We can’t find much info on the internet about NYC based folk duo Beau, formed by two very young ladies named Heather Boo and Emma Rose. But we can find a lot of info about their label which is about to release their self-titled debut: it appears to be to be a (French) fashion brand on a mission to support the creative efforts of musicians – it also released Buscabulla’s debut EP, recently NYC record of the month on this same blog. The involvement of fashion related companies in the record industry cannot be unwelcome, considering the scarcity of funds afflicting the latter. Preview single "One Wing" and this other song "Karma" are reminiscent of a folkier, sparser and less pretentious Lana Del Rey – we are curious to hear the rest of the record to form a more complete opinion. Beau will be performing live at Baby’s All Right on April 27th with Buscabulla and Mothxr.

Active since the late aughts, avant-soul collective Ava Luna has been coherently following a peculiar musical path that largely predated NYC’s soul revival of the mid ’10s, while embedding itself in the Brooklyn scene through that hub of creativity that is Bushwick’s DIY institution Silent Barn, a space they help running which hosts live shows, art installations, a barber, and also a recording studio. That’s where Ava Luna mostly self-produced their fourth album "Infinite House" which is released today on Western Vynil, and showcases a band at the peak of their creativity and maturity. Its eleven tracks are a homage to variety and experimentation, where beautiful melodies are juxtaposed to thunderous – but still soulful – sonic exposions, and doo wop harmonies learn to coexist with atonal guitars vaguely reminiscent of Arto Lindsey from the Modern Lovers years. Occasional hints of Bossanova, Funk, Noise Rock, Folk and Lounge music contribute to make this musical puzzle so mesmerizingly unconceivable that it borders on sublime. Check out single "Billz" below, and don’t miss the band’s release parties at Baby’s All Right on April 17 and Silent Barn the following day.

Drown in sound or dance in sound, take your pick – whichever way you fly, you can choose Nightmare Air. This LA trio was formed by ex-Film School guitarist Dave Dupuis and goth-folk bassist/singer Swaan Miller, later joined by Noise by Numbers drummer Jimmy Lucido. Together, they raise hell pairing self-oscillating feedback and driving rhythms with fuzz bass lines and dreamy vocal melodies. In 2010 the band released their debut EP and have embarked on transatlantic tours, opening for Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth), Ice Age, No Joy, Smashing Pumpkins, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. After sharing a stage with Ringo Deathstarr and Dead Leaf Echo at SXSW and finishing their 2015 Europe tour, Nightmare Air are finally home and working on a follow-up album to 2013’s "High In The Lasers." – Ryan Mo

In early 2014, Expert Alterations self-released a self-titled cassette EP. Now they’ve teamed up with Slumberland Records for a limited edition vinyl release. It’s as solid a collection of contemporary post-punk as you can hope to hear. It’s got jangle and drone, energetic guitars and lackadaisical vocals. The low-fi sound and vocal delivery are reminiscent of Sebadoh, but the songs are quick, their structure and the rhythm section, alternately bouncy and insistent, channel punk like Minutemen and Wire. They jam econo, and the EP is over much too fast, prompting repeated listens.  

You can pre-order now for a June 1st release. In the meantime, Expert Alterations are going on a short tour, starting April 18th at Baltimore Soundstage (where they will be opening for The Buzzcocks–Yes!). You can also catch them April 21st at Metro Gallery (w/ Peach Kelli Pop–also Yes!–along with Baltimore’s Boy Spit and Moist–mmmmm), before they head to the boroughs of NY for some Fests.  –Natan Press

Brian Eno says that sequencers, because of the way they function, push electronic musicians to work "vertically" on music, i.e. by adding layer upon layer of sounds to a looped bar or two, and then slowly move horizontally to the next section of the arrangement. This is fundamentally different from the typical way songwriters work, consisting in creating first the "horizontal" structure of the song (verse, chrous, etc), and then focusing on the arrangement. From this perspective, NYC electronic artist Gracie sounds actually like a singer-songwriter, his songs flowing effortlessly from verse to chorus, and featuring several chord changes, which are often limited in electronic music. His music is a little reminiscent of legendary British apocalyptic pop project The The, although much more mellow both in attitude and sound. Gracie has a few shows coming up in NYC, the first one of which is at Union Pool on April 30th with Nicholas Nicholas.

