If ever Wes Anderson produces a film about space exploration (and I wouldn’t put it past him) I hope LEPT does the entire score. Their music, like this hypothetical movie, is whimsical in a measured way. Its playful affectations melt away to reveal something far more substantial, suggesting that a lot of thought and effort went into its production. This should come as no surprise, considering that LEPT is the brain child of two members of Zula, (Henry Terepka and Pablo Eluchans) and E Scott Lidner, proprietor of Studio Radio 45, a recording studio and podcast. Entirely a studio project, the songs on the eponymous LEPT EP take on the familiar trappings of krautrock, and share Zula’s fascination with rhythm, credit to percussionist Eluchans. Reorient, the EPs third song is built upon his poly-rhythmic architecture, with undulating synth and bass passages weaved throughout, giving it an organic feel. It’s a shame these songs won’t be performed live, but you can catch Zula with Palm on May 3rd at (le) poisson rouge and listen to the entire LEPT EP here. – @emilioherce
Noisy trio ADVAETA unveils single “Church Cult” from upcoming LP
As you can gather from their streaming single, NYC noise rock trio Advaeta isn’t too concerned with pleasing the average music lover, choosing to cater to the faithfuls of the rock genre genre that takes tension and dissonance to its extreme. The band, active for more than 5 years in the NYC underground, will be releasing their new album "Death And The Internet" on local label Fire Talk at the end of the month. The unveiled three singles from it, which seem to add a dreamy vocal element to their droney and abrasive wall of guitars: "Angelfish," streaming below, "Hazel Blue Eyes," and "Church Cult," recently premiered on Stereogum.
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best Psych Rock songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
Howard’s ‘Money Can’t Buy’ single gets 2 million plays on Spotify
We have to say, we are pretty friggin’ proud of Brooklyn via New England electro folk (or something) quartet Howard. When we first featured them in this blog in November 2014 we were struck right away by their sound and songwriting, which effortlessly blended elements as disparate as jungle and Gregorian chants. A few weeks later they went on to top the Psych/Avant Indie submissions for our Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists. A few days before, they had dropped a new single entitled "Money Can’t Buy," which since then has gathered a stunning TWO MILLION plays on Spotify. The band recently playd SXSW and landed a deal with a major touring agency, so we are sure they are going to have a fun rest of 2015. Congrats guys!
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
NYC alt rockers Highly Suspects go to Bonnaroo – to play!
NYC Alt Rock trio Highly Suspect – ANOTHER band that was listed in our recent Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artist – just got the news that they were selected to play Bonnaroo. The band’s bluesy single "Lydia" (we blogged about it recently here) was released in early 2015 and immediately resonated online with hundred of thousand people around the globe, which obviously helped them land a spot in the line up of the upcoming Tennessee hosted festival. Check out their other single "Lost" from their debut EP.
Fort Lean announces debut LP “Quoet Day”
Started as a rather psych project entrenched in melody, Brooklyn Fort Lean in the last few years has developed its sound in a decidedly poppier direction (something also reflected in the band’s press shots), although without losing some of the edgy sound of its beginnings. The band has just put the finishing touches to debut album "Quuet Day", which follows their 2011 self titled debut EP and a couple of singles from the following year, and it’s shceuled to be released on June 2. Check out the preview single ‘Cut to the Chase" below.
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
Don’t Miss Big Ups and Boytoy tonight at Baby’s All Right (04.09)
NYC punk lovers should not miss tonight’s show at Baby’s All Right with last year’s Deli Artist of the Year – the post-hardcore madmen Big Ups – and super talented garage poppers Boytoy, a female fronted trio with Australian roots that manages to merge influences as disparate as shoegaze and surf. They will be opening for Nashville’s Turbo Fruits. We actually booked both bands last year at the punk stage of our NYC B.E.A.F. (Best of Emerging Artists Fest), which by the way will be back this year, again during the Northside Festival. Check out a recent single by Big Ups and an older song by Boytoy below.
