Nine to watch in '09
From Brooklyn to Tennessee to Colombia - and set to break
THIS IS HOW RUMORS GET STARTED Leaders Phillip-Michael Scales (guitar/vocals) and Annie Hoffman (bass) hail from different parts of the country but joined forces in Boston in 2005 to get their indie pop groove on. The laid-back boy-girl vocals, spindly guitar solos evocative of Dinosaur Jr., and equal doses of Ben Folds-style cleverness and melancholy all point to rumors of good music getting started. After shuffling the lineup and releasing a trio of intriguingly eclectic EPs, the quintet, which recently signed to Wax on Felt Records, plans to unveil its first full-length release this spring. You can get a sneak preview when Rumors plays Harpers Ferry next Sunday at 8 p.m. www.myspace.com/thisishowrumorsgetstarted
ERIN MCCARLEY This year's contender for the smart girl-pop crown (most recently worn by women like Ingrid Michaelson and Sara Bareilles). McCarley's sprightly debut, "Love, Save the Empty," released last week, showcases the pleasant trill in the Texas native's voice - and some interesting musical turns. From the lilting piano embroidering the melodic title track to the sinuous "Blue Suitcase" to the jazzy, noirish "It's Not That Easy," McCarley proves she's got serious pop skills. Her album is available on iTunes for the bargain price of $7.99. James Morrison fans can check out McCarley when she opens for him at the Paradise on Feb. 2. www.myspace.com/erinmccarley
THOSE DARLINS Kelley, Jessi, and Nikki Darlin are a trio of smart, sassy 20-something chicks from Tennessee who combine vintage country charm with saucy rock attitude. These Dixie chicks even nicked a page from the Ramones playbook by adopting the surname Darlin. Great harmonies and fleet finger-picking round out their toe-tapping tunes about snaggle-toothed mamas, beer swilling, and chicken-eating. The ladies have singles available digitally and will release a full-length debut in June; they'll also be riling things up at a free show Tuesday at Toad at 8 p.m. www.myspace.com/darlins
MELANIE FIONA This R&B singer-songwriter has already amassed some impressive bona fides, opening for Kanye West in Europe and co-writing the track "Dem Haters" on Rihanna's second album. It's easy to understand what 'Ye saw in Fiona - besides her good looks, of course. The tracks on the Toronto native's MySpace page reveal a voice kissed by husky naturalness and imbued with emotion. First single "Give It to Me Right" is a crisp and dreamy slice of hip-hop soul that incorporates a canny sample of the Zombies' "Time of the Season." "Monday Morning" has a strutting Motown flair, and the reassuring "Ay-Yo" flows like honey with sweet reggae underpinnings. Fiona's debut, "The Bridge," drops this spring. www.myspace.com/melaniefiona
ASA She was born in Paris, raised in Nigeria, and, not surprisingly, her influences are all over the map. This young guitarist and singer-songwriter, who is equally inspired by Marvin Gaye and Bob Marley, is already a sensation in France and South Africa, where she's opened for Kanye West and Beyoncé. With the US release of her self-titled debut on Jan. 27, Asa (pronounced Ah-shah) is poised to connect with fans of India.Arie's brand of sophisticated, acoustic soul. Like her, Asa keeps the focus on her message. On "Fire on the Mountain," a slice of socially conscious soul, she rails against war. "Hey, Mr. Soldier Man/ Tomorrow is the day you go to war/ But you are fighting for another man's cause/ And you don't even know him." www.myspace.com/asaofficial
KID CUDI The last we heard from this indie hip-hop artist, he was singing the hook on "Welcome to Heartbreak" from Kanye West's "808s & Heartbreak." It was a small cameo from someone with so much potential to break out in 2009. Cudi, a Cleveland native who's lived in Brooklyn the past three years, has been kicking around the underground with his mixtapes, which caught the attention of West, who then signed him to his GOOD Music imprint. Cudi released an EP, "Day 'N' Nite," last year, and a proper full-length is due in the spring. He'll be coming to a TV near you as well. Cudi announced on his website earlier this week that he was cast in an upcoming HBO comedy series called "How to Make It in America." Sounds like Cudi is the perfect guy to do just that. www.myspace.com/kidcudi
COTTON JONES Like an indie-pop version of Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra, Whitney McGraw and Michael Nau sound like they could have emerged from a remote cabin in the woods yesterday or 40 years ago. Wrapped in a swath of reverb and distortion, McGraw and Nau recently formed Cotton Jones as a '60s-inspired side project to their other band, Page France. On their shimmering debut, "Paranoid Cocoon" (Suicide Squeeze), out Jan. 25, organs hum along to pedal steel as McGraw and Nau entwine their voices in tenderhearted duets. Other times they imbue their songs with an austerity that reflects the surroundings of their mountain home in Cumberland, Md. www.myspace.com/thecottonjonesbasketride
MONARETA With Argentine electro-tango and Peruvian chicha fading as the hot commodities in Latin music, this could be the year for another resurgence of cumbia, the Afro-Caribbean dance genre. Monareta, the Colombian duo of composer/vocalist Andres Martinez and keyboardist Camilo Sanabria, has worked hard to stay ahead of the curve with its cinematic sounds indebted to '80s breakdance and hip-hop and the street culture of their native Bogota. The band has made inroads in the US market after Martinez relocated to New York on a Fulbright scholarship for a master's degree in composition and film scoring at New York University. The group's debut, "Picotero," came out on US-based Nacional Records this past October, and Monareta will play at South by Southwest in the spring. www.myspace.com/monareta
MIRANDA LEE RICHARDS In 2001, Richards made a dreamy little pop record that hardly anyone heard, but it'll be hard to ignore her when her sophomore release, "Light of X" (Nettwerk), arrives Feb. 10. The boho-chic California native really honed her sound in the interim, even if she rarely stays in one spot for long on the new album. One minute she sounds like a sun-kissed pop chanteuse, the next she's channeling a dusky torch singer reminiscent of Cat Power. Miranda wrote all the songs on "X," but her supporting cast brings a wealth of obvious influences: drummer Keith Mitchell (Mazzy Star), bassist Eva Gardner (Mars Volta), and guitarist Josh Schwartz (Beachwood Sparks). www.myspace.com/mirandaleerichards 