The ladies over at Hypnocraft certainly got us hypnotized with this weekends lineup for the upcoming appointment of The Hum (the weekly, female-artists-only, collab night that The Deli sponsors) and it’s definitely not the first time., since it's showcasing mostly local artists we ourselves love and have covered in this very blog.

At this week’s show on Sunday (4.10) the first pair kicking off the night is Casey Dienel (White Hinterland) alongside the lovely and talented ladies of Gracie & Rachel. With beautiful vocals and a keen ear for strong melodies we can almost hear the entrancing, orchestral performance from these gals already. Followed by Julia Easterlin and Hannah Epperson we can already hear a track built up solely by vocal loops and smooth violin chords, something sweet to get us dreaming. For the final performance we can expect to be enticed by solid drum progressions and synth ambiance courtesy of Dani Markham (Tune-Yards), Maia Friedman (UNI IKA AI) & K. Marie Kim (BLANK PAPER).

So stroll on over to Manhattan Inn this Sunday, April 10, for some some great performances in a cozy and intimate environment!

"Avant Indie" is a term we coined to avoid the temptation of calling some rock bands "experimental," since we see experimental music as a separate genre from rock. Therefore in this list you'll find edgy bands that like to try new things - fun!

Total submissions in this category: 21

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

1. Celestial Shore - 8.66 (out of 10)
2. Julia Easterlin - 8.5
3. No Shoes - 8.33
3. Christine Hoberg - 8.33

Honorable Mentions (scores above 7.16):

Tiny Hazard, The Beriberi, Pass Kontrol, Passenger Peru, Tauk, Andrew Rosciszewski, Throw Vision.

Jurors: Jason Behrends (Deli Chicago), Ben Toledo (Deli Portland), PDG (Deli NYC).

THIS IS THE LAST BATCH OF RESULTS FROM THE OPEN SUBMISSIONS, READERS POLL'S NEXT!!!

The Deli's Staff

Her precise pair of vocal chords and one looping machine is all Brooklynite Julia Easterlin needs to surround a stage. During her live shows, she deconstructs the process and builds layers slowly - the performance is part learning experience, part live recording process. Julia brought her brand of vocal-led experimentation to the TEDx Women conference, audiences in Cuba and the Dominican Republic and a few major festivals. She recently released a new EP entitled 'vestiges' that cristallizes her unique songwriting process - and talent. - LINK: Bianca Seidman's interview with Julia Easterlin.

Her precise pair of vocal chords and one looping machine is all Julia Easterlin needs to surround a stage. During her live shows, she deconstructs the process, and builds layers slowly; the performance is part learning experience. She’s brought her brand of vocal-led experimentation to the TEDxWomen conference, audiences in Cuba and the Dominican Republic, and a few major festivals.

But tech sorcery is not what sets her apart. Jazz movement, a capella arrangements and world music flavor give Easterlin’s eclectic covers and originals flight, whether solo or with a band. Her voice is a consistent, trained instrument sometimes channeling Sarah McLachlan or Björk, sometimes beatboxers and birds. - Bianca Seidman

 Though Moe Pope may not be classic fare for The Deli, we'd be remiss to leave the great work he's doing unacknowledged. 2013 has provided the indie rap artist with the bump he needs to graduate to the big leagues-- his latest album Let the Right Ones In dropped this past January and led to his selection as the Best in Boston according to the notorious Improper Bostonian, in addition to a string of gigs in the area that have continued to build his buzz. Let the Right Ones In demonstrates Pope as an expert when in comes to pulling other genres to match the expertise of his own lyrics with traces of electronic, indie rock, and big-name locals like Lady Lamb the Beekeeper and Brookynite Julia Easterlin. He's sort of a Quentin Tarantino of the indie music scene-- he knows his stuff from his foundation in rap to references and homage to old-school punk, new wave, and beyond. He's heard everything, and isn't afraid to incorporate all this knowledge into his own work.

Moe Pope is a gamechanger in the New England scene because he realizes that the local scenes, from indie rock to rap to electronic and beyond, can be fused together to make something amazing, and he's riding that theory all the way to the top.