When Aymen Saleh of Holy Pinto walked in Drip Coffee in 5 Points the other week he was in very unfamiliar territory. Just days before he’d arrived in Philadelphia from the UK, and had embarked on his solo roadtrip tour of the states, with just him and his new parlor guitar. First stop, Drip Coffee in Columbia, SC. Later during the show someone asked him what his favorite part of Columbia was so far, and he charmingly replied Drip and the sidewalk outside, it’s all he’d seen.
When he arrived I was there waiting for him in hopes of filming this session. Just weeks before I’d received an email from Emily Hakes, who once advised me on things to do when I was visiting Philadelphia. She told me to about a show at the Golden Tea House, which ended up being one of the last shows there. That night I got to catch Told Slant, Japanese Breakfast, Hurry, and Crying, a really amazing show and a great look into the Philly scene I’d been following and admiring from afar. So naturally when she reached out about Holy Pinto coming to Columbia, I was excited to catch their set.
