Rapzilla.com cites Th3 Saga as one of the primary reasons Christian Hip Hop is “back on the map.” The Queens-based MC has garnered a fair amount of attention in the national Battle Rap scene, and his faith is worn proudly on his sleeve. His tracks don’t push boundaries as far as the sonics are concerned, but provide a suitable backdrop for Th3 Saga’s lyircal praise and penitence. He rides beats with a sharp staccato reminiscent of Tupac, but lyrically keeps Christianity in the forefront rapping, “You sayin’ that I’m a pioneer, all I’m worried ‘bout is that the Messiah’s near.” From the Bronx’s BoogieMonsters to ATL’s Deepspace 5 to Philly’s The Grits, Christian rap comes and goes. Perhaps it will be Th3 Saga’s battle prowess which prevents him from becoming just another martyr.

In the late ’60s, Jim Morrison, in this interview, clearly predicted the future of music, envisioning something unimaginable at the time: a one person act, using tapes and electronic equipment as his or her band. We wonder if the psychedelic icon’s dream looked and sounded similar to HNRY FLWR’s video for "Down, in Carolina," which we are premiering below. Even though, in it, musical instruments are nowhere to be seen, David Van Witt, the psychedelic mastermind behind the project, doesn’t do anything to hide the fact that he has full control of his creative output: the video plays like a solo dance full of glam overtones and lush with sensual background projections, during which David seems to do its best to… woo himself – in a self courting ritual that’s synonymous with art. Those who, like us, love the the quirky and somewhat meditative psychedelic pop of Grandaddy may have found a new friend. Hnry Flowr will be playing in quartet setup at Shea Stadium on February 10.

Deli Readers,

Our Best of Nashville Poll for Emerging Artists has been – as usual – a lengthy and painstaking journey which took us through prairies of numbers, horizons filled with band names, and a dense, (mostly) joyous rain of music, but we have finally arrived at destination: we can announce the final results. This year we heave a very eclectic chart – at least for the top positions.

Once all the votes were tallied (you can find out more about our methods below), All Them Witches emerged as the clear winner. Winning the contest will earn them not only serious bragging rights, but also a nod in our SXSW print edition. We first covered All Them Witches way back in the long-forgotten year of 2013, and we’re thrilled to see them getting some love from our jurors. Their 2015 Sweet Release EP is a journey and a half filled with long jams and tasty riffs that’ll have you doing that weird air guitar impression people do where they wiggle their fingers in front of their nipples for a couple seconds. The band shows no signs of slowing down in 2016, having already announced an overseas tour as well as a handful of US festival appearances.

Coming in second are local 70’s groove revivalists Savoy Motel, though to place them in a neat genre like that is a bit of a disservice. Their music is less of an old style in a modern context and more like an alternate universe, "what could have been" trip into uncanny valley. It’s all kinds of groovy and catchy, but there’s a certain unease that separates it from the pack. These guys don’t have a lot of material online yet, but we encourage you to dig on what’s available.

In third place is electro-pop songstress REMMI. Her recently released New America EP is up there with the best of what you’ll hear on any top 40 station with its crisp production and sad-dancing overtones. 

Check out our poll’s top 15 below, and don’t forget to get even deeper, exploring all the finalists organized by genre:

ALT FOLK – ALT ROCK – AMERICANA – 
ELECTRONIC – INDIE POP –INDIE/PSYCH ROCK – 
REVIVAL ROCK – SINGER-SONGWRITER

BEST OF 2015 POLL FOR EMERGING NNASHVILLE ARTISTS ****** FINAL RESULTS – TOP 15 ******

ARTIST J OS R TOT   1 All Them Witches 6.5   0.008 6.508 2 Savoy Motel 5.5   0.001 5.501 3 REMMI 4.5   0.042 4.542 4 The Gills 4.5   0.006 4.506 5 Steelism 3.5   0.004 3.504 6 The Nearly Deads 3   0.068 3.068 7 Twiggs 3   0.068 3.068   Soft Bodies 3   0.052 3.052 9 Cappa 3   0.022 3.022 10 Organ Stills 3   0.016 3.016 11 Sheep Shifter 3   0.013 3.013 12 Hot Tub Club 3   0.003 3.003 13 Elliot Root 3   0.003 3.003 14 The By Gods 3   0.002 3.002 15 Step Sisters   3 0.002 3.002 Legend: J = Jurors, W = Deli Writers, R = Deli Readers, OS = Open Submissions

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If you wonder how this chart came into existence, here is how it all went down: first, we let the local bands submit their music (for free), and got our Deli editors to pick the nominees. Then we polled a list of 15+ Nashville scene expert (our jury) and asked them to nominate 3 more bands of their choice each (3 points for the top choice, then 2 and 1). Then we polled our readers. We tried to keep things open for each single genre, from Indie Rock to Roots Music to Hip Hop.

