After a short period in Savannah, Georgia, Creepoid returns home this evening headlining Underground Arts, and we collectively welcome them with open arms! The perpetually touring four-piece have a new LP Cemetery Highrise Slum scheduled for release on June 23 via Collect Records. One finds him/herself soothingly absorbed in the band’s alluring psych-rock cloud, swaying to the motion as the music effortlessly shifts in a heavier murky adrenaline-releasing grunge direction. Creepoid continuously finds a way to create multi-textured sounds that appear smooth yet retain a pleasant grit. Shari Vari dusk-creeping electronic/percussive endeavor, also known as Void Vision, keeps one on alert as the ever-present bounce of motion and eerie synth provide a sense of unavoidable tension, and the partially muted vocals increase the suspense. The trio of Gondola fully embraces the heavy guitar throttling - searing, sweat-dripping, psych-tinged, battle-tested, hard rock, letting the instruments open up and speak their minds. Dead Heavens the new project led by the legendary Walter Schreifels (Youth of Today, Guerilla Biscuits) rounds out the makings of a memorable evening. Underground Arts, 1200 Callowhill St., 8pm, $10, 21+ - Michael Colavita

Tracing back to their London roots, LOOP performs tonight at Kung Fu Necktie with a reunited line-up featuring Robert Hampson, John Wills, Neil Mackay and Scott Dowson.  They’re back on the road for a series of shows in 2014, heading in May to Austin Psych Fest and Primavera Sound in Barcelona.  Also on the bill are Philly’s ambient four-piece Far Out Fangtooth and Gondola who promise to be “Suckin’ Brains and Growin’ Manes”.  Check out LOOP’s official Psych Fest interview here featuring videos for “Collision” and “From Centre to Wave”. Kung Fu Necktie, 1250 N Front St, $17, 8pm, 21+ - Jaime Pannone 

Here's more for the traditionalists out there, Best of NYC 2013 Poll results for the open submissions in the FOLK ROCK /AMERICANA department! Don't forget that we are talking about emerging bands here, not breakout artists.

Total submissions in this category: 20

Artists Qualified to the next stage (Readers' Poll, starting soon):

1. Such Hounds - 8.83 (out of 10)
2. Gondola - 8

Honorable Mentions (scores above 7):

Supersmall, Wild Leaves, Ryan Hobler, Shari Pine, The Candles, Dan Abraham, The Bottom Dollars, Brother Valiant, Bird to Prey, Kris Gruen, The Vansaders.

Jurors: Terra James-Jura (Deli Nashville), Jacqueline Caruso (Deli LA), PDG (Deli NYC).

Stay tuned for more results, and then for the readers' poll!

The Deli's Staff

We didn't highlight Gondola's gentle folk pop more than two weeks ago, but the Brooklyn band is already giving us another excuse to write about them by debuting this cute video of the single "We Are The Map," which successfully blends two vintage visual concepts like Super-8 and stop motion. Here's an example of music and visuals that work perfectly together, enhancing each other. See if the charm translates live at Spike Hill on May 29.

Gondola is an ambiguous name for an indie band - if on one hand it conjures up images of mainstream tourism in Venice (yours truly knows something about that, since he lived there for 8 years), on the other it's also true that those darn little boats rock like no other. Brooklyn band Gondola doesn't rock particularly hard though, if not occasionally. Their tunes are propelled by strummed acoustic guitars, but they are not really folky. They are indie pop tunes featuring an element of blue thoughtfulness that falls somewhere in the middle between The Shins' early lo-fi gems, Belle and Sebastian's suggestive storytelling and the Beta Band's quirky pop experiments. Charming. We are premiering the single "We Are the Map" - streaming below - from their debut EP. The band will celebrate its release tonight (04.11) with a show at Brooklyn's Muchmore with Vensaire, Tica Douglas, and Bill Bartholomew.