Howie Day: "So Stung"

I will admit that he's a bit generic, and the lyrics are odd ... but I like this song and still prefer his voice to Ryan Tedder's (One Republic) and Isaac Slade's (The Fray).

Ellie Goulding: "Starry Eyed"

If you haven't yet heard of Ellie Goulding, then I'm here to tell you about her. She is yet another musical sensation hailing from the UK. She's sort of on the electro-pop bandwagon (her backing beats), but her music is lyrical and sweet - and her voice is definitely unique. I just got her new album ("Lights") and I'm in love.

Harlem Shakes- "Sunlight"

Great upbeat song, love the metronome sound.

"I had a coat of many colors
sold it off online
and now I duck my older brothers
'neath a longleaf pine"

Biblical reference anyone?

Butch Walker: "Pretty Melody"

This is the such a cutesy song. It's complete bubble gum pop. But I like it. You need some sugary sweetness in your life sometimes.

Alphabeat: "DJ (I Could Be Dancing)"

How could anyone ever hate Alphabeat? They are just so darn cute. And it doesn't hurt that their music is fun to listen to (and great for a gym playlist)! They are also fantastic live, I had the pleasure of seeing them in March down at Santos Party House in NYC.

Diane Birch: "Valentino"

I guess it's safe to say I'm pretty into indie pop these days, especially the female talent. I just randomly came across this song from Diane Birch and thought it was worth a share. And I love the juxtaposition of an upbeat melody with melancholy lyrics.

Jose Gonzalez: "Hints"

I love this song so much, it's so soothing and beautiful. It probably one of my favorite songs by him. The lyrics are great as well, short but oh so sweet...

"While the crowd is waiting for the final kiss, the one which allows them to sleep well, we walk along the wrong path, the one which lead us to our own blessed."

Vienna Teng: "1br/1ba"

Great song. I love the way the lyrics are done:

"1br/1ba hrdwd flrs w/vw of trees. 1br/1ba prkg space 4 xtra fee. my little flock of boxes and I surrounded by a painted-white unknown. soon as this wall in my heart comes down, I'm gonna make it feel like home. 1br/1ba: A/C was fine 'til yesterday. 1br/1ba: 89 degrees today. my upstairs neighbors are making sounds that I never want to hear. I hope they're just moving furniture around, and really liking their ideas."

Ray LaMontagne: "Trouble"

Still obsessed with this. This song just gets better and better every time I listen to it!

Aloe Blacc: "I Need A Dollar"

This is the single "I Need A Dollar" from Aloe Blacc's forthcoming album, "Good Things". How apropos for this day and age for this song to come out. Nick-named the "indie R. Kelly", Aloe's voice is so soulful, you cant help but listen to the song over and over. I especially like the split-screen and black and white vs. color (blue tinted) screens. This goes on until about 2:31 when the song changes course and the screen goes into color and eventually a red-tint. Love that the director thought about those things. What do you think it means?

Greg Laswell: "Take Everything"

"Take Everything" is the first single off of Laswell's new album, "Take A Bow". Look for it on May 4th. His soothing voice and catchy melodies drew me to him from the get-go, and I'm sure you'll feel just the same.

Listen to the song and check out the video - the most charming part about it is that there aren't a whole lot of effects, but it's still eye-catching. And, as Laswell wrote on his Facebook page, "If I had known I was going to have to learn how to sing the song backwards for the video I would've written it quite differently... and with a lot of 'oohs' and 'ahs'." See what he means below:

On The Rocks: "Bad Romance" (University of Oregon Acapella Group)

A fantastic rendition of "Bad Romance" with a little bit of her other songs thrown in. This totally makes me want to learn the dance.

And, if it were up to me, I'd have had the guy in the pink shirt singing lead throughout - what was with the guy in the black? His weak falsetto ruined my favorite part of the song. What do you think?

Countess LuAnn de Lesseps: "Money Can't Buy You Class"

Thanks to this post, I finally got the opportunity to listen to The Real Housewives of New York's very own Countess LuAnn de Lesseps' single. And, trust me, it will be tearing up the charts very soon. (The Bottom 40, that is.)

Behind the distracting auto-tune, you'll find a non-catchy melody, poor vocals, and plenty tips for being a classy lady. Such as not texting when you're out at dinner, and holy hell... what is this crap?!? I mean, really, c'mon! Listen here and see for yourself.

Sia: "Clap Your Hands"

I just can't get enough of this song (and video). It's catchy, it's kooky, it's totally Sia. And it's from her forthcoming album, being released in early June 2010.

What do you think?

Caring Means Sharing

If you're like me, then you're probably familiar with these scenarios too:

"Hey Mel - check out this YouTube video I found - it's off the chain!"

"Here -  I made you a mix tape from my favorite oldies station." 

"I packed an 8G flash drive full of monk chants for you." 

But why share new music the old-fashioned way?

Our conventional forms of sharing just aren't doing it for me anymore - especially since I don't like sweating to the oldies or listening to (too much) monk chanting. Mix tapes are obsolete, flash drives just plain silly, and emailing links isn't cutting it anymore. 

So we've created this public forum to share what we like. 

And guess what we like? 
(HINT: Keep reading.)