We first covered dream pop trio EZTV back in December and we are happy to see them signed to uber cool Brooklyn label Captured Tracks (home to Mac DeMarco and Real Estate), which is releasing today their debut 7" "Dust in the Sky" (streaming below). All parties involved are currently working on a full length that will see the light later this year. EZTV will be performing at The Bowery Ballroom on May 5th and then at Palisades on May 7th, before embarking on a short US tour in the early summer.

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

For those who like their dose of roots music extremely chilled and rather psych, Alex Bleeker and the Freaks are a treasure to behold. Led by Real Estate’s bassist Alex Bleeker, the group’s latest release dates back to 2013 ("How Far Away" LP) but is going to have a rather active spring this year, with shows in the west coast and Chicago. They’ll be playing Brooklyn as well, on May 7th at Palisades with EZTV and John Andrews & The Yawns.

Considering the not very promising premises (they are fronted by Gossip Girl’s star actor Penn Badgley) electronic NYC band MOTHXR is actually a hell of a lot better than what the average reader of The Deli may expect. Their music is dark, percussive, and also soulful, in a suspenseful and cinematic way. The band, known until mid 2014 as ‘MOTHER," lives single by single (they released four in 2014, “Easy” is their best received one so far), and sports a very convincing live show and noteworthy fan base – we experienced it directly when they packed Pianos at our 2014 CMJ show. They just unveiled this video for their second most popular single ‘Centerfold.’ You can catch them tonight with another Deli favorite: Buscabulla.

The label of New York as a melting-pot may sound cliché these days, especially when it comes to music, but not when the ingredients in question are as disparate as dream pop and Peru. Malka, who just released their debut EP ‘The Constant State’ and is fronted by Peruvian-born, and nine-year-New-York-resident Darko Saric, brings its own flavor of shoegazed dream-pop to the seemingly over-populated table of noisy, melodic instrumentals, highlighted by vocal brilliance and unique lyrical alternation between Spanish and English. The record flows in a mystical airiness, its songs individually building in intensity throughout, choral guitars shooting for the heavens, seamless in their strumming, and the bass diggings towards an underworld unknown with its bulldozing, growling granularity. All creates a wonderfully ethereal environment over which the vocal harmonies of Saric, EJ DeCoske (guitars and synth), and David Ciauro (bass), can dance and meld. Whether dealing in pop-rock rhythms driven by drummer Mike Dawson, as on opener “A Flock of Crows,” or the tonal clarity and spatiality of the guitars, as on “For Now We Live,” and Spanish-sung closer, “Mirame,” ‘The Constant State’ explores sonic territories beyond any tangible landscape, which surely helps get past the this big apple’s crammed lifestyle. – JP Basileo

Yo, isn’t it a little too early to have "The new Strokes" yet? Maybe it’s a question of perceptions: for those who’ve been listening to indie rock for more than 20 years, the answer may be "yes," but considering how quickly the new generation of NYC musicians is churning through past decades for inspiration, the early aughts are next in line for a revival. The guys in NYC’s Public Access TV look so young they were probably toddlers when "Is This It" came out, but the only really important thing here is that they can write very catchy pop songs and deliver them with top notch flair. After touring with Gang of Four and losing home and music gear in the recent explosion in the East Village, the quartet will keep playing around the US in May, touring with Palma Violets. Watch out for a debut EP, to be released soon.

Brooklyn’s Animal Years released their debut album Sun Will Rise in 2013, then revealing the music video for their song “Forget What They’re Telling You” (streaming below) and opening for Robert Randolph and the Family Band the following year. Now prepping their sophomore effort, the roots rock trio led by singer/guitarist Mike McFadden will open for their artistic hero, the singer/songwriter Martin Sexton, at The Gramercy Theatre this Friday (5.1). – Zachary Weg

Things are looking good for super-poppy rootsy duo Oh Honey, a band we booked a couple of CMJs ago. After enjoying two EPs and a big single in 2014 ("Be Okay"), the band doesn’t seem interested in slowing down: their third EP "Wish You Were Here" – part of a series called "Postcards" – was released in late March, and just a few days ago they unveiled the video for single "Sugar, You" – streaming below, which gathered more than 50k plays on Youtube in just two days. That number is bound to go up quite a bit after they will be performing on TV at the Today Show on April 29. After that, they are surely looking forward to uplift the spirits of the US masses, while on tour with Ingrid Michaelson, in June.

Admittedly, two years ago we totally missed NYC Gospels‘ noteworthy single "Animal Feelings," an atmospheric ballad full of intriguing textures and soulful vocal lines. In late 2014 the band released what appears to be their debut EP "Greenhouse," consistings of four catchy, well produced songs, blending electronic and acoustic sounds, and vaguely inspired to the electronic, radio friendly pop of the 80s. In opening track "Sleepwalkers" (streaming) we occasionally hear Peter Gabriel from the "So" years, blended with some of that jazzy pop critics of the decade used to call "sophisti-pop." Definitely a fine debut.

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

Although NYC if filled with bands playing garage rock, few local acts pull it off as competently as Dirty Fences, who’s been refining this art since the beginning of this decade. The quartet just released a new video for "Judy (don’t go)," in which they have fun with the oldest form of dressing up (by the way, it’s amazing what a blonde wig can do, even to a man…). Look out for their sophomore album "Full Tramp," scheduled for a May 19 release. We are also digging the more psychedelic sounding opening track "Deep in Your Heart" (also streaming). You can check out two more preview songs here.

Howard is a Brooklyn band that plays an atmospheric brand of melodic post-rock (although the band, on their Facebook page, refers to it as “Folktronica”), where gentle textural experiments, synths, samples, varying percussive elements and electric guitars blend effortlessly, guided by the mellow tenor of singer songwriter/producer Howard Feibusch. The band has been active since 2009 in various forms, and lately came to the indie rock audience’s attention through single “Money Can’t Buy,", which early in 2015 gathered more than 2 million plays on Spotify in a matter of weeks. We asked Howard Feibusch a few questions hoping to steal some of his secrets in our Delicious Audio Interview about gear, recording and inspiration.

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

Hailing from Montclair, NJ, electric quartet Pinegrove emanates a sound inextricably linked to the lazy tunes produced by the slacker rock bands of the ’90s, but still absolutely original and compelling. The band has been around since the late aughts, releasing since then a series of album and mixtapes that showcase original songwriting and deep understanding of dynamics, like in our favorite track "Namesake" (streaming below). You’ll get a chance to see them live at Palisades tomorrow (04.24).

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

Brooklyn’s own Chancius Drzewuck is a guy who keeps at it, and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty – specifically, on the platforms of the NYC subway, busking. After years of struggling with his early solo releases and with his previous band Automatic Duo, the man seems to be finding his own audience, after gathering a series of positive reviews and interest for his new project simply called Chancius, which mixes new wave sensibility with his rather dead pan vocals, partly reminiscent of early Brian Eno. His latest and second release, entitled "Bando," came out about a year ago, and it’s filled with gentle songs full of peculiar melodies and early ’80s attitude. Check out the record’s opener "Hold On."