Dusted's Destined

On Friday, Dusted Magazine, my favorite music e-zine, wrapped up their annual Destined feature.  The site selected 10 emerging artists to watch in 2009, including Bachelorette, Kurt Vile, and Aeroplane.  Dusted's track record is a strong indication that at least a couple of these artists are worth keeping an eye on: at various points in the last six years, Parts & Labor, Hot Chip, M.I.A., Deerhunter, and Fuck Buttons were each labeled "Destined" before their breakout releases.

If you missed the two-week feature, you can check out the in-depth articles for each artist here.

My personal favorite was Nate Knaebel's look at The Strange Boys, a Dallas-based garage rock band.

Here's an excerpt:

While the band’s musical scholarship is undeniable, one would be wise to avoid pinpointing a particular influence. “A band can make a whole career out of sounding like Radiohead, and no one says anything,” Sambol points out. “But when a band tries to go through someone that’s maybe easier to poke at – the Kinks or Dylan – people desperately want to reference it.” Touché.

While Sambol noted that he one day hopes to outgrow any influences, the band’s official debut full-length, The Strange Boys and Girls Club, already finds the band standing solidly on its own. It’s the sound of high school dances stomped out on gymnasium floors long since abandoned; cold nights and warm whiskey; bad decisions and trouble. The jangling guitars are punctuated with strategic bursts of fuzz; the drums provide a laconic shuffling rhythm that pushes the band along just so without ever rushing things. Sambol’s strained bleat sounds simultaneously desperate and elated. 

Listen to The Strange Boys' "Heard You Wanna Beat Me Up".

Visit The Strange Boys' MySpace page.