Portland

Thunderpussy get in the holiday spirit with new track

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It’s Christmas Eve, it’s snowing, and the big day of presents and family time is just some hours away. For many, Christmas is all they look forward to but for others, it’s just another clock tick on the way to the end of the year. If you weren’t warm with the spirit of Christmas before, let this holiday cover from Thunderpussy fill you up.

Their rendition of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," the Phil Spector classic originally sung by Darlene Love and known as the greatest rock n’ roll Christmas song of all time as ranked by Rolling Stone magazine, keeps that hard romanticism alive. Whitney Petty’s guitar playing has a heavier twang to it, but Molly Sides’ vocals keep on the same emotive plane as Love’s. If anything, Thunderpussy’s version could go down as one of the greatest Christmas covers of all time. 

Thunderpussy likely won’t be playing this cover live after tomorrow is over, but take your chances at it by catching them at their New Year’s Eve soiree at the Showbox, with Industrial Revelation, KOLARS and other special guests. Give "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" a listen below. 

L.A.

The Deli LA Artist to Watch: Daiza

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Danielle Thwaites, or better known as Daiza, is blowing up in the local electronic scene. With roots in both Dallas and Boston, Thwaites brings years of writing and self-taught music production to her own rare style of electronica. After listening to all of Thwaites’s music on her sound cloud I instantly became a fan, and truth be told, I usually don’t seek out that style of music; it’s just not for me. However, she does an amazing job at transforming the imagery of her music into what she is feeling by incorporating guitars, synths, drum pads, Ableton and trigger sounds, creating a dark, twisted and fascinating story inside my own head. You can watch a captivating visual to her single, “Here,” on YouTube that definitely captured my focus for the whole 4 minutes. (I recommend watching it in the dark.)

Though all the music I have heard thus far from Thwaites was beautiful, single “Metal Mouth” has taken gold. Both lyrics and instrumentals come together to create a nostalgic and relaxing vibe that I was not expecting from an electronic artist. Thwaites’s talent is simply astounding, and up until recently, all of her shows were performed solo: “A friend of mine, Michael, is a real fan of my project. He co-wrote a new track with me, and now I’m bringing him to the stage for a few songs where he will sing, play keys and trigger whatever it is he needs to.” And with a show at Amplyfi coming up on January 12, Thwaites is determined to make every show different for her audience: “It’s never the same setlist, always a new song or two, and I’m always trying new ways of performing songs to have control of more parameters.”

Daiza is available on all social media platforms, so you have no excuse to not check her out and fall in love. Kayla Hay 

 
Austin

Day For Night Fest Impresses in 3rd Year (Festival Review)

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 As a native Houstonian, it is a strange feeling to have an event in our city considered the paradigm of ‘cool’. Sure, Houston has incredible museums, an expansive ethnic food offering, and is home to the largest rodeo and renaissance festival in the nation –but it is the nascent Day For Night festival that causes scenesters in both New York City and LA to go green with envy. In it’s third year, Day For Night has gathered momentum and continued to deliver quality music and art, despite obstacles and forces of nature that would crush a less dedicated festival team.

While no festival is perfect, Day For Night continues to be imperfectly perfect, as its weather, cancellations, and drama just add to the volatile but exhilarating atmosphere. The fringe and counter-culture of Houston is rarely on display, and DFN has done wonders creating an all-inclusive playground where world-renowned artists, progressive musicians, and black-clad locals converge in an explosion of creativity. Here are some highlights (and a few lowlights) from the festival that continues to impress going into it’s third year.

5 Best Performances:

Nine Inch Nails – A memorable set that began with lead singer Trent Reznor telling the crowd, “We’re not gonna let a little rain stop us – let’s go piggies,” as they launched into their hit “March of the Pigs.” While other artists at the festival balked at the unfavorable weather (see Cardi B), Nine Inch Nails fought a driving rain storm like they were doing battle with Mother Nature herself. Although the set ended by the stage being evacuated, it was an immaculate baptism for NIN fans.

