Last year, right around the time summer turned to fall, we at Stereogum published our list of the 40 best new bands of the year. The idea of a “new” band is a pretty nebulous one, since many of the kids we listed were probably planning out their musical ventures in their basements since they were 11, but these were all artists who started to make a dent in our collective consciousness last year. This year, we’ve got another crop of 40 new artists who deserve your attention. So here we go again.
A few clarifications are probably in order. This may be a Best New Bands list, but plenty of the people on it aren’t new, and plenty of the artists listed aren’t bands. A few of the groups on our list (Wild Flag, CANT) may include people you already know, but they’ve all got new artistic ventures going. Others may have released music before last year’s list ran, but they’ve really come into their own in the past 12 months. And a pretty huge chunk of our list is dedicated to solo artists: Rappers, producers, people who might not make their music with guitars or bass or drums but who are nevertheless doing exciting things.
Also, the word “best” is, as ever, entirely up for debate. We’ve discussed and argued and engaged in brutal hand-to-hand combat over our selections, and they represent our own totally subjective favorites. You’re welcome to tell us your own; that’s what the comments section is for.
We’re not ranking these artists; they’re all listed alphabetically below. And to help you get familiar, we’ve included free MP3s and all relevant information on each and every one of these artists. Let’s get started, shall we?
ACTION BRONSON
On his ace debut album Dr. Lecter, this red-bearded rhyme animal delivers 42 minutes of riotous Queens shit-talk as if the mid-’90s had never ended. As he’s blasting us with one clever quote after the next, Bronson finds room to pay tribute to marginal sports heroes, coin a few stomach-turning sexaphors, and go into gluttonous detail about his cooking skills. He makes fun rap music, point blank, and not enough people are doing that. Also, he may sound a whole lot like Ghostface Killah, but when you hear present-day Ghost alongside Bronson on the collaborative track “Meteor Hammer,” you’ll hear that the student has become the master.
FROM: Queens, NY
LINKS: @ActionBronson, actionbronson.com
ORDER: Dr. Lecter LP, out now via Fine Fabric Delegates. [Buy]
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ARAABMUZIK
For the past few years, this Providence producer has been one of the key figures in the reemergence of Harlem rap great Cam’ron; he’s crafted delirious bangers like “Get It In Ohio” for Cam. And live videos of Araab chopping up Cannibal Corpse and beating his MPC beat machine into jelly have been circulating for a hot minute. But Araab really took center stage with the release of the 2011 instrumental album Electronic Dream, in which he transformed a grip of cheesed-out Euro-house anthems into gorgeously evil trapped-inside-your-head music. He’s a headphones auteur for a short-attention-span era.
FROM: Providence, RI
LINKS: @araabMUZIK, araabmuzikMVP.com
ORDER: Electronic Dream LP, out via Duke. [Buy]
“Streetz Tonight”
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ASAP ROCKY
This gold-toothed slow-spitter calls Harlem home, but his danky, slithery Hulkshare hits “Purple Swag” and “Peso” evoke the crawling psychedelic soul of old-school Southern rap. The indelibly eye-grabbing viral videos for those songs develop the ASAP aesthetic even further, turning the visual language of a ’90s Rap City episode into an acid-tripping haze. Also, nobody in rap has better hats than this guy.
FROM: New York, NY
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AUSTRA
On her own, the Toronto singer Katie Stelmanis made quirky synthetic art-pop. But as the leader of the band Austra, Stelmanis is a different beast entirely: A gothic electro-pop siren wailing and cooing and sighing over her band’s languid, stretched-out thump. Feel It Break, Austra’s excellent debut album, sustains its rippling cheer from the first minute to the last. And onstage, the band cuts a striking figure indeed; they’re the rare group who understands how to stage a mesmerising show without letting their most theatrical aspects overwhelm them.
FROM: Toronto, ON
LINKS: @austratalks, austramusic.com
ORDER: Feel It Break LP, out via Domino/Paper Bag. [Buy]
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BIG TROUBLES
This New Jersey indie-pop quartet is signed to the Slumberland label, and that’s exactly where they belong. Like the Pains of Being Pure At Heart and Crystal Stilts before them, Big Troubles play the sort of jumpy, twee, occasionally forlorn power-pop that could’ve been made 20 years ago, but they do it with such flair and such feeling that they never seem self-consciously retro. “Love is in the air, but I don’t care, cause I don’t want to love anyone,” croons frontman Alex Craig on “Sad Girls,” distilling decades’ worth of smartly self-loathing Smiths worship into one line.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: @big_troubles, bigtroubless.angelfire.com
ORDER: Romantic Comedy LP out 9/27 via Slumberland. [Buy]
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CANT
Though rightfully earned attention surrounded Ed Droste and Daniel Rossen and their respective songwriting abilities, Grizzly Bear’s most important member just might be bassist/multi-instrumentalist Chris Taylor, the band’s chief architect of sonic mood. In his solo venture CANT, Taylor follows these inclinations into more shadowy, weird electronic soundscapes, never quite pushing his vocals all the way forward but never hiding them, either. The fact that CANT made the list is hardly a surprise, given who’s involved; but Taylor’s project merits inclusion on its own delicate strangeness, Grizzly Bear affiliation or no.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: @CANTtweets
ORDER: Dreams Come True LP, out 9/13 via Terrible. [Buy]
“Answer”
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CAVEMAN
In a sense, there’s not a lot to say about local indie pop outfit Caveman – in terms of arguing for their inclusion, the general versatility and downright replayability of debut CoCo Beware does most of the legwork. Songs like “Decide” and “Thankful” set up simple, spare, darn pretty melodies, and it doesn’t hurt that dudes can harmonize a little. Maybe calling them this year’s Local Natives would be a decent comp, but Caveman’s music is lot more low-key and spaced out. People are gonna vibe on this.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: @cavemanband, cavemantheband.com
ORDER: CoCo Beware LP, out digitally on Magic Man! Records. [Buy]
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CLAMS CASINO
This New Jersey physical therapist started out by putting together dizzy, ethereal beats for rappers like Lil B and Soulja Boy in his spare time, never expecting any sort of career to emerge from it. But things changed when he released his Instrumental Mixtape as a free download and the world realized that his slippery, evocative tracks often sounded a whole lot better when nobody was rapping over them. These days, he’s releasing his own warped tracks on the adventurous electronic label Tri Angle and playing to crowds of forward-thinking dance fans at Astoria’s P.S.1, while still finding time to make gluey, mind-expanding rap beats for clients like Main Attrakionz.
