What's the Deal? The Cool Kids' slow, deliberate vocal flow coupled with simple rhythms harkens back to the glory days of acts like Boogie Down Productions and EPMD.

Who? Stockholm, Sweden's Tiger Lou is the brainchild of Rasmus Kellerman, lead songsmith in charge of playing and producing the band's material, but Pontus Levahn (drums/vocals), Erik Welén (bass/vocals) and Mathias Johnsson (guitar) flesh out Tiger Lou's hypnotic dreamscape in a live setting.

Who? Fuzzy throwback rockers the Hands formed from the remnants of Olympia, Washington bands the Measurements and Cougar Fucking Mountain. John Healy (guitar/vocals), Eli Chuckovich (guitar/vocals), Jordan Locke (piano/vocals), Michael Tyler (bass/vocals) and Cary Davis (drums) released the self-produced So Sweet EP in 2006; their self-titled studio full-length drops Feb.

Who? Johnny Clay (vocals/guitar), Pierre Kaiser (guitar/vocals), Ryan Johnston (bass/vocals/melodica) and Jake Rahner (drums/vocals) make up the lulling Portland, Oregon-bred pop act the Dimes. The band's debut full-length, The Silent Generation, drops this week via the Pet Marmoset label.

Who? Formerly known as Keating, this four-piece lays down cascading, dreamy guitar pop. Singer Jake Rolleston, bassist Cody McCall, and guitarists Patrick Damphier and Brent Coleman came together in late 2005 when their previous two bands split up (Damphier plays drums in the studio, though Dillon Napier's been handling the sticks

Who? Andrew Falkous (guitar/vocals), Kelson Mathias (bass/vocals) and Jack William Egglestone (drums) are the current incarnation of Cardiff, Wales' Future of the Left. Formed from the dissolution of neighboring bands in 2005 (Mclusky, Jarcrew), the aggro rock outfit dropped three seven-inch records before releasing the