NYC Scene Report – Alexa Dark, Baby Got Back Talk, & Carly Pearl

This week’s NYC Scene Report features Alexa Dark being our “Alibi,” Baby Got Back Talk with some “Home Groan,” and Carly Pearl helping us realize it’s never too late to learn some “New Tricks.”

* Leading things off this week is a downtempo noir gem from Alexa Dark titled “Alibi.”

Sounding like a direct descendant from the music of Portishead, there’s an alluring darkness to “Alibi” that’s totally undeniable, and grabs onto you from the onset.

Explaining the inspiration for the song, and accompanying video, Dark wrote on her social media, “Feeling inspired by one of my favorite films, Alphaville by Jean-Luc Godard – especially the iconic monologue scene with Paul Eluard’s poem – I combined some French new wave, Hitchcock, and ‘60s Italian cinema (if you get the La Notte reference, ily) into a dreamy – or nightmare – mystery world with the brilliant Michael Leviton to bring ‘Alibi’ to life.”

My only gripe with the song is that it’s only 2 minutes and 19 seconds long, but I can easily solve that problem by putting on repeat.

Click play on “Alibi,” and I guarantee you’ll have it on repeat, too.

* Baby Got Back Talk kicked off their 2025 with a brand new single titled “Home Groan,” and a new sound that’s a slight shift from the pop punk they’re known for.

Adding some emo, and country to the mix, they’re calling the musical vibe of “Home Groan” “Y’allternative,” saying on social media, “It was a lot of fun to experiment with new sounds like banjo and slide guitar, and we’re stoked on the results.”

They added that “Home Groan” was custom-made to “give hicks the ick.”

While I can’t speak for any hicks, in my opinion, the song – which tackles the emotions of thinking wistfully about an ex, while also knowing damned well they’re wrong for you – has absolute no ick, and instead is a top pick for those of us who enjoy highly relatable, musically diverse tunes that are rooted in pop punk.

Click play, and check it out.

* Longtime column favorite Carly Pearl is continuing her quest to spread high vibe, soul-infused music to the world. Her recently released single, “New Tricks,” inspired an especially big reaction from listeners, so much so, in fact, she decided to record an acoustic version of the song, and it’s a must-hear.

There’s a country vibe to this version of “New Tricks,” with the wonderful message of the song remaining the same, as she lets everyone know there’s no limit to learning, and personal growth.

This is a song where after just one listen you’re going to want to step away from the computer, or put down your phone, and immediately pick up whatever thing you’ve been putting off, and dive right into it.

In other words, “New Tricks” is an absolute treat, but of course we’d expect nothing less from Carly Pearl.

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