Winter 2008 1 Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Bag of Hammers  One of KRS’ newest signees, this D.C. crew combines pop and folk elements with its quirky rock tunes. This song is one of the group's bounciest, with tricky lyrics and a practically tropical rhythm section.
artist link 2 SON LUX - Betray "Betray" sounds just the way you'd think a song named "Betray" would sound. With a menacing bass riff, flitting electronic synths and a trip-hop rhythmic core, Anticon.'s SON LUX knows how to set a dark mood.
artist link 3 White Hinterland - Dreaming of Plum Trees She released her first full length when she was only 20 years old, but White Hinterland mastermind Casey Dienel has a sweet chirp that makes her thoughtfully arranged songs ageless. "Dreaming" has a jazzy swing that – caution – may affect your hips.
myspace.com 4 The Deathset - Impossible A Deathset song doesn't start; it explodes. From the first beat of the drum machine to the final indecipherable scream (or, as they say, "impossible, right?"), "Impossible" is an immature, fun – albeit short – roller-coaster ride.
myspace.com 5 DeVotchka - Transliterator Chamber pop/rock group DeVotchKa returns with a new full-length in March, in all its cinematic and dramatic glory. "Transliterator" boasts Nick Urata's dreamboat vocals and the Eastern European musical influences that make the quartet's tracks pop.
artist link 6 Jason Collett - Roll On Oblivion Dudes with beards and guitars nowadays need a way to distinguish themselves in the marketplace. This strapping Canadian has a vocal range and otherworldly drawl to melt hearts, and witty lyrics to boot.
artist link 7 WHY? - The Hollows According to their MySpace page, Oakland trio WHY? specialize in "darkly tinted pop," which doesn't quite express the band's penchant for clever, tongue-in-cheek lyricism. "The Hollows," for instance, has commentary on frontman Yoni Wolf's mustache and two men f*cking on a basketball court.
artist link 8 Headlights - Market Girl Rarely does the name of a band's hometown actively reflect their sound, but Champagne (Illinois) is a good start for Polyvinyl rock band Headlights. In tackling the metaphor, they're intoxicating.
artist link 9 DJ Bitman - Shine The Latin love continues on "Shine," as this Santiago DJ combines big dance beats, a handful of hand-claps and his signature scratch to a sunny acoustic guitar melody. Shine, indeed.
artist link 10 Beat Circus - The Ghost of Emma Jean Clever. A circus of sounds. The plunks of a banjo meet metal clanks, string arrangements, tuba, harmonica, innocent voices... everything but the kitchen sink, but we wouldn't put it past this experimental Boston troupe.
artist link 11 The Heavy - That Kind of Man It isn't easy for the Heavy to stick to any one genre. Soul and R&B infiltrates the rock, hiphop overtakes a hummable pop chorus. Whatever the U.K. fivesome crafts, however, is bound to start a party.
artist link 12 Jaymay - Autumn Falling With the first strums of guitar on this track, one can't help but wish Autumn came sooner. This New Yorker's croon and cutesy rhyming schemes are playful yet melancholy, a complexity that runs through many of her compositions.
artist link 13 Lyrics Born - I Like It, I Love It Lyrics Born and funk's alive. Founder of Quuanum Projects and one half of Latryx, Tom Shimura aka Lyrics Born has been an innovator and cheerleader of modern hiphop. He combines a number of genres to make big beats on "I Like It, I Love It."
artist link |