Band of the Day (11.23.09): JAVELIN

Who?

A pair of ex-art schoolers from Rhode Island, Javelin are the beatmasters of the ever-expanding lo-fi DIY movement. Using an array of old dollar bin records to create modern dance music, Javelin are making some of the weirdest, most conceptual jams on the scene today. While they've only had a series of mixtapes and one EP to date, they're already making waves with what is an undeniably distinct sound.

And I Care Because?

- You probably can't identify that sample. The duo has stated in interviews that they never want to buy a single record that costs more than five dollars, causing them to make music that faded into obscurity long ago if it ever reached anyone's ears.

- They've got some really sweet boomboxes. While the duo has recently tweaked their live setup, the band's original trademark stage show featured a series of old spraypainted, donated boomboxes that functioned as a secondary soundsystem. And yes, that is incredibly cool.

- Their fans are pretty famous. While the first sign of Javelin's rise to stardom began with David Byrne signing him to his Luaka Bop label, they've got a new set of friends: this past weekend, their set ended with Mos Def and Damon Dash joining them on stage to spit some rhymes over their beats.

Hear their songs at MySpace, download their mixtapes for free, and buy their self-titled debut EP.