New York’s emerging indie bands draw inspiration from every corner of rock'n'roll’s rich history. One iconic artist that continues to influence each successive generation is The Cure. Paying tribute to their creative vision, former Deli Magazine Artist of the Month (May 2014) Like Herding Cats is hosting a night in celebration of their music. Although three consecutive nights at Madison Square Garden sold out quickly for the goth giants on their current world tour, those left out now have this option (although we can't promised Robert Smith will be there...). Joining the tribute are Deli favorites Grassfight (pictured), showing how their taut, tightly-wound post-punk style reflects goth's stripped down early beginnings. Also appearing is special guest Skylar Stench (i.e. Skyler Spence, ex St. Pepsi). Each band will play both original music and Cure covers. Between sets Like Herding Cats' front man, Dom P, will DJ Cure Hits, New Wave, Dark wave, Brit Pop and Alternative dance through the night. The appropriately titled event “A Night Like This” goes down on June 9 at Cake Shop. - Dave Cromwell

We can't believe we haven't blogged about Grassfight in three years - yes because we really dug their 2011 debut EP "Icon EP" and 2012 follow up "Icon EP2" - two of the best NYC Post-Punk releases of the decade (so far). After that quick 1-2 punch, it has taken the band three years to produce their third work "Please Don't Tell," also an EP, which again features their claustrophobic, tense, electric sound, led by Nathan Forster commanding and tortured tenor. The record features a better production, but doesn't compromise in the bleakness department. Check out the title track, streaming below.

Some eight months ago, Grassfight was another new indie band emerging onto the cluttered scene of a broad 'post-punk' heritage. Offering a certainly promising debut with “Icon, an EP”, the currently NYC based trio was still facing a tough fight ahead: to break through the endless cast of half-hearted shoegazers and other Joy Division-bred acts around. Mission accomplished?

Yes, sir. As we welcome the first single off their upcoming EP “Icon N.2”, time to give credit where credit due. Effective for one, “Look Homeward, Heathen” blends the ominousness of New Wave revivers like Interpol with the fever of earlier Strokes classics in a tight, most delightfully unhinging cocktail of binary Krautrock-infused drumbeats and string fuzz, the whole led along with an angst-fuelled speed rush by Nathan Forster's hyper-distorted lead tenor. Progressively, a glacial wall of sound rises from the depths of shivering basslines and tingling guitar riffs, growing denser as the track heads towards its peak in an effusion of minor tones. Upbeat, catchy, and as moreish as a preview should be, “Look Homeward, Heathen” sets the tone for an exciting record to come; sadly though, we've got a month to wait until it is released (on July 24th!). - Tracy Mamoun

Psych Rock and derivatives genres like Shoegazer and Dreampop are a very interesting musical niches with lots of loyal fans - many of which reside in NYC. Here are these genres results related to the submissions we received for our Year End Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists.

NYC YEAR END POLL 2011 OPEN SUBMISSIONS RESULTS FOR PSYCH ROCK/ SHOEGAZER/ DREAM-POP:
Jurors: Chrissy Prisco (Deli New England), Dawn Reed (Deli DC Area), QD Tran (Deli Philly)

- QUALIFIED TO THE POLL'S NEXT ROUND
The artists in this list qualify for the next phase of the poll, and will be added to the bands nominated by our jury of local scenemakers.

1. Grassfight (also overall submissions winners with 9.33 out of 10)

Bleak like Ian Curtis (but with a much higher range), danceable like, well... Joy Division (but twice as zonked out), Grassfight expands on the freaky shoegazer vibe in a way Interpol never got around to. Wtih a name based on a tragic battle during the Texas Revolution, their new EP Icon is bound to be confrontational. But don't let that scare you, singer Nathan Forster and band make the kind of lush, devastating music too catchy to keep you down.

2a. Field Mouse

There's something to be said about a band that could only come from a certain kind of collaboration. Field Mouse is a labor of love from singer/songwriters Rachel Browne and Andrew Futral. The duo take turns between rootsy sentiment and driving electronics ala Jesus and Mary Chain. Mouse's warm sentiment hits home in sweetly affecting songs like 'You Guys are Gonna Wake Up My Mom' and their fantastic cover of Deerhoof's 'Helicopter.'

