Displaying items by tag: xpn artist to watch

Banjo-spiked British folk-rockers Mumford & Sons released their breakout album to an overwhelmingly enthusiastic crowd of fans and critics. Striking the UK charts at #11, these guys are bound for bigger things. After bonding over a profound affinity for country, bluegrass and folk music, four friends Marcus Mumford, Country Winston, Ben Lovett and Ted Dwane began

When Philadelphia's own Free Energy formed in 2008, they lived in relative darkness before deciding to step into the light a year ago. Upon their arrival, the five piece outfit was met with an enormous amount of buzz, and with the release of their debut album, they are taking the rock world by storm in 2010.

The debut album North Hills from the local LA quartet Dawes (featuring members of the old Record Collection Simon Dawes) fringes with a blend of classic 70's folk-rock and contemporary embellishments. Ultimately this clever mixture evokes a sense of nostalgia and refreshing anticipation all at the same time.

Breakups are never easy. But often times the emotions found in the aftermath can lead to a new level of artistic expression. Few understand this better than the Philadelphia quintet East Hundred. Through the ashes of the breakup between two band members came the group's remarkable debut album, Passenger.

Upon first listen, the Brooklyn experimental pop/folk band Grizzly Bear grabs and doesn't let go. Here is real, accessible emotion and more than enough astounding talent to convey it. The group's spare acoustic melodies over plaintive piano figures and dusty strings with pop elements carry immense power.

Emerging from the collaborative efforts of Baltimore school friends David "Avey Tare" Portner, Noah "Panda Bear" Lennox, Josh "Deakin" Dibb and Brian "Geologist" Weitz, Animal Collective is rooted in experimental music. Pinpointing the Collective's style in terms of genre is a difficult task; with a track record of nine studio albums, they've spread themselves across a eclectic board of psych, folk, rock, noise, and more.

Working as waitress at the start of 2008, soul-pop singer Sharon Little was suddenly the opening act for big-name stars Robert Plant, Alison Krauss, and T-Bone Burnett in their national Raising Sand tour. Though she could be called an overnight sensation, Little has been honing her distinctive, bluesy style for years.

Intricate, melodic, and vivid: the sound of North Carolina's Annuals is the epitome of sunny indie-pop. Their thoughtful harmonies, anthemic orchestration and percussion, and bright electronica has earned them rave reviews since their indie-label debut in 2006, the critic's darling Be He Me.

The Catskills, NY band, The Felice Brothers includes three brothers and a bassist friend Christmas. Simone, Ian, James and Christmas are known for their mischievous behavior of panhandling and traveling in a school bus. This lawlessness is clearly projected through their rough musical style, which has earned them comparisons to Springsteen and Townes Van Zandt.

The Bird & The Bee is an adult-pop duo from Los Angeles who have been living and loving music almost from birth. Their passion is beginning to pay off in a big way.

Meet Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero. They play flamenco guitar and are influenced as much by Metallica and Led Zep (which they cover on their debut) as they are influenced by Al DiMeola and Strunz & Farah. Their self-titled debut in the States is on ATO Records, and was produced by John Leckie.

Singer-songwriter Sasha Dobson upholds the jazz tradition of past greats like Ella Fitzgerald while breaking conventional rules. Her sultry voice, amazing talent and extensive performance experience makes her a very notable artist to watch.

The music of The Slip is deceptively straightforward rock. The layers and intricacy of the sound, with persevering drums, melodic vocals, and guitars that easily transition between smooth background and a driving heaviness, come through on a second listen.

South roots country rocker, Ryan Bingham, has a rough style that encapsulates his life struggles on Texas and New Mexico ranching communities. Though he is still young at 26 years old, his husky voice and mature content makes him appear wise beyond his years.

27-year-old Ingrid Michaelson may be compared to artists Fiona Apple and Regina Spektor, but she has definitely staked out her own territory in the music industry. The New York-based singer-songwriter fuses indie pop, folk and alternative in a smooth and unique way, a quality that first attracted her audience via MySpace.

Devendra Banhart was named by guru Maharaji Prem Rawat. In an Indian myth, Devendra is identified as "king of gods." cripplecrow.com

Sea Wolf is Alex Brown Church, best known as the bassist and co-singer/songwriter for the L.A. indie-rock band Irving.

Frequently (and justifiably) compared to a cross between Jeff Buckley and Nick Drake, English singer-songwriter Scott Matthews crafts an endlessly listenable blend of folk, rock and blues.

Not quite folk or alt-country, but more than just a rock group, Philadelphia's Hoots & Hellmouth crafts fiery, cathartic roots-rock that the band describes as "new music for old souls." Hear Hoots & Hellmouth perform a concert from WXPN and World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. {readmorelink}Read More...{/readmorelink}

The National is a band of New Yorkers transplanted from Cincinnati, Ohio: Matt Berninger, Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner, Bryan Devendorf, and Scott Devendorf. What each member of the band does is not that important, but what they do together seems increasingly more so.

Ryan Shaw is a native of Decatur, Georgia and has been singing and performing since he was three. He honed his musical talents in church and local choirs. When he felt the need for more, he made the move of a lifetime, following his dream to New York City in 1998.

Amy Winehouse has exploded onto the UK pop scene as a retro-inspired, yet fiercely liberated, very modern soul singer. Her joyful clash of pop jazz stylings with brash hip-hop attitude and powerful vocals has turned more than just heads.

Filtering classic rock and pop hooks through a willfully lo-fi slacker aesthetic a la Pavement or Guided by Voices, Philadelphia's Dr. Dog are able to sound both timeless and immediate as only the best music can. {readmorelink}Read More...{/readmorelink}

Lily Allen is the 21-year-old singer/songwriter who has been tearing up the web lately. As a young girl, she went to 13 different schools and never had time to make enduring friendships, so music became her lifeline.

Born in Neptune City, New Jersey singer-songwriter Nicole Atkins has been one of XPN's Free At Noon Concert Series artists, featured on World Cafe with David Dye, and was one of Bruce Warren's picks for My Morning Download. {readmorelink}Read More...{/readmorelink}