Check it out HERE - it's basically the best of our New England blog in music! You can always access this playlist by clicking on "LOCAL CHANNEL" on the Navigation bar.

P.S. We couldn't add some bands because we didn't find their music on Soundcloud.

If your playlist is lacking something a little more relaxed, perfect for hanging with friends or a long drive, we recommend Montpelier’s Loupo. The hip-hop producer crafts beats stuffed with samples and the production tics necessary to make an instrumental track stand out without vocals from a featured artist. On “GottaGo!!” he turns a vocal sample into its own wah-wahing instrument, and on his latest, “GritZZ,” guitar and drum loops cycle as clanking piano keys reverberate into the distance. Of course, Loupo’s experimental creations are ripe for the picking by up-and-coming rappers – take a listen to Notation and Chel Strong’s “To The Sky,” a song released earlier this month that was helmed by the Vermont producer. – Jake Reed

Recorded in a Vermont basement in January, Nautica’s winter is a charmingly lo-fi set. The four-track EP begins with the fuzzy opening riff of “All I Can Be,” which works its way into a catchy, distortion-heavy frenzy of a love song. The trio shows off a softer side on “Whatever You Want to Call It, James,” accompanying the song’s chorus with falsetto harmonies – before immediately turning the guitar effect pedals back on. A recent post on the band's Facebook page revealed that plans for a short tour later this month have been scrapped, but you can check out the Burlington up-and-comers at the Elks Lodge in Cambridge, MA, on March 23. – Jake Reed