Perfume Genius – Mike Hadreas aka Perfume Genius creates primal pop with tremulous vocals and anvil-like backbeats. Hadreas moved with grace and effeminate poise while oscillating between his songs from his last album, No Shape, and older crowd pleasers like “Queen” and “Hood”. The voice of Hadreas is transcendentally beautiful and his gyrating stage antics made this performance perfect.

Solange –  Although she cancelled an appearance on Friday, Solange was the hometown highlight for the Sunday night crowd. It is easy to pin Solange as the beneficiary of her sister’s fame, but it’s evident upon her first song that she has a unique aura and talent unto herself. “I want to shout out H-town, my hometown!” as Solange talked about hitting the Galleria and going to local hotspots like Frenchy’s. Solange’s set reflected the deep soulful spirit of Houston and filled the audience with her uplifting light.

Pussy Riot –  My expectation with the all-female band that had famously been imprisoned by Vladimir Putin in Russia was a politics-heavy outfit short on musical abilities, and boy was I wrong. Pussy Riot brought their Slavic brusque attitude to a high octane hip-hop and pop set that was magnified by over-the-top pageantry. The songs were catchy, but when they announced, “This next song is the song that sent us to prison for two years,” the reality of their strength and resilience hit home hard.

Justice – There was a time when there was no getting away from a song like “D.A.N.C.E” but now, a decade later, Justice is still able to melt faces and ignite a city-wide dance party. Seizure-inducing lights and chest-rattling beats fomented the biggest dance party of the weekend. The French duo has just released their third album, Woman, and it looks like they’re back to charm America.

Honorable Mention: En Vogue, Kimbra, James Blake, Jaime XX,

5 Disappointments (Besides the weather and some late cancellations):

Cardi B – In all fairness, the hype built around her performance was undeserved, and many would argue her career might be as well, but the reality tv star still managed the saddest excuse for a performance I’ve seen to date. NYC rapper Hood Celebrity came onstage to lip sync for a few songs before letting the DJ awkwardly stall for 45 minutes. Scheduled for an hour, Cardi came on for ten minutes, rapped three songs and then said, “It’s too cold ya’ll” and left the stage. A huge waste of everybody’s time.

Pretty Lights – I’m not sure if Derek Smith is getting experimental but his typically high-energy, crowd-pleasing set was buried away somewhere, while he tinkered with a minimalist electro odyssey. Pretty Lights played the Spinal Tap equivalent of a free-from Jazz exploration in front of a festival crowd, needless to say, it did not go well.

Set Times – I heard after the fact that there was actually an official DFN app, but it was released midway through the fest. Because of the weather, set times were constantly changing and people were constantly accessing the mobile DFN site to stay on top of the latest audible. Not a big issue but annoying to say the least.

Thom York Late Show – More of a personal issue, but I can’t be the only one who needs to work on Monday morning. I get having the music going late on a Saturday, but I would have loved to have seen Thom Yorke’s set without having to sacrifice sleep. A name as big as Thom Yorke would have gotten a bigger audience prior to a 12:30 AM set time.

Bets Moments of DFN 2017:

Lil B Doesn’t Know Where He Is –  Lil B shouted out UGK, DJ Screw, amongst many others. He then said, “I want to shout out Dallas, Texas! What up ya’ll!” At least he got the state right.

BLACKIE Shocks  – This local electro-screamer had a mosh pit going on at the Yellow Stage and, while he had many admiring fans, the shocked faces of those who were passing through were worth the price of admission alone.

Phantogram Calls Out Cardi B – Bombshell Phantogram vocalist Sarah Barthel had obviously heard of Cardi B’s diva behavior the day before, which prompted her to say, “We’re going to take a quick break and will be back in an hour and a half. We’re going to hang out with Cardi B.”  Barthel continued to lambast Cardi B throughout the set, which was fine with everyone present.

House of Kenzo – A hip-hop art collective chock full of sissy-pride and raunchy dancing, The House of Kenzo were shocking and electrifying in every way. Twerking, rapping, and freak dancing gave this performance a uniquely raw and appealing vibe.

