New Band Tips for 2010 (Part 1)

It's never been easier to get music out to the world, although the flood of new voices can be difficult to navigate on sites like MySpace, Spotify and We7. How to know where to start? Here, we offer a guide to some of the newest talent that has emerged in 2009, and may just rise up to make a bigger impression during 2010. Best albums, best songs, best videos, best tweets and myriad other "best" lists proliferate at this time of year, but consider this first part of our new band tiplist as the cream at the top of all the "best" ballots.

1. Jeff the Brotherhood



Nashville, Tennessee, twosome Jeff the Brotherhood are two brothers with a love of huge riffs and oddball pop moves. Their album Heavy Days has obliterated the need to listen to the Cars' back catalog for at least a couple of years, but it's their live shows that have caught the most attention--singer/guitarist Jake Orrall is a compelling frontman with a piercing stare and some impressive moves.

2. Tony Castles



New York trio Tony Castles have a quiet star in the making in singer Paul Sicilian, whose soft R&B-tinged falsetto was one of the best discoveries for many people at this year's CMJ Music Marathon. Stabs of organ and gentle pattering drums provide a perfect backing to Sicilian's sunny croon. A few demos are all that's currently available on their MySpace page, but expect big things when some proper studio recordings are issued.

3. Grooms



The taut, angular rock of this Brooklyn trio taps right into the '90s revival that is currently holding the music industry in a tight grip. Grooms' music is a meeting point between the tightly wound discordant guitar noise of Sonic Youth and long-forgotten bands like St. Johnny and Poster Children, with some Malkmus-esque vocals thrown over the top for good measure.

4. Javelin



Thrill Jockey signings Javelin can often be found flanked by stacks of '80s beatboxes as they deliver their electro-indie sound. Their music is a chewy mash up of hip-hop and funk that often recalls Tom Tom Club's eponymous debut combined with light, bustly rhythms and niggling beats. Javelin's debut 12-inch single for Thrill Jockey is out now, and expect plenty more to come in the decade that no one has figured out how to name yet (the Tens?).