The music of fr eg e lies somewhere along the crossroads of electro-soul and pop, but to rope them squarely into any set genre would likely be doing the band a disservice. Brooklyn-based by way of Mexico City, fr eg e melds smart pop-writing sensibilities with fickle rhythms and time signature shifts–crafting a dynamic sound that reflects the fractured spelling in the band’s moniker. The oftentimes near virtuosic playing, of course, alludes to the band’s jazz background, but what really make fr eg e stand out amidst seas of incredibly talented, technical players is the electro-flourishes that garnish their recordings. Their latest single, "Golden Ale Showers," is no exception to this formula, pitting angular instrumentals against buttery vocals to craft something uniquely striking, but also immediately accessible. You can catch fr eg e live at their next show on 3/7 at Drexler’s, but in the meantime, get your fr eg e fix by streaming their new single below.-Olivia Sisinni

 photo credit: Elise Swain

Cut Worms is the nom de plume of singer/songwriter/one-man-band Max Clarke, whose spate of releases between 2015 and 2016 transform the lead of past genres into new gold. See him (and his make-shift band) tonight at the Bowery Ballroom, where Cut Worms opens for critical darlings the Lemon Twigs. Back to the recordings: at first, the influences seem easy enough to pin down, as in the case of recent single "Don’t Want to Say Goodbye" (streaming). If it’s all Clarke in the studio, he should proceed to make a video of himself playing every member of Gerry and the Pacemakers on stage at the "Ed Sullivan Show," as musically and vocally he faithfully recreates the sound of like minded bands from that era. B-side "Like Going Down Sideways" is less melodic overall, but infinitely more complex. It starts out like an early seventies acoustic ballad (think Lobo or Rodriguez), then veers into a variety of directions—a sprinkling of Gram Parsons, a dash of the Everly Brothers—which suggest a rather deep knowledge of pop history, and an uncommon ability to write retro pop songs. Then there are the "Soft Boiled Demos, Pt. 1-8," an MP3 offering from mid-2016, which falls somewhere between a set of lost Buddy Holly demos and the more showy retroism of Ryan Adams. Single "Mad About You" is pure allegory: a walk down Broadway, with the wind in his hair, evinces the hidden order of the cosmos. We’ll have to wait and see what ultimately becomes of Cut Worms but for now, we can certainly enjoy his tracks, and let them transport us back to a time when pop songwriting was governed by different laws. – Brian Chidester

With artists like Chance the Rapper serving as living manifestations of Kanye West’s legacy, it’s hard not to evaluate contemporary rappers according to how to relate to and differ from West in terms of music, persona or both. A rapper that invites this kind of comparison is Mateo Akhi. The Jersey City rapper’s most recent LP, veyebes, features a potent mix of rootsy hip hop reminiscent of West’s earlier stuff and the distorted edgeof his later works. The key difference, however, lies in the vocals. While West is mostly known for his rapping, Akhi raps and sings all throughout the album, quite literally, finding his own voice. Tracks like ‘poplar trees‘ show Akhi at his best, with the stormy instrumental perfectly matching his intense vocals. You can catch him live at SOB’s on 2/22. —Henry Solotaroff-Weber

TGIF! Well, it’s not quite Friday yet, but if you need some music that will make it feel like the weekend, Surf Thugs will definitely spice things up. Their music screams “life of the party” with their upbeat, optimistic pop punk tunes. If that isn’t enough, these guys also sing about partying. They created their own abbreviation “RIP”, which doesn’t mean Rest in Peace in this case but Really into Partying. So, if you’re Really into Partying it’s time to listen to Surf Thugs as well as see them live when they play Arlene’s Grocery March 31st.-Jocelyn Huggler

Former Strathmore artist-in-residence Elijah Balbed will bring his all-star lineup of go-go players to the North Capitol neighborhood this Saturday for the 7DrumCity opening festival. The Jo-go Project‘s barn-burning solos and tight go-go beats are guaranteed to make the reopening of the community focused drum studio and rehearsal space into a real party. 

Don’t miss The Jo-go Project at the 7DrumCity opening festival, 2-10pm, with DC bands Color Palette, Shining Blade Theory, and many more!

-Written by Michael Dranove

The two teaser tracks from the forthcoming Hand Grenade Job album highlight the band’s minimalist punk sound. Eerie, mystical, and somewhat mournful, the tracks feature the unusual instrumentation and solemn vocals that defined earlier HGJ releases. Often vocally monotone, but always harmonically tonal, the music is evocative, and pleasing for the ear.

Here’s “July” from the album Devotionals, set to be released February 22nd.

