Nootropics is an album built like a glacier. Layers of chill slowly fall upon one another, blending into the last section, over and over, until collectively they form something striking. The latest effort of Baltimore-based band Lower Dens, Nootropics presents a similar atmosphere to another Baltimore-based band – Beach House. On the opening track, "Alphabet Song," vocalist Jana Hunter could easily be mistaken for Victoria Legrand. The album itself is a slow ride, tracks sliding into each other, swirling with drones and simple guitar work. According to Hunter, "Alphabet Song," "and singles "Brains" and "Propogation" exemplify the theme of the album, which is the both the betterment and deterioration of humanity through science and change. Nootropics captures that dichotomy by conveying a myriad of quiet emotions. – allison levin

This Friday 5/11, DC's rockers Fear of Virginia will be hitting the Rock & Roll Hotel stage for their final performance. Formed in 2010, the crew have played nearly every club around the district to crowds feeding off their energy, one of the many attributes that crowned them a DC Deli Band of the Month in 2011. Via their press release, Bassist David Turner added, “We are pulling out all the stops for this show. I can promise this will be the most memorable concert in Washington D.C. for years to come. Basically if you don’t enjoy this show, you probably should move to Virginia.”

Friday 5/11 @ Rock & Roll Hotel, 9 PM, $10.

DC based Palestinian rapper Andru Ayoub has been producing releases since 2008, with singles like "Bravo" and "Time of Our Lives" garnering attention in a growing fanbase online. The same fans that no doubt put him at the top of the leaderboard of our last Band/Artist of the Month poll. So we wanted to find out more about him. Here he tells us about battle one-liners, Tupac & Biggie, and his upcoming release Better Late Than Never. Now onto the interview…

Monday 4/30 is gonna be a stellar night of indie noise as three amazing locals take to the Black Cat stage. The phenom DC quintet Mittenfields are back from a Texas tour with some new material on top of the unique 90's indie meets noise pop sound they are known for off their EP The Fresh Sum. Joining the bill are Paperhaus, DC's own meld of psychedelic/blues rockers who've turned their home studio into a sweet gig space known as The Paperhaus, which so happens to be the name of their EP released last Sept. And get there by doors open to check out Baltimorean pop alt. rockers Me and This Army (noms for Band of the Month!) who've got some new material up on Soundcloud following their 2011 EP release Souls.

It's all happening at the Black Cat on Monday Apr. 30, doors @8 PM, $8.

DC's indie rock trio Megaphone Barons recently set out on a guerilla shoot all over the Capital to create this video complete with pedicab performances, and sneaking past lobby security (full drum kit and all) to achieve high views of our city. All this for the epic track "Send Somebody Else" off their debut EP Menagerie which is available for free download off their website! To celebrate the release they are inviting you to join them in a bar crawl on May 11th. More details here...

(Directed by Emre Çilem and edited by Hamilton Riley.)

The Boston-native, Washington DC based alt-country, singer-songwriter Tom McBride is touring in support of his release "A Brief Head Spin" (Humpback Records), his full-length debut that displays the artists sweet baritone voice & lyrical dexterity, weaving through a diverse style of Americana song-scape. McBride teamed-up with drummer from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Sean Greenhalgh, to co-produce the record and help lend its stark, dream-like atmosphere. - (as posted in The Deli's Open Blog - post your band's entries, videos, and Mp3s here).

Rockville MD's alt. rock band The Dirty Jacks were crowned the champions at the Mid-Atlantic Band Battle 6 held at Jammin Java this year. And they also just so happened to get the title of Band of the Month via our last poll. So collectivelly, we got a hold of Colin Ball (Lead Vocals/Guitar,) Billy Rommel (Lead Guitar,) Bobby Scott (Bass/Vocals,) Erik Hildebrant (Drums,) and Ian Hildebrant (Keyboard/Vocals.) They filled us in on everything from poker, weekend tours throughout the summer, and kevlar drumsticks. Now onto the interview...

Their debut album Rufus is available now, and you can catch them live next at Sonoma's in Columbia, MD on 4/28.

DC's blues rock duo The Grey Area (who repped DC at SxSW this year) are gonna make big noise this Friday, 4/20 at the Red Palace with tracks from their debut EP 508, featuring doses of Inspector Gadget and twangy Kiss-like licks. Check out the video for "Ourselves" below, also found on the EP. And sharing the stage with them is Brooklyn's indie rock band Midnight Spin who were NYC Deli's Best Emerging Artist of 2009! Therefore a night of full on rock noise will ensue!

4/20 @ Red Palace, Doors @ 8 PM, $10.

This Thursday, head to H St. for some genuine melodic indie rock via DC locals East Ghost, who are hitting the Red Palace stage to play tracks off their early 2012 release St. Elizabeths. They'll also be revealing some new material, and merch (they've got some adorable coasters!)

Joining them is DC's own indie pop Teen Mom, who've got a beachy vibe that'll amp you up for the summery weekend.

4/19 @ Red Palace. Doors @ 8, $8.

If local indie pop/rock and post-punk is what you crave on 4/20, then get ready to get your ears' munchies on at the Rock & Roll Hotel this Friday. The quadruple line-up features Dance for the Dying, who are about to set out on tour in May (this is their last hometown headliner before taking off.) The Silver Liners will be there too, who are currently in the studio working on new material. Also check out We Were Pirates who've recently released their second album Change. And Tomio will be kicking it all off, who are expecting their debut EP to be out this Fall.

It's all going down 4/20 @ Rock & Roll Hotel, Doors at 8 PM, $10.