NYC’s own The Phenomenal Handclap Band recently debuted their video for "Baby" on Stereogum. Likened to a Dario Argento film, this trippy, color-saturated, and beautifully dark video is directed by Steven Agnew, formerly of The Futureheads’ "Walking Backwards" video fame. Band member Sean Marquand said about the filming of the video, "we went upstate to our friend Paddy’s house, which was incredible, but the surreal serial killer aspect colored everyone’s mood. Even when we weren’t filming, there seemed to be someone sneaking up on us in the forest. The video reflects some of the highs and lows of our weekend. There’s kinship and celebration there but there’s also an underlying paranoia attached to being at such a remote location."

The Natch is a new local female fronted trio that plays some kind of deranged garage rock in the best NYC tradition: lots of attitude, big distorted guitars, crooked vibe and a coordinating wardrobe. The band is currently working on their debut CD, scheduled to be released in the summer, but they haven’t put their live appearences on hold because of this: you can catch them live at The Delancey on Friday 02.19 and in several other cities in May during their East Coast tour.

Deli readers who play in bands,

The Deli has reserved 3 showcase slots at Music Tech Mashup during SXSW, which will take place at Rusty Spurs in Austin, TX on 7th St. on March 17. Rusty Spurs features 3 stages with an 800 person capacity in the middle of it all and is an official SXSW venue. During SXSW it will host shows by heavy hitters like Echo and the Bunnymen, Vega (Neon Light side project) and Semi Precious Weapons (recently on tour with Lady Gaga) amongst others.

To apply to play this SXSW show all you need to do is fill in this form HERE and click on the confirmation email you’ll receive (this will simply add you to our mailing list and enter your band in our fabulous charts organized by genre and region – one day we’ll also create band profiles!). 3 artists will be selected by the organizers (one of them will be a local Austin, TX artist). Any band that is available to travel to Austin is eligible. Submission deadeline is Monday 02.22 at 11.59 pm.

Music Tech Mashup Showcase (hosted by Coast to Coast Models & Events and presented by The Deli, Hunnypot, GreenShoeLace) will celebrate the convergence of music and technology and the opportunities it presents for everyone involved just as SXSW itself switches gears from Interactive Week to Music Week.This is a list of some of the artists already booked: Jada – Universal Motown Records (Boston, MA) – Bamboo Shoots – Epic Records (New York) – Shinobi Ninja – (Brooklyn, NY) – McAlister Drive – (Boston, MA) – Odd Modern – (Los Angeles, CA) – Keys and Crates (Toronto, Canada) – Curtis Santiago (Toronto, Canada) – Keith Masters (Chicago, IL) – FutureCop! (UK) – Mark Foster (Los Angles, CA).

The Deli’s Staff

Sugar and spice and everything…mischievous! That’s what The Girls at Dawn are made of. The self proclaimed “axis of evil” – featuring Erin (guitar and vocals), Ana (bass guitar and vocals) and Sarah (percussion and vocals) – has been disturbing their neighbors in Brooklyn with their beautiful brand of post punk/French pop/garage since 2008. With tracks already released on record labels HoZac and Captured Tracks, these three lovely ladies are preparing to work on their first full length album, which will surely feature their signature combined vocals (which sound tunefully creepy, yet sweetly hypnotizing), 60s psych-inspired guitar riffs and light drumming. The threesome has also begun playing shows, and hopes to embark on a tour in the future. The Girls at Dawn recently took the time out to speak with The Deli about their favorite lyrics, most memorable show, and…boners! – Read Cecilia Martinez’s interview with the band here.

One of the first things you’ll notice about the Brooklyn-based band Pearl and the Beard comprised of Jeremy Styles, Emily Hope Price, and Jocelyn Mackenzie, is their innately warm, friendly attitudes and quirky sense of humor that instantly triggers a smile. Don’t be fooled by the simple, happy façade, however, this folk trio creates music drenched with emotional depth and exquisite harmonies. Fresh off of their first national tour and riding high on the success of a clever music video concept, the group is enjoying their time back in NYC promoting their first full-length album, “God Bless Your Weary Soul, Amanda Richardson.” Powerful, haunting melodies, coupled with sweet, soft guitar picking and rhythmic percussion has established “Pearl and the Beard” as one of the hottest acts to emerge from the Brooklyn indie scene, generating fans who love them the way they are, and the way they’ve always been. – Read Christina Morelli’s interview with the band here.

