Guilty Giraffe is one of those drums/guitar duos that can sound like an army – in the tradition of The White Stripes if you will, although they don’t sound anything like them. Rather, Mat McGinnis and Felipe Reis play an ever evolving kind of post punk that flirts with drone rock, noise rock, post-hardcore and psychedelia. Their debut mini-album “A Time to Slime”, which includes grimy energetic tunes such as “Stop the Slime” and “Try and Figure” (streaming below) was entirely self produced, and shows a confident hand and interesting ideas. Noise lovers don’t want to miss out next Wednesday, December 28th when they take over Sunnyvale BK. – Jocelyn Huggler

With psychedelic leanings and spacey synths that could believably been beamed down from Pluto, Brooklyn-based Pavo Pavo has a sound that’s both warm and familiar, and yet hard to place. In their stunning debut album ‘Young Narrator in the Breakers‘ the band seems to comfortably straddle between the deeper trenches of Brian Wilson’s brain and the new face of NYC indie rock–whatever that may be. The quintet’s tunes may be hazy and wistful, but there’s a quirky liveliness embedded at the heart of their tracks that invites the listener back for more and warrants repeat plays. The band’s founder Oliver Hill was kind enough to spend some time with Delicious Audio to shed some light on their creative process, and the gear that helps color their distinctive feel – see link below. Check out their recent video for ‘Ruby (Let’s Buy The Bike!),’ streaming below.

Pavo Pavo discusses gear and creative process on Delicious Audio.

Although Josh Lattanzi played for and toured with artist with pop inclinations like Albert Hammond Jr., the Lemonheads and Ben Kweller, his musical heart beats for wise and evocative Americana, and The Candles is the project where this passion is indulged. The band’s third album, entitled ‘Matter + Spirit" was released earlier in November 2016 and is receiving such good responses that it propelled the band on our Top 10 of NYC artists with buzz (you’ll find it towards the top of this same page). Supporting Norah Jones on a US and European tour also helped. The NYC singer songwriter also appeared as a guest vocalist on single ‘Move Along,’ streaming below. Don’t miss their first show home after the tour at Mercury Lounge on January 21.

If your way of staying warm during the bleak New York winters has less to do with sipping cocoa by a fire and more with sweating it out in the middle of a mosh pit, Death Vacation’s new EP may be more welcome than a holiday trip to Florida. The NJ/NY-based singer, Michelle Mancuso, spits and snarls her way through the 5 tracks that make up Bones Grow Cold, and her gut-busting vocals are paired with grindcore beats that are coated with enough grime to satisfy even the nastiest hardcore fiends. Though the tunes definitely have melodic moments, the real payoff here is in the visceral, chomping percussive-ness of the tracks that grate against your ears alongside all the blood and noise. Check out the band’s track "Parasitic" streaming below. – Olivia Sisinni

If there’s one thing Baltimore-based rapper Kotic Couture is trying not to do, it’s blend in. The artist delivers punchy hip-hop tracks that are as stand-out as his glam, neon-tinged appearence. Navigating the space between thoughtful lyricsim, and club-ready powerhouse anthems, Kotic Couture’s latest EP, Abstract, is 4 tracks worth of eclectic tunes that are sure to make an electrifying impression. Check out his track "Go Awff" streaming below.-Olivia Sisinni 
 

Chances are, you haven’t heard a band quite like Hula Hi-Fi. The Nashville-based threepiece, consisting of Sarah Bandy on ukulele, Annie Clements on upright bass, and Josh Kaler on lap steel, produce haunting, ethereal melodies that have the feel of 50s-era Hawaiian imports, but lack the saccherine sunshine. Like black sand on a beach, Hula Hi-Fi’s music is dark and unexpected, but perhaps all the more beautiful because of it. Check out their new release, Hawaiian Noir: Volume One, and listen to them streaming below.-Olivia Sisinni

After being blessed by Pharrell Williams’ seal of approval, which got a lot of eyes on her and ears on her track ‘Alaska,’ NYC’s songwriter Maggie Rogers is trying to capitalize on the attention by unveiling a trilogy of videos featuring that single and two new songs. The second one of the series, ‘Dog Years’ (streaming below), resumes the atmospheric, electronic-pop-soul sound of ‘Alaska’, including the subtle African music influences. Maggie has also announced three legs of a winter/early spring tour that will take her – between January and April 2017 – from the east coast to Europe to the west coast and back, with a final date at NYC’s Bowery Ballroom on April 11. We are sure the third video will drop just before the tour begins, in early January.

Ring in the new year with eclectic orchestral six-piece Emanuel and the Fear at Knitting Factory on January 10th. The band had quite a productive 2016, between releasing their latest EP Primitive Smile and going on a trailblazing tour through Europe last November. They posted an Instagram in early December stating that they were "Back in the office. Lots of exciting things to come. Stay tuned." This can only mean more music and electric live performances from the group. If you’re a fan of orchestral pop drawing from the styles of Arcade Fire, ELO, or Sufjan Stevens, jump on the bandwagon and treat yourself to Emanuel and the Fear’s body of work.

The opener for this show is indie pop artist Frances Cone, who released her single "Arizona" last January and set off from there on a whirlwind year of playing around NYC and the Northeast. Head to Knitting Factory on January 10th to hear both her and Emanuel and the Fear perform. – Will Sisskind

The psych poppers of Zuli bring their music to Baby’s All Right on December 22nd, just in time for a much-needed holiday weekend. Zuli have had quite a year racking up hits on Spotify, with their 2015 EP Supernatural Voodoo still making waves with audiences in New York and around the world. Disparate influences like Animal Collective and Elvis Costello shape Zuli’s experimental but enterntaining nature. Zuli will share the Baby’s stage with chamber rock band Great Caesar and Oceanside-based post/math-rockers It Came From Space. The night’s theme is a cross-cultural and religious celebration of Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/Festivus, with the goal of getting merry in cooler ways than average. – Will Sisskind

Danz Johnson, aka Computer Magic, is by no means a tyro when it comes to navigating the music scene. In just 6 years, the Brooklyn-based synth-pop artist amassed 10+ releases, became something of a sensation in Japan, and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. Her latest EP, Obscure But Visible, smacks of  a more mature artist capable of fulling flexing her songwriting abilities, but has the same fresh feel and innovative vibes that her fans have come to love her for. Recently, the artist unveiled a new video for single ‘Dimensions’ (streaming below), agreed to give us a glimpse into the magic that happens behind her computer and talk about her songwriting processes and experiences performing. – Olivia Sisinni

Delicious Audio Interview: Computer Magic’s Synths and Creative Process

From its opening chords, Willie Green‘s Doc Savage crafts a cinematic journey into a magical land of beasts and heroes. Green’s discography is extensive, his connections run deep into the molten core of this tumbling space rock. For this record he enlists a staggering 30 compatriots to enrich his bombastic beats including Open Mic Eagle, Billy Woods, Premrock, and Googie. If you’re unacquainted with the best of what Independent Hip Hop has today, this album is a great place to start. – BrokeMc

If you know what 4AD and Tindersticks are (hint: the latter is a UK band that should have been on the former, a record label that put out a lot of wonderfully dark and dreamy records in the ’80s), in all likelyhood you’ll enjoy Brooklyn Nicholas Nicholas‘ shy, ghostly tracks. With a sound as introverted as it gets, this band creates sonic soundscapes trapped between a bedroom with a sound and a wandering mind – giving the impression that their songs are private notes we were not really supposed to see or hear. The band released LP ‘About Town’ in November, check out singles ‘Texas Architecture’ and the video for Medallion, below.