If you really had the power of foresight, and its outer limits were the ability to predict next year’s breakout music artist, in this fiscal climate it’d be about as lucrative or useful as Isaac’s albino-eyeballed painting-predictions about people you don’t know. (That often don’t even come true, but that’s for another, post writers-strike day.) But hey, you’d have a kick-ass music blog! And, you’d look great in hindsight when you gave quotes to papers about next year’s biggest acts. Guardian‘s gone and asked nine music on the other side of the Atlantic about the artists most likely to make some noise in ’08, and we’ve assembled ‘em here with some illustrative links so you can see what they’re on about.
Simon Moran, promoter, SJM Concerts
- Duffy
- Adele
- One Night Only
- The Twisted Wheel
- The Script (“They’ve got a track called The Man Who Can’t Be Moved that’s going to be a worldwide hit.”)
Nick Huggett, head of A&R, Columbia Records
- Sam Sparro (“He sings soulful electro dance music – Gnarls Barkley meets Scissor Sisters. He’s quite camp but very fresh-sounding and his song Black and Gold is a massive tune.”)
- Adele
- Eg White
- The Ting Tings
Alison Howe, producer, Later With Jools Holland
- Duffy
- Adele
- Vampire Weekend
- Black Kids (“like the Go! Team mixed with Arcade Fire”)
- Yeasayer (“look pretty awful in the way they dress, but musically they make no sense and I like that”)
- The Whitest Boy Alive
- Cajun Dance Party
- Hot Chip
Conor McNicholas, editor, NME
- Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong (“was the drummer in the Pipettes and he’s also an actor … he’s like Pete Doherty – when he walks into a room the lights come on”)
- Does It Offend You, Yeah?
- Late Of The Pier
Nihal Arthanayake, DJ, Radio 1/BBC Asian Network
- Superswamis (“mix Gnarls Barkley, the Doors and Asian classical music”)
- RJ Productions (“A bedroom producer in Leicester … sounds like a drum’n'bass Unfinished Symphony”)
- Cage The Elephant (“could be 2008′s Strokes)
- Dawn Kinnard
- Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly (new album’s produced by Nitin Sawney)
- Estelle (could be the next Ms. Dynamite)
Matt Cook, director of talent and music, MTV2
- The Ting Tings
- Vampire Weekend
- MGMT
- Alphabeat
- Adele
- Duffy
- Jacob Golden
Sean Adams, founder, drownedinsound.com
- The Kills (“will be listened to more than they were now that Jamie Hince goes out with Kate Moss”)
- Magnetic Fields
- Friendly Fires (“like a Rapture for Kooks fans”)
- Errors
- Foals
- These New Puritans
- “New” Age (“art rockers who’ve just signed to Sub Pop” — EDITOR’S NOTE: he meant No Age)
- Youth Movies (“a cross between Mars Volta and Death Cab for Cutie”)
- Laura Marling
Niall Doherty, deputy editor, The Fly magazine
- Foals
- Dead Kids (“wild, electro groove that sometimes sounds like Joe Strummer fronting PiL, and sometimes like a new rave Bowie”)
- Vampire Weekend
- Yeasayer
- MGMT
Nick Tesco, writer, Music Week
So if you’re keeping score, looks like it’s all about Duffy, Adele, MGMT, Yeasayer, and Vampire Weekend. But that’s coming from nine people — now we turn to thousands. If there’s someone poised for goodness in ’08, consider this the official thread. Post ‘em up (listen links preferable).
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I really think if Black Kids manage to get a proper record out in 2008 they’ll be huge. Well, like “indie” huge, but still.
how surprising, another brit journo calling a song massive. that’s like, completely uncommon.
Add this band Pale Nimbus to the mix. They are completely blowing up the nyc scene and flying under-the-radar. They don’t have any music on their myspace page either, which I think is cool. I guaranteeing a blowup in the New Year.
Despite the evidence in that piece, not all young British bands are completely hopeless – Broken Records (http://www.myspace.com/brokenrecordsedinburgh) are already the closest we’ve come to having our own Arcade Fire/Beirut.
Good call on Sam Sparro, “Black & Gold” was my favourite song of 07. Kind of scary the head of A&R at Columbia is aware of him though.
no foals? tokyo police club? i’ll have to check out some of these bands though.
Alison Howe apparently slept through the last year. Or she does’nt have an internet connection.
but who is this Hot Chip she speaks of?
these new puritans are going to blow up. their record is absolutely killer, everything the hipsters love. vampire weekend are going to be huge too, but they were poised to be huge anyway. i believe the world should love alphabeat though, their record is great pop, so it nice to see them on someone’s radar.
MYSPACE.COM/DETRIOMPHE
Wintersox
http://wintersox.blogspot.com/
the magnetic fields? they definitely sound like up and comers!
