Flashguns

While many bands form in college, few outlive their college days and go on to perform at prominent festivals and receive acclaim; but, hey, Flashguns did. Formed at the University of Sussex, in Brighton, the UK quartet wears its education on its musical sleeve, filling its introspective pop with literary references and nods to The Cure, The Smiths and modern Britpop. Highly ambitious, the group managed to secure a spot on the BBC stage at the Leeds Festival in 2008 and has since grown a fan base that appreciates the band's refusal to conform to a specific modern music style or scene.