Huzzah! The North Country have released a video for "The Cross We Bear," a single off their upcoming album There Is Nothing To Fear. The video shows the day in the life of a wooden artist's mannequin-cum-Everyman who's got just the dreariest life. I don't want top ruin the ending for you, but he gets out of his rut with the help of a skateboarding apatosaurus and some acid. Also serendipitous love.

The North Country is hittin' the road this April, with dates through the mid-atantic and South (and a couple stops in Texas), spreading the glory of the DC DIT scene far and wide. You should really go see them. --Natan Press 

Swap out your snow boots and parkas for your dancin' shoes and head over to The Middle East Upstairs tomorrow night, February 18. Brooklyn's Leisure Cruise are coming through Cambridge/Boston, bringing with them a warm wave of electro-pop that should make everyone forget about the frozen tundra outside, if only for a little while. They'll be supported by locals Atlas Lab and Sundog, who is making the trip all the way from outer space (also known as New Orleans), according to his bio. The show kicks off at 8PM and is presented by Boston Music Scene. 18+, $10 at the door, proper ID required. For more info about the show, click here.

-Dan McMahon (@dmcmhn) 

You know when you're at a house-show in DC, for a "DIT" festival, and you run into that special someone? That someone who plays some sort of custom-looking 6-string with flatwounds as a bass (when he's not on the pedal steel) in a band with a killer cellist? It's one of those "at first sight" things you hear about from the motion pictures. 

Ahren Buchheister isn't the only member of Pompeii Graffiti, Pony Bones (the band I saw at The Paperhaus on that glorious day), or Black Rhinoceros, but he's the common factor that binds this Annapolis supergroup, like (dare I say it?) heartstrings, together in this lovely video. Ahren himself is on lead vox and guitar. Fret not, Ahren, I dig you "not only for your music skills."

But they are, like, a huge deal. Happy Valentine's Deli readers! --Natan Press

Indie-pop duo Tigers Are Bad For Horses get a little emo in their new track called "I.V. (Poisoned)." Frontwoman Mellen (Mary-Ellen) Funke's sultry, folk vocals blend seamlessley with the progressive melody produced by percussionist Lyell Roeder. Singing "sometimes I think the venom in my veins will never leave," TABFH casts a darker cloud over the running theme from their last track "Recovery" --being let down by someone you care about. Roeder says the track is much heavier not only in tone, but in percussion. "We just really wanted to change the balance in this [track]."

The two plan to drop a 5-track EP late February and say we can expect each of their songs to stand out on their own. "They are actually pretty different from each other... even with the next ones, you'll see even different influences" comments Funke. TABFH have already played most of their EP live. They find performing their music before it's finished "informs they way [they] write." If you can't wait until the expected drop of their EP late February, catch TABFH with Eureka Birds at the Treehouse Lounge February 26th and listen to "I.V.(Poisoned)" below. --Sade A. Spence

On December 23, 2014, Troy Ramey’s first solo EP, When the Lights Came, was released, capping-off a long road of writing, recording and crowd-funding for the Vermont native. Currently residing in New York City, Troy’s first foray into solo music proves to be quite a success. His grasp of crafting a catchy pop song is incredible for such a relatively unknown artist. From start to finish, it’s clear that these songs were meticulously thought-out, and perfectly executed. His voice is so strong and powerful that it immediately grabs your ears and demands your attention. My two favorite tracks are the title track and “Rosary”, the single that was exclusively released via The Deli New England a few months ago. Both demonstrate such immense vocal performances that it’s hard not to be drawn into the music.

For more info about Troy, check out his Facebook page. To purchase a copy of When the Lights Came, click here.