While half of Brooklyn was banging away in besotted bedroom crawlspaces cobbling some amalgam of an avant-noise post-rock electro-gaze masterpiece, Arc Waves broke the code. In The Sound The Circle, to be released November 17th, bandmates Elaine Lachica, Brandon Jaffe, Mike Hodges and Joe Beach pulled out all the wires in their machine in order to construct a more perfect heart for their music. Elements of Deerhoof and Mogwai are readily apparent in their tone and color, but the vibrant and meticulous production distinguishes them as more than just another laptop fart bubble. Recorded at Rare Book Room Studios (Deerhunter, War On Drugs, Wye Oak) in Brooklyn, The Sound The Circle was engineered, mixed and co-produced by Gabe Wax (Here We Go Magic, Beirut, Palehound). The record release party is scheduled for Novamber 16 at Pianos. – BrokeMc

After much anticipation, NYC-based Porches, the synth-pop project of Aaron Maine has recently announced that January 2018 will mark the arrival of a new LP. The record titled The House, comes on the heels of 2016’s Pool and was the result of an 18-month stretch of intermittent recording. Says Maine, "The House is a diary. The House began immediately with a sense of urgency. A different kind of urgency than I had experienced previously when writing songs. I wasn’t sure exactly what this meant while it was happening, but it felt necessary to embrace it." That being said, January feels like a long time away, so what’s a rabid Porches fan to do? Luckily Maine has been kind enough to drop a few hints as to what the 14-track album will sound like, the latest being his new video for "Find Me," an aloof track that touches on isolation. Check it out streaming below.-Olivia Sisinni 

Noisy, aggressive and possessing some serious teeth, sub space is a thrashy hardcore band that brings honor to the time-worn NYHC moniker. Their latest EP, imaginatively named DEMO, was released in March of this past year and features 5 blistering tracks of feisty tunes that cycle through both English and Spanish and are sung with a gut-busting intensity. With commanding vocals, and bass-y, visceral kicks, sub space will leave you sweaty, dirty, and thirsty for more. 

The beginning of the second millennium will probably be remembered by music critics for the realization that soul lent itself to be pushed in new, more or less experimental directions. In the early aughts, a genre that was frowned upon by the tense and brainy children of the post-punk generation was given a new "indie legitimacy" by acts like TV on the Radio, Dirty Projector and Ava Luna. NYC collective Space Captain, the brainchild of Maralisa Simmons-Cook, is part of this wave, although within less noisy coordinates than the aforementioned bands. Born in 2015 as a rather traditional soul-jazz group (this is their debut EP), in a few months the band quickly evolved into a rather different animal: 2016’s "In Memory" EP shows edgy electronic arrangements focused on textural and ambient soundscapes. The band is about to release their debut full length "All Flowers In Time," and the record’s two preview singles showcase a partial return to the live instrumentation of the debut, without losing the edge of unexpected melodies, parts and song changes found in "In Memory." Check out the video for Sycamore below, and don’t miss the band’s record release party at Union Pool on October 27th.

By booking for Halloween night an intensely emotional, not-scary-at-all band like Hodera, this year the Mercury Lounge is certainly "thinking outside the box." On the the other hand, though, the New Jersey based quartet is pretty much guaranteed to fill the small Lower East Side venue, since their quality brand of post- Americana has been making ears turn since their 2015 debut album "United by Birdcalls." Breakout single "Breathe Easy" (streaming below) showcases their ability to merge inventive arrangements and personal lyrics wilthin a more traditional alt rock formula. This year’s brand new sophomore LP "First Things First" is a work whose consistency confirms a band at its peak (check out single "North Dakota", also streaming). The Mercury gig will serve as the band’s release show in the city. Also on the bill, more "Halloween appropriate" locals like Peaer and A Deer A Horse.