FROM: Nutley, NJ
LINKS: @clammyclams, soundcloud.com/clammyclams
ORDER: Rainforest EP, out via Tri Angle. [Buy]
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CULT OF YOUTH
This Brooklyn BTW is what could’ve happened if Against Me! took after the Birthday Party or the Swans instead of the Clash. Frontman (and former Love As Laughter bassist) Sean Ragon has a nasal bleat worthy of Tom Gabel, but he and his band put that voice in service of apocalyptic campfire dirges that don’t really scan as “goth” because they stomp too hard. Ragon has been cranking out home-recorded music since 2007, but his band really came into its own with the release of its 2011 self-titled album, a beautifully ugly pile-up of violins and acoustic guitars and half-forgotten gypsy melodies. It’s heavy stuff.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: myspace.com/cultofyouthband
ORDER: Cult Of Youth LP, out now via Sacred Bones Records. [Buy]
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DIRTY BEACHES
Alex Zhang Hungtai was born in Taiwan, and he lives in Montreal, but the place his music really comes from is a skewed, squalid vision of 1950s America — the same place that the Cramps and Suicide came from. As Dirty Beaches, Hungtai makes a rough, blasted-out form of rockabilly, one coated with the grime of a half century of greaser movies and bad memories. Badlands, his debut album, is equal parts blood and hair-grease.
FROM: Vancouver, BC
LINKS: @dirtybeaches808, dirtybeaches.blogspot.com
ORDER: Badlands LP, out via Zoo Music [Buy]
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ELITE GYMNASTICS
This duo likes to say that it comes from the internet, not from any specific geographical region, and that sounds about right. Thus far, they’ve gotten press for their chillwave jokes and for their vocal love of Korean pop music, but the music on their two Ruin EPs demands as much attention as their click-baiting public personas. On those releases, they display a take on the woozy bedroom pop of the moment that’s faster, more percussive, and more indebted to early-90s dance-pop than anything we’ve heard lately. Their anthem “So Close To Paradise” wafts gorgeously dazed melody around a rippling breakbeat in a way that would make a young St. Etienne proud.
FROM: Minneapolis, MN
LINKS: @ELITE_GZ, elitegymnastics.tumblr.com
ORDER: RUIN EP, out via Acéphale. [Buy]
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EMA
Leading the late, lamented drone-punk trio Gowns, Erika M. Anderson lent her devastating wail to some truly intense, harrowing music. Since that band broke up and she went solo, Anderson’s music has become less experimental but no less of an emotional minefield. And while the raw grain of her voice might awaken memories of Courtney Love or Liz Phair, Anderson’s gift for strained melody is something that belongs entirely to her. And though she’s charming and fun onstage and in interviews, Anderson’s album Past Life Modern Saints is one of the year’s bleakest LPs, as well as the most impressive.
FROM: Los Angeles, CA
LINKS: @EMAthorstar, cameouttanowhere.com
ORDER: Past Life Martyred Saints is out now on Souterrain Transmissions. [Buy]
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FRANK OCEAN
This R&B singer-songwriter was signed to Def Jam and co-writing songs for Justin Bieber before anyone really noticed. But when he linked up with the L.A. skate-rap collective Odd Future and released the free online album Nostalgia, Ultra., things clicked into place. Since then, Ocean’s Coachella drug-love lament “Novacane” has gotten major radio rotation, and he’s gone on to sing a pair of hooks on Jay-Z and Kanye West’s Watch The Throne album. But this isn’t just an industry success story; Ocean’s light melodic touch and his confessional but conversational lyrics would make Nostalgia, Ultra. a new soul classic even if it hadn’t led the world to discover him.
FROM: Los Angeles, CA
LINKS: @frank_ocean, frankocean.tumblr.com
ORDER: Nostalgia, Ultra LP is out now. [Free Download]
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GAUNTLET HAIR
Denver experimental pop duo Gauntlet Hair incited the hype cycle about as soon as they got going; a couple of tracks made the rounds earlier this year and soon a record deal with Dead Oceans was in place. Gauntlet Hair makes choppy, woozy pop not unlike the music of NYC local pop experimenter Oberhofer, but their version is a little darker and weirder. You can hear a little Avey Tare in it at times, which is not a bad thing. Not a bad thing, at all.
FROM: Denver, CO
LINKS: gauntlethair.com
ORDER: Gauntlet Hair LP, out 10/18 via Dead Oceans. [Pre-order]
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GRIMES
Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher, is still figuring things out, sonically. Her music a pleasant slapdash of sounds, channeling everything from Mariah Carey to Black Dice in her still-forming avant pop. But, according to last year’s Geidi Primes, a release that was available for free before recently being reissued, the ideas are strong enough that we’re willing to be patient.
FROM: Montreal, QC
LINKS: @grimezsz
ORDER: Darkbloom LP, out via Hippos In Tanks. Geidi Primes is out now on No Pain In Pop/Arbutus. [Buy]
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HOLY OTHER
Up-and-coming producer Holy Other isn’t a super outgoing dude, and within his music resides the uneasy twitch of the notoriously-shadowy Burial’s work, so we just walked into the easiest comparison ever. Songs like “Touch” channel a slow lurch built around bright vocal lines pushed high into the mix. Also, dude has a totally bangin’ Soundcloud page and in an era overpacked with artist remixes, he knocks out interesting interpretations of others’ material at an alarmingly high clip.
