Largely passed by in the alternative music sweepstakes of the mid-'90s, Acetone pursued indie rock with influences from two of their Southern California forebears, the Beach Boys and Gram Parsons, with plenty of the Velvet Underground thrown in as well. Officially formed in 1992 by guitarist Mark Lightcap, bassist Richie Lee and drummer Steve... [+] Read More

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Bobby Birdman is the moniker under which Rob Kieswetter performs. Originally from the Portland, Oregon area, Kieswetter toured extensively as a supporting musician for Will Oldham. Compared to experimental artists such as John Cage and Yoko Ono, Bobby Birdman has toured throughout the United States with Little Wings and Badger King. In 2001, the... [+] Read More

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The Southern California indie pop band Buellton formed in 1998. Essentially sprouting from the split of a band called Brown, Buellton is comprised of bassist Cliff Hayes, drummer Erik Herzog, guitarist Andrew Giacumakis, vocalist/guitarist John Nygren, and guitarist/knob twiddler Tad Wagner, they debuted in 2001 with Avenue of the Flags on Film... [+] Read More

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The early-'90s New York trio Codeine is one of the founders of the slowcore scene that includes groups like Bedhead, American Analog Set, and Low. Taking audible inspiration from the third Velvet Underground album and scene pioneers Galaxie 500, but adding a more aggressive tone and slowing the tempos down even further, Codeine sounded almost... [+] Read More

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Bellingham, WA, indie pop quartet Death Cab for Cutie began in 1997 as the solo project of singer/guitarist Ben Gibbard, who previously recorded under the name All-Time Quarterback. The underground success of the cassette You Can Play These Songs' Chords inspired Gibbard to recruit a full-time band including guitarist/organist Christopher Walla... [+] Read More

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Hawthorne, CA's Dios consists of guitarists/vocalists Kevin and Joel Morales, bassist John Paul Caballero, keyboardist Jimmy Cabeza DeVaca, and drummer Jackie Monzon. The band hails from the same town that spawned the Beach Boys, Emitt Rhodes, and Black Flag, and the former two artists' trippy wistfulness, and the latter band's D.I.Y. aesthetic... [+] Read More

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Despite their alternative rock pedigree and their home on a label better known for experimental music, Freakwater was one of the most traditionally grounded bands on the alternative country scene. Singers/guitarists/songwriters Janet Beveridge Bean and Catherine Ann Irwin mix original material (with a contemporary lyrical perspective) and... [+] Read More

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Formed in Duluth, Minnesota in 1994, Low was perhaps the slowest of the so-called "slowcore" bands -- delicate, austere, and hypnotic, the trio's music rarely rose above a whisper, divining its dramatic tension in the unsettling open spaces created by the absence of sound. Initially comprising the husband and wife team of guitarist/vocalist Alan... [+] Read More

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Red House Painters was primarily the vehicle of singer/songwriter Mark Kozelek, an evocative, compelling performer of rare emotional intensity. Like Mark Eitzel of American Music Club, to whose work the Painters were invariably compared and to whom their early success owed a tremendous debt, Kozelek laid his soul bare on record, conjuring... [+] Read More

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Brian Aubert (guitar/vocals), Nikki Monninger (bass), Christopher Guanlao (drums), and Joe Lester (keyboards) comprise the swarthy indie rock stylings of Silversun Pickups. The quartet's textured melodies capture the hypnotic dream pop threads of My Bloody Valentine and pop bitter sweetness of Earlimart, and such a blend has wowed their native... [+] Read More

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Named after a word in one of Nick Chaplin's dreams -- not from a Siouxsie and the Banshees single -- Slowdive formed in Reading, England, in late 1989. The group orginally consisted of Neil Halstead (guitar/vocals), Rachel Goswell (guitar/vocals), Christian Savill (guitar), Adrian Sell (drums), and Chaplin (bass). Formed when they were mostly in... [+] Read More

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The country art band Tarnation was essentially a vehicle for Paula Frazer, a talented singer and songwriter who returned to roots music only after a successful foray into 1980s post-punk. Frazer was born and raised in Sautee Nacoochee, GA, a tiny community located in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, where as a child she sang in her father's... [+] Read More

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