Hey holidaying people out there,
Our Deli jurors just finished rating all the Electronic artists that submitted to be considered for our Year End Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists – and here are the results for you to check out! The top 3 artists in this list will qualify for the next phase of the poll, and will be added to the bands nominated by our jury of local scenemakers.
P.S. If you are interested in understanding how our Year End Poll for Emerging Artists works, please go here.
NYC YEAR END POLL 2011 OPEN SUBMISSIONS RESULTS – ELECTRONIC
Jurors: Jason Behrends (Deli Chicago), Dawn Reed (Deli DC), QD Tran (Deli Philly).
– QUALIFIED TO THE POLL’S NEXT ROUND
1. j.viewz
NYC’s j.viewz mesmerized our jury with his mid to downtempo, soulful and absorbing electronic compositions. Compelling songwriting, refined production values and beautiful female voices work together in making this one of the best Electronic albums coming out of NYC in 2011. Apparently, the CD art isn’t that bad either – it was nominated for a Grammy for Best Recording Package!!!
2. Tayisha Busay
Williamsburg hypsters’ favorite party band has proven, with their new album "Focus/Virus" that they are much much more than just some kind of weird and hilarious cabaret act. Songs like "Nothing’s Happening" and "Heartmeat/Lovemuscle" (streaming here) are pure electronic pop gems, from a record that’s as consistent as it’s varied.
3. WAZU
Recent transplants from LA, the duo in Wazu crafts an almost scary electro-rock with industrial tinges and a pop soul. Their guitar sound alone commands awe, while the overall apop-calyptic mood of their music brings to mind that masterpiece of the 80s that is The The’s "Infected".
– ALMOST QUALIFIED TO THE POLL’S THE NEXT ROUND
These artists had outstanding ratings from our jurors (they all shared a final score of 7.66 out of 10) but won’t qualify to the next round of our poll because… I guess because we need to put a limit to the total number of nominees. We really wish they were in the final list though because they are really good, so check them out!
4a. Masterface
Atmospheric and textured, Masterface is a patient bunch: the band likes to build their songs slowly, letting their angelic melodies intertwine and feed each other, supported by (and often buried under) layers of gentle electronic sounds. This is an interesting project that bridges genres as antithetical as pop and ambient.
4b. Treasure Teeth
A collaboration spanning from London to Miami to NYC, Treasure Teeth is probably one of the most emotionally intense quirky bands we have ever heard. The fact that the sensitive female lead vocals don’t sound at all disconnected from the constantly evolving, somewhat bizarre electronic arrangements represents some kind of production miracle.
4c. Ghastly City Sleep
Also textured and atmospheric, Ghastly City Sleep conveys to its music an almost religious intensity through sparse arrangements and spacious melodies often drenched in reverb, showcasing also a penchant for intricate rhythms borrowed from Africa.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
These artists also had really good ratings from our jurors (between 7 and 7.5 out of 10): Kodomo, Cultfever, Papertwin, Great Tiger)