The Wilful Boys live up to their name with an intentionally gritty and intentionally ugly brand of punk that channels the elements of hard rock, noise rock, and hardcore. Their debut full length Rough As Guts tightly packs their self-loathing lyrics, frantic energy, and anxious howls into 12 songs. Tracks like “Poor Old Mate” and “The Pinch” feature methodical drumming and driving riffs that are overflowing with attitude. The title track contains the album’s softer and quieter moments before spiraling into a head banging punk track characterized by vocalist Steven Fisher’s abrasive yells. The Wilful Boys will be releasing the album on July 22nd through ever/never records, and will be celebrating its release that night at Union Pool. – John Honan

On their debut EP Ambulances, the Brooklyn-based band Russian Baths, lithely manages to forge melodic music that is equally haunting as it is noisy. Marked by a wraithlike set of vocals that float over layers of pedal-driven cacophony, the band’s sound is so swirlingly hypnotic that it would make a perfect soundtrack for your next fever dream – should you ever need one. Russian Baths is distinctively New-York-Cool, and while their distorted guitars snarl and crunch their way through the two track release, the band still imbues them with a decidedly dance-y fervor. See them live at Union Pool on August 16th opening for IYEZ and Mueren Humanos. – Olivia Sisinni

Fresh out the time machine, Active Bird Community play indie rock music that could’ve been beamed straight out of the late 90’s. Clearly inspired by the tense, guitar-driven acts of yore like Interpol or Built to Spill, the quartet’s tunes are like love letters to a simpler time for indie-rock, when everyone knew what the hell it actually was. Their latest video for "Pick Me Apart" perfectly captures this ethos: Tom D’Augustino’s slacking vocals sing about the mess that is life, while "fun" events and happy people whir around him. The only time he shows positive emotions, then, is when he’s playing music with his friends under a blanket fort. It’s a video about lost youth, highs and lows, alligned thematically with college rock, but featuring a more mature sound. Active Bird Community also released a single back in April, and you can check them out at The Bowery Electric on July 23rd. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber

Buzzwords like "fresh" and "innovative" get thrown around all the time in music journalism. They are pretty cool sounding afterall. Rarely, though, does an artist and their music justify the usage or embody the spirits of those words. Boston’s People Like You do.  The indie outfit’s debut LP from two years ago flew under our radar, but now’s the perfect time to discuss it since they are working on its follow-up and playing a ton of live shows. At the core of their sound is the contrast between the band’s cerebral instrumental arrangements and the visceral vocals.  Each of their songs is a swirling mix of instruments and styles from classical glockenspiels,  jazz horns and persussion to indie-rock guitars. The isnstrumental parts are intriguing, inventive and could probably function as post-rock songs just by themselves. That would, however, take away singer Chris Lee’s emo and spoken-word styled vocals, and that would suck. Lee’s at times laconic, others verbose, but always emotional vocals crash head-first into the band’s instrumental arrangemtns to create a sound that excites emotions and provokes introspective thought. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber

Annique Monet is a Brooklyn based chanteuse who charms listeners into following her to her musical fun house, where they are treated to some sort of crazy, psychedelic dream. Her debut album and one of last year’s Deli NYC record of the month, Phantom Letters, still manages to awe us with an unconventionality that defies expectations.  Annique Monet is bringing her hypnotic music to Baby’s All Right for Heaters’ LP release on August 5th – be sure to catch her there for a mind-bending experience. – Madeleine Grossman

New York band, Modern Diet, certainly stays to true to their name, offering a modern mesh of indie pop and soul with some jazz undertones. Upbeat single, “Echo Parade” (from this year’s debut LP MD So Far) comes full circle as it begins calmly, presumably describing the uncertainty of love in the summertime, and builds up as the singer gets to the point, saying, “let’s slip and slide and sleep together again.”  The song takes a turn with instrumental focus, questioning the same cycle and repetition of love, and finishes in the calm way it started. Be sure to catch the band on at Shea Stadium on July 26th with Roofer’s Union, Special Guest and Del Water Gap. – Madeleine Grossman