2b. Spanish Prisoners
Cinematic and mysterious, Spanish Prisoners blends bubbly psych pop with dark telltale vocals and daydream guitar and keyboard textures. The band's album Gold Fools was recently declared "Best Free Album of the Year" by gimmetinnitus.com

4a. Himalaya
Here's a band you should add to your ipod for any trip you're planning on taking, outdoors or indoors. They're the perfect soundtrack, as this group's not in much of a rush to go anywhere. The songs of Himalaya can take a fair amount of time to gather steam. But once they do, anthemic choral singing usually supplements layers of washy guitar in an almost religious exultation. Tracks like Don't Stop and Hospital will land you at a church somewhere deep in outer space, and their live show will leave you equally blissed out.

4b. Dead Leaf Echo
With swirling guitars, beatbox percussion, and ultra-wet vocals, Dead Leaf Echo sound like the long-awaited return of shoegaze. As much an art project as band, singer-guitarist LG, bassist Mike DiLalla, and keyboardist-vocalist Liza B make films as often as they release records. No wonder tracks like Woolgathering and Trial hit you as a medium tempo, wide-screen production experience.

- ALMOST QUALIFIED TO THE POLL'S NEXT ROUND
These artists had outstanding ratings from our jurors (almost 8 out of 10!) but won't qualify to the next round of our year end poll.

6. Fan-Tan
Meeting up at Chapel Hill a couple years ago, Fan-Tan have already been playing together for a few years now, and their live shows have earned the band a solid rep. Singer Ryan Lee Dunlap can sound pained like Spencer Krug, but he pours his heart out over an energetic mix of buzzing synthesizers and driving percussion from Kuki and Sandee Kooks’ rhythm section. Now the band is set to release their debut full-length early this year, and if 2010's EP The Age of Discovery is any indication, it promises to be full of the kind of pain and propulsion you rarely hear come together this energetically.

7. Yellowbirds
A Deli CD of the month in 2011, Yellowbirds blends psych-pop songs with country accents, creating entrancing songs which conjure up the warmest musical tones that recall the freewheeling spirit of the ‘60s. The complexities and layers of the songs make for an enjoyable, challenging listen, but the tracks are incredibly accessible pop songs. Butting guitars and bristling autoharp may create some stridency, but is always counterbalanced with calming acoustic guitar strums and Cohen’s Roy Orbison-esque vocals.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
These artists also had really good ratings from our jurors (over 7.5): Backlights, Behavior and Prospector.

Here's our (almost) weekly appointment with the best records we found through our digital music submissions system (any artist can submit their music here).



Grassfight might be the gazillionth indie band referencing Joy Division in their sound, but their songs are so good that we are definitely not going to complain about that. Besides, there are a lot of other elements here that make things interesting: this is compelling psych-goth rock that's dark enough to be credible, noisy enough to be truly edgy and punchy enough to be entertaining. As an added bonus, lead singer Nathan can pull off some seriously high tension cadences a la' Nick Cave - something that pushes the songs' climax to thundering heights (see EP opener "Never you Mind," streaming below). The guitar work in the EP is also pretty impressive, ranging from stabs of pure noise to fuzzy walls of sound, to simple acoustic parts to psychedelic, blurred background textures. If you like some sonic horror in your music, keep an ear out for these guys.




A collaboration between lead singer/songwriter Ruthy Mirsky and multi-instrumentalist/producer Simone Ghetti, Syvia is an electronic NYC outfit that crafts ethereal electronic pop and does it well. Their songs shine in particular in the melody and harmony departments, with Ruthy's voice adding the right amount of character to the mix. See them live at Cake Shop on November 23.





Anjelia is a talented, emerging NJ based singer songwriter - and actress. Her song "A Long Way" is the highlight from her repertoire, and although it's probably a little too mainstream for us, it's undeniably a very good song with a catchy, interesting melody featuring an inpeccable vocal performance. Considering also the lady's looks, there's potential for a new, slightly more upbeat Lana Del Rey here.