The last few years have seen a rise in experimental, genre-bending, independently produced music. Perhaps this is due to the internet’s ability to access almost any music instantly, or maybe the breadth of music already created pushes artists towards a disregard for barriers of style. The disappearance of label-driven artist development might be part of it too. Whatever the cause, the NYC scene is producing a lot of incredibly innovative music — and Jelani Sei is part of this phenomenon. The Connecticut/New York group plays soulful, hip-hop and jazz inspired music with a flair for indie and alt rock traditions. Without abandoning the approachable framework of pop music, Jelani Sei has created a complex and intelligent sound. You can hear the group’s idiosyncratic style opening for T-Rextasy on December 23rd at Trans-Pecos. – Cameron Carr
