Thanks a bunch to all the artists who submitted music for consideration in The Deli's Best of Portland Year End Poll for Emerging Artists!

Honorable Mentions (ranked above 6.5): 

Dead Men Talking, Nature Thief, Dirty Revival, Sabonis, Cedar Teeth, Jeff True Jones.

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WHAT’S NEXT: These results conclude the first phase of the 2015 poll. Soon, I will name the artists selected by Portland's local jurors and then all you readers will influence the poll with your vote.

Thanks for reading and participating! Stay tuned!

—Cervante Pope, The Deli Portland Editor

When Those Willows start dancing in your speakers for the first time, you may have a twinge of nostalgia and warm recalling of something you can't quite put your finger on. Perhaps it is the perfect harmonies that Jack Wells and Melissa Tarter slide in and out of so effortlessly you think of the great harmonic groups from years gone by, and I mean Simon and Garfunkel great. It is often difficult to tell, much less care when the duo is a duo or when one steps out on a solo in a particular song, you are simply too busy enjoying the perfectly sweet and borderline optimistic songs that refuse to fall flat. I fell especially hard for the dreamy "I Feel Younger" but truly, every single song on the just released EP Essential Folks lands on this wonderfully soothing and perpetuating engaging point perfectly. Adam Brock is to be held responsible for the excellent production of Essential Folks and will be opening for Those Willows with the rest of the Adam Brock 4 at Kelly’s Olympian October 23rd to celebrate the release of what will surely be Those Willows third critically acclaimed album. A special note about the release show: The Wisherman, an indie jazz collective from Portland will be performing that night in addition to the aforementioned bands. The Wishermen is one of the jazz bands in Bridgetown who are so much more than an improvisational contemporary jazz band. They break down barriers of pop and soul music in a way that is not only relevant to the current music landscape, it is important. These three bands are delivering music that leaves an impression. - Joy Pearson