Bethlehem and Sad Patrick
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Bethlehem and Sad Patrick deliver powerful songs of love and other struggles. Combining smart, heartfelt lyrics, soaring vocals, sparse guitar and driving percussion, they dig deep into being in and out of love, keeping your head up in the city, struggling in all sorts of ways, and searching for peace on the margins. Sad Patrick’s hybrid of folk and jazz guitar provides a subtle counterpoint to Bethlehem’s “vocussion” – her term for her powerful, immersive singing, remarkable improvisations and nuanced melodies riding atop tarima and body percussion. 2019’s Love and Other Struggles sonically and thematically extends their range, and landed them on NPR Slingshot’s list of Ten Artists to Know from Philadelphia. “The pair use minimalism to their advantage, crafting delicate and thoughtful songs about everything from love to life in the city to the fight against racism and intolerance with a gentle poetic edge.” – Sarah Hojsak, WXPN / The Key.
Photo by: Sara Allen