The Best Band You've Probably Never Heard Of

Everytime I have a party at my house, I create a playlist, and nine times out of ten, I include a few songs by Everything But the Girl. And if I had a nickel for every time someone said, "who sings this song?", I would be able to buy a vintage Porsche, instead of driving my slow as the post office line VW. But I digress. Everything But the Girl is one of the most diverse and interesting bands with fantastic lyrics, tender melodies, and a front woman with a voice that is made for rainy days.

The duo that makes up the band, Tracy Thorn and Ben Watt, had a large level of success in the U.S. with a remix of "Missing", but other than that, their fourteen albums (including a greatest hits album) have gone rather quickly into the sale bin at Walmart. But here are five songs that deserve a listening to if you don't feel like listening to what passes as music on top-40 radio.

1. "Better Things" (with Massive Attack)
After getting past the headbobbing bass for the first minute or so, delve into the lyrics "You say the magic's gone/Well I'm not a magician/ You say the spark's gone/Well get an electrician/And save your lying about needing to be free/All that's bullshit babe/You just want rid of me".

2. "Come On Home"
This song was on the "Acoustic" album in the U.S.; just Tracy and Ben's voices and a piano begging for her lover to come home so she doesn't have to sleep alone...who can't relate to that?

3. "Pigeons in the Attic Room"
I'm not terribly sure what this song is about, but it's an odd little treasure.

4. "Each and Every One"
A bossa nova song with lyrics telling a past lover to f*** off...the juxtaposition between the two is clever perfection.

5. "Before Today" (Chicane Remix)
A five minute audio trip to an exclusive European club where everyone wears black Prada.