Flunk - Kemikal Girl (buy at Amazon.com)

Flunk is a Norwegian electronic band consisting of producer Ulf Nygaard, guitarist Jo Bakke, drummer Erik Ruud, and vocalist Anja Oyen Vister. Not much to say, except for the fact that after listening to Flunk (stumbled upon them several years ago), my interest in discovering new music got a huge boost.

The Knux - Roxanne (buy at Amazon.com)

Personally I’m no big fan of all things hip-hop, but what if you spice it up with a pinch of rock-n-roll? Then you get a wonderful creation by the New Orleans natives The Knux, two sibling rappers that play instruments (keys, horns, guitar, bass and drums) and produce their own music. Al Millio (the younger brother) and Krispy grew up playing in jazz, marching and concert bands.

Boy In Static - First Love (buy at Amazon.com)

Being a news junkie, my daily routine includes listening to a wonderful radio program Marketplace from American Public Media. Apart from being just an indispensable source of business news of the day, the show features a great variety of hard-to-find and unbelievably good music in-between the stories/segments of the program. In any case, here’s just one of the recent discoveries. Boy In Static is a San Francisco indie/post rock duo of Alexander Chen and Kenji Ross. It’s hard to categorize this particular type of music, but the only thing I know for sure is that I’m really into it. Enjoy.

Sallie Ford & the Sound Outside - Danger (her Myspace)

In House (local radio program on OPB/NPR) is a great introductory point to the world of local indie and rock scenes. And, oh boy, do I like discovering new music. I wasn’t able to find anything even remotely resembling a meaningful biography of hers except for the fact that she is based in Portland, but it’s not the main thing that brought you here, right? So prepare to enhale a fresh doze of cheerful summer sounds.

Pizzicato Five - Baby Love Child (buy at Amazon.com)

I was watching Futurama the other night and I stumbled upon a beautiful song by a Japanese pop group Pizzicato Five (a duo of Maki Nomiya and Yasuharu Konishi). The group, widely credited with spearheading the shibuya-kei movement of Tokyo in the 1990s, is known for eclectic and energetic compositions that often sound like “new” releases from the late 1960s hipster scene.

Handsome Boy Modeling School - Breakdown (buy at Amazon.com)

Two of the most unapologetically eccentric and undeniably skilled producers in hip-hop, Prince Paul and Dan “the Automator” Nakamura came together in 1999 to form Handsome Boy Modeling School. Handsome Boy Modeling School has parodied and acted as a commentary on vain, consumerist, materialistic, and self-absorbed members of upper class society, such as supermodels and people from old money. The pair often satirized upper class snobbery and perceived beauty.

Beirut - Nantes (buy at Amazon.com)

Beirut interpret gypsy folk from an indie perspective. At the center of the group is Zach Condon, who delves deep into traditional roots music from Eastern Europe and the Balkans as well as the mariachi of his native Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was first introduced to gypsy folk music through the films of director Emir Kusturica (Time of the Gypsies, Underground). Rather than trying to merely copy gypsy songs, he borrows its sounds to make emotive pop that’s full of joy, sadness and longing. - Dan Shumate, Rhapsody

Carly Comando - Everyday (buy at Amazon.com)

Carly Comando is a Brooklyn based musician and composer. In her own words: “I write all of my music off the top of my head but I couldn’t transcribe it if I tried. I am classically trained but I cheated my way through piano lessons because I have perfect pitch and play by ear.” She wrote “Everyday” specifically for Noah Kalina’s YouTube video. It has gained popularity after being used in the Simpsons episode “Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind”

Bishop Allen - Butterfly Nets (buy at Amazon.com)

Brooklyn by way of Boston indie rock quartet Bishop Allen formed in 2003 around core members Justin Rice and Christian Rudder. The group (the two longtime friends are joined by a rotating cast of musicians) takes its name from Bishop Allen Drive in Cambridge, MA, the street where Rice and Rudder used to reside. The band released the largely self-recorded Charm School in 2003, followed by a flurry of EPs (January, February, March, April, and May). In 2006 the band signed to Secretly Canadian/Jagjaguwar sister label Dead Oceans and released the full-length Broken String. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide

Gregor Samsa - Young And Old (buy at Amazon.com)

Gregor Samsa are a band from Richmond, VA, who take their influence from the early British shoegazer scene. (They are not to be confused with a 1990s Illinois group of the same name.) The ensemble was formed in 2000 by Champ Bennett and Nikki King, and named itself after the main character of the famous short story The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. (While Bennett and King remained the constants, approximately 30 other musicians came and went over the years.) With a Southern twist that adds a bit of dark paranoia to their sound, Gregor Samsa made their recorded debut with an eponymous EP released by Iodine Recordings on June 11, 2002.