Let’s get Iggy with it! The best part of the week is here once more! Join the click clique in deciding who will be our “Artist of the Week.”
One of the five rising artists listed below will be voted in by you and netizens just like you across the globe. You have until next Friday morning at 9 am EST to vote for your favorite artist using the poll below.
The band with the most votes will be featured on MTV Iggy’s homepage along with a très revealing interview. You know what to do.
Heathers
There is something decidedly 90s about Dublin band Heathers (not the movie, which was decidedly 80s). Their songs — largely centered around the twin sisters’ impressive harmonies and fast-paced guitar — is that familiar blend of confrontation, vulnerability, and talent that takes you back to the original acoustic ladywave. The Tegans. The Luscious Jacksons. Maybe the Alanises. The type of pre-hipster angst that drips with sincerity and makes for the best breakup music. Their new album Kingdom, and the single, “Forget Me Knots” is some kind of a lyrical pep talk.
New Ivory
London rockers New Ivory are bringing their aggressive blend of energy-filled indie rock to the table via members Mickey (vocals and guitar), Alessandro (vocals and bass) and Nite (drummer) under the label banner of Steve Aoki’s Dim Mak records. It should come as no surprise that the super EDM DJ took notice of the local trio, who had become regulars on the touring circuit, playing gig after gig after gig throughout Europe in their early days on the scene. But it was their live show that ultimately got the band signed, and then their 2011 released single, “A Knight,” under their new moniker, that sent the band’s buzz flowing.
Castratii
If Australian band Castratii makes dream pop, the reference point for theirs has got to be that deep, druggy sleep that you struggle to wake up from. Think sleep paralysis and liminal state hallucinations. Their recently released debut full-length Eora is an ambient incubus, much heavier than it seems at first. Listen to the brooding, frayed bass that underscores “Kingdom.” Feel how it pulls you down, even as singer Liela Moss’ mellow Hope Sandovaline voice calls you to the surface. Is your breath getting shallow? Don’t fight it. There’s nothing to worry about. You’ll only wake up in another dream.
Skip Skip Ben Ben
P.K. 14′s Maybe Mars label-mates Skip Skip Ben Ben are taking that passion for serious minded post-punk R&D down a more tuneful and perhaps US influenced path. The Taiwanese group’s findings so far, documented on 2010′s No-Fi, No-Fiction, are illuminating. What started as a bedroom recording project for frontwoman/guitarist Ben Ben has burgeoned into a trio trafficking in fundamentalist indie rock, dreamy pop and pure, cleansing noise. Sometimes it comes together like the weirdest, most inviting bathrobe ever, stitched from swatches of Mazzy Star and Sonic Youth.
Calibro 35
Calibro 35, a Milanese funk quintet made up of some of Italy’s baddest players, takes Italian soundtrack music as a starting point for their sound. Specifically, they draw inspiration from the Polizieschi, ‘70s-era grade-B Italian police thrillers. In the hands of Calibro 35, the Polizieschi sound takes new life, as those carefully arranged themes get batted around by the group’s able improvisers in a tumble of high-flying flutes, dirty guitars, cheapo organ sounds and tasty grooves. Earlier this year, the group put out its third full-length instrumental album, titled, aptly Any Resemblance to Real Persons or Actual Facts is Purely Coincidental.
Voting Booth!