Looking for something fun to do this 4th of July weekend? Do you love you some great mountains majesty, music of all shapes and genres, and food? Beverages? Trees? Camping? We recommend the High Sierra Music Festival for some good ol’ fashioned American purity. From Dispatch to Jim James, Del & Dawg to The New Mastersounds, the festival has something for most musical tastes. It’s like Burning Man but peaceful. Local favorites include Midnight North, Royal Jelly Live, Rainbow Girls, More Fatter and Eric Long. The festival runs from July 4th thru 7th in the lovely Quincy, Ca. We hope to see you there and tell us post-fest: which acts were your highlights? Land of the free, home of some killer music. May music bless America! - Michelle Kicherer, Associate Editor

 

Adding a healthy dose of post-rock syrup onto each one of the six tracks that compose its 2019 self-titled debut EP, Delko offers up an easy-listening experience for the earnest experimental rock music auditor. The many textures the Providence-based band applies to songs like "Seasons" and "Seattle" beg for appreciation: the harmonious relationship between soft guitar riffs, sensitive vocal inflections, and light drum taps give way to brief math-rock breakdowns where the bass shines. For better or worse the band's music has a tinge of emo to it, creating melancholy ambiances that accompany confessional lyrics, in the spirit of groups like England's Basement. The EP, recorded, mixed and mastered by the group's dear friend Alex Salter, is the culmination of two years of hard work, a promising blend of styles that signal good things to come from the band. Delko offers a toothsome mixture of sounds to dig into, and we got them here for you in "Seasons" streaming below. - Rene Cobar 

So Sensitive -- the dark-pop outfit born from the ashes of experimental duo Muscle & Marrow -- will release their debut album Bedroom Drama on August 2nd. They've just released second single "My Heart Is Open," after setting the tone with "What's A Girl To Do?". The new track continues the lightening of So Sensitive's sound from their earlier days; the indie pop of Kira Clark and Keith McGraw seems accessible compared to the rumbling rawness of Muscle & Marrow. Despite that, "My Heart Is Open" remains full of emotion and grit as an homage to Clark's songwriting hero Courtney Love. The single channels Bedroom Drama's themes of sexual identity, obsession, and sacrifice, showing that though the duo's music is lighter, the subject matter certainly isn't. Take a listen to "My Heart Is Open" below. - Will Sisskind

Your weekend playlist can get a boost from the music of Portsmouth’s Max Grazier. The New Hampshire singer-songwriter’s latest EP Warm Enough Not To Care is evenly spread with a sonic marmalade of dynamic acoustic and electric guitar riffs, stupendous vocal harmonies, and subtle drums to sway to, all tinged with a bedroom-production syrup so sweet. All three tracks of Grazier’s new record feel like confessions, not meant to be released, deeply personal, sung with passion, and played to the wave of pseudo-surf guitar ambiance. Pensive weekend mornings just got a lot better, in that kind of moody-basking way, thanks to the music of Max Grazier. The trombone finale in “Paper Eyes” is exquisite, let it build up below. - Rene Cobar

Matching the splendor of the tasteful instrumentation that accompanies her, Boston’s Cindy Latin lets her vocals soar in her latest single “In a Year From Now.” Yes, the drums flash some nearly-acrobatic fills, the bass grooves deliciously, and the trumpets are resonant, but it is Cindy’s passionate expressions that captivate, switching with ease from flowing verses to soulful choruses, she commits to them wholly. Cindy Latin strikes that perfect balance between an elegant soul singer and hardened street lady, similarly as another gal people may know of named Alicia Keys. “In a Year From Now” drips with honest curiosity about the future, and easily creates a narrative that we can all relate to, Cindy Latin channels the message well. Without further ado “In a Year From Now” is streaming below for your listening pleasure. - Rene Cobar