NYC

FIELDED releases “Boy Angel” EP on August 18th – release party at Cameo on 08.18th

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FIELDED is the stage name of Lindsay A. Powell, a singer and songwriter currently based in Brooklyn. She describes her music as both "future-pop" and "post-apocalyptic pop;" certainly seem to be apt descriptions after listening to her most recent full-length, "Ninety Thirty Thirty," infused as it is with dark gospel tones and hints of goth. Powell’s powerful melodies lend a pop sensibility to the varied and genreless instrumentation, which includes synths, electronic drum beats, pianos, and even some jazzy, 80s sounding saxophone work (like in older single "Eve of a New Moon"). The latest release from FIELDED is "I Choose You," a track from 2014 which will be included in her upcoming EP "Boy Angel," to be released on August 18th. The song (streaming below) is a wonderful testament to Powell’s vocal abilities and unconventional songwriting, as she crafts a powerful and personal pop-gospel sound accompanied by only a low-key synth line, effected backing vocals and, towards the end, some catchy finger snaps. The release party for "Boy Angel" is scheduled for August 27th at Cameo’s. – Patrick Wolff

Philadelphia

New Music Video: “Trunk of My Computer” – STS x RJD2

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This latest video for “Trunk of My Computer,” off the dynamic RJD2 x STS collaboration, delves into the hustling DIY underground music aesthetic. STS flashes back to the days of pushing his demos to establish himself. As we’ve grown accustomed to his sharp-spitting rhymes, they mingle with that layered, cinematic instrumentation of one of our favorite producers in a classic yet fresh manner.

NYC

BOYTOY unveils single ‘Postal’ from upcoming LP + plays Shea Stadium tomorrow (08.07)

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With their unmistakeable Australian flair, the two front ladies of BOYTOY keep churning out super-hummable guitar pop gems that are likely to send listeners on an aural trip back to twenty years ago (that is, if you were already around then… if you weren’t, check this out). Their brand new single ‘Postal’ (streaming) is pure pop bliss counterfeited as garage rock (without the over-polished, production of the mainstream genre known to the masses as pop-punk). It’s a preview of the full length album ‘Grackle,’ arriving on October 2nd on PaperCup Music, a local label that’s releasing albums by a lot of garagey Brooklyn based bands. You’ll get a chance to see BOYTOY live tomorrow (08.07) at Shea Stadium.

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

L.A.

Late Night Friends celebrate record release show tonight at the Satellite

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Alt-rock four-piece Late Night Friends repurposes the light atmospherics of late eighties college rock and early aughts American chart-rock with a modern slant on their debut full-length What I Think I’m Not. Due on August 7 via Limited Fanfare Records, the album approaches its influences with a chameleonic quality that allows them to slip into melancholic naval-gazing and life-size anthems in equal measure. With Dead Meadow bassist Steve Kille handling the controls, the entirety of the album has that shimmering, U2-like production polish that permits these limpid, bright-eyed songs to really extend upon their straightforward, yet thoroughly sonorous modern rock approach.

Late Night Friends are currently streaming the whole thing over at Pop Matters. And make sure to join them on their album release tonight at the Satellite. – Juan Rodríguez

Philadelphia

Free Concert w/Restorations & DRGN KING at Spruce Street Harbor Park Aug. 6

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Enjoy free performances by a couple hometown favorites under the LED lights of Spruce Street Harbor Park! Expansive indie rockers Restorations recently returned from their stint in Europe in support of their latest album LP3 (SideOneDummy Records), and will be playing their last headlining gig this year in Philly. They’ll be supported by DRGN KING, who experienced plenty of trials and tribulations just to make the dates of their most recent U.S. spring tour, bringing their album Baltimore Crush (Bar None Records) to the masses. It’s going to be another beautiful evening outside so grab a blanket, some drinks and food, and your best peeps to share a great evening out! Spruce Street Harbor Park, 301 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd., 7:30pm, Free, All Ages – H.M. Kauffman

Philadelphia

Free Download: “Mummy Dust” – Aunt Dracula

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Psych-pop project from Scott Daly, a.k.a. Aunt Dracula, just shared the first single from its upcoming album. Freaky rocker "Mummy Dust" can be found on Bum Hands, which is scheduled for release on November 13. You can stream and download the new track for free below, and check out the album’s cover art above, which was designed by Astral Eyes. We definitely want that creepy hand candle!

