Enjoy!
Slow Club
Album: Paradise, released September, 2011
Another indie folk-pop duo, based in Sheffield, England, is made up of Charles Watson and Rebecca Taylor. A fun fact about them is their creative use of inanimate objects as percussion instruments, such as glass bottles filled with water, and a wooden spoon used on the back of a wooden chair. Blue Man Group beware!
Typhoon
Album: New Kind of House, released March, 2011
Typhoon originated in Salem, Oregon, but is currently based in Portland, Oregon. Their multi-instrumental folk-rock sound and performance style reminds me a lot of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros. "The group masterfully combines indie rock instrumentals and vocals
with violins, percussion, hand claps, xylophone, horns and a choir of
other instruments, making for inspiring and catchy songs." - Lauren Rosenthal -My Spoonful. They often perform with as many as 10 to 14 people on stage at once. The track Summer Home is one of my favorite songs of the year.
The Heavenly States
Album: Oui Camera Oui, released April, 2011
Based in California, the four-piece Heavenly States is made up of husband and wife team, Ted Nesseth and Genevievie Gagon, Genevieve's brother Jeremy Gagon, and Masanori Mark Christianson. Ted, being left-handed, taught himself to play a right-handed guitar upside down and backwards. They offer a creative blend of pop, rock, alt-country and folk. They have toured internationally in Australia, the U.K., Egypt, and were the first rock band to perform in Libya.
Nurses
Album: Dracula, released September, 2011
Psychedelic pop claims gigabytes on my i-pod because of bands like Portland, Oregon's Nurses. This trio,
Aaron Chapman, John Bowers, and James Mitchell, has a unique sound all their own. Chapman's idiosyncratic vocals set them apart from others in the genre.
M83
Album: Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, released October, 2011
The name M83 is derived from a spiral galaxy, Messier 83. This indietronic band is from Antibes, France. The 2-disc album, Hurry Up, We're Dreaming was was produced by Beck and Nine Inch Nails bassist Justin Meldal-Johnsen.
Sóley
Album: We Sink, released, September, 2011
Sóley's sound is very theatrical and has been described as, "sweet and weird at the same time." She studied composition and is passionate about playing piano. Sóley is the name of a beautiful yellow wildflower in Iceland, where she resides.
Notable mentions:
Active Child, Album: You Are All I See, released August, 2011
The Barr Brothers, Album: s/t, released Sept, 2011
Class Actress, Album: Rapproacher, released Oct, 2011
To listen to my Best Indie Music Of 2011 Playlist, click here: http://grooveshark.com/#/playlist/2011+Indie+Best+Of/52460159
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