Nashville

Congratulations to James and the Ultrasounds, Our New Artist of the Month!

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Major props to James and the Ultrasounds for winning this poll while out on the road. In addition to having one figurative arm tied behind their back, the band also has the distinction of being our first Artist of the Month from Memphis (a criminally underepresented neighboring city in the Deli’s eyes.) The band is comprised of a few good men hand-picked by frontman and scene vet James Godwin, who lends his voice and hardscrabble attitude to the lo-fi rock and roll of this project. The band takes cues from the J. Roddy Walston school of Letting the Good Times Rolll, while taking off into flights of loud and fast punk rock with occasional scews into other dimensions. They followed up their debut full length "Bad to be Here" (out December of 2014 via Madjack Records) with the deliciously throwback single "Robot Love" on Misspent Records (coupled with a cover of The Cramp’s "TV Set." Love.) Keep up with your new favorite band’s hijinks and developments HERE. -Terra James-Jura

San Francisco

Terry Malts and Skate Laws Support Disappears at Rickshaw Stop – 4/6

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The larger than life Bay Area based noise punk band, Terry Malts will be performing in support of the Chicago based Kranky Records post experimental band, Disappears at Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco on April 6th. We at the Deli get excited about all the shows we cover, but we’re completely buzzing over this one.

The San Francisco based Lofi punk noise band, Skate Laws will open, making the entire show an unhinged night of aggressive minimal noise music (it sounds like an oxymoron, but it’s not). Make sure you don’t get the idea that this bill is a showcase of inexperienced underground bands. These bands are seasoned, their songs are tight and well crafted, and they put on a thrilling show!

Disappears should not be missed. They’re going to create sounds and atmospheric vibes you’ve probably never heard before. Head down to Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco on April 6th!

NYC

Sons of an Illustrious Father release EP “Son,” tour with Saul Williams + play Brooklyn Bowl on 05.07

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For their last few singles, Sons of an Illustrious Father have released narrative album covers showing the thinning space between two nude women – it began with a strained handshake, then became a lunging touch. In the cover of their spring 2015 EP “Sons” (which simply gathers in a physical release those two digital singles), the two women share a passionate kiss. These images are excerpts from a film roll designed by band member Lilah Larson. Curiously, one last erotic segment is left, perhaps saved for a future release. The EP begins with talk of death and afterlife and travels back to the world of the living with doubts and anxiety over the state of the planet. Although decidedly alt rock, their style marries snippets of musical and verbal ideas saved from long improv sessions, including funk and Americana influences. The New York based trio is busy finishing up an LP and setting sail on the "Marty Loser Kingdom Tour" this spring with Saul Williams. They will stop home to play a show at The Brooklyn Bowl on May 7th. – Leora Mandel

NYC

Sam Cohen and the Creative Process

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After lending his creative juices to (great) bands Apollo Sunshine and Yellowbirds, Brooklyn songwriter, musician and producer  Sam Cohen decided it was time to go solo. The Deli has always been a fan of his bands’ records, (Yellowbirds’ "The Color" was The Deli NYC’s Record of the Month back in 2011), with their influences ranging from vintage pop to ’60s psychedelia. What we hear from his solo debut "Cool It" doesn’t disappoint, so we decided to ask Sam a few questions about his creative process, the making of records, and his relationship with the Muses. – Read the Q&A on our Delicious Audio (a Deli blog focused on guitar pedals and recording).

NYC

A Deli NYC Video Premiere: Maybird’s “Two Horizons”

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The right soundtrack always throws some magic dust over all the here’s and there’s of the city. You know this. It can turn your rainy day halal truck lunch into winning cinema, or a late night stroll into the moment you first see someone. The video for "Two Horizons," from Maybird‘s debut album "Down & Under" is filled with beautifully shot moments of humans being humans in NYC, a narrative as old and developing as citylife itself. The song is at times a story recounted and at times a log of premonitions and preparations for what sounds like an eerie future. Psychedelic Brooklyn band Maybird is comprised of members Josh Netsky, Sam Snyder, Mike Schuler, Kurt Johnson, and Adam Netsky. More premonitions point to shows in May and a second album titled "Things I Remember From Earth". – Leora Mandel, video directed by Michael Faller.

– Leora 

Philadelphia

The Deli Philly’s April Record of the Month: Skull Cauldron – Sandcastle

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Skull Cauldron, Sandcastle’s latest LP, is a sojourn into a dimly lit wilderness. Recorded as a quartet (with the group moving forward without Micah Edwards) at West Philly’s Sex Dungeon, these songs pull you ever deeper into the thick of it with their hauntingly infectious sense of urgency and balance.
 
