New York City’s The New Tarot are keeping rock alive with their vivid, eclectic songs and their chillingly evocative live performances. Last night, the band, led by sisters Karen and Monika Walker, brought that powerful show to their native Westchester County. Playing an 8pm set at Garcia’s in Portchester, this marked The New Tarot’s first live performance so close to home – the band can usually be found trouncing around Manhattan and Brooklyn’s live music venues – and their small, but receptive audience was more than ready to pick up what the band was putting down.

Though a young act (the band uploaded their first song to SoundCloud, “Adderall Eyes,” under a year ago), The New Tarot put on an impressively enchanting set. Monika and Karen provide a biological ying/yang complement to each other: Monika, the lead singer and older of the two sisters, dresses like Janis Joplin and struts around the stage with an effervescent, unleashed energy. Through shrieks and snarls, jumps and dives, Monika’s performance is an evocative and physically demanding one. She channels the spirits of Roger Daltrey, Freddie Mercury and Robert Plant, creating a memorable frenzy of an experience with her electric stage presence.

But Monika isn’t the only one having fun onstage: Right by her side stands sister Karen Walker, wailing away on keyboard and vocals. Dressed modestly and bound, for the most part, by her eighty-eight keys, Karen projects an aggressive Carole King/Jodi Mitchell singer-songwriter/rocker vibe. Each methodical hand placement is done with ease and grace, as Karen keeps in step with Monika’s bombast. When Monika snarls, Karen smiles. When Monika bobs side-to-side, Karen bounces on the piano like a wildebeast does on its prey. Karen is the control for Monika’s crazy.

Watch: “Stella” – The New Tarot

Case in point: The next time you see something about The New Tarot playing a show near you, go see them. Already featured by The Deli, Indie Shuffle, NYLON and now Atwood Magazine, this is not a band you want to miss!

Listen: The New Tarot

Learn more about The New Tarot online at www.thenewtarot.com

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