Don’t ask us why, but we feel like no month could be more appropriate than a freezing December for Brooklyn-via-Japan all female quartet Hard Nips‘ CD release party. The band plays rather spartan punk pop, with what I would call "classic female Japanese rock vocals" – a style of singing that I would describe as high in pitch, super-simple in the choice of melodies, and non-dramatic in the delivery. I’m sure there is a deep cultural reason behind what I’m hearing and associating with Japanese singing (and if not, then perhaps it’s just a coincidence), but for now I’ll just be happy to coin a new genre, by the name of "Nip-Pop". Hard Nips will bring their punky Nip-Pop to Cake Shop on 12.07 to celebreate the release of their debut CD.

Yuck, a band comprised by musicians spread in 3 different continents (NJ, London and Japan), have been getting a decent amount of buzz lately with their alternatively clean and fuzzy dream pop. After signing to Fat Possum Records (The Walkmen, Wavves, Andrew Bird), the band announced their full lenght debut for February 2011, and released a first free mp3 you can check out down here. Definitely a band to watch for 2011 – don’t miss the show at Electric Ballroom on 12.08 with… Teenage Funclub!!!

Yuck – Rubber

Traditional bluegrass with a unique pop twist. Just one of the reasons we are so keen on The Ascetic Junkies. At the core of their raw and mesmerizing sound are the sparkling vocal harmonies of Matt Harmon and Kali Giaritta. These harmonies, layered with whimsical melodies and superb acoustic instrumentation, create a distinctive vibe and energy, unique only to the Junkies themselves. Fresh off their wild and raucous 2008 release, One Shoe Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Portland, Oregon’s The Ascetic Junkies are back with a new LP, This Cage Has No Bottom. What makes the new album so compelling, is the raw feel and obvious growth of songwriting skills, evident by the tracks we’ve provided below. The Ascetic Junkies take you on a wild gypsy ride worthy of anyone brave enough to follow. Come along, you wont regret it. – Veronica Medici from Marmoset Music.

The Ascetic Junkies – God/Devil/Gov’t

Ugly Orwell and August are the MC/production duo that comprises Bi-Polar Bear. Their combined efforts result in thumping production effervescent with innovative sample usage. Lyrically, they come across both slick and ferocious, usually simultaneously, which is no easy feat. Their multi-syllabic rhyme schemes, steeped in coffee grit and chronic haze, flip and turn throughout their verses. Groups like this are hip hop’s saving grace; they rap not just for rap’s sake, nor to inflate their own egos, but to enrich and evolve the art form. Though they tout a split personality as their namesake-cum-mascot, there is an inherent harmony that rings long after the album ends. Their upcoming project with Blue Sky Black Death will only add more depth and facets to this rapidly evolving personality disorder. – Broke MC

DC’s pop rock songstress Carol Bui has a new single out "Mira: You’re Free With Me", and thusly a homecoming celebration to promote it on the backstage of the Black Cat on Dec. 8. It’s off her upcoming third album Red Ship (release date 3/8/11) which we’ll be out on Bui’s own label, Ex Oh Records. ‘The single brims with the musicality that caused Pitchfork to call Bui’s previous album “…a punk-bred record where the guitar is loud but the tunes prevail” and My Old Kentucky Blog to proclaim it the completion of the rock trifecta that also includes Liz Phair’s Exile In Guyille and PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me.’"

Also joining in on the stage action are Kristeen Young, and Lucia, Lucia. (Doors @9 $10)

Twin Sister’s idyllic songs are the stuff that dreams are made of. It’s nearly impossible to describe the group’s sound without using the word “dreamy.” Coincidentally, the Brooklyn quintet’s 2008 debut EP is entitled, Vampires with Dreaming Kids but it’s really the pacifying effect of the thick viscosity of Andrea Estella’s breathy voice that hints of Chan Marshall’s smoky pipes paired with the band’s hazy lo-fi warmth that get listeners caught up in reveries. On Twin Sister’s follow-up EP Color Your Life, the band expands its sonic palette with a diverse array of haunting tracks. From the disco-influenced “All Around and Away We Go” to the sleepy romanticism of “Lady Daydream,” the band is able to manipulate different structures and mark them with its signature sound.Regardless of their genre leaps, listeners will never want to wake up from the aural dreamworld they’ve created. – Read Nancy Chow’s interview with the band here.

