One crisp Sunday evening in September found a crowded music hall moving to the same mystifying jams of two great bands. Dozens of concert-goers crowded into Baltimore Soundstage to hear the dulcet tones of Good Old War and the Irish-inflected rock of Kodaline. The show was an experience to behold, from the lights to the guitar changes. Originally from the City of Brotherly Love, Good Old War’s act heavily featured just that: brotherly love, or, more accurately, bro love. Keith Goodwin, one of the two guitarist-vocalists, and drummer Tim Arnold shared a precious moment of friendship onstage, evoking warm and fuzzy from the audience. Throughout the set, Goodwin displayed dazzling showmanship via his lanky, unconventional dance moves and commitment to interacting with the audience, not to mention his voice, which rang like a better, cleaner version of Bob Dylan. Guitarist-vocalist Dan Schwartz pumped up the audience with his endless energy and dynamic playing, while Arnold’s good vibes were infectious and his drumming premium. It’s a shame their set was only half an hour long. Headlining and hailing from Dublin, Kodaline brought own brand of mind-blowing rock to the stage. Changing guitars with every song and engaging with the audience’s cravings for a good show, this indie quartet played with great versatility within and between songs, rocking hard and fast alternately with slow, romantic melodies. Frontman Steve Garrigan is the epitome of his role, commanding wide range of instrumental skill and a set of pipes that can replace half a church choir. From start to finish, Kodaline grips the audience’s attention and doesn’t disappoint, sharing intimate moments of emotion and musicality.

Back in July, Brooklyn singer/songwriter Alastair Ottesen released the elegantly forlorn songs "Home Movie" (streaming below) and "Saint Anna Street" off his forthcoming new album. While the former is a pop-inflected folk track that recalls the Elliott Smith of ‘Figure 8,’ the latter is a floating blues cut that would play smoothly alongside The Rolling Stones’ ‘Beggars Banquet’ or Houndmouth’s ‘Little Neon Limelight.’ Ottesen’s near coo of a voice, while reminiscent of the late master Smith or John Lennon as heard on such solo gems as "Look at Me," is ultimately singular, skipping through these latest songs of potentially regained innocence. Alastair Ottesen plays at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 1 on Wednesday (9.23). – Zach Weg 

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

Let’s say it, most incarnations of R’n’B are annoyingly and shamelessly commercial. But those forms distort the depth of the genre’s core, which is soul music, whose roots have nothing to do with pleasing everybody in the most superficial way possible. When soul music meets talent interested in digging a little deeper and trying something new, the result is often surprisingly beautiful music – think about the trip hop wave of the 90’s (Massive Attack in particular) or the early TV on the Radio records. Brooklyn based duo Eda Wolf offer a similar musical recipe, and even though their songs would benefit from a tighter production, they have the moving intensity and edge of those classic records. Check out single "Slow Speed below.

Female vocals are rarely associated with the Emo genre, but things seem to be a-changing (maybe that’s one of the reasons why Emo-influenced music is slowly becoming more interesting to our ears). On the footstep of bands like Tigers Jaw and Candy Hearts, Brooklyn’s 5-piece melodic punk outfit Great Woods have recently released their sophomore EP titled ‘Demo,’ which portrays a young band with a lot of potential. Although the band’s dueling co-vocals may be the highlight, the songs’ structure and songwriting is nothing to disregard. Emo is certainly not the only genre referenced: we hear Elvis Costello’s elegant melodies in "Straight as and Arrow," while "The Hammer" is a ballad that indulges in spacious, almost ambient atmopshpeheres. Great Woods will play a show at Muchmore’s on October 12. -Michael Haskoor (@Tweetskoor) 

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

Mixing ’70s funk with yacht rock and modern indie-soul sounds like a Pandora station gone haywire. It works for NYC’s The Rooks, who share a moniker with the ’90s power-pop quartet from Connecticut. Garth Taylor’s silky tenor recalls Frank Ocean and D’Angelo (on faster material), while the band plays tight like session men, freaky like their own thing. The Rooks recently released a new EP entitled "Wires" and will be performing at The Deli’s CMJ Roots Stage at Rockwood on 10.14. –  Brian Chidester

This year’s Civil Brother "Album" (that seems to be its title) at first feels mimetic, which is comforting, though there’s something bigger going on here. Opener “Hold On” (streaming) grabs musically from Ryan Adams and John Mayer, lyrically from Death Cab’s “Follow You Into the Dark.” The same blend pervades the entire LP, which works as a distillation of roots crossover from the last few decades. The band will be performing at The Deli’s official CMJ Roots Stage at Rockwood Music Hall on 10.14. – Brian Chidester

If you’re one of the few not plagued by thoughts of mortality and burdened by self-reflection, consider yourself lucky. If you’re a brooder, however, then Shift Age, by NYC dark electro-rock project The Great Void, might be the record for you. It bears all the outwards signs of happy pop music, though the longer you listen, the more surreal it gets. Especially vivid is “Medicine Ball,” whose plunky synths and new-wave vocals divert bleakly-rendered lines like, “I know we’d have fun/But you’re much too young.” By “Shift Age (Part 2),” it’s clear the gloss is just a cover for deconstructing nostalgia itself. “Out with the days of the old ways” sings leader Josh Ascalon before a barrage of high-pitched squeals surge towards an apocalyptic finale. Or maybe that’s just the hardware inside his keyboard threatening to fry out? – Brian Chidester

