New Music, Emerging from your Local Scene
david thomas jones has previously received lovin’ from The Deli Austin, and is about it get it again. Until Mr. Jones conquers his dream of making a Bauhaus tribute band, he’s doing pretty well making dancey indie pop tunes that house variety by way of tropical beats, alternative edginess and a folk approach. – Brandi Lukas
The Vliets pump out psychedelic rock with a hint of electronic vibrations. This dazed rock trio began in Dallas, with bimonthly commutes to Austin, and has been playing live shows since 2010. Even though bass/keyboard/drum-master Daniel Gonzalez recently moved to Chicago in 2012, the band collaborates and works through e-mail, long calls and the occasional meet-up. Impressive, huh? – Brandi Lukas
I wish lullabies sounded like this when I was little. hhhhhh supplies the most soothing sound while still conveying heavy emotion in its tracks. Inner-demons are being approached, which one can feel through the anguish in the vox, yet is lightened by the acoustic backdrop – provoking thought, not sadness.
Folk quintet Hello Caller has a myriad of layers going down in its music. Brian Ferguson’s vocal dynamics with underlying melodic percussion, strings and xylophone give it both a dark and light-hearted sound, concurrently – giving you a perfect reason to listen to Hello Caller during any range of emotions. – Brandi Lukas
When listening to MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR, an image crosses the mind of driving down a breezy back-road highway, lined with antique stores and mom/pop-shop mechanics, on the way to the beach with friends. With Galveston 200 miles away, quality time with MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR’s ambient indie rock sounds like a solid plan for the next warmest day. – Brandi Lukas
FINAL RESULTS: BEST OF SF BAY AREA 2012 – BEST OF NYC 2012 – BEST OF NASHVILLE 2012 – BEST OF NEW ENGLAND 2012 – BEST OF AUSTIN 2012 – BEST OF PHILADELPHIA 2012 – BEST OF LOS ANGELES 2012 – BEST OF DC AREA 2012 – BEST OF KANSAS CITY 2012 – BEST OF CHICAGO 2012 – BEST OF PORTLAND 2012
For the full summary click…
We’ve tallied the results for the Open Submissions stage of our KC Area Year End Poll for Emerging Artists. All of the submissions were ranked by Deli Editors from other scenes, and the list of acts that have advanced to our Readers’/Fans’ Poll phase are below. We will also be releasing the list of nominees chosen by our local "scene expert" jurors very soon.
Thanks to all of the talented artists who submitted their music to us. We hope to have a larger pool of entries next year!
Total submissions from the KC area scene: 32
Qualified to the final phase of the Best of Kansas City Poll:
1. Man Bear – 7.8 (out of 10)
2. We Are Voices – 7.5
3. Gentleman Savage – 7.5
4. Gemini Revolution – 7.3
5. The Elders – 7.3
6. Making Movies – 7.2
7. Attic Wolves – 7.2
Honorable Mentions: Hipshot Killer, The Empty Spaces, Dream Wolf, Radkey, Dollar Fox
Jurors: Dawn Reed (Deli Washington DC), Gracie Gutman (Deli SF), Paolo De Gregorio (Deli NYC).
The Deli Staff
Since the beginning of the big recession, Electronic Music in NYC has been experiencing an unforeseen explosion, also thanks to the fact that electronic projects are cheaper and more efficient even compared to the most basic of power trios (no need for band mates or rehearsal studios…). Since pretty much any genre can be reproduced electronically, rather than a genre, the word Electronic indicates "sonic material" (as in: ‘these songs are made with electronic sounds’). Hence the variety of styles included in this category.
Total submissions in this category: 43
Artists Qualified to the Poll’s Next Stage (starting around 01.10)
1. Kiss Slash Crooked Smile – 7.66 (out of 10)
1. Clementine & the Galaxy – 7.66
3. AVAN LAVA – 7.50
Honorable Mentions (scores above 6.5)
I Am Lightyear, Loveskills, Mitten, Future Screens, Moon Furies, New Myths, Psychobuildings, Jonka, Late Guest at the Party, Young Heel, Maria Takeuchi.
Jurors: Jason Behrends (Deli Chicago), Jacqueline Caruso (Deli LA), QD Tran (Deli Philly).
The Deli’s Staff
As the nascent nu-pop underground digs its heels in deeper during 2013, Assaf Asi Spector and Yula Beeri’s band Kiss Slash Crooked Smile should at least win the prize for most bizarre moniker. Beeri’s singing style bears more than a passing likeness to the childlike delivery of Joanna Newsom, which I suppose is like saying Kiss Slash Crooked Smile sounds like Newsom’s new wave side-project, The Pleased, which is never a bad thing. The band’s best cut at this early stage is “Ole” (streaming below) a sing-song melody that rides a disco/ska beat (kudos to drummer Stefano Baldasseroni here) reminiscent of Blondie during their biggest hit period, but with more sinister darkwave overtones. All of which suggests Kiss Slash Crooked Smile are still standing in the shadows of their influences, but damn their music is fun. – Brian Chidester
This duo project between pitch perfect vocalist Julie Hardy and producer/guitarist Mike MacAllister is set to blow up. With Hardy becoming a most in-demand studio vocalist (she recently sang backups for Ellie Goulding on SNL and St. Vincent on The Letterman Show) it’s no wonder The Deli jurors have jumped to proclaim Clementine and the Galaxy one of 2012’s top emerging electronic bands. The duo’s version of Nirvana’s “Heart-Shaped Box” sounds like the theme to Baz Lurhman’s next untitled project, while the song “Crying My Whole Heart Out” stretches the definition of synthpop ballad by being at once dreamy, experimental and fist-pumpingly clamorous. Their latest single, “Complication” is without classification, which is fine, because it’s addictive as shit. – Brian Chidester
On a Deli-organized June show at Williamsburg’s Cameo, a club on North 6th Street, local band AVAN LAVA sent the crowd into an absolute frenzy when they launched into their summer 2012 anthem, “It’s Never Over.” Formed by Fischerspooner multi-instrumentalists Michael “Le Chev” Cheever and Ian Pai, with new heart-throb singer Tom “TC” Hennes, AVAN LAVA blasted purple lasers and confetti over the audience, whilst on-stage dancers shimmied and shook in celebration of the band’s unabashed upbeat electro-pop. Mixing Prince with Rick Astley and Wham!, things never veer into irony, rather the entire affair feels both arty and jubilant in a way not often experienced in a live setting. – Brian Chidester
(Photo by Todd Zimmer)
High-energy Kansas City rockers Beautiful Bodies have just been selected to join the Vans Warped Tour this summer (which will also feature KC’s Mac Lethal) after playing an Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands at the Hollywood House of Blues this evening. The band was one of four finalists chosen from a pool of 32,000 artists. Congratulations to them as they tour across the US this summer!
If you’re curious, the tour will hit Kansas City on July 23. Tickets are available at the link here.
–Michelle Bacon
