I must admit, I haven’t been tripping on franklins lately. Across the pond here in Madrid, I haven’t had much exposure to the music happenings on and around campus this semester. I’ve been extremely lucky to catch every house ripping DJ on the planet though, as they all seem to come through Europe on a much more frequent basis than the US. Except for Tiesto– that guy’s literally everywhere. Anyway, I got all nostalgic today and started looking through the upcoming concert calendar for all you guys stuck at school. There’s some great shows coming up before the month’s over, and as the title of this post suggests, I’ll give some reccomendations… If I were you…

Thursday, October 22: Leonard Cohen at Tower Theater (Upper Darby, PA)

It’s a bit out of the way, but I’d travel across the globe to see the legend himself croon for an hour and a half. This is the guy who first sang “Hallelujah” before everyone and their mom covered it.

Leonard Cohen – “Suzanne”

Saturday, October 31: Simian Mobile Disco at Starlight Ballroom

Yes, I know it’s Halloween. But be honest, you’re not going out until at least 11, and what better way to inject a dose of metaphorical adrenaline than to see these electro wizards battle it out. Their latest album was mildly disapointing, but these two mad scientists know how to put on a show. Their epic light display, if you survive without having a seizure, will leave amped to rock out at Palmer Social Club or Denim or wherever the hell the cool kids are throwing down these days.

Simian Mobile Disco – “Audacity of Huge”

Sunday, November 1st: Boys Noize at The Barbary and Jackson Browne at The Forum

If you think you can relax and hang up your costume from the night before, you’re greatly mistaken. Sunday post-hallow brings us a battle of the titans, yet you’ll have to see what mood you’re in. If you’re feeling like grinding it out once more, than the skull-obsessed German electro knob-twiddler (that’s a mouthful) Boys Noize will tear shit down at The Barbary. But if the hangover is in full swing, then take to the gentle acoustics of the legendary Jackson Browne who will have the crowd swaying gently at The Forum in Harrisburg. The choice is yours– choose wisely.

Boys Noize – “Jeffer”

Jackson Browne – “Doctor My Eyes”

But stay informed, keep checking Tripping Franklins– November brings about one of the strongest months in music. When you’re too cold to walk around the frats, get cozy inside a venue seeing the likes of Islands, The Very Best, Girls, Peter Bjorn and John, Bob Dylan (!), The XX, Phish, Ted Leo, Kid Cudi… this almost makes me wish I were in Philadelphia…almost.