Colourmusic
http://www.myspace.com/colourmusic
and Kunek
http://www.myspace.com/kunek
Golden Animals – that’s the score.
oops- here’s the stitch-
http://www.myspace.com/goldenanimals
BIG IN 08
THE DEATH SET, SKEW, COPY, O’DEATH, THE RETURN OF PORTISHEAD
I hereby declare all of these acts overrated. Yes, I only read half the page before zoning out, but still; firsties on the overrated declaration.
cage the elephant are fucking HORRIBLE.
Most of the bands being talked about could really make it, but they are being talked about the way they are because someone wants you to buy. With those bands it’s not about what’s really going on as much as what someone else wants you to think is really going on.
Wintersox, his book is on Amazon.com and it’s poetry and rock and roll. He made it for real.
http://wintersox.blogspot.com/
YOUR VEGAS
http://www.myspace.com/yourvegas
from leeds, uk
@Simon
Thanks for the Broken Records introduction. Very Arcade Fire/Beirut-esque for sure.
Second with whlpln…Cage the Elephant are one of the shittiest bands to exist.
FOALS!
if pete doherty walked into the room i think i would turn the lights off.
I too, think Black Kids will blow up in 2008. Their short description is pretty accurate, and who doesn’t want more Arcade Fire and Go! Team?
the wombats. they’re great.
White Denim’s debut is releasing in the UK come springtime …..
i want less arcade fire and go team. frankly i dont want any. thanks for steering me away from black kids.
wow – i took the time to check out all these acts and there is NOTHING that raised the pulse. If this is what’s predicted to be the breakouts of 2008, music is heading to a bad place…
The Virgins
The Black Kids
The Postelles
Medium Cool
Vampire Weekend
Your Vegas
there are a shit ton of bands that will be big.
Eagle Seagull are going to be huge in 2008.
Check out The Winks from Montreal.
http://www.myspace.com/wink
I saw them in concert without hearing them beforehand and they were quite impressive.
Foals are also pretty good. The Yeasayer album is a bit disappointing.
Sam Duckworth (Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly.) had a record out not long ago that was pretty big in the UK, I’m surprised that he isn’t already counted as ‘big’.
Shocked no one mentioned Santogold.
What about Alberta Cross? Saw them at CMJ…they were pretty cool. http://www.myspace.com/albertacross
Good Day.
These are some Canadian bands to watch out for in 2008:
Slim Twig
http://www.myspace.com/slimtwig
Thunderheist
http://www.myspace.com/thunderheist
Woodhands
http://www.myspace.com/woodhands
Cadence Weapon
http://www.myspace.com/cadenceweapon
Laura Barrett
http://www.myspace.com/laurabarrett
The Acorn
http://www.myspace.com/theacorn
Watch out.
CAGE THE ELEPHANT ARE THE BEST ROCK N ROLL BAND TO COME OUT IN YEAR’S. you know there’s band called LED ZEPPLIN that a lot of people liked to pick on back when they fist came on the scene. those people are eating their words now. it seem as if some people don’t have an ear for the future. oh well i guess in 20 years or so the wagon will be full. close minded people make me laugh! hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahah!HA!
I have to agree cage the elephant are a new breed of rockers and will be around long after the also-rans are clay. When I saw them in Ulverston and got to talk to them, they really don’t care what any of these blogs say. They seem to be having a great time between the US and UK and who knows what part of the world they will invade in 2008.
cage the elephant = poo poo
it sounds like cage the elephant has one person on here that really hates them, personally i think they’re great! i was in exeter when they played. one word, BRILLIANT!
does this mean health is already huge?
i think you people give black kids wayyy too much credit.
they’re decent, nothing to wet your panties over.
however one could say the same thing about vampire weekend, however i love them and i really see them going places, so eh, who knows.
Foals
http://www.myspace.com/foals
Circus Animals Desertion
http://www.myspace.com/circusanimalsdesertion
Bersarin Quartett
http://www.myspace.com/bersarinquartett
cage the elephant=brilliant. i have to admit,when i first saw them open for foals i was a little offended. but after listening to them on myspace
and seeing them once more i have grown to love them. oh yeah the foals rock too!
the beatles
INTERVURT are without a doubt the best band curently poised to break through into the mainstream. Period. They throw away songs at the start of their set that any other band would die to have in reserve for the big finish.
I’d also agree with Dead Kids…a phenomenal live experience!
not that anyone is reading this post anymore but if you do check out Nathan & Stephen, specifically a song called coming home.
Have a look at this video – just in case anyone is still reading this post!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbIu7QW4juY
New single by Gabby Young, “Snakebite” taken from EP, “Bear With Me”, due for release end June 08. Enjoy!