In their recent sophomore LP ‘Illuminate Your Room,’ Staten Island’s slack rockers Bueno display a knack for unique story telling sung over a perfect mixture of sloppy-yet-organized instrumentation. If that brief description, and the band’s self congrutalory name, aren’t enough to convince you of their goodness, it may impress you the fact that these guys, after an east coast tour in the fall of 2016, are starting off the new year right, with what appears to be a three date residency at Shea Stadium on January 14th and the 26th, and on February 4th.  – Joeclyn Huggler

Facebook has gained such influence on our perception of the world, that finding a really good band when they only have a few hundred likes always feels very special. Enter Fixtures, a Brooklyn group with 204 – now 205! – Facebook likes. The quartet released their debut EP ‘Experienced Fainters‘ in 2014, combining the earnest yet creative slack rock of Modest Mouse with the lighthearted pop of Violent Femmes. Following LP ‘Watch Your Head,’ out in November 2015, develops a more personal voice, blending in other influences from the ’80s and ’90s (we hear R.E.M. and XTC and The Cars among others), within a sound that’s fuller and often also heavier. Track #3 ‘Gone Crazy’ (streaming below) is the pop highlight of the record, an enthusiastic love song where everything works like clockwork. You can see Fixtures live at Sunnyvale on February 1st.

We gave NYC’s indie pop duo Satellite Mode a "Buzz Alert" back in November (yo, when we say it, we mean it!), and we are glad today to find out they are playing Irving Plaza… tonight! These guys just released a new single, entitled ‘Warm Fire Lightning’ (streaming below) that confirms their talent what good we had to say about them a couple of months ago. This is quality pop that feels timeless. If you move fast, you might still be able to grab a ticket for tonight’s show, they are opening for Great Good Fine OK. If not, well… enjoy the new single!

Ah, the late 90’s. What a decade to be alive for true rock lurvers! A time filled with gritty, grungy, hardcore, sloppy yet wonderful alternative rock music. Formed in 1987, hardcore influenced NYC band Supertouch release three years later their debut album “The Earth is Flat”. Their musical style hinted at legends such as Mudhoney, Melvins, and Bad Brains, but with their own sonic spin and a F-You demeanor retained from the good old punk days. As it happens in rock’n’roll, they broke up after that debut, which slowly became a cult record among many rock music connoisseurs. Twenty years later, the band is reuniting, releasing a new EP entitled “Lost My Way,” which really sounded as if time had stopped. Although they haven’t released new music since “Lost My Way”, Supertouch is still killing it live, and will hit St. Vitus on January 19th. Check out their EP title-track streaming below. – Jocelyn Huggler

True Blue, like a fair share of alternative artists, doesn’t like to let any information about them transpire through their online profiles (in most cases, this is not due to love for privacy, but rock’n’roll-style lack of caring). This being said, it looks like this act really enjoys living in expensive US cities, since they list San Francisco and NYC as their home (we believe they currently reside in the latter). By the way, we are not sure why we are referring to them in the plural form, since they appear to be a one-woman bedroom project. Maybe because of this picture, which, together with this more electric version of single "Feeling Sad" (original streaming below) seems to imply that a band has been formed. True to their name and song titles, True Blue offers invariably sad and slow songs, sung by a beautifully melancholic female voice. It’s a kind of sadness, though, that’s ineherently (dream-)pop, and, therefore, very enjoyable. You can see them live for free at Baby’s All Right on January 20th.

What we find most intriguing about electronica and dance music is its collaborative promiscuity (which we are sure lends itself to a certain degree of its sexual variety as well, but we have that in many other musical genres already!). DJs and electronic artists are very prone to remix or appear on tracks written by other, likeminded colleagues, so much so that in some cases it becomes very complicated to understand who wrote what and who simply acted as a guest (Soundcloud should really figure out a way to make that more clear). NYC producer abbi press belongs to this scene (check out her Soundcloud playlist called "COLLABS" for more about this), but her own material veers more towards the ambient/chill/downtempo realm, with excursions in more moody and atmospheric territories. Her latest single ‘Wait’ (streaming) showcases her expressive soprano paired with production ability both in the programming and arrangement departments. She’ll be performing live at Shea Stadium on January 28.

