Celebrating blackness is something that should happen year round and for those of us that fall under that racial designation, it does. But as far as the rest of society is concerned, February is the one month to give the most recognition. For Mic Capes, this is part of his identity, but in the spirit of Black History Month he's dropped a new video for his track "Black Pearls."

"Black Pearls" comes off Mic Capes' debut LP, summer 2016's Concrete Dreams. It starts out with a spoken word feature from Lauren Steele, before breaking into grooves permeated with R&B as Capes and singer Aaron O'Brian Smith play lyrically and vocally. The actual video itself doesn't feature Lauren Steele, but subs in visuals of model Teresa Patterson mouthing lines from the poem while surrounded by a waterfalls, rocks and gorgeous greenery. Other shots include a black mother feeding her children, an appreciation of different black hair and fashion styles, a little girl blowing bubbles and a variety of black women smiling, giving the video an overall jovial air toward black culture.

Though Black History Month is coming to its close, our celebration never stops. Watch the video for "Black Pearls" below, and catch Mic Capes perform next at a Soul'd Out Festival-hosted show at the Wonder Ballroom with JID, EarthGang and Brown Calculus in late April. 

WeWork's Creator Awards, in partnership with our friends at Sofar Sounds, is looking for innovative musical performers (solo or groups) based in the SF Bay Area. The initiative rewards acts that merge creativity and imagination with compelling performances, and it's open to all genres (including performance arts, let your acting friends know about it!).

The winners will be rewarded with a cash prize between $18K and $72K, and will also secure a paid gig at the Creator Awards San Francisco event on May 10.

Applying for a Creator Award only takes a few minutes, you can start the process here (deadline is April 10th).

Ritual Veil have been pretty inescapable since they hit the scene, and for good reason. The post-punk/sex beat trio's debut EP Wolf In The Night hasn't lost momentum since its release in late summer of last year, likely due to its refreshing yet stylistically pure spin on old school goth and new wave. Ritual Veil's beats, sensual synths and smooth croons are addicting and mesmerizing to watch.

There's a chance to catch Ritual Veil doing an early set tonight at Green Noise Records. Sharing the stage with them is newer anarcho-deathwave quartet Over and the synthesized experimental sounds of Xibling. It's free, all ages, and an intimate way to be enticed by these three acts in one setting. Space will be incredibly limited, so if you want to catch peeks it's best to get there early. In the mean time, get lost in Ritual Veil's video for "Wolf In The Night" below.

If you couldn't already tell by their name, Mobilities is a band about free movement; fluidity in their instrumentation, production and genre influences is part of what makes Mobilities such an enjoyable and dynamic group. Their self-titled EP was one of the first tastes of their particular flavor they shared with the world, but their debut full-length Time Hasn't Swallowed Us Yet goes even further to showcase their spirited musicianship.

Most of the songs on Time Hasn't Swallowed Us Yet were written by lead vocalist/guitarist Eric McCauley and bassist/vox Brett Sparrey (though each member had a hand in writing their own parts) and recorded over about a five month span at Toadhouse Studios. Musically, you can hear the influence bands like Queens of the Stone Age, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, and local phenoms Portugal. The Man have had on them, blurring lines between what's considered alternative, experimental rock, indie, garage and punk. But, Mobiliities takes their songs in their own direction lyrically and sonically. The album is thematically based on social issues, touching on political and philosophical issues as well. It's a journey from start to finish, and one that is worth taking with the band.

Catch Mobilities, along with Eugene's Childspeak and The Von Howlers, for the Time Hasn't Swallowed Us Yet album release show 2.24 at Kelly's Olympian. Dive into the album in its entirety below. You won't be disappointed.

Burger Records is more than just the SoCal-based label dominated by scruffy ruffians shotgunning beers all the time. A first glance at not only their extensive roster but the typical scene flooding their festivals and gatherings would appear to make that the truest statement about the label. But it isn't. For the last four years the label has specifically curated an event catering to the promotion of bands, groups and solo artists where one or all of the members are non-male identifying. That event is called Burger-A-Go-Go, and it's awesome.

Now, using "female-fronted" or any iteration of the sort as a selling point for anything is pretty played out and low-key offensive, but in this case, it works within the context. Femmes haven't been well celebrated in the realm of music or anything else throughout history nearly enough as they should, but for the next two nights, Burger is doing a little bit to quell that in Portland.

Sentimental garage-pop act Patsy's Rats will be holding it down on the local front and sharing the stage with a grip of punk, garage and dream pop acts, like The Coathangers, Death Valley Girls, Summer Twins, and much delight from Dengue Fever, who dish out psych-pop with a Cambodian Rock flair, among others. 

Tickets for Burger-A-Go-Go will run you anywhere from $20-$35, but it's well worth it to see a bunch of acts that aren't what the music industry considers the "standard."