Slingshot Dakota

Carly Comando and Tom Patterson are two people who carry the weight of an entire band. Their set-up is simple: Carly is on keys and Tom plays drums. They do things with these instruments that most bands can't do with a standard set up: they cram the sonic space they are in. Originally this was actually the case as they began as a three-piece featuring Jeff Cunningham and Latterman's Pat Schramm. But narrowing it down to a duo in 2006 did no harm; Carly's keyboard seems to take on the role of several more people as it adds multiple dimensions to their sound.

2008's Their Dreams are Dead, but Ours is the Golden Ghost was a seminal release for their entry onto the scene. With Carly from Long Island and Tom from the Lehigh Valley (PA), their home-turfs both came with built-in popular support as they romped the DIY all-ages show circuit. In it, they blew away audiences with their at-times more sober lines like "I'm gonna love you till the day I die" juxtaposed with moments of their swelling pop sound. When Tom isn't screenprinting (he does everything from gig posters to commercial ventures to fine art) and Carly isn't music licensing, they are refining their highly-anticipated album, Dark Hearts, set to come out this year.