10 Mainstream Acts That The 'Real Music Fans' Need To Check Out
Many of us turn off anyone with mainstream success as machine-created pop-dross, yet there are a wealth of artists worth your time.
Let's face it, when someone calls themselves a 'real music fan', they'd likely be found shuffling about in jeans that don't quite fit, sitting on their own in a dingy-independent coffee shop, laptop alight with two bites into a homemade sandwich, while writing a list feature for some kind of culturally-reflective website... We're all prone to a bit of self-important elitism now and again, especially when music is involved. It's fair to say that anyone who regularly watches the X-Factor won't see eye-to-eye with the iTunes library of someone who exclusively listens to lo-fi crust-punk. In fact, some people's tastes can transform beyond repair, becoming so separate from the mainstream, that they completely wipe it from their radar altogether. But like life itself, the mainstream consists of both the good and the bad. For every will.i.am or Justin Bieber, there's a forward-thinking solo artist, an undeniably talented band or an enigmatic producer that won't let his or her popularity hinder the quality of their output. It could be debated that the most engrossing music is authentic, but authenticity isn't just black or white. In the mainstream, there are grey areas too, and these can sometimes be the most interesting of all. So to help these 'real music fans' broaden their horizons a little bit, here's 10 mainstream artists that they should check out right away: