Best Band Nobody Has Heard Of..

[tgpo]

What band do you love and feel should have more public exposure? These can be bands that are no longer together, but you still love their music.

A few bands that more people should hear about:
Zebrahead
Goldfinger
Brand New
Polaris
The Killers
Placebo
The Stills

[teegee420]

I'm a big Nelly Furtado fan. She isn't exactly an unknown but I don't think she gets anywhere near as much exposure as she deserves. Her latest album is pretty amazing. It pisses me off that twits like Britney and Hillary(sorry Pac) dominate MTV airplay and sales charts when someone with actual songwriting and musical talent goes unrecognized.

[shoozleboy]

The Sharks

An early 80's band from Pennsylvania that won the MTV Basement Tapes contest - but got ZERO support from the record company that gave them a contract for winning MTV..... (another reason for me to dislike the recording industry!)

We had a number of successful bands (Poison, Fuel, Hooters, Badlees, and Live) from this area of PA that made a decent living on the national scene - but the Sharks actually paved the way for them here.... nobody even looked at PA bands until the Sharks won the MTV thing....

[stiltman]

Surf Punks

[Rookie64]

The Sharks

An early 80's band from Pennsylvania that won the MTV Basement Tapes contest - but got ZERO support from the record company that gave them a contract for winning MTV..... (another reason for me to dislike the recording industry!)

We had a number of successful bands (Poison, Fuel, Hooters, Badlees, and Live) from this area of PA that made a decent living on the national scene - but the Sharks actually paved the way for them here.... nobody even looked at PA bands until the Sharks won the MTV thing....

I remember them - saw them once.


MTV used to play their video for Only Time Will Tell


There have been a number of bands from Pgh...especially in the '50s and '60s. There was a big music scene in Pittsburgh.


As for the '80s, two of my favorite locals are The Silencers (not to be confused with the Assie band with the same name) and Donnie Iris & The Cruisers.


Some others (non local) I like that might not be too well known are -

Janata
Mi-Sex
The Sherbs (previously known as Sherbet)
Goanna
The Producers
Holly & The Italians
Hoodoo Gurus


Very big Simple Minds fan here - I know they're popular in Europe, but it seems they weren't given a fair deal in the US.
Unfortunately, most people only know them for the theme song from
The Breakfast Club

[uka100]

What band do you love and feel should have more public exposure? These can be bands that are no longer together, but you still love their music.

A few bands that more people should hear about:
Zebrahead
Goldfinger
Brand New
Polaris
The Killers
Placebo
The Stills

Placebo are quite well known, along with Goldfinger and Brand New (love that sic gloria song). I would say Apartment 26.

[tgpo]

Placebo are quite well known, along with Goldfinger and Brand New (love that sic gloria song).

Not around here they aren't. No one has heard of Placebo or Brand New around here. A few people might of heard Goldfinger's cover to 99 Red Balloons, but nothing more than that.

[housepig]

saw a band last night that blew me away - Neung Phak, it's a side project of a band called Mono Pause. killer Pacific Rim surf-rock / space freakishness.

otherwise...

Can
Man is the Bastard
Unicorn
Namanax
Faust
Magma
Jurassic 5

[Faustus]

SOME may have heard of 'em but I put my vote on A3. (A.k.a. Alabama 3)

[sitlet]

fugazi
cursive
suicide machines
rise against
the chiodos bros.
fall out boy

a lot of my favorite bands are not well known. they are popular enough to be able to find their cd's without a lot of hassle, but not many people know about them

[hech54]

This may be more under the heading of "Not heard of in MY country" but here we go:
Colin James - Blues-Rock guitarist/singer from Canada
Paul Carrack - keyboards/guitar/vocals from the U.K.
John Farnham - vocalist from Australia
Steve Wade - vocalist from Australia
Jude Cole - piano/guitars/vocals from the U.S.(his last CD sort of sucked)
Leo Kottke - phenominally strange acoustic guitarist...been around for YEARS in America..impossible to learn his stuff...he's too good.
Al Di Meola - jazz guitarist from America...his older electric stuff is amazing.

[The village idiot]

Caroline's Spine
Joydrop
The first disk from Sneaker Pimps
Machines of Loving Grace (though they have a couple of movie soundtrack cuts)
Portishead (big, though not to big in the US)
PET

There are a few others, but I can't think of them at this moment.

[Rookie64]

This may be more under the heading of "Not heard of in MY country" but here we go:

Paul Carrack - keyboards/guitar/vocals from the U.K.

Trust me, you'd hear Paul Carrack all the time if you lived near me 8)
One of my all-time favorites...solo and with Roxy Music, Squeeze, Mike & The Mechanics and Ace.

Jude Cole - Time For Letting Go is one my favorites too.


I didn't mention them 'cause I figured they're more commonly known...at least I'd hope so.

[Cobra]

Social Distortion. Great rock band.

Cobra

[tgpo]

Brand New (love that sic gloria song)

That is a great song, but I think The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knoews is a better song.