-Written by Michael Dranove

NYC psych rockers Steady Sun‘s latest single, which we are premiering below, bears the aquatic title "Benthos," a term used to describe the flora and fauna found on the bottom of a body of water. Music and water have many things in common, in particular a fluid, "streamy" nature. But the concept of underwater recalls an extra set of attributes (like "dreamy, calm, slow-moving") that perfectly fit the profile of a mellow, psychedelic song. The track, with its plodding pace and dreamy atmosphere, certainly keeps faith to its title. Dylan Nowik’s warm falsetto draws semi-unintelligible but arresting melodies, while ghostly strings and backing vocals float in a pool of reverb, creating a sonic environment that’s as surreal as it is serene. If you dig this tune, check out the quintet’s 2016 EP ‘FLORA‘ and don’t miss their upcoming show at Arlene’s Grocery on March 10, opening for Indigo King. Check out also their previous single "Life At One Twenty Two," at the bottom of this page.

Citris might just sound like what their name implies—sweet, but with a serious bite. The Brooklyn-based band melds psych elements with the grit of mid-90’s grunge to create tunes that kick, but are immediately compelling. You can catch Citris live at Arlene’s Grocery 2/21 as part of their month residency alongside Caretaker, Wreath, Itamar, and Jak the Lizard, but also be sure to keep your eyes peeled for their new LP dropping 2/24.-Olivia Sisinni

With soulful vocals and mezmorizing instrumentals, Bronx-based Maxine Ashley, serves up a slice of 90’s R&B heaven. Her latest EP, Paranoid, is five-tracks worth of warm, sultry tunes with some serious old-school vibes, but Ashley delivers confidence and swagger that are all her own. Keep your eyes on this girl, because we’d hedge are bets that she’s going places. Stream the title track from the new EP below.-Olivia Sisinni

Deli Readers!

The results are in for our year-end Best Emerging New England Indie Rock Artist poll.  The popular vote has elected Tall Teenagers from Providence, RI as our 2016 Deli Readers’ champions for the Indie Rock/Pop category.  They are a name we’ve been hearing a lot this past year and we are excited to see what 2017 has in store for them.  We would also like to give a shout-out to Boston garage-rockers Mokita for giving them a run for their money.

In addition, the points accumulated through votes cast by our panel of jurors, and a third position in the readers’ poll, crowned XR Tabs and their brand of experimental indie-pop as the Best of New England in this category. Check out their new single "Wet Fire for Edison the Unclean" and see what all the hype is about.

As always, we’d like to thank all of our artists, jurors, and readers for participating in this year’s polls.  Stay tuned and vote for all of our remaining genre polls! -Brian Varneke

	Edgar Clinks		1%	5 votes
	Emerald Comets		2%	10 votes
	Kal Marks		0%	3 votes
	Laundry Day		0%	4 votes
	Mokita		34%	152 votes
	Oldsoul		2%	13 votes
	Rick Rude		0%	3 votes
	Tall Teenagers		41%	184 votes
	The Right Offs		0%	1 vote
	The Snaz		0%	2 votes
	Wolfmen of Mars		1%	6 votes
	XR Tabs		13%	60 votes

Our Best of Austin Poll for Emerging Indie Pop Aritsts ended recently and here’s a summary of the results.

We already celebrated Yuma for winning the Readers’ Poll.

Trio Summer Salt was the winners of the overall chart, the one that combines the readers’ votes with the one cast by our "scene experts," who picked the list of nominees we pasted at the bottom of this post.

Summer Salt has been on tip of the tongue of anyone who had the chance to see the trio of best friends in 2016.  The equivalent of audio soma, Summer Salt’s musical essence is unobtrusive oldies that might sound like if Brian Wilson and Harry Nilsson had been left on a deserted cay to write music for eternity. The trio’s balmy bossanova-influenced tropical tracks are indulgent and entrancing which is why Summer Salt captured the most votes out of our  music industry poll on ‘Best Emerging Indie Rock Artist of 2016’.

Big thumbs up also to Tele Novella and Sweet Spirit, who tied on second place in the jurors votes department, and Magic Rockers of Texas, second place in the Readers’ Poll and 4th overall.

	Darkbird		4%	7 votes
	Hidden Ritual		0%	1 vote
	Hovvdy		1%	2 votes
	Magic Rockers of Texas		9%	13 votes
	Mean Jolene		0%	1 vote
	Slomo Drags		0%	1 vote
	Sour Notes		0%	1 vote
	Star Parks		2%	3 votes
	Summer Salt		1%	2 votes
	Sweet Spirit		0%	0 votes
	Tele Novella		2%	4 votes
	TOMA		2%	4 votes
	Yuma		72%	104 votes

NYC’s buzzworthy soul ensemble, 79.5, channels a legendary girl-group energy in their new single "Boy Don’t Be Afraid". The second single off of their upcoming album Predictions, the group combines impeccable vocal harmonies, subtly smooth grooves, and their unique modern flavor, to create a sound that embodies the musical culture of New York City.  They’ll be playing live 3/31 at the Bowery Ballroom alongside Chicano Batman, and The Shacks, but in the meantime, stream them below.-Olivia Sisinni