Is there even any doubt that Brooklyn circa 2009 fosters one of the most vibrant music scenes on this here planet?

Not really; at this point, Brooklyn as music epicenter is a given, and it really has been long since next-door spoiled brother Manhattan’s ever-skyrocketing rents have forced 99% of musicians across the East River and elsewhere. It’s like that cool time-lapse photography used to capture vegetation growing, except the flowers and weeds are bands, artists, and ideas exploding from a single concrete slab.

And while those of us who live here may take it for granted from time to time, that doesn’t mean we can’t recognize the sheer enormity of great music going on here. We’ve got it good, and it’s in this spirit, dear readers, that we share with you ten local bands you simply must hear right now. This doesn’t mean the following is in any way, shape, or form a comprehensive list (nor should it be construed as such) but rather more a smattering of bands that have popped up on our radars over the last several weeks and months (and in some cases much longer). Some are fairly well-known, others less so, but all are absolutely worthy of your time RIGHT NOW. So go ahead, listen! Love! Brooklyn!

• 10. La Strada

  

  Listen: “The Sun Song”
  Watch: “My New Home” (shot by EF @ Pianos 7/29/08)
  See Them Live Next: 15 Jan - Cambridge, MA @ Middle East Upstairs

  On the strength of some excellent songs and even stronger word of mouth, we recommended La Strada to Takka Takka as an opener for a Pianos residency show this past July without having seen them ourselves. Now we should be saying thanks to them for making us look good; this band puts on one of those uniquely uplifting shows that has you scanning the room for possible skins of wine and accompanying legs of wild boar that may be circulating the crowd. A jolly good time.

• 9. Limbs

  above pic by Jared Moossy

  Listen: “Mediator, Clean The Slate”
  See Them Live Next: 14 Jan - Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands

  One of the very first bands EF wrote about back in its infancy (look at those teeny pics!), Limbs have also clearly grown some since 2005; today, they’re jammed firmly in our cerebral cortex again courtesy of a new album Seeds On Stone. The beauty is they remain the same tightly-coiled unit as before - think the Armistead Burwell Smith-side of Pinback - while sweetening up the math-y melange of twitchy twists and turns in the process.

• 8. Glass Ghost

  

  Listen: “Like A Diamond”
  See Them Live Next: 18 Jan - New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge

  Eliot Krimsky and Mike Johnson are the duo that make up Glass Ghost. Also in the band Flying, their new project flies on its own accord on the strength of literate vocals with a sweetly falsetto delivery (imagine David Byrne on helium?) and wonderfully busy drums that recall the awesomeness of the Dodos’ Logan Kroeber’s inimitable style. Groovily paranoid? Paranoia with grooves? Works both ways really.

• 7. Effi Briest

  above pic by Brian Tamborello

  Listen: “Mirror Rim”
  See Them Live Next: no dates currently scheduled

  Effi Briest has been locked on our radar since the very first time “Mirror Rim” rocked our skulls over a year ago. Sounding equal parts like Blondie on a camping trip and a seductive coven of witches sprinkling a disco chant over their bubbling cauldron, the sextet has us regretting not having become spellbound earlier. So don’t make the same mistake we did, okay? Submit to the snapping beats, jangly surf-guitar lines, and otherworldly howls now!

• 6. The Naked Hearts

  

  Listen: “Cat & Mouse”
  See Them Live Next: 22 Jan - New York, NY @ Cake Shop

  Granted, this is not the first time you’ve seen them on EF, but my how things can change in the span of just a few short seasons. Early last summer, The Naked Hearts kickstarted their evolution as a band around the rough-hewn promise of a few demos and endless potential. Since then, they’ve streamlined their lineup back to its original incarnation of Noah Wheeler and Amy Cooper, recorded a proper EP - the excellent These Knees, which comes out 1/20 - and lined up an entire East Coast tour. Which is to say, if you didn’t listen then, you damn well better do it now.

• 5. Soft Black

  

  Listen: “I Am An Animal”
  See Them Live Next: 12 Jan @ Mercury Lounge

  No, not The Soft Pack. Soft Black is the brainchild of local singer/songwriter Vincent Cacchione, whose own personal catharsis from a series of nightmares that kept plaguing him involved….therapy? Nah. Ambien? Nope. How about writing and recording a bunch of songs about it over the span of a year? Now that’s more like it. The resulting album - The Earth Is Black (out February 17th on Plays With Dolls Records) - is an immensely satisfying throwback folk (but not folk)-rock listen, alternating between fist-pumping anthems like “I Am An Animal” (listen below) and catchy campfire slow jams like “Time Gets Away And Has Its Way With You”. Sorry Vince, but your nightmares are everyone else’s gain.

• 4. Dinosaur Feathers

  

  Listen: “Teenage Whore”
  See Them Live Next: 21 Jan - New York, NY @ Sidewalk Cafe

  Dinosaur Feathers earns a secure spot here on raw potential alone. With little more than a drum machine, acoustic guitar, and keys, this duo spins a skewed funhouse of pop music that’s more deranged, more fun, and more groovy than the sum of its parts. Here’s a question for the audience: if Animal Collective and the Unicorns were doused with tar and feathered and then left on a perilous island with Sir Richard Attenborough and Jeff Goldblum, would we not be left with Dinosaur Feathers? Discuss.

• 3. The Antlers

  above pic from PTST CMJ show by Matt

  Listen: “Bear”
  See Them Live Next: 22 Jan - New York, NY @ Cake Shop

  With their new album Hospice set to drop March 3rd - and with long-long-time Antlerphiles like Pat from Pop Tarts Suck Toasted already proclaiming it as a frontrunner for best album of the year - The Antlers are putting all the chips in for 2009….well, based on the two songs we’ve heard from Hospice it certainly sounds that way. With this concept album, penned by frontman Peter Silberman as an explanation for his exile in NYC, the band aims high, skywriting their missives on a murky skyline…”we are Antlers, hear us roar!” We like it.

• 2. The Lisps

  above pic from The Lisps’ FUTURITY, 1/9/09 @ The Zipper Factory

  Listen: “Brackish Water”
  See Them Live Next: 29 Jan @ The Bell House

  Any band that dares stage a full-on 15-song cycle musical extravaganza set in the Civil War (but with one foot firmly planted in 2035) gets consideration for their reckless bravado alone. But actually pulling the whole thing off? Now that’s impressive. If you want more details as to why we chose The Lisps (which was a total no-brainer), check out our review of FUTURITY and hope they decide to stage it again. Two nights is simply not enough…

• 1. not so fast!

  You’ll just have to wait until Wednesday when we unveil our latest Band of the Week to see….stay tuned (don’t you just love a good cliffhanger?)! [EDIT: update... we've unveiled our latest BoW, click HERE to see!]

  Front image found HERE, top image of Brooklyn Map circa 1897 found HERE