Blending and often juxtaposing elements of pretty much any genre out there, from Pop to Doo-Wop, from Americana to Math Rock, and using all sorts of instruments to do so, Brooklyn’s In One Wind can be described as a big musical carousel. The band is about to release their debut album "How Bright a Shadow!" on August 16th and the 2 songs available for free preview (embedded below) are very promising. This is obviously a group of people belonging to the that category of musicians who are trying to find new musical paths within the pop realm, and these tracks succeed in being at once entertaining and interesting – something both pop and experimental music too often fail to achieve. Don’t miss their upcoming shows at Rockwood on 08.12 and Sycamore on August 19. We recently sent the band a few questions, you can read the full interview here.

On “Drive Your Car,” from its forthcoming debut EP, boy-girl duo Mister Melt sings about cars, sex, fighting, and dancing—the Big 4 of rock ‘n’ roll. Mickey, the band’s car-averse singer and guitarist, calls the tune “totally ironic,” but “escapist” is more like it. The sampled drums evoke Escape Club’s party-starting 1988 hit “Wild, Wild West” — still a highway howler, even if it’s a blatant Elvis Costello rip-off — and Mickey’s vocals suggest at least some affinity for ‘50s and ‘60s American pop culture. If nothing else, Mickey and Maria dig how Brits like the Jesus and Mary Chain recontextualized malt-shop memories. – See Mister Melt at Cake Shop on July 24 and at Bruar’s Fall on July 31. Read Ken Partridge interview with the band here.

The term "ghost" encapsulates a lot of ideas. Poltergeists, dead relatives, revenge bent evil spirits, lonely souls with unfinished business, Casper, pixilated Pac-Man enemies… anyway, Brooklyn band Ghost Ghost is like that, in a way. They encapsulate a lot of genres, though they choose  to define themselves as freak-folk. Kevin Peckham (vocals, bass, keys) and Karl Ward (vocals, percussion, guitar) lead a mixed bag of musicians and artists on a journey that is both strange and familiar.  It would be like seeing a phantom band led by Jeff Buckley and Jerry Garcia fronting a jammy, catchy blend of gentle spirits. Channeling influences as diverse as The Mountain Goats to Leonard Cohen, Ghost Ghost will be at The Knitting Factory on Saturday July 30. Check out their music here. – allison levin

There’s an interesting selection of rising Brooklyn bands a the House of Yes on Sat night, within the "Viva Vuvuzela" fest.
U SAY USA, coming off their recent residency at the Trash Bar and appearance at the Northside music festival will be one of the highlights of the night with their indie pop-rock . Also on the line up is Jangula, an excellent BK based band who made our "Best of 2010" list and has been building up their resume with lots of press. Event details here.

Bird Call, the work of Brooklyn musician (but San Francisco native) Chiara Angelicola, landed number 75 on the Deli’s Best New Emerging Artists of 2010 poll (the full results can be seen here). She grew up listening to her mother play music, serenading people with a plastic microphone throughout her childhood. Before moving to New York in 2009, Angelicola rocked the Bay Area scene, winning honors and showcasing at the International Folk Alliance in Memphis, Tennessee. Bird Call’s new EP of cover songs, "Other Creatures", was released in the spring, marking the second time Angelicola has collaborated with Joel Hamilton, producer of music giants such as Elvis Costello and Tom Waits. Haunting and nostalgic, endearingly sincere and mindblowingly creative, her music ranges from a warbling pop sound to morose and elegant pieces. The Deli is premiering here Bird Call’s new video for "Waltz in the Snow", the song that won her the International Songwriters Competition award as judged by Tom Waits and Peter Gabriel among others. Bird Call will kick off her summer tour with Johanna & The Dusty Floor with a show at The Knit on August 2.

To celebrate the launch of the brand new Bleach Blonde Records, Richard San Luis and crew will be hosting a party on Saturday July 23rd at Bruar Falls in Brooklyn. Scheduled to appear will be Bleach Blonde recording artists Telenovelas, Blemishes and Youth Castles. Non-label mates Young Boys and Dream Diary will also be playing later in the evening, with DJ sets from members of Young Boys as well.

Blemishes debut single release "Keep It Quiet" does anything but that. Squalls of harsh feedback eventually give way to pitch-bended guitar chords and cathedral hall vocals. The percussion is forward forceful, allowing the bass to slither a groove while layers of guitars and vocals float you down alleyways of pleasurable dreams.

Youth Castles take the dream vibe in more romantic directions. There is a soft soulfulness to "Sight Seeing" which finds patterned percussion segments deeply embedded against the swirling, reverberated vibe. It’s lush and dramatic, and could be the soundtrack of your wonderful summer, if you would just let it.

Host band Telenovelas in the picture) have progressively evolved over the last year. Since the release of their 3 song EP a year ago, their steady gigging has seen them grow more confident and dynamic with each successive show. The band will soon release a brand new studio track – "Lost in the Sand" via a split 7” single with Australian solo artist Colours on the other side. Hop on over to Bleach Blonde and check out other up and coming artists and stay tuned for future BB releases/showcases. – Dave Cromwell

Deli cover band of our Summer 2010 issue, Bear Hands just debuted the music video for "High Society", which the band’s guitarist, Ted Feldman, had a "hand" in directing, together with Andrei Bowden-Schwartz. The video is like a moving mosaic – a myriad of tiny videos of the band playing form the bigger, moving picture. To realize this the band stood in front of the cameras performing "High Society" 78 times. The directors brought the overwhelming footage to New Orleans to be edited with the help of Bob Weisz, who directed Big Freedia’s video for "Y’all Get Back Now". This video comes on the heels of the vinyl release of Bear Hands’ debut album, "Burning Bush Supper Club". The Brooklyn four-piece started a new national tour yesterday in Washington, DC and will rock the stage of Webster Hall on October 30 with opening acts, We Were Promised Jetpacks and Royal Bangs. – Abigail P. Devora

We introduced these new promising Brooklynites to our readers here back in May, they just premiered this video for "Wet Cement", fashioned after a scene from Francoise Truffaut’s 1960’s film, "Shoot The Piano Player". Pursesnatchers, which features members of Au Revoire Simone and Dirty on Purpose, will be celebrating the release of their debut CD "A Pattern Language" at Union Hall on July 22.

Borrowing in equal measure from the bubble gum ballads of the 60s and the decadent atmospheres through which – during that same decade – The Velvet Underground were implicitly fustigating that music and a few other things, The Echo-Friendly’s new single "Same Mistakes" is pretty much a contradiction in terms. The band’s sound, also because of the addition of a female voice, has obviously evolved tremendously since the debut EP "Still Not Sorry", released at the end of 2010, which was faithful to the dark ballad format, but carried much stronger rootsy influences. The single was released a few weeks ago on Cantora Records. The foursome is well into completing its first EP, expected to come out this fall.

Sam Mickens has, since his teen years, been a shadowy figure operating across the landscape of international pop music with an experimental edge, in groups The Dead Science (Constellation Recording artists), Xiu Xiu (which he’s recently rejoined and for whom he’s presently composing new material) and Degenerate Art Ensemble, and acting as a sideman/guest musician with artists ranging from Daniel Johnston to Carla Bozulich. Additionally, for the past few years he’s been extremely active composing music for large-scale modern dance works by a number of choreographers, as well as creating his own epic performance works, both as co-chair of the now-defunct Villainaires Academy and most recently under his own name. He presently lives in Brooklyn, NY, where he leads his large ensemble Sam Mickens Ecstatic Showband & Revue. You can see him live at Silent Barn on July 30.