FROM: Manchester, UK
LINKS: soundcloud.com/holyother
ORDER: With U EP, out now via Tri Angle [Buy]
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I BREAK HORSES
Maria Lindén and Fredrick Balck are Swedish engineers of computer-borne shoegaze, and together they form I Break Horses. On songs like standout album track “Hearts,” they create an immersive wall of sound, that while twittering and deep, mingles around nodes of bright notes. It’s joyous, but tinged with bittersweetness, too. You get lost in it pretty easily, which in this case, is a very good thing.
FROM: Sweden
LINKS: @IBreakHorses, ibreakhorses.se
ORDER: Hearts LP, out now via Bella Union. [Buy]
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ICEAGE
For being teenage warlords on punk-inspired destruction, the kids in Iceage seem pretty nice. But their music, if you’re just going by that, is brash, forceful, loud and obsessively aggressive. It didn’t take long to catch on; after tracks like “Broken Bone” and “White Rune” surfaced, basically everybody and their mother was rushing home to Wikipedia “D-beat.” Former Stereogum writer Brandon Stosuy wrote that “the young Gravity-nodding no-wave-infused post-anarcho-punk crew’s self-titled debut was one of my favorite albums of 2011, a record that bursts through a dozen songs in under 25 minutes, nailing a particular aesthetic I didn’t realize had so much life left in it.” Preach bro! Nothing is wrong in the state of Denmark, dudes.
FROM: Copenhagen, Denmark
LINKS: iceagecopenhagen.blogspot.com/
ORDER: New Brigade LP, out via What’s Your Rupture? [Buy]
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JAMIE WOON
The elusive dubstep master Burial co-produced “Night Air,” this London singer’s near-perfect late-2010 single, but Jamie Woon doesn’t really have anything to do with dubstep. Instead, he’s a straight-up pop singer with a gift for creating a sense of place and time. “Night Air” captures the way the atmosphere gains a uniquely still quality when you’re walking by yourself late at night. “Should” is pure R&B regret made precise and streamlined. Mirrorwriting, Woon’s debut album, is clearly the work of a pro; Woon is, after all, a graduate of the same performing-arts school that produced Amy Winehouse and Adele. But it’s the work of a pro who does things like filming a video of himself singing a capella in a boat, as it drifts through a Cambodian swamp — a pro striving to become something more, and succeeding.
FROM: London, UK
LINKS: jamiewoon.com
ORDER: Mirrorwriting LP out via Polydor/ Candent Songs. [Buy]
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LANA DEL REY
At some point, the singer-songwriter Lizzy Grant realized that nobody was paying her any attention, so she forged herself a new identity: A willowy, glamorous, rap-referencing burnout named Lana Del Rey. Suddenly, people started paying attention. A few other Del Rey songs are floating around YouTube, but the lion’s share of that attention comes from the absolutely gorgeous one-two punch of “Video Games” and “Blue Jeans,” the two sides of a single that isn’t even out yet. On those tracks, Del Rey updates the Nancy Sinatra/Fiona Apple stoned-siren style for a TMZ era, turning disjointed images of decadent California cool into straight-up beautiful melodies.
FROM: Los Angeles, CA
LINKS: @LanaDelRey, lanadelrey.com
ORDER: Video Games 7″, out 10/17 via Stranger Records. [Buy]
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LAUREL HALO
Though we don’t really mean to put their bodies of work side by side –- they’re not too similar — Grimes and Laurel Halo are two artists on this list whose brightest and best is yet to come on the strength of their still-forming ideas. We saw Laurel at P.S.1 and she knocked us over and made us feel wonky, her keyboard/synth setup cascading a droning, massively effective grandeur. Laurel, too, is the proprietor of a bangin’ Soundcloud page which puts the “bangin’ Soundcloud page” cumulative total at three.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: @LaurelHalo, laurelhalo.com
ORDER: Hour Logic EP, out via Hippos In Tanks [Buy]
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LIGHT ASYLUM
Darkwave duo Light Asylum made a bunch of noise earlier this year, both literally and metaphorically, and were hurriedly signed to Mexican Summer. It’s danceable and demonic, shady pop anchored in a different era (Depeche Mode, we can’t help but think), and the fact that they emerged as one of the most reliably exciting live performers in New York didn’t exactly damage their candidacy. Their debut EP In Tension is a must-have, and we’re dying for more.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: lightasylum.com
ORDER: In Tension EP, out via Mexican Summer. [Buy]
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MAIN ATTRAKIONZ
The Tumblr Space Age Hustle came up with a pretty great descriptor for this insanely prolific Oakland duo and for their spaced-out hip-hop contemporaries: “cloud rap.” In their furious barrage of lo-fi internet-only releases, Main Attrakionz and their Green Ova Undergrounds crew turned classic ’90s struggle-rap into something hazy, psychedelic, and endemically confused; it’s a stoned and vulnerable take on a classic sound. And though not all of their bazillions of 2011 releases are worth your time, 808s & Dark Grapes II, the duo’s latest free online release, is a strong release from one end to the other and an excellent diving-in point for the uninitiated.
