Greg Laswell

Since he debuted in 2004 with Good Movie, Greg Laswell has become a magnet for critical attention. The young, San Diego-based singer-songwriter plays the kind of brainy, elegant, passionate indie pop that inevitably makes journalists swoon and occasionally breaks through to the masses (Canada's Sam Roberts runs with the same pack). More sanguine than Jeff Buckley, less bubbly than Ben Kweller, Laswell released a sophomore effort in 2006, Through Toledo, that elevated his star further.