NYC

Deli Best of NYC 2011 – Fans’ Poll is over! + List of Jurors

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Oh boy… this friggin’ poll is so much work it becomes almost surreal… know what I mean? But we are getting there folks! We just uploaded the full list of artists nominated for our Best of NYC 2011 Poll for Emerging Artists. It’s in the right column here and also on this beautiful page that sums up what happened in 2011 here at The Deli NYC. Some bands in the list were selected through a submission process (see NYC genre results in the post below) and some others were picked by our jury of local scene-makers (list below), who could freely choose 3 bands each in order of preference. Points were already assigned to each band according to how well they did in the selection process. Now the readers’ and fans’ votes will also influence the final chart. Each vote will count!

THE COVER OF THE DELI IS THE PRIZE
And of course… the winner of the overall poll (i.e. the final chart including the votes from our jury, our writers and the readers and fan’s poll) will be featured on the cover of the spring 2012 issue of The Deli Magazine!

LIST OF JURORS: Alex Rossiter (Webster Hall), Andy Bodor (Cake Shop), Billy Jones (Pianos), Bowery Electric bookers, Brandon Haas (BMI), Carlye Wisel & Donald Rasmussen (Big Yellow Couch), Chris Diaz (Knitting Factory), Christopher R. Weingarten (The Village Voice), Claire McNamara (OhMyRockness), David Teller (Bird Dog Productions), Douglas DeFalco (Southpaw), Heath Miller (Excess db), Heather Dunsmoor (The Bell House) , Jamie Dominguez (SESAC), Jennifer Gilson (The Living Room), Jify Shah (Cameo), John J. Hagan (Sycamore), Karen Soskin (Other Music), Katherine Coates (Delancey), Marc Emert-Hutner (ASCAP), Matt McDonald (CMJ), Max Brennan (Lit Lounge), , Paolo De Gregorio (The Deli), Rami Haykal (Popgun Booking) , Sebastian Freed (Bowery Presents), Steve Trimboli (Goodbye Blue Monday), Zack Dinerstein (Spike Hill).

The Deli’s Staff

L.A.

The Alternates: redrafting the old ways of rock radio

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It’s hard to find quality in today’s modern rock bands. Tune into a modern rock station and what you get is a playlist of esteemed bands from a bygone era faultily mashed with shallow, supervised by a suit and tie contemporaries. It’s a shame, really. The Alternates seem tailor-fit for what a modern rock station used to sound like before this past decade heavily distorted the influence of younger bands, whose frame of reference doesn’t go any further than vacuous, deafening noise and trite post-grunge. When you listen to the Alternates’ meaty, reverberated riffs and soulful delivery, it’s apparent the LA band have overseen the modern designation of what guitar rock has become and gone back to its more Southern-tinged seventies touch. That’s not to say they have modest aspirations – the songwriting found in their EP Spiders and Webs balances a fuzzy tonality with lighter-hoisting choruses, all executed with casual confidence. As long as they continue to evolve within their classicist intentions, their upcoming debut long player may give the radio airwaves a much needed rattling.

 

 

Philadelphia

New Music Video: “That Old Black Hole” – Dr. Dog

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Dr. Dog premiered a new music video today via Rolling Stone for the track “That Old Black Hole” (which you can view below, and is different from the one released last November). The song will appear on their upcoming album Be the Void (due out February 7). It was directed George Salisbury who is renowned for his cinematic work with The Flaming Lips (Christmas On Mars, Watching The Planets, Stardeath and White Dwarfs – Borderline). Dr. Dog will be performing again in Philly on March 24 & 25 at the Electric Factory.

NYC

Deli Best of Nashville 2011 – Fans’ Poll is up!

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We are getting there folks! We just uploaded the full list of artists nominated for our Best of Nashville 2011 Poll for Emerging Artists. It’s in the right column on this same page and also HERE, where you can actually vote. Some bands in the list were selected through a submission process and some others were picked by our jury of local scene-makers, who could freely choose 3 bands each in order of preference. Points were already assigned to each band according to how well they did in the selection process. Now the readers’ and fans’ votes will also influence the final chart. Each vote will count!

The Deli’s Staff

Philadelphia

Lo-fi Goodness w/Gracie, BAnanas Symphony and More at KFN Jan. 18

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There is plenty of lo-fi goodness happening tonight at Kung Fu Necktie. Opening the festivities will be dreamy psych pop outfit BAnanas Symphony led by the distinct vocals and lazy day guitar work of Yohsuke. Making the trip in from Brooklyn to bring back memories from your beach vacation will be Bermuda Bonnie which is the solo project from former Philly native/American Chinese bassist Becca Houston. Recently signed to Mush Records the duo of Andrew Hamlet and Mat Jones a.k.a. Pressed And will be stopping in before heading out on their cross-country tour. Wrapping up the evening and sending you home in the mood for some lovin’ is Gracie, whose Treehouse EP via Small Plates Records is set to drop February 7. It’s chilly outside so why not chill inside with some good drinks and tunes. Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 N. Front St., 7:30pm, $5, 21+ – H.M. Kauffman
 