FROM: Oakland, CA
LINKS: @SQUADDABAMBINO, @mondreMAN, mainattrakionz.com
ORDER: 808s and Dark Grapes II is available now as a free download from Mishka. [Free Download]
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MR. MUTHAFUCKIN’ EXQUIRE
“Huzzah,” the song that launched this guttural Brooklyn rapper, opens with a boast about drunk-driving a Mazda minivan on a Wednesday, and that should give you some idea what you’re in for here. eXquire is the sort of proudly unreformed New York rap good we don’t meet too often anymore. His slurry diatribes show a sharp eye for detail and a nasty sense of humor but absolutely nothing in the way of social graces. His beats, from avant-garde rap lifers like El-P and Necro, give his shit-talk the unsettling context it needs. And his no-budget videos, shot in dirty apartments or dirtier liquor stores, are proof positive that Giuliani and Bloomberg still haven’t eradicated all traces of the old, weird New York.
FROM: Brooklyn, NY
LINKS: @eXqomaniaRules, donteatmymind.tumblr.com/
ORDER: Lost In Translation mixtape, out now via Mishka. [Free Download]
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OFF!
If you went to see Hermosa Beach hardcore legends the Circle Jerks at any point in the last five years, you might’ve gone home disappointed. The band looked sloppy and bored, and the wildly dreadlocked, notoriously sarcastic frontman Keith Morris carried himself like a man who’s been doing the same job for too long. So Morris ditched his old bandmates, hooking up with Burning Brides frontman Dimitri Coats and a couple of punk veterans and founded OFF!, a band who makes super-rudimentary trash-can hardcore like 1981 never ended. Their debut album, The First Four EPs, collects the band’s 7″ singles, and its 16 songs are over in 18 minutes. Onstage, Morris looks like a man reborn, and his band kicks up a furious racket with all the urgency that the Circle Jerks somehow lost.
FROM: Los Angeles, CA
LINKS: offofficial.com
ORDER: The First Four EPs compilation is out now via Vice. [Buy]
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PEAKING LIGHTS
The music of married Madison, WI duo Aaron Coyes and Indra Dunis is less than immediate, but its inclusion on L.A. label Not Not Fun might give you a few hints; it’s psych-drenched rock that radiates an interesting pulse. Indra Dunis’s submerged vocals and the duo’s use of drum machines and other electronic percussion sometimes wade into dubby territory, but it just as easily switches directions, emerging as incandescent psych. It’s a little tricky to figure out, but it’s an entirely worthwhile voyage into weird zones.
FROM: Madison, WI
LINKS: facebook.com/PeakingLights
ORDER: 936 LP, out now via Not Not Fun. [Buy]
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PURITY RING
Canadian duo Purity Ring, comprised of Megan James and Corin Roddick, is the latest electro pop duo earning important cosigns and hoarding heaps of hype; naturally, they’ve only got a handful of tracks on the web for consumption. Their music is escalating, florid, chopped-up pop, and and songs like “Ungirthed” and “Lofticries” quickly become the subject of addiction, utilizing a hypnotic dub drone accented with bright vocal work. Though certainly within the realm of those artists employing whispering, ghost-y vocals, the singing on Purity Ring’s songs feels warmer and more human than say, anything Salem’s done. Word on the (indie rock blog) street is that the forthcoming, as-of-yet-untitled debut is something quite special; we’re stoked to check it out.
FROM: Edmonton, AB
LINKS: @Purity_Ring, myspace.com/purityring
ORDER: Purity Ring/Braids Split 7”, out 10/11 via Fat Possum. [Buy]
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SBTRKT
This South London producer gets press for goofy reasons: He wears a gigantic African-style mask and Drake loves him. That’s cool and all, but he’s on this list for the way his self-titled debut album pushes the international future-shock sounds of dubstep and bass-music toward a slick, breezy form of soul-pop. London is always good at stuff like this, and SBTRKT’s Little Dragon collab “Wildfire” does to dubstep what Neneh Cherry once did to rap or Yazz did to acid-house: It takes a dangerous underground sound and turns it into bright, shiny double-dutch music. Summer afternoon soundtracks depend on stuff like this.
FROM: London, UK
LINKS: @sbtrkt, sbtrkt.com
ORDER: SBTRKT LP, out no via Young Turks [Buy]
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SHABAZZ PALACES
Shabazz Palaces is the heady hip hop project from former Digable Planets member Ishmael “Butterfly” Butler, an outfit that focuses on spacey grooves and warped, overtly technical rapping. The beats are knotty, the rhymes complex, and the paths the music takes are largely exploratory. Riding the strength of two solid EPs from 2010 — Of Light and Shabazz Palaces — Sub Pop debut Black Up lives up to the promise of those recordings while cleaning up the sound, but not dismissing all the songs’ signature haze. Also, you don’t have to go much further than the songs’ titles to understand what kind of headspace Butler’s in here — just look at the name of the attached MP3. That’s for real.
FROM: Seattle, WA
LINKS: shabazzpalaces.com
ORDER: Black Up LP, out now via Sub Pop [Buy]
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PURE X
Much has been made of the Austin scene lately, and buttressing this spike in interest is a flock of Austin bands, one of them being Pure X. On their debut, Pleasure, singer Nate Grace and his bandmates churn out slow-to-build, reverby rock drenched in contemplative, sometimes sorrowful, moods. It’s a grower, and that’s not to say there’s no immediacy; you’re going to want these songs to grow on you. It’s like buying a suit that you plan on growing into, cuz once you’ve grown into it, you’re going to look like a total badass. A rock suit.
FROM: Austin, TX
LINKS: @pure__x, pure-x.info
ORDER: Pleasure LP, out via Acéphale/Light Lodge [Buy]
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SLEEP ∞ OVER
Nate Grace’s Pure X bandmate, Jesse Jenkins, dates Stefanie Franciotti, who makes music as Sleep ∞ Over. So, if you want to get in on the ground floor of the Austin scene, you could do worse (it helps that they all live in the same house, too). Sleep ∞ Over’s medium is weirded-out disco funk, not unlike the music of Nite Jewel, but Franciotti’s music might be a touch more layered and starrier.
