Intoxicating yet welcoming, the music video (playing below) for "Up" by Kirsten Izer is a spectral portrait of emotional vulnerability. Filmed and edited by Izer herself, the guitar-lined clip shows the New Jersey-based indie alt pop musician calmly yet boldly addressing a downtrodden soul, encouraging perseverance through pain. The 19-year-old Izer, who has previously been nominated for twin music prizes in her home state, may be brutally honest in this clip but only because she wants listeners to emerge triumphant from their duress. While Izer doesn’t seem to have upcoming shows listed, keep posted on her Facebook page. – Zach Weg 

It’s time to tackle the last category of our open submissions for the 2015 edition of our Best of NYC Poll for emerging artists: ALT ROOTS! You can see the results we published so far here.

SUBMISSION CATEGORY: ALT FOLK

Total submissions in this category: 13

Jurors: Michelle Bacon (The Deli KC), Jordannah Elizabeth (The Deli San Francisco), Zach Weg (The Deli NYC).

Artists qualified to the next stage (i.e. the Readers’ Poll, starting around 01.20):

1. Mappa Mundi– 7.8 (out of 10)

 Almost a year ago exactly, New York chamber pop six-piece released ‘At Sea,’ which is more of a sonic novella than a traditional EP. On such wistful, guitar-strummed songs and horn-sloped tracks such as “So Obscure” and “Mirabelle” (streaming below), the Adam B Levine-led band imbued poignant scenes of love and loss with a literary purity that was not only impressive in its vividness but preciously moving in its effect. Mappa Mundi plays Pete’s Candy Store on 2/5.

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2. Big Thief– 7.7 (out of 10)

Almost sounding like an indie folk version of Allen Ginsberg’s eternal poem ‘Howl,’ “Masterpiece” (music video playing below) by Brooklyn’s Big Thief is a guitar-fuzzed portrait of people searching for serenity. Especially memorable with the soothing vocals of Adrianne Lenker, the poignant song marks Big Thief—which released the quietly strong ‘side-as’ two years ago—as a group not just that conveys, but almost, celebrates pain. Big Thief, currently on tour with Here We Go Magic, plays The Bowery Ballroom on 2/18.

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3. Echoscape– 7.7 (out of 10)

On the May-released ‘Square Two’ EP, Brooklyn “math folk” project Echospace (aka Satoshi Inoue) doesn’t so much play the guitar as conure it into being. On such sweetly fleeting songs as “Rainsong” or “Undulating Place,” one marvels at the deeply deft musician’s ability to convey the deepest of emotions with a single strum. Echospace plays The Shop Brooklyn on 1.29.

Honorable Mentions: Brooms, Ransom Pier, Brother Valiant, Out of System Transfer, Juliet K Seldomo

– Zach Weg

Booming out of Richmond, indie roots-rock group Lucy Dacus has a pleasing, infectious sound that’s sure to grab heartstrings and never let them go. The four-piece strikes a precise note between roots and indie, flexing the lo-fi and mellow dance vibe of indie in union with the soulful, melodious feel of roots and folk. Altogether a rich and standout sound, the band’s eponymous vocalist has an impressive sound between Courtney Barnett and She & Him’s Zooey Deschanel and borders on the doleful, almost melancholy, especially when backed up by such an excellent rhythm section. They released their newest single "I Don’t Wanna Be Funny Anymore" in November and open for Julien Baker at DC9, 1/26. -Jonathan Goodwin

Oozing exotic charm, City of the Sun is a NYC trio that plays passionate, instrumental, acoustic music that marries caliente Flamenco with brainy post rock – and, just FYI, the former has the upper hand. Featuring two guitarists and a box percussionist, the group has been building a sizeable fanbase in NY, mostly thanks to their relentless live schedule, that sees them perform in environments as varied as the NYC subway and Brooklyn Bowl. We are premiering here the first, evocative single "Those Days Are Now" from their new LP, which  is a part of the Chesky Binaural series, a collection of albums recorded using a two mic technique that most closely emulates "real hearing" as we experience it. The album can be preordered here.

The Loop Goddess Linafornia is about to bless 2016 in swaths of vinyl scratch and emerald shine with her debut YUNG, through Alpha Pup’s sibling Dome of Doom. Since last summer’s "wetttt" and the more recent "brownies", Leimert Park’s underground empress has made waves playing a bevy of shows, including November’s Manifestival at Los Globos. Galvanizing a crowd is nothing new to the beat battle veteran, whose diverse sampling and creative change-ups have recently led to her induction to the Beat Cinema podcast family. 

Having swept up the Leimert Park crowd yesterday with her record release party, Linafornia crosses the Rubicon tonight at The Airliner with Ras G, Astronautica, SWARVY, and the Low End Theory pantheon. 

Find YUNG digitally on iTunes and in limited edition cassettes through Dome of Doom this Friday.

1/22 Pasadena @ Poobah Records

1/28 Santa Ana @ Diego’s

1/29 Los Angeles @ Shambala Studios

Last Friday, 1/15, was a killer night for local music at the Rock & Roll Hotel. A crowd of excited, dancing fans mostly filled the space and the energy was palpable, all thanks to performances from The Duskwhales, Kid Claws, and YUM.

Opening the night was YUM., a three-piece from Northern Virginia that plays a fusion of surf, chillwave, and indie rock. For such a small band, their act packed the punch of a much larger outfit, striking listeners’ eardrums with a melodic and entrancing set. Their playing was smooth and their audience interaction was friendly and engaging. YUM.’s set had a dreamy vibe to it, casting a spell of chill and indie in the room.

Second on the call sheet was Kid Claws. They are a trio from Falls Church, VA, that dabbles in shoegaze, ambient, and noise pop, while firmly settled on dream punk. The band has quite the musicality as they made great use of negative space in multiple songs and their female vocals found their way right to the heart. With liberal cymbal crashing and ephemeral guitar fades, Kid Claws has a subgenre all to themselves and craft a comfortably unsettling atmosphere of distorted, atmospheric, and punky sounds. Their next show is at the Songbyrd Music House, 1/29, with Big Hush and Soda.

The Duskwhales headlined the night and did they ever. With a sound that’s at once familiar and fresh, their music makes you wanna dance and go crazy. Hailing from Manassas, VA, this trio has a uniquely bohemian stage presence that captures the audience’s attention. Their work is heavily influenced by the Beatles, Vampire Weekend, and the Smiths, compiling elements of indie rock, psyhedelic, and retrowave into a charming and energizing musical cocktail. At the show, they paid a touching tribute to cultural legend David Bowie with an inspired cover of "Ziggy Stardust" and a Bowie-inspired original. They recently put out a new single (see below) and you can catch them open for Broke Royals and Wylder (these guys will be playing a Weezer cover set) at DC9, 2/6. -Jonathan Goodwin