If you are a geek interested in all the subtelties related to how this poll works, you can read its rules here (happy reading!). But if all you care about is the awesome new music Nashville produced in the year 2015, this list is all you need. Enjoy!

Many Thanks to our Jurors: Ron Brice (3rd and Lindsley), Brendan Donohue (Pureform Media), Staff, (Lockeland Springsteen Music Blog), Staff (Grimey’s), Jay Gregory (Sad Spaceman Promotions), Steve Cross (Concert Photographer), Jared & Kristen Corder (East Nashville Underground), Robert Bragdon (Break on a Cloud ), Andrew Minske (Show This ), Brian Waters (DJ/Lightning 100), Tyler Walker (Queens Art Collective), Michael Eades (We Own This Town), Stephen Tragdser (Nashville Scene), Wes Davenport (Mercy Lounge), Crying Wolf, Christopher Paxton (Event director), Mistaa Gattii ( ACME Feed & Seed), Jesse Baker (Exit/In), David Oakleaf (The Building). Many other jurors were asked to send us their preferences but chose not to do so.

Hope you’ll find some awesome new artists you weren’t aware of!

The Deli’s Staff

Sean McMahon, lead singer and guitarist of local Brooklyn/Boston band Workman Song has unveiled a brand new single with a distinctly different sound from his previous material. Recorded at The Hangar in New Jersey and produced by MGMT’s Will Berman, ‘O, To Be In Love Again’ (streaming) is a fast paced, rhythm driven song, laden with intricate guitar lines and soaring, soulful vocals. Though the song still honors McMahon’s penchant for storytelling, it is a far cry from his April 2014 release ‘Lamb‘. 

Workman Song has recently evolved from a solo folk project into a fully fledged ‘art folk rock’ band – a label created by McMahon himself. While his previous EP’s (specifically Lamb and Ion Zelig Vol. III) are often compared to Cat Stevens, solo Neil Young and Dylan, his new sound sits far more comfortably next to Kurt Vile & The Violators, early War on Drugs, Jefferson Airplane and Springsteen. On Wednesday 02/03 McMahon debuted the new single at Mercury Lounge alongside local songstress Katie Von Schleicher, Lip Talk and Alexander F of Rubblebucket. The set was perfectly executed in front of a packed venue and was just a taste of what is to come in the very near future for Workman Song. With a full length LP in the works as well as a national tour, Workman Song is one to watch. 

Deli Readers,

Our Best of New England Poll for Emerging Artists has been – as usual – a lengthy and painstaking journey which took us through prairies of numbers, horizons filled with band names, and a dense, (mostly) joyous rain of music, but we have finally arrived at destination: we can announce the final results. This year we heave a very eclectic chart – at least for the top positions.

We are happy to announce that Boston’s pop punk band Rebuilder, thanks to an accumulation of jurors votes, is The Deli New England’s Best Emerging Artist of the Year, and will therefore be featured in our upcoming SXSW print issue (check out last year’s one digitally, here). We have been following this unstoppable power-quartet since their beginnings in 2014, and it’s been great to see them grow and mature with each release.Their 2015 album ‘Rock’n’Roll in America‘ blends the melodic punk tradition of pioneers Husker Do with a more modern and epic sound, without ever letting the BPM slow down. Don’t miss them live!

Thumbs up also for weirdly named, slow core trio Horse Jumper of Love, also hailing from Beantown, who placed second. Their sound – from what we can hear from the two songs available online – channels the slacker rock of the 90’s in rather seductive and chilled ways. They have a full release coming up on March 11th, from which first single ‘Ugly Brunette’ (streaming below) was premiered by Stereogum just about two weeks ago. We found another of their tracks on Soundcloud, here. Promising band indeed!

In third place we have a truly unique artist – and yes, she is a Bostonian too. Her name is Ruby Rose Fox, and we are really, really tempted to label her as THE (or some kind of) new Nick Cave, an artist we regard as one the best of all times. As you may have gathered though, Rosy is a lady. Gifted with an incredibly deep and expressive voice, and confidence aplenty, Ruby plays slow to mid tempo noir pop that flirts with Americana – and trouble. You definitely want to keep an ear and an eye out for this one – check out her stunning latest video for single "Dance of Frankestein."

