A sputtering drum rhythm with a blazing guitar riff shimmies open “Disconnect,” a bright, spunky track layered with warm, raspy vocals and jovial abandon on Hello Dharma’s EP Disconnectionism (streaming below). The Virginia-based band cites Rooney, Arctic Monkeys, and 90’s grunge as influence and it is clearly evident in their EP, whose tracks shift from the bubbling alt rock (“Disconnect”) to a more chaotic and broody grunge-centric number (“Vitamin” and “Anabelle Leaves”). Whether melodic and effervescent or gloomy and aggressively in your face, Hello Dharma doesn’t shy away from going full throttle in each and every song, giving you no choice but to jump and sing along every step of the way. Catch Hello Dharma shake things up at Velvet Lounge on August 30 and listen to them below. - Adriana S. Ballester

Have you ever wondered what would happen if all the toys in a kids playchest came to life? Plastic trains chugging along faithfully in a circle, lights twinkling, and robots beeping into existence– what little mayhem would they cook up? Music, that’s what, and it would sound exactly like The Galaxy Electric. True to their name, Galaxy Electric sounds much like the universe in a child’s room woke up, some light switch magically flipped on. The electric tinkling and spacey synths can almost call to mind brilliant hues of neon blues and magentas blinking on and off, coaxing us to fall down their temporal rabbit hole and diving into the electronic dreams sonically curated by some warped fusion of The Doors and Broadcast–the psychedelic textures of the former melded with the gentle vocal touch and space age pop sensibilities of the latter. A truly trippy experience to listen to make sure you catch their live performance at U Street Music Hall tonight and at DC Nine on August 2. - Adriana S. Ballester

Bassel and The Supernaturals spent this past weekend filming a video for their new single "Lost". The single will be released next month and the video will follow in the fall.

You can help Bassel and The Supernatural celebrate the release of their new single on August 19th at Schubas.

Once you hear the higher pitched croon of Castles' Cody Myers, a nostalgic comfort for the early 2000's will rush over you. A reminiscent mixture of Mae with a bit of older school Dr. Dog and Tame Impala, Castles understand the ins and outs of alternative rock and have shown their capacity to make it easy to love and enjoy, without sounding passé.

Starting in 2014, the Portland 4-piece have released a self titled EP in May comprised of tracks that transport you to a whole other realm sonically. The combination of Myers' colorful vocals with impeccable playing from Eric Wenzel on lead guitar, Adrian Swindells on bass and Tom Wortman on drums make for an overall chill yet stimulating listening experience.

Castles is working on some new tracks and have got a few shows coming up, including one on the July 29 at the Waypost. Congrats on being the new Deli Portland winners, boys!