The Long Blondes

The Long Blondes were one of a number of smart, punky, and fashionable bands to emerge from the U.K. in the early 2000s. While the rest of the UK indie-scene was falling over themselves to show their post-punk, angular chops or their bohemian, shambolic chic ala the Libertines, the Long Blondes quietly mined their own furrow of Nancy Sinatra, Dusty Springfield influenced glamorous indie-pop. After winning the influential Best New Band award at the NME Awards in January 2006, rather than rushing out an album the band spent the rest of the year recording and refining their debut full-length. A sophisticated fashion sense and a male/female line-up have produced comparisons to Britpop legends Pulp, whose Steve Mackey produced the band's 2006 full-length, SOMEONE TO DRIVE YOU HOME.

• rock