Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: Hanni El Khatib, a pair of recent Bay Area transplants, led by the eponymous Hanni.

The sound: Drawing from a deep pool of influences, El Khatib is a rock 'n' roll time traveler, incorporating '50s doo-wop vibes with harder-edged blues and garage sounds. El Khatib's voice is like woodsmoke or bourbon, acrid yet sweet, as timeless as jeans and a T-shirt.

Riffing on a '60s Silvertone, like many of his garage-rocking predecessors, El Khatib moves easily from big blues leads to doo-wop melodies. With talented drummer (and longtime friend) Nicky Yaryan backing him up, El Khatib is versatile enough to make a classic sound fresh again.

The details: Hanni El Khatib will join White Arrows for a Boobs4Food benefit show at Mountain Bar at 9:30 p.m. Thursday. The band has two 7-inch singles -- “Dead Wrong” and “Build. Destroy. Rebuild.” -- out on the label Innovative Leisure, and will be releasing a full-length album this summer.

The rest: Head over to Brand X to download "Dead Wrong."

-- Daniel Siegal

Photo: Retro rocker Hanni El Khatib. Credit: Dustin Askland

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: The Sweet Hurt, L.A. musician-about-town Wendy Wang's solo project.

The sound: Rarely has a band name fit a set of songs so well. The Sweet Hurt's music, as you might guess, is full of soft, sad ballads, delivered with the quiet confidence of a caffeinated Norah Jones. The band may be Starbucks-ready, but its elegant chamber-pop arrangements and honeyed melodies will stick to your iPod long after you leave the coffee shop.

The details: The Sweet Hurt plays the Standard on Thursday night, with another show lined up on Feb. 2 at the Hotel Cafe. The band's self-titled debut album is out now.

The rest: Download the Sweet Hurt's "Part of Me" and stream the album in full over at Brand X.

-- David Greenwald

Photo: Musician-about-town Wendy Wang.

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: The World Record, a power-pop act led by Andy Creighton.

The sound: The title of the group's little-known debut, "Guitars Forever," is pretty self-explanatory: The band offers the instant-favorite choruses and bouncing rock rhythms favored by acts ranging from Big Star to Fountains of Wayne, with a hearty helping of sincere lyricism.

The details: Creighton says the band is "about half-done with mixing" 28 new songs, which will likely arrive as two separate albums. He'll join World Record bandmates Ross Flournoy and Brian Whelan at the Satellite on Feb. 12 for a performance by brother band Apex Manor.

The rest: Download a track from the group and read more over on Brand X.

-- David Greenwald

Photo: Power-pop act the World Record plans to return with a new album (or two) next year. From left: Frontman Andy Creighton and Aaron Ballard. Credit: The World Record

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: Dunes, an L.A. trio that finds reformed punks Kate Hall (Mika Miko) and Stephanie Chan (Finally Punk) joining forces with Mark Greshowak (Talbot Tagora).

The sound: Like their colleagues in the current class of fuzzy, beach-obsessed bands (Best Coast, Wavves, Tennis, Swimsuit, Beach Fossils -- the list goes on), Dunes play catchy, fidelity-be-damned guitar pop best absorbed along with sunscreen and psychedelic drugs. Unlike many of their peers, though, they draw as much on mellowed-out '80s post-punk as they do poodle skirts and "Be My Baby."

The details: Dunes is currently recording their debut album, due in 2011; in the meantime, check eBay for the band’s already out-of-print singles.  

The rest: Visit Brand X to download the band's "Little Stems."

-- David Greenwald

Photo: From left: Kate Hall, Stephanie Chan and Mark Greshowak of rising local lo-fi act Dunes. Credit: Ward Robinson

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: Lord Huron, the project of Michigan native-turned-Angeleno Ben Schneider.

The sound: The band's self-released "Mighty" EP is full of lush acoustic guitars and Midwestern-accented harmonies as warm as a winter fireplace, but it's the Caribbean-influenced percussion that fans Lord Huron's folk sound into flame.

The details: The "Mighty" EP, the band's second effort, was released earlier this month. Lord Huron will  play a number of shows in the coming days, including an opening gig Friday for fellow locals Avi Buffalo at the Echoplex, an in-store at Origami Vinyl on Sunday and another show at La Brea's Tar Pit bar on Monday.

The rest: Click over to Brand X to download the title track of "Mighty."

-- David Greenwald

Photo: Ben Schneider of L.A. folk-rock act Lord Huron. Credit: Benji Schneider

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: Evan Voytas, Los Angeles' new chillwave champion. 

The sound: With his pop melodies, woozy electronics and synth-heavy beats, Voytas is Los Angeles' top (and perhaps first) addition to the burgeoning, blogosphere-touted chillwave scene led by artists such as Washed Out and Toro Y Moi. Unlike some of his peers, however, Voytas' whispery vocals add a seductive edge to his slow-dance grooves. 

The details: The singer will wrap up his free October residency at the Echo on Monday, with aid from San Diego's dreamy Lesands and the unfairly charming British twee-pop newcomers Allo Darlin'. His "Tomorrow Night We'll Go Anywhere" EP is out this week digitally and will get a physical release in November courtesy of new local label Cascine.  

The rest: Download and stream Voytas' "Tomorrow Night We'll Go Anywhere" over on Brand X.

-- David Greenwald

Photo: Chillwave artist Evan Voytas. Credit: Stephanie Seeley

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

Editor's note: Every week, our colleagues at Brand X’s L.A. Unheard column unearth one of L.A.’s best undiscovered acts.

The band: Young Hunting, an Echo Park quintet that's already earning blog love from the likes of I Guess I'm Floating and Yvynyl.

The sound: The group's Bandcamp page describes them, perhaps ironically, as chillwave; they're chill, yes, but the group bears little resemblance to the hazy beat-oriented '80s revivalism of acts such as Neon Indian or Washed Out. With their woozy harmonies and reverb-soaked guitars, Young Hunting is more in line with the drug-tinged balladry of New Jersey's Real Estate, Seattle's Fleet Foxes or America's, ahem, America.

The details: The group's self-released "Into Yr Mind/Sonata" 7" is out now via K Records distribution -- find it around town at Vacation Vinyl and Origami Vinyl. They'll celebrate its release with an Echo Curio performance Wednesday night.

The rest: Click over to Brand X to hear more from the band and download an MP3 of "Into Yr Mind."

-- David Greenwald

Photo: Young Hunting on its home turf in Echo Park. Credit: Cheryl A. Guerrero / For Brand X