I think I have found the great hope of English music and their name is Yndi Halda (means Enjoy Eternal Bliss, also the name of their new release). Hailing from Canterbury they mine the same shaft as Explosions in The Sky, but comparisons aside they stamp their own sound on their music which is truly epic in sound and size. They recently released a four song EP on Big Scary Monsters. The shortest song clocks in at 11.46, but their subtle textures and epic peaks will easily hold your attention. When instrumental music truly works it can strangely and subtly elevate itself to a singular beauty. And this music does work.
Please listen here-
MP3: Dash and Blast

Jagjaguwar is a label that rarely gets it wrong. Black Mountain, Okkervil River, Minus Story, Oneida are recent good examples. The Besnard Lakes new record sounds exciting too. Coming in March, Odawas (from Indiana) release "Raven and The White Night" and if this track is any indication it looks to be special. I could try to put into words how it makes me feel but this Pitchfork description is more than apt.
"Alleluia"'s drawn-out moments of suspension owe as much to My Morning Jacket's astral hymns as to Grizzly Bear's recent experiments with space and texture, but its funereal drums remain steadfast throughout, as if the band were marching toward a lonesome, dust swept canyon, headed for a slow and certain doom."
MP3: Alleluia

Some really catchy music from California that I can recommend.
The Morning Benders. They have a new EP coming out soon called "Boarded Doors". If you like melodies that don't quit and music that keeps that summery mood going then this band might be for you. If you like this track you can discover more here.
MP3: Damnit Anna

The Attachments hail from Berkeley. A four piece, their music is pop to the extreme and their debut EP shows a lot of promise. You can check out some tracks at their My Space.
I can especially recommend "F Train Girl".