New Music, Emerging from your Local Scene
We are honored to premiere the new video from singer/songwriter Jared Rabin. The video is one of the latest video’s from Sofar Chicago and feature Jared performing the title track from his latest album, “Something Left to Say”.
You can catch Jared at Martyrs’ this Friday, Feb. 10th.
In continuing support for the ACLU, Joy Riding released an alternate version to "Grad School," a song which will be featured on their forthcoming full-length album, due out this spring. Coupling opposing lyrical ideals versus realities, the track tackles the obstacles of adulthood. Steadied by the pop and bump of rhythm and the subtle electric charge of guitar, the words echo, bouncing off the inner mind while the daily page turns. It’s an isolating recollection of where one is – relative to their dreams.
Ethereal indie pop group Queue will take the stage at U Street’s Velvet Lounge this Friday in what promises to be a night of dreamy, soul soothing music. Coming off of the success of their EP release last year, the DC/Philly group continue to build their fan base with their combination of mellow instrumental sounds and soulful, earthy vocals.
Catch Queue this Friday night at Velvet Lounge, with William Forest and Domino.
-Written by Michael Dranove
One of our largest polls yet has set so many great bands (and many of them, friends with one another) against each other in a fun battle to figure out the best in punk and garage for the 2017 year. After tallying up the votes, we’ve got your top two picks from the readers’ poll and the overall (jurors’ and readers’) poll, so let’s say a big congrats to:
At barely a year or so old, the fierce power that comes from Mr. Wrong is undeniable. They scored the highest in our anonymous juror poll and if you’ve ever heard or seen them dish out their riot grrrl redux flavor then it all makes total sense. So far, we’ve only got their Distraction demo to enjoy along with their live sets, but hopefully we’ll be seeing more from this collection of lovelies soon.
Second in line for our jurors’ picks is Wave Action, whose relentless devotion to taking the stage has quickly garnered them much attention. If anything, they could go down in Portland’s 2016 yearbook as "Band that Played the Most Shows," but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, since they’ve got their hazy surf down pat.
With probably one of the best, straight to the point band names in town currently, On drugs embody what just about all of us Portlanders are all about – chillin’ out, partaking in a substance or two, and listening to good music. They’re gearing up to release their debut full length and from what we and the rest of you have seen of them, it’s no wonder their weed rock was the top choice amongst our readers.
Everything about G*U*N, from their wild stage presence to their unapologetic in your face-ness, make them the perfect poster children for the modern hardcore punk movement. It might be hard to make out exactly what is conveyed through their savage screams, but what is known is how good their approach to the genre is.
Those these four took over our charts, much acknowledgement needs to be given to all of our participants!
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Dim Wit |
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7% | 82 votes |
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Macho Boys |
|
6% | 69 votes |
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G*U*N |
|
19% | 208 votes |
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EBT BBQ |
|
5% | 53 votes |
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Kulululu |
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10% | 109 votes |
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Mr. Wrong |
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3% | 36 votes |
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Melt |
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3% | 36 votes |
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San Lorenzo |
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0% | 6 votes |
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Rambush |
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8% | 94 votes |
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On drugs |
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27% | 288 votes |
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The Goobs |
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4% | 42 votes |
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Wave Action |
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2% | 26 votes |
Belleisle is releasing their debut EP Across The Open Field on March 4th. The group, lead by the deep vocals of Brett Bakshis, perform somber, orchestral tunes that somewhat reminiscent of The National.
You can help Belleisle celebrate the EP release on March 4th at Hungry Brain with Carbon By Carbon.
Orchin is the noise/dream pop project of Jeremy McLennan, a multi-instrumentalist raised both in Australia and Los Angeles who combines murky, reverbed guitars with the more overcast dreamscapes of 4AD. McLennan’s darker pop confections come into full force on his new single "Ego Deathbed", where we’re introduced to his lamenting sigh before he lets out an uncompromising assault of cavernous distortion. It’s a potent, if sightly isolated, track that gives us some insight into McLennan’s psychological relief.
