Artist: Toro Y Moi

Hails From: Columbia, South Carolina

Musical Style: Indie Pop, Electronic

for fans of: MGMT, Neon Indian, Animal Collective

Blessa

why you should check them out:

At the forefront of the chillwave scene, Chazwick Bundick, aka Toro Y Moi, is poised to have a promising 2010 and beyond while helping to turn the lo-fi sound into a reason to stop staring at your drink and get on the dancefloor. With one well-layered track after another, his music eschews worry, and practically begs you to relax and have a good time.

Background check:

Born in Columbia, South Carolina, Chaz formed the indie-rock outfit, The Heist and The Accomplice, in 2004. After the release of their album, Connections Work, he started his own project, Toro Y Moi. Along with friend and contemporary, Ernest Greene (better known as Washed Out), Chaz helped usher in the chillwave, or glo-fi movement. With the release of his album, Causers of This, in January, 2010, and remixes of songs by Washed Out and Tegan & Sara, his style of filtered vocals over highly-textured production has earned him some growing critical acclaim. With the upcoming release of the 7″ “Leave Everywhere” on Carpark Records, and a summer tour of Europe set to get underway, the future looks bright for Toro Y Moi.

–Dylan Macturk

where you can find them in cyberspace:

Website

Myspace

on tour:

Jambase

Artist: Die Antwoord

Hails From: Cape Town, South Africa

Musical Style: Rap, Dance, Hip Hop

For Fans of: Basement Jaxx, Dizzee Rascal, Eminem

Wat Pomp

Why you should check them out:

Whether you believe them to be the future of Hip Hop or nothing more than a viral flash-in-the-pan, It is hard to deny that Die Antwoord have positioned themselves well to make a big splash in the music industry in 2010. With tens of millions of hits on their website without officially releasing their first album, the so-called “zef” (Afrikaans slang for “redneck”) trio from Cape Town have become a full-fledged phenomenon. And during the breakdown in their first single, “Enter the Ninja”, when lead rapper, Ninja, states “This is, like, the coolest song I ever heard in my whole life.”, it is difficult to disagree.

Background Check:

An oddball veteran of the South African hip hop scene, Ninja joined with female rapper, Yo-Landi Vi$$er and DJ Hi-Tek to form Die Antwoord in 2009. Their debut album, $O$, was made available as a free download on their website, but did not garner much attention until months later, when the video for “Enter the Ninja” made its rounds on the internet. The video, a sort of meth-induced visual nightmare, became a huge hit due to its oddly sexual, freakshow-esque vibe and the potent lyrical ability of Ninja. With their video approaching 4 million Youtube views, and their streaming album getting over 15 million hits in February, they arrived in the States. After a couple of sets at smaller venues, the trio had their break-out moment when they played a show-stopping set at Coachella in April. Capitalizing on their unexpected success, the trio has just recently inked a deal with Interscope Records, who will release the full version of $O$ later this year. In addition, director Neil Blomkamp of District 9 fame plans on directing their next video and a documentary is in the works.

Where you can find them in cyberspace:

Dieantwoord.com

MySpace

Wikipedia

On tour:

JamBase

Artist: Miike Snow

Hails From: Stockholm, Sweden

Musical Style: Pop / Electro / Dance

For Fans of: MGMT, The Neptunes, Flaming Lips

Why you should check them out:

What happens when two award winning producers team up with a longtime singer/songwriter to perform their own brand of indie pop? If Miike Snow is any indication, the result is a whole lot of catchy beats and a nearly immediate fan following poised to dance it up through their ever escalating, chart topping status.

Background check:

After years of playing in bands and writing hits for the like of Britney Spears, Madonna, and Kylie Minogue, Christian Karlsson and Pontus Ninnberg, otherwise known as the production duo Bloodshy & Avant, returned to the studio under their own direction and an unclear vision of exactly how far their new project would take them. And while the ambiguous moniker and jackalope insignia may have kept them under the radar for awhile, it was only a matter of time before both critics and listeners caught on to the trio’s tightly constructed flurry of dance pop perfection.

While writing hits for pop stars may have been their forte, the tracks off their self titled debut contain a distinct laid back charm, clearly distinguishing the feel of their new project from their previous mainstream hits. Regarded as easy listening, Miike Snow create their own division of electropop founded by their collective expertise and eclectic industry backgrounds. Piano driven arrangements are supported by wavering synth tones and highly danceable beats, while Wyatt’s smooth and sultry vocals take the songs from indie hits to full scale pop accessibility. And although Pichfork may have toted Miike Snow as sounding akin to “crying your eyes out to Phil Collins on a beach”  you just have to ask yourself, is that really such a bad thing?

Where you can find them in Cyberspace:

MySpace

Wikipedia

On Tour:

 JamBase