You’ve certainly seen her name and probably heard her music around town. DC’s own folk songstress Sara Curtin is set to headline a show at DC9 on Saturday, 6/18. She has a lovely, hypnotic voice that’ll certainly entrance you into exploring more of her music. Hailed as one of DC’s finest musicians, she pours out sultry, slow, almost haunting melodies akin to Sharon van Etten. Her latest album, Michigan Lilium, is a masterpiece of smart lyrics and alluring music and was recorded in her very own home studio. Come out and catch this wondrous singer-songwriter’s early show at DC9, 6/18, headlining with Post Sixty-Five and Fellow Creatures. Doors at 6:30, $8. -Jonathan Goodwin 

Our first thought when we heard "Wednesday Night Melody" – the new single by Los Angeles power pop trio Bleached – was: "This song should be on Rock Band!" – which, if you think about it for a minute or two – is a heck of a compliment. The ladies’ new record "Welcome the Worms" showcases an evolution from their early vintage sounding garage-psych-pop, to a more muscular and modern "Alt" sound that, while more produced and punchy, retains the fun of those classic radio friendly punk songs a la’ Joan Jett. Check out this Q&A about guitars pedals with Bleachede’s guitarist Jessie Clavin on Delicious Audio!

Minimalist doesn’t always mean simple, and FAIR WTHR’s music is a textbook example of this. The NYC folk-pop band thrives on instrumental arrangements that don’t take up too much space, giving vocalist Sarah Kang all the room she needs to leave hearts heavy with a voice that’s a little reminiscent of Frankie Cosmos’. At times, though, the instruments take center stage such as on "Mama" where the band shifts dyanmics, gradually building their signature dreamy folk pop into a heavier, electric folk-rock. This band has the ability of writing songs that seem simple during casual listening, but then have a lot to offer after doing a little digging. FAIR WTHR will celebrate their already released EP at the Rockwood Music Hall on July 2nd. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber

With their fuzzy garagey sound and distorted, nasal vocals, The Britanys‘ songs will throw you back to an older, grittier New York City – a place we’ve recently begun to miss. Not the seriously dangerous city of the ’60s, when the rock’n’roll lifestyle implied wavering between life and death, but a more recent and safe Big Apple, when Alphabet City still felt sketchy, the scene’s action was centered around the LES, and Williamsburg was still a rather ugly and cheap neighborhood with potential – those were the late ’90s/early aughts, by the way. It’s no surprise, then, to find that the band worked on their most recent material with Gordon Raphael (producer of The Strokes’ "Is this it?"). Single "Get My" (streaming) channels this modern garage rock style, a mixture of rock ‘n’ roll and pop that has the "Made in NYC" stamp all over it.  The Britany’s will share the stage with Frankie Rose, The So So Glos, and more at Out in the Streets Festival (June 16-17 at the Vander Ende-Onderdonk House in Queens) and are working on releasing a new EP in October.  – Madeleine Grossman

It may be possible to tell the two members of Brooklyn folk-pop band The Perennials are married just by listening to their music. In their debut single "Breadcrumbs" (streaming below) the two allude to woodland fables using vocals that are harmonized so well that one might believe that Pete and Amanda Wells were predestined to sing together. Their tracks’ instrumentation dinamically accompanies this vocal chemistry, bringing together drums, guitar and piano to create an emotionally charged but modern folk rock sound that is reminiscent of the one of their label’s founders, NYC’s band The National. Look out for a debut album later in the year. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber – Photo by Luis Ruiz

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

Boston singer-songwriter Rachel Hael seems to be capable of performing every type of music associated with the super-genre that is Americana. Throughout her repertoire she’s comfortably gone back and forth between upbeat country jams to folk elegies, hitting every stop in between. Just because her music has a large breadth, however, doesn’t mean she sacrifices any emotional depth. On the contrary, Hael posesses the rare quality of being able to inject her vocals with whatever emotional tone the track posesses. Her voice drips sultriness on singles like "Say my Name" and overflows with melancholy on others like "More Like ‘Painsville.’ The simple but tasteful instrumentation and occasional backup vocals give her sound a nice well-rounded fullness. With two EPs to her name, we’re excited to see what Hael and co. could do on a full length, bur for now you can catch her at O’Brien’s Pub on both 7/7 and 7/14. Check out upbeat folk-pop track "So Far No Good," streaming below. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber

