THE DELI

The truly insane bands that last more than a few months are often the ones that deliver creatively satisfying records later in their career, when the mayhem of their youthful and disruptive energy gets moderated by a more grown-up search for… a meaning? Brand new single ‘The String Game by Guerrilla Toss (streaming below) seems to suggest precisely this development. The song channels the band’s creativity and innate restlessness in more cerebral ways than they got us used to, which could also be seen as a consequence of their move to brainy NYC (where the band relocated last year from New England). The production here is truly spectacular, with fragments of guitar and synths building an arrangement that’s at once fun and totally unique. The band just released their new LP ‘GT ULTRA‘ – don’t miss the record release party on June 24th at Sunnyvale.

Brooklyn’s very own Swoon Lake have bred a new strand of indie music: "ghost folk." The band’s own description of their music is peculiar yet accurate; there is an aura of mystery about their tracks, the ambient synths and choral harmonies on their newest song "Bloom" seemingly glide right through you. Grounding elements are the lead vocals and certain electric guitar rhythms; there’s seldomly a full drum kit to speak of, but sometimes, like a friendly giant, the bump of the kick drum surfaces from below. Swoon Lake’s new self-titled EP is out on Friday, catch their release show on 5.25 at The Glove in Brooklyn. – Geena Kloeppel

Three Run Jack is a four piece band from Boston. Its members, Dave, Nick, Brett, and Brad, write fuzzy, sloppy, ’90s sounding garage songs with punk overtones that prove remiscent of classics like Pavement and Guided By Voices. Distorted guitars, totally unapologetic talk-sing vocals and distant, washy percussion make for a pleasantly nostalgic strain of lo-fi indie rock that we enjoyed so much we had to (virtually) sit down with the four of them for a chat about the band’s past, present, and future – read the Q&A with the band here.

There’s more to Ryan Wu than meets the eye (and the ear). With debut EP ‘Wutasia,’ the multi-instrumentalist perfectly encompasses the experience of young adulthood through his stripped down vocals, the twang of his guitar, and plainly honest lyrics (“Changing thoughts can’t seem to go away / Not a thing stays the same” – he sings in opener ‘Changing,’ a track that addresses the shifting friendships and loneliness Ryan experienced during the writing process). The low fidelity of the record gives the project a timeless sound, that blends well with Wu’s whimsical vocals, whose tone and melody are at times reminiscent of psychedelic genius Syd Barrett. – Lilly Milman

This artist submitted music for coverage here.

"Shapeshifter" is a very appropriate name for IAN SWEET’s debut LP, as it represents a change in the lineup of what comprised singer Jillian Medford’s bedroom pop solo poroject. Now accompanied by a bassist and a drummer in the studio and on the road, Jillian forges tracks that resonate very differently, though her crackly vocals remain the stars of the show. "Most of the songs on Shapeshifter don’t settle in a particular scene so much as they delve into a sensibility," reads the album’s description on Bandcamp. Another delicious surprise is realizing that most of the tunes on the record were inspired by inanimate objects. IAN SWEET is sticking to the Midwest for the summer, but while we wait for the return of Medford’s Crocs in the big city, let’s take to heart the meaning behind the album, that there is "no one absolute; just the ease that comes with knowing everything will be OK as long as you hold tight to the pocket-sized things in life that bring happiness while you watch the rest of your world fall apart in slow-motion." – Valentina Rocha

Drug Pizza is a punchy four-piece hailing from N.Y.C. with “big rock n roll shaped dreams.” Their nonchalant lyrics in songs like “No Reaction” are a nod back to garage rock and punk bands that inspired them (“I don’t care about your broken arms / Bones heal, and you didn’t fall too far”), and their instrumentals are clean without being clinical. Lead singer Madeline Steinberg’s vocals fall perfectly in tune with classic slacker rock bands like Pavement, and their EP ‘Return to Content Mountain‘ puts a new twist on a sound that’s an old favorite. They’ll be bringing their fun sound to Sunnyvale on May 31st at 8 for a hometown show. — Lilly Milman