NYC

NYC’s synth pop duo Late Nite Cable premieres ‘All Nite Girl’ from upcoming debut EP

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Pete Roessler and Severine Casati’s recently debuted Late Nite Cable project crafts simple, manicured synth-pop songs for balmy summer nights. The New York based duo’s first track "Take Me Away" is a blissfully mellow cut, sourcing 80s-era vocal melodies and 90s-era drum machines for a dreamy duet. Today, we premiere the band’s newest effort, "All Nite Girl," a lead single to be featured on their forthcoming EP (set for release in September). The EP was co-produced by Anthony "Rocky" Gallo, who previously worked with Yeasayer, John Legend, and Cat Power. The production of "All Nite Girl" is more robust than previous single "Take Me Away," a soaring force of densely arranged melodies and rhythms, and the vocal hooks are tighter, stronger." – Angel Eugenio Fraden

Philadelphia

New Lithuania LP Available for Streaming

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Lithuania, a.k.a. Dr. Dog‘s Eric Slick and DRGN KING‘s Dominic Angelella, just premiered their new full-length album, Hardcore Friends, at Brooklyn Vegan. The record was produced by Joe Reinhart (Hop Along, ex-Algernon Cadwallader) and Kyle Pulley (Thin Lips, ex-Dangerous Ponies) at The Headroom. The LP also features contributions from Frances Quinlan (Hop Along) and Rachel Browne (Field Mouse, Anomie) on its title track. Hardcore Friends is scheduled for release on August 14 via Lame-O Records.

Toronto

Bad Dad & The Pool Girls @ The Silver Dollar

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Bad Dad & The Pool Girls have been charming the local scene for a couple of years now with their soul-infused, west coast melancholic folk rock. In fact, “charming” pretty much sums up everything about this band. Their description on their facebook page (which you can go ahead and “like” right here) states that their music is “where old souls meet young bodies.” This frame of mind resonates perfectly throughout their recent self-titled LP. Over the course of nine tracks, the music morphs from a west coast folk style to a melting pot of funk, soul and indie. Lyrically, it’s all over the place, with the majority of the songs either about laying down the funk on a member of the opposite sex (“Lay It On Me”, “Get Down”) or a good ol’ fashioned murder ballad (“Bloody Murder”, “Forty-Five”). Somehow, someway, the BD/PG’s are able to make these subjects mesh behind catchy melodies. Mr. Bad Dad and his pool girls will be playing their hazy summer tunes at The Silver Dollar Room on August 6th. – Chris PJ D

NYC

Experimental beat maker Linafornia’s new song is “Wetttt”

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Linafornia is the pseudonym of a stalwart beat maker from Leimert Park who’s been at it since 2014, earning her stripes from the revered Beat Cinema and open mic workshop Project Blowed. Raised in a city of musical innovators like Nocando and Open Mike Eagle, the bar is set high for any musician making a name out of the culturally rich LA neighborhood.

But lo-fi elbow grease and deep cuts of soul & funk are the marks of LP talent, and Linafornia’s got all the makings of a producer, hitting the ground running with shows at the Low End Theory and PasswordLA. In her growing repertoire you’ll find cloudy, washed-out abstractions alongside jazz flows, inspired by Ras G, Dibiase, and Samiyam. Her recent collab with Compton’s geekster rapper DeviWonder is just a sampling of the magic this woman is capable of, and we can’t wait to hear more! Linafornia’s first major project, code-named YUNG, is currently underway and will be out in the future by Dome of Doom (Alpha Pup Records).

