2009年 Feb 22日 Sunday, 18:01

Because it is a boring Sunday evening, I thought I'd write something. So today I bring you my Top 11 Artists You Might Don't Know, a list of some of my favourite musical artists you probably haven't heard of. Why Top 11? Because I like to go one step beyond. So, let's get started.

(And yes, the title and top 11 thing are shamelessly stolen from thatguywiththeglasses.com. Very funny site, check it out. Also these really don't have any order, just as they come into my head)

11. Animal Alpha
Stand-Out Tracks:
Catch Me
Trøbbel
Bundy
A Norwegian rock band, with a very impressive female singer (who happens to dress as a clown, so yeah.) Her vocal performance on Catch Me is amazing, and a little scary. Instrumentally, a pretty solid band, with some catchy tunes, especially Trøbbel, which you should YouTube straight away

10. The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets
Stand-Out Tracks:
Cultists on Board
No Way
Ride the Flying Polyp
American geek rock, based almost entirely on the writings of H.P. Lovecraft, creator of Cthulhu and all manner of horrible beasties. I've just got their most recent album, The Shadow Out of Tim, and it's a really addictive listen. A modern day retelling of one of Lovecraft's stories, it has catchy melodies and very cool lyrics, including one track sung in Middle Egyptian!

9.That Handsome Devil
Stand-Out Tracks:
Rob the Prez-O-Dent
Viva Discordia
Dating Tips (which is probably offensive, but still damn funny)
A band I discovered due to Guitar Hero II, these guys are pretty unique, and have a really cool, almost jazzy sound. Their singer, Godforbid, uses a mixture of lounge style vocals, rap, and a load of other styles, and has the second coolest voice I have heard in music. They have a definite sense of humour in their songs, and are very much worth a listen.

8. Tom Waits
Stand-Out Tracks:
Alice
Lucky Day
Earth Died Screaming
Not terribly obscure, but I only know one other person who listens to him, Tom Waits has been going on for many years, started as a lounge singer, but developed a unique, stripped down sound using very odd instrumentation. He also has the coolest voice in music, and is a genuinely funny guy. He's also done a few collaborations with…

7.Primus
Stand-Out Tracks:
Tommy the Cat
My Name is Mud
To Defy the Laws of Tradition
A three piece band that defies genre discriptions, but has been described as 'Thrash Funk', Primus has pretty much the most talented bass player around these days, Les Claypool. Most tracks are bass-led, with amazing drumming and guitar noodling backing it up. This is a band that doesn't take itself too seriously, their catchphrase for many years was 'Primus Sucks'! The atonality of most of the songs and Claypool's strangled vocals may put people off, but this a band to check out.

6.Buckethead
Stand-Out Tracks:
Nottingham Lace
Gory Head Stump 2006: The Pageant of the Slunks
Soothsayer
The strangest artist on this list, and pretty well known, Buckethead is an enigmatic character who always wears a white mask and a KFC bucket while performing. He never gives interviews, and uses nunchucks on stage. He's also the most technically skilled guitarist currently playing. He can do pretty much anything invovling a guitar, and evoke intense emotion without singing a word. He's also worked with many other artists, including Gun's N' Roses, Les Claypool and Serj Tankian. Prolific, experimental and frikkin' weird, you should definitely look him up.

5.Emilie Autumn
Stand-Out Tracks:
Second Hand Faith
Opheliac
Gothic Lolita
A solo artist and multi-instrumentalist, playing the violin, piano and probably a few others, Autumn started out with classical violin songs, moved onto her own poppy numbers, and has recently settled on a sort of 'Industrial Violin' sound, using electronics mixed with her own intruments and singing. Highly unusual, but suprisingly awesome.

4. Between the Buried and Me
Stand-Out Tracks:
Sun Of Nothing
Ants Of The Sky
Prequel To The Sequel
I only have their newest album, but this Progressive Death Metal group really impressed me with it. The singing is largely death grunts, but has suprising melodic sections as well. The musical talent is very much on display here, with shifting melodies, odd time signatures, and unusual arrangements, including an accordian break in Prequel To The Sequel and a Mr. Bungle-esque breakdown in Sun Of Nothing. If you like death metal, check 'em out.

3.The Parlor Mob
Stand-Out Tracks:
Can't Keep No Good Boy Down
The Kids
Tide of Tears
Very Led Zeppelin inspired Blues Rock, with one album out now. Features catchy tracks, cool lyrics and a wailing vocalist. What more could you want?

2. Murder by Death
Stand-Out Tracks:
Those Who Left
Brother
The Devil In Mexico
A fantastic band, featuring a cello player and a singer with about 20 different voices in him. Started out with a very etherial, keyboard based sound, before moving on to a very much old-school rock n' roll style. Some very emotional stuff here as well, especially in their earlier stuff.

1.The Dresden Dolls/Amanda Palmer
Stand-Out Tracks:
Girl Anachronism
Gravity
Mandy Goes to Med School
Leeds United
Guitar Hero
Ampersand

The Dresden Dolls are a two piece 'Punk Cabaret' act featuring Amanda Palmer on Piano and Vocals, and Brian Viglione on Drums. Can go from highly energetic to melodramtic and soulfull very quickly, but always entertaining, they also put on a spectacular live show featuring circus performers, living statues and other wonders. Amanda recently put out a solo album, which is also really damn good.

So, to the 3 people who've read this, hope it was at least vaguely interesting, and not too badly spelled. Seeya around the web!