A consummate blend of rock ‘n roll and psychedelia with a touch of new wave and soul, Brooklyn-based Blackbells, Ben Rice (vocals/guitar), Anthony Stella (guitar/vocals), Seth Bulkin (bass), and Austin Schumacher (drums) adopt the best of both classic and indie sounds to create a refreshing style of rock. Their self-titled, self-released EP features four tracks of great craftsmanship and quality. Ringing remnants of the British-invasion and rock standards fuse with infectious choruses, polished vocals, driving backbeats, and bluesy tinges on the freewheeling “This Is Home,” cathartic “High Healer,” seductive “Young Again,” and echoing and impassioned “Before the Flood.” Consistently producing new material, Blackbells offer a new twist on their set for each performance, and their upcoming releases and shows are sure to keep the good thing they have going, going. – Read Meiojin Bruttomesso’s interview with the band here.

Here’s the first Delicate Steve video, Featuring Dirty Projectors’ Nat Baldwin. We covered Delicate Steve a bunch of times, check out this recent Delicious Audio interview about recording his debut album.

The namesake of the garage rock/power-pop combo The Tyler Trudeau Attempt lives in Brooklyn, but to make the video for "These Are Dark Times," Trudeau and filmmaker Anthony Giordanella hung around in the post-industrial grimescape adjacent to downtown New Haven, CT, the Attempt’s ancestral hometown. "…Dark Times" is the A-side to The Tyler Trudeau Attempt’s new 7" single via February Records (also available as a digital download here). Meanwhile, "Hey Turdo!," culling 15 highlights from several years’ worth of bands led by Trudeau (including lo-fi hyper-cult fave Women’s Basketball), is available as a free download from the Attempt’s Bandcamp site. Several New York and Connecticut shows are on the horizon, including Jan. 5 at Spike Hill. – (as posted in The Deli’s Open Blog – post your band’s entries, videos, and Mp3s here).

Brooklyn’s Liturgy sparks an interesting debate for the ardent black metal fan to lament over; can a band who openly and wholeheartedly disregards black metal’s trademarked norms yet punishes ears with a similar array of blistering elements passed down from the genre’s elite really be considered black metal? Surely this discussion is bound to go the distance, but rest assured this fresh-faced as opposed to corpse-painted troupe will be too occupied transcending their abominable aural assault through opaque intervals of twin guitar tremolo runs to care about looking the part. Adorned with an unintelligible bestial shriek that fits the music perfectly and solidified with an octopus-esque percussive performance that whirls at breakneck velocity and never misses a beat, this collection of volatile metallic shredding gives props to Burzum, Darkthrone, and Ulver while implementing smidgens of hipster influence within its classically cacophonic crackles and bastardized buzzing to keep the haters hating and the vibe raw, yet maintain a global scope (“Track 7”) which permits an escape from their frosty forest to peruse the vast metal landscape for inspiration before making their solemn sojourn back to the wild. – Mike Sos

The seven piece Portland group AgesandAges has announced the release of their debut album, "Alright You Restless", February 15th 2011 on Knitting Factory Records. Produced by Kevin Robinson (Viva Voice, Blue Giant) at Amorelphonics in Portland in 8 days, the album was performed almost entirely live with 7 voices sung into one microphone. The result is a dream-filled interpretation of campfire pop songs. Started in early 2009 by Tim Perry, of previous Portland rock band Pseudosix, AgesandAges’ live show is a perfect combination of musicians with heartfelt talent and symbiosis interaction of vocal ability. Check them out live at Mississippi Studios on 12.03.

Formed by brothers Billy drums and Mike bass, noise rock tandem known as Unstoppable Death Machines has just released their first video, which is recommend for the non faint of heart. Yeah there is a lot of swearing here, but dudes, in our experience every single person in the world over 16 years of age swears more or less occasionaly so… hopefully none of our readers will feel offended. And if you do, blame it on the Unstoppables, not The Deli! We are nice guys!!!
The band is currently on a small tour in the east coast, New Yorkers will be able to check them out on 12.11 at Union Pool.