A musical act with a good sense of humor (that’s actually fuckin’ funny) that’s also straight killer when making more serious-minded shit is a hard thing to find. Count one more then in the ever-growing lists of reasons why Austin, and the world at large, is lucky to have CAPYAC, the city’s premier future funky outfit and the new group that made arguably the biggest impact on at least this writer’s 2015. With their new EP “Movement Swallows Us” still warm out of the oven, CAPYAC has elected not to rest on the merits of its already classic recent work and has released a new track called “Mama Never Told Me” that reveals that the funky-sexy duo also has a damn silly side to it.

“Mama Never Told Me” is basically about cupcakes, bright-ass colors, the funk, babies and some wildly-bedecked Austinites (including the band itself) gettin’ down to it all like it’s some serious fuk’n bizness. Producer Delwin Campbell is still riding the hothand here with another damn fine beat, this time anchored by a “Mama/Said” sample that is timed with sickness, and as ever Eric Peana is a funk vocalist master, this time with a tongue-in-cheek sexyfunk rap thing going on.

In the end though, the best way to get prepped for this excellent new addition to the catalog of Austin’s most exciting, most future-ready act is to read about it in their own inimitable words:

“Official release statement from Capyac:

Hello from Chez Capyac. Today we have the honor and privilege and honorable privilege to introduce to you our first food-related single. Why sing about food? Because singing and food share a mouth. When we were first approached by world famous director Meredith, we knew she had something. What did she have? Cupcakes. Magic. Studio magic. Ever heard of Hollywood?"

We have indeed, CAPYAC. We have indeed.

The Bishops might sound like the name of a snarky irreverent indie rock outfit, or maybe a math rock group named after the third-most fun chess piece (this is inarguable, and we’ll challenge anyone who says otherwise to a match), but in fact, this brand new Austin act is something far more rare: It’s a hip-hop supergroup made up of people who are real-life family members each with their own career outside of this new collaboration.

And an exciting, badass collaboration it is, coming in the form of synth-ed up single “Blood Ring.” As crooner Cara Bishop says, you get “Not one, not two, but three” Bishops merged together on the track for a hella fun single with equal roots in hip-hop, RNB and modern dancefloor music (especially trap and deep house on the snares and melody respectively).

Cara herself provides the hook and her verse with an RNB smoothness by way of a bit of a Rihanna Barbados structure, while Luv Bishop opens the track with his own bars done in that highly contemporary way of conscious-leaning youthful rappers like Frank Leone with references to big concepts like the third eye and not living “like we should” peppered into a solid modern flow with an edge.

Holding the whole thing together are the bouncing synth-made steel drums and arpeggios and steady trap-influenced beats of the third prong of this killer trident, producer Troy Bishop, who is a pretty prolific and future-looking producer in his own right outside of this collaboration (as well as in it) and one you should definitely get more familiar with.

This is actually what makes “Blood Ring” so damn exciting and fun to come across: it’s not only a stellar track from three members of that youth hip-hop thing that’s making the future of this genre look so bright, it’s also an introduction to three individual artists with impressively deep and deeply impressive catalogs each their own. The Bishops know this too, with the full lyrics to one version of the song’s hook (of a few) saying, “Not one, not two, but three/You can meet me and the Bishops in the ring/Not one, not two, but three/Our blood runs stronger than you could ever be.”

As a track and as an introduction to these talented kids, “Blood Ring” is immensely successful and is restrained in a way that belies the youth of both its members and this group as an existing thing, and it’s the most promising and exciting thing we’ve heard in Austin hip-hop in both this young year and the last. Check it out below, and then peep each Bishop’s personal Soundcloud below, and be prepared to fall deep into a hole of binge-listening your new favorite ATX hip-hop group, like the one we still haven’t crawled out of yet.

Big, bright things on the horizon for 2016 ATX hip-hop with music like this being made, y’all.

Cara Bishop- https://soundcloud.com/cara-bishop-1

Luv Bishop- https://soundcloud.com/luvbishop

Troy Bishop- https://soundcloud.com/troybishop

Lurvely Deli Readers,

We are proud to introduce you to our Winter 2016 issue of The Deli NYC, featuring on the cover Brooklyn songwriter, producer and multimedia artist Brittany Campbell, portrayed by NYC comix artist Lale Westwind. Inside the issue - besides dozens of talented emerging NYC bands and artists - you'll also find a feature about the undiscovered genius of Captain Baby and the ongoing saga of Manhattan DIY art space and venue ABC No Rio. 

READ IT ONLINE HERE! It will be out in print around January 15.

Well, another year has gone by. Local music critic, Lindsay Stickney has made my job so much easier by using her discerning and well honed ear to choose her favorite Bay Area albums of 2015. A lot of these bands are friends and I am certainly fans of all of these artists so I was personally pleased with Lindsay's choices (which I had NO say in whatsoever).

I hope you will enjoy her picks as well. Congrats to every single band who put out music in the Bay Area this year. The Deli SF loves you all and we completely acknowledge that this was an amazing year for well produced albums and truly talented artists.

I love you all.
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year. May 2016 be more musically fruitful and inspiring!

The Deli SF Editor,
Jordannah Elizabeth

1. The Stone Foxes, Twelve Spells

Bursting, bluesy-rock vibes that make you feel less like you’re listening to a record and more like you’re singing along to gospel in a church of rock n’ roll, Twelve Spells delivers an experience. With tracks like “Cold Like a Killer”, we’re reminded of how good it feels to effortlessly sway our hips to a single-note piano and how refreshing a vibrating guitar riff can be for the soul.

