If the likes of REM or Counting Crows spent some time in the Appalachians, you’d end up with The Sometimes. This band has a sound built from their Virginian roots, incorporating Americana and bluesy undertones into an alternative framework. Hailing from Fairfax, the quartet put out a new EP, Standoff, that inspires nostalgic introspection and features eloquent repetition. Energetic power chords and moderately raspy vocals produce a standout vibe, so don’t miss The Sometimes play Battle of the Bands, 1/5, at Jammin’ Java in Vienna. -Jonathan Goodwin

We were an hour overdue and loudness was all we could hear. Black metal and small talk warmed the atmosphere as the trio Exray’s lined the stage — well it wasn’t really a stage, but the gap made it seem otherwise. The intimacy of Trust a Robot and Jon Bernson’s continued beckoning tightened spaces between the crowd and them, if only for the last two songs. And the crowd only got tighter as Naytronix followed, with an efficacious live set of Mister Divine — a medley of tambourines, cowbells, Costa Rican-inspired drumming, and Nate Brenner’s resonant basslines.

Headliner Deb DeMure came forth with a bust of Apollo to bless the set, wearing a pink changshan to juxtapose. Drab Majesty showered the Non Plus with piercing guitar tones redolent of ’80s wave, and we stood transfixiated in darkness. Up last, Creepers thanked those who stayed for the end — it was just us, friends, and the Non Plus residents. Their hard-hitting lysergic psych filled the near-empty space and burrowed deep into our ears. Shiv Mehra’s SG came untuned, but even the discordant yaws felt at home as the last of the audience nodded on to synthetic screams and cacophonous overlays of Lush — loudness was all we could hear. And it was glorious. Check our Instagram @TheDeliLA for more pictures of the night. – Ryan Mo, photos by Michelle K. McCausland

Celebrate your holiday hangover with The New Riddim this Saturday at The Brick, where they will be joined by The Grisly Hand. Show starts at 10 pm. Facebook event page. 

I’m not sure how we missed the fact that Long Island’s band The Lemon Twigs opened for Deli favorite Foxygen this past summer. The songwriting nucleus of the group is comprised of brothers Brian D’Addario and Michael D’Addario (we wonder if they are in any way related to the famous LI based manufacturer of guitar strings!). The two obviously share a passion for pop and psychedelic records of the ’60s, and have put together a group of like minded musicians to help them recreate those vintage sounds. This past summer they released a debut LP in cassette and streaming format, entitled "What We Know," that plays like a colorful rear mirror image of the dreamiest of musical decades. Their overall approach to the retro thing, although similar to Foxygen’s, is a lot softer and chilled, trading rock’n’roll’s tension and attitude with a more whimsical approach, reminiscent of the Beach Boys at their most psychedelic. The album, although rather DIY sounding, is amazingly consistent, featuring a noteworthy number of enjoyable tracks arranged in imaginative ways. We stream below "Soothe," which features one of their best melodies.

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

NYC songwriter Janelle Kroll is the living proof of how electronic music is bringing a new edge to soul pop, a genre that – until a few years ago – was trapped in the mainstream’s straitjacket. Take her single "Numb" (streaming below): at its heart, it’s a simple soul ballad, but the track’s production, flirting with the "weirdness" of industrial rock and trip hop, elevates it to something unique in its beautiful eeriness, expanding the song’s appeal. Janell had a satisfying 2015: she released a string of singles in 2015, the latest of which is "How Do You Know Me," performed at Lollapalooza, and landed a few high profile collaborations (with Hot Since 82 and Moon Boots among others). She’ll be performing at Rockwood Music Hall on February 2nd. – Photo by Nathan Podshadley

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

Brainchild of Brooklyn singer songwriter/producer Nandi Rose Plunkett, Half Waif incarnates the paradox – made possible by modern technology – of the solo orchestral project. In control of lyrics and vocals, Nandi also forges the band’s lush electronic arrangements, partly delegating the rhythm section to drummer Zack Levine and bassist Adan Carlo. Half Waif – who made our Best of NYC Poll for Emerging bands back in 2013 – just announced the release of their sophomore LP "Probable Depths" by unveiling single "Nest" (streaming). Before the release, scheduled for an April 2016 release, the trio will be performing at Shea Stadium on January 6 with Shana Falana, Fraternal Twin, and Ajnabi.

Speaking of New Jersey (see post below this one), Gates from New Brunswick play a genre that we would more easily associate with the Garden State, with its frequent emo references and "alt" sounding distorted guitars. But, by introducing textural post rock and ambient elements, the band forged a sound so intense and sophisticated that the resulting songs come across as sincere and heart-felt, which is what most emo fails to achieve. The quartet isn’t new to the scene, but last year’s release "Bloom and Breathe" (their third since 2011) has raised their profile quite a bit, opening the doors to a tour opening for The Dear Hunter. Check out their single "Not My Blood," streaming below.

