Lowell Thompson Band

It's great to see a local band making some waves- especially when they deserve too. The Lowell Thompson Band plays really good alt-country with some old time rock n roll. Their cd has a pretty diverse collection of tunes, at times branching out into folk and indie-rock.
I really like the track "Crenshaw"...it conjures Red House Painters and the sk6ers.

I saw these guys live last August, and hopefully will see them again soon. Very nice show.

Links-
Official Site
Myspace
A few streams. (bad quality, sorry)

Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers

Caught these guys about two years ago on their tour with the Pat McGee Band and they were absolutely amazing live. It's good to see that they've been steadily gaining recognition, and are now on the verge of mainstream, I'd say. Still, they remain true to their indie label Everfire, almost following in O.A.R.'s footsteps...
Anyway, SK6ERs play a great alt-country style, with original, catchy melodies. To be picky, their albums are alittle overproduced for my taste, but their live show more than makes up for it. Definetly get a ticket if you can.

I'd recommend starting with their eponymus album, especially "You've Changed" and "Anthem of our Discovery"

Links-
Official Site
You've Changed Music Vid
and this kinda stuff is what makes for a great show.

chainsaws.and.children

chainsaws.and.children is a self-described "guitar heavy electrocore band" based in Vermont. Their music is a pretty brutal midpoint between hardcore and industrial. Unfortunately, they've been on "indefinite hiatus" since 2004. It's also difficult to find much by them online, since the mp3s on Big Heavy World's website aren't all working.

Recommended Albums:
.daca.
It will be hard to find, but it's worth it if you like industrial. It should be on Amazon, if you want it.

Official Website

The Gay Blades

The Gay Blades are a rock duo composed of guitarist/vocalist Clark Westfield and drummer Puppy Mills. Their stripped-down sound could be compared to The Kills, The White Stripes, or The Black Keys. They are ridiculously energetic at live shows. I mean, seriously good. Better live than on CD. Check out the Youtube videos linked to here for examples.

Recommended Albums:
Ghosts

Official Website
Official Myspace
Bob Dylan's 115th Nightmare
Hey She Say
Robots Can Fuck Your Shit Up

Big Heavy World

Big Heavy World is a Vermont music organization. They support local music of all genres.

Big Heavy does everything from the website itself, to running the Vermont Music Library & Shop, to managing a small record label, to organizing and promoting some shows. One new thing is their collaboration with Radio Bean to run a new low-power radio station, WOMM-LP 105.9 The Radiator. I have had the pleasure of seeing The Radiator go from nothing at all to a working community radio station with regular programming. Unfortunately, the station is currently audible only in Burlington, VT. But fear not: Within the year The Radiator should be available as streaming radio, giving much wider access to Vermont music.

Unrestrained

Unrestrained is a fuckin' awesome hardcore band from my local Burlington, VT. They are composed of veterans of such other bands as My Revenge!, Spies in America, Dog Days, and others. I'll let the music speak for me here.

Official Myspace
Unrestrained Live
More Unrestrained Live


Like it? Support the Vermont music scene and buy their CD "Appleseeds." While you're at it, see one of their frequent shows if you're in the local area.

Vocalist Ryan also works for a certain Vermont music organization by the name of Big Heavy World. Take notice of this, because I'm probably going to mention BHW at every opportunity.

Deerhoof

Deerhoof is an experimental rock band from the Bay Area. Their music ranges from dissonant noise, to soft indie rock, to really strict composition. Most of their albums and songs fall somewhere between these extremes. Some common characteristics of their songs are loose tempos, odd juxtapositions of catchy melody and noise or dissonance, improvisation, weird meters, and singer Satomi Matsuzaki's distinctinctive vocals.

Recommended Albums:
Hell, there's so much variation between them that it's difficult to suggest which are the best. But for someone first being introduced to Deerhoof, I would suggest listening to Revielle and Apple O'

Official Website
MP3s courtesy of Ibiblio.org
Official Myspace
The Perfect Me
Deerhoof Live