A guided tour through the Rock Maze of new bands in 2003: seven reasons to relish the simplicity of guitars, drums, amps, and microphones

Meet the New Rock. Same as the olde New Rock? Not exactly--the new New Rock is branching away from last year's explosion of incendiary bands with names ending in es-- the Strokes, the Hives, the Vines, the White Stripes. Those groups appealed because they slashed the shawbiz filigree and stripped rock to its red-meat essence. And while the bands of the new New Rack revolution maintain the raw spirit at those previous pioneers, they've started adding some extra shades to 2002's punkish palette. In addition, while many of last year's New Rock eye-openers sprang from NYC's newly fertile underground, the class of 2003 hails from all over, from Denmark and England to, well, New York. Introducing the seven bands that matter, circa now.

THE RAPTURE RAISING ROCK'S BLOOD PRESSURE

The Rapture's coolocity extends past their native New York to the Left Coast--Shannyn Sossamon claims they're her fave group--and even to Europe, where they have wowed 20,000-strong audiences with just one song, their 2002 single "House of Jealous Lovers." The secret to their buzz lies in their ability to effortlessly cadge the best elements from various genres and twist them into a sound all their own. The Rapture harness everything from the propulsive urgency of club grooves and the dissonant swing of '80s punk-funk to raw garage rock and an almost gothic, heart-yanking angst. (Singer-guitarist Luke Jenner's voice is a dead ringer for that of the Cure's Robert Smith.) Throw in an exuberantly off-the-hook live show and an album to match (Echoes is due this summer on DFA), and you don't just have New York's coolest band--you have its best.

LONGWAVE THE THOUGHTFUL ONES

Remember when Radiohead had The Bends, or when a nascent U2 were still cranking out energetic, atmospheric stories for boys? Well, there's a new band that brings that same alchemical mixture of infectious bombast, boyish ambition, and earnest feeling: Longwave. A four-piece hailing from New York's vital rock scene, Longwave first gained notoriety for the amp-smashing climaxes that punctuated their slot opening a 2002 European tour with their hometown pals the Strokes (to give them that dangerous edge, their A&R man is said to have budgeted $5,000 per gig to destroy equipment). But the pleasures of their debut album, The Strangest Things (RCA), are less explosive than introspective: Longwave create a bravura wall of sound that swirls and shimmers, topped off by front man Steve Schiltz's heart-on-sleeve emoting. It's encouraging to find a band in today's hip-hopped pop world able to encompass passionate sincerity and sonic innovation. In a word: transcendent.

THE RAVEONETTES GUITAR NOIR

The Raveonettes are being positioned as "the new White Stripes," and not for nothing. Like the White Stripes, the Raveonettes started as a hot male-female duo (Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo) with odd, minimal instrumentation (just guitar and bass). They hail from a home-town (Copenhagen) not exactly renowned for a thriving rock scene and are imbued with a Jones for twinning stripped-down garage punk with rootsy traditionalism. Part of the appeal is conceptual; Wagner, the band's retro-revisionist rebel, has been known to sport a "Back to Mono" badge onstage, professes to have gotten inspiration from Dogma films, and wrote much of the band's debut EP, Whip It On (Columbia), while bumming around America, On the Road-style. Ultimately, however, what's driving the Raveonettes' musical chemistry is all visceral, manic fun. Their live sets are blistering, and their first full-length (with newest additions guitarist Manoj Ramda and drummer Jakob Hoyer) is due this summer. Rave on, indeed.

THE MUSIC ARENA-READY ACID ROCKERS

America, be warned: The Music are not your father's Britpop. Indeed, while they hail from Leeds--part of the same Northern England region that spawned Oasis--Gallaghered lad-lager anthems are nowhere to be found on their self-titled debut album (Capitol). Instead, this barely legal quartet (they have Just reached their twenties) crank out mesmerizing tribal rhythms colliding with heavy psychedelic rock. Despite their youth, the Music's sound evokes a time from before they were born: Unafraid of their inner Rock Godz and willing to strike a Jesus Christ pose or two, they combine the sonic hubris of '70s supergroups like Led Zeppelin with the more recent emotive edge play of Jane's Addiction and expansive Northern soul a la the Stone Roses. They've also just clocked time opening for Coldplay. So don't be surprised if the world is soon facing the Music: They're so good, they might even live up to the magnificent arrogance of their moniker.

THE CORAL BRINGING BEATNIK BACK

The Coral are one of the most exalted new bands in Britain-in 2002, their self-titled debut album (Columbia) was short-listed for England's equivalent of the Grammy, the Mercury Prize-but what's driving them is flower power. These merry pranksters are like the Mini Cooper of rock, reengineering Anglo hipster cool into the ultimate millennial mood-elevating machine. They inject the proceedings with so much trippy '60s homage, it's not surprising 'that they've made a video inspired by the psychedelic movie classic Easy Rider (1969): The Coral take listeners on a journey that's energetic, kicky, and, above all, fun. In keeping with their anachronistic beatnik leanings, their songs move from the Kinks' randy rave-ups to the symphonic scope of Revolver-era Beatles. In fact, the Coral got their start in Hoylake, England, a small Merseyside town just up from the Beatles' Liverpool hometown. This year, however, you're more likely to find them on the road.