The 90’s were a time filled with gritty, grungy, sloppy, yet wonderful alt-rock music and Supertouch was no exception. With a musical style in the vein of contemporaries like Mudhoney, Melvins, and Bad Brains, Supertouch still managed to have their own sound and left a mark on music with their powerful riffs and F-You demeanor. After reuniting in 2010 (and losing none of their 90s swagger) the band is still killing it and will hit St. Vitus with Into Another and High Discipline on January 19th. Check them out live, and be sure to stream them below.-Jocelyn Huggler

Stuyedeyed is serving up brash and brazen rock music with a major vintage vibe. With fuzzy layers so thick you can practically wrap yourself up in them, the Brooklyn-based band delivers a serious 70s guitar rock feel and loads of lo-fi goodness. Their latest single, "Mr. Policeman," deals with the themes of the BLM movement, and is sonically as unhinged as ever, offering up feral sounding vocal lines that compliment the frustration embedded in the lyrical content. Check out the single streaming below, and catch the band live at Drexler’s 1/24 with Best Behavior.-Olivia Sisinni
 

NYC’s self-proclaimed "hardest working band," Dirty Fences, is back at it again with a re-release of their first EP and two totally new tracks. The release delivers 8 songs worth of blistering garage rock, combining thumping beats with fuzzy, blitzed-out guitars to create devilishly danceable tunes that still manage to stay dirty. With tracks typically topping out at the two minute mark, their sound has the feel of a bottle rocket–short, explosive and end with a bang. Check out the Dirty Fence’s First "EP" Plus Two Xtra Songs streaming below.-Olivia Sisinni

Two Inch Astronaut is an admirable attempt to pick up where 90s alternative left off. Twangy, out of tune, distortion heavy guitars mash against open hi-hat hits and restrained bass lines harkening back to the instrumental sounds of early Modest Mouse and Fugazi.  Cutting through the mish mash are somber, angsty vocals, of the Built to Spill variety.

While most of the big 90s bands have since broken up or moved on to new sounds, Two Inch Astronaut hopes to prove that 90s music is still relevant, and they are doing a fine job. 

Check out Two Inch Astronaut February 3^rd at Black Cat.

Attention Bad Religion and Social D fans: Are you on the hunt for new tunes? Well, call off the search party and check out the Vansaders, an upbeat, folk-punk band based out of Asbury Park, that are cranking out tracks with good time written all over them. With infectious licks, and toe-tapping grooves, the band’s energy is guaranteed to bring the party to your local dive bar. Check out the Vansanders playing Pianos January 24th alongside Bodyface, the Black Clouds, and Yorkshire Tenth, and listen to them below.-Jocelyn Huggler 

If you’re feeling bummed about the upcoming, presidential inauguration of one flamin’ hot cheeto, then why not treat yourself to a hot, heaping portion of some quiality rock blues? Danielle Grubb’s latest track, "Glue" has us feeling better already about the next four years (barring impeachment) with its grimy guitars, swampy drums and Grubb’s own leathery vocals. This track hits like a shot of whiskey, providing some nice sedation as well as some light jabs to the midsection to get one’s gears in motion. Grubb is currently rocking a residency at Arlene’s Grocery, where you can catch her live on scattered nights until 3/16. —Henry Solotaroff-Webber

The name of NYC’s quartet Poppies is extremely appropriate, considering those flowers’ sleep (and high) inducing qualities – as all rock’n’rollers should know, all opioids like morphine, heroine and a slew of painkillers derive from poppy seeds. Both sleepy and dreamy, this band’s soothing, melancholic ballads feature the gentle and youthful voice of May Rio, and a tendency to find inspiration in old time pop melodies that’s somewhat reminiscent of Mitski (check out streaming single Eggheads in this regard). Their music video for “Told,” which features a man in a dog costume and an old lady resenting him, give us an example of their more "hallucinogenic" side. The quartet has a string of local shows scheduled, culminating with a show at Baby’s All Right on 02.01 with Baked and Soft Fangs (they’ll be also playing at Sunnyvale tonight 01.17).

Though fans that complain about rap deviating from its roots often come across as old curmudgeons, those contemporary emcees who practice vintage rap don’t seem to ever go out of style. Take BK rapper Latasha Alcindor (aka LA)’s latest track, "Revoke Thee," for example. Over a jazzy instrumental with attitude, LA delivers hard-hitting lyrics in varied flows that could very well have been blasted out of the boomboxes of yesterday. Like her ballsy predecessors Lauryn Hill and Queen Latifah, she also exudes a great deal of swagger in her lyrics. With "Revoke Thee," and its accompanying video (streaming below), LA has proven she is an emcee to watch, and a crucial one at that. She has a an LP due out in February. – Henry Solotaroff-Webber

A gentle sweetness emerges within the deeply resonant female vocals on “Abalone,” the preview track (streaming below) from Brooklyn-based Softspot’s forthcoming album “Clearing.”  While open guitar chords provide counter-melody and the simple bass line drives its rhythmic center, a churning percussive track underneath parallels the same mysterious wonderment of penultimate Kate Bush/Hounds Of Love track “Running Up That Hill.”  Harmony vocals appear at crucial points within the emotional arc, dreamily elongating end of line words. At over five minutes in length, there is plenty of room for extended instrumental passages featuring bright guitar figures, deeper bass only transactions and swelling synths.  An extended outro features an angular time signature that ultimately gives way to a beat-less ambience. This is an outstanding track from a full album set for a February release on Arrowhawk Records.  The band will appear live at Union Pool on 1/22 as part of the (le) poisson rouge presents series with Alpenglow and Norwegian Arms. – Dave Cromwell

We added this song to The Deli’s playlist of Best songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

Genre bending duo April+VISTA bring an eclectic modernist approach to traditional soul sounds. With electronically chopped R&B drum beats and soaring soul vocals, the duo brings to life what they call “FutureSoul”. Amidst the group’s slow grooves and passionate lyrics are touchingly restrained ballads like “Touch”. Check out April+VISTA’s latest EP, “Note to Self”.

Dams of the West describes itself as “the bad boy of British tennis” and “probably fifth-wave ska but maybe neo-no soul”. But it’s best defined as the solo project of Chris Tomson of Vampire Weekend. That band’s world pop tendencies are audible in the project’s repertoire, with flecks of Leonard Cohen and Reel Big Fish thrown in for flavor. On February 24, the band will release the album Youngish American, a collection of songs produced by Patrick Carney of the Black Keys. It will include the songs “Death Wish” (streaming) and “Tell the Truth”, for which there are music videos directed respectively by Emily Tomson and Edward Bursch. In March, Tomson will perform as Dams of the West at SXSW in Austin. While rumors of a 2017 Vampire Weekend album are in the air, nothing’s set in stone. – Will Sisskind

It’s almost impossible to not be immediately smitten with the Fantastic Plastics. With their bright colors and quirky demeanor, the Brooklyn-based duo re-imagines retro-synth pop for the 21st century. While they’re sure to delight nostalgia seekers, the band’s catchy, fun tracks have a wide appeal that’s sure to draw in even the most discerning Brooklynite. The artists were kind enough to talk a little bit about their expansive synth collection, and just what dimension the Fantastic Plastics come from. – Olivia Sisinni

Read the Q&A with The Fantastic Plastic on Delicious Audio.