FROM: Austin, TX
ORDER: Forever LP, out 9/27 via Hippos In Tanks [Pre-order]
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SPACEGHOSTPURRP
Combing the dark outer fringes of evil-sounding, post Three 6 Mafia Internet rap is Miami teenager SPACEGHOSTPURPP, who communicates something of a demonic rawness in his wide swatch of homemade mixtapes. A perpetrator of the slowed-up rap style popular with neo-acts like SPACEGHOST ally ASAP Rocky, there’s a lot of potential paired with the usual homemade roughness. But, when we caught a glimpse of SPACEGHOSTPURRP during his first ever live performance, he segued from Three 6 Mafia’s “Slob On My Knob” into his own “Suck A Dick For 2011,” and the touchpoint was, at that point, unmistakably obvious. A torchbearer for the next generation of chopped and screwed rap, here’s to hoping SPACEGHOST succeeds away from the dark, deep corners of the Internet.
FROM: Miami, FL
LINKS: @SPACEGHOZTPURRP
ORDER: The Blvcklvnd Rvdix 66.6 mixtape is available for free download. [Free Download]
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STAR SLINGER
Sometimes, a name tells you all you need to know. As Star Slinger, the young Manchester producer Darren Williams (not this guy) creates twinkly bedroom beats, then throws them onto the internet for free download. He’s remixed acts as disparate as Deerhunter, the Go! Team, and Toro Y Moi, transforming all of them into loping, sundazed boom-bap. If J Dilla was an underemployed British kid with a laptop and too much time on his hands in 2011, he might’ve turned into something like this.
FROM: Manchester, UK
LINKS: @StarSlingerUK, starslingeruk.bandcamp.com
ORDER: Volume 1 LP, available at Star Slinger’s Bandcamp. [Buy]
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THE SOFT MOON
Plenty of bands have given us their best Joy Division impressions over the years, but none has quite approximated that prickly back-of-the-neck chill that Martin Hannett helped the band find on its “She Lost Control” intro. Enter the Soft Moon, an act dedicated to just that feeling. On his alter-ego’s self-titled late-2010 debut, San Fransican Luis Vasquez hones in on only the spookiest elements of British postpunk and comes up with one of the year’s sharpest, most evocative debuts.
FROM: San Francisco, CA
ORDER: The Soft Moon LP, out now via Captured Tracks. [Buy]
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THE WEEKND
With his free mixtapes House of Balloons and Thursday, the 22-year-old Toronto R&B singer Abel Tesfaye has built an immersive mythology itself. He samples Beach House, collaborates with Drake, and builds desolate soundscapes around his songs about girls and drugs and clubs and girls on drugs in clubs. The whole thing constantly runs the risk of coming off a bit too cool, but it’s also vulnerable and empathetic music about a character (maybe the real Tesfaye, maybe not) too caught up in his own bullshit to see a way out.
FROM: Toronto, ON
LINKS: @theweekndxo, the-weeknd.com
ORDER: House Of Balloons and Thursday are both available for free download at The Weeknd’s website.
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UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA
We’ve seen a lot of people try to describe the music of Portland, OR outfit Unknown Mortal Orchestra, and we’re not sure anyone has gotten it all the way right yet. But, that’s not their fault; our guess is we won’t exactly approach the truth either in our own classification, but UMO’s jams are sort of like hip-hop overlaid with psych-rock. Though we’re only posting one track here, for the sake of continuity and stuff like that, the rest of the self-titled LP is worth tracking down, if only for the shallow reason of solving the puzzle. We bet you won’t figure it out, but you will listen to the record long after you’ve given up.
FROM: Portland, OR
LINKS: @UMO, unknownmortalorchestra.com
ORDER: Unknown Mortal Orchestra LP out via Fat Possum/True Panther. [Buy]
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WEEKEND
This San Francisco psych-rock power trio had the misfortune to sort of share a name with one of this list’s most hyped-up honorees, but like the similarly monikered debauched-R&B project, they are very much worthy of your attention. Weekend don’t exactly update the classic Jesus and Mary Chain feedback-pop sound. Instead, they streamline it and turn it into an engine of pure rock power. Onstage, as on their late-2010 debut album Sports, they play incredibly loud, cranking out a pared-down and unpretentious variant of a style that never gets old.
FROM: San Francisco, CA
LINKS: myspace.com/weekendmusic
ORDER: Sports LP, out now via Slumberland. [Buy]
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WILD FLAG
A frenzy of excitement surrounded this Portland band before anyone had heard them play a note; when two thirds of Sleater-Kinney get back together, that’ll happen. But Wild Flag, which features S-K’s Carrie Brownstein and Janet Weiss alongside Helium’s Mary Timony and the Minders’ Rebecca Cole, aren’t just a punk supergroup; they’re an actual band with actual chemistry of their own. Their self-titled debut album is a roaring blast of old-school proto-punk rave-ups and dizzy harmonies, and their live show is indisputable proof that guitar heroes still walk among us. It’s good to have them around.
FROM: Portland, OR, Washington, DC
LINKS: @wildflagmusic, myspace.com/wildflag
ORDER: Wild Flag LP, out 9/13 via Merge [Pre-order]
“Romance”
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YOUTH LAGOON
Trevor Powers is a 22-year-old kid from Boise, Idaho who records at home in his bedroom, but The Year Of Hibernation, his debut album, sure doesn’t sound like the work of an isolated bedroom-pop type. As Youth Lagoon, Powers makes epic, wailing-from-mountaintops indie rock — the sort of thing that seems destined for thousands of future road-trip scream-alongs. Powers went from total obscurity to Fat Possum thanks to his debut Bandcamp track “July,” but “July” is a forceful and fully-formed piece of work, and it makes the case that Powers was always an indie star just waiting to be discovered.
