Another line-up of independent artists who are putting out brilliant music; this may very well be one of our best Independent Music Discoveries series posts yet. As per-usual, recommend your favourite indie artists in the comments!

The Golden Sores - Drone / Experimental / Noise - Illinois, USA
Every once and awhile, music arrives in my inbox (and in the case of the Golden Sores, in my mailbox, too!) that is exactly the kind of music I’m questing after. After becoming immersed in Natural Snow Buildings, I was recently investigating the music of La Monte Young and the Theatre of Eternal Music, and here come the Golden Sores, a duo comprised of Steve Fors and Chris Miller, who “utilizing a combination of electric and lap steel guitar, salvaged thrift store keyboards, pedals (both broken and boutique), obscure analogue synthesizers, and other obsolete noise-making esoterica…have forged deep into the realms of drone”. Indeed- this is the very science of what drone is at work, the ‘quintessence’. The six tracks of A Peaceable Kingdom (streamable in part on Last.fm and and Virb) may all be upwards of 5 minutes, though time just slips on by without notice throughout, from glittering surrealism (“Double Gyres”), what it might sound like if Wooden Shjips and Sun O))) collaborated on an instrumental track (“The Awful Rowing Toward God”), to channeling some nearly-spiritual energy (“We’ll Wield Fire” and “Ondine”)- very, very much recommended (see also BloodLust! album/ordering information for the Golden Sores)! Their previous release Ashdod to Ekron is available for free download in full on Last.fm (have a listen to “Arphaxad”).

Tamaryn - New Wave / Visual / Soul- New York - California, USA
Writing a starter guide to coldwave recently got me to thinking, hey- where is the coldwave revival?! Doing some searching around the blogosphere turned up Tamaryn- see also Dazed Digital article Tamaryn Leads You Astray- who ought to appeal to any coldwave, as well as to fans of Nico and Siouxsie Sioux, though there are clearly a variety of influences at work, (as she said, “It could be anything from Spacemen 3 to Stevie Nicks”). Hell, Yes! have kindly provided me with a beautiful track for you to check out, which had been released in a limited 300-copy vinyl addition: “Weather War” (listen here!) Her Led Astray, Washed Ashore EP is now available (featuring guest appearances from Yeah Yeah Yeahs member Nick Zinner and TV on the Radio’s Jaleel Bunton) and she is currently working on an LP in San Francisco with collaborator Rex John Shelverton.

Apteka - Rock / Psychedelic - Illinois, USA
This is neo-neo-psychedelia; while the presence of their influences (which include Echo & the Bunnymen, Led Zeppelin, Smashing Pumpkins, My Bloody Valentine, The Byrds, and The Cure) is felt, it is filtered through Apteka’s decidedly modern lens. Their Tour EP, a trip through shoegazey, melodic rock wonderousness, is available for free download on their MySpace Music page- listen to my fav tracks “It’s a Wilderness” and “Cicada Song”! They also have fabulous poster art that perfectly matches their music.

The Big Pink - Concrete / Concrete / Concrete - UK
British group the Big Pink (a duo- Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell) add yet another chapter to 4AD’s continued fabulosity with the dreamy, yet edgey, sounds of “Stop the World” (via 4AD’s site) and “Velvet” (via their official site). Ones to watch!

Seaspin - Shoegaze / Indie / Other - California, USA
Thanks to Marcel F. for the recommendation on this Californian group, of which he has said there is a “seductive beauty that crawls out of every note”. This element combined with their embrace of dream-pop and shoegaze makes for heavenly listening- their Reverser EP is available to stream in full on Last.fm and their MySpace Music page (especially recommended track: “Dream Life”).