2. Monophonics, Sound of Sinning

Kings of dark, slinky soul, The Monophonics’ Sound of Sinning is heavily influenced by the psychedelic rock vibes of San Francisco, providing a funky 60’s-70’s sound that takes you through a colorful ride of epic horns and funky, noir beats. Packed with gut-wrenching vocals, hazy harmonies and hammond organs, it’s easy to get lost in this record and drift away to tracks like “Falling Apart”.

3. Lee Gallagher, Lee Gallagher and The Hallelujah

Lee Gallagher’s typical folky, country roots are uprooted and replaced by a much more soulful sound layered with emotional instrumentation and howling vocals. In Lee Gallagher and The Hallelujah, we’re carried back to a delightful 70’s trippy wave of movement that prove that a simplistic sound is sometimes the most powerful.

4. Lila Rose, We. Animals.

Bass. Power. Killer vocals. Power. We. Animals. is like your sweetest nightmare induced with passion, heartbreak, manic, and complexity. With whimsical beats, haunting vocals, and tribal drums, Lila Rose delivers an intense, sexually-charged album that lays its foundation on raw aggression. Tracks like “Tracking” will abruptly awaken the pissed off, sensual warrior in you.

5. Growwler, Even Tenor

Easing in with delicate acoustics and finishing with an aggressive bluesy piano sequence, the opening song “Long Hair, Short Wits” is a true ode to the San Francisco rock n’ roll scene and is a testament to the effectiveness of brilliant, simplistic instrumentation. Even Tenor is like a nostalgic storytelling that makes us miss the moments that we never lived for.

6. Ice Cream, Ice Cream

Sweet, sweet, classic garage rock. Ice Cream’s self-titled album forces us to remember the reasons we fell in love with rock in the first place. Dirty, honest guitar riffs, quick, aggressive drum patterns, weaved into gritty barely-there vocals, Ice Cream is the perfect combination of garage sound and punk attitude that will pour gasoline on that flickering fire inside.

7. Al Lover, Cave Ritual

The great Al Lover does it again. Cave Ritual is in fact exactly how it sounds: eerie, tribal, smoky, and sensual to the extreme. Textured beats layered with staccato samples give the album an imaginative sound that catapults us into a contemporary, psychedelic rock trance. Every track will take you to the sun, the moon, and then back again. Twice.

8. The Union Trade, A Place of Long Years

The Union Trade are masters of melancholy and it couldn’t be more gorgeously displayed than in their album A Place of Long Years. The subtle, aching cello atop the fluid, chilling piano make songs like “Svalbard” an escape from reality into the ethereal landscapes of your most tragic, stunning daydreams.

9. Guy Fox, Night Owl

Guy Fox are a musical enigma: elements of funk, old-school jazz, indie, pop, and rock can all be traced at different peaks in their most recent album Night Owl. Whether it be the use of timely instrumentation or charming lyricism, Guy Fox delivers an indecisive yet addicting sound. Tracks like “The City Line” create a steamy, devious tone portraying San Francisco as a playground designed for the mischievous.

10.Toro y Moi, What For?

Light, energetic beats coupled with smooth, romantic vocals make What For? the soundtrack to your hazy, yellow summer nights. Toro y Moi is known for his synthy-pop sounds, but the release of his fourth album slayed all former musical confinement. Tracks like “Lilly” walk the perfect, delicate line of modern synth and 60’s psychedelic rock, transporting you to a blurry wonderland that you’ll want to lay in for a while.

Botany is the study of plant life, and Botany also happens to be the name Spencer Stephenson records his out-of-this-world electronic music under. The name fits Stephenson well, in the sense that his tripped-out electronic soundscapes burrow their way into one’s consciousness like the seedling’s tendrils tunnel their way through soil to sunlight. Botany’s latest album, Dimming Awe, the Light is Raw, is everything fans of ethereal trip-hop and electro-psychedelic music could want in a record: layered instrumentals, sick samples and nasty breakbeats for the kiddos to nod their heads to.

Botany is a North Texas native, but now resides here in Austin where he records under the Western Vinyl label. Dimming Awe, the Light is Raw would be Botany’s second full-length album, and it’s a rather impressive follow-up to his equally inspiring debut album, Lava Diviner (True Story).

Much like one can stare at a picture stereogram to reveal its hidden 3D image, the scope and outright brilliance of Botany’s music comes into sharp focus as one soaks in the sonic minutiae contained in each track with repeated listens. Fans of artist such as RJD2, Nightmares on Wax or DJ Shadow will appreciate the chilled out bass thumping melodies on Botany’s latest offering for their clarity in purpose and emotive qualities.

“Sounds have archetypal connections to things in nature the same way visual symbols do,” Botany says to explain his creative process. Botany continues, “Low-end might be associated with thunder, or the sound of a mother's heartbeat as heard from inside the womb.” Personally, I really don’t remember what my mom’s heartbeat sounded like from inside the womb, but I assure you if it sounded anything like Mr. Stephenson’s music, I would have exited the birth canal pop locking across the operating floor.

Botany’s Dimming Awe, the Light is Raw is available now, and you can check out a preview of the album below. Check back for the latest on new music and concerts from Botany here.