FROM: Boise, ID
LINKS: @youthlagoon, youthlagoon.bandcamp.com
PRE-ORDER: The Year Of Hibernation LP, out 9/27 via Fat Possum. [Pre-order]
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YUCK
The self-titled debut from this young British band sounds like something that might’ve been sitting in a drawer for the past 19 years after Superchunk frontman and Merge co-founder Mac McCaughan just forgot to release it. It’s a powerful dose of old-school American indie rock, a relic of the time when fuzz pedals and yelped desperation ruled the day, before vintage keyboards and woodsy harmonies took over. And the thing about that old-school indie rock? It ruled.
FROM: London, UK, Hiroshima, Japan, New Jersey, Scotland
LINKS: @yuckband, yuckband.blogspot.com
ORDER: Yuck LP, out via Fat Possum. [Buy]
//
To recap, in alphabetical order:
01. Action Bronson
02. Araabmuzik
03. ASAP Rocky
04. Austra
05. Big Troubles
06. CANT
07. Caveman
08. Clams Casino
09. Cult Of Youth
10. Dirty Beaches
11. Elite Gymnastics
12. EMA
13. Frank Ocean
14. Gauntlet Hair
15. Grimes
16. Holy Other
17. I Break Horses
18. Iceage
19. Jamie Woon
20. Lana Del Rey
21. Laurel Halo
22. Light Asylum
23. Main Attrakionz
24. Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire
25. OFF!
26. Peaking Lights
27. Pure X
28. Purity Ring
29. SBTRKT
30. Shabazz Palaces
31. Sleep ∞ Over
32. SPACEGHOSTPURRP
33. Star Slinger
34. The Soft Moon
35. The Weeknd
36. Unknown Mortal Orchestra
37. Weekend
38. Wild Flag
39. Youth Lagoon
40. Yuck
///
Thirty new bands, one mix, two sides:
Stereogum’s 40 Best New Bands Of 2011 Side A (.zip)
Stereogum’s 40 Best New Bands Of 2011 Side B (.zip)
Congratulations Class Of 2011.
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Solid list, just missing WU LYF, or were they on 2010′s list? Stereogum was certainly the first place in which I heard of them.
WU LYF were on last year’s list!
So I take it you are not counting The Vaccines as a 2011 Artist, despite their debut album this year? because if you do they have to be on this list.. Otherwise it is a critical error.
Can’t agree more. Really dig their album.
No, I think they just don’t like falling asleep from sheer boredom.
How do you even find 40 new bands? #imgettingold
Im gettin gold, son
Ha, seriously! I think the same thing when I read year end lists and I have like 1 favorite album from that year, and the rest are all from years prior (mostly probably from the previous year’s list).
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Disagree haterbro. These are mostly bands Stereogum has jocked in their Band to Watch series (which usually precede any coverage by Pitchfork.) As much as I bitch about their choice of coverage here, I’ll at least give them credit for breaking wind on a lot of these young acts. (Still ticked about the inclusion of OFF and Weekend, though.. See comments below)
“breaking wind on a lot of these young acts” – think you might be looking for a different expression there…
“breaking wind on a lot of these young acts” – think you might be looking for a different expression there…
I liked you better on your first comment. The second was kind of derivative.
That was actually a re-release. THIS is the much anticipated, and inevitably disappointing, second comment.
Well, your sophomore comment isn’t bad – you went in a whole different direction than the debut, which was a brave choice.
Also – something you missed in mastering: Word 6 is way louder than the rest of the comment.
Out of curiousity, who would YOU like to see covered in Stereogum? I have only ever seen you posting complaints about how inadequate their coverage is (I’m not sure why you’d continue frequenting a site that you claim to dislike their coverage, but that’s neither here nor there). Who are your top bands of 2011?
This was directed @theduchessofthomyorke
I’m pretty interested in that myself.
Bands I’ve enjoyed this year (“new” or not)
- Fucked Up (gets enough coverage here)
- Yuck (gets enough coverage here)
- Touche Amore (gets absolutely no coverage here)
- Cerebral Ballzy (gets absolutely no coverage here, should be on this list in place of OFF! who were last year’s token 80s hardcore-like band
- The Men (gets some coverage here but is missing on this list)
- Iceage (gets enough coverage here
- Thursday (still puts out great music, had a great album this year but they’re not hip enough for sites like this)
I believe I saw positive comments on the Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming pre-evaluation.
I believe I saw positive comments on the Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming pre-evaluation. Also, love the avatar.
Coj, you could learn something about adding special features in your re-releases from Logen here.
Coj, you could learn something about adding special features in your re-releases from Legen here AWESOME BRASS SECTION OUTRO
@djfreshie that comment right there needs to be voted up higher. funniest thing I’ve read on here in a while.
Must say I have to agree with you about Toche and basically any band in The Wave collective. Also, no one knows about Weatherbox….but that’s my little secret so don’t tell anyone.
Same goes for La Dispute, who are fucking killer. Kind of like mewithoutyou at their more bombastic.
La Dispute is not bad, but June Paik is where it’s at. So good.
Same goes for La Dispute, who are fucking killer. Kind of like mewithoutyou at their more bombastic.
How many quality bands come out per year that every single blog needs to have completely unique lists? That comment makes absolutely no sense. They are on this list and many others as well because a lot of people think they are among the best new bands.
Good list, first off.
But I’ve been wondering why Childish Gambino hasn’t been covered in a lot of places. He’s blown up quite a bit in the past year from his album Culdesac and EP, and he just signed with Glassnote Records (Phoenix, Mumford & Sons) to release his follow-up LP Camp later this year. His live show is stunning, with Donald Glover backed up by an outfit that hews far closer to an indie rock band than a DJ.
With many major blogs covering alt hip-hop, I’m just surprised I haven’t seen his name thrown around more often.
