11 Incredible Bands Ignored By The Mainstream Music Press

9. Broken Hands

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxJs5XMgtGw Combining britpop, blues, and hard rock has never seemed so easy. It's a combination that's perhaps never been as 'cool' as it ought to be (Kula Shaker are hardly favourites of the critics), but when it's as confident and assured as this, one can't argue against it. The Canterbury collective have a string of single and EP releases behind them, and with a couple of high-profile Summer festival slots at Sonisphere and Hyde Park, they're sure to dominate wherever they go. With elements of their songs combining 'R U Mine?'-era Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian's more post-punk rock-outs and the brash guitar anthems of Band of Skulls or Queens of the Stone Age, Broken Hands are the exciting enigma that the 'Rock is dead!' modern faithful are crying out for. Fortunately for them, their public profile does seem to be on the up, and attention spans are being turned towards the group as of late. But maybe it's that lack of conventional 'coolness' that sees them struggling to make the magazine covers. After all, they're a little too heavy for the atypical indie crowd, and probably not heavy enough for a metal crowd. But the best acts of all time have always been great at crossing over to a wider audience. The Jam were loved by both mods and rockers, Guns N' Roses were adored by punks and glam metalers and Foo Fighters have fans from across pretty much every stereotype and social group that there is. That's probably 'cooler' than any industry-constructed idea pertaining to a certain sound, mannerism, attitude, or style. Broken Hands are just themselves, and that's the most organic, natural, and cool thing possible.