Flobots

This politically and socially conscious hip-hop collective from Denver hit big in April with its song "Handlebars," off its second album, Fight with Tools. The tune tackles topics like gas-guzzling SUVs, corporate greed, and nuclear holocausts within the framework of a melody that could've been cribbed from playground sing-alongs. The rest of Fight with Tools is similarly informed and eloquent, with strings lifting songs like "Mayday!!!" and infectious bass lines boosting optimistic spoken word grooves like "We Are Winning." Live shows are nothing short of a fully instrumental thought-party, with horns and guitars and dance beats providing a backbone for Flobots' philosophies about war, charity, and cultural subservience.