[Coachella 2011 Artist Spotlights] KROQ Favorites, Part 1:Brandon Flowers, The Aquabats, Cage The Elephant, Mumford & Sons

We have mad love for many of the Coachella 2011 artists, but some bands are just heads above the rest when it comes to having massive air play on KROQ and appealing to our listeners.

We highlight some of the classic and current KROQ favorites playing at Coachella, including Brandon Flowers, The Aquabats, Cage The Elephant, Mumford & Sons, and more in the coming weeks.

KROQ Favorite #1: Brandon Flowers

Photo by Scott Barbour//Getty Images

Nuevo-indie rocker and stylish ladykiller, Brandon Flowers, is the lead singer of huge KROQ band, The Killers. Originally from Las Vegas, Flowers and his band mates began to officially craft The Killers’ signature brand of new wave revivalist pop in 2002, eventually leading the band to mass success with hits like “Mr. Brightside,” “When You Were Young” and four full-length albums. Flowers had his fair share of media notoriety for his controversial comments about the music industry and other bands.

Ripe with fame, fatherhood, and the unfortunate loss of his mother, Flowers was inspired to pursue a solo career while The Killers were on haitus, releasing Flamingo in 2010 and playing the 2010 KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas. With his solo sound having the same icy atmospheric instrumentation as many of The Killers songs, highlighted by deeper lyrics and U2-ish power piano, songs like Flowers’ “Crossfire” became huge successes.

KROQ Favorite #2: The Aquabats

Photo by Alberto Rodruiguez//Getty Images

Super silly (and “super rad”) ska-punk band from the seaside city of Huntington Beach, The Aquabats are an old-school KROQ favorite from the halcyon days in the late-90s when ska-punk synthpop bands like Save Ferris, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Reel Big Fish were popular. Starting in 1996, the Aquabats have put out five full-length albums, including their most recent endeavour, Hi-Five Soup!, on Fearless Records.

One of the biggest appeals of the Aquabats, beyond their infectious sound, is their mythological superhero story about them being from an island called Aquabania on which humanoid bats i.e. the Aquabats. The band has seen a lot of line-up changes, which apparently plays into part of the mythology of the heroic Aquabats and their travails against the evil villains on Aquabania.

KROQ Favorite #3: Cage The Elephant

Photo by Karl Walter//Getty Images

Kentucky-quintet, Cage The Elephant, have practically taken over KROQ with their sexy, addictive blues-rock hit, “Ain’t No Rest For The Wicked” for a while now.  After playing at the 2007 SXSW Music Festival in Austin, Cage The Elepant traveled to the UK and signed to a British label called Reckless Records. Cage The Elephant has two albums out, including recently released  Thank You, Happy Birthday.

Check out our interview with them and an awesome live acoustic performance.

KROQ Favorite #4: Mumford & Sons

• What bands do you consider KROQ favorites? Let us know in the comments!