Computers sometimes make us do things we don’t mean to do – and that’s not always bad. I meant to assign a blurb about band Hiccup to our contributor Dave Cromwell, but my email was hijacked by an auto-complete function… the message reached instead Sonicscoop.com‘s founder/editor David Weiss (who never writes for us about bands). Unexpectedly, he went ahead and replied with this:

"Ready for some rockin’ rockin’ ROCK? Hold on to your rearview mirrors and prepare for a fast ride of poppy punk!!!!! ‘Imaginary Enemies’ by NYC trio Hiccup is FOR REAL, all drums guitar grit and gorgeous that descends on your ears like a beehive buzzzzzzzzzzzin’ with it.

Alex! Hallie! Piyal! Catch them on March 10th at SXSW, March 14th at Sidewinder in Austin, or back in our little cow town of NYC March 26th at Rough Trade. The latter especially apropos, because if you like it ROUGH – and lovely – then Hiccup is what’s up. And don’t keep that on the down low." – David Weiss (Sonicscoop.com)

P.S. Thanks David!

Bands, these days (electronic ones in particular) are not in a hurry to put out full length album. Many of them carry on releasing single after single, which are then gathered in EPs or compilation albums when enough songs have been churned out. Following the trend, NYC’s Salt Cathedral has been releasing celestial, world music flavored synth-pop since 2013, and they finally announced the ucoming release of their debut LP, entitled ‘Big Waves//Small Waves.’ They did so by unveiling a preview single entitled ‘Fragments," a song about the personal damage created by conflict, which confirms the band’s talent so many times we praised in this very blog. Take a listen below.

The Romantic Comedy is certainly a fitting name for the new project (by members of Brooklyn’s The Great American Novel), whose debut EP “Let’s Be Sad Together” was released in late 2016. The EP features coming of age songs about wasting time ("Ugh"), falling head over heels for someone ("The Thirst") and wanting someone you can’t have ("Let’s Be Sad Together," streaming below). Like in the movies the band’s moniker is inspired by, these struggles are approached with an upbeat optimism, which musically speaking means "power pop." It looks like the quintet will be headed to Austin in March for the SXSW music festival.

This artist submitted music for coverage here.

The side project of Gary Canino of the band Rips, Dark Tea plays a brand of introverted folk-pop that blends the soothing simplicity of The Shins with the playfulness of some of Syd Barrett solo albums. ‘Providence Sky,’ featuring the sugar-coated addition of Alexandra Savior‘s vocals, is their only truly finalized track to date, but sounds very promising to our ears – stream it below. You can check out a bunch of demos on their Soundcloud profile, and see the band live at Baby’s All Right on February 15th.

Bad Moves is part of what keeps DC punk moving forward. Infectious pop tinged with adolescent sadness, this is music for the young, hopeful and deeply discontented masses. Music full of yearning for a better society amidst the soul crushing mundanity of everyday life. And although DC’s alter-globalization movement has ceased to become relevant, punks like Bad Moves are keeping its spirit alive.

Listen to “Shitty Tomorrow” from Bad Moves’ self titled debut EP

Our Best of Austin 2017 poll has begun last week with the Electronic category and, after you-the-people cast your vote, we have the results to share with you!

Overall Poll winner (Jurors’ vote + Readers’ vote): Mobley

Readers’ Poll Winner (Readers’ Vote only): Mr. Kitty

We are superproud of these two Austin acts, that offer very different varieties of electronic music.

The full list of nominees for our Best of Austin 2017 Electronic Category can be found under the streaming tracks.

	Mr. Kitty		88%	186 votes
	Capyac		0%	0 votes
	Mobley		1%	3 votes
	SURVIVE		1%	4 votes
	Missio		0%	0 votes
	Eyelid Kid		3%	8 votes
	Thor & Friends		0%	2 votes
	NAM		2%	6 votes

If the ground were to one day crack open, and the sounds of Tartarus began to seep out of the earth, I’d like to imagine the hellish cacophony would sound a bit like King Woman. The San Francisco-based four-piece crafts the sort of doom metal that seems to herald the bridging of our dimension and the underworld. Kristina Esfandiari’s vocals envelop the band’s tracks with the precision of a hushed, siren song, while the band–composed of Colin Gallagher on guitar, Peter Arensdorf on bass and Joey Raygoza on drums–punctuate her ethereal singing with fuzzy, dark soundscapes and angular riffs. On the heels of their soon-to-be-released album, Created in the Image of Suffering, Collin and Peter were kind enough to share their current pedal set ups, and the techniques they used to get the visceral sounds heard on their album. – Olivia Sisinni

Read the interview here, and fon’t miss the band live at their new album release party at Starline Social Club on February 17.

With an old-school surf aesthetic, and some serious bad bitch vibes, the Saylavees are laying down totally dreamy garage rock. The NYC-based band features three-part vocal harmonies that feel both dulcet and haunting, and pair perfectly to their fuzzy guitar sounds and punchy beats. Think black sands and night-time, summer drives with the windows down, and you’ve captured some of the mystic surrounding the group. Check them out live at Union Pool 2/11 with Alana Amram and Greg Cartright, and be sure to hit the play button on the track below. – Olivia Sisinni 

A few years back The Deli covered the release of Baked‘s previous album, Debt, at Shea Stadium. The Brooklyn-based psych rockers will return to the legendary Bushwick venue on February 24th to release their brand-new record, titled Farnham in memory of frontman RJ Gordon’s late college roommate. 

The new album has plenty of the shoegazey haze that fans of Debt will love, though it’s a bit darker and refined. The supercharged sound — reminiscent of My Bloody Valentine and Gordon’s other band, Titus Andronicus — comes through on tracks like "Danelectroladyland" (streaming below.) 

Supporting acts Honduras, Grass Is Green, and Hounds will join Baked at their record release show. – Will Sisskind

Ladies and Gents,

We continue our Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists with the "Roots Music" category, you can see (and vote for) any of the 14 finalist here.

Lots of great talent, check them all out!

The Folks at The Deli

If you missed our review of Infinity Crush’s heartbreakingly pleasant release “Warmth Equation” read it here. 

Soothing, cathartic, comfy, and most of all warm, Infinity Crush’s “Warmth Equation” delivers as promised. Soloist Infinity Crush truly transcends the somber acoustic shtick with some well thought-out overdubs and some interesting audio effects, giving her music a nice full sound that should work wonderfully at 9:30. 

Catch Infinity crush with Los Campesinos! and Crying March 9^th at 9:30 club.

Our Best of NYC 2017 poll has begun last week with the Garage/Slack Rock category and, after you-the-people cast your vote, we have the results to share with you!

Overall Poll winner (Jurors vote + Readers’ vote): Baby Shakes

Readers’ Poll Winner (Readers’ Vote only): Stuyedeyed

We are superproud of these two NYC bands, that offer high octane garage rock inspired to completely different periods of the history of this genre. Stuyedeyed, with their insanely tense, obsessive tracks and screamed vocals, refer back to the proto-punk days of The Stooges, full of madness and debauchery – you can see them live at Alphaville on February 18th.

Baby Shakes, on the other hand, find inspiration in the melodic garage rock of NYC’s own The Ramones, infusing ultra-fun surf and doo-wop elements in it. Baby Shakes will be playing W’Burg Hall of Music on February 14th and then embark on a Japan tour in March.  

Honorable mentions go to Navy Gangs (second in the overall chart) and Thick (third in the Reader’s poll). The full list of nominees can be found under the streaming tracks.