Deliriously rocking beings,

Once a year, The Deli publishes an issue of The Deli that is NOT exclusively focused on NYC acts, but on artists based in all the 11 scenes we cover. That time of the year is now, an that issue is the 8th Austin issue of The Deli, which you can now read online here. The print version of it, in its glorious 7 inch format, will be available in print next week in Austin and in NYC shortly thereafter.

On the mag's cover you'll find Toronto's noise rockers FRIGS, whose debut album Basic Behaviour has been rocking our world in the last few weeks.

The issue features other incredible emerging artists, including hip hop genius Nnamdi Ogbonnya, talented goofball popper Caroline Rose, and Los Angeles' alt-rockers The Beaches among others - you can listen to all of them in the YouTube playlist below.

Also in the issue, an article entitled "Will Rock Explode Again?" which poses pognant questions about the future of rock'n'roll.

As usual, in the final pages you'll find a section focused on the guitar pedals and synths involved in our Austin Stompbox and Synth Expo, scheduled for March 16/17 at the Chuggin' Monkey in Downtown Austin!

Enjoy!

The Deli's Staff

“Burners” begins with circa 1994 beats updated into a classier, more ethereal backdrop to smooth, yet still intimidating rhymes. Despite ditching the lo-fi edge that defined the sounds of the Wu-tang, Fudgemunk manages to retain the aggressive and sinister quality in the sound that made old school hip hop so intoxicating. As the song progresses, sounds are layered more thickly in the background, and in general progresses much more in the style of Gang Starr than Wu-tang, eventually turning into a drugged out, low-key dj set.

The choice to end the song with a dj set raises questions about the song's frequent use of ODB's line “burnin hot” from the 1995 song “Brooklyn Zoo”. The words were originally delivered in ODB's boisterous and unhinged style, in short a sort of musical polar opposite from the groove that “Burners” spends about the last 5 minutes of the song on. It seems almost like an unintentional statement about the replacement of old school hip hop's edginess with a turn to passivity, either in the form of consumerism, or in the case of “Burners”, drug use and mysticism.

Whatever the case, in sum the track is well worth a listen and delivers a fresh perspective on classic sounds.

-Mike Dranove

Even, fluid rhymes over a chill beat give Xavier Ingram's song “Crash Freestyle” a sense of stature. While hitting on tropes about smoking trees to cope and police violence, Ingram steers clear of the tasteless, gaudy production values that doom other projects to total obscurity. The music is not an assault on the ears but rather a pleasing recitation of the litany of issues faced by the lyricist.

Decent/10

-Mike Dranove

Solid voice, solid backing band, well thought-out lyrics dealing with feeling lost and out of place; all in all Lauren Calve makes a convincing Americana artist. “Be my home” she implores on the refrain to her latest single of the same name, as if she is being driven to desperation by feelings of being out of place. On the track, Calve yearns for the same thing every Americana artist yearns for, an idyllic, peaceful, rural America that probably never was, but nevertheless lives on in the popular imagination as something to give people hope for a different world.

You can catch Lauren Calve March 9th at Black Cat.

-Mike Dranove