Below various accolades from very fine music and news sources can be found. If you are interested further, please click here to see what members of bands like DR. DOG, TJ KONG AND THE ATOMIC BOMB, TOY SOLDIERS and more had to say about Penrose and Devil’s Grip.
CMJ Spotlight: Penrose
CMJ
“Penrose is the epitome of hard rock, modern blues revival with an alternative twist and a personal touch … If you’re looking for something that sounds like a true, old-school rock group but performs at today’s modern rocking pace, then Penrose is exactly that.” – Sasha Patpatia, CMJ
Read more here.
Penrose Wins Emerging Artist of the Year 2010 Fans’ Choice
The Deli Magazine
Congrats to Penrose, who won the fans’ section of our Best of Philly Emerging Aritsts Poll 2010. The bluesy classic rock trio was followed by glam-punk arena rockers Univox, and experimental keyboard army The Synth Sircus. We embedded the top 10 at the bottom of this blurb. Check out all the bands – this year we have some great variety!
A pool of 50+ artists were selected in December 2010 mostly by local scene makers (concert promoters, bloggers, DJs, etc., full list here) and part of them through an open submission process. We let the fans vote and these are the results as far as the top 15 positions. We will publish our final results soon including the jurors’ top 10 list and the full composite chart which will include jurors’, Deli writers’, and fans’ votes as well as the open submission phase. Thank you to all who participated this year!
Read more here.
Philly Local Philes: Penrose’s “Look Past The Sky” on WXPN
The Key on WXPN 88.5FM Philadelphia
Since winning The Deli’s Best Of Philly Emerging Artist Of 2010 title, Penrose has lined up a busy spring. The three brothers—Dan Murphy on vocals and guitar, Pat Murphy on bass, Tom Murphy on drums—are bringing their blistery blues overdrive down to Texas for South By Southwest next month, bookended by a spate of regional shows (including The Red Door and Arlene’s Grocery in New York and the Hard Rock and The Ox here in Philly). The madness begins this Thursday, February 17, with a show at Dobbs. To get you keyed up, today’s Philly Phile spotlights “Look Past The Sky” from the band’s self-released full-length Devil’s Grip.
Read more here.
The Key Studio Sessions: Penrose
88.5 WXPN Philadelphia
Following in the footsteps of Nick Cave, Bob Dylan, Lloyd Price, and Mississippi John Hurt, the Philadelphia-based blues-rock trio Penrose has taken a stab at setting the most famous bar fight of all time to music. Easily the standout on its 2010 debut Devil’s Grip, “Suite For Stack” tells the legend of Stack O’Lee, a slice of American folklore favored by blues musicians, hippies, and punks alike . . .
Read more here.
Blaqbook Artist Profile: Penrose
Blaqbook
You’re not allowed to break up. Ever,” says Tom Murphy drummer for Philadelphia/New York band, Penrose.
The three Murphy brothers make up Penrose. Tom on drums, Pat on bass, and Dan on guitar/vocals/keyboard. And, Tom has a point, unlike the current crop of husband and wife or boyfriend and girlfriend duos, the three brothers are kind of stuck with each other – but they like it that way.
Read more here.
WKDU 91.7FM In-Studio: Penrose
WKDU 91.7FM Philadelphia
Penrose in-studio session with WKDU 91.7FM Philadelphia on 1/27/2011.
Penrose – Devil’s Grip LP
Philadelphia Weekly
Siblings, when they’re not busy beating the shit out of each other (see: the Kinks, Oasis, etc.), often make excellent bandmates: Nothing like sharing the same gene pool to forge the kind of chemistry necessary to making great music. Philadelphia’s brothers Murphy—vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist Dan, bassist Pat, and drummer Tom, the three of them operating under the name Penrose—display that sort of preternatural connection and musicianship as they wring the stomping, bluesy rock from Zeppelin and the Black Keys, and the trippy, spacey atmospherics from Floyd and Radiohead, for the songs that comprise their new LP Devil’s Grip. . . – Michael Alan Goldberg
Read more here.
Penrose Devil’s Grip Release
City Paper
If anything’s been suddenly discovered amongst Philly’s alt-band minions, it’s that sort of mussed-up, fuzz-toned shambling blues that John Lee Hooker started, R.L. Burnside picked up on and cats from Tom Waits to Black Keys made skuzzy and pungent. TJ Kong does it here, and The Great Vibration toy with it fondly. But Penrose cleans out the gutters and adds the blousy psychedelic kink of Pink Floyd to the proceedings for an epic romp on their debut CD, Devil’s Grip. The Brothers Murphy open up and say “arg” while stretching the blues to stadium-size disgust on tracks like “Suite for Stack” and “Snowstorm.” Rocking bosses with hot sauces, Penrose is. – A.D. Amorosi
Read more here.