From the twinkle of emo-tinged post-rock to the suffocating gravity of drone, OC’s trio The Human Machine wields an amorphous sound that is undeniable in its grandeur and technique. Displaced by geography — Jake Ingalls (bass) and Patrick Whitehill (guitar/vocals) lived in the Bay for a time, while Jonathan Modell (drums) stayed in the OC — the three built the "Contrashiva" EP on modulating textures, down-tempo rhythms and chordal intricacies — stuff that would make Don Caballero and American Football fans ecstatic. Following a split EP with Oakland’s Stars Are Projectors (now Valley Girls), THM released their 2014 self-titled debut album. Tonally rich and unapologetically honest, the seven-song album immersed listeners in jazz cadences and psychedelic atmospheres.

Their newest album Patterns is the second body of work (following January’s "Palimpest") that the trio have had the luxury of working on at length — "All material up to "Palimpest" was done under time limitations and living throughout different parts of California," says Modell. Shedding some shoegaze and post-rock influences in favor of improvisational and functionalist grooves, Patterns welds textures of Duster and Can with the thrum of Earth into titanic passages. "My inspiration behind Patterns was to make music that sounded desolate," says Whitehill. "Music that makes you anxious; music that makes you feel like you are moving slowly through a desert."

Modell adds, "THM’s progression as a band has been a very natural arc that shifted with our influences. I wouldn’t call Patterns a hard shifting point. It was the natural step for us after "Palimpest" — focusing less on the technicality and more on the textures and grooves that can be carried for extended lengths of time."

Tonight, The Human Machine celebrate their newest album Patterns with a release party at Beatnik Bandito with New Balance (of Canyons), Dead Recipe (Santa Cruz), Young Jesus, and Known Bird Sightings. – Ryan Mo

It sounds like New Jersey is going through a process of Brooklynization – at least as far as music is concerend. So many good indie bands coming out of it these days! After Stolen Jars, who landed on the cover of our most recent issue of The Deli, Forth Wanderers (incidentally also out of Montclaire) are now stealing our hearts with their intricately melancholic indie pop. The band has a trick up their sleeve in lead singer’s Ava Trilling’s adorably earnest delivery. Her touching lyrics, mostly revolving around the challenges of growing up, may bring you to tears; in streaming track "Selfish" (the opening track from their debut 2014 record "Tough Love") she sings:

"I wanna be known/as the girl who’s stone cold 
wears her heart on her sleeve/for everyone to need 
oh she’ll make you proud …" 

"…I get scared instead, when you say/you’ve been in my head", let that stay 
i wish i could hurry home/i better hurry home."

Forth Wanderers will play a home show at Montclaire’s Old Mogul Theatre on 01.03.

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

We already knew that Katy Gunn (an artist we covered with her duo Teenage Love) was a talented lady, but we weren’t aware of her links with performance art. As the in-house performance artist/composer at NOoSPHERE ARTS in New York City and a member of The Mothership art collective in Brooklyn, Katy performs regularly at exhibition openings, incorporating solo violin with voice, choreographed movement and audience interaction. She’s about to release a solo record entitled "Whispering Voices," set for January of 2016 in tandem with choreographed performance of her compositions alongside interdisciplinary artist and performer, Autumn Kioti. The record, tackling the inner struggle for identity and meaning, is entirely built around Katy’s voice and body, using samples and regular recordings.

Remember the good old days when some religious entities believed rock’n’roll was evil, and – trying to prove that – dissected songs and lyrics by artists as extreme as… QUEEN? That demonization had only the effect of inciting more and more radical forms of musical rebellion, in most cases in the shape of terrible metal acts with devilish looks and lyrics, that were soon exploited by record labels targeting alienated teens. Undeniably though, rock music has always been flirting with – if not evil – at least dark impulses, in the varying form of personal despair, violent desire for change, rebellion against society’s accepted structures and conventions, or even just sexual, intellectual and behavioral anti-conformism. Rock artists seems to cyclically rediscover these powerful thematic, always pairing it with an aggressive sound. Cold Sweats is a NYC based band that does that to perfection: with a singer that sounds as apocalyptic as Nick Cave in his early days with The Birthday Party, and a backing band able to pull off any kind of shock inducing sonic trick, these guys are pure, unadulterated, quality tension. Abuse of the cathartic power of their music, it may prove liberating.

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

Just a month ago, Boston “sad math” trio Du Vide released its ferociously minimal latest effort, ‘clutter.’ Comprised of such genre-melding tracks as the jazz-bedroom pop blend, “the hell it is” and the folk-inflected “a sharp inhale” (streaming below), the intriguingly murky piece shows Du Vide to be a group who, as Youth Lagoon did on his brilliant debut, ‘The Year of Hibernation,’ conveys inner ennui with compassionate force. Du Vide plays Middle East-Upstairs in Cambridge, Massachussetts on Tuesday, 12/22. – Zach Weg