The mathy debut EP With Sadness by the emo Hartford duo Two Headed Girl is leaves no gory detail untouched. The emotional project, fronted by Celeste Padua and Angelica Padua, is hard to compare to anyone else. Right from the opening track “Holy Ghost,” this project swallows you whole with the intense choruses and surreal riffs. The duo’s delivery of lines like “I’ll die alone / we all die alone” (from the catchy “Miss Me”) does not touch melodramatic, instead coming across as completely genuine. “Target Practice” is effortlessly relatable, and “Favorite Song” is searingly honest. As you can imagine, the rest of the tracks follow suit. They will be playing a live show tomorrow, August 8, at MAC 650 Gallery & Artist Co-Op in Middletown, CT. – Lilly Milman, photo by Jillian Maraj

Stream the full With Sadness EP below.

The Burlington-based folk trio Emma Cook & Questionable Company has a mythic origin story; co-creators Andy Feltus and Max Guyton began playing music together as roommates at the University of Vermont, and later met Emma — with whom Andy fell in love. The trio played their first show together on Halloween in 2012, and have been an unstoppable force ever since. Yesterday, the trio released their newest single “You Know Why” (streaming below), a jazzy folk track that leverages Emma’s incomparably smooth vocals to create something that sounds close to magic. Their next show will be at ArtsRiot in Burlington on August 9. – Lilly Milman, photo by Kayhl Cooper

Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Francis Aud describes his music as “funk and soul music that is almost as charming as he is.” His most recent release “Friends Like Us” is a sweet summer song about friends who “don’t stay just friends for long” as he puts it. It has the universal charm and likability of a good pop song, blended with grooving synths and pulsing drums that dare you to dance. His debut EP Tender Thoughts, released last October is a collection of engaging, playful tunes. “Share this Bed” is a blues-inspired love song, while “Yeah!” is a powerful, heartfelt ballad complete with a commanding brass section and old soul tenderness. You can catch Francis live with his band “The Professionals” this Thursday, August 9 at Mercury Lounge. -Lily Crandall

Fresh off of their impressive live show appearance at Northside Fest, noisy dream-gazers No Swoon premiere their latest track “Blame The Messenger” here on The Deli. Establishing its soaring melody from the very first note, a triumphant swirl of guitar and keyboards float above deep thudding drums. Vocalist (and guitarist) Tasha Abbott sings in a sultry and elongated style that references Liz Fraser of Cocteau Twins. “Blame the messenger and dusty words,” she sings (extended out as “wo-o-o-ords”) against the band’s momentary angular accents. “Tongue’s all wet (pronounced “way-a-yet”), flooding the curb” points towards a theme of desire and apprehension. With nearly if not all the bass coming from keyboards, the tracks underpinnings are buzzier and less note driven. A central ambient interlude ultimately leads to one more lengthy instrumental break, complete with elevated vocal outro. The band will play a free show this Wednesday 8/8 at Elsewhere’s Rooftop with Rodes Rollins. – Dave Cromwell