Check out our poll’s top ten below, and don’t forget to get even deeper, exploring all the finalists organized by genre:

ALT ROCK – ELECTRO/OTHER GARAGE/DIY – INDIE POP – 
INDIE ROCK – PUNK ROCK –ROOTS/SONGWRITERS

BEST OF 2015 POLL FOR EMERGING NEW ENGLAND ARTISTS ****** FINAL RESULTS – TOP TEN ******

ARTIST J OS W R TOT   1 Rebuilder 6.5     0.033 6.533 2 Horse Jumper of Love 5.5     0.007 5.507 3 Ruby Rose Fox 4.5     0.006 4.506 4 Cactus Attack 3     1.5 4.5 5 Danny Henry 2     2 4 6 Feral Jenny 3.5     0.003 3.503 7 Something Sneaky 3     0.061 3.061 8 Tigerman WOAH! 3     0.048 3.048 9 The Copacetics 3     0.045 3.045 10 Violent Mae 3         0.024 3.024 Legend: J = Jurors, W = Deli Writers, R = Deli Readers, OS = Open Submissions

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If you wonder how this chart came into existence, here is how it all went down: first, we let the local bands submit their music (for free), and got our Deli editors to pick the nominees. Then we polled a list of 15+ New England scene expert (our jury) and asked them to nominate 3 more bands of their choice each (3 points for the top choice, then 2 and 1). Then we polled our readers. We tried to keep things open for each single genre, from Indie Rock to Roots Music to Hip Hop.

If you are a geek interested in all the subtelties related to how this poll works, you can read its rules here (happy reading!). But if all you care about is the awesome new music New England produced in the year 2015, this list is all you need. Enjoy!

Many Thanks to our Jurors: Aaron Gray (Gray Skull Booking), Adam Blye (Mutiny on the Microphone), Adam Morgan (Surviving the Golden Age), Adam Parshall (Do617), Alyssa Spector (Lysten Boston), Dan McMahon (Deli NE Editor), Dave Crespo (WEMF Radio), Deep Thoughts (Deep Thoughts), Ellie Molitor (Allston Pudding), Erich Hagan (John Fleming Entertainment), Jacob Nathan (AS220), Jake (Boston Ska), Joseph Graham (NE Music Awards), Knar Bedian (Sound of Boston), Kristin Nicholls (Bishop & Rook), Lance Tobin (Brighton Music Hall), Lionel Train (The Middle East), llya Sitnikov (I Heart Noise), Malcolm Tent (Trash American Style), Paul Mayer (Cafe Nine), Perry Eaton (BDCWire), Radio Bean (Radio Bean), Ryan Agate (O’Brien’s Pub), Salty Speakers (Salty Speakers), Samuel Potrykus (Boston Hassle), The Space (The Space), TJ Edson (Out of the Blue Too).

Hope you’ll find some awesome new artists you weren’t aware of!

The Deli’s Staff

Dream pop has exploded in the NYC scene in the last decade, and the feeling we have is that the genre is slowly gathering more and more attention (also thanks to artists like Lana Del Rey, not exactly an indie scene dear, but nonetheless responsible for introducing a mellow and uber-dreamy pop sound to many new music fans). Tiny Deaths, who sound nothing like Lana, and whose name is a translation of how French people call sexual peak, is a duo based in Minneapolis and Brooklyn. They released their debut, self titled EP last year, and recently unveiled a new, four track release entitled ‘Night Flowers’ (two singles streaming below). They seem to specialize in sparse, mostly electronic midtempos highlighting singer Claire de Lune’s celestial melodies drenched in otherworldly reverb. Looking forward to see them in NYC – no shows scheduled here at this stage.

We added "Ever" to The Deli’s playlist of Best songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

Late Cambrian, winners of our Best of NYC Readers/Fans’ Poll in 2014, just released a new single entitled ‘Yearbook Photo’ (streaming), which boasts a sound a lot more electronic than what the duo got us used to. Swirling synth arpeggiators and pads leave little space to electric guitars – the band’s ‘first love’ – underlining a transaction from their early power pop days to a dreamier, more serene and mature electronic sound. This is a band relentlessly at work: they also just released a video for more uptempo single ‘Dark Heart (Where Can We Go Now?)’ – check it out here.

Fast drums, distorted guitars and melodic vocals barely floating on top of the noise – it’s the rock’n’roll equivalent of a BLT, you just can’t go wrong with it. That is, in a few words, what Dion Lunadon‘s band does when he’s not busy playing the bass for A Place to Bury Strangers or Flower of Evil. Dion unveiled just one track so far, the streaming "Com/Broke," to be released in vinyl on February 16th, but – most importantly – already has booking representation through Paradigma, which is a great asset for a new band. If this sonic BLT is your cup of tea, don’t miss the band’s show at Palisades tomorrow (02.04) – it should be a good one. 

