Toronto’s goth-stained band Bloody Diamonds latest single 'Skin and Bones' is hard hitting rock n’ roll! Wild and wailing,'Skin and Bones' is a hardcore power ballad with monster vocals. It carries a heavy riff over a memorable lyric that has us head banging! Currently on tour catch Bloody Diamonds Friday 4/3 @ Bovine Sex Club. Go to their FB and see if they’re coming your way.

Austin’s premier radio station KUTX (98.9 on the digital dial) recently announced the lineup for somethin’ pretty damn great, and pretty damn Austin, in the form of the Live Vibe Collective presented KUTX Live free all ages concert series. Completely unsurprisingly, this event that happens at local meat n’ booze establishment Uncle Billy’s is particularly well-curated. Frequent visitors to The Deli might notice Hard Proof and Keeper on that list, our own 2014 #36 and #3 finishers, respectively, in The Deli’s Best of 2014 for this city.

Another name you should most certainly get familiar with from KUTX’s event before you head out to yet more free music (goddamn we are so spoiled guys) is the act ushering in the whole shebang with the first series in the concert. That’d be deep electronic pop act The Digital Wild, who are opening the series on April 5.

To prep ya for these exciting events here’s a bit from the most recent output from The Digital Wild, a group that fits as well into the indie camp as it does the beat-based in the Austin scene. The track is called “Around,” and anyone who ever dug Portishead’s early shit will find something immediately attractive in the slowed down, souled up sound here. The song is without a doubt a sultry pop hip-hop track, a quality that owes much to lead singer Chantell Moody’s alluring elfin voice that has a slight, engaging tinge of someplace cold in Europe to it. But, there’s also an element of cabaret lounge smokiness to “Around,” something especially heard in the slinking, wailing horns whose wavering, off-kilter style has a kinda “Life in Glass Houses” by Radiohead feel going on. That kind of genre blending and bending is The Digital Wild’s wheelhouse, something they do not just well, but seamlessly.

“Around” is just the latest addition to the small but growing digital pile of terrific tracks The Digital Wild has been putting out for about a year now, and it bodes nothing but well for the upcoming concert series. Start whetting that musical appetite now with “Around,” and check out one or five of the KUTX Live events happening soon.

There’s probably a couple of times I could have been considered a Beach Creep…but I wasn’t as cool as the band Beach Creep from Toronto. Extraordinary DIY, Beach Creep is indie divine with gentle voices and artistic guitars. They released their latest EP “V” in January of this year. It opens up with trippy intro “Peas and Lentils” then leads into “Sprout”, which has nice vibes, the kind that make you feel like everything is going to be okay. “Old Shoes” caresses delicate vocals over subtle guitars that carry heavy harmonies. Beach season is just around the corner so make sure you do your bicep curls…then buy this EP from Beach Creep’s bandcamp page and relax in the sand. If you missed them @ The Cavern Bar on Friday, stay tuned on bandcamp for more show details. -Kris “Big City” Gies

The Lifts are full throttle rock n’ roll fusion. Their music contains elements of progressive rock, metal and blues; a strong combination of muscle, imagination and weight. Their self-titled EP has what it takes, hitting us hard, endowing us with wit and an artistic certainty. Showing off their biceps, you are instantly satisfied. “What’s Her Face” is pure rock n’ roll with an ambitious sound. “The Sky is Peeling” sinks its teeth into you with grunge grit, heavy guitars and a luscious delayed vocal. “Darling” beats a drum with a heavy bellowing bluesy backbone and a vocal that “doesn’t let us down”. The last track on the EP “Mescal Blues” knocks on your heart with an unforgettable melody, as if you have known it forever; pulling its weight of heavy combinations of dark and light sounds. Don’t miss The Lifts this Friday March 20th @ The Cameron House.

 Integrity Reeves brings an invigorating new voice to both the local and national jazz scene. Her EP Stairway To The Stars is described as "modern vintage," inspired by Ella Fitzgerald, Feist, and The Bird and the Bee, and presents interpretations from classic Joao Gilberto bossa nova to The Cardigan's "Lovefool." Indeed, Integriti's light, bright, twee voice is reminiscent of contemporary indie-pop vocal tones, but she sings in a fiercely classical style. The combination is both technically impressive and stylistically refreshing, and is sure to appeal to both fans of classic jazz and neophytes eager to hear what a fresh young voice can do. Delightful through and through.    
You can grab a copy of her EP on itunes, and catch her live at the Kennedy Center's Millenium Stage on April 7th as part of the Center's tribute to Billie Holiday in honor of her centennial. --Natan Press