Who'd we pick to do good in the world last year? All these people. And what did they do? Plenty of good! Unless Chris Ziegler wrote about them, in which case they broke up.
THE BLOW UP BLOW
WHAT WE SAID: “An all-star Long Beach lineup playing at peak potential; single (which better be 'Super Tonite') coming not soon enough.”
WHAT THEY DID: Put out a single (which wasn't “Super Tonite”) in fall 2004.
THE DISTRACTION
WHAT WE SAID: “Four skinny dicks with ugly clothes and beautiful equipment, already done and cashing in drink tickets before the soundman works up to cursing. It's sort of making them famous, in a crummy way.”
WHAT THEY DID: Released an EP that sold for $100-plus on eBay, got a bunch of powerful British people interested in turning them into the new Libertines, then broke up.
EMANON
WHAT WE SAID: “Genius MC Aloe Blacc finally finished his psycholinguistics degree at USC and jumped back into hip-hop, performing as Emanon with Sound in Color alum DJ Exile and rapidly getting a reputation for all-consuming creative daring.”
WHAT THEY DID: Aloe got signed to excellent label Stones Throw, and Exile put out an LP of his own, and they did sorta get a rep for all-consuming creative etc.
GREATER CALIFORNIA
WHAT WE SAID: “There are poignant paeans to missing summers, changing seasons and stuff we don't have a clue about, but we love the way they keep us guessing.”
WHAT THEY DID: Put out an album, and it was pretty good!
THE MANIFOLDS
WHAT WE SAID: “Messy, loud and smart, like the history teachers who make it—the Minutemen and the Mono Men say yes.”
WHAT THEY DID: The history teacher got fired because of an article the Weekly wrote about them, and then they broke up.
PISTOLA
WHAT WE SAID: “Spanish/English/Spanglish gems that tickle the heart and fists the way few other local groups do. It's as masculine as emo-pop gets, and their Cure covers rule!”
WHAT THEY DID: Gustavo only picked them because he liked the one girl, and now he doesn't pay attention to them anymore.
RICHARD SWIFT
WHAT WE SAID: “If his last side project—a set of songs for children more appropriate for martinis at a downbeat Silver Lake hipster bar than recess at Romper Room—is any indication, it'll be worth the wait.”
WHAT THEY DID: Swift got his new CD reviewed in SPIN! Now everyone is that much closer to loving him.
THE 60 WATT KID
WHAT WE SAID: “[Kevin Litrow's] music is nothing but silence and open space, spare analog-tech acoustic pop dirges balanced on drone and anomie.”
WHAT THEY DID: Um, he played a pretty good show at Koo's a while back.
SON DEL CENTRO
WHAT WE SAID: “Even if you no hablar espaol, that's no concern: Son del Centro is all about soaring acoustic music that renews hope in humanity as they strum, pluck and pound.”
WHAT THEY DID: Added members, learned more songs, and made no money.
