Who do you recommend?

I called upon Lizard McGee from Athens/Columbus quintessential band EARWIG to recommend any bright lights of Midwest indie rock are in their sites.
"Here are 3 of Earwig's favorite underground bands. We love them and you will too. Go buy their CDs and go see them when in concert," McGee suggests:

GONER- Raleigh, NC. (Editor's note: Technically not from the Midwest, but they are recommended by a Midwest band, so that kinda fits)
Goner take the dark pop secrets of the South and go all 'Are We Not DEVO' all over them. Comprised of just one mean drummer, one smart keyboardist and one frantic bass destroyer, this band covers more melodic landscape than other bands with twice as many members. There is NO guitar. Never had one, never needed one and NEVER will. With only a drum kit, a bass guitar and a retro, analog keyboard set-up, you may be asking what the heck they sound like. Just imagine Michael Stipe drunk on Irish whiskey and jamming out with Peter Hook on bass to some great, long-lost Replacements songs that
you've never heard before. Add a shot of spastic live awesomeness and you might get close. They tour constantly, have been around the block more than once and probably played in yr town 3 times since you started reading this. Now that you know the name, you've got no excuse but to drag yrself out to see them the next go round.
Goner Contact: HERE

THISTLE- Cincinnati, OH.
Ever wonder what Dinosaur Jr. would sound like if they were a little more forlorn, depressed and played even LOUDER? The answer is Thistle. Bred from the guitar jungles of Southern, Ohio and Kentucky these three young comrades in arms do it all. They run their own record label (Tiberius Records), record all of the music themselves and book all of their own tours.
They are the epitome of DIY gumption. The latest Thistle album has songs about Owls and War, heavy-ass guitar riffs, whiney (in a good way) vocals and tube amp guitar feedback squalls big enough to sink the Titanic. If Neil Young was a punk rock cowboy with a ... aw, fuck it. Thistle is good. Damn good.
Thistle contact: HERE

ZAPRUDER POINT- Chicago, IL.
Be it glorious lo-fi pop hooks or hi-fi guitar redemptions backed by violin and sparse instrumentation, Dan Zapruder is that lonely lamenter that you have longed for. He has been desrcibed as Paul Simon meets Bob Pollard.
Though he rarely ventures far from his Chicago home, he is worth seeking out. Songs about meeting girls, missing girls and drinking coffee with girls on the morning after. Dan has a great and dour, individual voice. Not just the sound of his voice, but his voice as in the things he writes about and how he writes about them. He has other albums, but the 4 track genius
of his double CD 'Low Resolution' is just about as perfect as it gets.
Zapruder Point contact: HERE,
and HERE