Well there are a lot of angry people out there these days, which bodes well for industrial rock, the more radical and abrasive branch of electronic music (for the uninitiated, Nine Inch Nails and Ministry were the genre’s brightest shining stars in the ’90s, but if you want to dig deep into it, you’ll have to look at mitteleuropean bands like Einstürzende Neubauten and The Young Gods, among others).  NYC duo Uniform plays a rather uncompromising version of the genre, with relentless drum machines, uber-fuzzy guitars that flirt with thrash metal, and distorted vocals. They just released "The Killing of America", their second single from their upcoming full-length, ‘Wake In Fright,’ described as "an exploration of self-medication, painted in the colors of war." For those in need to a cathartic, anger-releasing moment, catching this band live at Brooklyn Bazaar on February 9th might just do it.

This Saturday January 9th 2017, Big Thief and issue 49 of The Deli (which features them on the cover) will meet in occasion of the band’s first headlining performance at the Bowery Ballroom – the show is sold out!

Check out the band’s latest video for single "Human."

Gibbz is a prolific synth-soul-pop artist out of Brooklyn whose music is laser focused on the various feelings and situations triggered by love. Single “Oh My God” (titletrack of his brand new EP) is a soul and R&B tune dealing with lust at first sight, while last year’s single “Stay for a While” is a ballad (based on a… tennis table sample loop?) about getting to know in depth the person you are dating. “Someone Like You” – a collaboration with Cobryama – could be described as a breakup song that might cause heartbreak even to the happily paired (“I wanna love somebody, someone like you.”) “Bright Lights”, the most uplifting of them all, trades moody soulfulness for a catchy pop melody that feels positive and invigorating. Check out Gibbz breakout single "Love Again" below, and – if his music resonates with you – don’t miss him during his residency at the Knitting Factory on the next three Wednesday in January.

BOYTOY from NYC float somewhere between 60s surf jams and 90s grunge rock. Glenn Van Dyke and Saara Untracht-Oakner founded the band in 2013 with two guitars and drums, soon realizing bass wasn’t necessary. They craft catchy, fuzzy, rock nuggets that create dreamy summer vibes all year round and have been regularly apperaing in the quality small venues around New York City and LA. BOYTOY just finished their first European and Puerto Rican tours with their current line-up including Chase Noelle on drums (formerly of Thelma And The Sleeze) and Lena Simon on bass (La Luz). With a 7” and single split 7” coming out in January, the four band members continue their migratory tradition to Los Angeles this winter including a Southern, West Coast and Northern tour of the U.S.. BOYTOY plans to record their sophomore full length in LA in March 2017. You can see them live at Baby’s All Right on 01.09

We’ve always been fan of NYC’s songstress Niia, whose sensuous song "Last Night in Los Feliz" was recently chosen by Kylie Jenner & Tyga as soundtrack for a risque` video unveiled on Christmas day. Needless to say, this got Niia a fair amount of exposure, and her name popped up in our Best of NYC Top 10 for emerging artists on this same page…

Heartbreak is often the gateway to creativity. This might certainly be the case for Bushwick based, slack rockers Holy Tunics. Their single “Forget Your Love” (streaming), off their their 2016 EP “Hot to Trot” is a dreamy, upbeat track that speaks about heartbreak and the painful following efforts to move on. Happily, we can report that, based on the title of the first two tracks on the record ("Hot to Trot" and "Good Sex"), that misery might have been overcome, at least for a hot minute or two. But we are speculating: whatever the truth behind these songs is, these guys should thank the person who inspired “Forget Your Love,” because – like the Greeks say – "pain is the seed of knowledge and beauty." (And, besides, positivity is the only way back to an old flame). So, whether you want to forget your love or hope to get lucky with him/her/them, Shea Stadium is the place to be on January 14th, to see Holy Tunics live. – Jocelyn Huggler