argonaut&wasp, a smooth soul-dance duo we covered first about a month ago, just released a new single entitled "The Sneeze" – you can stream it below. The track is the first one of a series of new singles to be released from now until the summer, when it will finally be possible to hear the band’s music in its more appropriate environment: the beach. You may argue that the title of this single is actually rather wintery… well, not necessarily; it could refer to that peculiar and bizarre sneeze doctors refer to as "photic sneeze reflex" – also referred to as "sun sneezing," a condition that – according to Wikipedia – "affects 18-35% of the population (including yours truly), but whose exact mechanism of action is not well understood."

It’s time to tackle the ALT ROCK category of our open submissions for the 2015 edition of our Best of NYC Poll for emerging artists – you can see the results we published so far here.

ALT ROCK/POWER POP 

Total submissions in this category: 21

Jurors: Jason Behrends (The Deli Chicago), Jordannah Elizabeth (The Deli SF) PDG (The Deli NYC).

Artists qualified to the next stage (i.e. the Readers’ Poll, starting around 01.20):

1. The Chordaes – 7.66 (out of 10)

A just over one year old group of "Manhattan-born friends" (take that, Brooklyn hipster-immigrants, these guys are real New York, New Yorkers!), The Chordaes’ music features elegant melodies, measured arrangements and a rather mellow approach, and may be best described as Alt Pop than Alt Rock – although the latter is the category they submitted for. But this doesn’t really change the fact that this is a group of young and talented musicians with noteworthy songwriting chops, and a vocalist that can touch hearts in ways reminiscent of unforgotten NYC hero Jeff Buckley. Check out their single "Touch The Ground" and see them live at Rockwood Music Hall on January 30th.

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2. PSYCHOBABY – 7.5

The brainchild of fiery Brooklyn based singer songwriter Juliet Garrett and guitarist Godfrey Furchtgott, Psychobaby only released one song out at this (very early) stage of its career, but a song that – paired with an imaginative and well shot low budget video – bodes very well for the band’s future. Sonic references to the riot grrl sound of the ’90s are tempered by the lack of slacking: the band’s sound is focused, Garret can sing, and the songwriting seems more inspired by artists from previous decades, like, for example, The Pretenders or even Exene Cervenka’s X. Having attitude, character and a good song+video combo is a great start for an emerging band; Psychobaby’s next challenges are prolificity, consistency of songwriting and a building killer live show. You can see the band live at Bowery Electric on February 13th.

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HONORABLE MENTIONS (rating above 7):

Mustardmind, Justin Baron, Warn The Duke, Sketchy, Bloody Your Hands.

More open submission results coming soon!

The Deli’s Folks

"I wanna do Passport. I wanna do Passport."

The harmonics and bass loops of "Looking Glass Reprise" drowned out Sam Farzin’s cries, and he relented. Christmas lights and butcher paper cutouts shuddered with each strum. The nondescript DIY space VLHS —cousin to recording house/makeshift venue The Palisades— has been a musical hub for Pomona and the greater Inland Empire for four years running. On Sunday night, over 40 warm bodies packed themselves inside the walls, resting on the half-pipe, offering bud and new friendships as the tremors of Media Jeweler rattled their skulls.

The atmosphere was loose, and it smelled like Red Forman’s basement.

Earlier, Jack Connor of opening band hit me, Harold joked about his goatee before burning a hole in our stomachs faster than you can say Rafa’s Tacos. DOCKS frontman Ranier Tinkelenberg broke a string, but still slayed the crowd with Jack’s honeyblonde Tele. Winter Break (ex- Summer Vacation) let out the most luscious screams as Mark Chen and Aaron Kovac gazed into each other’s eyes. And to top it off, Hillary Chillton spoiled us at the end of the night with a new song (as of now un-named), going overtime with closer "Sad Dad/Rad Dad".

Everyone knew the lyrics by heart. And everyone sang. Long live VLHS. – Ryan Mo

In celebration of her new album "Cocksure," out October 30 on Don Giovanni Records, in the spring Laura Stevenson will kick off a national tour featuring a show at the Mercury Lounge on April 2nd. Recorded mostly live, the LP represents a change for the Long Island born, Brooklyn based songwriter, resulting in her most raw and spontaneous material to date. Check out the recent video for single "Torch Song," below.

"It Calls On Me" (streaming below), the title track off New Hampshire-based singer/songwriter Doug Tuttle’s forthcoming sophomore album, is an ominous yet ultimately sweet portrait of a ponderous mind. Soundling like a mix of The War On Drugs and Simon & Garfunkel, the guitar-plained song has the smooth-voiced Tuttle gazing up at the unknown while dealing with the reality before him. While it may be about "panic attacks and the feeling of being at the mercy of some unexplainable otherworldy force," as Tuttle explains in a Noisey interview, it is surprisingly charming and ultimately compassionate. Ahead of the release date of ‘It Calls On Me’ on 2/19, Doug Tuttle plays at Lillypad on 2/27 and Artspace on 2/28. – Zach Weg 

2001, the new project by Benjamin Lazar Davis and Joan Wasser (of Joan as a Policewoman), just released this video for single "Overloaded" starring comedian Fred Armisen. The video follows Armisen’s exploits as he seeks to break the monotony of waiting for his car fixed in Joan and Benjamin’s auto garage.

 Thanks to all the artists who submitted their music to be considered for The Deli’s Best of DC Area Year End Poll for Emerging Artists. It was a tight contest and rich with musical talent.

After tallying our editors’ ratings for the Open Submissions stage, it’s time to release the results. Please note that, to avoid conflicts, no local editor was allowed to vote for bands in their own scene.

Total submissions from the DC Area: 24

Jurors: Dan (The Deli New England), Ryan (The Deli LA), Paolo De Gregorio (The Deli NYC). 