Album opener, “Atlantis Trance,” percolates as the guitar, bass, and drums tightly co-exist in a relaxed yet spring-loaded groove that is reminiscent to classic Talking Heads, while the quick-paced, tongue-twisting vocals run through a hypnotic, mythical tale. Continuing in a similar vain, “Wolf With No Eyes” is led by a spiraling guitar riff, reinforced with acoustic strums and low end that conjures ups an atmosphere of danger, climbing into the chorus: “Think I’m obsessive compulsive/I think I’ll think myself to death/Need a therapist or an alchemist to toxify my mind I guess.” This subtle searching of mental anguish grabs a hold of the listener, cautiously traversing the exploratory musical terrain. Casually, one slips into “Datura” as Sam Kassel’s secretively whispered vocals gain a foothold amid an up-tempo guitar-percussion combo that runs forward in fits and then lays back before a guitar burst leads you through the finish line.
 
“Wonder Where She Goes” has that catchy, restrained guitar plucking that lays down the foundation of its composition. As Kassel contemplates, “Am I too late for the ghost train? Am I too dumb for another plane?” The song appears on the cusp of breaking loose, but then steps back for a moment, until finally the pressure boils over. “And I can’t find, I can’t find the way/the way she walks when she walks away…”
 
“Evergreen” is a multifaceted tune that initially rides its acoustic guitar riff as Kassel prophesizes, “If I were a knight, I would be the Green Knight, I would be the Green Knight, and you’d be my Green Lady,” before it lands in a full stable of smoldering instrumentation. Then, the song transitions into a higher gear, led by the quickened pace of the guitar running anxiously ahead, while being propelled forward by the bass before falling back to that almost blues-rock zone with the thudding bass invigorating the track into an open-field mad dash. “Pterodactyls” sits in the shadows, marinating in an ominous tone of preparation for battle. It’s a clear yet heart-racing endeavor as bright injections of acoustic guitar serve as glimpses of daybreak.
 
“Medicine Song” creates a stir with its immediate fresh out of the blocks surge, dashing ahead for an abbreviated sprint, tempering off and then throwing caution to the wind when the final stretch is in sight. “Souls” puts the understated spoken vocals to prime use, developing a ghostly creeping self-aware vibe as the instruments tightly pulse around the unrelenting bass. The song takes turns jolting forward while refueling with reflective cool-down breaks as the song deals with the distance game of a relationship. “Yeah, sometimes she goes far away/Sometimes I get in her face/Yeah, even though we’re jaded/I still wanna play the game.”
 
The final chapter of the record, the adventurously forest-wandering instrumental “Drink Deep of the Skull Cauldron,” quixotically bookends the album. It’s an intoxicating concoction as Sandcastle marches forward as a four-piece beyond the menacing tree line. – Michael Colavita

Chicago

Barking Cat @ Beat Kitchen

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Barking Cat is a local garage band who will be headlining Beat Kitchen on April 18th and performing with Sun God Ra, Vague Waves, and Green Cosmic Circus.

Below is their debut EP Demo which was released last September.

Philadelphia

Mumblr Staying Active at Everybody Hits April 1

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Alt rockers Mumblr were one of the most active local acts last year, willing to perform anywhere and everywhere around Philly. That spirit has continued into 2015 with the band gearing up to hit the road next week for an East Coast tour with Soda Bomb. However, they do have a rad show this evening at Everybody Hits where you’ll find the group hosting The Deli NYC’s 2013 Artist of the Year, Big Ups. They’ll also be joined by fiery NYC transplants Mannequin Pussy and all-female punk-pop trio Blowdryer. No, this is not an April Fool’s prank, and hump day just got a whole lot better! (BTW: Check out Mumblr’s recent visit to Sleepless Sound Studio for their Red Room Series HERE.) Everybody Hits, 529 W. Girard Ave., 8pm, $7 Donation, All Ages – Alexis V.

Philadelphia

New Pinkwash 7″ Available for Streaming & Download

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Take a listen to Pinkwash’s new 7" "Cancer Money"/ "Skin," which is available via Sister Polygon Records. Produced by Kyle "Slick" Johnson (with additional engineering by Al Creedon) at Fancy Time Studio, the two songs unleash a combative release of frustration and aggression. Joey Doubek’s primal howling vocals play directly into the immediate heart-pounding all-out synergy between his raw, ripping guitar and Ashley Arnwine’s enveloping doses of percussion. Catch Pinkwash in the flesh for their record release show this Friday, April 3 at LAVA Space!

Austin

TØMA

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Pyschpop outfit TØMA has just gone and done nice by us local-music obsessed folks by releasing their new EP in its entirety online at their Bandcamp prior to the full album release, which is a’goin’ down at Holy Mountain on March 27. It’s a mix of sounds modern and nostalgic, a bit Of Montreal and a bit of The Zombies, and it all combines into straight-up, good indie rock earworm fun. For those of you fully into the psych thing, you’ll get yer fix here, but this EP also owes a good deal to the 2000s indie scene, like track "Live Forever" that invokes nice memories of when The Strokes were the biggest thing that’d happened in a damn while or "Heartstrings" that has some very Vampire Weekend guitar goin’ on. It’s solid, superbly enjoyable indie music from the Austin scene, and you can get the whole thing bangin’ around in your brain below.