The Washington, D.C., band (The Sounds Of) Kaleidoscope was formed by Damien C. Taylor in 1995, but it was only sporadically active in its first few years, with many personnel changes and privately distributed cassettes. Finally, Taylor settled on a rhythm section of brothers Mike Dugan (bass) and John Dugan (drums) for a July 2000 recording... [+] Read More

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Prior to the release of their first album, Fields offered a special band-approved mixtape to fans through their website and MySpace page, including songs that give newcomers some idea of where the British five-piece is coming from: along with three of their own songs, old-school folk-rockers Pentangle and Linda Perhacs, synth pioneers Silver... [+] Read More

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Like the Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, and the Jesus & Mary Chain before them, My Bloody Valentine redefined what noise meant within the context of pop songwriting. Led by guitarist Kevin Shields, the group released several EPs in the mid-'80s before recording the era-defining Isn't Anything in 1988, a record that merged lilting, ethereal... [+] Read More

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Siblings Beth and Jay Sorrentino began making music from about the age of five. In their Lancaster, Pennsylvania, home, Jay would play drums while Beth sat at the piano. Bassist Ken Heitmuller also began playing early. The trio formed suddenly, tammy! and recorded two EPs in their basement studio. With the absence of a guitar player, the band... [+] Read More

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Sunny pop band the Apples in Stereo was one of the leading lights of the Elephant 6 Recording Company collective, a coterie of like-minded, lo-fi indie groups -- including the Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Secret Square -- who shared musicians, ideas, and sensibilities. They were led by singer/songwriter Robert Schneider, a... [+] Read More

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Named in tribute to the legendary Rolling Stones guitarist and his influence in introducing Eastern culture and music into the world of Western rock and roll, the Brian Jonestown Massacre formed in San Francisco, California in 1990. Some 40 different members passed through the group's ranks over the next half of the decade, but throughout their... [+] Read More

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The Washington, D.C.-based indie pop band the Ropers was formed in 1991 by singer Doug Bailey and guitarist Mike Hammel, students at the University of Maryland who quit school after two years to begin making music. They soon recruited drummer Alex Hacker, whom both Bailey and Hammel knew from their brief stint in the Lilys; with bassist Greg... [+] Read More

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A classic guitar pop group almost nine years in the making, Albuquerque, NM's the Shins began in 1997 as the side project of singer/songwriter and guitarist James Mercer's primary band Flake. Mercer formed Flake in 1992 with drummer Jesse Sandoval, keyboardist Marty Crandall, and bassist Neal Langford; they eventually changed their name to Flake... [+] Read More

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Marrying the feedback-drenched sonic assault of the British shoegazer scene with the melodic immediacy of classic pop -- an approach critics dubbed "bubblegrunge" -- Velocity Girl emerged as one of the most successful and acclaimed indie rock bands of the early '90s. Their roots lay in the short-lived Gotterdammacrats, which formed in Silver... [+] Read More

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Mexican indie rock foursome Volován emerged after singer/guitarist Chalo Galván and keyboardist Jorge Nájera met in a wedding party at their native Monterrey, N.L. Soon, drummer Gerardo Galván and bassist Alejandro Gulmar joined in. Joe Robinson, Andy Chase, and Plastilina Mosh's Alejandro Rosso produced their self-titled, late-'70s American... [+] Read More

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