Description
OneRepublic is a Maroon 5–like pop group that has been mistaken for a boy band in the past. San Diego quintet Augustana plays the kind of dramatic, somewhat precious rock ballads adopted by troubled suburban teens worldwide. The Spill Canvas hails from South Dakota, where its heard-it-a-million-times alt rock probably seems more enlightened than it does in New York. The Hush Sound is one of the few emo-scene bands to hit it big with a female in its ranks, namely pianist-vocalist Greta Salpeter. The young Chicagoan group appeals to teens, of course, but the intricate songs on last year’s Like Vines are a cut above the usual emo-pop pablum.