Ex Deli Artist of the Month Field Mouse just premiered a new single called "Happy". The band has veered decisevely into shoegazer/dream-pop territory in the last year, which is definitely a genre lead singer/guitarist Rachel Browne’s voice is suited for. This song is slightly reminiscent of one of our favorite more obscure shoegazer bands of the 90s – Pale Saints. Enjoy (and dream on)! The band will be present a SXSW with a show at Skinny’s Ballroom on 03.14.

The day Celestial Shore will decide to write a pop song that’s just… THAT, our world will become a slightly better place. These LA/Brooklyn based guys – who played our 29th NYC issue party at Mercury a few weeks ago with Ava Luna – have an outrageous melodic talent, but choose to deform their celestial melodies with avant/progressive experimentation (something they can actually pull off thanks to their noteworthy instrumental skill). Which is still a lot of fun, but fill us with laughter and regret at once. – Read Dean Van Nguyen’s interview with the band here.

Canadian via NYC and now LA based indie-pop band Islands released their 4th album, "A Sleep & A Forgetting," on February 14th, 2012. The title was taken from a William Wordsworth poem and features songs that bring out the inner angst in all of us, with its mournful lyrics and ghostly vocals against a backdrop of the band’s signature catchy instrumentals. The song “Hallways” stands out with its eerie energy mixed with infectious piano melodies. Check out the official video here, with Nicholas Thorburn singing vocals accompanied by a skeleton band. Islands is currently on tour in Canada and has a show at the Bootleg Theater in LA on March 14. Be sure to catch them! – Chelsea Eriksen

Brooklyn’s dark rock band Tyburn Saints announced the release of their new EP "You and I in Heaven" for March 27. Containing four original tracks, the record evokes influences from rock bands from the "peak" of the 80s, like U2 and The Cure, although the lyrical tone and subject matter lean more towards the later. Songs like "Broken Bottles" alternate bright guitar figures against synth lines. "Last Time I Sing For You" positions a solid drum beat central in the mix, allowing shards of strummed guitar bursts to dance left and right through the stereo field, while title track "You And I in Heaven" references a similar 80’s pop-goth vibe, its overall spirit leans more towards Bowie/Psychedelic Furs elements. –Dave Cromwell

Tiger Flowers offer an eclectic mix of complex post-hardcore on their eponymous four-track EP. This NYC troupe implement spurts of spastic noise with an alarming use of disjointed riffs (“Cuts”), slurring staccato beats, and heavily effected heaviness to create a devastating mix of metallic destruction that takes the time to strip the lowest common denominator down without leaving a trace behind (“Drag”). Understanding the power of the breakdown as well as the effects of its aftermath (“The Weight”), Tiger Flowers shakes foundations with jarring switches making their spiraling out of control sound. www.tigerflowersnyc.com –Mike SOS

I guess we’ll call this "Electronic, one-man-band-Friday"… Brooklyn’s atmospheric electro-pop project St.Lucia made some deserved waves in the blogosphere recently, and also placed at #58 in The Deli’s Year End Best of NYC Emerging Artists Poll. The band just premiered the video of their single "We Got It Wrong" and announced March tour dates ending in Austin during the SXSW fest.

If you’ve ever seen DC based avant-indie duo Bluebrain (ex NYC based Epochs) live, you’ll know that their aesthetic endeavors have the two brothers exploring and pushing both sonic boundaries and the visual landscape. When performing live, their haunting and multi-layered electronic music, rich in deep tones and timbres, textured with interesting instrumentals and various string arrangements, and characterized by dynamic transitions in pace and rhythm, is often accompanied with strange and mystifying visual effects, making them just as much of a performance art act as it is a music show. Their three EPs Soft Power, Cult Following, and Ten By Ten continue to captivate indie rock fans beyond the DMV area. Recently, Bluebrain took their sound to a whole other level of unique art by joining the ever growing world of apps (with location aware album-apps to be specific), and hosted a boombox walk through the U.S. Botanic Gardens earlier this year.

Jonathan Dagan – aka J.Viewz – doesn’t do things by the book. He writes the book. And, after watching his Grammy nominated project for his newest album, "Rivers and Homes," unfold before our eyes, we see why. Each song on the album, which was 100% powered by fan love and funds, allowed him to create spontaneous music for real people, in real time. The end result? An unwavering fan base and a seamless surge of eclectic, electro-moods, infused with immediacy, and flowing with euphonious ease from break beats-to-trance, funk-to-reggae. – Read Tuesday Phillips’ interview with Dagan here.

Fans of the dark electro-pop sound of the 80s don’t want to miss 2 Brooklyn based bands that are obviously inspired by the slightly robotic scene that expressed rad bands like Eurythmics and Depeche Mode. The bands in questions are Rewards (led by ex Chairlift guitarist Aaron Pfenning) and Val Loper ‘s young brainchild Rubbing Alcohol, which released a debut 2 song EP streaming here last December.

On Dead Leaf Echo‘s most recent single "Kingmaker," (streaming below, now out via Custom Made Music) you can almost feel the spirit of 90’s dreamgaze bands like Chapterhouse flowing through this modern updating of that classic sound. This shouldn’t surprise, since DLE was hand picked by that legendary band to open their reunion show in Brooklyn last year. Other similarities may be evident due to the hiring of legendary 4AD producer John Fryer, who added his ethereal mixing touch to the track. The song is more complex than much of that era’s simpler compositions, and showcases the band’s evolution towards a more personal sound. The track will be included on their forthcoming album titled "Thought and Language." The band is also is planning another 7" split single, coming out on the California based Green Fuse Records this spring/summer. Two new videos are also in the works as is a March tour, which will take them down to the SXSW Festival. – Dave Cromwell

Fronted by Gossip Girl star Taylor Momsen, NYC’s The Pretty Reckless combines killer lyrics with seriously spirited guitar riffs on the debut album, "Light Me Up." Momsen’s voice is a perfect accompaniment to the band’s solid alt-rock sound – adding a feminine and yet dangerous edge to the music. Momsen, who is just 18, wrote all the songs on the album, with the band’s lead guitarist, Ben Phillips. Their breakout hit, "Make Me Wanna Die" caught the attention of hard-rock loyalists everywhere, while the ballad "You" (see its rather sensual official video here) took care of the layer of fans more interested in sentimental values. Their second EP, "Hit Me Like a Man," is set to be released on March 6th and will feature three new songs and two live songs from their "Light Me Up" tour. – Jen Mergott

“Second Year In Swine” may not roll of the tongue very easily, but mid-fi rockers Rotary Club nonetheless dubbed their sophomore album with the odd phrasing after seeing it on a flyer years ago. Headed by multi-nstrumentalist Tom Devaney, the New York-via-Boston ensemble mixes a little art with a lot of melody, offering a sound that mixes psychedelic layers with rock attitude and feels like a Meat Puppets/Love collaboration. The band will celebrate the album’s release with East Coast shows this Spring, starting March 3rd at Red Hook Bait and Tackle in Brooklyn. – Devon Antonetti