Chanti Darling, the disco prodigy of Portland, released his much-acclaimed debut album RNB Vol.1 this past August. If you’re one of the many people who’s been waiting with anticipation to see it live, boy do I have good news for you. Chanti Darling is going to be at the Holocene October 11th, this Thursday. Don’t miss this chance to dance the night away to Darling’s wonderfully hypnotic rhythms.

You can read The Deli’s previous coverage of RNB Vol.1  here.

  -By Nick Hartman

Chanti Darling’s latest album R&B Vol 1 is going to be released via Tender Loving Empire tomorrow. I don’t believe anyone could create a more perfect fusion between the aesthetics of a neon-lit arcade and classic house music. It’s a unique and inventive sound, an ethereal electric noise that sends chills down your spine. This is especially true given the depth and range present in Trü's voice. R&B Vol 1 sounds like what would happen if Crystal Waters and Grace Jones decided to team up in 2018. Even the slower, more emotional songs will get people dancing. “Running” is my personal favorite, as it sounds like a smooth flowing waterfall interspersed with heavier beats. The debut single, “Casual” features The Last Artful, Dodgr whose voice is as beautiful as ever. The song is romantic and sultry, perfect for locking eyes with the beautiful stranger across the dancefloor. You can check out the video for “Casual” below!

So basically, to sum up; the album is just so damn good. The record release show will be next Wednesday, August 8th at the Doug Fir, with Gold Casio and Guayaba. 

-by Avril Carrillo 

For all the great, DIY happenings in town, Rigsketball is definitely one of the best. Combining friendly competition with one of the more frequented pastimes around, Rigsketball's tournaments are nearing their end, and they've got some good musical acts accompanying them. 

The first day of the music fest, along with the slimming down the finalists through eight rounds, took place last night. Boone Howard, Kulululu, Kyle Craft and the Woolen Men all rang the first night of the fest, with tonight taking it to the next level.

Rigsketball is taking over the Eagles Lodge again tonight for the semifinals, with performances from Bleach Blonde Dudes, Ghost Frog, Lavender Flu and Cat Hoch. 

As always, Rigsketball is entirely free. Games start in just a couple hours at 6pm and music starts at 8pm. Head down to southeast again tomorrow for the tournament finals, Melt's EP release and sets from Malt Lizard, Tribe Mars, Candace, Donte Thomas and Chanti Darling. 

Deli Portlanders,

It's been a months long road in the process of nominating and voting on who all of you feel are the city's best musicians for the year. After thinking back on all the shows played and albums released from 2016, we've finally got a solid list of Portland's finest. Take a gander at who you all fell for (and just how much you fell for them), while also showing some love to yourselves and the lovely jurors that participated.

Thanks to our jurors: Linneas Boland-Godbey (Next Northwest), Aaron Sharpsteen (Photographer), Tony Prato (Bunk Bar), Duffy Rongiiland (Gnar Tapes), Rob Cullivan (Portland Tribune), Leigh Belacic (PDX Pop Now), Jeni Wren Stottrup (Gritty Birds Podcast), Annie Ostrowski (Riot Act Media), Blake Hickman (Good Cheer Records), Clifford Prince King (Photographer), Mo Troper (Impose Magazine/Portland Mercury), Chad Davis (Musician), Jordan Stamm (Drunk Dial Records), Hunter Skowron (Dazzleships Records), Todd Walberg (Photographer), Yousef Hatlani (Faces on the Radio), Corbin Corbinn (Crush House/Photographer), and Andrew Olson (dr0ne PR).

Let's get down to the nitty gritty of what you all have been waiting for...

Lithics

Lithics exude mystery. From their experimental punk drone to their intentional lack of an internet presence, they're the band you may not have known existed until you saw them accidentally. They've been coasting in Portland's formerly under-appreciated but always DIY post/art punk scene for almost three years now with just two releases under their belt. Their three track, self-titled tape from 2015 gave us a taste, but it was their 2016 release Borrowed Floors that helped propel them into being Portland's best band of the year.

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2. Cat Hoch

This isn't the first success Cat Hoch and her band have experienced with the Deli. She came out on top entirely in 2015, when she was voted the Best Emerging Artist of that year and was the readers' choice for best in shoegaze and psych rock for this year. From opening up for Ride to commanding even bigger stages, Cat Hoch and her talented group of musicians aren't stopping anytime soon.

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3. Abronia

Ambiently soft yet broodingly heavy, Abronia have expanded their lineup to match their beautifully atmospheric and expansive sound. Our overall pick for best in electronic and experimental and perfect for moments of mental reflection (but easy to enjoy in damn near every other scenario), Abronia's dominanation of the experimental side of the poll makes total sense, and we can't wait to hear new releases from them.

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4. Ice Queens (Alt Rock/Metal, 7pts)

5. Fur Coats (Hip Hop/R&B, 6pts)

6. The Toads (Indie Rock/Post-Punk, 6pts)

7. Mr. Wrong (Punk/Garage, 6pts)

8. Shrine of the Serpent (Alt Rock/Metal, 5.5pts)

9. A Volcano (Alt Rock/Metal, 5pts)

10. dolphin midwives (Electronic/Experimental, 5pts)

11. Gold Casio (Electronic/Experimental, 5pts)

12. Chanti Darling (Hip Hop/R&B, 5pts)

13. Lola Buzzkill (Hip Hop/R&B, 5pts)

14. Laura Palmer's Death Parade (Psych/Shoegaze, 5pts)

15. Wave Action (Punk/Garage, 5pts)

16. Donte Thomas (Hip Hop/R&B, 4pts)

17. Little Star (Indie Pop, 4pts)

18. Candace (Psych/Shoegaze, 4pts)

19. Zozma (Psych/Shoegaze, 4pts)

20. On drugs (Punk/Garage, 4pts)

21. James Curry IV (Electronic/Experimental, 3.5pts)

22. Mini Blinds (Indie Pop, 3.5pts)

For the longest time, hip hop and r&b in Portland were backburner genres to the city's most popular categories of indie, rock and garage. Things started to change recently, where more artists took to the soulful sounds of rhythm and blues or incorporating the type of woke sensibilities often dropped in bars of hip hop tracks. The results for this round of our poll provide proof of who's been doing it the best in the last year, so keep scrolling to check them out.

Our top winners, Lola Buzzkill, are a supergroup of sorts dazzling audiences with their soulful croons and rhythmic tendencies. Their live performances integrate incredible makeup and costumes on top of their throwbacks to funky and sultry r&b and disco . They've got one of the best interactive live performances in town right now and if you haven't gotten a chance to see them yet, you're definitely missing out. Congrats on being our top dogs, Lola Buzzkill!

*video by blueheronvideo

Next is the Fur Coats, who swept the readers' poll without a hitch. The Fur Coats have been around for a little while now but have nonetheless been one of more dynamic iterations of modern psychedelic soul and mild jazz, using sax and organs in the most savvy of ways. They'll be heading off for a long tour of Europe and we couldn't be more excited for them.

Rounding out our winners are Chanti Darling and Karma Rivera, occupying two different sides of the same coin. Chanti Darling basically ran the last year, coming into it named Willamette Week's Best New Band. Taking over festival stages and running their own dance nights led by powerful vocalist Chanticleer, Chanti Darling mixeds soul, disco and r&b with electronic elements to produce some of the most danciest tunes in town right now. Karma Rivera is the only actual hip hop artist to place, and she one of the best to represent the genre. Her beats are banging as are her rhymes, and her femme power is much needed in music world typically dominated by men.