"Ego Deathbed" is the first single from their debut self-titled EP, to be released on March 17. – Juan Rodríguez
Let me start out this way: Fall of the Albatross is definitely not for the faint of heart. The Queens-based band deals in full-fledged, prog-metal freakouts, with a dash of finger-snapping jazz melodies thrown in. If that’s not enough to pique your interest, check out their latest album, Enormous Cloud. It’s an exercise in controlled chaos as the band growls, screeches, and swings through winding–and sometimes jarring–transitions. "Like A Good Tornado," the band’s stand-out track, is just that–a whirlwind of sound complete with roaring guitar licks, time-signature play, and the band’s characteristic style jumps. The record is 11 tracks of spastic, dense, instrumental goodness, that may bewilder first-time listeners, however, the auditory payouts are great and well worth the ride. Catch them at Fat Baby 2/23 alongside Professor Caffeine & the Insecurities, Juan Bond, and Deeply Woven, and go ahead and hit that play button to stream them below.-Olivia Sisinni
The San Francisco based punk/no wave band, Blank Square has released a new single, Charmer in anticipation for their upcoming album, Animal I. Their new album will be released on February 24th. Take a listen to Charmer and make sure you pick up a copy of Animal I.
Animal I. Leaning towards the weirder end of Flesheaters but with a sterility that can only be contemporarily compared to Total Control’s Aussie hardcore quarantine no wave and then a pinch of what made DNA and Mars amazing.
It’s captured with plenty of concrete and sheet metal kept in the mix and a highlight towards dissonant syncopations. Recorded in what my minds eye makes into a empty room minus one chair and definitely down a flight of wet, cement stairs. Saxophone with a mild but nauseating-at-times rippling slap delay, cruising on a rhythm section that sounds like they’ve got another house show to play tonight after this one. Rectangular in all the right places, uncomfortable like sleeping in a car (but hey, you do what you have to do). If you love art in your sax punk, then you will what’s going on in the Bay like we do, but this reaches waaaay back into California’s punk history (SST would’ve undoubtedly dug this).
The Deli’s Yearly Best Emerging Philly Artists Poll keeps rolling along this week with some talented indie-pop acts. You can now take a listen to them HERE, and vote for your favorite artist. Also, remember to check back next week to see who ends up atop our latest list!
The Oakland based band, Bells Atlas has released a new single entitled, N C A T!
With a full length and two EPs released since forming in late 2012, Oakland-based pop-soul band Bells Atlas are gearing up to drop a new standalone single, “NCAT.” The track release comes timed with the Bells Atlas’ upcoming run of dates with the WNYC/NPR program Snap Judgment serving as the house band during live recordings.
Attempting to neatly describe the sounds that Derek Barber (guitar) Geneva Harrison (drums, percussion, keys) Sandra Lawson-Ndu (vocals, percussion, keys) and Doug Stuart (bass, vocals, keys) produce together is no easy task. Kaleidoscopic and richly layered, each new foray by the band expands the wide, colorful sonic palette from which they paint dazzling, vibrant structures from.
"Nothing Comes After This (NCAT) is about the feeling when you know a relationship has run it’s course. All of the little things have added up to something so big that they have eclipsed the light that the relationship once brought. It touches on feeling both empowered and heartbroken, because change is rarely easy."
You can catch Bells Atlas live
2/19 – Rickshaw Stop – San Francisco, CA
A project of Richmond, Virginia based singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalists Kelli Strawbridge (KSTRAW) and DJ Harrison, KINGS is high-tier funk made by experienced musicians. KSTRAW, who has shared the stage with Grammy award winning musicians Snarky Puppy and Terrance Simean, brings a sense of urgent eroticism to the vocals while DJ Harrison keeps the effects heavy sound crunchy but cohesive.
Don’t miss KINGS with New York’s Escaper February 17th at The Camel in Richmond, Virginia.
-Written by Michael Dranove
Federico Casanova sequences a set of dim imagery in the video for “Cops Come Looking” by The Spirit of the Beehive. The song is the latest snippet from the band’s forthcoming album, Pleasure Suck, scheduled for release on March 24 via Tiny Engines. The video exhibits a desire to hide and/or escape. Movement via flight or automobile serves as a common thread with variations of swimming providing a twisted framework. The Spirit of the Beehive will be performing next in Philly on Monday, February 20 at Baird Mansion Atrium with Naomi Punk, PC Worship, and YCIB.