Warp Records just announced the release of Jamie Lidell‘s third full-length album "Compass" on May 18, 2010. The album was recorded in Los Angeles, New York and Canada, and features notable guests like Beck, Feist, Gonzales, Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear and Pat Sansone of Wilco. Peeps who like party music with an eclectic element thrown in should check out this NYC based artist.

The Aviation Orange play alternative electro rock with a strong emotional element and a sound that ties them to the 90s. The band recently released their debut album, the most notable components of which include the noteworthy mixed vocal work of Hana Mogulescu and Michael Nesci and the strong basslines of Jon Levine. The band brings forth a danceable energy that should translate in a fun live performance – check them out at Santos Party House on March 8. Recommended Tracks: “Darling Johnny,” “Untitled,” “Seattle Slide”. – NP

Don’t miss the Deli’s 21st issue party tonight at The Studio at Webster!

Glass Ghost – the band gracing our latest issue’s cover – will be headlining the bill. The Brooklyn based duo’s sparse, trippy, enigmatic and subduedly subversive sound conquered the Deli NYC editorial staff’s ears.

A slew of 5 other emerging local bands are opening, including NYC/Monteral’s Flotilla and other orchestral-ish acts like The Loom and Miracles of Modern Science. Echostream and Naked Hearts will contribute with electronic fluorishes and indie rockness respectively.

Here’s the schedule:

Doors at 7.20 – $10, 19+
7.30 The Loom
8.15 Echostream
9.00 Miracles of Modern Science
9.45 Naked Hearts
10.30 Flotilla
11.15 Glass Ghost

Webster Hall is at 125 E 11th Street in Mahnattan

P.S. Apologies for the quick flier… we are still recovering from the insane amount of work related to our Year End Polls!

Justin Remer and his Elastic Nono Band could be considered a little bit like the NYC Antifolk scene’s own Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention – for the unstoppable productivity, for the cluttered arrangements, for flirting with absurdity and ridiculousness, for an uncontrollable urge to mix up the genres, even for the preference for what we will call graphics with some sort of "expressionist" vibe to them. Of course you’ll find a lot more folk, country, rockabilly and silly jokes (and no jamming at all) in the Nono Band’s latest double CD entitled "Fustercluck" – an effort that succeeds once again in being funnier than Bright Eyes (this has been the band’s mission since 2004). The punk element that theoretically should belong to any antifolk artist (but which doesn’t in a majority of cases) is replaced in the Elastic Nono Band’s music by a "Weenesque" repulsion for the idea of seriously conveying feelings through music – now that’s definitely something that goes against folk music’s clichés. Mr. Renerwill play The Anti Folk festival at The Side Walk Café (the East Village AntiFolk hub that for some reason rejects our magazines 9 times out of ten – no, we’re not bitter…) on 02.17.

Michael Leviton – who managed to play with the sexiest (now defunct) NYC band of the mid 2000 (La Laque) and tour with the least sexy NYC duo of all times (They Might Be Giants – which we dig by the way) – is back with what he calls "a single for singles" to help "emotionally prepare you for Valentine’s Day". The song is aptly titled "You’re Somebody Even If Nobody Loves You". The man sure has sense of humor, as also testified by the name of his new band: The New Jerk Times. Don’t miss their upcoming shows at Zebulon on 02.16 (258 Wythe at N. 3rd in Williamsburg) and Sway on 02.17 ((305 Spring at Greenwich).

Ethereal duo Elika must have kept pretty busy in the recording and CD manufacturing departments lately. The band announced at once the release of their hand made "There Was No Summer" EP (available through Chat Blanc Records,) and the completion of the upcoming full length album, scheduled to see the light later this year. The EP (in the picture), limited to 111 copies, handsewn on dark gray cardboard, could become a collector’s item. The actual CD is NOT handsewn nor made of cardboard – more info about it here.

Bear Hands (currently #39 in our NYC Indie Popularity Charts here) have been on The Deli’s radar for quite a while (they were our CD of the month some time in 2008) and it’s good to see them do well. The band, who recently signed to Cantora Records (who launched MGMT), has just announced the release of the new "What a Drag" EP and a US tour starting with a performance at The Studio on 02.16. The band’s sound has evolved in new exciting direction recently, we recommend you check out their songs here.