These had the most tracks that were not only good but were strong enough to make it on the air. With special mention for ‘Sones de Mariachi’ from Mariachi Los Comparos on Smithsonian. Smooth vocals tight horns and nice groove from Dutch funk band The Tibbs. Les Amazones matches african vocalists with French producers, strong lyrics from a feminine angle. Belgian Bolis Pupil beautifully produced electro pop, psychadelic fun. Shannon and the Clams channel ’60s camp with fun psych-folk songs about the moon and beans. Junegrass acid rock tinged prog. The Wicked Lo-down deliver no frills straight-ahead rockin’ blues. Sierra Ferrell returns with another album chockfull of great songs. Pink Balloons fun hard rockin original punk from D.C.. Dummy yummy atmospheric pop-rock. L.A. cousins, The Linda Lindas make manic fun pop punk.
| Artist | Album | Label | |
| 1 | The Tibbs | Keep it to Yourself | Record Kicks |
| 2 | Les Amazones d’Afrique | Musow Dance | Real World Records |
| 3 | Bolis Pupil | Letter to Yu | Dee Wee |
| 4 | Shannon and the Clamss | Moon is in the Wrong Place | Concord Music Group |
| 5 | Junegrass | Perpetual Stew | Grass Music |
| 6 | The Wicked Lo-down | Out of Line | Gulf Coast Records |
| 7 | Sierra Ferrell | Trail of Flowers | Rounder Records |
| 8 | Ekko Astral | Pink Balloons | Top Shelf Records |
| 9 | Dummy | Free Energy | Trouble in Mind |
| 10 | The Linda Lindas | No Obligation | Epitaph |
