Regarding the modern indie-pop aesthetic, Boston’s Gillian perfects it: classy-creeping piano leads, pumping beats, and the singer-songwriter’s honeyed melodies slowly cascading over them. However, the theme of her latest single “High” goes beyond the standard, it digs a bit deeper, tackling a subject that is scarcely discussed in the youth’s pro-recreational mildew: sobriety. Gillian vents, via infectious hooks and exquisite harmonies, frustrations about a partner struggling to remain sober and how that struggle becomes an illness turning love languid, disappointment vivid. The music video for the track, directed by Nolan Knight, captures the exact atmosphere and heartbreak the song so radiates. Gillian is not only a bright beacon of indie-pop and its current influence on the mainstream but also an artist digging deeper, as artists do. Stream the music video for “High” below. - Rene Cobar

It's the end of January, and if you're like most people, the enthusiasm behind those New Year's resolutions are slowy starting to melt away. Though we can't help you with that new gym membership losing its initial allure, if "seeing more live music" happened to chart on your New Year to-do list, you're in luck. Deal Casino, a hard-working, indie rock four-piece from industrious Asbury Park, is coming to a venue near you, and we totally recommend catching them live. The band utilizies a mixture of minimalist sounds and hard-hitting riffs to create grooves that are as infectious as they are instantlly compelling. Their latest release, The Cannonball EP, features tunes like "Panama Papers," a timely state of the nation track, and "Purple," a wistful song that seems to capture the general, 20-something maliase. Catch the band live at theire Arlene's Grocery residency (playing alongside Gillian on 01.31) and stream single 'Panama Papers below. - Olivia Sisinni

Gillian's frontlady Kym Hawkins's vocal phrasing revisits the style of 80’s icons Lene Lovitch and Missing Person’s Dale Bozzio as much as modern counterparts Gwen Stefani of No Doubt and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s. While the joyous pop-funk groove of opening track “Eau to Be” stomps to clever lyrical word play, it's the ultimate hook “we play our danger game, we found our danger fame, how did we get into this life?” that will stick in your head for days. Their new EP's “Strange Candy"'s title track “Strange Candy” merges electronic pulses and rock guitar hooks with Hawkins’ deliberate enunciation. Slower track “Sue My Mood” wades into the copyright law debate (an interestingly rare subject for a rock song!) suggesting there should be limits on what can be litigated regarding creative control - check out the video here. “Radio Clock” returns to faster tempos, relying on an angular jazz-funk style with tandem male-female vocals. The song was inspired by the novel Suttree by Cormac McCarthy, as was following track “Windfall,” describing a win win situation with the lyrics “we both got high and we both got laid.” Final track “House Boat” (also inspired by that now must-read book) has Kym singing tragic hero fantasy lyrics like “brave warrior, raise your sword” with a stylized accent and cascading structure reminiscent of Liz Fraser’s work with The Cocteau Twins. The Deli is exclusively streaming Gillian's new EP below. - Dave Cromwell

Following in the footsteps of the two most prominent... let's call them "Beauty and the Beast" rock bands of all times (The B52's and Bjork's early band The Sugarcubes), NYC/NJ's Gillian features the constrasting double vocals of Kym Hawkins' pretty alto and Geoff Bennington's manic tenor. These two characters inhabit a rather schizofrenic sonic environment where pop melodies emerge unexpectedly from a rather chaotic and heavy musical background. The best example of this is single "Spirit Night' from their 2014 EP "The Eyes in My Head,' a kaleidoscopic track that blends all sorts of influences: we hear Americana leaning guitars, a garage rock rhythm section, melodies reminiscent of the '80s sophistipop wave, and vocals at times reminiscent of Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The band landed a June residency at Arlene's Grocery - the next two dates are on the 17th and 24th of the month.