Everyone listens to at least one band that no one else has ever heard of. Below are five that will be new to most.

1. The Hanks are a former ska band out of California who turned alternative with the release of their new album, “Your New Attraction.” Their ska is great, incorporating strong punk with smooth horn stylings while their alternative does not lose the edge the ska had. Their alternative still has undertones of ska to keep earlier fans, and 90’s fans, happy. “Your New Attraction” is a great example of how a band can change genres and do it right. “Once Again” and “Sometimes” are great tracks from their new album. “Guilty” is one of their best ska songs.

2. Desaparecidos, fronted by Bright Eyes’ singer/songwriter Conor Oberst, sounds nothing like the former stomping grounds of its lead singer. Oberst, probably known more for his confessional style of vocals, definitely brings emotion to the table with Desaparecidos, but directs it at the suburbination of American. Oberst does a particularly great job of this with the track, “Mall of America,” especially with the lines, “and when my sadness needs a catalyst/I’ll just uncover my eyes so much stimulus.”

3. The Distillers have got to be one of the best bands fronted by a female vocalist in quite some time. They have a unique punk sound that really rings true, something missing from a lot of punk these days. “Coral Fang” is a great album, though many fans disagree and laud “Sing Sing Death House” as the best. If you’re on iTunes, check out “Drain the Blood” and “The Young Crazed Peeling.”

4. The Suicide Machines offer a traditional hard core ska sound that combines up-tempo up-stroke guitar and intense vocals and punk stylings. “A Match and Some Gasoline” is one of their better albums with the track “High Anxiety.” Although, “Steal This Record” has a surprisingly great cover of “It’s the End of the World as We Know It.”

5. At The Drive In is one of those bands that you can only enjoy if you like music to kind of “burn the hair off your eyebrows.” Having formerly toured with Rage Against the Machine, At The Drive In is the punk-rock real deal. They provide a visceral, almost primeval musical experience. These guys are definitely in it for the art.