Coming off a year that most bands would give their drummer’s right arm for, it’s not surprising that Fang Island’s Chris Georges is in an upbeat mood. Reflecting on a 2010 that saw the release of the group’s self titled debut album, critical acclaim and huge upsurge in their profile, the guitarist has spent the new year just trying to make sense of it all. Read Dean Van Nguyen’s feature here.
The Deli celebrated this unusual band by giving them the cover of The Deli’s 1st SXSW issue, and Fang Island returned the favor by accepting to headline our NYC B.E.A.F. fest – don’t miss the show on May 27 at Brooklyn Bowl. DJ Nora of irockiroll will entertain the crowd before the show with a selection of tune (mostly) by NYC artists! Click here or on the picture below for the fest’s full schedule.
 

Sunday May 22 is the final night of the free Deli-sponsored 5th Annual LC Fest, organized by independent music community Local Correspondents at Bar4 in Park Slope, and it features performances by aCloudedhed (top picture), Matt and Elijah of Two Cent Revival, and The Whispering Tree (bottom pic). ACloudedhed is a four-piece band that combines old soul and modern rock influences, while Two Cent Revival is the new folk-tinged Americana meets classic country project from Brazilian-born, Texas-raised singer/songwriter Matt Jones. Their new EP comes out June 15, 2011. The Whispering Tree is an indie/folk duo who’s releasing a new music video for the title track of their album, "Go Call the Captain," on June 9th. For the complete schedule of performers for the entire festival (doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 8 p.m., through May 22nd), go here.

Niall Connolly, Abby Ahmad (in the picture) and Paula Valstein performed on Friday May 21 alongside 10 other local artists at the free Deli-sponsored 5th Annual LC Fest, organized by independent music community Local Correspondents at Bar4 in Park Slope. Irish songwriter Niall Connolly’s busy schedule had him performing 250 gigs in 10 countries over the last year, and his new album, "Super Cool Fantastic" is out in U.S. on May 28th. Alt. folk-rock musician Abby Ahmad blends intelligent lyrics and intense, intricate guitar playing, while sultry pianist Paula Valstein’s participation on Israel’s highest-rated rated television show, Kohav Nolad (which is kind of like "American Idol"), means she can’t walk unrecognized down the streets of Tel Aviv. Her debut album will be released in the U.S. in October, 2011. For the complete schedule of performers for the entire festival (doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 8 p.m., through May 22nd), go here.

Arlington based urban folk rock’s the Justin Trawick Group are heavily gigging all over the DMV, and hitting the 9:30 Club stage this Saturday May 28. And 9:30 wants to make sure you get in on it, so we’ve got some passes to this show! All you have to do is email us here, and let us know what your favorite Justin Trawick song is and why, by 3 PM on Friday May 27. The winner will be chosen at random, emailed back, and announced on this blog.

For more info on the JTG, check out the interview below where Trawick talks about getting the crowd to waltz, their Iota Club residency, and their plethora of ex-girlfriend songs.

A little bit blues-y, a little bit folk, The Spring Standards give and take a little bit of everything in their music. The low-key melodies, gentle harmonies, and plodding along keys and drums make for wonderful ditties to nod one’s head to or get lost in. The band clearly has tons of passion and compassion (see their kitten stuck in a car story in the interview here), and a tight knit camaraderie all of this shines through their bright vocals and down to earth instrumentals. Some songs border on being ballads, while others are downright country-blues tunes. – See the band live at Bowery Ballroom on May 24, read Lauren Piper’s interview here.

Secondstar, Heidi Sidelinker and Third Wheel Band (in the picture) are among the 13 acts playing tonight at the free Deli-sponsored 5th Annual LC Fest, organized by independent music community Local Correspondents at Bar4 in Park Slope. Secondstar plays folk-pop that veers from bright and shiny to dark and melodic, while Heidi Sidelinker’s solo work as a singer/songwriter (she’ll also perform tonight with her band Lowry) combines wistful, lilting tunes with sweetly melancholic acoustic underpinnings. The Third Wheel Band is an American roots group combining influences as varied as bluegrass, country, folk, talking blues, early jazz and rock ‘n’ roll. Their debut album On Willow Street was released in November 2010. For the complete schedule of performers for the entire festival (doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 8 p.m., through May 22nd), visit the LC website.

NewVillager put on one of the most impressive shows I witnessed during CMJ 2009. In front of a vividly colored, transformative sculpture, Ben Bromley and Ross Simonini performed “new pop,” their own brand of pop pastiche riddled with electronic touches, in the crowded basement of The Delancey. At the time, they had only a 7-inch single with the groovy electropop tune “Genghis On” and the tribalesque “Rich Doors.” The duo recently released the single “LightHouse” accompanied by a hyper hypnotic video and announced the bewitching, nimble song is from its debut album set to drop on August 16 on IAMSOUND, home to MEN, Suckers and Telepathe. Although NewVillager has comparatively very little recorded music available, each song on the forthcoming album apparently was recorded in 10 distinctive versions complete with different lyrics and melodies. But music is only a small fraction these multimedia artists obsessed with mythology engage in. They post photos of their striking work and inspiration on their blog. The band has lately been playing with a wide variety of bands in New York, including MNDR, Gordon Voidwell, MEN, Savoir Adore and Princeton, which only speaks to their chameleon-like appeal. Before NewVillager embarks on a few gigs with Okkervil River and Titus Andronicus on the West Coast, the band will play a show tonight at 285 Kent for Gigantic Magazine’s launch party. – Nancy Chow