During the mid-2000s, the Long Blondes carved out a singular spot in the U.K. music scene. Not only were their songs spunky, punky nuggets of nervy attitude and sparkling melody, but their visuals added loads of thrift shop glamour. Led by Kate Jackson's megaphonic vocals and Dorian Cox's knack for whipping up memorable tunes, their early singles and debut album, 2006's Someone to Drive You Home, are time capsule-worthy examples of a band firing on all cylinders. Their second album, 2008's Couples, took a detour into frigid new wave territory -- the guideposts were disco Blondie instead of early Blondie -- and then it was all over due to illness. Though the group's career was short, it was indelible, and anyone looking for a clue as to what the mid-2000s had to offer musically at their best could do worse than checking the Long Blondes out.