You couldn’t tell by listening, but Washer is two unassuming New York natives: Kieran McShane and Mike Quigley. Like many a garage-punk band before them, these boys look like they would work for the geek squad but sound absolutely vengeful. Their 2016 release "Here Comes Washer" is an aimless punk album marked by Quigley’s casually passionate vocals. Washer’s lyrics have the tendency to stick in your head: "Nailed your picture/To the back’s of my eyelids," captures a violent, loving imagery whose bluntness pairs perfectly with their sparse, familiar sound. Catch them live at Alphaville July 28th. -Allie Miller 

This Sunday night (July 30th), Rockaway based band Blac Rabbit will be bringing their vintage psych-rock tunes to Brooklyn’s Union Pool alongside Brooklyn fellows Taphari and Elbows. With their 2016 self-titled album, including six minute opener “Mind Space,” the band has drawn comparisons to Temples, MGMT, The Beatles, and Tame Impala. Check out our favorite track, the droney and ’60s inspired "All Good," streaming below. – Pearse Devlin

On Sunday, August 6th, Yusuf Siddiquee will be performing at Pianos alongside Franklin Echoes, The Switch, and Moxa. Siddiquee is a Brooklyn-based DIY artist who combines dance, synth, and alternative aspects into his music, particularly in his most recent project, Softee, an EP released back in January. The synth-pop EP possesses plentiful synth layers, pop vocals and dance-driven beats. The opening song, “Honest”, particularly hits the nail on the head, with friendly vocals over electro-pop instrumentation that sound like something that would fit perfectly in a FIFA soundtrack. The EP abounds with other influences, however. The closing song “Maja” starts out sounding like a pop beat, but shifts entirely towards a dance-rock vibe of something like LCD Soundsystem. By combining electronic piano & his familiar dance-driven beat with a distorted guitar and soothing vocals, it becomes clear that the song, along with the project as a whole, is a very cool, modern-day combination of new wave, pop, and alternative. You can check out Yusuf Siddiquee’s performance at Pianos at 10 PM. – Pearse Devlin

Bay-area psych quartet Silent Pictures will co-headline a show at Bottom of the Hill on July 28th, alongside United Ghosts and Breaking Lights. On their 2016 full-length release, Let It Begin, Silent Pictures weaves a melancholic tapestry of minor-key disillusionment. The band blends elements of Brit-pop, punk and new wave into a polished and impressive display of musicianship and cerebral songwriting sensibility. –Ethan Ames

Nashville duo Sad Baxter has come a long way since their debut EP release in 2015. While the EP (recorded live on an 8-track tape machine) showed their penchant for fast-paced grunge, their full-length LP, Weirdy, proves that none of the messy, lovable aspects of their music are lost in production. In Weirdy, their guitars are even louder, their energy palpable, but their harmonies are refined (specifically seen in “The Big One,” which is featured on both projects). Sad Baxter is currently on tour, with a stop in their hometown of Nashville on August 4th at The East Room. –Lilly Milman, photograph by Caroline Bowman

Listen to our favorite track, “The Drip” streaming below. 

When it comes to the New England Americana of Jack Labbe, there is a lot more than meets the eye. For example, his newest release, How to Behave Around Horses, comes with footnotes that, quite literally, teach you about horse etiquette. Meanwhile, his lyrics focus on past relationships. When combined, these two themes work well together, providing a unique approach to future relationships. Recorded, mixed and mastered by Paris Parks at Bennington College (where Labbe himself attends) the production of this EP is masterful—it’s intimate, warm, tender. Listening to this EP is like being in a room with Labbe; no background noise, no outside forces, just the serene picking of his guitar. – Lilly Milman

Listen to our favorite track "Plastic Rose" streaming below.