I can’t speak for the rest of the site, but my main reason for not repping for Glover is this: He’s really good at being funny and not all that good at rapping.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nv4CJb8kHiw
I don’t know about you guys, but I think he’s a pretty damn good rapper.
I got to agree with Tom. I’m not too hot on his flow and I think he tries to hard to be both be really explicit and to have hipster indie cred (the line about Ariel Pink still makes absolutely no sense to me) and it ends up sounding silly.
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Google “vagina” and “sex” to understand that line.
Also: http://rapgenius.com/Childish-gambino-freaks-and-geeks-lyrics
To each his own, I suppose.
As disappointed as I am in that assessment, I would like to inquire about the origin of your avatar.
Seriously? As much as I love ASAP, Spaceghostpurrp, and Main Attrakionz (and I really do), Childish Gambino’s undoubtedly a better lyricist than all of them. And let’s not forget he can *sing* too. I’m disgusted that such a weak defense has 13 thumbs up.
Uh: http://rapgenius.com/Childish-gambino-i-be-on-that-lyrics
Best Rapper Alive, as far as I’m concerned.
Oh wait, I just noticed Death Grips aren’t even on this list.
Now I get it.
I haven’t heard of any bands so they must be cool.
OFF! was very much a last year band, as were The Weeknd (c’mon, ‘Gum, I think you even posted updates on them and both of their albums came out last year.)
Who’s missing: Cerebral Ballzy, The Men, Mr. Dream
I may be getting old, but I’m about 99.9% sure that both of The Weeknd’s albums came out in 2011. He did release 3 singles in 2010, if that’s what you’re thinking of.
Doh! I got massively confused with The Weeknd (the r&B band) and Weekend, the shoegaze band. I meant the latter, the shoegaze band. Sports came out last year.
I just saw Mr. Dream was on last year’s list: Tip to the editor’s: Don’t put bands on the list until they’ve actually released their debut full length or EP (Mr. Dream had nothing out in 2010. Oddly, the above mentioned OFF! and The Weeknd both did, but you put them on this year’s list. MAKES NO SENSE, GUYS!)
Again, I intended Weekend and not The Weeknd in the comment above.
I’m pretty sure people also intended to give you down-votes regardless. =\
Yeah, Scott whipped out his trouncey dick and cock whipped me in the face with that one, I admit.
You remind me of this woman i work with. I hate her with a passion
something something Shabazz Palaces are really good.
For sure! They make me trip balls.
hi stereogum it’s jed, fix that typo in the Big Troubles bit, yo. You see the one I’m talkin’ about?
Ah, fixed. Thanks Jed.
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I really think EVERYONE is missing out on this Burning Hotels “Burning Hotels” release. Seeing them with A Place To Bury Strangers next week.
you missed Bonifrate ;) http://bonifrate.bandcamp.com/
Let’s not forget Fine Canadian Forces: http://www.finecanadianforces.ca/music.htm
My new publicist: theduchessofthomyorke.
Maybe you should do like snakehips down there and only post a link to a band they clearly represent everytime there’s a top 40 new band list.
The Fine Canadian Forces album is better than 90% of the stuff on this list.
Thanks! I’m here to make stupid comments, not promote myself – I hate promoting myself (and thus I hate myself for this), but I am playing The Central in Toronto, Friday night if anyone’s from there, and interested.
SCOTT BEAT YOU TO IT.
Funny I don’t think I’ve posted here for like two years and the first thing is about a typo. I don’t know if that’s funny or not, actually, it’s just a thing.
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uh! and shuriken ;) http://www.cloudchapel.com/pt/blog/?p=119
What about Veronica Falls dudes? Best Slumberland release since the last Stilts record
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40 New Bands?!?? Dang it, I’m still trying to get into the Big Pink.
Ha ha!
Really pushing this Exquire guy, not really feelin it.
The Caveman song you linked is called “Decide”, not “Beware”. Saw these guys open for the White Rabbits back in February and was really impressed. Going to see them play this Thurs.
Wasn’t this Shabazz Palaces’ 2nd release? Not trying to be an elitist troll, but maybe i’m wrong.
they had two (excellent) EPs released about two years ago which most will combine into one body of music but I guess they can still be considered new because Black Up is where they started getting relatively major attention.
they trip me out
they trip everyone out.
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brilliant!
You’re way cool.
SPACEGHOSTPURRP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hahahah yes!!!!!!!!!!!
you guys take these lists too seriously. its just fun to find out about new artists, and to see new artists you’re into get some recognition.
amazing caveman video + 9 extra drummers of white rabbits, ARMS etc
http://yourstru.ly/2011/09/13/video-caveman-great-life/
missing Tropical Popsicle http://tropicalpopsicle.bandcamp.com
Where’s Yellow Ostrich?
No Rise to Remain. List is void.
I became a fan of ASAP Rocky after hearing “Peso”, “Wassup”, and “Purple Swag”. “Wassup” happens to be produced by Clams Casino who also is listed here. I was very impressed with the beat so I gave his “Instrumental” mixtape a listen and I’m damn addicted. “Motivation” has been stuck in my head and I can’t get it out. What’s funny is I looked up Clams discography and saw that he also produced for the duo Main Attraktionz who are also listed here. What’s even funnier is that Main Attraktionz has a song featuring ASAP Rocky and it’s produced by Clams Casino called “Take 1″. Great track. So after all of that I decided to download Main Attraktionz mixtape “808s and Dark Grapes II” and it’s a very good listen.
Unless you’re counting them as a 2010 band, Holy Ghost! really should have been on that list.
Kinda sad The Men aren’t listed on here. They’re taking the lead on a pretty badass noise-rock scene building with others bands like White Suns and Pygmy Shrews.
I was pretty excited about Grimes’ potential on the strength of “Vanessa,” though after listening to the rest of her catalogue I’m not so sure. Here’s hoping I’m wrong though.
