Year Of Glad are finding the sweet spots with the one-two combination of Mimi (Nona) Gallagher and Chris Diehm (1994!). Backed by Mike Bell (of Mike Bell & The Movies) and Mike Harping (of Good Luck), the group dropped its self-titled debut EP this past summer via Philly’s own Lame-O Records. They’ll be opening things up tonight at Kung Fu Necktie for Memphis garage-punk all-female quartet Nots. Hometown acts Mannequin Pussy and Telepathic will be the meat of this punk-rock sandwich, helping us push through to the weekend. Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 N. Front St., 8pm, $10, 21+ – Alexis V.
NYC
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A Deli NYC premiere: Big Thief unveils video for “Masterpiece” + tours with Here We Go Magic
Ah, the joys and horrors of DIY touring! Those uninitiated to the rock’n’roll lifestyle may wonder what pushes four young individuals to share 24/7 a gas guzzling old van for several weeks, while traveling for over a month from coast to coast. This video by Brooklyn electric folksters Big Thief, for their new single "Masterpiece," provides the answers: our brains – like a video-camera – are set to record the good and fun moments, while forgetting the smells, the struggles, the bad meals and sleepless nights (invariably caused by snoring band mates). Most importantly, touring is a unifying, semi-epic adventure that has often the power to reinforce the bond between the traveling musicians, creating shared memories that strenghten the group’s identity and commitment. And that’s a great asset for any band.
The video, shot recently while on the road, anticipates Big Thief’s upcoming 25 date tour opening for Brooklyn pop experimenters Here We Go Magic. With its beautiful, powerful melody and full on band sound, "Masterpiece" (streaming link here) represents a visceral turn in Adrianne Lenker’s writing toward a heavier, electric sound that contrasts with her two earlier releases, both intimately folk and minimally arranged. Don’t miss their show at Bowery Ballroom on Ocrtober 24!
NYC
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Viva Violet, light fm, The Distant Intimate, The Foreign Resort at Lot 1
The bar/music space Lot 1 Café gets dreamy this Saturday with a lineup of gaze-inspired acts, courtesy of Freeradiosilverlake. Danish nouveau punks The Foreign Resort arrive to Los Angeles for the release of their newest album The American Dream, out 10/23. Supporting the Copenhagen band is Viva Violet, of veteran duo Jiha Lee (Good Life, Bright Eyes) and Nick White, as well as Josiah Mazzaschi’s nugaze outfit light fm. There will also be an opening performance by The Distant Intimate, newest project of Silverlake’s Tony Pennington (solar powered people).
The 21+ show starts at 9 PM, with a $5 admission to support the bands. – Ryan Mo
Philadelphia
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Debut The Buy Sell Trades EP Available for Streaming & Download
It doesn’t take long to make a decision regarding All the Togetherness. The debut release by trio The Buy Sell Trades falls distinctly in the buy category with its earthy, jangling, warm folk/country resonance. Under a cloud of dust, clean harmony and gritty surf-inflected guitar create a memorable sound.
NYC
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Experimental singer/songwriter BERU released nostalgic EP “Adult Emotions”
Like the sound explorers Keiji Haino and Vashti Bunyan, Jessica Nicole Collins has channeled complex moods through BERU‘s stream-of-consciousness applique since her 2006 year-end single "Spaces In Time". Her live engineered sound collages would completely envelop venues and listeners, emanating existential themes and affectations of world-weariness. But her newest EP “Adult Emotions” is different.
“For this EP, I wanted to make music with sounds that I’ve loved since I was a child.”
Just as the title suggests, BERU’s newest collection is mature in conception: dense and measured, wistful and purgative. But the songs are also an eidetic recollection of innocence in the eye of loss.
“One of my best friends passed away last year, and I needed to set my emotions to music from a time before I knew pain like this. I have to sing about my loss, so I can look at it from the outside and try and understand it.”
She tags the release with descriptors like “island goth”, “smooth rock”, “newage”, and “doom metal”, and rightfully so — these influences, and more, are abound in each of the six songs. Collins recites ‘90s adolescence by memory, from Yucatan pan flutes, Miami Vice, “the chillest of beats Enigma used,” and Bryan Adams’ suave guitar-lead auras.
BERU’s EP “Adult Emotions” is available now, free to stream on Bandcamp. Her next performance will be on December 5th, to help celebrate the sophomore album release of Los Angeles’ synthpop/goth trio Ghost Noise at Non Plus Ultra. Watch the music video for "Darker Currents", directed by Michael Norquest, below. – Ryan Mo
Nashville
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Okie Outside of Muskogee
Zeke Duhon’s self titled debut EP on Big Deal Records (My Morning Jacket, Ray Lamontagne) is a brief portrait of a young man working to figure out his own truths and, by proxy, illuminating artistic mile markers a large number of people in this town can relate to. The preface (his and possibly yours): a young Okie heads east to Music City seeking the larger stage that Tulsa couldn’t offer.
