By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times
Valentina Sounds
Valentina Sounds has new music and that calls for a celebration.
On April 17, Valentina Sounds will celebrate the release of her second album, “What Keeps Me Alive,” with a show at The Crown at The Queen (500 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware, http://www.thequeenwilmington.com).
Valentina Sounds is the stage name for Italian-born, Philadelphia-based Valentina Raffaelli.
Written between lockdown and recovery from severe burn injuries, the album captures the experience of navigating uncertainty while redefining personal identity.
The record transforms hardship into powerful pop/rock anthems of resilience and hope.
Blending lush pop/rock production reminiscent of Adele, Regina Spektor, Radiohead, and The National with her quirky sense of humor, Valentina brings light into the darkness, comedy into everyday stress, and offers catharsis through self-expression.
The 11-song LP is a deeply personal and emotionally expansive collection of songs written across five transformative years.
The record intentionally unfolds in two contrasting sonic worlds: lush, full-band pop/rock arrangements produced by Ron DiSilvestro, alongside intimate piano-and-voice recordings produced by Matt Muir.
Together, they form a portrait of emotional duality, of strength and vulnerability existing side by side.
“The piano and voice tracks I did with Matt Muir came during a period around COVID,” said Valentina, during a phone interview Tuesday from her home in Philadelphia. “They were recorded at Retro City studio in Philadelphia.
The stripped-down tracks – including “Sad Song,” “Irresistible,” “10 Years of Piano,” and “L’ultimo conforto” – were written during the Covid pandemic.
With only piano and voice available, these songs became raw documents of the inner struggle between finally being able to have “time” and the inability to do anything with it.
“More or less, they were all written during the pandemic,” said Valentina.
Recorded under strict pandemic conditions at Retro City Studio in Philadelphia and produced by Matt Muir, the first set of sessions reflect the fragile reality of the time — masked recording environments, physical distance, and an overwhelming need to keep creating despite isolation.
Valentina had to deal with another challenge in June 2021.
When she suffered severe burn injuries in an accident at home, resulting in a 20-day ICU stay, multiple surgeries, and long-term physical rehabilitation affecting her shoulder mobility and hand sensitivity.
“When I was going through physical therapy, I was rehearsing with rehearsing with my trio — bassist/vocalist Molly Hebert-Wilson and percussionist/vocalist Sara Mingle.
“The new album was recorded over a five-year period starting in January 2021. I did it when I could afford it.”
Experimental moments emerge in tracks like “Washing Away” and “Wake Me Up,” where shifting rhythms and dropped beats mirror emotional instability. Meanwhile, epic bridges in “Count Your Blessings,” “Monsters,” and “Story for Me” showcase Valentina’s commanding vocal range, moving from whispered vulnerability to soaring, cathartic power captured by producer Ron DiSilvestro.
“I’ll be premiering a new song at The Queen called ‘We Can Do This Together,’” said Valentina. “It’s a song about being together in the face of adversity.
“I’m excited about the new songs that are not about trauma. The single, ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ is a transition.”
Valentina fares well with transitions.
“I have been in the United States for many years,” said Valentina. “I fell in love with an American – a man from Philadelphia — when I was living in Italy. I was studying film and contemporary art at the Universita di Bologna.
“He waited until I finished college and then encouraged me to apply to Philadelphia’s University of the Arts. I came to Philadelphia and studied there. I learned about voice and music—and I studied piano.
“I started meeting musicians at University of the Arts. Then, I took a songwriting course, and I was hooked.”
Philadelphia became her home.
“Putting a band together was easy. The first band was Sunshine Superman back in 2017. Then, I was in a band called Sparkle Pony with my ex-husband. It was a folk/bluegrass/Americana band that ended in January 2019.”
Valentina is a native of Forte dei Marni. Her father Angelo Raffaelli was a professional soccer player in Italy for A.S. Livorno Calcio (currently in Serie C).
Forte dei Marmi is a seaside town in the northern part of Tuscany that is a major vacation destination for Italy’s upper class. In Italian, “Forte dei Marmi” means “Fort of the Marbles.” The town takes its name from the fortress that rises in the middle of the main square.
“I still go back to Forte dei Marmi a lot,” said Valentina. “But my home now is Philadelphia.”
The lineup for Philadelphia-based band Valentina Sounds features Kevin Bentley (electric guitar), Jim Stager (bass), Tom Cladek (drums), Ron DiSilvestro (drums), Sara Mingle (backup vocals), Molly Hebert-Wilson (backup vocals) and Valentina (piano, vocals, keyboard).
Based on her recent releases (“Wake Me Up” “Fun” “Count Your Blessings”), Valentina won the Homey Award for Best Female Solo Artist and is nominated again this year for her work on “IDFLDA” and “Monsters.”
“With the new album, I really wanted to tie everything together and release a complete project,” said Valentina.
“Thematically and lyrically, the songs fit together well. I really needed to put this out and close this chapter.”
Video link for Valentina Sounds – https://youtu.be/4K71kGVNWjg.
