We are not sure how Brooklyn quartet Savants managed to land a gig at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on November 24, since – from the numbers we gather from their Facebook and Soundcloud profiles – it looks like they might have trouble filling that huge room. What we know, though, is that, at least musically, the guys totally deserve to play that venue. We are especially fond of their debut limited cassette ‘s opener "Think!" (streaming), which sounds like our beloved musical hero Syd Barrett fronting – dunno – a lo-fi version of The Kinks? The rest of the album is full of psychedelic slacker-style sketches, in perfect early Weezer style, but just a little more sober. Interesting ideas and melodies emerge from every single song, from the Lou Reed-esque "Something (Part 1)" to the laid back and bizarre "Us," where the slightly out of tune, gliding vocals add character to the track rather than detracting from it.

This band submitted their music for coverage here.
We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best Psych Rock songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

There’s only one thing that slightly spoils this song (entitled "Lisa Loeb Probably Never Pierced Her Ears") by Bed-Stuy project Field Guides: the bass does something kind of weird (out of key?) on minute 1:16. Something like this would normally prevent a track from being covered in this blog, but this single is so catchy and charming in a early Belle and Sebastian/The Shins kind of way that we decided to make an exception, although we are aware that the band will probably hate us forever for pointing this out. Field Guides are about to release a full length entitled "Boo, Forever" – we are curious to hear the rest of the album, considering that in their 2012 debut two track single they sound like a completely different band.

We stumbled upon NYC garage pop trio The Britanys about a year ago through our digital submissions, and we hear now that the boys have been keeping at it, recently releasing a new EP entitled "It’s All Right." Lucas Long’s vocals tend to draw melodies that reference the Brit-pop bands of the 90s, with a tone that’s reminiscent of Billy Corgan at his most nasal. However, the opening title-track (streaming below) shifts things toward a speedy garage blues that perfectly suits the band’s "naughty" and youthful attitude. The Britanys will be performing twice this week within the CMJ Music Marathon, at Muchmore on 10.24 and at Arlene’s Grocery on 10.25.

Last minute cancellations at CMJ are nothing new and we are really sorry to lose The Flag from our Friday 10.24 bill at Pianos’ upstairs lounge. On the other hand we couldn’t be happier to welcome some old friends as a replacement, duo Eddi Front, whose lead singer we praised since her beginnings, when she used to go under the moniker Ivana XL. Don’t expect Friday night party music from this duo, Eddi Front will bring an intense mellowness to our showcase reminiscent of some maudit crooners of the 60s. Check out single Texas from their 2012 debut self-titled EP

We all know how picky Bowery Presents is with the artists it books – bring no crowd to one of their shows and you are out! In this perspective, a slot at Mercury Lounge during CMJ week can be seen as a valuable prize for artists respected by booking staff of the NYC venue giant. In truth, this year not many emerging locals made it on the Mercury Lounge’s CMJ week listings. One of the lucky ones is the electronic tinkerer that goes under the name of Saint Pepsi (aka Ryan DeRobertis). From his ambient disco beginnings, enriched with the soul of vocal samples, Ryan in his more recent release on Carpark Records has switched gear to a more direct synth-pop format, graced by his own vocals. His music is more appropriate for a loungy party than a wild night of dancing, although – while lounging – you might not be able to prevent parts of your body from moving to his beats. Listen to single "Fiona Coyne" below and check out Saint Pepsi live at Mercury on October 22.

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

Sometimes records grow on us – such is the case for Zula’s "This Hopeful," released in October 2013.
There are two sides to psychedelia: dream and hallucination. Shoegazer and Dream Pop embrace the first, Psych Rock the second. Brooklyn band Zula perfectly blend both. The band finds itself at home when it’s time to engage in sonic experimentations mostly fueled by frantic stomping on guitar effect pedals ("This Hopeful"), but can deliver – a few minutes later – the perfectly placid dreamy melody of NRGZ. These are the two stronger songs in the band’s debut LP "This Hopeful" (although we also dig "Poison," streaming below), an album that never ceases to surprise, and that showcases a band that dares to explore every possibility given by every single musical element at their disposal, without renegading neither melody nor noise, but admirably succeeding in retaining a stylistic identity in the process.

Read The Deli’s interview with Zula from earlier in 2014 + see them live at CMJ next week, it shouldn’t be hard to fit into your schedule, they are playing seven shows!

