One of the most serious problems of the music industry, today, is that it’s incredibly hard for musicians to cultivate their compositional skills for long enough to reach their full potential: since the mp3 induced collapse of record sales, funds for artist development have vanished, and artists have no choice but to develop themselves, with little funds and – often – time. It really takes a lot of mental strength and self discipline to grow as an artist, in particular in a city as merciless as the Big Apple. Brooklyn Davey Jones and his indie rock project Lost Boy ?, with that name that perfectly sums up the challanges of being an "indie" musician, has been keeping at it for quite some time (at least since 2010, when we booked them at Pianos with Quilty, which then moved back to Boston and became Speedy Ortiz). In the last few weeks Lost Boy ? has been unveiling two new songs from their upcoming album (due in April), which reveal a growing songwriting confidence and an improved sound. The album, entitled "Canned" is the first release recorded as a band. Judging from these first two singles, dwelling in a sea of influences ranging from The Pixies to The Flaming Lips, it’s likely to propell the band to the next level in their musical career – they would deserve it.
The Deli KC is proud to premiere the new music video from Monta At Odds, “Android Dreams.”
“Android Dreams” appears on Monta’s latest album Robots of Munich, a concept album inspired by the storyline of Blade Runner / Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?.
A robotic synthesizer introduces the song, followed by a steady mechanical backbeat. The video—directed by Barry Anderson—follows this rhythmic pattern, expressed through a series of panned images of a young girl. This, along with the melodic interplay between Delaney Moore’s synths and Mika Tanaya’s vocals, gives the images and video an eerie, apparitional quality.
Check out the video and pick up a copy of Robots of Munich online or at a local record store.
Our Year End Poll for Emerging Portland Artists was – as usual – a painstaking (and somewhat excruciating) process, but we pulled it off with remarkable flair!
A huge congratulations to The Domestics for becoming The Deli Portland’s Artist of 2014. For a group who seemed to materialize out of nowhere in early 2014, they recorded easily one of the best albums in recent Portland history. And it hasn’t gone unnoticed. Through and through, these guys are pure musicians and true song writers. Here’s looking forward to more soul-crushingly beautiful folk-friendly indy rock from them to come in the near future.
Sama Dams were not far behind, securing the Number 2 seat. Their 2014 sophomore release, Comfort in Doubt, underscores Adams ability to craft unique and heartfelt avant indie rock that both gently draws the listener in and challenges them with intelligent rhythms and out-there guitar solos.
It’s also no surprise to see Talkative at the top of this list. Their 2014 debut studio lp, Hot Fruit Barbeque, was the culmination of four years of relentless high-energy gigging and self-recorded demos, and is one of the strongest recent contributions to the realm of Pacific NW psych rock.
Here is how it all went down: first we let the local bands submit their music, and had various Deli editors to pick their favorites as nominees. Then we polled a list of 15+ Portland music scene experts (our jury) asking them each to nominate 3 more bands of their choice. Then we polled our writers. And finally we polled our readers. We tried our damdest to keep things open and inclusive across all genres, from Indie to folk to Hip Hop.
If you care to geek out on all the subtelties of how this poll works, you can check out the rules in depth here (happy reading!). But if all you care about is the awesome new music that Portland produced in 2014, then the following list is all you need. Enjoy!
BEST OF 2014 POLL FOR EMERGING PORTLAND ARTISTS
****** FINAL RESULTS ******
The Deli Portland’s Best of 2014 Readers and Fans’ Poll for local emerging artists is over, thanks to all those who cast their vote in support of the emerging local bands and artists in our list of nominees.
We happily announce our top three local emerging artists Mermaid in China, Kool Stuff Katie and Dirty Revival!
Stay tuned for the composite chart, to be released soon, which will include details about the point nominees accumulated from the jurors and Deli writers’ votes, and will crown The Deli’s Best Emerging Portland Artist of 2014.
Humans should always be appreciative of how lucky they are to have pop music, with its ability to lift spirits and create invisible suns of hope – even in the middle of this insane NYC winter. Today, pop music itself didn’t shy away from reminding us of this, when a few minutes ago it unexpectedly showed up in our speakers in the shape of this gem by lo-fi Brooklyn band Baifan, entitled "Running in Slow Motion." A few carefully chosen chords and an airy melody neutralize the grittiness of the recordings, while a wailing, distorted guitar note, following the alternating chords, adds that droney element that’s always a plus for true indie addicts. They’ll be playing at Silent Barn tomorrow (02.10) on a bill put together by 1989 Recordings, check them out!