The show at The Queen on April 17, which has Cait9001 and Richard of Carver as openers, will start at 8 p.m.
Tickets are $18.60.
Krooked Kings are on their way to becoming the most influential band from Salt Lake City since The Seeds, a psychedelic rock band founded by Sky Saxon in the 1960s.
Krooked Kings, who are headlining a show on April 18 at the Foundry at Fillmore Philadelphia (1100 Canal Street, Philadelphia, www.thefillmorephilly.com), are a five-piece band from the Mormon city featuring Oliver “Oli” Martin (lead vocals, guitar), Paul Colgan (guitar), David Macey (keys), Matt Monosson (bass) and Quinn Casper (drums).
“We’ve been together for six years with the five of us in the current iteration,” said Martin, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from a tour stop in Montreal, Quebec.
“We came together in college at the University of Utah. I was playing guitar with Paul. We put the band together and started playing house parties.”
Martin and Colgan recruited Macey and Monosson, who never played bass until Marrtin persuaded him to take up the instrument. Casper, a highly regarded rummer, completed the lineup.
On March 27, the band released its fourth album – “In Another Life.”
The title is a reflection of the band’s progress through its young career.
The new album shows Krooked Kings’ maturity and willingness to peel back the layers of emotion. The band’s previous three albums — “The Comedown” (2021), “All Out of Good Days” (2013) and “Shiver” (2024) — were the work of a younger, less polished band – three albums that were made “In Another Life.”
A major cause of the shift was the band’s decision to work with producer Yves Rothman.
Rothman first worked with Krooked Kings during the recording of their 2024 album, “Shiver.”
“We did some work with Yves on our last album,” said Martin. “We did all the new album with him at Sunset Sound.”
Before recording officially began, Rothman set Krooked Kings up in his Los Angeles studio as he would for band practice. They practiced together for weeks prior to laying down any tracks.
On “In Another Life,” Rothman got the band to deal directly with their vulnerability instead of skipping over it.
“Working on the new album with Yves, he really pushed us in terms of lyrically and sonically,” said Martin. “He saw us more as stadium rock than bedroom rock. That’s were we found the sound.”
The sound was one grounded in meaningful storytelling, emotional urgency, and a clear return to music made for human connection.
“The sound for this record is more a strong sound – like Coldplay or Radiohead – a sound that can work in clubs or in a stadium.
“When we broke through to the other side, that was what felt most comfortable. Once we punched through that wall, we were super-stoked.
“A lot of that wall was vulnerability. Yves said – what do you guys want to say….what do you believe in? Then, we broke down the walls.”
Krooked Kings put in a lot of time and energy for the making of “In Another Life.”
“Our previous records all took us two or three weeks to make,” said Martin. “This one was over a year-and-a-half.
“I think we all felt a page turn when we started working with Yves. We’re really looking forward to our next record. We’ve started writing songs already.”
Video link for Kroooked Kings – https://youtu.be/swZrJv5zNjE?list=PLjDWt4_jhc8vYjg00Fm195atMd7xeSH0u.
The show at The Foundry on April 18 will start at 8 p.m.
Tickets are $29.50.
“The Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein” is running now through April 19 at the Candlelight Theater (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware, candlelighttheatredelaware.org).
The show is a Mel Brooks Broadway musical based on the movie “Young Frankenstein,” a 1974 comedy film written by Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder.
Described by Brooks as his best film, it is a parody of the horror film genre — especially the 1931 Universal Pictures adaptation of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein.”
After the success of the movie, which has been named to the “Top 50” lists of comedy films by a number of organizations, Brooks teamed with Thomas Meehan to write and produce a stage version of the show.
The show tells the story of Frederick Frankenstein, a New York doctor who is ashamed to be a Frankenstein and insists his name be pronounced “Fronkensteen.”
His grandfather Dr. Victor von Frankenstein, a mad scientist, passed away so the younger Frankenstein has to travel to Transylvania to settle the estate.
In Transylvania, Dr. Frankenstein becomes involved with a variety of zany characters including the hunchback Igor, the yodeling lab assistant Inga, the mysterious Frau Blücher and, of course, The Monster.
The Candlelight Theater is presenting “The Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein” now through April 19. Tickets, which include a tasty dinner, are $77.50 for adults and $35 for children (ages 4-12).
Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http://www.kennettflash.org) is hosting The Attic Dwellers on April 17 and Gráinne Hunt with Jules Stewart on April 18.
Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org) is presenting “The Last Five Years” now through April 19.
Jamey’s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, 215-477-9985, www.jameyshouseofmusic.com) is hosting The Barrons and The 1910 Chainsaw Company on April 17, BLUESTIME! On April 18 and the Blues Muthas with Steve Shanahan on April 19.
Elkton Music Hall (107 North Street, Elkton, Maryland, www.elktonmusichall.com) has The Nashville Nights Band on April 17, TRO Plays Lynyrd Skynyrd on April 18 and Rhett Miller on April 22.
