We hardly ever blog about a band that has no streaming music, but brand new, female fronted, NYC punks Johnny Ain’t Bad (previously known as "The Johnny’s NYC) in less than one year of existence have been able to land shows at venues like Irving Plaza, Rough Trade and Baby’s All Right, so we suspect they must be worth checking out. Here’s a short, lo-fi video of one of ther shows… intriguing indeed! The band will be celebrating the release of their debut EP "Psycho Girl" tomorrow (06.02) at Baby’s All Right. Hopefully, after the show some recorded music will be leaking through…

Crystales are a band from Highland Park sporting that ‘60s beach vibe with fuzzy facial hair and fuzz pedals. Brothers Nick and Billy Gil go halfsies on guitar and vocals while Jason Hanakeawe and Tony Infante keep the crew rocking. Splashing through C86 guitar tones with just the right amount of reverb and kicking down walls of sound, Crystales have shimmered through Los Angeles and Pasadena nights with Roses, Michael Vidal, and Hyacinth Girl.

Join them tonight at Pehrspace as they open for Young Lovers’ night of residency with Echophonix and Judy Gloom, and next weekend at Make Music Pasadena. Listen to “I Don’t Care” below. – Ryan Mo
 

LA music & arts collective Bonus Druthers are hosting a second Pity Party tonight (wait — when was the first one?!) at the Missing Piece Theatre in Burbank. Stuck in NoHo with no plans? Start your summer break by getting intimate and sweaty with four great LA bands.

The Electric West: the post-punk blood brothers that will fog up any venue. Dig their new album Verdugo but missed them at Ghost Noise’s residency? Redeem yourself! You’ll be glad you did.

Tiny Stills: moniker of Kaitlynn West, Tiny Stills blasts easy-dancing indie pop way loud, the kind of stuff that would make Colleen Green proud. 

Sullen Ray: producer Seth Eubanks’ solo-thing-that-turned-into-a-duo with singer Dee Clement. Rosy 90’s reminiscent duets and righteous jams. ‘Nuff said.

Draag: the up-and-coming quintet sporting valley fuzz and valley feels. It’s crunchy, it’s heavenly; it’s gaze-inspired rock that inspires you to mosh.

Feeling thirsty? Bonus Druthers got you covered with a pop-up the traveling Baxter’s Speakeasy: all-you-can-drink happy hour from 5-7PM while supplies last! Shoutout to Culver City’s Exposition Studios who are helping out with live sound. Acoustic sets start at 5 — get some earbuds if you bus in at 8. Tickets 10$. – Ryan Mo

On past releases such as her piano-girded, subtly piercing 2012 song “Midnight Whistle” and the hushed, guitar-based ‘Sleep Will Set Me Free‘ EP that followed later that year, Brooklyn-by-way-of-Dublin singer/songwriter Sorcha Richardson quietly fought through her struggles. “There’s a runaway/Poison train/Tearing through my/Sinking veins/But this midnight whistle/Won’t remain,” she sang on “Midnight Whistle,” and one was both crushed and comforted. The early-twenties musician rises to near celebration on latest track “Petrol Station,” (streaming below), a murky yet ultimately sunny electronica piece. “You’re coming over to my house,” Richardson gently repeats to her hesitant addressee, perhaps finding her own peace in the process. Sorcha Richardson performs at Pete’s Candy Store on 6/11 as part of the Northside Festival, and plays Rockwood Music Hall on 6/19. – Zach Weg

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

A little over two years after releasing their debut LP ‘Good Evening,’ Brooklyn/Queens quintet Steady Sun return with single “Lover Knows” (streaming below), a waltzing, guitar-twined psych-rock track with sweet hints of dream pop. Lead singer Dylan Nowik gently eases you over sleepy guitar lines, which then turn wonderfully alive and almost chaotic, making for a pleasantly chimerical song that is at once unpredictable and cohesive. The band’s sophomore album, ‘Flora,’ will drop this summer. In the meantime, catch them live at Mercury Lounge tomorrow (5/30). – Zach Weg

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

Kids these days might not be as nihilist and wild as they were in the late 70s, but this isn’t preventing the NYC punk scene from being alive and well. Brainchild of the former vocalist/guitarist of The Measure Lauren Denitzio (aka Lauren Measure), Brooklyn quartet Worriers have been around since the early ’10s and emerged last year with their debut album on Don Giovanni Records. Their sound offers a sped up version of a brand of melodic punk reminiscent of pioneers of the genre such as Dinosaur Jr and Husker Du – a band with whom they occasionally share a political approach to songwriting. Worriers just announced their new LP ‘Imaginary Life’, scheduled for an August 7 release, and unveiled single ‘They / Them / Theirs’ (streaming), which questions notions of the gender binary and the frustrations that come with it. The band is starting today an extensive US tour.

