Maryland

Maryland:

Lower Dens

CITY: Baltimore
SONGS THAT GOT US: "Hospice Gates," "Blue and Silver"
MYSPACE ADDRESS: myspace.com/lowerdens
RECORD LABEL Gnomonsong

WHY THEM? The past few years have seen much ado about Beach House, and any female-led band in Baltimore would be hard-pressed to avoid being compared to the duo. Indeed, one can hear hints of Victoria Legrand's throaty mournfulness in Lower Dens frontwoman Jana Hunter's singing style. Pedal steel aside, the similarities end there. Hunter — blog-famous as a solo act — tapped her former backing band for a sound that combines up-tempo folk with washed-out guitars and searing vocals. The result is soulful, poised, self-aware, and just a little ragged, like Stevie Nicks with a liberal-arts degree.

BONUS BIT! Before moving to Baltimore (but after recording her solo EP There's No Home), Jana Hunter answered phones at a pizza parlor in Houston.

Massachusetts

Maine