It can be easy for artists who wield nostalgia and evoke their favorite records to get lost in the source material. Reminiscing with sounds that aren’t as widely popular as they used to be can hide flaws in their songwriting. Fortunately for Max Clarke, the driving force behind Cut Worms, he never finds himself mired in his influences. With his latest album Hollow Ground via Jagjaguwar, his songwriting feels refreshing, yet comfortable. The woozy guitars never become a hazy memory. The melodies never feel stolen. Modern production flourishes bring out the best of these songs as they glow with soft harmonies and ear-worm hooks. Despite sounding like songs heard millions of times, Hollow Ground still finds time to surprise. Songs like “Hanging Your Picture Up to Dry” offer a jangly take on Midwestern folk while “Cowards Confidence” is tinted with psychedelia. Clarke’s finely tuned songs can be heard at Industry City Courtyard 1/2 on Thursday, June 14. You can listen to the single “Don’t Want To Say Good-Bye” below. - Tucker Pennington

Jagjaguwar's newest signee Cut Worms -- the project of Max Clarke -- has set off on a tour supporting The Lemon Twigs and Nick Lowe. Though festivities begin in Toronto, Clarke will play on November 2nd at Baby's All Right to release new EP Alien Sunset. The psych-rock collection features six demos with tight harmonies and lo-fi charm, all recorded during Clarke's time living between Chicago and New York. The lead single, "Like Going Down Sideways", comes with a Super 8-styled music video - watch it below. - Will Sisskind

The Indie Rock Year End Poll Results are finally in!

Overall Poll Winner (Combined Juror + Reader Poll Votes): Big Thief

This indie rock quartet graced the cover of our winter 2017 issue of The Deli, and offers catchy and melancholic indie rock that sticks to the soul. They hone a fuzzy, distorted rock sound with folky overtones and production that cleans it up enough to be endlessly listenable. 

---

Overall Poll 2nd Place: Cut Worms

Cut Worms offers 60s pop revival reminiscent of anything from The Beach Boys to Gerry and the Pacemakers. With catchy, simple, and relatable tunes that satisfyingly dabble in the retro, Cut Worms knows how to catch an ear. 

--- 

Reader Poll Second Place: Baby Acid 

Baby Acid is self-described as "grunge-gaze" and it's easy to understand why on a first listen. They blend the fuzzier, harder, heavier elements of grunge with the the reverb-soaked, sound walls and atmospheres of shoegaze to create an entire sonic space. 

---

Here's the list of all the finalists with their Readers' Poll scores. As always, we'd like to thank all of our artists, jurors, and readers for participating in this year's polls.  Stay tuned and vote for all of our remaining genre polls! 

	Active Bird Community		1%	14 votes
	ArthurMoon		1%	21 votes
	Baby Acid		46%	637 votes
	Big Thief		1%	16 votes
	Citris		0%	5 votes
	Cloud Becomes Your Head		0%	6 votes
	Cut Worms		0%	1 vote
	Deal Casino		0%	1 vote
	Haybaby		0%	11 votes
	New Tarot		0%	3 votes
	Not Blood Paint		0%	5 votes
	Paris Monster		6%	87 votes
	Patio		1%	19 votes
	Prima		2%	31 votes
	Public Access TV		0%	6 votes
	Rachel Angel		35%	481 votes
	Wall		0%	3 votes
	Zula		0%	13 votes

Cut Worms is the nom de plume of singer/songwriter/one-man-band Max Clarke, whose spate of releases between 2015 and 2016 transform the lead of past genres into new gold. See him (and his make-shift band) tonight at the Bowery Ballroom, where Cut Worms opens for critical darlings the Lemon Twigs. Back to the recordings: at first, the influences seem easy enough to pin down, as in the case of recent single "Don't Want to Say Goodbye" (streaming). If it's all Clarke in the studio, he should proceed to make a video of himself playing every member of Gerry and the Pacemakers on stage at the "Ed Sullivan Show," as musically and vocally he faithfully recreates the sound of like minded bands from that era. B-side "Like Going Down Sideways" is less melodic overall, but infinitely more complex. It starts out like an early seventies acoustic ballad (think Lobo or Rodriguez), then veers into a variety of directions—a sprinkling of Gram Parsons, a dash of the Everly Brothers—which suggest a rather deep knowledge of pop history, and an uncommon ability to write retro pop songs. Then there are the "Soft Boiled Demos, Pt. 1-8," an MP3 offering from mid-2016, which falls somewhere between a set of lost Buddy Holly demos and the more showy retroism of Ryan Adams. Single "Mad About You" is pure allegory: a walk down Broadway, with the wind in his hair, evinces the hidden order of the cosmos. We'll have to wait and see what ultimately becomes of Cut Worms but for now, we can certainly enjoy his tracks, and let them transport us back to a time when pop songwriting was governed by different laws. - Brian Chidester

Cut Worms is the stage name of a Brooklyn based singer songwriter whose identity isn't discolsed online - luckily for us, his songs are. The young gentleman presents himself solo on stage, sometimes performing accompanied by only his guitar, others playing along pre-recorded tracks. He offers a brand of charming folk-pop revival that truly sounds as if originated in the early sixties - his recording even feature the vocal distortion typical of that era. Since April 2015 he's been incessantly releasing digital singles as part of the 'Soft Boiled Demos,' which now add up to over ten tracks all wrapped up in this vintage aura and his songwriting style that flirts with the timeless classics of folk. Masters of revival Foxygen must have noticed, since Cut Worms will be opening for them at Rough Trade on December 1st. Check out single 'Mad About You' below.