Spinnerette
Once upon a time there was a spiky wee girl from Melbourne who migrated to LA while still a teenager, married Tim from Rancid, formed a nifty little hardcore/pop combo called the Distillers, briefly became a nu-punk pin up on the back of the excellent Coral Fang album, divorced, split the band, married chief Queen of the Stone Age Josh Homme, and now she’s back with a floating crew of musicians, a new look that is groovily LA Ellroy noir and a debut album that is infinitely denser, more claustrophobic, more complex, sexual and sweaty than before. Should be quite a hot prospect.

Spinerette play the Hot Press New Band Stage on Friday July 10

Wallis Bird
Hailing from the grand hamlet of Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, via Dublin, London and Mannheim, the girl they call the Bird is a singer-songwriter prodigy who combines Lilith sensitivity with Ani attitude, a fair pair of pipes and electric pyrotechnics courtesy of a shit-hot German rhythm section. The hugely accomplished debut album Spoons put Wallis in the great white hope enclosure a couple of years back, and she comes to Oxegen cruising on the back of a major deal with Columbia and a superb second album – New Boots – due for July release. Live, she won’t take no for an answer, so get in the queue.

Wallis Bird plays the Hot Press New Band Stage on Sunday July 12

The Virgins
Yes they’re from downtown Manhattan, yes they’re young and hip and skinny fit, but this ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco, this ain’t no CBGB or Talking Heads retro blank generation nostalgia trip. The Virgins boast a slick and sharp take on dance-inflected post-punk meets ‘80s sunshine pop on tunes like ‘Rich Girl’ and ‘Private Affair’, marrying a sizable dose of insouciant attitood to jagged guitars and limber rhythms, with irresistible choruses thrown in for good measure. Three-minute heroes? In pop, three minutes is more than enough.

The Virgins play the Hot Press New Band Stage on Sunday July 12

The Chapters
After a hard year’s gigging with everyone from Chuck Berry to Neil Young, plus the 2007 single ‘Looking For Love’, Dublin’s The Chapters signed with a nascent label, set up in a disused factory and were all set to record their debut. Then came the great autumn ’08 meltdown of depression and recession, the deal went south and all looked lost. Except the band hauled themselves up by their bootstraps, signed a new deal with 3U and within two months were recording tunes with producer Ciaran Bradshaw. The upshot of all this blood, sweat and tears is the band’s very fine debut album Perfect Stranger, which recalls the grand old days of classic radio rock: the Cars, The Mac and The Heads, plus a little bit of heritage action a la Neil and The Band.

The Chapters play the Hot Press New Band Stage on Sunday July 12

St Vincent
On her debut album Annie Clarke – aka Texas songbird St Vincent – came on like the classic indie wallflower. But she’s undergone a radical revamp for her new record, Actor. In place of the previous furtive melodies and Belle and Sebastian-esque vocals, she weaves darkly humorous tales of death, revenge and other base doings, while keyboards gurgle and groan in the backdrop. Think of it as Southern Gothic with a hint of NYC indie chic on top (Clarke moved to Brooklyn two years ago).

St Vincent plays the IMRO New Band Stage on Saturday July 11

Telepathe
Synth sisters Melissa Livaudais and Busy Gangnes earned their chops banging guitars in a succession of Williamsburg jam bands. As Telepathe, they travel down a radically different path: ethereal drone-pop, spilling over with nu-gaze influences and glistening dance beats. Production is from TV On The Radio’s David Sitek but the pop sensibility shining through even the most densely arranged moments is entirely Telepathe’s. Interesting fact: Telepathe do not have a Wikipedia entry. Yet.

Telepathe play the Red Bull Music Academy Stage on Saturday, July 11

Passion Pit
Something curious is afoot in North American alternative rock. Guitar-bashing histrionics are increasingly passe, supplanted by the wacko-synth burblings of Animal Collective and the Nintendo nihilism of Crystal Castles. Even Yeah Yeah Yeahs, once the foremost exponents of leather-jacketed New York hipster-dom, have gone techno. So it’s the perfect time for Passion Pit to emerge from the bloggy murk, with a beat-driven, violently exuberant electro-pop sound. Led by the bespectacled and nakedly nerdy Michael Angelakos, the five piece have just released debut albums, Manners, a record so brimming with exuberance that listening to it repeatedly could have roughly the same effect on your mind-state as downing an entire bottle of Prozac in one swig. (Don't try that one at home).

Passion Pit play the Hot Press New Sounds Stage on Saturday July 11

Cap Pas Cap
Dublin’s Cap Pas Cap strum up nervy, fast-moving post-punk with vibrant melodies, pounding guitars and hugely addictive vocals courtesy of front man Gavin Duffy. No surprise then that Foals picked them as support when they played here. You may not have heard of these synth-happy upstarts yet but take note, 2009 is going to be their year.
Chock full of quirk with a live show to match, these guys are really starting to measure up against international competition like Crystal Castles and Erase Errata. Expect the gallant ‘We Are Men’ to be the big fat (new wave) hit of the IMRO stage.

Cap Pas Cap play the IMRO New Sounds Stage on Saturday July 11