We booked NYC duo Blonds two years ago for our CMJ 2012 Rootsy Stage – we remember the band complained that they weren’t really a rootsy band. Well, maybe they weren’t, but we must have detected some of those soul influences that are now pouring out of the band’s male half Jordy Asher’s new solo project BOOTS. (For the record, soul music belong to the roots music umbrella). The young musician and producer suddenly rose to relevance (rather than fame) when in  2013 he signed to Jay-Z’s entertainment company and Sony Music Entertainment imprint, Roc Nation, and produced the big majority of Beyoncé’s self-titled fifth studio album, released in December 2013. He’s now focusing on his solo material, which – from single Mercy (streaming below) – sounds extremely soulful and intensely mellow. Boots will be touring with FKA Twigs in November, see him at Baby’s All Right on Tuesday 10.28.

Dreamers‘ noisy guitars (especially the intro of single "Waste My Night," whose new video is streaming below) can’t hide the band’s melodic essence, which is one of the factors that led The Deli to book them for its upcoming CMJ Indie PopStage next Saturday 10.25 at Spike Hill. The Brooklyn pop rock trio is slated to release their debut EP on November 18.

Read Dave Cromwell‘s interview with DREAMERS.

Names generate expectations, and a band called The Amigos conjures up evenings spent al fresco, somewhere by the Mexican border, with friendly and funny people – just what the doctor ordered for your average over-worked New Yorker. Armed with just an acoustic guitar, an accordion, and – but of course! – cowboy hats, the NYC based duo plays a charming blend of Americana, Cajun music and pop that can bring a smile to the most stoic of hipsters. If you feel like it’s time to (re)discover the healing power of music, don’t miss their upcoming performance at The Bell House on October 23.

This band submitted their music for coverage here.

When you talk about Sons of an Illustrious Father, you have to speak of the band in terms of eras. Their initial recordings were folky, even vaguely alt-country, as if exhumed, dusted off, and brought down from the mountain. The vocals on these songs are beautifully breathy and cigarette stretched, the drums play a lithe shuffle, and are accompanied by banjos and the echo of an electric guitar. The music the band produces in its current iteration retains many of these facets, but has also noticeably evolved. Their latest two singles, “Very Few Dancers" and "Strange Home,” carry influences as disparate as folk, psychedelic rock, and contemporary hip-hop, and rely heavily on electric instrumentation. Still present though is that singular voice, which hopefully the band never outgrows.

Read Emilio Herce’s interview with Sons of Illustrious Father
See the band live at The Deli’s CMJ Roots Stages at Rockwood on 10.22.

Girl powered synth pop/rock trio New Myths, a band we’ve been following (and booking) since its inception, is about to celebrate the release of their debut LP ‘Give Me Noise‘ with a show at Cameo Gallery on Friday October 17 – you can also catch them during CMJ at Union Hall on 10.21. At first listen, the new material in the album gives the impression of a more driven sound, where distorted guitars match in volume and presence the signature analog synths (like in "Howl" and "The End"). The record also features the noteworthy single "False Gold" from the 2012 self titled debut EP. We are streaming here our favorite new track, the atmospheric ‘Edge of the World.’

“Rolling Stone” magazine declared last year’s Joshua Light Show at NYU’s Skirball Center “the most psychedelic light show of all-time.” It doesn’t mean we necessarily trust their judgment. However, the three-day music and light fest returns to Skirball this October 23-25th, where you can judge for yourself.

LA electro chanteuse Glasser and midwest free-jazz trio Bad Plus play opening night, where the latter is slated to perform Ornette Coleman’s understated 1972 masterpiece “Science Fiction” in its entirety. Television, as well as J. Spaceman & Kid Millions, fill the Saturday night bill (10/25). But it’s the middle show that “The Deli” is most interested in, where NYC psych-folk duo Woods bring their latest song cycle — the appropriately titled “With Light and with Love” — to glow beneath the shimmering colors on Friday the 24th.

For those unaware, “With Light” is Woods’ eighth full-length since its inception in 2006. Mixing a steady diet of Grateful Dead-like jams with indie pop-vocals (think the Shins), the album spreads out into odd new directions this time around. From Bowie-like lyrical couplets to the occasional prog-rock trill, it is the band’s crystalline effort to date. One which is sure to require more than a duo for the stage performance.

As to the Joshua Light Show, its most famous residency came at Bill Graham’s Fillmore East rock club on “freaky Second Avenue,” where from March ’68 ’till it closed in June 1971, Joshua Light produced “Mondrianesque checkerboards, strawberry fields, orchards of lime, antique jewels, galaxies of light over a pure black void and, often, abstract, erotic, totally absorbing shapes and colors.” That’s what the “New York Times” saw, at least. Founder Joshua White came to NYC after graduating from film school at USC in 1965. (Classmate George Lucas stayed on the West Coast and ran experimental light shows at Frank Zappa’s Shrine Auditorium freak-outs of 1966-67.) White & co. re-emerged more recently as lighting designers for the 2008-11 Broadway revival of “Hair.” This latest fest showcases their ephemeral cinema with a well-deserved top-billing. – Brian Chidester