Freakwater/Jaye Jayle

Freakwater frontwomen Janet Bean and Catherine Irwin first put their harmonies to tape in Bean’s parents' basement in Louisville. That was way back in 1985. Bean and Irwin like to joke that they then founded Freakwater in 1989 simply to “get into bars for free.” But the band has had remarkable staying power if that’s truly the case. They've taken sustenance from the fact that they were the forerunners of an alt-country movement that has since blossomed. But for whatever reason, Freakwater never broke big like many of its contemporaries. Still, Bean and Irwin have kept moving forward, and after 10 years without releasing a studio album, the group finally breaks the dry spell with its terrific new effort Scheherazade. (Niesel)