4 Gay Things to Do in Philly This Week: Joshua Thomas’s New Album, Gay Speed-Dating, LGBT History Month Kickoff, and More

Joshua Thomas Album Release

Philadelphia singer-songwriter Joshua Thomas's latest EP, The Harboring, dropped Tuesday afternoon. The work, which was funded via a PledgeMusic campaign, is a solid collection of wistful tunes that makes for an ideal soundtrack as we segue into fall.

The six tracks find the crooner in tip-top voice. He slides in and out of falsetto seamlessly—and quite beautifully—on gorgeous lead track "Thread.” The fact that he was heavily influenced by the music of Joni Mitchell is unmistakable on the playful, acoustic "Paper Heart," which he told us in May, is "the most direct and honest song on the record." My favorite track,"Beast," is 4-plus minutes of Thomas flexing all kinds of musical chops. It seemingly reveals a time in his life when he went through a breakup and emerged stronger at the other end. It starts sweet and mellow—almost sad—before journeying to an almost anthemic ending where he prolaims, “Cut me out, cut me out / Cause I need to be lonely / I need to be lonely." It's heart-wrenching and inspirational at the same time.

I highly recommend the entire album. You can download it here, or if you prefer the idea of holding an actual album in your hands, Thomas will sell them at a special album release concert this Saturday night, October 4th, at the First Unitarian Church. More details on that here.