Sunshine Subconscious is the progressive neo-soul child of drummer and bandleader Tommy Whiteside the IV. Taking the grit from Daptone records and the musical dexterity of Roy Ayers, I’d be surprised if everybody didn’t love this sunshine. On Rewrite the Pages, Tommy describes an existential journey through “pain and pleasure,” disarming himself to natures duality while still questioning and expressing disbelief in the laws we have been told to believe. The result is a song that lays in-between the coolness of jazz subtlety and the hostility of spiritual anarchy.
To realize his vision of utopia, Tommy has amassed an impressive cast of Cornish cats to lend their services; Bret Gardin (of Newaxeyes) makes waves as lead vocalizer, while Phinehas Nyang’Oro searches for the lost guitar chord, and Jackie Sandberg drives the songs down the dirtiest Rhodes you’ve ever been on. Together, with Tommy on the skins, the make up is a unique blend of psychedelic aesthetics and honed jazz chops. So if you ever wanted a crispier, dirtier Steely Dan or a less cynical Eugene McDaniels, then sit back and let your Sunshine Subconscious take control.
Recently featured on the Village Voice’s music blog for her new video ‘Broke Up, Broke Down," NYC songwriter Carrie Ashley Hill will be playing Baby’s All Right tonight (02.09). Inspired by the fortuitous meeting with NYC stylist April Barton (who saw her perform live), the video was shot in Suite 303 of Manhattan’s legendary Chelsea Hotel, which was April’s apartment and – we assume – salon, and was conceived as a swan song for the "old version" of the Hotel, which recently evicted all its tennants and should be reopening later in 2015 after a full renovation. The song actually pre-dated the video’s concept, which recycled (very effectively) the emotions of loss and uncertainty the songwriter went through when she wrote it, while stranded in Trinidad, Colorado, which obviously resonated with the stylist.
This artist submitted their music for coverage here.
Reuniting this past summer after a four year break to work on other projects, Massachusetts and Brooklyn based The Jaguar Club prepare to release their latest EP “Close” on March 3rd. Currently hosting a weekly Wednesday night residency at Pianos, the band has recently released digitally some new tracks that continue to expand on its signature sound. “Heat Of The Sun” (streaming) pairs crooner vocals with distinct guitar lines, echoing the Morrissey/Marr relationship. The lyrical mood is more positive, however, as heartache goes “bouncing off the ceiling,” giving way to the appreciation of the light (and heat) produced by the sun. Spacious instrumental interludes emphasize ambient keyboards, jingly tambourine and brightly strummed guitar chords. The Jaguar Club’s residency show on February 11 also features Leave The Planet, Mariko, Cosmonaut & Night Squirrel. –Dave Cromwell
I’m not sure if our readers realize how many hours music bloggers spend every day listening to music they – for a reason or another – don’t want to write about. So, stumbling upon a track that gets our juices flowing pretty much gives a meaning to our existence. It just happened with this song by very new NYC/Philly band Pink Murder. The synth pop trio plays a danceable version of what some critics of the 80s used to call "sophisti-pop," i.e. light but tasteful melodic music featuring a touch of soul and lounge influences. Many treats are to be found in this track, but Jennifer Pague’s beautifully full voice stands out by a mile. Her melody sounds as if it was cunjured up by a mddle easern siren, while the electronic production is intriguingly synchopated and textured, in pure 80’s disco pop style, but better. The band released their debut EP in November, you can listen to it here.
Baby’s All Right was temporarily transported to another galaxy last night. That was because of Sky White Tiger‘s cosmic live show. The band’s performance is intense, and enhanced by their hypnotic songs, and Louis Schwadron’s confident vocals and stage presence. Two young ladies in futuristic costumes danced to the music, while weird shapes and images were projected on their bodies. The crowd seemed mesmerized by the whole performance, nodding their head like synchronized robots when the band played single “Child of Fire,” streamiing below. If you haven’t seen Sky White Tiger live yet, it is time to! – Maylis Personnaz – Photo by SARAH GRAHAM
It feels good to see Baby’s All Right book a show with some truly daring artists like Brooklyn’s electro expreimenter The Flag and UK’s wicked macabre rockers Algiers. Former member of These Are Powers and Antimagic, Ted McGrath (pictured) is now operating solo under The Flag’s moniker, offering a sparse, droney, often anguishing sound that often references the darkest corner of the post punk of the early 80s. Enlightned music fans shouldn’t miss this show.
We want to express our gratitude to KCPT and videographer/producer John McGrath for airing a segment of our editor Michelle Bacon on their weekly show Arts Upload. It prominently features our website, along with Michelle’s bands The Philistines, Dolls on Fire, and Drew Black & Dirty Electric. Tune in to Arts Upload every Thursday night on KCPT! You can watch Michelle’s segment below.