Old Table may be the most charming punk band from Tuckahoe, New York. They may also be the only band from Tuckahoe, New York. Despite that, the music coming from this Tri-State Area group is no less charming from their lack of peers. Their accessible, folk-rock-tinged songs strongly recall the friendly sounds of The Beets and The Lentils. Despite their domestic name and homely-DIY style, Old Table shouldn’t be mistaken for a band playing it safe. Recent single, "Co-Own and Operate Your Locate Supermaket NOW!," is a politically-charged yet catchy folk song that brings a welcome appreciation for twee punk and classic protest music. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also backed by almost 10 years of even more experimental releases. You may now just be meeting Old Table, but you should see them as a childhood friend, ready to sit you down for dinner and give you some well-meaning, weird advice. Listen to their single below. -Allie Miller

Step into the synth-pop fueled disco of 88 Palms, a group that seduces through glamourous imagery and vintage electronic sounds. The duo released single “Bright Lights” last year, a groovy and smooth track born to be played in vintage looking, semi-lit nightclubs. Featuring lingering synth arpeggios, rigorous electronic drums and the sophisticated, semi-whispered soulful vocals of RIA, the track is accompanied by a sensual video (streaming below) that portrays, in slo-mo, a party for two in an empty NYC discotheque. Catch 88 Palms at Bowery Electric tomorrow (07.27), and watch the video for "Bright Lights" below. – Tafari Lemma

Nashville’s The Styrofoam Winos are not a typical band—the three-piece describe themselves as a sort of revolving door of projects. Each member is a songwriter with their own projects, and they alternate between leading the bands live show. Made up of Lou Turner, Trevor Nikrant, and Joe Kenkel, the band is constantly shapeshifting between sounds, styles, and instruments. The Styrofoam Winos are very much a live band, but the band is also alive; it’s dynamic and difficult to pin down, which is why it’s so important to see them play in person. Their next show is tonight at 9 pm at Betty’s Grill, and they will be playing again on August 26th with Crave On at The End. – Lilly Milman

Listen to the newest release An Ex-Pat Returns (fronted by member Lou Turner) streaming below. 

There are several unwritten rules in the music scene regarding the steps that musical artists should take to “make it”: practicing, recording, performing… What goes often overlooked, though, is the power of collaboration. In this regard, NYC based musicians Pascal Le Boeuf, Sarah Goldfeather, and Robby Bowen have teamed up and taken a peculiar path in their musical endeavors: instead of forming a group identity on stage, they’ve decided to keep their separate identities and work with Four/Ten Media on a music video for their new, collaborative track, “Empty Promise”, which offers an intriguing visual representation of human’s dependence and habitual use of technology. Their work won them Best Video at Atlanta Shortsfest and premiered on July 24th. The trio plans to work on a series of videos in the future, and if they are going to be all as good as this one, there is little doubt that more and more people will take notice. – Pearse Devlin

After turning heads with their 2014 release "Three Pound Universe" Baltimore’s Deaf Scene returns with a music video for the song "Acid Fight" from their upcoming album. The group adds so many crystal clean ornamentations to the groove in this track that the ornamentations seem to seamlessly build on top of each other to the point where it’s hard to tell whether the song is still in 4/4 or some other time signature altogether. The unstoppable groove and the often soulful guitar timbres result in pure head-banging bliss.

Here is the new music video for “Acid Fight” from Deaf Scene

-Michael Dranove

Victoria Rose began releasing music under the name "Brittle Brian" in 2014, nearing the end of her enrollment at Boston University. She began putting out two absorbing electronic tracks on "Instrumentals for Looking at Animals" an album sweetly fitting to the activity it recommends. Then her first full-length, Bony French Cathedrals, was a stripped-down acoustic album full of confession. Continuing her organic, self-recorded and produced aesthetic, she released Verisune, an album released following her graduation from college which lead her to become a staple of the Boston scene, playing everywhere from house venues to local favorites like The Great Scott. Like the stark portrait of its album art, Verisune is a personal album that is utterly unique and intense. Most recently she’s released "Truther," an eerie ballad which alternates Spanish folk guitar with Elliot Smith influences. We look forward to anything that this individual singer-songwriter brings to Boston in the future. See her alongside Horse Jumper of Love, Dust from 1000 Yrs, and Blue Smiley August 24th. -Allie Miller