Psychedelia is having a huge influence on today’s NYC rock scene, but there aren’t that many bands able to recreate the genre’s original mistical aura and semi-virtuoso performances. Enter Brooklyn’s own IYEZ, a band we just found out about, even though they’ve been actively releasing records since 2011. Their lates creation is the full length Psychic Jungle, a multi dimensional psych rock record featuring this incredible tune "Purity" (streaming below), which is bound to console those of you disappointed with Tame Impala’s rather… tame latest single.

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

They’re a Korn cover band and they like to thank Riff Raff for everything. But when the cheeky quartet SHEER aren’t making puns and nu metal references or praising the Mad Decent rapper, they’re burying audiences with songs that effortlessly blend dreampop, shoegaze, and doom metal. Formed from a diverse group of musicians in Simi Valley, SHEER released their first pair of singles “Uneasy” and “2014” early this year, gaining buzz on the Internet and in the LA scene by playing at The Smell and White Oak Music and Arts, with veterans like San Fernando experimental group The Unending Thread, Hemet’s resident shoegazing cat lovers Crisis Arm, and Los Angeles punkgazing trio Tennis System. SHEER are putting the finishing touches to their debut album, which is up for release later this year. Check out their 2014 single "Skin," streaming below. – Ryan Mo

Led by confident and charismatic Brooklyn chanteuse Lily Cato, Parlour Tricks (previously known as Lily & the Parlour Tricks) play a sophisticated brand of indie pop centered around Lily’s magnetic presence and sultry vocals, and enriched by tasteful atmospheric arrangements. After years spent striving in the NYC underground (our earliest coverage dates back to 2010), the band recently signed with Bar None, which will release their upcoming album “Broken Hearts/Bones.” We asked them a few questions about their creative and recording process, read the interview on our sister blog for creative musical minds on Delicious Audio.

​If ever Wes Anderson produces a film about space exploration (and I wouldn’t put it past him) I hope LEPT does the entire score. Their music, like this hypothetical movie, is whimsical in a measured way. Its playful affectations melt away to reveal something far more substantial, suggesting that a lot of thought and effort went into its production. This should come as no surprise, considering that LEPT is the brain child of two members of Zula, (Henry Terepka and Pablo Eluchans) and E Scott Lidner, proprietor of Studio Radio 45, a recording studio and podcast. Entirely a studio project, the songs on the eponymous LEPT EP take on the familiar trappings of krautrock, and share Zula’s fascination with rhythm, credit to percussionist Eluchans. Reorient, the EPs third song is built upon his poly-rhythmic architecture, with undulating synth and bass passages weaved throughout, giving it an organic feel. It’s a shame these songs won’t be performed live, but you can catch Zula with Palm on May 3rd at (le) poisson rouge and listen to the entire LEPT EP here. – @emilioherce

As you can gather from their streaming single, NYC noise rock trio Advaeta isn’t too concerned with pleasing the average music lover, choosing to cater to the faithfuls of the rock genre genre that takes tension and dissonance to its extreme. The band, active for more than 5 years in the NYC underground, will be releasing their new album "Death And The Internet" on local label Fire Talk at the end of the month. The unveiled three singles from it, which seem to add a dreamy vocal element to their droney and abrasive wall of guitars: "Angelfish," streaming below, "Hazel Blue Eyes," and "Church Cult," recently premiered on Stereogum.

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

We have to say, we are pretty friggin’ proud of Brooklyn via New England electro folk (or something) quartet Howard. When we first featured them in this blog in November 2014 we were struck right away by their sound and songwriting, which effortlessly blended elements as disparate as jungle and Gregorian chants. A few weeks later they went on to top the Psych/Avant Indie submissions for our Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists. A few days before, they had dropped a new single entitled "Money Can’t Buy," which since then has gathered a stunning TWO MILLION plays on Spotify. The band recently playd SXSW and landed a deal with a major touring agency, so we are sure they are going to have a fun rest of 2015. Congrats guys!

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