Under the Trace Mountains moniker, Dave Benton makes folky, lo-fi tunes that blend in synthesizers and post-production effects for quirky and occasionally noisy compositions. Benton, who’s also a songwriter in beloved indie rock quartet LVL UP, sings with a tender delivery fit to the gently building arrangements of his tracks while crunched up drum machines and softly strummed guitar propel his voice onward. On A Partner to Lean On, due March 30th on Figure 2 RC, he brings together recordings of new material and updated versions of previously released songs. The album release will coincide with a show at Alphaville where Trace Mountains will be joined by Operator Music Band and Spirit Was, which features Benton’s LVL UP bandmate Nick Corbo. – Cameron Carr

Deliriously rocking beings,

Once a year, The Deli publishes an issue of The Deli that is NOT exclusively focused on NYC acts, but on artists based in all the 11 scenes we cover. That time of the year is now, an that issue is the 8th Austin issue of The Deli, which you can now read online here. The print version of it, in its glorious 7 inch format, will be available in print next week in Austin and in NYC shortly thereafter.

On the mag’s cover you’ll find Toronto’s noise rockers FRIGS, whose debut album Basic Behaviour has been rocking our world in the last few weeks.

The issue features other incredible emerging artists, including hip hop genius Nnamdi Ogbonnya, talented goofball popper Caroline Rose, and Los Angeles’ alt-rockers The Beaches among others – you can listen to all of them in the YouTube playlist below.

Also in the issue, an article entitled "Will Rock Explode Again?" which poses pognant questions about the future of rock’n’roll.

As usual, in the final pages you’ll find a section focused on the guitar pedals and synths involved in our Austin Stompbox and Synth Expo, scheduled for March 16/17 at the Chuggin’ Monkey in Downtown Austin!

Enjoy!

The Deli’s Staff

Last year’s Dada was a mission statement from B Boys, highlighting the group’s late ‘70s-early ‘80s art-punk influences and earning the band some well-deserved critical praise (ours included). It’s 30 minutes of sharply cut punk dressed in the disjointed musings of its titular dada philosophy. Since then, the Brooklyn trio has kept busy and, so far, 2018 looks to be no different. On March 23rd, B Boys will open for UK post-punkers Shame before heading west next month to play both weekends of Coachella along with a handful of dates around the region. ­– Cameron Carr

Trace Mountains, fronted by LVL UP’s Dave Benton, is a local act you want to keep your ears on: just listen to "Cary’s Dreams" off their forthcoming LP, A Partner to Lean On, dropping March 30th on Figure 2 RC. "Cary’s Dreams" is at once subtle and upfront, humming with muted emotion and the crackling-yet-contained energy of a thundercloud. Benton’s lyrics have a quality of magical realism, infusing mundane social observations (by an unreliable narrator) with a sense of profound clarity, all the while imploring the listener to follow him into a state of mystical, ineffable otherness. "And while Robert opened his mouth to me/She was crawling in the carpet/Deep in disbelief of me/And right there I could see/That Bobby and her friends were part of me/In Cary’s dreams there are always animals in the greenery." On their own, the lyrics may not carry much significance, but combined with Benton’s alluring pop melodicism and the song’s fuzzy, synth-pop arrangement, the total package is downright compelling. Trace Mountains is playing a record release show at Alphaville on March 30th, with support from Operator Music Band and Spirit Was. Listen to "Cary’s Dreams" below! – Ethan Ames

WeWork’s Creator Awards, in partnership with our friends at Sofar Sounds, is looking for innovative musical performers (solo or groups) based in the Los Angeles area. The initiative rewards acts that merge creativity and imagination with compelling performances, and it’s open to all genres (including performance arts, let your acting friends know about it!).

The winners will be rewarded with a cash prize between $18K and $72K, and will also secure a paid gig at the Creator Awards San Francisco event on May 10.

Applying for a Creator Award only takes a few minutes, you can start the process here.

WeWork’s Creator Awards, in partnership with our friends at Sofar Sounds, is looking for innovative musical performers (solo or groups) based in the SF Bay Area. The initiative rewards acts that merge creativity and imagination with compelling performances, and it’s open to all genres (including performance arts, let your acting friends know about it!).

The winners will be rewarded with a cash prize between $18K and $72K, and will also secure a paid gig at the Creator Awards San Francisco event on May 10.

