is inspired by a series of Irv Teibel field recordings from the 60s/70s. It's the follow-up to the group's breakout EP Liberating Guilt And Fear, which they are currently on tour in support of. Right now, Empath's next scheduled Philly performance is set for Wednesday, October 10 at the First Unitarian Church, where they'll be opening for Swearin'. (Photo by Hillary Jones)

Get Better Fest 5 will be bringing the positive vibes to the basement of the First Unitarian Church. Benefitting Black & Pink, Morris Home, and Project SAFE, kind locals will be donating their time and talents, to raise money and awareness for these multitude of good, important causes. A beautiful bluntness bangs on the sonic doors when listening to Soul Glo. Unabashedly in your face and unwavering, their bombarding instrumentation pushes against the barriers at high velocity. Hovering between hushed and heavy tones, caught between the noise-induced blitz and relatively subdued melodies, there’s a cathartic intensity found in the music of Mannequin Pussy. Blank Spell stirs in the shadows, creeping out in quick bursts of menace. You’ll also come across the precise attack of Control Top’s punk/dance hybrid, while the noise-speckled glow of Empath rounds out this small sampling of the loaded, all-day lineup. – Michael Colavita

More local sounds for this weekend…

First Unitarian Church (2125 Chestnut St.) FRI The Obsessives, SAT Get Better Fest 5: Mannequin Pussy, Big Nothing, Soul Glo, Control Top, Kilamanzego, Blank Spell, Empath

LAVA Space (4134 Lancaster Ave.) FRI Get Better Fest 5: August Koch, Solarized, Strawberry Runners

Johnny Brenda’s (1201 N. Frankford Ave.) FRI Agent Zero, GoldenSpiral (Dual Album Release), Jackie & Jesse, Lotits, SUN Heavy Temple

Boot & Saddle (1131 S. Broad St.) FRI Marah

Kung Fu Necktie (1250 N. Front St.) FRI Bryan William Myers/DJ Deejay, SAT A Black Celebration: DJ Baby Berlin and Jem, SUN All This Huxley, Adventure Lost, Petty Vandal

The Trocadero (1003 Arch St.) SUN (Balcony) The 1940’s, Adam Travis & The Soul, Silver Autumn, Fauxtron

TLA (334 South St.) SAT The Parsnip Revolt

The Fillmore Philadelphia (1100 Canal St.) SAT Kur

World Café Live (3025 Walnut St.) FRI (Upstairs) John Vettese/Conjunto, SAT (Upstairs) Philadelphia School of Rock/Don McAvoy & the Great Whatever, Germany Hill/(Downstairs) Beyond The Bars Benefit Show: The Districts, Hardwork Movement, Ill Fated Natives

The Fire (412 W. Girard Ave.) FRI Malcolm Culleton (Album Release), Bern and the Bastards, Anna Dausman, SAT Anomie, Great Neck, Sunset Negative, Necrosexual

MilkBoy Philly (1100 Chestnut St.) FRI Hellings, SAT Ryan Tennis

Ortlieb’s Lounge (847 N. 3^rd St.) FRI Better Ducks, Cookie Rabinowitz, SAT Taiwan Housing Project, Dirt Queen, SUN Luminous Fins, The Justines

The Barbary (951 Frankford Ave.) SAT Darla

Bourbon & Branch (705 N. 2^nd St.) FRI Morning River Band, The Miners, Red Means Run, SAT De Tierra Caliente (CD Release)

Fergie’s (1214 Sansom St.) SAT James Pace Band, SUN Rusty Cadillac

Connie’s Ric Rac (1132 S. 9^th St.) FRI Drug Bust, 7^th Victim, Bunny Savage & The Plibmen, SAT Seeing Snakes, Atomic Cretins

Voltage Lounge (421 N. 7^th St.) SAT Murda P, SUN Atomic Cretins, Rubbish

Frankie Bradley’s (1320 Chancellor St.) FRI DJ Chris Urban, SAT Ed Christof

The Grape Room (105 Grape St.) FRI The Low Bottom Boys, Overcoming Gravity, This Kills Me, SAT Apple Juice Jones, Mercury Retrograde

Ardmore Music Hall (23 E. Lancaster Ave.) FRI Big Mind, On Wa, SAT Hezekiah Jones, Chestnut Grove, Black Horse Motel

The Pharmacy (1300 S. 18^th St.) FRI Mahatma X, Stoops, A Virgin, Pithair / Daniel Levine, Mochi Robinson, Brushstroke, SAT Randle Patrick McNuthing, SUN Starwood & David Fantasy & Adult Content

West Kensington Ministry (2140 N. Hancock St.) FRI Bardo Pond

Tralfamadore (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) FRI Rebecca Zimmerman, Dominy

Planet Phitness (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) SUN Boosegumps, Walte Young

The Sound Hole (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) SAT Death’s Dynamic Shroud, Vincent Remember, Phteven Universe

Tundra Dome (Please contact one of the acts or venue for more info.) FRI Hermit Thrushes, Sour Spirit

Liberating Guilt And Fear, the new tape from the trio of Empath, is now available via Get Better Records. An inviting, pop glow peers through the rambunctious noise. That refreshing, uplifting element, infused with adrenaline rush of controlled/harnessed chaos, rejuvenates. The EP closes by immersing one in the bird-chirping musical maze of atmospherics, as swirling noise creates a beautiful/brutal dynamic. Before heading out on the road with Control Top, Space 1026 will play host to Empath's record release show this evening, where they'll be supported by their tourmates, Dark Thoughts and Ursula.

Soulful storytelling with a purposeful, self-conscious confidence, Philly-by-way-of-Charlotte emcee Ivy Sole delivers lyrical tales, swimming through thoughtful complexly-detailed narratives that are amplified by production that smoothly cruises on the boom-bap. It’s a fresh nod to old-school overtures that exudes a personal appeal through sincerity, meshing spoken word with singing in a laidback message. The rattling, fluorescent noise-pop of Empath aids in setting the stage for Sad13, a.k.a. Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Oritz, whose new solo album Slugger is due out November 11, explores personal issues through a bright, pop lense. Sammus, who released her debut album Pieces in Space yesterday via Don Giovanni Records and appears on Slugger, completes this PhilaMOCA billing. PhilaMOCA, 531 N. 12th St., 7:30pm, $10, All Ages (Photo by Araba S. Ankuma) - Michael Colavita