Arizona Tracks of the Year (2018)

Here’s some of the best Arizona music we heard in 2018. We included a variety of genres and tastes. It only scratches the surface, but we hope you find something you like.

If you want to know more about any of these artists, message us on Instagram @swingbythedeli – enjoy!

Lana Del Rabies – Ghost

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Tide Pools – complicated.

tide pools complicated

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Slator Blacc – Good Afternoon (feat. Wilby the Great, Lord RA)

Slator Blacc - Black Foot Ronin

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Mr. 2 Fucks Given – PLAY FAIR (feat. Lil Prada Loww)

M2FG Lil Prada Loww Play Fair Dollar Meal Records

SoundCloud

CORMAC – Sun In Your Eyes (CORMAC’S Sunset Mix)

CORMAC - Sun In Your Eyes (CORMAC’S Sunset Mix)

SoundCloud

Coffee Pot – Corridor Metaphysics

Coffee Pot - Corridor Metaphysics

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Jock Club vs. Diversion Program – Shadowboxing

Jock Club vs. Diversion Program - Shadowboxing

SoundCloud

YouTube

Bandcamp

Hyperbella – Reign

MRCH – Dizzy

MRCH - Dizzy

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

Breakup Shoes – Sometimes We Make Decisions

Breakup Shoes Unrequited Love & Other Clichés

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

Sunn Trio – Fayrus

Sunn Trio Fayrus

Bandcamp

London Hack – Milk n Honey

London Hack Milk n Honey

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Nanami Ozone – Alone Too

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Moonlight Magic – Totem Pole

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Soft Deadlines – Time To Shine

Soft Deadlines - Time To Shine

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

Herbert Walker – Eat Forever

Herbert Walker - Eat Forever

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

House of Stairs – Cartier Bresson

house of stairs cartier bresson

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Alassane – Gabriel Song (demo version)

Alasanne - Gabriel Song (demo version)

Soundcloud

Bandcamp

Gabriella Isaac – sine map 18.04.13

Gabriella Isaac - sine map 18.04.13

Soundcloud

Mute Swan – Enough Fun

Mute Swan Enough Fun

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

Kill Stacy ft. Lil Prada – 7017 Cypher (feat. Lil Prada)

Kill Stacy ft. Lil Prada - 7017 Cypher (feat. Lil Prada)

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

The Color 8 – Raw

The Color 8 - Raw

 

Spotify

Apple

GABI – Honda Civic

GABI - Honda Civic

Bandcamp

Palo Brea – Close

Palo Brea - Close

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Like Diamonds – Janus & Diana

Like Diamonds - Janus & Diana

Spotify

YouTube

Bandcamp

Harrison Fjord – Mr. Feeling

Harrison Fjord - Mr. Feeling

Spotify

Apple 

YouTube

Bandcamp

Pro Teens – Garbage Island

Pro Teens - Garbage Island

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

College Money – Alibi

College Money - Alibi

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Malaise – Dawning

Malaise - Dawning

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Aspen Sound – Sense Doors

Aspen Sound - Sense Doors

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Michael Hooker & Sean Watson – Sueño

Michael Hooker & Sean Watson - Sueño

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

DOVI – Only Best

Dovi

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Gasol – Osprey

Gasol - Osprey

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

No Volcano – Sad Generator

No Valcano

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Secret Attraction – Call Me Up

Secret Attraction

Soundcloud

YouTube

Strange Lot – Such A Feeling

Strange Lot - Such A Feeling

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

Blossom – Go

Blossom - Go

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

Playboy Manbaby – Anxiety Attack

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Gatecreeper – War Has Begun

Gatecreeper - War Has Begun

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra – Catchu

Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra - Catchu

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

BURNOUT – Retcon

BURNOUT - Retcon

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

There Is Danger – Mirror Eyes

There Is Danger - Mirror Eyes

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Michelle Sparks – Harajuku

Michelle Sparks - Harajuku

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

Fairy Bones – Killing Me

Fairy Bones - Killing Me

Spotify

Apple

Bandcamp

Osutin – PYT (Osutin’s Acid Flashback Mix)

