NYC’s dual art-pop sisterhood Zambri just announced that they signed to Kanine Records. These young ladies have been working on this for quite some time – I personally met them in 2003 (I think), when they were talented teens looking for a producer – that’s what my job was at the time. Their signing to one of the most successful new NYC indie labels is a testament to how far you can go when you have talent and determination – and also to how long that may take. For a first introduction into the world of Cristi Jo & Jessica Zambri, Kanine Records will be releasing Zambri’s debut EP Glossolalia on November 8, 2011. You can see them live at Glasslands on August 18th and at SummerScreen @ McCarren Park on August 24.

Lo-fi New York based he-she duo Schwervon! is happy to announce that they will be taking a little trip down south to record with legendary sound engineer/ producer Doug Easley (Sonic Youth, Pavement, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion) in Memphis, Tennessee. They will be playing some shows on their way down there and back. More info about the dates can be found here. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here). The Deli’s NYC Open Blog is powered by The Music Building.

Get your cream and sugar ready! Released on Monday 08.08, Dollar Coffee‘s debut album "Nice Things" – available for free here – is the first full length collaborative release from Brooklyn MCs Albert Rhymestein & BS. With production credits from K.O. Beatz, Willie Green, AM Breakups, brokeMC, and Mic-L, and guest appearances from notable MCs like Rabbi Darkside, PremRock, and Dru the Monster (among others), "Nice Things" it is guaranteed to brighten your mornings (as long as you don’t read the news) .- brokeMC

You can’t really say that Brooklyn Psych-Rockers Weird Owl "are not what they seem". Yes because their Lynchian name perfectly describes the kind of music they play, i.e. dreamy weirdness which would be the perfect soundtrack for a movie by… David Lynch! The band has just released its sophomore album "Build Your Beast A Fire" on Tee Pee Records – the release show is tonight at Brooklyn’s Union Pool. Here’s the brand new video for the track "Skin the Dawn".

Emil & Friends consists of Emil Hewitt and his friends: the killer bassline and his “mixologist” brain. Plus a rotating team of musicians of course… In what he describes as “weird pop,” he creates a version of combined disco and indie pop that doesn’t always travel in a straight line, but can still keep you moving with it. He just announced a that the upcoming LP “Lo & Behold” will be released in October, but you should stop by for his year-old baby EP available for stream here. Here’s a video from last year’s record. – Caitlin Clive

Thursday night at the Lower East Side hotspot, Pianos, was filled to the gills with a rowdy audience anticipating an even more energetic band, The Click Clack Boom. The trio combines New Wave vocals, throwback rock cadences, dancey grooves, and punk paces, pushed forward by spastic outbursts and animated stage presence. Mostly unreleased material, set list selections included frantic and grungy “10:24,” counter-intuitively upbeat “Cryptic Condition,” echoing and impassioned “Tow the Line,” calypso-inspired “ZKBK, freewheeling rock track, “Ghosts” from the band’s debut album, “Howling,” brand new “Plastic Dolls,” and ominous, bassy closer, “Lighter.” The Click Clack Boom’s quirky, crowd-pleasing, and zealous demeanor, and fashionably disheveled appearance epitomize the characteristics of Brooklynite artists, reaffirming their recognizable and well-earned upswing as a prime NYC band. – Meijin Bruttomesso

Illuminator and their debut album "Answer Voice the Child" (released in January) confirm our suspicions that NYC bands with a mellow sound currently have an edge in terms of originality over rocking/shredding ones. This guitarless up and coming Brooklyn group often sounds like a crazier but also more laid back version of french duo Air, with some added psych/experimental influences reminiscent of artists ranging from Pink Floyd to Grizzly Bear and Dirty Projector. Their soulful melodies also bring to mind early TV on the Radio. In "Hey Crazy (Cough)" and "You Are Overgrown" – two of our favorite songs – electronic percussions, often distorted, introduce an interesting industrial element, but are confined to the background, while sweeping, heavily effected vocals take center stage.
The ancient Greeks thought that at night you could hear the music of the universe while staring at the stars. Nobody ever heard that music, but if it existed it would sound very much like this record. Cosmic. – You can see Illuminator live at the Church For All Nations (417 West 57th St, NY) on August 13 with Teletextile.

Yeah man! it’s nice to hear some Pink Floyd "Wish You Were Here" / "The Wall" era influences every now and then – it’s kind of rare. I bet you a ton of people out there had love affairs with those records, although now they’ll deny it… Admittedly, in our teens we were obsessed with them. But when we went back in the band’s discography and heard Syd Barret… it kind of changed our lives. However, Austin, TX psychedelic space rock band The Boxing Lesson carry obvious Pink Floyd influences from the Roger Waters dominance period. They premiered the first video from their new Muerta EP today. The intense, apocalyptic clip depicts singers and a variety of debris slowly sinking to the bottom of the ocean, set to the song’s dark, sweeping lament.

What’s in a name? Don’t ask me. There’s no such thing as a yellow ostrich, but that doesn’t stop Alex Schaaf from insisting it’s alive anyway. And in songs like ‘Whale’ and ‘In The Past I Was an Astronaut’, Yellow Ostrich is making the abstract discernible, and getting a lot of attention for it. This guy raised enough money through his kickstarter two years back to self-release the outstanding "The Mistress" last year, only to get picked up by Barsuk Records and have the album re-released this year. Things are moving fast! – See Yellow Ostrich live at Glasslands on August 19, read Mike Levine’s interview with Alex Schaaf here.

Ravens & Chimes emerged as the winner of last year’s Best of NYC Emerging Artists readers’ poll. There’s no mystery why the talented quintet is considered New York’s answer to 2011’s big Grammy winner, Arcade Fire. The spirited vocals and baroque instrumentation are comparable to the band’s Canadian counterpart, but Ravens & Chimes don’t need the coordinated outfits and an expansive troupe of musicians to grab people’s attention. Even the band’s most subtle songs are as enthralling as their more ornate tunes. – See Ravens & Chimes live at Pianos on August 17, opening for Sherlocks’ Daughter, read Nancy Chow’s interview with the band here.

NewVillager got a fair amount of love from The Deli and it’s great to see them progress in their "chase for (indie) stardom." The band was just featured in New York Magazine’s ‘Approval Matrix‘ grid as both "brilliant" and "high brow". And "high brow" can’t really be a bad thing from the friggin’ Highest Brow publication out there! The band, who has recently released this video of the song ‘ShotBigHorixon’, is about to head out on tour with Metronomy. New album coming out on August 16.

I don’t know if it’s just me getting old or what (the heat, maybe?), but these days I have the feeling that most of the quality music curently produced by NYC artists is in the range between "mid tempo" and down right "mellow". Brooklyn-based four-piece Little Anchor position themselves in the latter category, blending the storytelling and simplicity of the Northwest (home of front-lady Alexa  Cabellon) with New York influenced pop sensibility. They do so in a very compelling and delicate way. They will digitally release the Yellow Lights EP on September 6, 2011.