Yucky Duster is a new project comprised of members of Brooklyn-based bands Bluffing, Slonk Donkerson, and The Gradients. Their self-titled debut album was released on June 3rd, and is a colorfully catchy record that takes on a charmingly melodic sound with bits of 60’s surf rock and punk influences scattered throughout. The track “Friend Zone” (streaming below) is characterized by its snotty vocals that ask the question “does that make me a bitch?”, mocking society’s view of a woman who puts someone in the “friend zone.” “Blue Elvis” however deals with the desire for someone you know is bad for you. The song starts off as a slow paced doo-wop before evolving into a surf rock inspired punk tune. While the record is just shy of hitting the 20 minute mark, it packs a ton of different sounds – and fun. Yucky Duster will be playing Aviv on June 15th in support of Melt.

The sound of Tancred, solo project of ‘Now, Now’ guitarist Jess Abbott, hits a nice grey area between punk and power pop. Abbot’s striking vocals and guitar work definitely get the blood pumping, but the band behind her doesn’t miss a beat, integrating the songwriting through skillful and at times subtle dynamic shifts that underline the songs’ tension and release sequence. Rounding out the band’s aeshtetic, Abbot’s lyrics are often incisive and contemplative, and give the music nice emotional and intellectual qualities.  Their latest project ‘Out of the Garden’ shows a developed, refined sound, and we’re surprised they slipped through the cracks of this blog’s coverage.  The band is about to wrap up a US tour with Speedy Ortiz, and will perform next at Great Scott on 6/22. — Henry Solotaroff-Webber

Brooklyn dream pop band Beverly, who placed third in our Best of NYC Emerging Bands Poll back in 2014 (after Porches and Mitski, what a year!), just released her sophomore full length entitled ‘The Blue Swell," and we can tell you without any hesitation that the record marks a noteworthy improvement both in the songwriting and production departments. Singer/guitarist Drew Citron and her band mates played four gigs in the UK this past May and will be leaving for a two week East Coast tour that will end with a home show at Rough Trade on July 1st. Our sister blog Delicious Audio run a few questions past Drew about the band’s sound and the making of "The Blue Swell" – saee link below.

Beverly, interview about musical gear and the creative process.

We added Beverly’s ‘Crooked Cop’ to The Deli’s playlist of Best Psych Rock/Dream Pop songs by emerging NYC artists – check it out!

This past fall, Nashville-based experimental rock project Boom Forest (aka songwriter John Paul Roney) released a sublime chimera of an album with ‘Post Knight Errant.’ Starting with the guitar-soared “Silver Hair,” which elegantly segues into the a capella-flecked “Been” and then leads to “Cameron” (streaming below), an electronics-flirting track that pleasantly recalls ‘White Album’-era Beatles, the work is both dark and warm, anxious but welcoming, and emerges as something of near beatific power. Roney recently relocated to Brooklyn, and quickly landed a three week residency at the Knitting Factory – the last night of which is next Wednesday (6/15). – Zach Weg 

Dance music needn’t always be bright and fun, as Brooklyn one man operation Informant will show you. Heavy electronics, percussive synth tracks, and an overall ambiguity work to make the body move without consent. It is a conflicted experience, though one that’s difficult to ignore—and could be said to be generational of sentiment. – JP Basileo

Listening to the brand new album ‘Door to the Sun‘ by PA via New York trio The Stargazer Lillies is an experience comparable to getting lost in the fog. The fog, in this circumstance, is of the aural kind, created by an over-abundance of guitar effects employed (very unsparingly) by guitarist John Cep, formerly of Soundpool. The trio will be performing at The Echo on June 12 and then the following day at San Diego’s Hideout.

Check out our sister blog’s Delicious Audio Q&A with The Stargazer Lillies about their favorite guitar pedals!