Big Black led the alternative music revolution of "Industrial" from Chicago in the 1980s. The band's 1987 "Songs About F*cking" hits hard with gritty rock 'n' roll.
Pavement's swan song, Terror Twilight, remains a fascinating note to finish on for one of the most influential indie bands of their era. It was the album that brought Pavement full circle: dressed for success, but never quite sure if they wanted the job.
Real Estate's Atlas is intimate and spare. Musically, it touches the long tradition of great guitar-pop, hinting at Pavement, Galaxie 500 and Nick Drake.
His first real "studio" album with an actual band, Will Toledo moves from bedroom pop to something approaching classic rock grandeur and huge narrative ambitions, with nods to the Cars, Pavement, Jonathan Richman, Wire, and William Onyeabor.
As The Dead Tongues, Ryan Gustafson has emerged as one of the most distinct voices in modern folk. Now, he's made the most poignant music of his career: the song-centric Body of Light, and the wonderfully elliptical I Am A Cloud.
With his critically acclaimed, major label debut, Child Of The State, churning out the #1 hit "Mercy" and two Top 5 singles ("Take Me Away," "Supercharged"), Ayron Jones shows no signs of slowing down.