[flaninacupboard]

Someone in the house likes the stills (seen the album around) and i love placebo. well, self titled, without you i'm nothing and sleeping with ghosts are great, not so keen on black market music. it always amuses me that people think brian molko is a woman!

Pitchshifter were great, but disbanded last year. ed harcourt is very talented and i loved seeing him perform live. mansun and The Flaming Lips are very good, if a little weird.

TGPO, did you know Space have a new song out over here?

[hech54]

This may be more under the heading of "Not heard of in MY country" but here we go:

Paul Carrack - keyboards/guitar/vocals from the U.K.

Trust me, you'd hear Paul Carrack all the time if you lived near me 8)
One of my all-time favorites...solo and with Roxy Music, Squeeze, Mike & The Mechanics and Ace.

Jude Cole - Time For Letting Go is one my favorites too.


I didn't mention them 'cause I figured they're more commonly known...at least I'd hope so.

I met Paul last year here in Germany....super nice guy. I grew up in Pittsburgh in the U.S....the home of the Shot and a Beer and either Springsteen or Seger on the radio....and anything new by The Stones....no matter how much it sucks or has sucked in the past 20 years.
A Place In The Line is my favorite Jude Cole song....that and Start The Car of course.
Never much got into Carrack's other stuff besides the M&TM material...that is my wife's territory. Try some Farnham stuff if you get a chance...or send a PM.

[tgpo]

TGPO, did you know Space have a new song out over here?

I heard they were working on a new album that sounded more like their older stuff. After the football album didn't get released, which was much darker than their other music, they decided to return to their true form. I can't wait to hear it.

Fischerspooner is another great band that no one knows in the US of A. Great music!

[SatStorm]

Fischerspooner gets great push in Europe, expecially in the "Electro" scene. I have a couple of their videos, looks like post punk like...

I'm more in the eurodisco / techno / trance / dance music scene. After all, this is the sound of Europe. Many feel that "techno" for Europe is what Rock is for USA. Expecially in Germany / Austria / France / BeNeLux (TMF! TMF! Mental Theo you rule!), Swiss.... Anyway, time will tell.

I also like the techno/electro Gothic groups, like Apoptygma Beserk, VNV nation and Laibach... I would like this music scene get a push, it is very promising (dark wave crossover with electro)

Question: Is trance music known in USA? I know that it is a huge phenomenon in Japan and well known in Australia, but what about USA? Do you know something about it? Kai Tracid anyone?

[housepig]

Fischerspooner is another great band that no one knows in the US of A. Great music!

so untrue, I was listening to them yesterday on a compilation I made.

maybe no one in your part of the US knows about them....

[tgpo]

maybe no one in your part of the US knows about them....

Yeah, the south sucks like that

[curlyween]

Even though they've been around for years, I discovered UFO a couple of years ago. Lead guiatrist is the maestro Michael Schenker with Phil Mogg on vocals. Their best album (IMHO) is "Walk on Water", although a lot of their early stuff is also very good. A great selection of their early songs is on the "Essential UFO" CD.

[Rookie64]

Question: Is trance music known in USA? I know that it is a huge phenomenon in Japan and well known in Australia, but what about USA? Do you know something about it? Kai Tracid anyone?

Yes, they play it in various nightclubs...and most often on commercial porn
soundtracks

It's not exactly mainstream...but you can find it here too.

I'm sure there are outlets for it on the 'net and digital TV music channels.

It seems to be a popular thing in gay pop culture...but that's where Madonna got her start, so it may catch on more as time goes on.


Personally, it's not my style...but I have a neighbor that is a DJ and he really gets into Electronica.

I like a lot of '80s New Wave music, which was very much European music, which got popular with the help of MTV.

I like Reggae as well...which isn't mainstream here.

But yea, I also like a lot of the harder rock from the past decades...since it's what I grew up with.

[Guest]

Exuma

[tgpo]

I love the new song by Modest Mouse. It's getting some airplay around here. The background guitar riff makes the song!

[Defcon]

Let's see.......

1. Half Life

2. Chaos UK

3. Exploited

4. Bowling For Soup

[pacmania_2001]

Bowling for Soup
SR71
Three Days Grace
Trapt
Story of the Year
Guttermouth
Dropkick Murphys
Xavier Rudd
John Butler Trio
1200 Techniques

Alot of mine would be well known in other places but not in Australia or if they are known they are only known for one song, not their other albums.

It all depends where you are from as to whether they are well known or not. Hech54 posted that he liked John Farnham, over here in Australia he is very well known but for other countries he is most likely a nobody.

[tgpo]

4. Bowling For Soup

Girl All the Bad Guys Want got overplayed here in SC/GA.

I finally remembered the song the guitar riff from Modest Mouse - Float On reminds me of. Whitetown - Your Woman had a similar riff.

[888888]

My band. Oh no, wait we suck. Never mind.

http://www.avaband.com

[tgpo]

My band. Oh no, wait we suck. Never mind.

http://www.avaband.com

Are you the bass player?