New Music, Emerging from your Local Scene
The Curls released a new album/tape today called Slice of Life via Dark Circle Records. The eight song release is filled with jangly horn filled indie pop with slight barroom edge mixed in.
You can catch The Curls on March 4th with Daymaker, Soddy Daisy, Teenage Rage, and Gald Rags at The Mutiny.
Carefully vacillating from somber to exuberant, the first album from DC’s space pop quartet Fall Seattle is one that takes the listener on a quasi-spiritual journey. If The Smiths heavily experimented with shoegaze elements, this is probably what they’d sound like. Mixing melancholy and merriment, this album feels like a manifesto; it combines more than two years of writing and recording by the group and it’s apparent from the striking dissonance between tracks. Sure to inspire reflection and emotional reconfiguring, this album is worth several listens, so push play already and keep an eye out for upcoming gigs from Fall Seattle. -Jonathan Goodwin
The trio of When Ships Collide has released a new EP, efficiently titled WSC II. With a show this Saturday at Tralfamadore that also includes Sharkmuffin, The Famines, Secret Nudist Friends, and Post War Dream, the band finds a middle ground of unleashing emotive angst and infectious melodies – a lurking growling ache. It’s raw and refined in the same moment. Their take on Grizzly Bear’s “Two Weeks” is familiar but certainly grittier than where the artsy Brooklyn outfit likes to take it.
The new music video for “Geranimo” by Aphra, a.k.a. Rebecca Way (formerly of Tutlie), initiates with the twinkle of a music box – a luminous visual. Throughout the production, Way and three friends capture an earnest expression of emotion through the beauty of modern dance. The spectrum of light and color shifts, revealing the simplicity and isolation that black & white imagery exposes in contrast to the blank slate/new day at the video’s start. As we await Aphra’s debut EP Sadness Is a Gesture (coming this spring), she’s slated to perform next in Philly on Thursday, March 10 at Kung Fu Necktie with So Totally, Soft Fangs, and Brandon Can’t Dance. (Photo by Megan Matuzak)
Geranimo from Aphra is Aphra
Active since 2011, Brooklyn trio Haybaby has been able to forge a power trio sound that, although flirting with the indie guitar rock of the ’90s, reorganizes sonic elements from that era in a way that’s fully their own. Lead singer Leslie Hong’s voice reignites our teenage crush on Kim Deal (ok, ok, we were in our early twenties…), while the band’s sparse but tense sound and intricate bass lines flirt with Fugazi from the ‘Repeater’ days, although without venturing in the DC band’s typically post-hardcore guttural explosions. ‘Doored’ – the final track from their impressively consistent latest album ‘Sleepy Kids‘ – features a gritty loud-quiet-loud production that is bound to be well received in a live setting. Speaking of which, on March 9th at Palisade the band is kicking off a month and a half long US tour, with a prolonged stop in Austin during SXSW.
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best punk/garage/slacker rock songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
Deli Readers,
Our Best of KC Poll for Emerging Artists has been—as usual—a lengthy and painstaking journey which took us through prairies of numbers, horizons filled with band names, and a dense (mostly), joyous rain of music. We have finally reached our destination and we can announce the final results!
1. Yes You Are
Yes You Are’s (pictured above) brand of ethereal rock is a magnetic, encapsulating experience from start to finish. Kianna Alarid and Jared White craft purposeful pop songs surrounded by transcendental swaths of sound. After quickly pronouncing themselves onto the Kansas City scene and becoming a fan favorite, they gained national traction by supporting Neon Trees on their summer 2015 tour. The band recently made its debut appearance at The Midland opening for Lucius, winning over an even stronger KC contingent.
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2. HMPH!
When you think about complex instrumental music, you don’t immediately think it would necessarily be palatable to the masses. But much like the group’s melodies and rhythms, HMPH! twists experimental math rock into fascinating, engaging tunes. HMPH!’s debut album Headrush—released last summer on Haymaker Records—made a name for itself on a number of Best of 2015 lists (including ours!)
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3. Missouri Loves Company
Missouri Loves Company jumpstarted the new year by earning readers’ votes as the winner of our 2015 Emerging Artists’ poll. The six-piece plans to release a full-length album soon, having recently released songs from its latest studio sessions. Be sure to check them out in KC in April at Davey’s Uptown, and look out for new music from them soon.
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Check out our poll’s top 15 below, and don’t forget to get even deeper, exploring all the finalists organized by genre:
POP – POST ROCK – PUNK/METAL – ROOTS – ROCK
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If you wonder how this chart came into existence, here is how it all went down: first, we let the local bands submit their music (for free), and got our Deli editors to pick the nominees. Then we polled a list of 15+ K.C. scene expert (our jury) and asked them to nominate 3 more bands of their choice each (3 points for the top choice, then 2 and 1). Then we polled our readers. We tried to keep things open for each single genre, from Pop to Roots to Metal.