Billboard Callout – Whoever ran the projector at DFN was having a lot of fun giving inspirational quotes, dishing out fun artist facts, trashing Donald Trump, and even calling out a festival attendee named Jimmy Nguyen. Apparently Jimmy Nguyen was selling fake DFN passes and was put on blast in front of the whole festival. Gotta love the moxie of the guy/gal behind the projector!

NYC

Garage band Veins hits Brick & Mortar on 12/26

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The San Francisco-based garage band Veins is the side project of Michael Bang and Jeff Mark, who come from another Deli SF favorite, The Riot Professor. In this project, their psychedelic influences relegate to the back seat, while grunge takes center stage. Their self-titled EP drones in a way you can bang your head to, on tracks like the opener “Bipolar By Nature” (streaming below) that invite the listener into a washing machine of scudzy sounds that perfectly capture the angst of the Bay Area scene. They will be playing their next show right after Christmas, at Brick & Mortar on December 26th. – Lilly Milman

NYC

Nate B intrigues with imaginative lo-fi soul

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Nate B’s new track “take u out” adds some sparkle to the characteristic dust of his repertoire.  It’s easy to get lost in; like his past compositions it unfolds like clouds of smoke, an opium fog whose marshmallow jaws gently pound you into ecstatic submission.  Pitched-up vocal harmonies resurrected from the days of doo-wop undulate over a lo-fi drum loop and jazzy synth lines and a Hendrix-esque guitar riff.  Dousing upbeat and quixotic lyrics in minor progressions, B creates an compelling tension.  He understands the art he wants to create and composes it with the same meticulous care he gives to his beautiful photographywww.nathanbajar.com/.  Dim the lights and turn him up.

Philadelphia

Weekend Warrior, December 22 – 24

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Meshing a traditional country-blues feel, anchored on an accessible storytelling foundation, there’s a spectrum of gut-wrenching, emotional outpouring and simultaneous threads of tenderness in the music of the Levee Drivers. Those familiarly worn, vital vocals of August John Lutz II roar in a rabble-rousing fashion, as each spirited song is on the verge of tearing the listener to piece. Surrounded by an incendiary, dusk-light, dusty-road stomp, the band is hardwired to a heart-aching but optimistic duality, stinging with sincerity, as evidenced by their latest album Motel City Honey. Tonight, as part of the Big Damn Holiday Brawl at Ortlieb’s, they’ll be joined by the soul-grasping, country rock of Ali Wadsworth, the melodic, energy-infused garage rock of Scantron, and silky-serenading, retrofitted country-folk of Dirty Dollhouse. Get rowdy this holiday weekend! – Michael Colavita

More places to wet your whistle at this Christmas weekend…

Ortlieb’s Lounge (847 N. 3rd St.) FRI Levee Drivers, Ali Wadsworth, Scantron, Dirty Dollhouse, SAT Thunderbird, Gibbous Moon

Boot & Saddle (1131 S. Broad St.) FRI Southwork, Circadian Rhythms, Miss Cantaloupe

Kung Fu Necktie (1250 N. Front St.) FRI Frost Giant, Corpse Hoarder, Wolves Attack /It’s a King Thing, Joy Riding, The Classic Brown/DJSC/Trieves: Jesse Tyler, Sean Hearn, SAT Slingshot Dakota/Solomonic Sound System

PhilaMOCA (531 N. 12th St.) FRI Voltheque, Cheap Dinosaurs

Underground Arts (1200 Callowhill St.) SAT Mars Parker, Harvey Cash, KilConfirmed, Juso O, Sodacanman, Corey Lee, Re.ye

World Café Live (3025 Walnut St.) FRI (Upstairs) Annabelle Kempf, The Soundcheck, The Disapproved, Julia Kenyon, The Brandywine Fiddlers/(Downstairs) Steal Your Peach, The Whiskeyhickon Boys, SAT GTS Presents: 3rd Annual Rockmare Before Christmas

