NYC Scene Report – Bad Mary, Moon Kissed, & November Girl

This week’s NYC Scene Report features Bad Mary admitting they “Don’t Know Where the Line Is,” Moon Kissed prepping an album that promises they’ll see you in New York, and November Girl trying to handle their Spidey senses.

* Long Island-based punk rockers Bad Mary just released their Better(er) Days EP earlier this month, and the tenth anniversary collection of re-recorded and remixed versions of songs from their debut album, Better Days, features a plethora of good time punk rock, including the single “Don’t Know Where the Line Is.”

If you’ve ever been to a Bad Mary show, you know that they can get pretty raucous, and “Don’t Know Where the Line Is” is a song that definitely gets the crowd going with its Blondie-meets-a-mosh-pit vibe.

Every time Bad Mary performs anywhere near me I make it a point to be there, and after checking out “Don’t Know Where the Line Is” you’ll understand why.

As an aside, do you know who else didn’t know where the line is? Chandler Bing. The line is a dot to him! (fans of Friends will get that reference).

* NYC-based alternative trio Moon Kissed are currently prepping their third full length album, I’ll See You In New York, which is due out September 20th via Final Girl Records. The lead single, “101,” has a title that may give you flashbacks to freshman year classes, but it’s actually a song about longing.

Discussing the song in a statement, Moon Kissed’s Elijah Scarpati said, “‘101’ is a song about despair, longing, and learning what feels right. It’s the first song we ever wrote as a band, and has captured and preserved the energy and alchemy of the band’s years together.”

I think it’s pretty safe to assume the title comes from the fact that it was the first song they wrote together, and if you haven’t heard Moon Kissed before (I featured them here twice in 2021, so where you been?), you can make “101” your introduction to the band.

* NYC indie rock foursome November Girl have been releasing a steady stream of great songs over the past few years, and their latest is “Spiders.”

Leading into the band’s upcoming EP, Heart Prayer, which is currently set to be released next month, frontwoman Willa Rudolph says of the song, “‘Spiders’ is about the feeling of having said too much, done too much – you feel like everyone’s staring at you. You’re the ‘fantasy pony at the school.’ You wonder how some people seem to be so calm, cool, and collected, while you simply can’t seem to keep your mouth shut, or your sh*t together.”

The video for “Spiders,” thankfully, features no actual spiders, but is set at a party that seems like it was quite the wild time that I’m guessing only a few of the attendees remember in full … or at all. Check it out!

For more of the best of NYC’s indie music scene, come back next Wednesday, and check out the archives for previous columns.