Known Unknowns #1 - July 2024

Congratulations! You're all the proud new parents of a playlist filled with the best bands that nobody else has heard of (yet).

A few weeks ago, I made a request: tell me about new bands you love that nobody else seems to know about. The hidden gems. The local favorites. The unsigned heroes of a very specific scene. As long as they’ve put something out in the last handful of years and have fewer than 5,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, I said they’re fair game.

Well, you really turned it out. And I made you a playlist.

I’m calling it Known Unknowns, Vol. 1, and yes — I’m very optimistically throwing that volume number on there because I truly hope we can keep making these together.

This first edition features 90 minutes of songs from a mix of the artists you recommended in our first discussion thread, submissions I’ve received in my inbox, and my own discoveries.

From a genre and flow perspective, the playlist started out absolutely unhinged. I had to made some tricky editorial decisions, but I think you’ll find the result relatively straightforward. You’ll hear some of the catchiest power pop and riotous egg …