The North Atlantic

Great music is birthed when a collective of people get together and believe in the silly idea that banging on instruments can somehow change the world. It won't, of course, but when a band like the North Atlantic comes along, it doesn't really matter. Drummer Cullen Hendrix and bassist Jason Richards live in San Diego, and singer-guitarist Jason Hendrix (Cullen's younger brother) resides in Chicago. Despite the bicoastal strain, the band retains a solid sound that weighs heavily on a post-hardcore foundation. Wires in the Walls, released in July, is a fury of art-school lyrics crooned across frenetic drums and heaving bass lines. But the recorded plastic disc is only a fraction of what really counts. Pulling its soul out of its guts, the North Atlantic makes passionate rock music that bonds fans into family. And it's that tiny gesture of sincerity that makes the biggest splash of all.