The brainchild of Tamara Jafar and Joe Durniak, Cultfever is a catchy NYC electro-rock duo we’ve been following for some time. They have just released this new single entitled "Youth," and took the opportunity to announce their participation in the Northside Fest with a show at Union Pool on June 11.

Boston and its surroundings keep supplying NYC with richly arranged and very competently produced records. Brooklyn based – via Beantown – Craig Martinson plays music that’s obviously influenced by The Beatles’ psychedelic years, although he’s not afraid to occasionally venture off that path with more noisy and experimental tracks like this cover of Beck’s Devil’s Haircut. We are premiering here third single ‘Burning Monk’ from sophomore EP ‘ M​y Love is True.’ The song kicks off with a "Let it Be" style piano line, and suddenly breaks into a fully orchestrated chorus, exploding with melancholy, while the lyrics stress the very words giving the EP its title. The other tracks available from streaming confirm Martinson’s noteworthy songwriting, filled with strong melodies and imaginative production.

A little over a year after releasing his album Road-Dog’s Teeth, New Orleans and Brooklyn based bluesman Johnny Azari returns with the double LP ‘God Damn Blues (The Newest Testament).’ As heard on the slide guitar-based, dusty single “God Damn Blues” (video streaming below), the Shiraz-born singer/multi-instrumentalist impressively conveys real-life hurt through his devilishly charming voice, effectively creating a portrait of a luckless man just trying to survive. It’s a seemingly classic blues story that Azari tells with obvious charisma and artful songwriting. – Zach Weg

One may say that producers are like the chefs of the creative process (the studio being their kitchen), so it’s hard to conceive how a band like NYC’s WIN WIN – comprised of three electronic producers – can actually function without major and recurrent conflicts of ego. The secret is probably – as with most successful musical project involving more than one person – in the trust and bond built during a collaboration that’s now more than a decade long. WIN WIN’s music is as edgy as you would expect, which gives us the opportunity for a very interesting Q&A about gear and the creative process – you can read it in our sister blog about gear and recording Delicious Audio – link below. Check out the band’s latest single ‘Air" streaming below.

WIN WIN TALK ABOUT GEAR AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS

An autodidact by way of KRS-One with a punk spirit blessed by Bane and the DIY patron saint Beats Antique, Lawrence Lindell is nothing short of a multi-genre musician. And with glitched out nods to Aphex Twin and Squarepusher, Lindell’s penchant for percussion takes IDM to the ground-level, serving up sounds of indiscriminate densities on a bed of beats.

Lindell began his electronic trek in 2009, taking on different identities (most recently as LAw) before settling down with himself and the home-grown label Noise Met Sound in 2013. With it, Lindell joined up with like-minded musicians like ambient noise artist Gypsy Eyes and experimental chamber group Inner Ecstasy. From empty backyard pools to the dA Center and the LA Fort, Lindell has been unapologetic in his art and vision. And slowly but surely, people are beginning to notice.

"The philosophy I stick with is "Never apologize for being who you are." Do things your own way and forget about what everyone else thinks or has to say about it. DIY is the basis of everything we do. If we can’t find someone to distribute for us or book us for shows, we do it ourselves."

Lawrence Lindell recently released two albums, Magic Megaphone and Cinema of Soul, which will be out as a two-disk set in June. Listen to "Ego Death" below, and stay tuned for more news on live shows. – Ryan Mo

With their new single "Calm Punk" (streaming), from upcoming sophomore LP, Brooklyn’s Dead Stars convincingly rides the nu-grunge wave that’s been sweeping Brooklyn in the past two years. Against what’s considered as "booking common sense," the band is going to push the new release through a series of local shows very close to each other (five in ten days!?!). But hey, rock’n’roll hates common sense, so we invite you to support the guys, who have a great live show and shared last year’s 4Knots stage with Dinosaur Jr., Mac DeMarco and Speedy Ortiz among others. Find your most convenient date here.