Acts advancing to our Readers/Fans Poll:

The Walking Sticks – Indietronica/Synthpop

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 X (Ten) – Indie Hip Hop

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Sojourne – Alt-Soul

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Honorable Mentions:

Jackie and The Treehorns, Atoka Chase, Night Kitchen, Harness Flux, Pete Curry 

WHAT’S NEXT: These results end the first phase of the poll. We will soon unveil the artists nominated by our local jurors, and then let our readers and our writers influence the poll with their vote.

Keep creating, keep supporting, and stay tuned for your chance to vote!  

—The Deli DC Area Staff <3

Last year, Providence-based singer/songwriter Krista Baroni released ‘The Alabaster Girl,’ an album that quietly revels in a kind of sleepy beauty. Comprised of such guitar-plucked tracks as "I’m Not Myself Today" and "Joanna," the folk-based effort transports the listener as a children;s book would while impressively portraying the hardships of adulthood. The former song, for example, depicts an emotionally wounded soul striving for serenity amidst the noise of modern life, soft guitars cooing the listener to calm. Krista Baroni plays at AS220 in Providence, Rhode Island on Thursday (1/14). – Zach Weg

If danceable but clever electronica is your kind of thing, on the night of January 30th you should go to Palisades. The night will see four Brooklyn electronic producers perform on stage, with an added visual component courtesy of Frottage Industry. The most buzzworthy names on the bill are UMFANG (pictured) and Negative Gemini. The former is the project of Bronx born producer Emma Olson, whose output ranges from underground techno to less beat-driven, experimental tracks like the latest single "Pills" (streaming). Olson also founded Discwoman, an organization focused on promoting female-identified talent in electronic music.

Negative Gemini, the brainchild of Lindsey French, is also a one woman project – we covered her in this blog this past October. Lindsey’s debut EP "Real Virtual Unison" unveils more structured and song oriented material, featuring dream pop and droney new wave elements. Check out her recent single "You Never Knew," streaming below.

On the bill also Physical Therapy and Doss.

Last Friday, the 19th century home-turned-venue Historical Monument 157 (hm157) was host to several eclectic electronic acts including Litronix, Geneva Jacuzzi, and Future Shoxxx — our attention was focused on the haloes emanating from CELLARS, the synthpop project of singer/keyboardist Allene Norton.

Despite technical difficulties that plagued the first several minutes, Norton worked quickly with hm157 staff to reroute her signal chain through a DI box. She was not shaken; Norton traded banter as she worked, even quipped about her debut as a noise artist. At once, dense synth waves flooded the monitors and stirred the audience back to life as Norton lit a quick cigarette. And she tore through the cold with songs from her 2015 debut Lovesick like "Computer Simulation" and "Beat Of Our Love". Glowing from the backdrop of Wes Johannsen’s visuals, she stepped down from the stage for a brief moment to connect with her friends. Norton’s electric youth had bested a performer’s worst nightmare, and primed us for the release of her sophomore album Phases. – Ryan Mo 

Full of youthful energy and a lot of fun, Fadest is the new grungy, melodic outfit to watch for in the Baltimore-DC area. The rich, jarring vocals will get your attention and you’ll be hooked on the perfectly synced bass lines and drumming. Integrating plenty of cymbal action and catchy guitar riffs, Fadest has a lot of stage presence and really understands how to interact with an audience, even if they’re sweating gallons. Their sound captures some of the post-grunge grunginess of the early aughts and incorporate some melodic and indie undertones to give it some pizzazz. Keep an eye on this band as they line up more gigs because they put on some really captivating shows. -Jonathan Goodwin

The churning out of local artists qualifying for our Best of NYC  Emerging Artist 2015 Poll continues with the ELECTRONIC category. In case you missed the previous announcements, we’ve already published results for Indie, Hip Hop + Other, and Rootsy Pop/Songwriters. This is a rather exciting category, considering the exponential growth of the electronic NYC scene in recent years.

Total submissions in this category: 18

Jurors: Jonathan Goodwill (The Deli DC), Quang Tran (The Deli Philly), PDG (The Deli NYC).

Artists qualified to the next stage (i.e. the Readers’ Poll, starting around 01.25):

1. CAFUNÉ – (7.66 out of 10)

Sedona Schat and Noah Yoo’s music exists in a perpetual spring (as in the season), so 2015, with its mild summer and incredibly warm winter, might have as well been their year. Sedona’s breezy melodies are complemented by Noah’s peppy, dancy electronic arrangements. Their single "Warm Body" found lots of love on the internet, and so did their 2015 debut EP "Originals." 

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2. BORN CAGES (7.6)

With their anthemic songs and polished but edgy production, NYC’s Born Cages make music that belongs in arenas – in particular their first single "Rolling Down the Hill." Their stand out track "I Just Want the Truth, Baby" (streaming) blends electronic quirkyness with sophisticated crooning a la’ Bryan Ferry, showcasing a versitile and talented band with more than one trick up its sleeve. The trio had an exciting 2015, culminated in a fall US tour supporting The Lighthouse and the Whaler and Family Force 5.

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3. Teenage Love (7.5)

Bicontinental duo Katy Gunn (Brooklyn) and Anna Lidell (Copenhagen) charmed us right away with their band Teenage Love’s debut EP "Gold." Their tracks balance elegant, jazz informed melodies with an unconventional approach partly reminiscent of some of the most approachable material by NYC electronic experimenteur Laurie Anderson. Hopefully in 2016,  to cultivate this promising project, the two ladies will find themselves on the same side of the ocean more often than not.

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HONORABLE MENTIONS – (Score above 7):

St. Lenox, Nola Wren, Loving You, NEW MYTHS, Syvia, Secret Weapons.

See you soon with another category!

The Deli Folks