The Pink Dust – Need something to tide you over until the next MUTEMATH release? Well, The Pink Dust features MM’s Roy Mitchell-Cardenas so it’s basically guaranteed to be good. The sound is groovy, but carries a little less muscle. Wanna hear Roy hitting an Americana vibe? Now’s your chance. However, other tracks like “Turn Back Home” embrace a more ethereal paradigm. The Pink Dust just released their debut, self-titled record.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iajsb98nf2k[/youtube]

The Notionaries – While we’re on the topic of new projects from members of known bands, let’s talk about The Notionaries. They’ve been compared to Two Door Cinema Club, and feature members of Abandon Kansas. Nick Patrick and Logan Rine, to be exact. The comparison definitely makes sense, but there’s a bit of a dream pop influence too. Think Shiny Toy Guns with a male singer. While Abandon Kansas works on their next record, The Notionaries definitely hope to make their mark on the Midwest.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/161050994″ /]

Field Mouse – For fans of Now, Now and Starflyer 59, this band perfectly straddles the line drawn between straightforward indie rock and shoegaze. The album “Hold Still Life” is compelling yet straightforward. I’d enjoy this band equally in a basement and an upscale artsy bar. The band has found their niche and they are good at it.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqTYEy7p_rA[/youtube]

Hunter Dumped Us Here – This artist truly embraces his craft as an art. I caught him live over the summer and he told the story about how he and his tour mate busked in Wisconsin the day before, not even gathering a dollar’s worth of spare change. That’s dedication, folks. Gabe (the man behind the project) is a storyteller and a folk artist. He isn’t as intense as Levi the Poet, but Levi’s fan base would dig this.

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/150387049″ /]

Bandit – I just had a gut feeling about this band. Turned out I was right. Bandit is one to watch. When they share a bill with groups like Better Off, The Ember Days and Levi Weaver how can I not be intrigued? Strong, clear female vocals lead the way in this emo-influenced shoegaze band. Pretty and loud, its an irresistible juxtaposition.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiBkIeF4Zgk[/youtube]

IAMWE – Ok, so this isn’t really a new discovery to us. But hear us out (and this band, hopefully). A couple of years ago I caught this band live opening for Anberlin. I was very impressed by the thunderous stage presence of this little band from Phoenix. I was stoked to hop on the IAMWE train, only to hear of their sudden breakup. Well, just as unexpected as the breakup was the reunion – this time with a new singer. The preview of the new direction is below. Epic like before, but with little more soul. The band is treating this like a completely new start and not a relaunch, so we will too.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9AH_hry9S0[/youtube]