What's the best band/musician that no one's ever heard of?

They’re not unheard of but none of my friends have heard of the Dresden dolls or the Me first and the gimmie gimmies and i think they’re pretty good.

Cake
Tesla

I love Mazzy Star! Not unheard of, but a bit obscure I guess.

I second Cake.

Sebastien Schuller.

Kane (dutch band) :)

4:2:Five

Graig Markel. I’d call him an indie troubadour who listened to a lot of 70s soul music in his life.

Uh, shameless plug of someone else’s band.

I also love Cake, Kate Earl – Fate is the Hunter, Mazzy Star, Portishead (not many people I know have really given them a listen), Porcupine Tree, Nikola Sarcevic, and Tori Amos doesn’t get nearly the amount of love she deserves.

Paolo Nuttini, here at 19. An amazing and brilliant musician who wrote this as a teenager. Highly underrated. He’s opened for the Rolling Stones. Every song on this album is great. His range at times sounds like Al Green-amazing voice.
@YARNLADY
Saw Cake live back in the late 90’s small venue-Nice.

@SeventhSense I met them when they were looking for an agent and gave them some names.

L@@k at you!

Ah, Paolo is wonderful!

Me, and @Jack79 will be on tour next year, then you’ll have heard of us. Til then, my answer is Jack and Zen.

Sorry about the third person reference.

One great band that still flies under the radar is Unbunny. They’re pretty low key and drowsy with amazing lyrics. Snow Tires is always in my rotation somewhere, and if you like Neil Young, Wilco, lo-fi stuff, etc. then you should give it a listen. They have a song called “X” that I’d like to put on a mixed tape for every boyfriend that’s ever broken up with me . . .

They are awesome, @figbash !

@Zen: I’m glad you like them! If you get chance, listen to some of the lyrics. In some of the songs, he’s just really witty, dry, self-deprecating and relatable – he’s able to articulate some of those things I never was able to say.

<<< always listens to the words, has a browser open to the youtube song, and one for chordie.com, for the lyrics/chords/notes/tabs simultaneously. Waddya think, I’m only fluthering???

JULIA NUNES! :D :D :D She has her own original music of her own CDs out, but I am sharing this video of a Ben Folds cover she did because the news update of her at the end is CUTE AS HELL. I also have a crush on her.

Paolo Nutini is amazing!! I also love Amos Lee and Ray LaMontagne. All three have gorgeous voices that I could listen to all day!

I have yet to find anybody that has heard of Bell X1 or The Zutons yet.

And Cake is amazing.

Prabir and the Substitutes. You’ll love em

@ladytmerie Ray LaMontagne is amazing. Such a sad voice, but so beautiful.

Kuti man
Ratatat
That1Guy
Kenny Muhammad
Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip
Enjoy.

i want a girl with a short skirt and a loooooooong jacket

Dig the Kuti man but
Ratatat kind of seems to me like
Gorillaz lite…and with that here’s some G’z
Starshine
Feel Good Inc.
Gorillaz – Clint Eastwood

@SeventhSense i love the gorillaz but im going to have to disagree on that one. Check out more of Ratatat and you’ll see they’re actually quite different. Both amazing bands IMO.

Blockhead, Dana Fuchs, Glasvegas, (though they are big, if you live in the UK), Kevin Devine (not unknown, but definitely not getting the recognition he deserves). I would also agree with @uberbatman about Ratatat. Love them!

@ All who like Ray LaMontagne, check out Alexi Murdoch

@hearkat lurve for Alexi Murdoch. So good.

@adreamofautumn: His voice just resonates through me, and his music and lyrics show talent and depth. I am looking forward to hearing more from him.

Any Johnny Ray fans out there?

The Mountain Goats. Hands down.

Saw Ray a couple of times in Michigan. Such a smoky, haunting voice. He debuted his Winter Birds (just him and his gee-tar). Beautiful music and he’s such a great lyricist.

Winter Birds

It’s the Widow now that owns that angry plow,
The spartan Mule and The Crippled Cow
The fallow field that will yield no more,
As the fox lay sleeping beneath her kitchen floor

The stream can’t contain such the withering rain,
And from the pasture the fence it is leaning away
The clouds crack and growl
Like some great cat on the prowl
Crying out, “I am, I am” over and over again

The days grow short
As the nights grow long
The kettle sings its tortured song
As many petalled kiss I place upon her brow,
Oh, my lady, Lady I am loving you now

The winter birds have come back again,
Here the sprightly Chickadee
Gone now is the Willow Wren
In passing greet each other as if old, old friends
And to the voiceless trees
It is their own they will lend

The days grow short
As the nights grow long
The kettle sings its tortured song
As many petalled kiss I place upon her brow,
Oh, my lady, Lady I am loving you now

And though all these things will change,
The memories will remain
As green to gold, and gold to brown
The leaves will fall to feed the ground
And in their falling, make no sound

Oh my lady,
Lady I am loving you now

I’ve gathered all my money and I’m goin’ to town,
To buy my lady a long and flowing gown
‘Cause come tomorrow morning
We’re off to the county fair
I’ll find a yellow flower
And I will lace it in her hair