If you are a geek interested in all the subtelties related to how this poll works, you can read its rules here (happy reading!). But if all you care about is the awesome new music KC produced in the year 2015, this list is all you need. Enjoy!
Many Thanks to our Jurors: Ann Stewart, Barry Lee, Bill Brownlee, Brenton Cook, Chris Haghirian, Dedric Moore, Don Simon, John Todd, Justin Mantooth, Michael Byars, Rhonda Lyne, and Sondra Freeman.
Hope you’ll find some awesome new artists you weren’t aware of!
The Deli’s Staff
Deli Readers,
Our Best of L.A. Poll for Emerging Artists has been – as usual – a lengthy and painstaking journey which took us through prairies of numbers, horizons filled with band names, and a dense, (mostly) joyous rain of music. We have finally reached our destination and we can announce the final results!
Sharp on the heels of their full-length debut album, Better Strange, James Supercave is giving psychedelic rock a welcome facelift with an array of infectious grooves alongside warm, creamy atmospherics. The Echo Park band write songs that are hearty and yet soulful, offering a wildly eclectic journey that constantly rewards. Right when stylish electro pop is beginning to overstay its welcome, leave it to James Supercave to rewrite its formula with wide-eyed wonder.
2. Rudy De Anda
A slight outsider in the LA music scene, Long Beach resident Rudy De Anda is proudly raising the flag of an oftentimes relegated territory that sports a bevy of talent. Rudy’s first solo-outing after founding psych-pop troupe Wild Pack of Canaries has something of a more slacker appeal, putting a stronger emphasis on lovestruck songwriting with a deft touch of whimsy.
3. Miya Folick
As stated on her strong readers poll showing, it’s safe to assume that Miya Folick isn’t just emerging…she’s here to stay. She’s captured the hearts and minds of numerous publications with her raw delivery, a dry, though evocative voice that echoes with resounding effect alongside her reflective observations and haunting melodies. Her latest, reveal, “Oceans”, is a darkly introspective number that should strongly connect with listeners.
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Check out our poll’s top 15 below, and don’t forget to get even deeper, exploring all the finalists organized by genre:
ALT SOUL – AVANT-INDIE – DREAM POP – GARAGE/REVIVAL ROCK– INDIE POP – INDIE ROCK –PSYCH/POST PUNK – ROOTS MUSIC – SINGER-SONGWRITER – SYNTHPOP
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[JUAN, PLS UPDATE THE HEADPHONE LINKS IN THIS CHART!] BEST OF 2015 POLL FOR |
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If you wonder how this chart came into existence, here is how it all went down: first, we let the local bands submit their music (for free), and got our Deli editors to pick the nominees. Then we polled a list of 15+ L.A. scene expert (our jury) and asked them to nominate 3 more bands of their choice each (3 points for the top choice, then 2 and 1). Then we polled our readers. We tried to keep things open for each single genre, from Indie Rock to Roots Music to Hip Hop.
If you are a geek interested in all the subtelties related to how this poll works, you can read its rules here (happy reading!). But if all you care about is the awesome new music L.A. produced in the year 2015, this list is all you need. Enjoy!
Many Thanks to our Jurors: [Britt Witt (Indie Rock Reviews), Betty Elektro (Elektro PR), Jay Tinsky, Droozie Lane (Freaky Styley Booking), Juan Rodríguez (The Deli LA), Pat McGuire (Flood Magazine), Janette Ayub (Girl Underground Music), John Giovanazzi (The Complex), Dan Frazier (Free Bike Valet), Liz Garo (The Echo), Michael Grodney (Dirty Laundry), Angela Ratzlaff (OC Register), Karla Hernandez (Sofar Sounds), Neil Shield (Origami Vinyl), Ryan Mo (The Deli LA), Matt Draper (Echo Park Records), Jesser Boredom (Bored to Death), Rosemary Bystrak (San Diego: Dialed In).]
Hope you’ll find some awesome new artists you weren’t aware of!
The Deli’s Staff
Light reflected brilliantly from Jack Kilmer’s wavering tremolo arm as Glimmer dipped into the Non Plus Ultra last Saturday. Oxford shoes, white kicks, and the cowboy hat that had loitered under the haze of cigarettes, drew into the swirl of stretched-out, torrid chords. The first intermission allowed a quick survey of the room: there was spilled beer and little space to move. The audience tripled in size as Golden Daze gave more than a taste of their narcotic, new self-titled debut, even revealing an unreleased track "Within" to closed eyes and mesmerized ears. The night was still young as FYF veteran and self-proclaimed "biggest trashcan" Evan Weiss (ex-Wires on Fire) stepped up with JUNK for some innocent, destructive fun.
You did miss out; but you can still catch Ben and Jacob next week as they support Fell Runner‘s March residency at the Bootleg, presented by KXLU. As always, check our Instagram @TheDeliLA for more pictures of the night. – Ryan Mo
