To find out about up-and-coming local bands for our Sense of Place stop in Pittsburgh, we went straight to one of the city's best-known sources: Cindy Howes, host of Morning Mix on NPR member station WYEP.
A close observer of Pittsburgh's music scene, Howes couldn't pick just five bands to feature on Wednesday's episode, so she gave us six. She also gives listeners insight into the wide variety of music playing at any given night in the clubs of Pittsburgh's East End.
During today's session, we'll hear from Howes' favorite Pittsburgh musician, David Bernabo, who leads the band Host Skull. Also featured are the gorgeous harmonies of the Americana group Broken Fences. In a conversation with host David Dye, Howes also reveals the meaning behind "yinzer pastoral" when discussing the Harlan Twins, another of her picks.
On this page, you can download a song from each of the six bands played on today's episode, then head over to World Cafe's Tumblr blog to get a musician's-eye view of what makes the city of bridges and tunnels so special.
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