Bowmont is a Brooklyn based trio that’s been delivering beautifully textural and atmospheric synth-pop since the beginning of the decade. It has the luck of having a GRAMMY award winning engineer among its ranks (Jeremy Loucas), who also happens to be obsessed with synths.  The two other members, Danish lead vocalist Emil Bovbjerg, and German guitarist Elias Meister, are accomplished musicians who also share a passion for musical toys. We can’t think of a better band for a Delicious Audio interview about gear and the creative process. (Photo by Fabrizio Del Rincon)

LINK: BOWMONT TALKS ABOUT GEAR, SYNTH AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS

Orange-based psych-jangle sextet Deep Fields released their debut EP yesterday, and it’s a sonic nebula of wonders. Six songs of tantric proportions swirl like an acid trip in vernal bloom, mixing lyrics languid and reflective, even venturing out to space-rock frontiers with the epic closer "Other Half". Guitarist and vocalist Christian Peters goes all-out in the band’s first singles "Salazar" and "Leonidas", bassist Emily Monnig’s voice takes point in the hair-swaying "Oh Well", and both trade off in "Flat Business"  with instrumentation as bright as a field of calliopsis, courtesy of the brothers Higa, Brian Jackson, and Dana Maier-Zucchino. Descriptors aside, this EP is tight, and it’s free to download!

And if you like what you hear, you can also catch Deep Fields this Sunday at the Dirty Laundry TV Summer Fest, where they’ll be performing songs from the EP and new ones in the works.

"Any opportunity we get to share our music is always exciting for us. It’s what brings this labor of love full circle. In our live shows, the highlights for us are the new tracks that we’re just starting to phase in. It’s been refreshing to devote time to internal development and exploring new directions. Plus, playing fresh stuff has really got us energized, it’s going to be a fun time on Sunday for sure."

Listen to the "Flat Business" below, and come out to see Deep Fields perform in the early afternoon at Dirty Laundry TV Summer Fest — did we mention it’s dad-friendly too? – Ryan Mo

 

The nine-year-strong independent Desert Stars Festival opens its first wave of tickets with a ridiculously awesome lineup featuring Swervedriver, The Lemonheads, Lou Barlow, The Cosmonauts, and more. Founded in 2006 by Tommy Dietrick (Sky Parade/David J & The Gentleman Thieves), the first iteration of Desert Stars (then Clean Air Clean Stars) brought a strong sense of community and DIY spirit. Working with minimal finances and a conviction to showcase Los Angeles’ rising talents and alternative currents, Dietrick and friends threw the first festival in 2007 with less than 500 attendees who found out just through word of mouth.

In recent years, that number has nearly doubled, and for good reason. With past artists including Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Ringo Deathstarr, Mark Gardener (RIDE), David J (Bauhaus), and The Black Angels, Desert Stars is the psych-rock campout experience more accessible than Burning Man and way cheaper than Coachella. This year’s lineup also includes bands from LA and Bay Area that run the gamut of alt rock including Drinking Flowers, Gateway Drugs, Feels, The Spiral Electric, Pearl Charles, and more to be announced.

The Desert Stars Festival will be held on the weekend of September 25th at Pappy & Harriet’s of Joshua Tree, with a Wild West vibe that favors natural landscapes over corporate sponsored tents and gaudy installations. Interested parties, bands, and vendors are encouraged to visit the Desert Stars Festival Kickstarter page where they’ll find a plethora of pledge awards, including a recording session at Dave Grohl’s 606 Studio. What more do you have to consider? – Ryan Mo

In the dim backroom of Greenpoint’s Matchless Bar, Brooklyn-based, Skidmore College-rooted quartet Pooch started the evening off with a warm set of songs that touched on several kinds of rock (indie, psychedelic, maybe even surf) that particularly captivated thanks to frontman Jonathan Benbeniste. With a warbled timbre reminiscent of Counting Crows’ Adam Duritz and a formidable yet welcoming stage presence, Benbeniste ushered his bandmates through guitar solos, electronic loops, and drum riots that showed a group furthering their cohesiveness.

Fellow Brooklyn rockers Looms took the stage next, playing loose tracks that thrilled with their spindly guitars and calmed with their plaintive keys. Singer/guitarist/keyboardist Sharif Mekawy certainly was engaging, especially during the four-piece’s closer: a cover of Radiohead’s “Bodysnatchers.” Simulating Thom Yorke’s vocal idiosyncrasies on the keyboard and belting the beautifully pained line, “I have no idea what I’m talking about,” Mekawy put a wonderfully electrified spin on the ‘In Rainbows’ cut.

Then came Secret Crush. As its lead singer’s triangular, red guitar foreshadowed, the Bushwick-based outfit performed mostly joyous electric rock tracks while periodically dipping into the tremulous madness of Deerhunter. Through guitar lines that changed volumes (at times low, at others house-breaking) and songs that began with an ominous recorded voice, however, the Brooklyn quartet blended these disparate sounds into their own odd-rock.

Bassist Jack Counce of the next band, Fat Heaven (pictured), wore a Heatmiser shirt but the New York-based trio sounded a bit more like Nirvana (or, perhaps, a grungier Green Day) than that Elliott Smith-co-founded group. Over Gayla Brooks’ extremely fast drumming, lead singer Travis Yablon yelled into the microphone ferociously yet sweetly, delivering such lines as, “Will you walk with me?” There was warmth in the chaos.

To end this by-now-rainy night, the aptly-named Brooklyn quartet Future Punx (a recent Deli NYC record of the month) put on a danceable set at Cameo Gallery. Assuming the stage like aliens come down to party, the post wave band bounced into a set of electronic trances, skittering guitars, and rubbery basslines. The Devo and Blondie of the late ‘70s and The Human League’s early ‘80s hit “Don’t You Want Me” were clearly heard in these songs but Future Punx is not a gimmick. Refreshingly, they just seem to not take themselves too seriously and, as a result, allow for a good time.  – Zach Weg

The Kickdrums is the synth-pop project of established Brooklyn based producer/singer/songwriter Alex Fitts, who has produced tracks for Kid Cudi, 50 Cent, Freddie Gibbs, Slaughter House, as well as official remixes for Adele, Kanye West, and Linkin Park. The track is the first ‘official’ independent release from Alex (The Kickdrums) in over half a decade. The Kickdrums will perform in its extended live lineup tonight (June 17) at The Studio at Webster Hall.

We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best  songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

Many signs seem to point to trio EZTV as the NYC band of the upcoming summer of 2016, their laid back, jangly and dreamy sound functioning as a perfect background for outdoors activities – and traveling. Their label Captured Tracks (home to masters of dreaminess like Mac DeMarco, DIIV and  and Widowspeak) just unveiled new single ‘Soft Tension" (streaming), from the upcoming LP ‘Calling Out," which entertains in gently psychedelic ways. With a sound partly reminiscent of ’80s band Rain Parade and other belonging to the Paisley Underground movement, this song is the sonic equivalent to a couple of puffs of weed (without being illegal, anywhere). What’s not to like? EZTV is currently on a North American tour which will bring them back home on June 21st for a show at the Mercury Lounge.