Applying for a Creator Award only takes a few minutes, you can start the process here.

Akinyemi, the hip-hop sensation out of Queens, is playing at Mercury Lounge on March 28th, in support of Sylvan LaCue. Akinyemi’s music is a captivating blend of R&B and hip hop that hearkens to the likes of Drake and Frank Ocean. On "Dust Calling," the opening track and first single off his 2017 EP, Summers, Akinyemi opens the door to a lush soundscape of longing and ambition. "Dust calling, waiting for the wind/Doors unopened, hopefully they let me in/Scribble this thought down, patented with a pen/Living room tragic, I’m asking ’em again," he muses on the song’s refrain, evoking images of a scrabbling dreamer who’s determined to bring his dream to reality, even at the risk of failure. Ultimately, Akinyemi holds his own on this promising release. Listen to "Dust Calling" below! – Ethan Ames

Skout, the New York indie-folk duo consisting of Laura Valk and Connor Gladney, is playing Rockwood Music Hall on March 20th, as part of a tour in support of their latest single, "These Bones." A raw and moving song, its arrangement is alternatingly thunderous and intimate, a portrait of vulnerability and its accompanying ambivalence. Valk sings, "Please don’t touch me/I know you’re only here to help/But I’m so scared." She seems to know that salvation lies in her opening up to another person, yet fear remains nonetheless. Listen to the single below! – Ethan Ames

“Burners” begins with circa 1994 beats updated into a classier, more ethereal backdrop to smooth, yet still intimidating rhymes. Despite ditching the lo-fi edge that defined the sounds of the Wu-tang, Fudgemunk manages to retain the aggressive and sinister quality in the sound that made old school hip hop so intoxicating. As the song progresses, sounds are layered more thickly in the background, and in general progresses much more in the style of Gang Starr than Wu-tang, eventually turning into a drugged out, low-key dj set.

The choice to end the song with a dj set raises questions about the song’s frequent use of ODB’s line “burnin hot” from the 1995 song “Brooklyn Zoo”. The words were originally delivered in ODB’s boisterous and unhinged style, in short a sort of musical polar opposite from the groove that “Burners” spends about the last 5 minutes of the song on. It seems almost like an unintentional statement about the replacement of old school hip hop’s edginess with a turn to passivity, either in the form of consumerism, or in the case of “Burners”, drug use and mysticism.

Whatever the case, in sum the track is well worth a listen and delivers a fresh perspective on classic sounds.

-Mike Dranove

NYC folkster Common Jack is playing at Mercury Lounge on March 30th, in support of Giant Stone. The Virginia-bred, New York-based guitar picker is a master of the sweet and the morally dissonant. On his most recent release from August of 2017, a song entitled "One Too Many Days," Common Jack laments the violent travesty that was the protests in Charlottesville, VA. Channelling The Avett Brothers, Conor Oberst and early Bob Dylan with gentle finger-picking and mournful harmonica, Common Jack’s sentiment is one of deep frustration, but above all else, weariness. He’s weary of the carnage, the hatred and the fallacies of monochromatic American civic pride, of which there seems to be no end in sight. He croons, "I heard a voice begin to shout that both sides are to blame/I never thought I’d argue about a Nazi USA." Listen to the track below, and don’t miss Common Jack at Mercury Lounge on the 30th. – Ethan Ames

Whiner are this generation’s goth kids. Their melancholic lyrics are tempered by a glam-soul sensibility, while driving drums and dream guitar hooks work to keep their songs from being too saturated in emotion. Indeed, Whiner’s unique blend of genres creates a sound centered on the strength of both not caring and caring too much. If you can’t get enough of their addictive artistry, you’re in luck. Whiner will be performing in a Sunnyvale residency every Tuesday in April, headlining shows with emerging artists. – Amanda Ogea

In the new video for “Grieving Friend of a Superman” (streaming below) by the San Francisco baroque alt pop group Leon + the Fantastic, stop motion animation is used to convey an otherworldly experience. The video, directed by Japhy Riddle, follows an astronaut (played by frontman Leon Rosen) as he journeys back on Earth and is disoriented by how unrecognizable it is following advances in technology. This is the first single to be released from the upcoming debut EP Let Me Cool, which is currently available for pre-order and set to be released on May 18th. – Lilly Milman, Photo by Jenya Lum