Alright, cool, let's do this.

I'm all about interacting with bands. I volunteer at a local radio station, I write album reviews and the occasional article for (wow, what I just realised is a) national magazine. I love music and am really into the local scene here. But those connections aren't necessary at all - spending a whole heap of time on twitter etc (well, probably not even that much time, but I do it anyway because it's fun and whatever) helps.

But anyway, recommendations time. Aside from bandcamp and your local tags and stuff in your area (which is always the best way to go), here are some bands I follow quite closely:

Dyaltov - indie folk (well, what once was folk and is now being heavily influenced by electronica, post-rock, and jazz). Good friend of mine, been writing under that name for a good three years now (I actually produced his first EP, which he then recalled). Relatively active on twitter but not as much as he should be.

Farah Loux - more indie folk, but very different. Really cool stuff, really nice people, also somewhat active on the webs.

Mali Mali - again, indie folk (yeah, there's a trend there. big local scene) but a bit more singer-songwriter-y, with some cool electronic influences on some tracks.

The dudes at Dadstache are nice, their site is regularly updated and they're pretty active on twitter. Manage some really great acts, too, like Skirts (sweet indie surf rock stuff).

The Basement Tapes is an electronic producer that I love, released his first EP this year and has released some great remixes and tracks since. Pretty active on twitter, and a really nice guy.

Tom Dickins, from Australia, does some cool piano-based stuff (was/is in the Jane Austen Argument, if you've heard of them).

That's just a few, there are a heap more I follow and obviously even more out there. I'm currently trying to find more local-but-not-*my*-local bands for a radio show I have starting next month, so I'm on the hunt too. Bandcamp and social media is the way for that, and getting out there and going to gigs is the way for finding local bands.