New Beard released a substantial debut EP ("Moment of Peace") late in 2011, and in June is set to release an album full of the kind of dreamlike touches and dramatic flourishes at home with the Brooklyn-based artist leading this project, Ben Wigler. Not content with repeating itself, the band has stripped bare many of the dense sounds heard on the EP and has gone for a clean and lush atmospheric. The quartet showcases an enormous bag of tricks, and the orchestration has expanded to flutes, strings, tuba and the many manner of ways that express the kind of dreamy sadness Ben Wigler has made his own. To promote the upcoming release, New Beard is premiering this free Mp3 of the song "Doom"(Featuring Gustav Ejstes of Dungen), which you can download below. Don’t miss their show at Bowery Electric on May 5. – Mike Levine

Mp3 – New Beard: "Doom" (Featuring Gustav Ejstes of Dungen)

Cindy Lou Gooden (formerly Very Fresh) is back with a new EP! ‘Kitsch Tapes‘ is a stripped-down, acoustic detour of sorts (CLG sometimes plays and often records with a louder, more abrasive band), commemorative of a prolific summer of songwriting in which several months were spent traveling around the country and crashing with friends in NYC, LA, and various parts of New England. It draws on some perennial influences: Stephen Malkmus and early Dirty Projectors. Everybody says it sounds like Liz Phair even though she says doesn’t really listen to her. Cindy Lou will be playing solo at Big Snow Buffalo Lodge on May 15th for Permanent Wave NYC’s Hollaback! Benefit. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here). The Deli’s NYC Open Blog is powered by The Music Building.

The Deli was a 1 year old baby when The Cloud Room came out with the super catchy single "Hey Now Now" – but we did take notice at the time, and featured the band in one of our first issues. After a break up, which truned out to be a 7 year hiatus, the band is back with a new album entitled "Zither," which reintroduces us to its catchy, "Let’s Dance" era Bowiesque pop. Check out the first single "Crashing in Love", streaming below.

It’s rare to see a band mature as fast as Lucius did. Started as a mellow and rather ordinary duo of female singer songwriters, this project in the last 2 years or so has expanded and grown in unexpected, abnormal yet wonderful ways. Their impressive performance at our Deli NYC B.E.A.F. 2011 event showcased a band that, with a little imagination in the arrangement and performance departments, can take traditional songwriting to an entirely new level. Music fans (and industry) seem to be noticing, since they have started to sell out shows in NYC and Austin during SXSW. These two ladies can write good songs and sing beautifully, and with the help of the two boys in the band, put on a show at once emotional and powerful. One of the guys, drummer Dan Molad, is also in charge of recording the band, which mostly happens in the Brooklyn apartment he shares with singer Jess Wolfe. We asked him a few question related to that department. – Read the full Delicious Audio interview here.