One of the absolute highlights of the 2012 South By Southwest music conference--at least as far as Y! Music was concerned--was the robust, pop-infused sound of Brit band Jonquil.

Quite adept instrumentally, vocally in superb hands with keyboardist/vocalist Hugo Manuel, and oddly reminiscent of the better parts of '80s Britpop (though never less than fully contemporary sounding), the group have fashioned a wonderful pop recording with their new album Point Of Go. From Oxford, England, the band claim an intriguing array of artists as influences--and the richness of their recorded repertoire hints at significantly deep commercial potential.

The largest of this year's SXSW Bedroom Sessions, the Jonquil crew included two trumpet players, who thoughtfully--at least as far as our audio engineer was concerned--directed their blasts toward the room curtains to attain the proper sonic balance our informal recordings set-up required.

If you've yet to hear Jonquil, we suspect you'll be quite

If there are certain albums that had a cultural impact far beyond their overall sales figures, the debut album by Cardinal--released in 1994 by the duo of Eric Matthews and Richard Davies--counts highly among them.

Coming at a time when grunge, for better or worse, had come to dominate the rock 'n' roll scene, the textured and melodic work of Matthews and Davies provided almost precisely its conceptual opposite: melodies, harmonies, exotic instrumentation, sophisticated arrangements, songs that evoked the undersung classic sound of the early Bee Gees, the Left Banke and other pop greats, all oozing with sincerity, very little irony, and an obvious love for the pure form of pop music. Those who heard it loved it--very much so--and, for better or worse, a new genre called "orchestral pop" was coined to describe their work.

But Cardinal was a short-lived affair. Matthews and Davies soon went their separate ways, each releasing highly regarded solo albums, and the former band soon took on

Photo by Emily Shur

By naming her debut album Mediocre, Mexican singer Ximena Sariñana seemed to have set listeners up for an uneventful 13 tracks. Lucky for her, she is so much more. The baby-faced, 26-year-old singer has impressed audiences and critics alike with her stripped-down, and at times haunting, fusion of jazz, rock, and pop. But with her second, self-titled album, she has exited  her comfort zone to produce an upbeat, English-language record.

Photo: Genevieve Pierson

The Pacific Northwest is a breeding ground for some of the best indie-rock and folk music out these days. And Seattle-based band Motopony, named after Blue's 1984 Honda Trail 110 scooter, certainly helps reinforce that statement. Lead by frontman Daniel Blue's twangy vocals, Motopony fuses rock with soulful folk and blues to make a delectably woodsy sound for any indie palate.