Fall 2008 1 Adron - Stringsong  This Brooklyn-based songwriter originally migrated north from Georgia, but her Latin guitar stylings come from even further South (America). With a versatile voice and a nice debut on micro-indie New Street, keep your eyes and ears open for Adrienne McCann.
myspace.com 2 Department Of Eagles - No One Does It Like You These Eagles (no, not those Eagles) are partially comprised of members from Grizzly Bear, which would explain the washy nod to '60s pop music. The rest is a funky mix of spooky and dance-worthy.
myspace.com 3 Minotaur Shock - This Plane Is Going To Fall British-based David Edwards is well known for remixing hits from acts like Bloc Party, Snow Patrol, Stars, Super Furry Animals, and Hard-Fi. Here, on one of his originals, his tune is like dropping ecstasy and sniffing your favorite scent from childhood.
myspace.com 4 Death Vessel - Jitterakadie Even with such a foreboding name, Sub Pop signee Death Vessel's bark can't even be said to be worse than its bite, considering the bark is surprisingly effeminate and resonates from what sounds like a wood porch somewhere in the remote Northeast.
myspace.com 5 Hot Lava - Apple+Option+Fire "Virginia is for lovers" goes the motto for Hot Lava's home state. With a name like theirs, plus explosive pop-laced rock songs, they've got part of the tome right.
myspace.com 6 Karl Hector & the Malcouns - Passau Run Afro-funk from... Germany. Energetic junkyard funk rhythms meet sophisticated arrangements.
myspace.com 7 Rubin Steiner - Another Record Story Frenchman Frederick Landier's project Rubin Steiner, a combination of disco, hip-hop, dance-rock, and experimental electronica, is not just "another story": it is a story that will confound children and cause sexual relations between consenting adults.
myspace.com 8 Soy un caballo - La Bibliothèque There is something decidedly bookish about this electronic-pop mish-mash from Belgium, like the looping classical guitar and vibraphone riffs. Or it's the fact that the lyrics are in French, and anything that's in a foreign language you don't speak sounds smart, stupide Amèricain.
myspace.com 9 Jolie Holland - Your Big Hands "I've got a bird of gold," sings the idiosyncratic Jolie Holland on "Your Big Hands." The same could be said of her voice on this mid-tempo rocker. Her new album, The Living and The Dead, sounds both modern and intensely rooted.
myspace.com 10 La Rocca - Senses Acoustic guitar breakdown, piano tinkling just in time for the chorus, Jayhawk -ian harmonies, falsetto vocals - play this heartbreak song and not just someone, but anyone, will let you into their pants.
myspace.com 11 It's A Musical - You Make Me Real Keeping with their name, It's A Musical builds their songs like scenes: analog synths take center-stage, horn sections enter from stage left, vocals enter from stage right, dialogue ensues.
myspace.com 12 Ben Sollee - It's Not Impossible On his current set "Learning to Bend," Sollee covers the Sam Cooke classic "A Change Is Gonna Come." His own compositions could have come direct from the same songbook, but Sollee inflects his tributes to classic soul with banjo, djembe, and his able hand on cello.
myspace.com 13 Vivian Girls - All the Time With "All The Time" clocking in just under two minutes, you won't hardly know what hit you. Was that the Vaselines? Even if it is shoegaze, am I allowed to dance? Can I join the band if I'm not a girl?
myspace.com 14 Tricky - Puppy Toy Smoke-breathing DJ/songwriter/composer Tricky is back at it after a five-year hiatus. This dirty rock jam makes the wait worthwhile.
myspace.com 15 The Uglysuit - Chicago Your new favorite suit is your ugliest one: the Uglysuit mull the Third Coast with One Catchy-Ass Chorus.
myspace.com 16 The Dears - Money Babies A barely-discernable melody, distorted guitars on the back burner, irregular time signatures, obscure lyrics... yep, sounds like modern pop to me.
myspace.com |