Emergent :: Paste

4 To Watch: Kate Nash

By Tom Lanham on 11:03 AM on October 26, 2007

Naturally, with all her stage experience, Kate Nash assumed she’d be a shoo-in at Bristol’s posh Old Vic Theatre School. She thought wrong. And the moment she received her rejection letter... read more

4 To Watch: Simian Mobile Disco

By Eric Lach on 10:54 AM on October 26, 2007

Attack Decay Sustain Release grabs dance music’s percussive backbone and transplants it into rock ’n’ roll’s sinuous body. “We wanted to try and make a dance-music album that had a bit more coherence than normal,” Ford says... read more

4 To Watch: A.J. Roach

By Kate Kiefer on 10:44 AM on October 26, 2007

“When my father built our house, we had a roof-raising party,” recalls San Francisco-based folksinger A.J. Roach. “Friends and family came from all over the county... read more

4 To Watch: Giant Bear

By Rachael Maddux on 10:35 AM on October 26, 2007

Though Giant Bear’s unintentionally trendy name is now emblazoned on the flanks of its tour van, the clunker’s goldenrod hue reveals its past life as a Stanley Steemer Carpet Cleaner utility vehicle... read more

4 To Watch: The Cave Singers

By Kasia Galazka on 10:47 AM on October 3, 2007

Stalactites and stalagmites aren’t a cozy image. But The Cave Singers live in what seems like suburban-sitcom ease: a Seattle house complete with a yard and a basement practice space... read more

4 To Watch: MGMT

By Sean Gandert on 10:29 AM on October 3, 2007

Sometimes eclecticism can cause a problem. In 2002, when Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser formed the wide-ranging duo MGMT (pronounced “Management”), their conﬂicting interests caused them to waffle on what they wanted to sound like... read more

4 To Watch: Jesca Hoop

By Tom Lanham on 10:10 AM on October 3, 2007

In casual dress, Hoop often favors a huge fur hat she inherited from her late mother. The hat gives her a fresh-from-the-traplines Kit Carson look... read more

4 To Watch: Anat Cohen

By Steve Dollar on 9:49 AM on October 3, 2007

Though she’s regarded as one of the most promising young horn players in New York, Anat Cohen was strictly a classically inclined clarinetist until she was 16... read more

4 To Watch: Ferraby Lionheart

By Kate Kiefer on 4:10 PM on September 17, 2007

The string- and horn-adorned folk songs on Lionheart’s new record, Catch the Brass Ring, allude to fairy tales and folklore—they also have a touch of autobiography... read more

4 To Watch: Jeremy Fisher

By Josh Jackson on 3:53 PM on September 17, 2007

Most independent musicians look forward to selling enough CDs, concert tickets and T-shirts to finally quit their day jobs. Canadian singer/songwriter Jeremy Fisher decided to skip that step—he just didn’t bother getting one... read more

4 To Watch: Bodies of Water

By Mark Krotov on 3:32 PM on September 17, 2007

Bodies of Water’s extraordinary debut, Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blink, takes about 40 seconds to reveal its myriad pleasures... read more

4 To Watch: Office

By David Marek on 3:05 PM on September 17, 2007

It’s like the first scene from a great rock film. Back in 2004, aspiring musician Scott Masson was waiting tables in Chicago... read more

4 to Watch: Pacha Massive

By Mark Kemp on 12:00 AM on June 12, 2007

The name reflects their vision... read more

4 To Watch: Noisettes

By Tom Lanham on 12:00 AM on May 10, 2007

Sure, Shingai Shoniwa currently feels right at home in urbane Britain... read more

4 to Watch: Peter, Björn and John

By Matthew Grayson on 12:00 AM on April 20, 2007

For Peter, Björn and John's maiden voyage to America, there were no gaps in the itinerary... read more

4 to Watch: Lavender Diamond

By Matthew Grayson on 12:00 AM on April 20, 2007

The time is probably ripe for change... read more

4 to Watch: Ryan Shaw

By David Rogers on 12:45 PM on April 11, 2007

Like Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin before him... read more

Kate Havnevik: 4 To Watch

By Mary Richardson on 12:00 AM on April 1, 2007

Electronica unplugged” may sound like a contradiction, but it’s not Kate Havnevik’s style to let anything—especially lack of a better word—put limits on her music. read more

Vega4: 4 To Watch

By Tom Lanham on 12:00 AM on April 1, 2007

Hometown: London, England Members: Johnny McDaid (vocals, guitar—pictured), Bruce Gainsford (guitar), Gavin Fox (bass), Bryan McLellan (drums) Fun fact: As a teen, Johnny McDaid took guitar lessons from John O’Neill of the Undertones. For tenpence a session, he “learned how to play ‘Teenage Kicks!’” Why they’re worth watching: With Snow Patrol producer Garret “Jacknife” Lee behind them, their major-label debut You And Others echoes that band’s majestic vibe. For fans of: U2, Travis, Snow Patrol Tink-tink-tink! Vega4 frontman Johnny McDaid is all too familiar with the sound—that of a billy club rapping on the window of his roadside-parked MG, waking... read more