Philadelphia

Coloring Outside the Lines w/The Extraordinaires at JB’s Jan. 18

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The Extraordinaires are simply a band that colors outside the lines. But once you are able to step back and take in what they’ve created, you’ll soon discover that there is method to their madness. The band’s songs are crafted with a child-like wonderment that frankly is needed more and more as the weight of our responsibilities continue to pile up day in and day out. They find that fine line where art and entertainment happily walk hand in hand. Do yourself a favor, and catch their set at Johnny Brenda’s tonight. It will certainly make the rest of your work week more bearable. Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 9pm, $10, 21+ – Q.D Tran

NYC

Deer Tick’s John McCauley forms Nashville based super group: Diamond Rugs

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Diamond Rugs is a collaboration between John McCauley (Deer Tick), Robbie Crowell (Deer Tick), Ian Saint Pé (The Black Lips), Steve Berlin (Los Lobos), Hardy Morris (Dead Confederate) and Bryan Dufresne (Six Finger Satellite). Last fall McCauley decided he wanted to make another record during his downtime in his new home base of Nashville with producers Adam Landry and Justin Collins (Middle Brother, Deer Tick).. While attending a Los Lobos show (one of his all-time favorite bands), he made his way backstage and met Steve Berlin. McCauley convinced Berlin to come to Nashville to play on the record. Over the course of the next month, he also managed to convince Saint Pe (whom he’d met once before), Morris (who had opened for Deer Tick on tour) and his good friend from his hometown of Providence, RI, Dufresne. McCauley also recruited Deer Tick keys/sax player Robbie Crowell to play bass on the album. The musicians McCauley had recruited to play on his record ended up contributing their own songs to the album and a fully-formed band emerged. The Diamond Rugs full length is going to be released in the spring of 2012. It was recorded in Nashville and produced by Adam Landry and Justin Collins (Middle Brother, Deer Tick).

NYC

Punk-Pop from NYC/NJ: Candy Hearts

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Paradox has always been a main ingredient in rock music – a genre always flirting with both punk rebellion and the "conformity" of pop culture. NY/NJ based band Candy Hearts perfectly embodies this dichotomy through a punkish, gritty power trio sound, sweetened by Mariel Loveland’s adorable girlish voice. The band released its debut full length "Everything’s Amazing & Nobody’s Happy" in 2011 and it’s been touring extensively since then. They just announced a February tour with Man Overboard.

San Francisco

Q&A: Oakland’s Metal Mother

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We sat down with Tara Tati, the dark-rocking, cabalistic visionary behind Oakland’s emerging indie band, Metal Mother. Metal Mother is a finalist for the Deli’s Year End Best of SF Poll.

Deli: What first got you interested in music?

TT: Since I can remember, I was dancing around to the records my parents played. They listened to Talking Heads, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Marvin Gaye, Joni Mitchell, all the classics. But if you’re asking me when I got interested in making music, that’s a different story. I first learned that I loved piano when I was about 10, but never thought I was capable of being an actual musician. Writing songs and having a band seemed like a daunting and unthinkable task to undertake, so I dismissed my little talent as a hobby and nothing more. Then, in 2007, some friends who had seen me goofing on the keys at my house one day, asked me to play at their festival in Oregon, so I did. From there, the support and encouragement snowballed, making it a comfortable journey into musician-hood. 

Deli: How did you find your niche?

TT: I’m definitely still figuring it out. It seems the majority of my fan base is too broad to really know a specific demographic at this point, other than people who appreciate dark, melancholy, tripped-out music.

Deli: Where do your various influences stem from?

TT: Though I’ve been primarily involved with the underground rave scene for most of my adult life, it’s brought me full-circle to really appreciating the magic of live instrumentation and classical arrangement in addition to electronic production. I’m wildly inspired by other female performers such as Grace Jones, Siouxsie Sioux, and Bjork; and as for song writing and composing, I’m really into the work of Brian Eno, Sufjan Stevens, and Nico Muhly.

Deli: What’s it like to start your own label and what was the most difficult aspect of the process?

TT: I’ve started a couple other businesses in the past, so I kind of knew what to expect. When I decided to really go for it, I read like five books on how to start my own label and crack into the music industry. From that I devised a fairly solid plan, and of course, left room for sweet luck to fill in the gaps.

Deli: What’s up next for you in 2012? 

TT: Right now I’m starting to work on the next album, which will be inspired by the world’s greatest female warriors and witches. We’re also planning a tour in March, which will include a week at SXSW, and then there’ll be a couple more months of writing and recording followed by a slew of summer shows. There may be a music video happening in there too somewhere.

Deli: What do you find inspiring about the color black?

TT: It’s a blank canvas; all the impossibilities of vision are possible within its darkness. Plus, it symbolizes the great feminine mysteries that so heavily influence my songwriting.

Deli: What do you hope to accomplish in your career?

TT: I know its cliché, but honestly, all I’ve ever wanted is to be happy.  I’ve always believed that if I wanted it badly enough, I could find something I loved doing and actually make a living at it, no matter what it was.

Deli: If you could open for one artist dead or alive, who would it be?

Deli: Man, tough question. Shit, Klaus Nomi. Just so I could see him perform.

–Courtney Garcia