This autumn was kicked off perfectly as the incredibly popular, early-morning sensation Daybreaker made a triumphant return to DC on Wednesday, 9/16, bringing DC nu disco DJ Eau Claire to the turntable to treat the early risers to some great jams while they got their yoga and dance on. This sunrise shindig was full of happy people looking to have a party before work and it couldn’t have been better. Eau Claire’s mixes are fresh and make you wanna dance until you drop. Hosting at the Flash nightclub, this DJ of DC brought great energy to Daybreaker and you can catch her next performance at the H Street Festival in the Rock & Roll Hotel, 9/19. Keep your eyes peeled for the next Daybreaker event, as it’s sure to create more fun than you can imagine having at 7 in the morning. -Jonathan Goodwin

Yes, we are finding lots of local bands to write about in the list of official CMJ bands overe here – which is getting larger and larger by the hour. The second half of 2015 has been rather prolific for NYC jangly garage pop trio Big Quiet, who released in June their self-titled debut cassette, following it up in September with a 7" entitled "Maura & Dana" (streaming below). The album/tape takes us through a lo-fi journey of rediscovery of the guitar pop of the ’80s, quoting various influences ranging from early R.E.M. (Why Do We Bother?, Say Yes) to The LA’s (Ghost), with the spectrum or The (early) Bangles lingering behind Marisa Cerio’s melodies and harmonies. The 7", released under Unblinking Ear Records, is a more solid piece of jangly pop, with the title-track delivering their best and most open melody to date, and the early influences resulting less obvious.

Emerging from the guitar/drum nucleus of prior decade indie rock band Lotion and adding keyboards to their sound, New York City’s Baby Spiders release an inspired three song EP “Seven months out of the year.” Leadoff track “Knockout Gas” (streaming) pairs distorted low frequency synth lines with a distinct guitar melody over loose power-rock drumming. Vocals are delivered in a bluesy Ozzy Osbourne style, where the last word in a lyrical line trails off in echo. “Summer Triangle” lumbers forward at a slower, more deliberate pace. The defining hook comes via a heavy synth line over Leslie-speaker-amp driven Hammond organ pads, mirroring what prog-rock crossover band Deep Purple did so well. Final track “Hunter” continues the heavy English blues rock references, dipping into the canon first popularized by bands like Black Sabbath and Led Zepplin. Verses are closer to narration than actually sung, with big riff breaks in between. An extended keyboard led coda fills out what is the EP’s longest track at over four and a half minutes. The band will be playing an official CMJ showcase at Pete’s Candy Store on October 15, hosted by Tinderbox Arts + The Catalyst Publicity Group + William & Park present – Dave Cromwell

(Technically we’re not supposed to talk about bands that aren’t local, but Courtaud and Bobtail were based in the OC for four years, and continually come down to perform — they’re currently on tour, and have played with some of the finest folks in the underground scenes: Shojo Winter, Cruelty Code, Media Jeweler, Young Lovers, Deep Fields, CTHTR. So they’re pretty tight in my book, and worthy of mention.)

Inspired by a mythical 15th century French wolfpack that killed 40 Parisians, the experimental outfit — Alana Cook, Emily Wasilewski, and Andrew Quinones — come up with some very unsettling and vesperous sounds. The accumulated recordings are placid, lo-fi scrawls of peaking feedback, acoustic hum, and calm verse that poeticize the dismal realities of life. Their newest LP "My Love Who Never Was Will Never Be" ventures into narratives of depression, ennui, trauma, and exploitation. It’s heavy with poignant use of reverb and sparse, minimalist arrangements — sadder than Hollywood sadcore, but less boxed into ambient soundscapes as Mojave 3 and Mazzy Star.

Thursday night, Courtaud and Bobtail joins Young Lovers (post-rock from the valley) and Tender Age (C86/noisepop from Portland) at the Ham & Eggs Tavern, DJ set by the lovely Izzy Sophia. Come out: you might cry, you might dance, and you just might find love. Listen to "Hanging Wall" below. – Ryan Mo

New York singer/songwriter Sam Kogon recalls different kinds of rock while radiating his own whimsical pop on his irrestibly warm debut solo album ‘Before You Knew Me.’ Bookended by the guitar-seared songs "Before" and "On The Ceiling" while featuring the Wilco-esque Americana of "I Could Never" and the Electric Light Orchestra-like jubilance of "Plans" (streaming below), the Brooklyn-recorded effort has the Brian Wilson-admiring Kogon imbuing tracks of angst and heartbreak with both charm and sincerity. Ahead of the release of ‘Before You Knew Me’ on Friday (9.18), Sam Kogon plays at The Elvis Guesthouse tomorrow (9.17). – Zach Weg