Rhapsody.com classifies The Shins under the Indie Rock/ Baroque Pop category. But what does that even mean? Does it properly sum up their sound? No. The Shins have influences drawing from different corners. Yes, they are a rock band with some country influences. Yes, the have a pop sound in there as well. And then, there’s that unmistakable Beach Boys flavor that seeps through.

This Portland Oregon based group draws from all of these things, and comes up with something that is like them in some respects, but vastly different in others. The band is made up of several multitalented musicians. James Mercer, Martin Crandall, Eric Johnson, Dave Hernandez, and Jesse Sandoval each bring their own flair and style to the band.

The Shins have released four albums – When You Land Here It’s Time to Return in 1997, Oh, Inverted World in 2001, Chutes Too Narrow in 2003, and four years later in 2007 they finally released their forth, Wincing the Night Away. Fans and critics have determined that it was worth the wait. They’ve also been featured on several compilation albums such as the soundtracks for Garden State and Wicker Park. They also have an exclusive itunes live release of their newest album.

[tags]the shins, indie music, indie, music, independent music[/tags]

Canadian born Tegan and Sara identical twins with distinctly different styles. On the surface, it may be hard to identify the difference between them because their voices actually sound similar. But if you listen closely, you realize that they both bring something different to the music. One delivers the lyrics harder and sharper.

The other has a soft voice that balances the music out quite nicely. They are certainly an updated, edgier version of groups like the Indigo girls and artists like Ani DiFranco.

They had their beginnings when someone submitted their music to the George Warz music competition, which they won. They’ve released six albums since 1999 and several demos before that. Their latest, titled The Con, was released in July 2007 and debuted as number 34 on the Billboard charts.

Most of their songs feature one of the twins in the lead role – usually the one who wrote the lyrics has the lead. The other provides the harmony and support. This works well for their songs because the similar tone yet original delivery of each is very complimentary.

Besides creating albums, they’ve also made several television and movie appearances. These include Late Night wiith Conan O’Brien, The Late Show with David Letterman, Grey’s Anatomy, Veronica Mars, and Monster In-Law.

[tags]tegan and sara, indie music, indie, music, independent music[/tags]

Music is probably as old as humanity is or even older than that. Humans have a special empathy for music, which explains why a dose of genuinely melodious piece of music can refresh a person far more than any known artificial refreshing drink.

Music 4 Youth is a Driffield based organization that is unique in that it offers an opportunity to aspiring musicians to test their talents and abilities and to develop a sense of music performance in a real life setting. Chris Pittaway, chair of Music 4 Youth, said that it was vital for young people to chance their arm at playing on stage. Since its inception, about a year ago, Music 4 Youth has aided many a band to grow and improve. True to its objective, the organization imposes only one condition – that the band members should be on the younger side of 19. This weekend many youth bands will play live at The Tribfest – a music festival meant for all the seasoned campaigners as well as those who are picking up their favorite instrument for the first time. The bands selected to perform here have been selected by this rookie inspiring organization. Some of the Driffield based bands set to perform at the Tribfest are Edmund Kemper, Spacegrace, Parkmoor and Upon Dying Skies along with 14 other young bands from across East Riding. Among these, Edmund Kemper deserves a special mention and in the words of Chris Pittaway, the band has been really spreading its wings and has already performed in York and Grimsby. He also mentioned that the band has put a CD together and won the Battle of the Bands. Mr. Pittaway further mentioned that he was quite confident that the bands in the program would put up a good show even though some of them were taking to the stage for the first time and many had not worked before with Music 4 Youth.

One of the first, and probably the most difficult, problems faced by artists is to get that one break which will launch them at the center stage. The Herculean task is converted into a cakewalk by Music 4 Youth and if the organization continues to grow so will the hopes of the rookies.