Also, why do people keep referring to The Weeknd’s stuff as mixtapes? Ok, you can download it for free, but if it’s all just one dude’s original songs with no remixes, so… wouldn’t that make it an album?
Gauntlet Hair is the best band on here in my opinion. “I Was Thinking” is as addictive as it gets!!! I am glad they are getting some press. They were featured on http://www.yobigbro.com over a year ago and we are eagerly awaiting their newer releases!
how many disappointed readers came here only to find that their own band did not make the top 40?
Cool list. Definitely enough to keep me occupied for the next wee while! Loving Cult of Youth; the vocals really remind me of the guy from viking themed metal band bathory, which is awesome. Dirty beaches is quite interesting but maybe a bit ‘over inspired’ by Suicide? Listen to ‘speedway’ then ‘dream baby’. Maybe its just me?
Even though most will not like them, Death Grips should have been mentioned
I am so far away from hip, you might as well call me “little toe” or something. I’m not sure I could speak to anyone left off this list or included by error but I will say it’s made my afternoon as I troll the internet filling out job applications. Thanks Stereogum.
Gauntlet Hair is from Denver… (denver area)
Nerves Junior needs to be more recognized…
Wait…Is it list season already!? Dang. September is a little too soon for me, guys.
(While we’re on the subject, my top 3 are probably 1. Austra. 2. Starslinger. 3. Clams Casino.)
Unknown Mortal Orchestra kicks ass.
best new artist no doubt
Wow, I have to check out Austra now after that awesome track. They sound like The Knife and Bat For Lashes had a baby together.
Austra is sexy. Check out their video for Beat and the Pulse as well.
Yeah, “Lose It” failed to grab my attention when they started posting about Austra here, though I heard “Beat and the Pulse” for the first time a few weeks ago and I’m a little bit obsessed now. That song is sick, and everyone is right about the album.
I’m thinking I rely way too much on P4K and Stereogum because I am wondering where all these people know about groups being left out. I suppose it would help if I went to shows.
Weekend is better than THE Weeknd. They have a much better grasp of spelling the word… also, better music.
true. grammatically much better.
Uhm. Class Actress where art thou?
she isnt really new any more. but she is good.
where are the shimmering stars?
DEATH GRIPS DEATH GRIPS DEATH GRIPS DEATH GRIPS
Death Grips for sure!
Balam Acab? is he considered as debuting in 2010?
yep! he made last year’s list.
Sheeeeet yes! been waiting all year for this bad boy! good job lads!
I heard Soft Moon in the middle of a Pinzee.com mix and it brought back too many memories of Joy Division but without the heavy irony.
wait, so which two-bit PR company paid ‘gum the most for their bands to be on this list?
oh, wait, it was daniel gill!
http://twitter.com/#!/forcefieldpr/status/113989654587510784
this list is the epitome of the worst part of music today, bastardized by these blogs: the $$$.
I don’t blame the writers here at ‘Gum but I think their owners at Buzzmedia have a lot to do with the site not having that added witty, original or edgy personality as it used to. Remember when they’d just post funny stories about musicians that you couldn’t read anywhere else, whether it be praising the band or not? Or how you could read a post and say “Oh this is definitely an Amrit post…” Now they mostly read the same like they’ve been straight off a press release. I’m just being honest, ‘Gum…
Great list. I’m still a little shocked that Love Inks is getting much love in the States. Their debut is solid.
Isn’t instead of is. Sorry!
COM TRUISE
WHAT?! NO Action Bronson!??!?! Oh wait….you guys are awesome. Great list!
Pure X, Yuck, and UMO are far and away my favorite and most listened to new artists this year. Fuckin’ stunners – all of them.
Wheres Gypsyblood?
Wise Blood? Bear Hands? Yellow Ostrich? Voxhaul Broadcast? Feather and Belle? Memory House?
this is an excellent list. thank you.
OFF!, Yuck, and Unknown Mortal Orchestra are on the list. I agree with Micah, WHERE THE HECK IS WISE BLOOD AT?
@fuckwiseblood, love it; learn it.
thanks guys for all the good music. i’m old and infirm and the internet machine baffles me sometimes.
If there’s one band you must watch out for this year is The Gallery who’s just released their newest single: Straight to the Top. According to Alan McGee and BBC Introducing “this guys will be massive soon!!!” So check out The Gallery and be the first to know the new saviours of Rock and Roll : http://soundcloud.com/thegalleryuk/straight-to-the-top .
The Gallery
http://www.myspace.com/thegalleryuk
Finally! The Soft Moon is getting some much deserved attention.
Death Grips’ omission is inexcusable.
Interesting list, though. :)
Can asap rocky be sued by aseop rock?
I always end not liking 80% of the stuff on these lists, but they sure are a great way to discover some exciting new projects. Even if I find only one artist I really end up liking, this list will be a much appreciated effort.
It was only through last year’s list that I found about the existence of Oneohtrix Point Never (embarassing, I know) and boy did they blew me away. Thanks Stereogum!
Missing Little Scream!
http://kkrampage.bandcamp.com/album/crawlspace You should be talking about this band. They are pretty interesting. K.K. Rampage
best new band of…2012 maybe : Sintropez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV0N6C5tZPU
twin sister? david lynch?
Last year’s list
You’re missing Little Shalimar, Stepkids, and Super Human Happiness
thanks men you are the best
http://beauty-arabia.blogspot.com
WE Love I Break Horses http://wp.me/pOENo-KT
I know that Walk The Moon’s going to be on the 2012 list…they’re so awesome! Check out the teaser for their new EP!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzVBrev1KYs&feature=channel_video_title
I like any band name that uses the words “youth,” “beach,” and/or “weekend.” I’m thinking of starting my own solo project called Weekend @ Youth Beach.