OSUTIN PYT remix

Soundcloud

The Bittersweet Way – Almost Cheating

The Bittersweet Way - Almost Cheating

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Bogan Via – Chillin

Bogan Via - Chillin

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

Norris Division – Voodoo Machine

Norris Division - Voodoo Machine

Spotify

Apple

Soundcloud

YouTube

Citrus Clouds – Golden Sun

Citrus Clouds - Golden Sun

Spotify

Apple

YouTube

Bandcamp

Paul West – GFunk Pt 2

Paul West - GFunk Pt 2

Bandcamp

Herbert Walker Video Premiere & “On Flat Earth” Album Review

On their sophomore album, “On Flat Earth”, Phoenix band Herbert Walker encapsulates the claustrophobia of a torrid Arizona summer.

Peep their brand new music video for ‘Eat Forever’, premiering exclusively – right here at The Deli.

 

 

“Summer’s here,” perks lead singer Francis Bartolomeo on ‘Digging Up Worms’. The optimism in his voice is palpable. Visions of cold ones enjoyed in lawn chairs out back, and courting cuties at the community pool.

“…and this house is a balloon!” His intonation quickly backpedals, seeming to crumple his latest list of shining ideas, tossing it to the overflowing waste bin in the corner.

 

Herbert Walker band

 

Phoenix band Herbert Walker

 

Anyone who’s from suffered from June to September in Arizona knows temperature and ambition share an inverse relationship.

So it’s refreshing that Francis, the band’s sole lyricist, is able to rival the desert’s dry heat with his parched perspectives.

 

arizona cacti

 

herbert walker band

 

Arizona desert

 

Francis admits he dug deeper, emotionally, on this record compared to their first.

His anecdotes are teeming with very personal details – about change, complacency, and navigating the stormy torrents which flow between an innocent lust and a deep love.

Luckily, his musings are abstract enough to safeguard their true intrinsic code. Each line is hieroglyphic. But if we crudely trace the edges of his painstaking etchings, we decipher a story that’s oddly reflective. Uniquely our own.

The record invades our neural hard drive, digging through our most sensitive folders, and extracting melancholies we filed away long ago.

 

merry-go-round

 

ash tray

 

Buffalo Chip Cave Creek

 

Herbert Walker On Flat Earth

 

Where Francis’ words ground us, facing the humility of our realities, the brilliant instrumentation of this record sends our imagination soaring towards the cosmos.

The sounds of “On Flat Earth” are immaculate. Every member of the band flourishes on this album.

 

arizona flower

 

Greg Lloyd lays the trumpet down with silky precision. He also mastered the record. Francis says he’s the “most adult of the bunch”.

Vance Nowe’s hefty bass lines assert a serious tone on the tracks, while heading groove duties. He jumps in on keys in a couple songs, cementing his presence in the deepest layers of the tunes.

Sam Lekander, the second founding member of Herbert Walker, shoulders tempos with thoughtful precision. His percussion isn’t bombastic. It doesn’t need to be. He conducts the drums with care, weaving in and out of tracks with expert touch. Sam’s influence blossoms on ‘Balcony’, ‘Doggo’, and especially on ‘Long Arms’ – the album’s lengthiest track.

JJ Hernandez (guitar and keys) contorts vibrations, ensnaring you in sonic bliss. His sounds are sandy feet dangling off a creaky boardwalk. Time spent scouring the flowers for friendly critters. And snuggling with your pup in the grass. All packaged into a gorgeous, psychedelic parcel.

 

63460028

 

doggo by Herbert Walker

 

Herbert Walker’s “On Flat Earth” sprouted from incessant jam sessions, contagious camaraderie, and an apt towards trying new things.

This album is the score to our vivid daydreams, projected in technicolor behind our eyelids.

Enough droning. Give the record a listen. We highly suggest it.

 

 

Find Herbert Walker On:

Instagram | Facebook

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*all photos taken by The Deli, inspired by Herbert Walker’s album ‘On Flat Earth’

 

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