Now Hear This!

With the vast net of media -- radio, television, magazines, newspapers, and everything from yesterday's webrings to today's music blogs on the Internet -- cast out over the cultural landscape, it's hard to imagine that any musical act that was even marginally trying could truly pass "under the radar". But the fact remains that the critical eye (or ear) can only take in so much, and while much of the media is focused in one direction, plenty of other noteworthy acts pass us by.

In order to highlight some of the musicians currently honing their craft and quietly building a reputation for quality on the fringes of the spotlight, PopMatters brings you an updated and serialized "Now Hear This!". The formerly annual feature caught some bright young stars just before everyone else caught on to them -- the Darkness, Goapele, Saturday Looks Good to Me, Joanna Newsom, Richard Buckner. Having been re-launched as a regularly recurring music feature, "Now Hear This!" promises to continue to feature artists who, for one reason or another, have yet to stake their claim as major media players, but are no less worthy of attention.

Make no mistake, however. The goal of "Now Hear This!" isn't to predict the next "it" band or artist. Instead, its purpose is to provide a featured space for performers who truly deserve a closer look. These are acts worth paying attention to because they're fun, engaging, exciting, and plain old interesting. Some may be fresh new faces on the scene, others might have toiled in relative obscurity for years, and whether or not they become superstars is beside the point. In all cases, these are merely artists that the PopMatters staff feels should not go overlooked, recommendations from our own writers of bands they personally find compelling. So listen up!