Higher Education is a talented four-piece hailing from College Park and their sound is a veritable cornucopia of roots rock, reggae, and funk. Vocalists Danny and Petey Devaney display their versatility well, belting like Sublime’s Bradley Nowell, drawing listeners in to the music. Hardly a better dance groove is imaginable as Higher Education slides from punky fast beats to slow island jams effortlessly. Catch them treating an audience at their album release party at The 8×10 on 8/21. Make sure to pick up a copy of "Would You Like Fries With That," too! -Jonathan Goodwin

Zambri and Hooray for Earth are (or maybe were?) two of the most underrated electronic bands to come out of Brooklyn in the late aughts/early ’10s. They shared an adventurous, borderline experimental approach to pop, the former leaning towards complex song structures and abstract melodies and sounds, the latter more focused on creating edgy and organic sounding arrangements for their melodic tracks, filled with industrial and psychedelic influences. Two of the leading musicians behind these two projects, Jessica Zambri and singer and multi-instrumentalist Noel Heroux, are now collaborating on a new band called Solvey. Judging from single ‘Redlight’ (video streaming) the duo’s musical direction sounds slightly less electronic and more dreamy, although the other single/video ‘The Weight‘ contraddicts these impressions right away, doubling down on experimentation and noise. We are looking forward to see what other surprises the upcoming full length will reserve, it’s scheduled for a fall release. Solvey is unveiling a new video tonight (08.13) at the Wythe Hotel.

Brooklyn Americana trio Tanbark today premieres the deceptively merry song “Jenny” (streaming below) off their forthcoming album, ‘Write Soon.’ A near mythic story of small-town desperation, the freewheeling, guitar-winded track lucidly updates the tragic legend of Guinevere and Lancelot. As frontwoman Chloe Nelson revealed via e-mail, “I was reading T.H. White’s version of the two, not particularly romantic or handsome, but rather ugly and painful. Country music is all about heartbreak, so it seems a propos to tell of a classically doomed love." In the vein of Terrence Malick’s classic film Badlands or the deeply poignant songs off Bruce Springsteen’s masterful ‘Nebraska’ LP, Tanbark’s “Jenny” is sad but oh-so-alive. Tanbark will have an album release show for ‘Write Soon’ on Thursday 8.20 at Greenpoint’s Manhattan Inn. Full details for the event can be found at its Facebook page.– Zach Weg

Formed at Princeton University in 2005, Miracles of Modern Science (MOMS) is a goofy, Brooklyn based chamber rock band that keeps it simple. Choosing to forgo electric guitas hasn’t prevented them from creating some fresh tunes – or maybe contributed to that, you, guitar obsessed masses! The band members stick with violin, cello, mandolin, drums and double bass, played by front man, Evan Younger. Having just released their newest LP, “Mean Dreams”, MOMS will be playing a release show on August 14th, at Mercury Lounge. To get a taste of their music check out their music video “Swipe”, a homage to Tinder, featuring brooklyn vocalist Kristin Slipp. -Lauren Schechter 

Sacred Destinies‘s dulcet boy-girl harmonies come as a surprise to many, even the duo. The band’s origin: Charlyne Yi and Jet Elfman were previously of far more aggressive bands — she was the singer of garage-punk outfit The Rangdangs, and he was guitarist/vocalist in the Angelean experimental indie flavored Wide Streets. They both yelled. A lot.

"I had no idea that he had the most angelic voice in the whole world till we jammed one night," says Charlyne.

Soon after a new band was formed. Synth and guitar intertwined as voice carried voice into the beginnings of a folk sound far different from the duo’s previous bands. Jet already knew their name.

"I had so much fun playing music with him, I jokingly asked, "What’s our band called?" And without any hesitation he looked back at me and answered, "Sacred Destinies," like he had known for an eternity."

With only one song finished and a gig set in Colorado, Jet and Charlyne threw together a ragtag tour, pushing themselves to write more songs together. Somewhere along the way, things got weird and magical.

"Jet also found a glowing sword at the bottom of a swamp where I was drowning, he taught me to swim, we used the magic sword to slay some monsters and save a sandwich from an evil sorcerer, which we shared after our great adventure."