Listen to her newest track, "Wetttt" on Soundcloud below, and see her live on August 10th at Silverlake’s Hyperion Tavern. – Ryan Mo

NYC

Little Racer unveils video for ‘Montevideo’ + plays free show at Niagara tomorrow (08.06)

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With their breezy songs brimming with surf and dream pop influences, Brooklyn’s Little Racer should be in the ‘Summer Tunes’ playlist of anybody enamored with beach centered lifestyle. Which begs the questions: why are these guys living in NYC? Aware of this contradiction, the band wrote this in the "Short Description" section of their Facebook page: ‘NYC Surf rockers that can’t swim. ‘ The trio released their sophomore EP ‘Foreign Tongues‘ in June, and recently unveiled this video for single Montevideo. They’ll be playing a free show at tiny Alphabet City venue Niagara tomorrow (August 6th). It’s a great opportunity for a night of affordable and easy going fun.

NYC

July Artist of the Month: John Keck

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Congrats to our July Artist of the Month, John Keck! Keck—who partially recorded his debut album The Jack Moon Sessions at the famed Sun Studios—depicts his personal experience in thoughtful ways, with an Americana flair. His music evokes Ozark traditions and southern rock, with a visceral emotional tinge. Read more about Keck in our Q&A.
 
The Deli: Down and dirty: one sentence to describe your music.
 
Keck: I think my music is very personal, and hopefully because of that people who listen to the lyrics can find something that speaks to them, or at the minimum they can see the image I’m trying to create, the story I’m conveying.
 
The Deli: Give me some background on your musical career. How long have you been playing music? What made you decide to become a songwriter?
 
Keck: I started playing in front of people in 2008 at open mics, and started booking shows regularly in 2010, so just a short time compared to my friends. I have a lot of catch-up to do. I found songwriting to be a therapy for dealing with my emotions, I guess it’s a bit of an escape too. In 2008 I ended a marriage of 14 years and found myself feeling very raw and exposed to life in a new way. I also didn’t have anyone to fight with anymore and so I guess I started fighting with myself. To me,  writing a song is a fight with yourself; it’s an argument between your fear of letting other people know how you feel and the desire to be honest in a public way.
 
The Deli: What inspires your music and songwriting?
 
Keck: My relationships and encounters with people are my primary inspirations. I don’t write much about the way the trees make me feel or something like that… It seems that even when I try to write about someone other than me, my personal experiences come out in my lyrics, so I don’t really try to fight that anymore and just accept that I can’t be neutral to what I observe. I would like to be better about my work ethic and writing process, to be more diligent. I don’t feel like I spend enough time on it. But I guess I don’t really like to think of what I’m doing in comparison to anyone else, even my idols. So I don’t keep regular hours, like some people I know, I let it come to me. Sometimes it’s in waves, sometimes there are long dry spells. I try to record every thought I have, even when I know it’s bad in the moment. If I think it is good, I usually remember it and can come back to it. Usually it’s in the morning and makes me late for wherever I’m going. I’m always late, I apologize to everyone, maybe I was writing a song about you.
 
The Deli: What have been your greatest musical accomplishments?
 
Keck: Being played on the radio is surreal to me. The radio was so important growing up. I don’t think people can appreciate it now. With access to the world’s known recordings on our phones, but as a kid before tapes even, anyway… it means everything to me. I think about it in terms of immortality. Those frequencies are traveling in the universe farther than I can conceive. How do you top that? I also played at the Troubadour in London, which was unreal. It’s the first place that Dylan played when he got to England (supposedly), and everyone else that you can imagine. I recorded my parts of my album at Sun Studios in Memphis, so that was kind of too good to think about—the same room Johnny Cash stood in (I sat). The radio wouldn’t have happened if the album wasn’t made. Honestly, every time someone tells me they like one of my songs I feel like I’ve accomplished something.
 