MilkBoy Philly (1100 Chestnut St.) FRI Tweed, Agent Zero

Bourbon & Branch (705 N. 2nd St.) FRI Behind The Grandstand, La Capitaña/Reed Streets, SAT Kingfisher, Tucker Hill Band, Sitting In Cars

Silk City (435 Spring Garden St.) FRI Ed Christof, SAT DJ Deejay

Fergie’s (1214 Sansom St.) SAT Jersey Corn Pickers, SUN Rusty Cadillac

Connie’s Ric Rac (1132 S. 9th St.) FRI The Plibmen. Mr. Unloved, KMX Band

Frankie Bradley’s (1320 Chancellor St.) FRI DJ Chris Urban, SAT Brian Toll

Voltage Lounge (421 N. 7th St.) FRI FV

The Grape Room (105 Grape St.) FRI Something Divine, Slow Voice, Judah Kim & The Assassination, Kevin Cox Band, SAT Apple Juice Jones

Ardmore Music Hall (23 E. Lancaster Ave.) FRI Kings & Comrades, SAT Electron, Eat Your Beats

NYC

Don’t miss Deca’s edgy pop at Elsewhere tomorrow (12.23)

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Feeling stuck? Headphones got you down? Nodding off-beat and tapping your toes more out of impatience for something dope rather than in celebration of its presence? Deca provides The Way Through. He’s no newbie. He’s been carpetbagging scenes and dropping albums from Denver to LA before setting up his camp here in NYC. Now he’s manifesting his varied talents (production, visuals, lyrics, etc.) for we denizens of the gum-spotted concrete. He bumps from abstract to full manifest with a growl and fluidity reminiscent of both Aesop Rock and Blue Scholars. Tune in and let Deca get you open. See him live at Elsewhere tomorrow (December 23). – BrokeMC

New England

Catman, RVRSR rival LA beat scene with “Garden”

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In early October, experimental beatmaker Christian Tremblay, otherwise known as Catman, released his crisp debut EP Liminal, a collection of hazy, glitched out beats reminiscent of Los Angeles beatmakers Flying Lotus and Mndsgn. “Garden”, a single song collaboration between Tremblay and heady guitar-smith RVRSR, was released in late November on SoundCloud. While still capitalizing on the Catman beat model of stutter steps and whirling synths, RVRSR brings a soft, cool edge to the bubbling track. Listen below. – Charley Ruddell

NYC

Ritual Humor delivers tribal post punk at Sunnyvale on 01.25

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Tribal, gloomy and tense, the sound of NYC’s Ritual Humor finds some solace in Celeste Carballo’s warm vocals. The simple melodies and stern rhythm section take us back to the early day of post-punk, including the simple bass synth parts and overall droney tendencies – a sound many children of the late ’70s/early ’80s carry in their DNA. The band will be performing at Sunnyvale on January 25th, check out single "Red Tiger," streaming below.

NYC

Shop Talk bring their noisy post-punk to Alphaville on 12.28

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Those who, like us, need at least one tense experience to survive through the mellow/hypocritical holiday season, might want to consider witnessing Brooklyn’s post punkers Talk Shop live at Alphaville on December 28. The trio’s 2016 debut record is unapologetically grating and exists in an imaginary musical intersection between Violent Femmes and Olimpia’s Old Time Relijun. Check out closing track Love Dart, streaming below

Philadelphia

The Deli Philly’s Featured Artist Poll Winner: Zack Krall

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It seems that a genuine love for the guitar is the catalyst for bringing Zack Krall into the world of songwriting. With what sounds like an insatiable appetite for music, the young artist continues to take in his surroundings, weaving them into the tapestry of his latest recordings. Krall recently shared his new "That Girl," which finds him at the crossroads of Jack White-inspired rock ‘n’ roll blues licks and Beatles psychedelia, and is looking forward to releasing his debut full-length album in the coming year. However, before Breathe drops in February, you can read more about our final Deli Philly Featured Artist(s) Poll Winner of 2017 HERE.