Sacred Destinies are currently in recording sessions, having played on numerous occasions at The Smell and Pehrspace. Their prowess is also featured in the musical score for Bobcat Goldthwait’s recent documentary of comedian Barry Crimmins: Call Me Lucky. Listen to the hauntingly beautiful demo "Storks and Mosquitos", a first taste of more to come. – Ryan Mo, photo credit: Melissa Ramirez

Fate can often be cruel, but she did the world a favor in bringing together Canary oh Canary, a post-punk trio from Richmond. They formed after entering a rock lotto and discovering their shared approaches to music. A grateful world can find much to enjoy in their latest LP, Sleep, as their aural aesthetic arises from groovy bass lines, sulky vocal work, and slamming guitar riffs. Fans and converts alike can find Canary oh Canary leading the lineup at The Broadberry, 8/23, as part of the Commonwealth of Notions concert series. -Jonathan Goodwin

Originally the solo project of singer and songwriter Will Rutledge, Pupppy (yes, three "p"s) is a Purchase and NYC based indie-rock outfit that has since evolved into a quartet. Debut album "Shit in the Apple Pie," was released back in April and the band just recently finished touring in support of it. The record is an oddly satisfying mixture of poppy melodies contrasted by rough-sounding instrumentation and filled with an assortment of cynical and depressive lyrics. The first single from the record, "Beans," perfectly embodies the group’s overall attitude, as Rutledge sings, "My foot is stuck / In my mouth / Until I shove it all the way down / To the bottom of my throat / Then I puke / Truth all over you." Influences from early slacker pop pioneers such as Pavement and The Lemonheads, and at times also The Pixies (who only slacked on Kim Deal’s songs) are present throughout the record, especially on the tracks "Puking (Merry Christmas)," and "Or Maybe We’re Not." Overall, "Shit in the Apple Pie" is a solid debut containing 9 refreshingly catchy indie-rock / pop tunes. The band’s second album is currently in the works and you can catch them at Aviv on August 29th or at Palisades on September 5th. – Patrick Wolff

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

Blending such disparate genres as R&B, folk, and blues into a darkly beautiful meditation on life’s inherent dramas, ‘Didn’t You, My Dear?’ by Brooklyn-via-Helsinki singer/songwriter Janita is perhaps the most ideal kind of album: striking in both musicianship and emotion. Radiohead’s seminal ‘OK Computer’ seems to have influenced the anxious yet ultimately serene aura of these songs—particularly the guitar-guided search for peace, “Easing into Sanity” (streaming below)—but Janita’s deft ability to put ferocity atop warmth is what is remarkable. “I used to do tricks,/I used to run after sticks,/I used to play ball with all you pricks,” she brusquely sings over waltzing guitars and drums on “Who’s Gonna Tell the Wolf She’s Not a Dog,” anger giving way to calm. – Zach Weg

You rarely hear the word ‘neo-classical’ describing bands coming out of Brooklyn right now, but for the progressive quartet ensemble, et al. it’s the first thing that comes to mind. For their first full length album (in its entirety below), ‘Present Point Passed‘, the band cultivates expressive, post-rock symphonies out of chimes and just about any instrument on hand, all while forgoing vocals. ensemble, et al.’s meticulous orchestration of percussive elements revives the seemingly antiquated spirit of classical genres in order to create a modern, minimalist sound in part reminiscent of post-rock masters Tortoise. Be sure to catch them in Brooklyn tonight (08.11) at the Knitting Factory. – Sam O’Hara

Mtume Gant, a.k.a. Core Rhythm has been a juggernaut in the NYC Hip Hop scene for a decade.  His soundscapes always had a certain cinematic quality so his venture into film directing is no surprise.  His award-winning short SPIT is taking the film festival circuit by storm with showings at seven festivals and counting.  Don’t miss your chance to see it tonight in Queens at the Chain NYC Film Festival in Long Island City at 8;30pm. Tickets are available for purchase, trailer here. – Broke MC

It seems inevitable that Queens will soon replace Brooklyn as the musicians’ favoriote NYC borough – Frog is the second band we are covering from Astoria this week, sign of times to come! This year the duo came out of nowhere with their debut LP ‘Kind of Blah.’ a collection of electric and eclectic songs sharing a slacker rock attitude. Their music features a variety of influences ranging from the sparse and dreamy atmospheres of slow core (‘All Dogs go to Heaven‘) to the more uptempo experiments of post punk (check out ‘Fucking’ – streaming below, reminiscent of early XTC – or ‘King Kong‘ that’s half punk madness, half folk sanity). Ballads like ‘Everything‘ and ‘Knocking on the Door‘ more clearly unveil the duo’s Americana tendencies, while other uptempo episodes like ‘Photograph‘ are a direct reference to the mother of all slacking bands, Pavement, probably the most influential band in Brooklyn right now. Frog’s eclectic take on the genre is refreshing, and is taking them places: they’ll be playing some dates in the UK in January. You can beat the Britons by seeing them live at Palisades tonight (08.11).

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

Back in June, New York-born singer/songwriter Rachel Brown released her latest EP, ‘The Band.’ As indicated in the crisply-shot, infectiously joyful music video for the song “You Got Me” (below), the release blasts sunny, horn-backed moments that are refreshingly happy. But there is also the Harvard University graduate’s cover of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” which powerfully illuminates the desperate solitude of that party song. Subtly brilliant work. Rachel Brown plays at Joe’s Pub tonight (8.11). – Zach Weg