The Deli: Tell us about your debut album, The Jack Moon Sessions at Sun Studios and Chappy Roads. What can we expect?
 
Keck: I do have a debut album called The Jack Moon Sessions at Sun Studios and Chappy Roads. For the future, I’ve been writing and writing and have started working with other people to create a new album. I’m going to call it “Photo Booth,” and the songs that will be on it are written with a particular image in mind… does that make it a concept album? That title has many meanings to me, but an easily accessible idea is that I think of my songs like photographs that capture a moment with a certain light, like a black and white photograph. The album cover will explain more.
 
The Deli: What does supporting local music mean to you?
 
Keck: It’s become my passion. I try to go to as many shows as I can. Sometimes I feel like a stalker. Music is my religion, so attending services regularly at our local sanctuaries is critical to enlightenment.
 
The Deli: Who are your favorite local musicians right now? Non-local?
 
Keck: I don’t typically have favorites of anything, but I have to have a good goddamn reason to miss a Dynamite Defense show, if you hear and see Chris Tady play the guitar you’ll understand why. Also their songs have such a classic feel to them you really don’t know what decade they were written in, I like that a lot. Of course Scott Hrabko, I could listen to his music over and over again. The Silver Maggies and Potters Field: I go home after their shows and wish I could play, sing, and, write songs like them. The Philistines I think have a unique sound too, with so much intensity and drive, they have me hooked. I’m inspired by all of these groups and so many more, but I’ll blush if they read this and then we have to talk about it later. I don’t think Tady goes on the line, so we are safe there. Non-local? I’ve really gotten into Houndmouth in the last few weeks, both albums are strong in my opinion, I may have already burned myself out on them actually, but I have enjoyed our brief affair.
 
The Deli: What is your ultimate fantasy concert bill to play on?
 
Keck: I guess I should be better about dreaming big… I honestly feel like I’m living a fantasy right now, so each new thing is its own dream. I played Boulevardia last month; that was something I never considered possible before getting asked to do it. Last Saturday, I was at a dinner party with some truly talented people that I was in awe of; they took turns playing my guitar and singing their songs. We were up all night enjoying the moment. That seems like a fantasy now. But like every other person who’s ever scribbled a tune down, I would be on cloud nine opening for Neil Young, or Willie Nelson, or Scott Hrabko.
 
The Deli: A music-themed Mount Rushmore. What four faces are you putting up there and why?
 
Keck: Dylan, Young, Keith Richards, John Lennon (in no particular order). I think valid arguments could be made for so many others and certainly the people that influenced those four, but just shooting from the hip, these guys created a profound impact in the culture as receivers with a true talent, then as focal points of sound that came through them and out to all of us, in ways that we don’t even know about. Blah blah, lists.
 
The Deli: What goals do you have for 2015, and beyond?
 
Keck: I plan to tour this fall, a small one of the Midwest. I’ve never really done an extended journey for more than one night, and I think that’s my next step in evolving as a performing artist. Record and release the new album. Create a band. Play as many shows as “they” will let me.
 
The Deli: Where can we find you on the web?
 
Keck: Everything I’m up to is on http://www.johnlkeck.com, including videos and streaming music.
 
The Deli: Always go out on a high note. Any last words of wisdom for the Deli audience?
 
Keck: Listen to whatever you want to, don’t let anyone tell you a piece of music is bad or good, if it speaks to you, then it is good to you. I hear people say all the time, “that’s too poppy” or “I don’t like country,” blah blah blah, If you limit yourself to a certain taste, you create a boundary that prohibits your universe from expanding and then it’s expanding without you.
 
You can catch Keck tomorrow night at Davey’s Uptown at 9 pm. He’ll be sharing the stage with fellow songwriters Cody Wyoming and Nathan Corsi. Facebook event page.
 
–Michelle Bacon
 
Michelle Bacon is editor of The Deli KC and plays in bands.