It’s a good time in music to be a singer-songwriter straddling the fence between indie and pop. The lines have blurred again between which is which, and the stalwarts of both are becoming cozy bed fellows (see Ryan Adams’ 1989). On this EP, Duhon is swinging for the fences. He is going for Vance Joy/Taylor Swift homerun hooks and choruses. And while he never quite gets there, you have to respect the effort of a 20-year-old swinging that size of a bat. What keeps the EP tethered to East Nashville and Duhon’s indie upbringing is the depth and closeness of his lyrics. He had some help from seasoned song crafting vets: Brett Dennen, Kevin Griffin and Matthew Perryman Jones all have writing credits on this EP.
The strongest track on the record is a song written solely by Duhon. “Faith and Hope” has the stomp/clap catchiness to draw you in and the lyrical content to keep you intrigued. The song is a metaphorical invitation to grab a gun and pick a side. It is an invigorating political call to arms, but is veiled enough to cover whether Duhon is leaning left or right.
Duhon is a singer-songwriter first. The acoustic guitar is not ever present, but is still the apparatus upon what each song is built. He is more David Gray then James Taylor, telling generational truths using modern tools. The EP has the Nashville polish on it, which might turn some indie purists away, those people might be read as bitter hipsters, but there are times during the album that you can’t but help catch yourself tapping along. The record works best when it is Duhon’s lone artist voice guiding the ship. Here’s to hoping he gets the chance to develop that voice even further. -Alex Vucelich
San Francisco
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Seventeen Evergreen Celebrates Album Release – 10/23
The San Francisco based neo psych band, Seventeen Evergreen will be celebrating their album release at The Chapel on October 23rd. The duo´s new EP, Epiphanie Solaire is being physically released by the Santa Cruz based limited edition vinyl label, Spiritual Pajamas. Make sure you pick up Seventeen Evergreen´s new 12 inch vinyl and check out the digital release via Bandcamp.
The Swedish rock band, Dungen will also be performing at the album release party. This is going to be a good show! Do your best to support awesome local independent artists!
Nashville
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October Tooth releases newest installment, “Three.”
New endeavors get lost as time blurs all lines, but some artists maintain their ground. Nashville minimalist musician, October Tooth, has remained forbearing in releasing each new iteration of the concept once a year, in October.
In 2015, we get the third installment of the October Tooth project, aptly named “Three.” With the help of local engineers, Cowboy Sam and Trevor Richardson, the sonically reticent sounds of “Three” act as a seemingly bleak backdrop for a deceptively lush range of motifs – uncertainties of reality, change and the “hope that the ones I love are proud of me.” October Tooth acts as a catalog of each year for the artist; it just so happens this most recent year held a lot of things. -Sean McHugh
NYC
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Queens duo Lewis Del Mar shares new single ‘Wave(s)’ + plays Rough Trade on 12.2
Over the past few months, Rockaway Beach-docked duo Lewis Del Mar has accompanied its celebrated singles, "Loud (y)" and "Memories," with passages of Pablo Neruda’s and Gabriel García Márquez’s and, on the June-born group’s latest track "Wave(s)" (streaming below), the elegant poignancy of those late literary giants is mixed with a compelling kind of chill-pop. A sunset romance set to gentle guitars, ambling vocals, and lyrics that are both grounded and abstract, the melancholic but ultimately content song proves Lewis Del Mar as an act that can intriguingly bring its poeticism down to earth. Lewis Del Mar plays at Rough Trade on 12.2. – Zach Weg
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best mellow songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
Chicago
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Elk Walking @ Debonair Social Club
Elk Walking (formerly The Weather) released their new single, " You Just Don’t Know It Yet", this week. The band begin as an acoustic folk duo of Savanna Dickhut and Julian Daniell, but with this single have brought on a full band to flush out their sound. They perform for the first time as band this Friday. The single will be a part of their forthcoming debut EP, due out this winter.
You can catch Elk Walking at Debonair Social Club on Friday, October 23rd, at Debonair Social Club with Horrible/Beaut and Guapachosos.
Chicago
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Ribbonhead
Hardcore band Ribbonhead released their second EP, Animals, earlier this month. Ribbonhead is an audio assault straightaway from the first notes of just over 90 second open track "Gray". Lead singer Josh Glass leaves every shred of his vocals cord on the record studio floor as he screams and growls over the blazing instrumentals by Lee Zickwolf (bass/vocals) and John Sant (drums). Take a 13 minute break and scream along.
NYC
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NYC Electro-Soul duo Soft Lit plays Rough Trade on 11.04
Flirting with trip hop, soul and electronic weirdness, Brooklyn electronic duo Soft Lit, in their first video "Ocean King" (streaming), offers an intriguing style that’s rather melodic, but filled with dark, somewhat menacing elements (presumably) concocted by programmer Tyler McCauley. Tara Chacón’s vocals carry a minimalistic verse towards the chorus’ rhapsodic opening, but the song’s overall atmosphere never breaks out of the claustrophobic feeling it sets from the get go. Earlier single "I Can’t Help It" is a more upbeat, straight forward synth-pop number, but Tara’s soulful vocals can’t help but lend a moody, melancholic touch to a track that – with that radio friendly chorus – could have been easily developed in cheesy ways we wouldn’t approve of. Soft Lit will perfor at Rough Trade on November 4th.