Bohan Phoenix raps like he’s born and raised in Brooklyn.  His style is so close to the Beast Coast vibe, that he could be a Flatbush Zombie bitten by a Chengdu werewolf.  He flexes flows between English and Mandarin with such ease, sometimes it’s hard to tell; you think he’s just flowing some fresh new slang you’re not hip to.  His beat selection is Sichuan.  His flow is sharp as a Jian.  His swag is Flatbush AF.  His Jala EP is rolling into your collection like a cloud of Kush smoke.  You’ll be rapping in Mandarin before you know it. See him live at Zone One at Elsewhere on 03.09.

In Santa Cruz-based Marty O’Reilly’s most recent LP Stereoscope, he takes Americana to another level, blending delicate violin arrangements with bluesy vocals and soulful harmonies to create something startlingly beautiful. The dynamic songwriting of O’Reilly—who is always joined by bandmates Chris Lynch, Ben Berry, and Matt Goff—takes the listener by surprise, as he breaks out of the tropes of his genre that would otherwise restrict such progression. The opening track “Firmament” (streaming below) offers a glimpse into the rest of the album, which is a complicated and well-crafted addition to a genre whose fans constantly think they have finally ‘seen it all.’ Marty O’Reilly and his band are currently on a cross-country tour and will be heading down to SXSW this year. – Lilly Milman

Oakland-based artist PASTEL GHOST is a synth-pop artist with a shoegazer’s agenda—a combination not often found in the electronica scene. Operating under a genre that she calls “dreamrave,” her music is ethereal and elusive. Her single “POSSESSION” (streaming below) is just one example of how she layers her slippery vocals over driving synth beats to create a seductive and mysterious sound unlike any other. Effortlessly cool and complex, PASTEL GHOST is definitely one to keep an eye on as she works on recording and releasing a follow-up LP to her debut project, ABYSS. She will be making her way down to SXSW this year, with a showcase on March 15th. – Lilly Milman

Something groovy comes this weekend: It’s CHAPPO‘s third album DO IT, which drops on Friday. After a long stretch of tragedies for the band — a member leaving, a lost son, a friend’s suicide — this album stands as a product of catharsis. That comes through in electric anthems like "Cry On Me" and the sizzling single "White Noise". The production expertise of John Vanderslice (The Mountain Goats, St. Vincent, Spoon) brings out the celebratory energy of each transforming track on the record. DO IT‘s release leads into a small stint touring in early March; they’ll head from Georgia to Pennsylvania in support of the Flaming Lips. Catch the latest single, "White Noise", below. – Will Sisskind

Los Angeles based avant-electronic performance duo OC 80 presents the music video to their second Akoya Books release "Young Nation"—ambient-marbled oration drawn from David Wojnarowicz, Heiner Müller, Ja Rule, and Ashanti punctuated with sparse beats, bleeps, and reverb-hiss. A woman vaping in contemplation is presented in smartphone video resolution laying in a verdant field, reifying the proclaimed motivations behind the track: "environmental collapse, animality, the force of habit, the diffusion of blame, and the inconceivable scale of what has been lost to systems of oppression."

OC 80 will perform in New York this week: Thursday night’s auteur royale HATE WITHOUT REASON at The Mercury Lounge (10PM – 4AM) – Ryan Mo

The lo-fi pop group Triathalon will celebrate the release of its third album, “Online,” with a sold-out show at Baby’s All Right on February 28th. After establishing a sound keen on lo-fi aesthetics and jazzy undertones, the Brooklyn group is about to release a record that ventures further into pop territory with a heavy R&B influence. The recordings are cleaner, the tones deeper, and there’s a novel suave element to it that makes it a lot more playful than the previous releases. However, the band’s tracks maintain the band’s signature dark, late night intimacy. With “Online,” Triathalon shows its true potential in the pop realm. For those lucky enough to have tickets, the Baby’s All Right show will be the first performance since the album’s release. Watch the video for standout track “Couch” below. – Cameron Carr

Solid voice, solid backing band, well thought-out lyrics dealing with feeling lost and out of place; all in all Lauren Calve makes a convincing Americana artist. “Be my home” she implores on the refrain to her latest single of the same name, as if she is being driven to desperation by feelings of being out of place. On the track, Calve yearns for the same thing every Americana artist yearns for, an idyllic, peaceful, rural America that probably never was, but nevertheless lives on in the popular imagination as something to give people hope for a different world.

You can catch Lauren Calve March 9th at Black Cat.

-Mike Dranove

Ambient folk dads Justin Wilcox and Jeffrey Silverstein, aka Nassau, make some pretty sweet, evocative tunes. Their debut record, Heron, arrived last September to eager listeners on Bandcamp. Their songs are stripped down to twangy guitar, reverb-heavy vocals, and a little bit of drum machine, highlighting the duo’s great, old school songwriting chops. Nassau are headed to SXSW Music Festival in Austin, playing 3/16 at 18th Over Austin. –Geena Kloeppel

With the saccharine retro sound that Hot Flash Heat Wave has coined as their own, even the repeating line from their breakout single “Gutter Girl” (streaming below), “I don’t need nothing expect for my gutter girl,” comes off as kitschy, rather than sleazy. There’s just something completely natural about the way the four high best friends blend together fuzzy guitars with recklessly fun harmonies. At its core, their sound is good, clean garage rock, infused with 60s pop sensibilities and a production value that is through the roof. It’s no surprise that they are already gearing up to embark on their first national tour, with several Bay Area dates throughout March and a pit stop at SXSW. Currently at the forefront of the Bay Area DIY scene, they’re one of those bands that actually deserve all the hype they are getting (and then some.) Catch them in San Francisco on March 7th at The Independent, and check out their Facebook page for the rest of their tour dates. – Lilly Milman

When it seems impossible to continue its climb, the new track from pop group Kitten just keeps going, creating a prolonged sensation of being lifted up, while band leader Chloe Chaidez sings with buoyant optimism over already anthemic backing instrumentals. “I Did It!” shows Kitten as a pop force with a handle for ‘80s glitz and modern production tricks. Though Chaidez sings of past mistakes, its done with poise and confidence, ready to move forward as the sheen of smiling synth-pop propels her on. It’s the group’s first release since 2016’s “Heaven Or Somewhere In Between” and teases a new self-produced album slated for later this year. Listen to “I Did It!” below. – Cameron Carr

Donning an aesthetic drawn from the experimental side of runway fashion and new wave androgyny, the left-field tendencies of Alternative R&B newcomer Morgan Saint are on full-display in the music and video for "YOU." The video sees the singer performing her subdued brand of vibrant and forlorn synthpop amidst an empty stage; creating a barren, yet, intimate atmosphere to match the song’s crestfallen tone. Saint will be performing at this year’s South by Southwest Festival following the release of her debut EP, 17 Hero. "YOU" can be streamed below. – Alexander Beebe

Consisting of members of The Obits, Holy Fuck, Nation of Ulysses, and The Cops, SAVAK is a new super-group of sorts that sports an intriguing sound. By blending garage rock rhythms with saxophone flourishes and a presentation rife with hardcore punk energy, SAVAK put forward an indie rock variation that is as noisy as it is hook-laden and expresses an eccentric range of influences. "Reaction" and "Drop the Pieces" from their 2016 album Best of Luck in Future Endeavors can be streamed below. – Alexander Beebe