Best NYC
oF
Emerging
Artists
2012
I
n the following pages you’llfind all the 102 emerging local artists who made it into our Best of NYC Emerging Artists Poll. For links to each band’s music and a break down of the vote, please go here: thedelimag.com/nyc2012. “Best of” lists are music publications’ bread and butter, but sometimes we all wonder what the rationale behind them is. The peculiar thing about our Best of NYC Emerging Artists list (see it on page 4) is that it’s not something compiled by our staff, but rather the product of a complicated system mostly based on the opinions of local, competent “scene-makers”. These jurors who follow and work with emerging bands on a daily basis – comprised of local talent buyers, music bloggers, writers, etc. – have the most influence on the final result, and this is why our Best of NYC has always produced reliably amazing new artists.
List of Jurors Alex Rossiter (Webster Hall), Andy Bodor (Cake Shop), Billy Jones (Pianos), Bowery Electric bookers, Brandon Haas (BMI), Carlye Wisel & Donald Rasmussen (Big Yellow Couch), Chris Diaz (Knitting Factory), Christopher R. Weingarten (The Village Voice), Claire McNamara (OhMyRockness), David Teller (Bird Dog Productions), Douglas DeFalco (Southpaw), Heath Miller (Excess db), Heather Dunsmoor (The Bell House), Jamie Dominguez (SESAC), Jennifer Gilson (The Living Room), Jify Shah (Cameo), John J. Hagan (Sycamore), Karen Soskin (Other Music), Katherine Coates (Delancey), Marc Emert-Hutner (ASCAP), Matt McDonald (CMJ), Max Brennan (Lit Lounge), Paolo De Gregorio (The Deli), Rami Haykal (Popgun Booking), Sebastian Freed (Bowery Presents), Steve Trimboli (Goodbye Blue Monday), Zack Dinerstein (Spike Hill).
#1 Caveman By Paolo De Gregorio
W
e praised Caveman’s wonderful mix of psych rock and mellow pop numerous times: The band was featured on the cover of our summer 2011 issue, and that’s the reason why, even though they won our Best of NYC Emerging Artist Poll, they are not featured on the cover of this issue.
Caveman won this poll with a record number of votes from our jury of local scene-makers, and inherit the crown of Best NYC Band from last year’s number one, Twin Shadow, and previous editions’ winners Talk Normal, Chairlift, Yeasayer, The Big Sleep and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Yet, for some rather mysterious reasons, the Deus Ex Machina of music sites (Pitchfork.com) has not even bothered to review their debut album – maybe because it was self-released? The band is doing great – recently performing at BAM Theater in a festival curated by The National – but it’s reasonable to wonder what kind of parameters the Pitchfork staff uses to decide which records to review and which not. Hopefully their new record label Fat Possum – home to The Walkmen and Unknown Mortal Orchestra among others – will be able to give these guys the extra push that they deserve. In the meantime, we warm-heartedly recommend that you take a listen to CoCo Beware before the entire world finds out about it. RIYL: Belle & Sebastian, Grizzly Bear’s Veckatimest
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