One of my favourite MySpace bands has recently put up a new song, so I thought it was a good excuse to chat about some of my favourite the unsigned/lesser known music I find on MySpace and generally around the net.
Chik Budo
First and foremost, Chik Budo. Electro + saxophones = quite possibly Quin's favourite band if she were forced to pick between all her lovelies (though I'd love for more of their songs to have words I could sing along with). Ranging between the very rocky NYNX, the edgy Lost Our Way and the near-saccharine In This Dream, they are marvellous. Move Meccano is their new song and it's got a definite 8-bit sound to it (but with saxophones); it's not a clone of any of their other styles and I love it. (Will someone please sign this band??)
The Mentalists
The Mentalists have lost their way a bit, as far as I'm concerned, but they're still churning out some great poppy/surf-style rock. Don't Know What to Do with You (which they released as a single a while ago) is still a very good song, but I lament the passing of this song they did called Imposter (best riff+cyclical vocals+harmony eva), which I never got a copy of. I think it's gone for good.
Anna Calvi
Ever so slightly darker than pop female-singer-songwriter type music. I really like her voice (even if she rubbed my friend up the wrong way when we saw her, because she spent her whole set trying not to smile and maintain her indie cool). First We Kiss is one of those songs that's really haunting in a poppy way. Sometimes she sounds like she should be playing at the Bronze...
Craque
Properly ambient electro, Craque are all about that 3 o'clock in the morning feeling. My favourite song by them is not actually on MySpace - it's called Sunset Moon and you can get it on the free(!) compilation Exception AM on fractalspin, which has on it some other really great tracks in the electro-ambient sphere - Model.Fragment's The Fortress at Sea Level is beautiful. (It really does work if you do what they say - shove it in your cart and go to the check out; no need for credit card details or anything IIRC; I trust the site even if I can't vouch for the quality of some of the stuff they actually sell - I bought and still have something from there, which is perfectly nice and functional, but wasn't worth what they charged.)
HQRSE
Very computer game-y, rough and ready Apple Mac electro - but damn catchy. I think it's mostly remixes of music I don't know, but it's very good. Dr Wily Remix cheers me up always and Bionic Commando just builds and builds to the point where it knocks you flat. This stuff is like the penguin!crack of electro (if, sadly, without the Spuffy).
Chik Budo
First and foremost, Chik Budo. Electro + saxophones = quite possibly Quin's favourite band if she were forced to pick between all her lovelies (though I'd love for more of their songs to have words I could sing along with). Ranging between the very rocky NYNX, the edgy Lost Our Way and the near-saccharine In This Dream, they are marvellous. Move Meccano is their new song and it's got a definite 8-bit sound to it (but with saxophones); it's not a clone of any of their other styles and I love it. (Will someone please sign this band??)
The Mentalists
The Mentalists have lost their way a bit, as far as I'm concerned, but they're still churning out some great poppy/surf-style rock. Don't Know What to Do with You (which they released as a single a while ago) is still a very good song, but I lament the passing of this song they did called Imposter (best riff+cyclical vocals+harmony eva), which I never got a copy of. I think it's gone for good.
Anna Calvi
Ever so slightly darker than pop female-singer-songwriter type music. I really like her voice (even if she rubbed my friend up the wrong way when we saw her, because she spent her whole set trying not to smile and maintain her indie cool). First We Kiss is one of those songs that's really haunting in a poppy way. Sometimes she sounds like she should be playing at the Bronze...
Craque
Properly ambient electro, Craque are all about that 3 o'clock in the morning feeling. My favourite song by them is not actually on MySpace - it's called Sunset Moon and you can get it on the free(!) compilation Exception AM on fractalspin, which has on it some other really great tracks in the electro-ambient sphere - Model.Fragment's The Fortress at Sea Level is beautiful. (It really does work if you do what they say - shove it in your cart and go to the check out; no need for credit card details or anything IIRC; I trust the site even if I can't vouch for the quality of some of the stuff they actually sell - I bought and still have something from there, which is perfectly nice and functional, but wasn't worth what they charged.)
HQRSE
Very computer game-y, rough and ready Apple Mac electro - but damn catchy. I think it's mostly remixes of music I don't know, but it's very good. Dr Wily Remix cheers me up always and Bionic Commando just builds and builds to the point where it knocks you flat. This stuff is like the penguin!crack of electro (if, sadly, without the Spuffy).