We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best punky songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

In the company of just two ukuleles, in her new track "unpuzzle Me’ (premiered below), NYC singer songwriter Kate Copeland moves in a direction dramatically different from her previous album, taking a (rather long) step towards a sparser, more intimate sound that unveils the artist’s silky voice and intense lyrics. Gone are the experimental arrangements, gone is the "sonic puzzle" brought by electronic arrangements and a "produced" sound. It makes sense, then, to discover that the song "is an attempt at describing [a] complex process of growth and transition" – as Kate admits; the track’s simplicity acts, at once, as a more candid medium for her songwriting, and as a cure for "jumbled-up feelings that arose during a confusing and exciting time." As a welcome side effect, the song seem to have therapeutic effects on us too. Kate Copeland will be performing at Rockwood Music Hall’s stage 3 tonight (February 3rd). Her new EP ‘Red & Blue’ is scheduled for a spring release.

Maybe the ’10s will be remembered as the decade when New Jersey became cool… these days so many good bands hail from the Garden State that we are starting to wonder whether we should start calling it "The New Brooklyn!" The Jack Moves is a NJ based orchestral soul pop duo that will touch your heart and give you goosebumps, in particular if you’ve been waiting for an ’80s soul revival to get your romantic side out of jail. With their pristine falsettos and sensual arrangements, in single ‘Doublin’ Down’ (video streaming below) the group channels at once Hall & Oates and Prince’s softer side, with incredible confidence and vocal skills rare to find in a young band. The band released their full length, self-titled debut in October 2015, and will be performing at Baby’s All Right on February 8, opening for Brick + Mortar.

Brooklyn’s brothers band WRITER (James and Andy Ralph) announced today the release of their sophomore album ‘Principle Web,’ out on April 8th via Small Plates Records. While doing so they also took the opportunity to share single, "Mosquito Bitten," (streaming below). With its guttural, fuzzy, power chord propelled distorted guitars and slow melodies reminiscent of a darker, more menacing version of Weezer, the single inserts the band in the ’90s rock revival that has been taking Brooklyn by storm in the first half of the decade. Knowing the band, though (see our previous coverage here), we can expect more experimental and tense material in the rest of the record. For those who can’t wait, they can find out how their new songs sound on February 10, when the group will be playing at the Bowery Ballroom.

The Deli New England Readers’ Poll ended last week, and, after a few days churning the numbers and checking the votes, we can finally announce the winner and runners up!

1. Congrats to quirky Connecticut singer songwriter and pianist Danny Henry (pictured), who, nominated by one of our jurors (list coming soon), went to extreme(ly cold) lengths in promoting our poll, and broke the epic barrier of 1k votes to head the pack of nominated artists: he’s The Deli New England’s Readers Artist of 2015! Check out his single "Meliss" below, that manages to blend New Order and the sound of Motown.

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2. In second place, the roots music collective Cactus Attack surrounding Ryan "Stonewall" Jackson fought Danny tooth and nail, getting very close to the 1k vote threshold. These guys also shot a (hilariously earnest) video promoting our poll, check it out – we should totally do a contest of the videos next time! Cactus Attack released their charming and full of character self-title debut album in 2011 (you can listen to it here) but their Facebook profile shows them busy working on a follow up.

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3. In third place (with 548 votes) we have a female fronted alt rock group that, with their new single "Step Into The Light" (streaming) seems to be developing shoegazer overtones: Chaser Eight. Also hailing from Connecticut, this is a group whose music has been featured on TV and various radio station. Expect a new album release in the next few weeks.

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4. A few points below, at 540, stands our fourth place bands, Eldridge Rodriguez, a Boston quartet that plays rather epiuc rock with both electric and electronic elements. You can listen to theirr latest LP "The Castrati Menace" (released in October 2015) here.

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Also, don’t forget to check out the top ten artists below, they all promoted this poll hard and deserve your attention for doing so!

5. The Hempsteadys
6. Mission Zero
7. Carissa Johnson
8. Able Days
9. Ceschi

10. Dr. Martino

AND! If you are really eacher to go in depth, here are the results organized by genre!
ALT ROCK – GARAGE/DIY – INDIE POP – INDIE ROCK – PUNK ROCK – ROOTS/SONGWRITERS

Thanks to all the bands and artists for promoting this unique contest, and thanks to readers and fans for voting: we hope you all had fun and got introduced to some new, awesome local music.

The Folks at The Deli