She & Him - I Could've Been Your Girl

She & Him's Volume 3 continues to grow on me more and more with every listen.  The new music video for "I Could've Been Your Girl" only helps the cause.  This Zooey Deschanel directed video is full of retro group dancing, random bike kicking, and an overly colorful wardrobe.  Take notice of the guy wearing the yellow pants at 1:29.  He's hard to miss.

Volume 3 is out now on Merge Records.  Go here if you still need to buy a copy.

She & Him - Never Wanted Your Love

Zooey Deschanel, the queen of all things quirky, has returned to music!  It's been way too long since we've heard some new non-Christmas music from She & Him.  Deschanel and M. Ward have kept their signature feel-good vibes and bundled it all together for "Never Wanted Your Love".  There's a sweeping string section and plenty of throwback melodies.  It's exactly what you would expect from the duo and that's what makes it so lovable.

"Never Wanted Your Love" is available for download at this very moment and you can grab it here.  Their third album, appropriately titled Volume 3, will be out May 7 on Merge Records.  You can pre-order the album through She & Him's website or everyone's favorite internet store, Amazon.

If I Could Turn Back Time... To 2010

Calm down, I'm not going all Cher on you, but it's that time of year again.  "Best Of" lists are swarming the internet as every website, blog, or magazine declares their favorite music of 2011.  Before I get to my favorite albums of this year, I wanted to take a step back into the yesteryear of 2010.  At the end of last year, I wrote a pair of posts ranking my twelve favorite records.  For the most part I still love every album included on the list, but countless album are released in the span of a year and opinions change.  Records slip the mind, and you don't realize how crucial of a mistake you've made until almost a year later.  That's exactly what happened to me as I looked back on my 2010 list.  I'd like to dedicate this post the the albums of 2010 that I overlooked and truly deserve to be called some of the best.

First up is Volume Two by She & Him.  While Zooey and M. Ward are currently spreading the Christmas spirit with their latest release, Volume Two is a quirky collection of pop songs.  Zooey Deschanel is the definition of "quirky" and M. Ward is the perfect balance.  This album is something that you could play and somehow manage to satisfy every generation.  Grandma loves the retro vibe, while the kids sing along to the incredibly infectious melodies.

Next would be Special Affections by Diamond Rings.  I found this gem a little late.  Canada's John O'Regan crafted an album that really changes the classification of genres and genders.  The music is minimal, yet fills the room better than your average dance beat.  Is it pop or rock?  His voice certainly isn't one of your usual high-pitched wailer and his flamboyant image says the opposite.  I love this record and can't wait to hear what he does next.

The third album is Swanlights by Antony And The Johnsons.  Every single time I've played one of Antony Hegarty's songs for a listener who has never heard him before, they've always had an instant reaction.  Sometimes the reaction is less than welcoming, but Antony always makes an impact.  His vibrato is unforgettable and his music is haunting.  His debut album contains some of the most honest lyrics I've ever heard, and Swanlights doesn't disappoint.

As I take a final reflection on my 2010 list, I wonder to myself how this album isn't on it.  Brothers by The Black Keys.  I really can't find a flaw with Brothers.  It's about as soulful as rock music will ever be.  The duo just released their follow-up album, El Camino, this week.  After listening to it, I wanted to go back and hear Brothers once again.  If you haven't given this record a spin, I highly recommend you make time for it.

Check back later this month for a list of my favorite albums from 2011.

She & Him - In The Sun

Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward are the indie pop duo, She & Him.  The two create jingly pop songs in a style that you don't find nowadays.  Most of their songs are happy and cute.  Deschanel plays the piano while Ward primarily plays the guitar.  Although "She" takes on the position of lead vocalist, you can still hear some backup vocals from "Him".  The duo's unique style of music came to the attention of music critics everywhere when they released their debut effort, Volume One.  From the sound of this single, Volume Two will be just as enjoyable.

"In The Sun" is driven by a classic sounding piano riff.  Underneath the riff is the sound of a muted guitar.  The combination of the two, together, creates a great pace for the track.  The steady verses then lead into the chorus.  The chorus is so much bigger than the verses.  Deschanel soothes, "It's alright, it's okay...", to create the uplifting energy of the song.  The single is short and sweet, at just under three minutes.  The length adds to the peppy aroma that the song has captured.

If you need a "pick-me-up" song, then download "In The Sun".  It's especially fitting for the spring into summer time of the year.  The full album, Volume Two, is released on March 23.  I would look forward to it if you enjoy pop music, but not along the lines of Lady Gaga or Taylor Swift.  She & Him is pop music that the young and old alike can enjoy.

New Playlist

Once again, it's time for another one of my awesome music playlists. In case you didn't see my last few, two to be exact, this is basically just a list of music I'm listening to. But now, I have an official poster for it (look to the left)! Some of it might be new and some may be old. No restrictions at all. Maybe you should try listening to some of it, or all of it. Previous playlists have included artists such as The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Paramore, All Time Low, Bon Iver, Regina Spektor, and the list could go on and on forever. Anyway, that's enough explaining, here's the awesome music playlist.

The Clash - The Singles

Here's an album I picked up about a week ago. It's a compilation album of the Clash's singles. From hits such as London Calling and Rock The Casbah to some songs I had never heard (Hitsville U.K.?). The CD ranges from the punk side to the poppy side of the band. I'm really enjoying White Riot and Clash City Rockers. The album even came in an eco-friendly case, if you care about that sorta thing...

Imogen Heap - Ellipse

I've already been praising this album. If you read my review, you'll know this by now. I'm still listening to it every day. I've found that Tidal and Between Sheets have become some of my favorites on the disc. The thing that really catches my attention is all of the layers in every song. It takes several listens to catch every sound.

Now that I have the albums out of the way, here's some singles...

Yeah Yeah Yeah's - Heads Will Roll
Almost as awesome as Zero. Strange lyrics, though ("Off with your head - Dance 'till you're dead").

IAMX - My Secret Friend (feat. Imogen Heap)
If you enjoyed the Imogen Heap album, then you should check out this song. It's off of IAMX's album Kingdom Of Welcome Addiction. It's a cool song with an awesome beat. Plus, it's featuring Imogen. There's kind of an eerie feeling to it, but in a good way...

She And Him - Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want
This song is from the (500) Days Of Summer soundtrack. I honestly have never seen the movie and have no idea what the movie is about, but the song is good. It's really short and simple. She And Him is a duo made up of actress Zooey Deschanel and musician M. Ward. The song is actually a cover of The Smiths song by the same title.

...and that wraps up another awesome music playlist. Hopefully, you'll like some of the stuff I listed. It's a fairly varied list. It has some punk, electronic, alternative, and uh... whatever She And Him is considered (Maybe indie pop, leave a comment if you know).