Music break

I’ve been listening to Nickel Creek almost non-stop this week. And I. just. can’t. break. the spell.

Over the last couple years the trio has become one of my go-to bands during stressful times. And it’s been one of those weeks.

Here’s hoping their hiatus doesn’t last much longer.

Worth watching and hearing …
This Side and Speak.

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We have a new favorite song in our household.

“Good Time” by Owl City, featuring the one and only Carly Rae Jepsen.

It’s so fitting. With Phoebe's help, Owl City has inspired dozens of memorable sing-alongs and dance parties in our house. And Carly Rae nabbed Gotye’s hold on the “it” song with her summer smash, “Call Me Maybe” (Remember, this song was so hot, everybody from Cookie Monster to the U.S. swimming team was spinning it.)

I heard “Good Time” for the first time a few weeks ago and was hooked after one listen. I played it for Phoebe and Kates that night and hooked them, too. Then it was all over NBC’s promos for the Today Show during the Olympics.

Phoebe calls it “The Camping Song.” Watch the video and you’ll understand why.

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The honorable mention for recent hits goes to Fun’s “Some Nights,” which has me lamenting the missed opportunity to see them at Summerfest this year.

Plus, I love the take WTMX – which remains a staple of my morning routine, thanks to the wonders of internet streaming – had on the song. Watch.

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Oh, but there’s another song rising fast for the fall.

Check out Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together. It’s got an Avril Lavigne vibe with sort of a Kelly Clarkson pop-rock hook. I love it.

Song spotting

So my song of the week -- the last two weeks, actually -- is Owl City's "Deer in the Headlights."

Truth be told, I was disappointed the first time I heard the song last spring. It was Owl City's newest single since the smash "Fireflies" two years ago. I wanted "Deer in the Headlights" to be the same kind of Owl City dreamy escape song that "Fireflies" was.

But in recent weeks, it's grown on me in a super way. With its powerful, pumping, head-banging synth hooks. Turns out it evokes some escapism after all.

I'm so into it that it's got me thinking of other songs with similar synth-heavy, thumping beats. It's inspired me to create a new iPod playlist; the working title is "Passion." Thinking off the top of my head, this playlist also should include Passion Pit's "Little Secrets" and MGMT's "Time to Pretend."

Although, I don't think the "Deer" video elicits the same emotions, much less matches the vibe of the song, the way the "Fireflies" video did so successfully ... Then again, as I watch both videos now, neither of them really make any sense.



"Fireflies," you may remember got a lot of play time in our house during the fall of 2009 and the subsequent winter. So much that while I was away that winter and Phoebe heard it on the radio, she began calling it "Daddy's song." ... So this newest obsession has rekindled a lot of those memories and emotions, and put me on an Owl City kick ...

Tonight, I stumbled on this charmer -- a live performance of "Fireflies" from last June -- that made me smile. And it totally had me wishing I could have caught them when they passed through Summerfest just days later.



(UPDATE: 11:34 a.m., 10.15.2011)

My Owl City kick provoked one of our epic dance  parties this morning ...

And Phoebe surprised me by singing along  to the chorus of "Deer in the Headlights." When I pulled out the video camera, however, she began concentrating more on her dance moves than the singing ...

Fireflies

Once again, I started my morning with “Fireflies.” Started my car and the song was playing on the radio.

For weeks now, any day I’ve heard that song, it knocks out all the anxiety of this uprooting / confusing / new adventure -- if even for just a few minutes. Better yet, there have been a few days recently that have started with me hearing the song on my drive to work -- and again during my drive home. I won’t deny the song is overplayed …

But I was mesmerized the minute I first heard the song, seeing the video on VHI. Laughing and dancing (and jumping, really) around our house with Phoebe as we listened to it. And now, months later, I still can’t get enough of that song.

I’ve since added Owl City’s “Maybe I’m Dreaming” and “Of June” albums to my collection, and I’ve been listening to all of them regularly … Sure, the songs are frothy and caked with Auto-tune -- which, understandably, might drive some listeners crazy … But the music also has a dreamy, whimsical quality that will suck me in every time. “The Saltwater Room” and any other song that features Breanne Düren only enhances the experience. And there’s no denying Adam Young has some creative chops -- even if his music sounds an awful lot like Postal Service.

Every time I hear “Fireflies,” it gives me just the kick I need to get through the next project. Like a Mountain Dew. Of which I had two cans today. I’m reverting back to my college tendencies. Maybe that comes with working in the college environment. I’m so bad.

Perhaps I’ve fallen so hard for the song because it reminds me of the plethora of fireflies that dance through our backyard every summer night. I’d never seen so many fireflies -- consistently -- in one place; I could sit on our deck for hours just to watch them flicker in every corner … And believe it or not, that -- of all the things -- is one of the things I will most about our little house.

The little things in life.

Fireflies

My favorite song -- and video! -- of the week ...