SHOW REVIEW: Penrose & Co. Play Webster Hall
EMC Blue
Studio Session: Penrose & Co. Play Webster Hall
February 02, 2011 | by: Dania McDermott
Penrose, a band of brothers. Literally.
Offering New Yorkers its brand of bluesy, psychedelic funk rock, the Philadelphia-based band of brothers better known as Penrose hit The Studio at Webster Hall last week.
Touted as the band’s album release show, Penrose was the last to appear before an onslaught of eager headbangers, showering the space with unpretentious and deftly handled instrumentations that brimmed with Led Zeppelin-like zeal.
Read more here.
Penrose Devil’s Grip Release
The Deli Magazine
The Murphy boys of Penrose are gearing up to play their Devil’s Grip Album Release (or the “Best Christmas Eve Eve Party You’ve Ever God Damn Well Been To”). Penrose have been keeping it tight playing pretty regularly between here and NY while doing the final knob twisting on Devil’s Grip. Tonight they will officially unleash their raucous batch of tunes that harkens back to blues like Sonny Boy Williamson mixed with Led Zeppelin. The similarity to modern blues brawlers like The Black Keys isn’t a bad thing either. These fun-loving dudes are doing everything they can to deliver on their shows promise by filling the bill with headline worthy openers like TJ Kong & the Atomic Bomb and NYC’s Hollis Brown. Additionally, The Great Vibrations, who I think I saw in some basement that is now a bedroom over the summer, is going to croon and swoon their way into audiences’ hearts. There is also an after party at Murph’s bar with sets by Flamingo and El Fuego and possibly…Cliff Lee? Be there.
Read more here.
Penrose at Dobbs 3/17/2011
Examiner
Penrose has been gaining a lot of steam in the last few months. The three brothers, Pat, Dan, and Tom Murphy, have been playing shows here in Phlly and up in New York, and they recently self-released their first full-length, Devil’s Grip. All this hard work is starting to pay off for them; Penrose won this year’s Reader’s Choice award for Emerging Artist of the Year from The Deli Magazine. Sonically, the Murphy brothers drink from the same deep well of heavy blues as the Black Keys, but unlike recent work by the Akron duo, Penrose’s sound stays simple and stripped down. Devil’s Grip leans heavily on the guitar skills and vocals of lead brother Dan. He’s no poet, but his axework, in true Delta Blues style, stomps when it needs to stomp, slides when it needs to slide, and shreds when it needs to shred.
Read more here.
Penrose Album Release
Culture Mob
Philly-based band Penrose will rock out Kung Fu Necktie on December 23rd to celebrate the release of their debut album Devil’s Grip. They will share a bill with TJ Kong and the Atomic Bomb, Hollis Brown, and The Great Vibration.
Composed of three brothers, Thomas, Patrick and Daniel Murphy, the origin of Penrose dates back to their childhood years taking music lessons together, but they really started to up the ante when they played their first show in the spring of 2009. Since then the trio has taken Philadelphia and New York City by storm, playing to large audiences at North Star Bar, The Khyber, The Mercury Lounge, and Arlene’s Grocery. They have had the privilege of opening for MGMT at Fordham University, participated in two CMJ showcases, and made the trek to Austin this past year for the SXSW Festival.
The group’s sound encompasses a little bit of many big names in rock – Led Zeppelin, The Doors (especially with organ in the mix), Radiohead, The Clash, and Delta Blues man John Lee Hooker. Dan’s haunting, bluesy voice is the perfect complement to the gritty guitar licks, thumping bass lines and roaring rhythm section that is the heart and soul of Penrose.
Read more here.
The Deli’s Featured Artist of the Month: Penrose
The Deli Magazine
While naming your band after a mathematician might not be very rock ‘n’ roll, Penrose’s Murphy Bros certainly have their ears tuned into classic rock ‘n’ roll history. We fired some interview questions at brother Tom Murphy. And while we might have inflicted a little mental damage conjuring up memories of watching cartoon porn with his mom, we think he’ll be ready to rock on the main stage at The Troc tomorrow evening. But first things last…
The Deli: How did Penrose start?
Tom Murphy: Well the band is the three Murphy brothers, consisting of myself, Pat, and Dan Murphy. Penrose unofficially started in a Philly suburb basement when the three of us would go downstairs after dinner when we were in high school and played spacey little instrumental jams until our parents told us to go to bed. Having three musically inclined (albeit not especially proficient) brothers with a bass, guitar and drum kit can be taxing on hard working parents. Of course, they were always very supportive. Later when we all went to New York for college, we started writing actual songs with lyrics and all that. We played our first gig in a North Philly warehouse venue called the White Room in May of ’09 and have been playing at least twice a month in Philly or New York ever since.