Bowmont Plays BAM café Live + unveils new remix for “Just Cause You’re Right”
The original version of Brooklyn synth-pop collective Bowmont’s song “Just Cause You’re Right,” off of their 2014 released EP ‘Hovering,’ had a uniquely warped quality to the pulsating synth sequence. Although very much a pop song through its vocal presentation, a rather unpredictable structure kept the listener engaged. The band now released a stunning remix of this track, moving it closer to the environs inhabited by the likes of Swedish electro masters The Knife. With DJ/Producer Rasmus Vestervig handling the remix under his 99 Blows nom de plume (the guy is also a celebrated guitarist in a number of bands), an intoxicating blend of sparse percussive pulses share open spaces with deep bass synth notes. When Emil Bovbjerg’s vocals ultimately emerge to tell a tale of loss and heartache (“if you ever come back to this street, I’m going to change the locks on the door”) they are propelled forward by bright high-hat cymbal percussion and bubbling synths. In addition to this new release, the band will play a free show at BAMcafé Live on Saturday, April 11th at 9pm. – Dave Cromwell
An interview with Bambara about recording
Brooklyn/Athens based trio Bambara plays that niche genre – unknown to most mortals – called "noise rock." You may have more luck getting a reaction from saying the words "Sonic Youth," the NYC band that pioneered and perfected the genre in the late 80s. In their latest album "Dreamviolence," the trio takes things to darker and sometimes even noisier extremes. We asked them a few questions about how it came together. The guys are lucky enough to have a sound engineer in the band, William Brookshire, who recorded the album and answered our questions. Read the interview on The Deli’s gear blog Delicious Audio.
Separated by an ocean, duo Teenage Love announces upcoming EP
Only a powerful musical chemistry can explain how two musicians separated by an ocean can decide to form a band. Copenhagen-based Anna Lidell and NYC’s Katy Gunn formed Teenage Love when they met in NYC during Anna’s first trip to the US. The two preview singles from their upcoming debut EP combine quirky vocal harmonies, violin melodies and electronic elements in a way vaguely reminiscent of Dirty Projectors, with a slightly less jazzy/experimental inclination. Check out "Gold," streaming below, and the more recent Teenage Fanclub cover of "Sia – Chandelier."
The Deli NYC’s Record of the Month: Dolly Spartans – self titled EP
I think we can all agree about the fact that age is very important in rock’n’roll; we might not like that (we don’t) but we can agree about it, right? Therefore, a good rock song is bound to get some added value when it’s written and performed by four musicians in their (not so late) teens. And then, if you also realize that the band has a solid six track debut EP with no fillers under their belt, things start to get really interesting: records without fillers are rare at any age… The band in question is NYC’s Dolly Spartans; their self titled debut fluctuates between pop punk exuberance (‘We’ll say that for now,’ streaming below, and ‘ ‘Don’t You Know‘) and more tamed melodic moments reminiscent of a dirtier Vampire Weekend (‘Who Are You,’) or even of sacred monsters like The Beatles and their beloved disciples XTC (‘Something on my Mind‘). The band’s sound features the right amount of rawness (think early Pixies), which gets tamed at least in part by songwriter and lead singer’s Michael Eliran tenor, that sounds way more mature than his years. The range of the six tracks, the actual songwriting, and the maturity of the arrangements is truly impressive for such a young band, and make this is one of the most consistently fun NYC made record we heard in a while. Hopefully these guys’ sound won’t get too polished too soon!
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!
Soul in the city: Tangina Stone plays Sol Village showcase at S.O.B.s on 04.15
SOB’s Sol Village is New York City’s longest-running R&B/Soul music showcase, and it’s turning 10 this year (happy anniversary, The Deli is also 10!). The event’s organizers have built a solid reputation for breaking new artists within those genres, booking early gigs for John Legend, Musiq Soulchild, Luke James, Bridget Kelly, Allen Stone, and Emily King among others. The next featured performer at Sol Village is New York (via Ohio) soul-pop singer songwriter Tangina Stone, who released her debut EP The Fall about one year ago. Check out her popular single Suntan, streaming below.
Life Size Maps releases debut full length today + plays Baby’s All Right on 05.01
Brooklyn’s Life Size Map, a band that merges 8 bit rock with melodic vocals and shoegazey tendencies, is releasing today their self-titled debut album on Old Flame Records. Check out the two preview singles from the new record ("All Been Spent" and "Parasol Life") streaming below. Life Size Maps will head on a short east coast tour with LA’s Gothic Tropic and then return to Brooklyn to celebrate the record release with a show at Baby’s All Right on May 1st.