By: Daniel Wipert
New Music Express has been publishing top-notch music criticism since the beginning of what was once called Rock ‘n’ Roll. This currently ubiquitous genre did not exist when my parents were born. The medium is still so young, but the style has developed and fragmented at a nearly exponential rate in last sixty years. NME has been there the whole time, and they have always upheld a high standard of criticism. While they are prone to hyperbole, there is no other publication that cuts through the cacophony of bands, songs, and fads better than NME to find superior music and artists. Their American counterpoint would definitely be Pitchfork, who are much more reserved and a little more pretentious than NME.
Nine times out ten, an amazing new artist is mentioned in NME before almost anywhere else. They have an uncanny ability to find new bands that are creating rich, innovate music. They go out on a limb for some bands who most certainly don’t deserve it (Klaxons anyone?), but their batting average would put them in Cooperstown for sure. NME just released their list of the Top New Band of 2010. For music critics, this is basically a cheat sheet for the rest of the year as well as the first half of 2011. A lot of the bands on the list are already pretty well known (Best Coast, The Drums), but there are many who have not had a lot of, if any, exposure. I have gone through the list and picked some highlights and lowlights. Here is your cheat sheet to the cheat sheet, your spark notes for the cliff notes.
Most Interesting
If I were to make a list of the most important new indie bands in America, DOM would definitely be in the top 5 along with The Drums. There is something so caustic and yet palatable within their synth-pop punk. They are visceral but the sound is sweet. It’s like eating strawberry ice-cream with razor-blades in it. NME’s calls them “wry,” which I think totally misses the point. They are not so much clever and witty as they are precise and uncompromising. In all reality, the substance of this song will be ignored by trixies and chads who will yell out into the night air, outside a nightclub that charges a 20 dollar cover and has video cameras in the bathroom stalls: “It’s So Sexy… Living in America!”
Glasser is pretty much everything that Zola Jesus and Marina and the Diamonds (see below) are not: interesting, rich, and satisfying. The beat to this song has a tight groove, but the other elements of the song just float in and out without a care. It’s an odd juxtaposition that works very well to create a lush sound. It’s experimental without devolving into a self-indulgence. Glasser rides that line with ease and the results are pretty stunning.
These young lads probably should be filed under Resolutely Undecided, but there is something special about them. Their music is just interesting enough to keep my attention, but there is also something much more substantive going on here than in most of the newer music out there. Egyptian Hip Hop might just be a group of young artsy guys experimenting or they could be the next really important band. They have that magical mixture of the familiar and the WTF going on in this track.
Solid Grooves
I have wanted to write about this band for well over three months. There are right on the cusp of greatness, but there is something missing here. Their overall aesthetic is very appealing, but they simply do not have the songs yet. I have tried to like their music a lot more than I probably should because they do have an attractive feel and look to them. I am hoping Summer Camp can push themselves to write more nuianced and substantive songs to match their rich imagery.
I already featured this young band in a previous new tracks review article, but I wanted to highlight them again. Their debut single “Girls vs Boys” has been running around my head ever since I first heard it. This is a very good sign, and I expect great things from these young ruffians.
This is a motley crew if there ever was one. They sound like early 90’s indie, but this is not parody or pastiche. They are less trying to capture an earlier sound than trying to harmonize with the past. There is not enough here to make Yuck a brilliant band, but I think they could be well on their way.
I hear the Pixies and Modest Mouse here. Grouplove does definitely add their own stylings to the mix, but the influences are a little to heavy in this track. They are definitely on the borderline between good and boring. The quality production pushes them slightly into the good category.
Resolutely Undecided
I want to hate this guy so much. He is on all the wrong ends of the word hipster. The problem is that this song is well-produced and catchy, despite it being totally nonsensical. This reminds of an early Pavement b-side. My gut tells me to ignore this dude, but my heart says take another listen.
I can’t put my finger on these guys at all. I see and hear Depeche Mode, but not necessarily the good aspects of that band. The mid 90’s cheesiness is not very appealing, and the earnestness is not even remotely believable. A part of me sees past these shortcoming and hopes there is something more going on here.
Is it Over Yet? aka Snooze Alert aka Lord of the Borings
I have listened Marina and the Diamonds far too many times simply because she keeps popping up on WeArtHunted. I hate her voice, and I think her songs suck. She will become popular among a certain set of indies and hipsters. This is sad.
If there is one band’s rise to popularity in America that I truly don’t understand, it is XX. XX had so much buzz surrounding them, and I have probably listened to their music dozens of times just see if there was anything interesting going on. There is not, and Zola Jesus feels like an XX cover band, which to her credit is great branding and marketing. Unfortunately, I don’t find anything substantive enough in her advertising campaign to buy into what she is doing.