ENTERTAINMENT REALM

A Fine Frenzy, One Cell in the Sea
Ethereal, moody, moving.

The Shins, Wincing the Night Away

Jesca Hoop, Kismet
Tom Waits is a fan of this singer/songwriter. Jangly rhythms and melding of classic sounds with fresh updates [folky/pop]. The angelic-voiced Hoop has an impressive vocal range too.

Amy Winehouse, Back to Black
Gutteral, resonant. The girl can sing despite her tabloid antics.

Great Northern, Trading Twilight for Daylight
Very indie band. You can picture them criss-crossing the country in a van playing clubs with sticky floors.

Norah Jones, Not Too Late.
Jones has such a soothing voice, this is the CD I put on to go to sleep. And that’s a good thing. I like the mellow stuff.

Bloc Party, A Weekend in the City
Energetic live. One of the best shows I saw this year [not that I managed to get to many]. The single I Still Remember is still fabulous: encompassing hope and nostalgia at once.

The Fiery Furnaces, Widow City
Really eclectic, experimental in style, arrangement and sound. Noise rock.

Radiohead, In Rainbows
I didn’t pay for the download. But I did interview them for The Bends in 1995. This brings them back to their roots, so to speak, and is a collection of solid pop songs.

Feist, The Reminder
Unless you live in a box, you’ve heard the iPod commercial with 1234. She’s singing what you’re thinking. Unique voice and thoughtful lyrics. Reminds me quite a bit of Dido. Particularly like: My Moon My Man, How My Heart Behaves and Honey Honey.

PJ Harvey, White Chalk
This is the first album of PJ Harvey’s that I have really, really loved. I liked some of her songs in the past but this entire album remains so intimate. Stripped down Broken Harp could easily be my theme song right now.

Wilco, Sky Blue Sky
I got a huge crush on Jeff Tweedy after seeing the Wilco documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart about the making of an album I love, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, but hadn’t heard much else before then.

St. Vincent, Marry Me
Cool arrangements and haunting vocals. Playing Middle East in Cambridge, Mass. on March 1.

Cowboy Junkies, At the End of Paths Taken
Great for a rainy days and Sundays. Still Lost is stunning.

Interpol, Our Love to Admire
Sexy vocals and just cool, grooving beats. Fabulous rock band.

Charlotte Gainsbourg, 5:55
Actress/singer and daughter of jazz musician/singer Serge Gainsbourg and actress Jane Birkin [of Blow-Up and Birkin-bag fame], this is dreamy and achingly beautiful. Put The Science of Sleep on your netflix queue too. And she keeps her French-ness intact making it all the more chic. [Which reminds me of one of my favorite 90s bands, Ivy, with French-born lead singer Dominique Durand.

The White Stripes, Icky Thump