Music Midtown, one of the state’s biggest annual music festivals starts Sept.19 in Piedmont Park. Once again some of the music industry’s top charting musicians will be headlining the festival. Eminem, John Mayer, Lorde and Lana Del Rey are some of the most notable acts performing at the festival this year. With so much attention on these top stars it’s important to not forget some of the less prominent performers.
Whether you’re going to the festival or just want something new on your playlist here are some quick little facts about some of the “not so popular” performers this year that you might want to know.
Friday’s List:
Banks: Jillian Banks is a Californian native whose sultry vocals tampered along with gritty R&B; beats is reminiscent of R&B; crooner The Weeknd. Actually, you might have saw her open for The Weeknd during his 2013 tour or heard her single “Waiting Game” in the Victoria’s Secret 2013 holiday commercial. She’s not entirely new to live performances as she performed at Coachella and Bonnaroo, and she went on her first UK tour this year. She’s definitely an artist as she wrote all the songs in her debut album “Goddess” which was released September 5th.
Ron Pope: Georgia’s own, Ronald Pope started as a member of the band ‘The District’ that he formed while in college. He then went independently releasing his debut studio album “Last Call” in 2007. With more than four full length albums under his belt, Pope’s latest album “Calling off the Dogs” features the songs “Lick My Wounds” and “Silver Spoons.”
Bear Hands: This post-punk indie four piece had their first top-ten hit on the Alternative Songs Chart this year with their single “Giants.” “Giants” is only one song off of their second studio album Distraction. The band has been the talk of the New York indie music scene since the release of their first EP, Golden, in 2007. Having opened for Passion Pit in their early days, they performed at South by Southwest earlier this year.
Saturday’s List:
The Strypes: Hailing from Ireland, The Strypes is one of the more unique bands performing. They’ve basically been defined as young men with old souls because of the nostalgia within their 60s-esque blues and rock & roll sound. Their debut studio album, Snapshot, was released last fall with notable songs “Blue Collar Jane”, “Mystery Man” and “You Can’t Judge A Book By the Cover”.
Magic Man: This synth-pop/rock band formed in 2010 came to the limelight this February when their single “Paris” debuted on Billboard’s Alternative Song chart at #39. GQ magazine described their 2014 studio album, Before the Waves, as “12 tracks of Alt joy”. They’ve been able to share their synth joys this year at South by Southwest and during their headlining U.S. West Coast tour.