Read more here.
CMJ Spotlight: Penrose
The Audio Perv
Penrose is Thomas Murphy, Patrick Murphy, and Daniel Murphy, three brothers from Philadelphia. The origins of the band date back to their grade school days taking piano lessons together, but in the Spring of 2009 they played their first show in a warehouse in North Philadelphia. Since then the brothers have worked to create an original, hard hitting sound that combines the delta blues spirit of John Lee Hooker and R.L. Burnside with the hard rock of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, while allowing the innovation of Pink Floyd and Radiohead to flow throughout.
Read more here.
Music Spotlight: Penrose
Junior’s Cave Magazine
Dan, Pat, and Tom Murphy are all brothers performing in the band, Penrose. From their amazing sound to their endless amount of energy, Penrose has created a great indie band that certainly knows how to Rock and entertain the masses. After we spoke to the guys in this featured spotlight, we were delighted to learn some interesting and fun facts about Penrose. Here is what developed from this online conversation. Enjoy!!
Isaac: Let’s get started with this interview. When and how did you first become interested in music? How long have you been playing music?
Penrose: The three of us actually started playing music before middle school together. We were three brothers in the Philly suburbs who were basically forced by our parents to take piano lessons. The tunes we were into at the time were the garbage that only evoke 90′s nostalgic chuckles at parties – definitely not stuff that would inspire rigorous piano practicing in 11 year olds. We eventually quit (thanks Mom), only to start up playing again in high school. Dan got a guitar and took off. Pat grabbed a bass not long after, and the logical step for me seemed to be to get a drum kit and see what happened. We set up shop in our basement mini-studio around 2005.
Read more here.
Meet Penrose: No Pulp CMJ Band
No Pulp Music
Experimental rock band Penrose will be joining us from Philadelphia for our Tuesday No Pulp Music CMJ Showcase. The band recently completed a residency at Arlene’s Grocery, and will be returning to the familiar stage for our show. You can visit http://mysp.ac/djXYzZ to see live footage from Arlene’s Grocery (and several other venues). While you are there, you can also listen to “The Devil’s Grip” and other cool tracks. Word on the street is that the band has some rocking new merch available for CMJ, so perhaps you can also get a stellar new tee at the show.
What to expect: A touch of blues rock show
Read more here.
Penrose Gettin’ Warmed Up
The Deli Magazine
Hot off the presses of a busy October that featured 2 shows during the CMJ Music Marathon and rockin’ peoples ghoulish faces off during TJ Kong’s Rock & Roll Costume Murdershow (which was a marathon in its own right), the Brothers Murphy of Penrose are ready to jumpstart the holiday season early with a set at Danger Danger Gallery tonight. And since they’ve been hard at work mixing a new album, it should be a warm up to their upcoming release show at KFN in December! – Bill McThrill
Read more here.
Rose Hill Rockers: Philadelphia’s Penrose
Peter Stecker – The Ram
“Penrose, a band made of the brothers Murphy, is one of those bands that has infinite respect for the hallowed names of the past, like Gilmour and Osbourne, while possessing the desire and musical wherewithal to create their own unique sound.”
The Ram: What is Penrose’s music all about?
Penrose: Even though our music could be said to have its roots in bands such as Pink Floyd or Black Sabbath or even Radiohead, we try to build and construct something original and new and hopefully meaningful. When, or if, we actually pull that off, it seems to us that that’s a very rewarding experience. Since we all write the lyrics, the themes are broad, but ultimately we set out to make something original and meaningful.
Read more here.
FM102x Song of the Day: Penrose – Devil’s Grip
FM102x
FM102x Presents – Song of the Day 8/25/2010 – Penrose – Devil’s Grip
Fun Alert
Phillyist
Led Zeppelin meets blues meets Radiohead? And From Philly? Penrose.
MGMT playing Fordham before Bamboozle and other dates
Brooklyn Vegan
MGMT, who recently performed at Coachella, are playing Fordham’s Spring Weekend concert this Saturday, May 1st (12:30pm; 441 East Fordham Rd, Bronx) along with Average Girl and Penrose. The show is closed to non-students, but you can have a friend there (or a Craigslist creep) sign you in as a guest.
Arlene’s Grocery Review
Pat Hazlett – Holding Out Hope for Creedence
“Tom and Pat moved with near-flawless precision, providing the prerequisite wall of rhythm that would drive the Penrose sound. With the rhythmic vehicle mobilized, the sound was poised to wail.”