Summer Camp - "Around The Moon"

Per Marnie, "I would like 2011 to sound like this song (and I'd have no problems with it looking like the video either)." I don't know where Marnie finds this stuff but I am blessed to have her in my life.

xoxo

Holmes - "There'll Be No Christmas Without You"

To be perfectly honest, I loath most Christmas music. I will do the majority of my Christmas shopping online simply because going into stores playing Christmas music on a never-ending loop makes me want to buy everyone earplugs and vodka as gifts. For that reason, I am constantly on the lookout for "acceptable" Christmas tunes. For example, Leon Redbone's album Christmas Island? Fantastic. Julian Casablancas' jam "I Wish It Was Christmas Today"? Solidly listenable. Jessie Baylin's sexy "Mrs. Christmas"? Very nice. Robert Earl Keen's "Merry Christmas From The Family"? Legend! Probably the best. I suppose we can now throw Holmes' "There'll Be No Christmas Without You" (mp3) in there. A little sappy, but it sure beats "Jingle Bells" on repeat. You almost forget that it is a Christmas song, which is the way Christmas songs should play out. Any other suggestions?

The Acid House Kings - "Are We Lovers Or Are We Friends?"

Pure pop fans rejoice, the Acid House Kings are coming out with a new album, Music Sounds Better with You. Apparently the band describes the new album as "sharper, catchier and livelier". That's hard to believe since their music is already extremely catchy and lively. They also claim that “it’s got castanets on every single song.” Judging from "Are We Lovers Or Are We Friends?" (mp3), that seems to be a good thing.

Miike Snow - "Animal" (Video)

"I change shapes just to hide in this place, but I'm still, I'm still an animal / Nobody knows it but me when I slip, yeah I slip, I'm still an animal."

Awww! I love quirky little Swedish indie pop musicians that make sunny, infectious singles that brighten up an otherwise gloomy winter day. With a lead singer that looks like a slightly more dateable version of Sebastien Tellier, Miike Snow reminds me of how exciting it can be to explore eponymous debut albums. Is it going to suck? Are they going to be my new favorite band? Both are unknown to me right now, but "Animal" just may be the most adorable single I've heard all year. It's a catchy, bite-sized morsel of indie goodness that makes me want to slap hands, kiss babies, and enjoy an ice cream cone at a ticker tape parade that feels like it's all happening just for me. And the video is simply delightful, unabashedly cutesy, and features colorful visuals and masks for animal lovers everywhere, particularly this girl who absolutely loves boys who love animals.

Enjoy the video for the feel-good song of the season:

They Live By Night - They Live By Night (2009)

Don't be shocked if you can't get They Live By Night's "Ctrl+Alt+Del My Heart" out of your head. As far as I am concerned it has unseated Peter, Bjorn and John's "Young Folks" as indie pop's reigning whistling ear worm. It's the standout track on their poptastic new self-titled album, which is jam packed with unrelenting bouncy, upbeat pop. Not surprisingly, it's catchy as hell. "Catching Up" kicks the album off at a runners pace with more whistles, strings and wistful love. It rarely lets down after that. "Meaningless Repair" finds the middle ground between the Spinners and the Beach Boys. There are a lot of opportunities for singing along, but the chorus on "Excuse My Troubling You" is one of my favorites. The moody and melancholy may want to go elsewhere for their summer jams.

Soundtrack of our Lives - Communion (2009)

24 songs is a lot of songs, but hey, TSOOL make some of the most consistently enjoyable retro psych garage rock and 2002's Behind The Music was awesome. With that many songs, there was bound to be a couple clunkers, but overall, it's another solid album in a genre I seem never to get tired of listening to. It's full of power chords, chanted choruses and, well, rocking out - or at least those are the songs I like best. If you hate Oasis or Ocean Colour Scene, this probably isn't for you. What the hell is up with that album art?

Sad Day For Puppets - Unknown Colors (2008)

The album opens with a ringing guitar and sweet and smokey female vocals. The songs are catchy, classic and well, Swedish, a country more known for the quality of their pop and ability to fill songs with hooks than their innovation. Albums like this make a strong argument that innovation takes a back seat to craft.

The songs remind me of the glory days of Brit pop and revisit the better qualities of 90's shoe gaze and indie pop, but do it so well that the songs feels fresh, if not essential. Anna Eklund's pretty voice, with it's flat and hushed delivery, barely rides above the waves of guitar. The obvious connections are to the Concretes, Catatonia, Saint Etienne, and Echobelly. Which, come to think of it, would be make a wonderfully nostalgic mix. Someone should get on that. "Cherry Blossom", "Shiny Teeth And Sharpened Claws", and ""Romans" are my favorites.

Cranewife's Top 5 Summer Spectacular

1. Jens Lekman- Night Falls Over Kortedala (2007). Doo-wop-y, sweet, self conscious music. Bonus internet fun: "A Postcard to Nina" live video featuring Jens and a ukelele.





2. The Lost Patrol/ The Lost Patrol Band/ Invasionen. Lead singer of Refused and The (International) Noise Conspiracy sings poppy break-up songs. Apparently they keep getting sued, thus the name changes.



3. Cover songs. Done right they can be mind blowing. See: Mark Kozelek's "What's Next to the Moon" (2001) (yes, AC/DC) or Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey (2005).





4. The great nation of Sweden. Currently providing me with almost all of the music I listen to.







5. Falling asleep to music. A classic now and forever. Current favorites: Joy Division-Unknown Pleasures (1979), Shout Out Louds-Our Ill Wills (2007), any Sigur Ros.

They Live By Night - Art And Wealth (2007)

They Live By Night make excellent indie pop, employing the now classic indie rock sounds of strummed guitars, strained vocals, and catchy choruses. The best songs, like "Truth or Dare" or "Factory" are propelled forward by anxious vocals and tense drumming. However, bop-bop-ba-da-da backing vocals never let the songs become too bitter. Like quite a few Swedish bands before them, they are comfortable mining the last 30 years of pop music for ideas and sounds (a little Beach Boys here, a little alt. rock there) and then combining them into something fresh and interesting, if not completely new.